Mawls / Frisky but Rambunctious

Because Mawl eyes and oral cavities take up so much space in their heads, there is less room left for their brains, which makes Mawls… even if it sounds rude – the least intelligent of all the tribes. On the other hand, high-grade Engifted Mawls are usually more powerful due to their low world insight, but for the same reason, low-grade Engifted are weak. Furthermore, their lower intelligence makes them less susceptible to the Envy and the influence of the Serpent, as it steers into the positive side of emotions. It is a rare sight to see a Mawl depressed or angry, few become Envious, and no known cases of Abominations. Some people compare the Mawl mindset to that of a smarter puppy: hyperactive – they act before thinking, always restless and never let other to rest, short on thoughts, and pareidolic.

Even so Mawls have only one eyeball, they actually have four optic nerves – one for each end of their X-shaped pupil, and each end can be closed independently. The nostrils are located at the very corners of the eye, neighboring the lacrimal sacs.

The Mawls’ bodies are remarkable. They are tolerant to harsh weather – can easily regulate temperature and adapt to sharp changes in pressure; they can stay physically restless throughout whole day, barely tired or out of breath, nor hungry, nor sweating, while narrowly burning through nutrients by recycling used energy and the byproducts of internal chemicals reactions; with a circadian rhythm lasting for about three days and an exceptionally long lifespan – all attributed to unique compounds and hormones in their thick bodily fluids, which are toxic and highly hallucinogenic to sistren tribes, but are also helpful in medicine (Mawl blood, for example, is often used to complete the all-tribe anesthesia, painkillers and antibiotics). A total of four elastic heart-like organs are located in each breast and upper thigh to facilitate the fluid circulation and recycling, hence Mawl bodies appear voluptuous.

In general, Mawls are the most genial and social of all the tribes, but others try to reduce any interactions with them to a minimum, and some actually feel contempt towards Mawls for all the troubles and annoyances they usually cause, much of which are related to chemistry – even a Mawls’ diet may include products that are very dangerous to other species, or the environment itself, so there are certain prohibitions exist to prevent possible contamination (after all, they can still eat convenient food with no problem). Mawl biology is badly compatible with any other, but any health complication from interacting with one can be easily avoided with simple common precautions: it is not recommended to allow them to be in direct contact with your body for too long (especially the brightly colored tips of their tendrils), as the outer layer of their skin is infused with slow-acting venoms, thus wash your hands or shower within the same day; do not communicate and breathe the same air for too long; nor drink or eat from the same source, and bring your own water if you visit Mawl-dedicated districts, just in case. Supposing you neglect all the warning – don’t worry, the worst case scenario is that you will just get spaced-out or become mentally impaired for a short time… If this happens, but you are still able to think even a little, avoid looking Mawls in the eyes, as this will very likely produce an additional hypnotic effect on your brain.

At least their microflora is as active as they are, and seldom fatal – most Mawl viruses and bacteria die within minutes outside their native biome, whilst foreign invaders and parasites promptly expire in the Mawls’ adverse environment.

However, there is a dismal fact: almost half of the intertribal children with Mawl futhers are chronically diseased with Cyan Rot, and despite all medical knowledge we have, a cure for it has still not been found, or even close to it; only a couple tribes are truly immune. Thus, many othertribe sistren avoid Mawl-intertribe families.

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From the first moment you find a place in a Mawl’s heart, her warm feelings towards you are all genuine and sincere… as they are towards everyone else she meets – because Mawl hearts are boundless and open to everyone. Their minds really can’t comprehend any conventional social and familial concepts of Meority, not even recognizing personal boundaries: they see all people as members of one great family – as children with thousands parents and parents with thousands children, as never-before-met sibling-friends with new stories to tell – they want to share love and fun with as many sistren as possible. Because of this social indiscretion, Mawls are unable to form lasting relationships and quickly forget about them unless you directly involve yourself into their daily lives. Only during rare mating seasons, once every decade, do Mawls realize something about biological and social difference; but even then Mawl families are usually compared to just a short-term mutual contract for the betterment of raising multiple offspring, after which everyone in a family part ways, and children of the same biological parents view each other as siblings no more than they view other kids.

Very friendly and tactile, expect Mawls to constantly cuddle, nuzzle and snuggle with you if you are even slightly amiable to them, no matter what you say (for health safety, keep in mind the previous paragraphs); be aware though, as some of them may easily befriend you – others may just as easily indulge in irritating, mischievous, and rascal behavior towards you, not out of detest, but because it might seem amusing and gaiety to their frivolous naughty mood. Worry not, they have very little sexual or reproductive impulses outside of mating seasons unless directly provoked, but they might still be interested in fondling your splendid body, for fun. Moreover, you need to understand the movements of the tendrils on their backs, as this is a secondary method of emotional expression, which they can barely control.

Social problems with Mawls may run beyond personal relationships. Although full of energy, they are not very productive, sometimes incompetent, nor able to concentrate on a task due to their short attention span; Mawls are the least desirable workforce for other tribes, anything from administrative to manufacturing. Still, there are jobs where they are very prominent, like travel and entertainment agencies, for their tireless sociability, or dangerous manual labor, such as deep mining, for their adaptability to hazardous environments. Though it is also depends on their personality – they either can’t get bored doing the same thing every day for many decades, or they become bored in a few days and seek for something new without notice. Ultimately, they rather prefer to fool around, having fun and working as little as possible, while celebrating the various holidays and festivals they have created for each hour and each day of the year.

Mawls also have an unhealthy interest in the fur, wool and hair of other species, something the Mawls themselves lack. Some can be so obsessed with it that they refuse to wear any clothing other than that made from animal fiber, unless a specific uniform is imposed upon them by religious, professional or military standing, and even then they can throw a tantrum.

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More than half of their tribe regard the Realms of Bosom their homeland, mainly out of loyalty to the Medali royal family (“smarter puppy” mindset?). Furthermore, it is confirmed by historians that their tribe’s name was given to them by sistren tribes because of the “barking” sound they often make when jolly and cheery.

Many believe that a solitary Mawl society wouldn’t be as technologically and infrastructurally advanced as it is today, in a multitribal world, and the core reason for this would be their mental and physical tolerance to harsh reality of existence and survival, rather than indolence or lesser intelligence – they would simply have less reasons to progress in a life they already consider delightful.

The Mawls may not be the brightest in mind, but they understood their biological ability to “pacify” sistren tribes, a power they abused to achieve one selfish goal: “the Big Friendship – as She intended”. The Mawls are perhaps the only tribe that never despised or thought ill of the exiled in the Primal Age. It is consistently noted in the ancient texts that they felt pity and wanted to make peace with every rejected kin, and reunite them with the rest of the joint Meority for the sake of this “Big Friendship”. The best of them were mediators, traveling traders, never-lying bringers of outside news, and peacemakers between various outcast villages and isolator nations – faltering divisions during violent times; but the worst of them, mostly the Engifted, inadvertently brought cities and even small nations to ruin by constantly poisoning the minds and bodies of their leaders, if not every citizen, in an attempt to control and rebuild unity through injudicious means.

Nevertheless, when the Aspects were begotten, the Mawls were helpful to the Herquisition in spreading the Word of the New Age and the Teachings of Aspects, along with some ideas and worldviews from Mawl society were even absorbed into the early creed of the Herquisition.