Slanks are strange animals that can move as quickly as many types of fae—so quickly, in fact, that humans can only perceive them as blurry, jerky forms. The brief, flickering images of Slanks have inspired several myths and legends about slender creatures that lurk in the woods. Aside from rabid Slanks, the creatures never approach people, though all watch from the shadows. Slanks have dark, leathery skin that bunches up at the joints and is brown or gray in color (females, however, have shadowy, black hides). Their limbs and set of ten fingers are abnormally lengthy, resembling twisted sticks; their legs end in rough, round, padded four-toed feet—the skin separated by small, black claws. The faces, teeth, feet, and ears of these bizarre creatures resemble a rabbit, though the torso looks more like a man. On the top of the ears, on the cheeks, under the arms, on the back of the foot, and elbows, Slanks have fuzzy tufts of black or gray hair.

Males and females are physically different, especially in…