Zestkyer Boreal Plateau

Place

Place Name:

Zestkyer Boreal Plateau

Biome:

Boreal Plateau

Size:

Unknown

Continent:

Unknown

Subcontinent

Unknown

Geography

The Zestkyer Boreal Plateau is a region that is split between the upper level and the lower level. Originally the first civilization in the area was built connecting the two elevations through the structures of their city. The city had elevator like lifts that would quickly transport them between the levels. When the region was caught in between a war though, the city was completely destroyed. The city was made using wood support in everything, so by the time that the Ther made their way there the remnants of the city were all lost to decay and rot. The Ther made their homes at the top of the hill, allowing them better vantage for watching their territory. At the tallest part of the hill the Ther built their main watchtower with their military barracks underneath.

Their homes were built using the rock clay and gravel to create bricks for their homes. They created thatched roofs using the largest of the plants in the region as the main cover. Some of the newest buildings use the plant leaves as a reinforcement in the brick as some of the oldest of the brick homes have started to crumble and wear with the weather. In a small carved out basement like room, the Ther keep a library that acts as a culmination of their history and clan’s knowledge to be consulted- especially in the best manner for building. Their second settlement is at the base of the hill. They carves into the hill the homes and sleeping places for the zu’aan while the rest of the town’s shopping and eating structures were built using the same brick method as at the top of the hill.

Just outside the town, closer to the border is a small lake that is a permanent staple of the region. Rain is common in the region, usually in the form of light and sporadic showers throughout the year. During this time, in the early mornings or late at night its not uncommon for a fog to form over the region; both the top and lower sections. The lower sections get the strongest presence of the fog due to the lake being in close proximity. During the winter a frozen fog version is similar, giving the same eerie and mysterious vibe that gave the region the boreal name. The region gets sun year round, though it is the most intense in the summer. The Zestkyer’s upper region is usually cooler though as it receives more of the winds that pass through the region.

The lower half of the Zestkyer retains the heat from the day at night though, making it pleasantly warm where as the upper part gets extreme cold to a difference of nearly 20 degrees. The Ther don’t mind though as they built fireplaces and insulation into their homes to combat the sudden weather change at night. They built in the lower city a communal heating system, though it rarely gets used as the temperature is much better. If it were ever needed though, each room has the option to close a vent like door to keep the heat out, allowing it to bypass their room and be stronger in other locations further down the line.

Plants

The Zestkyer Boreal Plateau has an array of plants in the region. They are of the annual variety, as while the region is optimal for growth during the spring and summer season, the winter is too harsh for even a hibernation state. The only ones in the region that can survive the winter are ones that were imported from other constant frosted regions. The most common annual in the region is a large red plant that is found throughout the region. It does not bloom until the first significant drop in temperature during the fall season. Once that happens the plant blooms within a day before the first snow begins to fall. While the plant itself is extremely fragile and temperature sensitive, the seeds are protected and can live for a year in frozen conditions.

It has palmate leaves that grow from small sprouts off the main branches of the plant. Its blooms are usually orange, but some can be light grey or dark brown depending on how close it is to the first freeze that the blooms form. Due to their large size, they are only found in groups of two or three, if at all near another. They have minor medicinal properties, as they can be consumed or boiled into a tea and used for sore throats. It has a unique ‘defense’ in that it will collapse if the vibrations in the ground or the plant itself grows too harsh. Previously this was used as an easy way to harvest the plant, but as the Ther kin’toni can’t consume the plant, its become random knowledge they have.

They will sometimes collect the plants as a way of bartering with neighboring zu’aan for various supplies, though it’s a rare occasion that that is necessary. The shortest lived plant in the region is small in size and extremely rare to find. It goes through its entire growth cycle in 1 month, with its blooms being open for a month before the entire plant dies. It grows in the driest part of the region during the summer when the days are the longest. Its leaves are large, about the size and shape of a pear, though they are a bright emerald green color. The flowers are about the size of a cherry, ranging from silvery white to a pale orange and pale blue. There are sometimes genetic mutations that make the white appear more of a middle or dark grey color.

Those plants that are found are located in small groups as they are usually seeds from the same plant. When the seeds are released, they are carried by the wind, they clump together into a bunch and when they land, they grow entwined with one another. Unlike the majority of other plants in the region, this one is poisonous for zu’aan or kin’toni consumption. Most animals in the region avoid the plant as well as while not poisonous to them, it is extremely bitter in taste. The plant is sought after though as it is rare and considered beautiful by other regions.

Animals

The Zestkyer Boreal Plateau has a variety of creatures. Most live at the top of the plateau, but a number live below the main section of the region, in the valley area just between the neighboring region. A cousin of the rat like creature of the Zahyra Rocky plains is another red scaled creature. This one is smaller and more shaped like a squirrel, but still carries the trademark red scaled skin. It also has the slitted pupils, though unlike the other it also has bone protrusions that come out from the spine. This is mainly a defense mechanism as it is one of the smallest of the creatures in the region, and is constantly being hunted by other creatures in the region.

1. The spines offer a sharp defense, though because the spines are connected to their vertebrate and can cause serious injury if broken the wrong way; sometimes resulting in paralysis for the creature. This is hazardous for them as they are largely solitary throughout the majority of their lives, only living with each other during the short time spent raising their young to be capable of being on their own. They grow up quickly, within 3 months, and have an extremely short gestation period of about a month. After those 4 months, the young are left to fend for themselves and the parents go on their way. The young will stay together for about another 6 months before they start branching off and going their own way as they start looking for potential mates.

About every 2 years they find a new mate as the females have a unique genetic feature that they start to reject fetus’ with too similar dna after an extended time. This allows them to keep a wide genetic pool for future generations and removes many mutations that come from crossbreeding. A common animal in the region looks similar to goose. Instead of feathers its covered in muted orange fur, making it incapable of flight. It originally had feather, but over the years due to mutation after a sudden drop in population and cross breeding their downy feathers became dominant year round. After that, the feathers slowly became more and more fur like until the feathers became so fine that they were essentially fur.

They have talon like nails at the end of their webbed feet, which they use as their main attacking and defending assets. They also have small teeth they use for fish and other small prey they catch. They usually stay close to their nests, always within eyesight of their mate who is directly watching the nest, incase of a threat, as they can hop but not fly so they’re at a disadvantage against a larger creature. They will usually mate for life, though it has happened where mates will ‘divorce’ if they have a season without young, or all their young die in a season. When this happens, they usually will not have a mate unless another pair divorces, as if a mate is killed, its unlikely that the other would ever search for a new one.

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	Ther Kin'toni Clan

Place

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Zestkyer Boreal Plateau

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This article is written by Crystal Iris. Copyright 2026 Crystal Iris. All rights reserved.