Zemali / Blissful but Frail

Except for their hardened limbs and heads, Zemali are really fragile and cautious people. They live, move and think slower because their bodies can’t endure too much prolonged pressure and stress that are normal for sistren of other Tribes. Even internal bodily fluids are slow and thick.

Zemali bodies are synthesis of flesh and fungal trama – puffy parts are lightweight and squishy-soft on touch; thick skin isn’t very elastic and can be easily damaged physically (much less thermally), smooth, covered in very short and soft trichomes and weakly fluorescence; skeletal structure in their torsos is mostly made of something similar to cartilage rather than bones; even nociceptors are simplistic, to reduce plausible discomfort or pain. Muscles are stiff and tight but easy to grow and hard to lose mass (though Zemali stay relatively weak compared to other tribes), moreover their bodies are very low on any kind of fats. On a good side they have really strong immune system, and not many common viruses or parasites are interested in Zemali, as well wild animals and most of insects ignore them, which is attributed to calming earthy-tomatoe odor; they hardly susceptible to long-term low-level emissions and many toxins; can rapidly regenerate tissues in response to injury. It seems like Zemali are also never in danger of starvation: during primal aridification and consecutive famine decades Zemali were falling into hibernation, surviving for years without food, yet barely active even to think and realize when famine season ends.

Being closer to trees not just visually, but mentally too, Zemali incline to have eidetic memory and strict circadian rhythm. For unhurried nature they never had adventurous spirit, and for their vulnerabilities – they are still least dangerous warriors. They are neither in a daily chase for personal glory, nor seek great life goals to attain. Zemali take pleasure in humble life of tranquility and familiarity.

Very polite and benignant, they can easily take offense as small as at improper language, but will keep genial composure even with people they greatly hate. No matter what others do – Zemali are gentle and benevolent towards them. For aggressive tribes thy look like cowards – easily forgive old enemies, very few of them have any desires to experience anything extremal, and in general act overly-pacifistic. As Aspect of Grace teaches, Zemali too feel pity for criminals and traitors: not in desire to forgive them, but because they can’t be forgiven anymore and deserve punishment, though even more pity is shown to sistren who now must deliver these punishments.

However this fragile state don’t last forever. A process similar to transdifferentiation happens when Zemali reach elderhood: skin and bones get harder, muscles – denser; they grow bigger and heavier; mindset become belligerent, cruel and competitive. Such Elders can’t be considered weak even by standards of other tribes. Today, as the result of an all-directional progress and social stability in Meority, Zemali can live safer and therefore longer than in previous generations, thus much more of them surviving until becoming Elders. There is no strict limit on how much Zemali can grow, but eventually their bodies shut down when even Elder’s powerful immune system can’t maintain vastly progressing internal malfunctions.

Zemali don’t bury nor treat bodies of deceased with funeral rites like other tribes do, partially because decay of their flesh is odorless and drying: deceased just laid open on the ground deep in forests, head against a tree foot, to feed its growth. As a result you should be wary that some thickets you see from afar might be Zemali Cemetery Forests.

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Elderhood of course is not the first time in Zemali’s life when they transform: when born, their leaflings look like cute leafy four-legged caterpillars. After a few months of proper feeding little body overgrow with even more leaves which start to glue to each other, forming a cocoon. Inside that cocoon for another month, through metamorphosis, little Zemali grow proper bones, limbs and heads, until old leaves fall off.

More than a half of Zemali are under condition of vocal cords being either dysfunction or don’t exist at all, but those who still can speak are perceived by sistren tribes as monotone and plane. Because Zemali learn sign and hip language first, it is now used in their culture more often than spoken language even by kin without vocal disabilities. Zemali are in general not fond of noise (and big artificial lights), so almost all of them live away from big cities and rely less on recent flashy technologies.

Zemali Biology is heavily affected by surrounding environment and growth conditions during childhood. That, horn shape and color of leaf-hair depends on a biome where Zemali grew up, as well as developed tolerance to local climate, while adults can show only slight changes in coloration after decades. Peak height as well affected by childhood’s local environment, but even more by a balance of hydration and nutrition level relatively to that environment during growth.

Surprisingly, Zemali prefer raw animal meat and insects in their died, but even more they enjoy... fish... likewise they savor for a cup of fresh animal blood instead of juice. Most of plant-based food tastes bland, they say, unless fried almost to the black. Though any heavily burned meal is appealing to Zemali tastes, its funny that they dislike fire.

Talking about fire: as all true children of Meora should, Zemali retain artistic love for gorgeous bodies and erotic poses, but sex drive is very low among them – Zemali view it only as a reproduction purpose rather than physical pleasure; yet experience of romantic love is in high regard, and mating ritual possesses great importance for them, providing mental enjoyment from the fact of doing rather than physical sensation.

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Before Paleolithicc period begun and even First Settlements were drowned in the Sea of Birth, most of Zemali ancestors, together with the Giants, migrated to a southern Thigh region of Her Gorgeousness, more fertile and stable lands where Crumbling was less common and stressful. There they were able to save knowledge of agriculture given to us by Meora, long enough for it to survive first Crumblings, and later be perfected with a help of sistren tribes. However, for being soft in mind and body, after the Giants left to yet Cursed Islands, villages of Zemali would be very often invaded, plundered and conquered during primal wars and in continuous centuries, while during Hegemony reign Zemali were the only subdued Tribe who had at least some peace, which is ascribed to the fact that [REDACTED] didn’t even consider Zemali as living beings and therefore had no interest in their suffering as long as they kept plowing on fields and feed their Empire.

Although Zemali population now spread and live in every region of Her Gorgeousness, thousands of years later many descendants of first migrants still inhabit Thigh region, spiritually inrooted here and never thinking of leaving ancestral home. Massive farmlands and orchard of The Empire of Hips and Thighs belong to various houses of Zemali, for they are the ones who can effectively heed to needs of plants and earth the best. Zemali fingers can perceive chemicals produced by vegetation – a sense through which they use to understand current condition of plants they care about, while feet can perceive soil amenities. Through this understanding Zemali can aid trees and crops with natural means in precise ways, or find better fields for young plants, hence achieving greater harvest than that by agriculturalist of other tribes. Although help of sistren tribes is still required to efficiently gather results of this work. After which they always welcoming outsiders to join Feasts of Harvest and holy celebrations they do in the name of food and fertility. They don’t speak nor laugh there of course, but soft music and reveling sounds are present. Often Zemali houses celebrate together under the nearest Temples of Fertility, where remains of previous Angels of Grace are sheltered, and on some marvelous days anew Angels of Grace would join to contemplate results of their previous lives.

Because of these abilities Zemali regularly assist Remedy Forces even if not blessed with the Gift of Creation. Some are actively assigned around the Crus, where they help to heal and pacify wild vegetation of Her Plagued Wound, bringing closer a day when the Infernal Malady will be extinguished and Allmother will stop suffering pain from this ancient bite.