A Mantral is a parasitic wood fairy who feeds on the life energy of trees.

Mantrals need trees to live

Just like southamerican bats who feed on the blood of cows, the Mantral needs trees to live. Not only does it need a tree for nutrition, it also seeks a tree in case it is weakened or wounded. Therefore, the Mantral tears a hole into a tree’s bark, widens the hole and burries itself into the tree’s flesh. The Mantral then fuses with the tree and is nearly unrecognizeable from the outside.

Mantrals use the same method to hide from enemies. When they do so it is nearly impossible to find a hidden Mantral inside a forest.

You can tell where a Matral has fused with a tree by finding the marks in the bark they leave behind. They most commonly look like long, vertical scars with a hole in the middle.

Mark in the bark of a little tree, left by a Mantral.

Sometimes, Mantrals overdo it, taking too much energy from a tree and killing it.

How Mantrals procreate

Mantrals have three sexes. While the sexes A and B create a new Mantral, the third sex carries the embryo on his back. The third gender, the “carrier” is neutral and would not be able to procreate without the other two. And the embryo would not be able to live long enough and grow to the necessary size without the carrier.

Just like a Mantral fuses with a tree to receive energy from it, the embryo fuses with the carrier Mantral to be sustained during the gestation period.