Zeb (Tinderkell)

Zeb is a bovani, a ubiquitous but diverse species in Hovehko. He’s covered in short, tan fur, with oversized, brown eyes adorned with natural eyeliner. Due to being conceived outside of the Harvest Window, he has a delicate frame, long eyelashes, and two tiny horns atop his head. Because of this, he is often mistaken for a woman. Zeb sported a loose-fitting turquoise shirt, with a darker overshirt, tucked into his traditional Siltrian shorts, which are khaki colored. He also wears brown hobnail boots with grey socks, and carries a carving knife on his belt. Zeb can also change into a cropped turquoise shirt, with a darker form-fitting undershirt. On his shorts, he has a small leather pouch. He sometimes wears a wide-brimmed sun hat adorned with a feather, most likely to help with a hangover. Zeb is friendly yet notably skittish, particularly around hunters. His uneasiness stems from the anti-hunter tales he absorbed from his grandparents and Hwombazu society, leading to irrational fears about being eaten. However, his worst fears came true when he encountered a hunting party belonging to The Circle. Zeb has a deep hyper fixation for crank engines, a Qothic invention. He works to improve his Blokker Workshops Model C, often tinkering with its factory settings. When asked about his hobby, he will go on long, enthusiastic tangents about the intricacies of these machines. When Zeb gets distressed, he starts yapping in Herdish. He also gives Glass, one of his friends, an attitude when he thinks she’s making bad jokes or teasing him. Zeb is a devout Pasturist, a faith rooted in the traditions of the Herdish people. Despite his belief, Zeb claims that he hates the Nanzuul, which are the political and religious authority of The Kingdom of the Herd.

FAITH: Pasturism is a faith commonly practiced in eastern Hovehko. It is rooted in ancestral struggle and defiance, with the belief in the grazer god Shama. They believed that Shama was the one to liberate the ancient grazers from their use as livestock by the carnoist tyranny of The Pridelands. From these harsh roots, Pasturism as a whole values humility, community, and perseverance. Prayers are often made both to Shama and to the remembrance of the lost souls of those who were consumed, as well as with a commitment to “lift up” those in their community, or “herd”. Like their Shintaric cousins, Pasturists also believe in the light as the manifestation of a persons soul. However, unlike Shintarics, they feel no companionship with hunters, as they believe hunters to be soulless as such that they must possess a primal proclivity to feed on the light of grazers. This has led to much conflict between the two groups, as the existence of hunter lightkeepers at the top of the Shintaric religion is considered outright heretical to Pasturists. Over the centuries, there has been numerous crusades launched against the Shintarics in an attempt to reclaim what they feel is rightfully their holy property. The authority behind these campaigns are known as the Order of the Nanzuul.