Introducing the World of Fire & Flight: Helloxes

Helloxes are a widely known animal throughout Tenebris, though most commonly found in the Godberd Woods and Barrier Plains. Regarded as being observable without posing any harm to the casual onlooker, helloxes (pronounced /hel-ox-es/) are known to overpower animals superior in size to them. Relatively short, the hellox (pronounced /hel-ox/) is a powerful animal seldom concerned with the world around them. An animal of leisure, helloxes are predominantly nocturnal creatures.

The crafty predator has permeated Tenebrese culture in a more mundane way than some other animals have. Two common Tenebrese phrases emulate the animal for different meanings. Saying “the hellox who caught the pollipes” can mean that someone looks suspiciously pleased with a certain situation and is one of few phrases that can be used and understood throughout the kingdom. Another universal Tenebrese phrase is believed to be derived from an old Frambawi tribe legend that dates back to before Tenebrese independence. Frambawi (pronounced /frahm-bahw-ee/) traditions says that a hellox once stole into one of their villages, yowling angrily and being overtly combative to any who would approach it. Once the creature was subdued, it was found that the source of the hellox’s aggression was an enflamed injury to its paw. Upon healing the animal, the hellox’s disposition changed for the better and the Frambawi legend lives on in the phrase “de-thorning a hellox’s paw”. Mainly used to express displeasure toward a situation, the phrase can be used both comparatively or as a hyperbolic comparison.

To learn more about helloxes and the other animals of Tenebris, keep an eye out for my upcoming novel, Fire & Flight, a young adult adventure fantasy tale of perseverance and magic.