Elephant Graveyard

On Rabiah, elephants hold a significant position of respect in society, being seen as the ultimate expression of grace, sophistication, and power. Rarely used as beasts of burden, the elephants of Rabiah are instead most often left to the wild, free to roam as they naturally would. The only elephants of Rabiah are instead most often left to the wild, free to roam as they naturally would. The only elephants which could possibly be called domesticated are ones living in the menageries of Rabiah's most powerful citizens, but the capture of any elephant able to otherwise survive in the wild is often poorly regarded by Rabiah's people.    Awe-inspiring and beloved as they are, it is little wonder then that the graveyards of these great beasts are seen by many as places of hushed reverence. When elephants grow old and close to death, they do not continue to wander as other creatures do. Instead, each herd of elephants has a specially chosen location, one indistinctly familiar to them, where both they and their ancestors before them retreat to die in peace. The largest of these graveyards can have hundreds of skeletons in them, and are often located in deep valleys or rocky canyons. As the elephant is an important symbol to the Rabiah's people, so too are their final resting places. Most of Rabiah's people, when passing by an elephant graveyard, will say a quick prayer, or preform a small gesture or sign of respect. Failing to do so is often seen as an invitation for bad luck, or worse, an unrestful death.      The presence of other creatures within an elephant graveyard is not tolerated by the elephants themselves, and any elephant which spots a trespasser is likely to turn from it's normal calm and placid self into a terrifying beast. This turn of manner seems to e connected to the fat that hen injured, living elephants often seek nearby elephant graveyards, even those not belonging to their own herd. Elephants with injuries both major and minor have been seen to engage in this behavior, and while following the beasts into the graveyard is a poor idea, these elephants usually emerge a few days or hours later, their wounds scarred over as if they had been repaired with healing alchemy.    This strange activity has long been debated by both scholars and alchemists, curious as to what source of power the elephants could be drawing on. Alchemists specialized in both healing and necromantic alchemy alike have speculated that the mass death of so many elephants in once place, powerful as they are, imbues the ground there with some inherent alchemical property. This is despite previous studies which have proven that alchemical ingredients taken from elephants-bones, skin, and tusks- hold no power beyond those of other animals.    Other potential solutions my be hidden in old accounts of poachers who have attempted the risky journey into an elephant graveyard, seeking to loot from the grave for leftover ivory. Often these poachers succeed in their endeavors, keeping a a close eye out for any wandering herds that might be walking nearby. But some stories tell of poachers encountering lone elephants, presumably come to the graveyard to heal, that they attempt to fight in order to keep looting. These elephants seem unnaturally resistant to injury, with even the sharpest weapons almost blunt against their hides, and arrows breaking like twigs against their skin. Even worse are the tales of elephants that glow with an unearthly light, appearing suddenly from thin air. Presumed to be guardians of these graveyards, weapons don't even harm these spirits, instead passing entirely through them as if were made of mist.    Despite these apparent dangers, poachers still continue to hunt elephant graveyards for the profit they can bring in bone and tusks, easier than attempting to pick off living elephants from the herd. To say noting of the alchemical masters who dream of the secrets that intense research of an elephant graveyard might unlock, and the fame and fortune that solving this centuries-long mystery would bring to them.