Laje

Native to Telembria, laje are quadruped animals that can be found in the wild and are popular pets in the Republic of Megatridimensional Order. While having many features in common with wolves, the claws and teeth of laje are made of hyperdiamond, a substance that has many of the same properties as diamond, but is primarily shades of gray vice clear or blue, but is much harder, denser and much more valuable than diamond. The value of the hyperdiamond stems primarily from the inability to cut, melt or otherwise remove the substance from laje without killing the animal. Pre-1800 in Telembria, deceased laje were kept unburied until they decomposed, leaving behind only the hyperdiamond. Hundreds of thousands of laje were believed to be raised only to be killed and their carcasses fed to maggots to speed up decomposition of the animal. In 1822, laje in the wild were quickly becoming extinct. The Republic of Megatridimensional Order passed a law making it illegal to kill laje to harvest hyperdiamonds, but enforcement was lax, the wording was vague, and the law itself increased hyperdiamond demand as buyers feared supply would be cut off. In 1825, the law was repealed and replaced with a new law the punished killing laje, regardless of purpose, punishable by death for multiple offenses. Enforcement was left to the newly formed Order Guard, already renowned for their effective execution of the law. Several cases resulted in the death or execution of high profile citizens involved in hyperdiamond harvesting. Though there were multiple investigations regarding several of the deaths, no charges were levied.

With the advent of laser cutting in 1959, hyperdiamond claws were able to be removed without harm to the laje. As a result, laje thrived in the wild and domesticity and was removed from the endangered species list in 1968.

Laje are mostly found in wooded areas and forests with the swamp laje variant preferring the wetlands. Laje have been sometimes known to also make their home in grasslands if chrystalisks, a natural enemy of the laje, are absent.

Laje can grow to be up to 2.1 meters in height, and though there have been reports of laje up to 3 meters high, none over 2.1 meters has even been recorded. Laje have thick fur coats with a thick layer of muscle underneath and have been tracked at speeds up to 90 km/hr, though the average laje have a top speed of between 50-60 km/hr. Swamp laje are generally shorter, have lighter coats of fur and are not as fast.