Preserver

"What causes these regions of petrification is unknown but the process seems to be absolute. Anything left within long enough will invariably, and irrevocably, be turned to stone. Be it trees, grasses, birds, insects, humans. Even the soil has solidified, making it impossible to take samples without a hammer and chisel."
-Notes on the Stone Steppes by Keeper Bato

Classification: Elemental
Major Elements: Earth
Minor Elements: None
Habitat: deep underground, regions of recent seismic activity

Once thought to be an inexplicable phenomenon of nature, the petrified forests, brittle stone-grasslands, and legendary Stone Steppes of southern Rhydd have been found to all be the result of a single species of elemental. Though believed to generally habitat deep beneath the surface of Telus, their rare incursions upon the surface leave an unmistakable mark.

Also called stone ancients or gneiss elementals, preservers are likely some of the oldest elementals in all of Telus. Preservers live within layers of bedrock and possibly far deeper. There they absorb heat and minerals from their surroundings, likely remaining stationary for eons pressed within the depths. Due to their long lives under incredible heat and pressure, preservers can take on a wide variety of body shapes and are often twisted into amorphous abominations, unlike their more symmetrical surface relatives. 

Were it not for seismic events, both natural and those caused by the practices of Earth magi, the preservers would likely be unknown to us. When such an event does bring them to the surface, however, the result is both startling and tragic. Often driven to insanity by the chaotic world of the surface, many preservers who find themselves stranded above ground attempt to turn it to the stillness of their subterranean home. Sometimes this is done with blind violence and brute oppression, pummeling anything seen as a transgressor into a state where they can no longer agitate the elemental. 

However, the sedentary existence of preservers often leaves them unable to keep up with surface dwelling creatures. Because of this some preserves have found another way to quiet their surroundings. In a process which seems to be akin to rapid fossilization, preservers are able to replace organic tissues of nearby organisms with mineral compounds, turning any unaware or immobilized organism into a perfect stone statue.

Though the results can be haunting, the process seems to be relatively painless, not even waking the victims from their sleep. As such, explorers that insist on investigating these petrified wonders are advised to keep their stays to a minimum and to avoid, at all costs, taking any extended rest within.