Zarel Snowy Forest

Place

Place Name:

Zarel Snowy Forest

Biome:

Snowy Forest

Size:

Unknown

Continent:

Unknown

Subcontinent

Unknown

Geography

Zarel Snowy Forest is truly a sight to behold. The scenery is one that is once in a lifetime. It appears to be expertly crafted by a god. Within the forest itself are some beautiful landmarks; and outside the forest are some notable ones as well. The forest acts as a border to the Yaragha valley. It protects it from not just snow runoff, but also invaders that climb up the mountains. Scaling the tall mountains is one thing, but making it through the forest is another. The trees are tall and sharp. They protect the animals from hunters, and hunters from ambushes.

The mountain range that the forest resides on is wondrous. Four of the tallest peaks mark geographical direction. A peak to the north, south, east, and west. In between those peaks are smaller ones, and many of those peaks have caves located within them. Yaragha sits at the very center of the mountains, and it is well hidden. Not just by the Zarel Snowy Forest, but by the tall peaks as well. The taller peaks have snow on them throughout the entirety of the year, but on the smaller peaks the snow melts and lush greenery grows in its stead. Located both within the forest and the valley are various stone buildings and structures.

These are the ruins of the small zu’aan tribe that had made their way atop the mountain looking for asylum. These stone buildings are humble, and frankly, could hardly be called buildings. Many were crumbling and covered in overgrown shrubbery and vines. The ones that did remain showed signs that they had at one point been lived in. Some humble remnants of tools for cooking could be found near what could only be assumed to be a kitchen in these one room structures. The zu’aan ruins are what motivated the kin’toni to move into the valley and take over.

Some natural landmarks that are located in the Zarel Snowy Forest bring forth memories of its past. Various bodies of water, lakes and streams, had now fully formed in the forest. The lakes are small and quaint, but provide water for the animals and kin’toni that live in the valley. All the lakes are connected by a web of streams. One stream, rather river, flows all the way through the forest and into the valley. Towards the northern peak, a part of it had been permanently destroyed by the flood and had created a cliff. The river runs through the forest and to that cliffside where it tumbled over into a waterfall, and eventually a pool at the bottom.

It is grand and flows freely for most of the year. Other remains of non animal life are caves and mines. The caves are almost all naturally formed. The caves, however, would sometimes lead deep into the mountain, and into a kin’toni made mine. Some of the zu’aan had created a quaint little mines, but the kin’toni created much more efficient mines from the zu’aan’s humble beginnings.

Plants

The Zarel Snowy Forest is home to a variety of flora and fauna. The most common and obvious plant being the trees that make up the forest. Inpe etra is the tree that makes up the Zarel Snowy Forest. These trees grow tall and thick. They grow to be about 20 feet tall. On top of that, these trees take up their fair share of space. The inpe etra has green leaves that are pointy and sharp in composition. Branches start at the bottom of the trunk and climb all the way up to the top of the tree; with each branch having over 100 leaves. Despite the usual cold conditions atop the mountains, the Zarel Snowy Forest has a lot of vines that grow.

These vines were more than likely introduced after the flood, and became a rather invasive species, taking over on the parts of the mountain that weren’t covered in snow. The vines are dark green in color, and thick. The Elm’ess clan use the vines to hide valuables and secret locations; tunnels and military bases for example. Most vines that are seen grow on the mountain, as the inpe etra tree does not provide the right environment for the vines to grow on. Still, some vines can occasionally be seen on some of the dead inpe etra trees.

Another nonnative species, however not invasive, are the various shrubbery that make up the lush Zarel Snowy Forest. The zu’aan had brought with them very little to live on, but what they did bring would long outlive them. They brought various seeds, and when trying to establish the Yaragha valley as their own, they planted some seeds that would eventually grow into the “native” spices and herbs of the valley. Some time later, the Elm’ess clan brought some of seeds of their own. A combination of these various plants would create the official native spice of the valley: Elm’aan.

The Zarel Snowy Forest has always been a sight to behold. Besides the natural geography, the local wildflowers contributed to that fact. These flowers grew in various colors of the rainbow. These colors mirrored that various gems and crystals that could be found within the mountain. The flower that appeared to be golden when the sun would shine just perfectly on it was called “Dopra’s flower.” The red flower was promptly named “ru'yka,” the green flower “eth'ir,” and the grey flower “sh'ila.” These flowers were important to the Elm’ess people as they reinforce the idea of the Yaina Dopra’s royalty and “godliness” amongst turned kin’toni.

Zarel Snowy Forest might be a cold winter wonderland, but when one really looks at it, they can tell that the land is vibrant and beautiful. The lush forest are just the tip of the iceberg. While the trees are a sight to see, the wildflowers are the true gems of the land. The vines fill in the empty spaces of the forest, which helps reinforce the lush look of it. Anyone that steps foot into the forest is bewildered by its beauty.

Animals

In the Zarel Snowy Forest, the variety of animals is slim. Not a lot can make the climb to the top on its own, so the animals that do live atop the mountain were either brought there or have lived there for quite some time. Some non native animals are the cattle brought by the zu’aan. For a long time, before the Elm’ess clan, the cattle would roam the valley and lived a peaceful life. During the winter, they would go into caves to escape the cold. It was within these caves, and the long winters, that the cattle population grew to be large enough to sustain the eventual kin’toni population.

It is a good thing that the winters were mating season for the cattle. They were the main food source for the predators that lurked on the mountain top. A large predator that hibernated in the winter was one. The more population damaging predators were the kin’toni. After the Elm’ess clan had become established, a lot of the cattle were taken to farms to sustain the clan, but some wild cattle do still roam the snowy landscape. In the warmer months, a big creature call the yaertin would come out of hibernation. The yaertin is a large and hairy creature.

It has a big head fit with a large mouth. The yaertin is so large, that scaling the mountainside was an easy task; this also implies that only one thing can sustain it. When winter came, the cattle population grew. When summer came, the yaertin would feast on the cattle, as they were the only creatures that could really feed the yaertin. Yaertin can be rather harmless creatures when not hungry. They tend to keep to themselves, and rarely interact with both members of their own kind, as well as kin’toni. Other smaller animals do exist in the Zarel Snowy Forest.

These animals were not to the yaertin’s appetite, a notion very beneficial to them. Small creatures called snow zeg’ii existed on the mountain. They had white fur and powerful back legs that could launch them out of harms way. This evolutionary trait was developed during the flood, when zeg’ii had to jump high up the mountains to avoid being washed away. They feasted on the wildflowers, and found homes with in the inpe etra. Their small bodies were insulated with a lot of fur; this helped them survive the harsh winters in the forest.

Another small and notable creature is the quonsa. The quonsa stands at about 3 feet tall, has 3 large horns on its head, and has green fur. It is said that the quonsa is hard to find since it blends in with the trees and landscape so well. The quonsa feeds mostly on the non native shrubbery, but will occasionally feast on the dead zeg’ii, as food is hard to come by in the winter. They are not hunted, as they breed quickly and lose value with a large population.

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	Elm'ess Kin'toni Clan

Place

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Zarel Snowy Forest

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This article is written by Vanessa Margo. Copyright 2026 Vanessa Margo. All rights reserved.