#fueem

Merry joyous times and new years

They can't be joyous for all 😔 (this isn't snow, just melting invertebrates)

The common ash stain is max like 5 meters in diameter (this drawing is being very dramatic). It's created when a big bunch of 'insects' of the species swarm in a spot as their final journey. Their stinking full bodies die and let out strong acids that dissolve the top layer of the corpses into this sticky white bed.

Underneath one will find thousands of eggs and later insect babies feasting on suffocating meggs, plants and sometimes smaller animals stuck underneath.

Would he? And how does he and some of your other characters feel about parenthood?

Me and my random ass questions sorry

This is good questions that matters.

No - Neal would not want to be a parent. He would do it if he had to, but he wouldn't choose it. He feels he shouldn't get too close to anyone so they can't see the mistakes in his behaviors or point to his issues that he fears will be blamed on the fact he's not the species he's "pretending to be". And he doesn't want to have a child learn any of those or suffer anything similar or end up judging him too. But what he will actually tell you and does apply as well would be him just 'not really having the desire to sire someone into the adulthood', teaching is already enough pain.

Sawmimat probably thought about it a lot before Ciwa. It was expected of her, and she was "ready". But looking back, she just sees the stress of it. I don't think she feels about it as strongly as Neal (or at least with less baggage). She sees her future more likely be an eunuch life than childcare.

Fueem - "yuck, do I look like a nurture freak" - They are probably going to be a parent.

Bio man - He does not want to be. He would rather reach his heights. With how he sees himself, it's hard to see him be good with the lives of others much. But I feel he would be very caring and careful if it were to happen.

Okay, so I will probably make a #witches tag because I kinda just hide this stuff to not make people think of my setting as a fantasy. That should be the ALTERNATE UNIVERSE fantasy version where Neal does spells.

So this planet is not under natural circumstances. If it were a normal planet it's possible life wouldn't even occur. And there definitely wouldn't be sophonts. And if, there DEFINITELY wouldn't be 5 separate ones with 4 being of separate animal kingdoms.

And this same force that has led to this happening is also the source of "witchcraft". Something of a brain extension most often appearing as stronger senses that aren't closed of inside the body of the person. Like nerves in the air around the person.

And this is 'genetic'. One can improve the ability but not awaken it. These witches are often born or develop various mutations or disabilities as their brain grows into wrong shapes in their skull or they have bones where they shouldn't be etc. Most common issues differ per species since there are common side effects for each sophont. Slomen most often experience worse motor and fine motor skills, introvertness (sloman standards), and worse social abilities in total. Less, but still common physical mutations are extra fingers, white coloration inside their eye stalks, skin conditions, and slower growth rate with a higher growing threshold.

And sometimes someone who looks different may be a witch, it's definitely not a rule. Still, many societies, especially in this day and age, see disability and strangeness as a sign of witchcraft.

And witches are easy targets in political difficulties as they are quite a small minority. So you can imagine what that can lead to.

There have been actual witch hunts in the planet's history with most resulting in much more non-witch death. Targeting the ones with knowledge and seeing "better sense of the world and science" for the usual historical reasons.

Today there are many opinions on witchcraft. "They spread sickness" as they are less prone to being sick in times of plague, "they are divine god gifts" as some may train to predict the weather or create fire, "they are punishments" as they struggle to fit in society or "they are firepower" as that would be the case for big part of the planet 50 years ago during the first contact.

It would take a long time to explain how all cultures feel because each one has a long history of why, as witches are just inherently there. They aren't new. They have been here as long as sophonts themselves.

Fueem the shitten in top left. Need to talk more about ocs.

Very undefined wood writing and little paper writing in top left with an very simple comfy archive place underneath. It's likely mostly for people records and helpful religious texts but full on libraries definitely exist.

Cuts I enjoy

Uniima with their monkey/parrot thing animal doesn't notice a dorito has gotten attached to their clothes.

The archive thing place. This one is crap but I'm fan of the framing.

Yea. You won't often see aliens in any other biomes but it happens a lot more now than in Neal's youth.

Uniima and slomen have different biochemistry. It's not extreme and they can most often drink from the same water source non-lethaly. Life would not last long on the planet without higher tolerance.

But because of the language barrier and lifestyle difference, there aren't many reasons for visiting. Especially if you don't know you can survive in an alien culture. So slom-uniima travel is reserved to political figures or people having a big religious drive to visit "recreationally".

You will more often see horned uniima (humanoid) who have important trade ties and even some temporary entertainment jobs in high society Ciwa (the sloman nation Neal lives in). And 10-legs/Placeholders/O.s are actually the most common alien in Ciwa. There's a set relationship with a Placeholder 'nation' with few of them actually living there.

Still, the chance you see an alien in your slom-land in your lifetime is unlikely. Other nations also don't have accommodations at all and don't care for alien politics.

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And yeah, it's one reason for Fueem's anger. They didn't expect to be the first-ever uniima student under Neal or the whole sloman continent. But they are most frustrated as they see Neal as a sloman (partially religious but also feeling speciesist) and they went through a lot to meet him as this figure they were imagining without enough thought or knowledge. To excuse them, their idea of the whole ordeal was very different. They didn't have many things to study regarding aliens or travel or much else. So when they boarded the ship to Ciwa they were terrified over how long the trip was and what they were told by the seaiima (get it, like seamen but uniima). At that point, it was a little late to change their plan.

Finally finished a pic of Fueem in their warm study/traveling outfit. They are a fancy one, who can afford quality bright clothing with their own symbols (however I need to figure those out before they are canon).

They have a single-piece dress/pants with a red 'suit' on top. When cold they will wear a bit more under that. There's also a leather backpack. These are ground clothes (better don't climb trees with them).

They also have gloves/socks but you are not supposed to notice those as they are uncool for a uniima c to wear.

Their tail is fashionably cut to be as little messy as possible but the 'feather fibers' are already growing back at the top.