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Zemali / Lore / 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 the 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 the same way other tribes do, partially because decay 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.

***

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.

***

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.

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Zemali Futales, with cute PPs

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Zemali Female

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Zemali Female / Hips and Thighs Affinity

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Zemali Female / Tum Affinity

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Zemali Female / Bosom Affinity

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"He-he, Stump Fetish..."

Zemali Female / Not-Feet Affinity

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Zemali / Key Art

Blissful but Frail

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Tofar / Lore / Loyal but Ferocious

Tofar’s most notable physical features are their faintly-poisoned keratin spines, but especially their ominous bone masks. Like deciduous teeth, it breaks and sheds a few times in their childhood, until permanent one starts forming during teenage years. It grows from temporal and mandible parts of a skull, really tight to their skin, with a layer of microflora between – as a way of protection from dirt, dust, infections and diseases that can occur in these hard-to-clean gaps.

Remains of primal and feral ancestors show that ancient Tofars had a much different mask than their modern, specially Noble, descendants. It was longer, with deformed nostril airway in the mask and an actual skull; thicker bones, with sharp teeth and tight-closed jaw; a superficial layer of powerful muscles and skin was covering mask itself as well. Presumably, it was mainly used to bite off big pieces of raw meat and chomp it into smaller pieces before chewing once more in inner mouth. Another use would be as a natural weapon during primal hunting and wars.

Nevertheless, such basic craft as cooking, and then future technological advancements, drastically reduced Tofar’s dependence on their bone masks even for food consumption. After thousands of years it shrinked, exposing mouth, and only basic muscles around still remain. Loosing or even badly damaging mask, hence exposing real face beneath it, is still very embarrassing and shameful experience for Tofar, and they afraid of it more than pain and torture.

***

As a tribe, today Tofar learn to be devoted to a family, a pack and a nation – obeying orders of social hierarchy, and put interests of a group ahead of own ambitions with a strong incline for self-sacrifice from a young age… and as well they learned about deep-seated aversion towards their tribe, which became mutual, converting them isolationists.

During early Age of Crumbling Tofar kin were driven away from the Sea of Birth and Thigh Region by other tribes, for their erratic brutal nature, high prospects to turn Envious, and especially for indiscriminately meat-based diet – abhorrently, othertribe sistren were not an exception for Tofar during primitive era. As a result, Tofar were one of the first to settle in unexplored far away regions of Her Gorgeousness as a whole tribe, not just as a handful castaway. Most of Them went south, to Her Mountains, founding first settlements there – they were forerunners of Noble Tofar; and centuries later, when they subdued inner primal ferocity, would establish Kingdom of Bosom, alter growing to the Realms of Bosom. Still their views on being civilized and courteous are differ to what most othertribe sistren consider polite and amiable – they are aggressive and ruffian even among Royal family who represent themselves as the best of own kin.

Hair poses specific meaning in Noble Tofar society – higher status members grow it long and fashioning into various coiffures to indicate current sentiment or professional mood: hair gathered in a knob is neutral, a sign of fairness, or an indication of being engaged in important undertaking and not be disturbed for pity reasons; ponytail or single braid thrown over right shoulder is a sign of dominance and command, aggression, self-confidence and libido, or disapproval of circumstances; ponytail or a single braid thrown over left shoulder is a show of friendliness, respect, approval of current situation, willingness to act and cooperate; setting hair loose means exactly that – being free of duties and responsibilities, in which case tilting head left or right is equivalent to what was previously described. It is also traditioned for Tofar who are married, engaged or not looking for relationship to retain at least some visible braids in public.

One of Noble Tofar’s belief, which spread and deepened in Bosom and Waist Regions, is a physical and mental bonds we gain when eat food of the same source: from family eating dinner prepared on the same oven, to a nation eating bread made from the same harvest, but most importantly – all of us are always connected, as we all feed on what is bestowal and gathered from Her Gorgeous body.

Other Tofar, who were fierce and uncultured even for their own people (and still are), discarded themselves far north with other outcasts – they are called Ferals, and they earned this name rightfully at that time. Not a lot of their kind left now – throughout hardships of history many died in virulent swamps, malignant jungles and hot deserts of the Crus, from bane and hunger, by claws and thorns of warped animals and plants, by the Brood of the Crus, and then storms manifested by the First Angel of Candor would take lives of many. Feral’s torment lasted even into current age, until thirteen century, when Tofar Chiefess-great-grandmother Tagara Fohr united hidden clans of her kin before they all shamelessly succumbed to Serpent’s influence. She had the only dream – redemption: to prove her children loyal to Her Light even if animus by other tribes. Today Tagara’s dream is alive, today Feral Tofar are twice proclaimed citizens of Feet Republic, and many are ravenously committed to become Jagers in their mission to eradicate verminous Cult of the Snake which still nest and incarnate in perilous plaguelands: because they see it as their duty to erase from existence these shameful blots of their kin who despicably flocked to a false salvation.

***

Modern Tofar can be brilliant in mind, well-educated and disciplined, but don’t ask them to focus and participate in activities where significant precision, tidy, recurrence and calmness are required – they still retain bestial temper and such activities drive them really mad. What irritating and vexing them the most, fueling their hotheaded temper, is this modern more polite way of society they reluctantly force on themselves, with repetitive values and artificial prohibitions of own nature. You should especially worry that even so today Tofar control their savagery better than their predecessors millennia ago, they still retain the highest number of Envious and Abominations among Eight Major Tribes, but without culture they abide now it would be much worse.

Abhorred by other and loathe these others, Tofar chose to stay on the same side with them and live the same live as them – not for forgiveness, nor in fears of corruption… but for Meora alone, because they are Her children too, Joyful and Gorgeous like Her. They understand own problem and from young ages they mold themselves to be ready to axe own life at the last moments of conscience rather than succumb to the Envy and betray our Allmother; and they do so in horror of burden and dishonor they leave for sistren if they won’t be in control of own body and thoughts anymore. In best case they go on a Sacrificial Hunt, to seek proper death through fight in hope to take as many heinous procreations of the Serpent with them as they can; those who are too powerful to perish even this way still can ask to avoid feared fate in the most honorable way they recognize – death by breast smothering. In any case they refuse to surrender to Black Capes of Herquisition – doing so regarded as abominable as proclaiming oneself a traitor, which is not far away from views of other tribes.

Nevertheless, Tofars ARE exalted by Meora with the Aspect of Hope, vindicated by Her Light; and so, even the most mindless zealots of Red Capes do not dare to vacuously question rights to exist of not just Tofar, but other envy-pliable tribes as well: if Tofar are blessed with Her Aspect – then still our Allmother loves them, and so She loves all of us with flaws we bear.

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Tofar Futales, with cute PPs

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Tofar Female

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Tofar Female / Bosom Affinity

"As a true noble daughter of the Realms of Bosom, she is proud of blessings bestowed upon her shoulders…"

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Tofar Female / Feet Affinity

"She wants you to kiss her under her tail… Which tail is your choice…"

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Tofar Female / Hips and Thighs Affinity

"Maybe Tofar are not frequent in the Empire of Hips and Thighs, but they still enjoy meat pies from local bakeries…"

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Tofar Female / Abs Affinity

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Tofar / Key Art

Loyal but Ferocious

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Cursed image of a High Abomination of the Cult of Snake; Eight times redrawn and purified by Herquisition; First depicted by a Martyr 1129, let her repentance and sacrifice be the forgiveness for past betrayal.

***

“It is… Ooou It is! It is an apparition of a snake, with many feet… but not feet they are... it is a mockery of gentle beauty… crooked Egoistic twisted toes – like a centipede this snake is… infinite pairs… crawling in perilous mist… It is crawling... and with each step a fusion of metal and flesh pierce through its prey, melding with it… not thorns, but gnawed nails... and snake dosns’t devour, nor prey is dead… snake enjoys this pain! Aaoo pain! flowers grow on a pierced body – in its mouth, in its eyes... nose and ears too... and from wounds and skin itself… and petals of these flowers are same as petal that fill empty eye sockets of the snake, and crown its head – fingers, toes, nails… long, pox-colorful, scrawny, twisting, wicked toes… Always trying to grab onto something… scratching on skin... Oouo! These fingers… Snake smiles, its laughs! Its prey laughs too now... In agony to please that Selfish creature! Let it bite you… Let it feast… let it penetrate with all of its fists! Ahaaa-ha-ha!”

Cursed murmurs of a Martyr 1219, let her repentance and sacrifice be the forgiveness for past betrayal; Eight times rewritten and purified by Herquisition; describing unholy visions of a High Abomination of the Cult of Snake.