Jetai Rainforest

Place

Place Name:

Jetai Rainforest

Biome:

Rainforest

Size:

Unknown

Continent:

Unknown

Subcontinent

Unknown

Geography

he Jetai Rainforest is a complicated region, filled with diverse life of all kinds. It can be divided into four different vertical layers, namely the Emergent Layer, the Canopy Layer, the Understory Layer, and the Forest Floor. The Forest Floor is the simplest layer. It is the bottom-most layer, and it receives about two% of sunlight. Because of the low sunlight penetration, this layer is actually relatively clear of vegetation. Areas with more exposure to sunlight, such as clearings, riverbanks, and swamps are filled with dense undergrowth.

In places where it grows, the dense undergrowth consists of vines, shrubs, and small trees. It also contains decaying plant and animal matter, which feed into the soil. This matter disappears quickly because of the warm and humid conditions. The Understory layer is between the Canopy and the Forest Floor. Only about 5% of sunlight reaches this layer through the Canopy, but that’s enough to allow a whole new variety of plants to thrive. The leaves are much larger here, and provide shelter and home to an abundance of insect life.

The Canopy Layer is roughly the area about thirty-sixty meters above the Forest Floor. It’s called the Canopy because it is more or less an continuous cover of foliage formed by adjacent treetops, covering the lower layers of the rainforest. Only at the height of the Xerea Empire have any zu'aan (besides the local tribes, of course) been able to explore the region, using a new field called dendronautics. The Canopy layer is home to the largest of the trees in the rainforest. Because of this dense area, it actually provides homes to an incredible amount of plant and animal life.

It is considered a world of its own because it holds so much diversity and interconnected ecosystems. The Emergent Layer is the highest layer, made up of the tallest trees that break out of the canopy (which is why it’s called the “Emergent” layer; these tall trees “emerge” out of the canopy). The trees in this layer can be as tall as 90 meters. They need to be able to withstand the strong winds and hot temperatures that occur above the Canopy. There may be other layers, but these four are the generally accepted layers among the explorer and scientific populations.

The local tribes prefer to live in tree villages. These villages are composed of tree houses, wooden walkways, and vines used as transportation between trees (either to swing or formed into bridges). zu'aan outsiders could travel an entire day on the ground and never see a single sign of the local tribes, though they might have walked under dozens of their structures. The villages are at varying heights, depending on the preference of the specific tribe, but almost all of them are in the Understory Layer. Some build closer to the Canopy, and others build closer to the Forest Floor.

Plants

Tere is an incredible variety of plant life in the rainforest. While there are many known species, there may well be millions of undiscovered species of plant life. The local tribes have learned which plants are poisonous, which plants are safe to eat, and which ones can be used for medicine or other purposes. If the pharmaceutical companies of the civilized zu'aan world had even a fraction of the knowledge that the local tribes do, they would have torn down the rainforest in their zeal to get the secret to the next best-selling drug, ironically destroying the habitat that grows these plants in the process.

The tribes have been very guarded about this information and wary of outsiders. They make use of all manner of natural moisturizers, lotions, and medicines. It is easiest to divide the plant life into the four different sections of the rainforest. Emergent Layer: Emergent trees are the largest of all of the trees in the rainforest. They emerge above the Canopy Layer. They must be particularly resilient and strong because they have to survive the high temperatures that rise from the rest of the rainforest and from the sun above.

They must also be able to withstand the strong winds that periodically pass through the region. Emergent trees absorb the bulk of adverse weather conditions, protecting the lower layers of the rainforest. Canopy Layer: Some estimates say that 50 percent of all plant life is in this layer. The trees are just the foundation for the Canopy. Epiphytic plants attach themselves to the trees, absorbing nutrients from the rain and debris that collect on the supporting plants. There has been minimal exploration into the true depths of this layer, so there may be plants which are unlike anything found anywhere else.

Understory Layer: The leaves of the trees are much larger at this layer. It is here that the seedlings of many Canopy plants first grow. Because of the density of the plant life that grows here, sometimes it is called the shrub layer, though the minority of zu'aan scientists regard the shrub layer is its own distinct layer. Forest Floor: Only plants adapted to low light can survive here. The dominant form of plant life here is a proliferation of fungi. The fungi help keep the Forest Floor clean by breaking down and consuming the decaying plant and animal matter that falls from above.

Once a zu'aan explorer breaks through the thick vines and brush that are at the edges of the rainforest, they would be surprised to find out just how clear the Forest Floor actually is.

Animals

There is an incredible variety of animal life in the rainforest. While there are many known species, there are many undiscovered species. The local tribes have learned how to live in harmony with the animals, so that each does not interfere with the other. The animals respect the territory of the zu'aan (their villages), and the tribes move through the rainforest without disturbing the homes of the animals. The tribes know which animals are poisonous, and have developed antidotes as well as weapons to use those poisons (such as with a blow gun and blow darts).

It is easiest to divide the animal life into the four different sections of the rainforest. Emergent Layer: The dominant species that inhabit this layer are eagles, butterflies, bats, and certain monkeys. It takes a specialized sort of creature to live in these conditions. Canopy Layer: The animals that live here are similar to the ones in the Emergent Layer, but more diverse. This means that a very large variety of birds live here. Bats and owls rule the night. Canopy Layer: The animals that live here are similar to the ones in the Emergent Layer, but more diverse.

This means that a very large variety of birds live here. Bats and owls rule the night. r undocumented species living here. Understory Layer: This layer is home to many of the animals that society has come to expect to see in rainforests, which are well adapted to the complicated terrain. The other primary kinds of animals are the bird like varu and yuzu, the snake like hauii, and lizard like ganyu. To list the entire diversity of animals here would takes pages, and even then it wouldn’t be a comprehensive list. Forest Floor: While many animals will visit this layer, very few actually live here.

Most of the animals that live in the Understory layer can look down and see potential prey walking on the Forest Floor. The only animals that live in this layer are the ones that are not adapted to climbing and living in the trees. Some burrow beneath the ground, and others have adapted to living among the fungus forests. The larger animals include predators such as the enrik, the bat-lynx-like enyik, and the amamai. The river Narr has animals such as the large-eyed avainni, the blue-scaled hoai and the fish-like veriv., or somehow escaped to continue to live as zu'aan .

Historical Timeline of Ages

Age Name	Dates	Controller
Stone Age	Before 1E 0	Unknown
Copper Age	1E 1–1E 2200	Unknown
Bronze Age	1E 2200–1E 4400	Unknown
Iron Age	2E 0–2E 700	Unknown
Ancient Age	2E 700–2E 2200	Unknown
Middle Age	3E 0–3E 2050	Unknown
Early Modern Age	3E 2050–3E 2600	Unknown
Industrial Age	3E 2600–3E 2700	Unknown
Machine Age	3E 2700–3E 2800	Unknown
Atomic Age	3E 2800–3E 2850	Unknown
Space Age	3E 2850–3E 2875	Unknown
Information Age	3E 2875–3E 2900	Unknown
Genetic Age	3E 2950–3E 3000	Unknown
Awakening Age	3E 3000–3E 3415	Unknown
Twilight Age	4E 0–4E 500	Tanarim Kin'toni Clan

Place

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Jetai Rainforest

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This article is written by Toothymcfang. Copyright 2026 Toothymcfang. All rights reserved.