Shrouded House of Bones

Jin-kalys stares, sputtering, into burning golden eyes framed in a face of bright orange and black. The creature lounging easily before him thrums with power barely withheld. It yawns, showing teeth shining like blades, then transfixes him once again.

"Tell us a poem." The voice vibrates the air and Jin feels it thrumming in his chest cavity like a Zipsum drum.

A poem. Oh gods.

A full season past, Jin-kalys departed Sighing Web of Trees, the village where he had lived his quiet life up to then, leaving the Academy where he had been carefully trained in the sophic arts and sciences at the feet of the Great Doctors of Arborealis Heliophilius, in the ways of curves and lines, of truth's vertices offered in sunlight's verity.

He has since wandered, seeking something he cannot comprehend, but which he knows is crucial. The calculations are...inerrant. Inexorable. The ineluctable Nexus drawing ever closer. It comes to him - nine branches. Each branch is necessary in its own way, providing the balance of angular measurements at the vertices he's found, meeting at the Apogee and Perigee and bending on their course through time, aligned to intersect with the Chronologic Ellipse. Instantaneous angle is approximately equivalent to the distance in time between each as they pass into the Eccliptic, at which point, they resolve as one would expect, intersecting at the Nexus. The key is the curvature -

"Lizard. Give us a poem, or give us your flesh."

Jin is wrenched back out of his reverie. "I. Ahem. Yes. A poem." He closes his eyes and lowers his tail and slows his breathing. The breathing of the Jevumm standing around him in a semicircle is utterly unnerving. He smells their predator stink and the musk of their terrible meeting-place, deep in the jungle.

It comes to him when he's finally calm. Saborakalys. Of course! The first poem he ever learned, in an ancient mode inherited from the Dusk Sages themselves (or so it is said). Jin clumsily renders it into his halting Jevumm, hoping the syllable patters translate -

Dawn burns, sets alight
Kindling the mind - molten gold
Mist is departing

Slowly morning stirs
Sluggish blood thaws and slips free
Murmuring gently

We inherit dawn
Speakers of the love of Sol
Loving speech of leaves

Incline inward, now
Sitting quiet breathing with
Sighing Web of Trees.

Bright golden eyes narrow. Isilo Govelara, his muzzle whitened to show his age, power undiminished, smirks, if such a thing is possible.

"You have brought no fire...yet neither do you bring offerings. You say you come here in peace - it hardly matters. You will be eaten regardless. But we are curious. Your poem has purchased some time for you. How do you wish to use it?"

Jin's vision swirls madly and a great fist clenches his heart as it hammers against his chest. Eaten. No! Not now! I've only begun! He looks around, eyes wide. They are all watching. A few draw closer silently, and he can almost feel their breath.

Behind Isilo's massive form, there is the Bone House, the ancient meeting-place of the Govelara Jevumm of this region. There is no broader Jevumm culture, only local cultures. Truly, somewhat like the Anakarix, though two races could hardly be more opposite.

The Bone House is constructed entirely of bone and sinew taken from the victims of the Jevumm for generations. At the base, filthy bones are yellowing and cracked. In places they have been replaced with gleaming bones, fresh from Jevumm jaws.

A low growl of impatience snaps him back to his awful present, out of reverie.

"I...Great one, lord of the G-Govelara, Isilio Who Sups On M-Marrow, I...I introduce my...h-humble self, Jin-kalys, student of Helio-...student of great m-masters of Sighing Web of Trees, far from this forest. I. Yes. I come in peace, of course. I come t-to...to speak to you, Great lord of hunters. And-and your people."

How can I say this? With a mathematical schema scratched in the moist dirt with my tail!? A detailed chain of argumentation drawing on rich sophic traditions they've never heard of!? Gods! That one licked her lips!

"Great lord. Karia is dying! If you will help me. If...if a particular one of you will help me, and if we can find others...we can save her."

The laughter of the gathered Jevumm is terrible to hear.

There is no sound when one of them slams into him, bearing him down, grinning, crushing him beneath its weight. She begins to laugh with the rest, mouth wider and wider, coming down to crunch out his life.

"Your name is Varissa! You have walked the earth for thirty-three journeys of the sun! You've taken a-a bullet, whatever that is - the wound lingers! And-" he can't go on. Her eyes are wide and her paw is lighter on his chest. The clearing has quieted.

"What is the meaning of this!?"

Varissa ignores him for a moment, pretending to be caught up in the kill, risking retribution despite the blood-hallowed ground. She leans close until her great head is all Jin can see.

"How do you know this?"

Despite himself, he leans forward a bit, painfully, struggling to breathe under her weight.

"I'm. Wisdom. Of Karia. I. Know. You. ::wheeze:: Hunt. Vorax."

She leaps back, snarling, looking around in alarm, but Jin was quiet, so only she would hear. He braces himself against a nearby tree and pulls his battered body upright. They are all watching now, intent. He has to be careful.

"Yes. I know. And I need you to find...to find one for me. No one else can. Then, we need to -"

"This is foolish. Stop playing with your food. Are you eating this lizard or not?"

Isilio is standing, now, larger than the others, some of whom melt back into the jungle before evening falls, no longer interested in what seems like abject foolishness which could become much worse, fast. They depart silently, with no goodbyes, for this is a rare meeting, and will not occur again for many seasons.

Varissa glances to him, but pins Jin with a glare of mingled hatred and shock. "No. I will not eat him. Yet."

"Then go. The kill you offered pleases the spirits, and its blood has fed the land, mingling with the others. Go and take that lizard with you, to do with as you wish."

She slowly changes to her two-legged form, and Jin is unmoved by her feline beauty. He sees only his mission, his vision, his very life, hanging by a whisker-thin thread. She says the ritual words to Isilio without taking her eyes off of Jin. "Feast on the marrow, and may the spirit-gift sleep within you until Karia claims you."

She shoves him ahead of her, still far stronger than he is, taller as well, radiating hatred and musk. Jin's tail is rigid with fear.

When they are a few dozen meters into the forest, out of sight, she grabs Jin by the dewlap and slams him into a nearby tree with bone-loosening force. Her grip moves to his throat and begins to squeeze. She hisses and growls in his ear.

"Now, lizard, explain yourself, and I might not tear you apart."

Anakarix

Philosophizing Lizards...

In the jungles of the southwest, unknown to the Cheldrun, there are sprawling cities resting on the top of the jungle canopy like crowns. Made from the woven branched of the Sygola trees, the Anakarix bask in the sun, gaze at the stars and debate the future of their endangered planet. The topics of their debates change as swiftly as the wind, but the habit of their long-lived race are as ancient as the forest itself. The philosopher lizards have been sitting here and thinking since the Dusk Sages first taught them to ponder.

Indeed, in those misty recesses of time, the Dusk Sages produced a remarkable change in this Karian race. Opening up to the Anakarix the avenues of critical inquiry and the philosophical pursuit of truth proved to be an addictive behavior. The Anakarix became so enraptured in their thoughts that they lost completely the secret of assuming their normal human form. Centuries and centuries of breeding have most likely removed completely the ability to metamorphosize common to the other Karians.

The Anakarix don’t regret it for a moment however. As a cold-blooded species, they associate knowledge and waking and cognition with the sun. There is no such thing as an Anakarix morning person, because of their cold-blooded state, and then after noon it is almost impossible for them to bring themselves to work physically because their minds by then are racing on overdrive once they’ve warmed up. Their love of the sun is even expressed in one of their many philosophical schools – heliophilism.

The Anakarix can be a very still and slow-moving people, plodding at best, except for explosions of activity when startled, or angry or when engaging in threat displays. When angered they can become inarticulate and change colors or even have brightly colored flaps of skin erupt from their head or neck, quivering. However, behind these animal displays and behaviors there is an uncanny intelligence, evaluating everything, rationally and disinterestedly.

Their love affair with reason can make the Anakarix seem like a heartless bunch at times, though nothing is further from the truth. Those Anakarix thought to be insufficiently intelligent are condemned early in life to become laborers, guards and foragers and live lives of frustration. However, a grudging respect for the egalitarian nature of inspiration means that any Anakarix, no matter how dim, is able to participate in the public forums. There have been instances in Anakarix history when a despised forager revolutionized a school of thought with an unexpected insight.

While the Anakarix make distinctions based on apparent intelligence they make no distinctions based on heritage, wealth or gender. Indeed, other races are sometimes puzzled by the complete lack of difference between the genders – who knows what’s in that cloaca? The Anakarix can always tell, but they are puzzled by others’ thinking it is somehow important.

Anakarix society is arranged around vast “agoras” or open-air markets and forums that become places of debate. These agoras are usually surrounded by a host of different academies and compounds that host the different philosophical schools in vogue. Young Anakarix spend a little time being fostered to each school before choosing one school at majority for which they will be an apologist the remainder of their life. Each school teaches a distinct philosophical worldview, which purports to explain more adequately than any other the “Truth”. In tandem with their philosophical outlook the schools are distinguished by patterns of life suited to each philosophy. The Renouncers live ascetic lives, while the Diggers extol physical labor, and the Astrologists seek to overcome their sun-dependency to become nocturnal. With the arrival of the Cheldrun a new school has been gaining ascendancy – the Nihilists.

One behavior common to most philosophical schools is a ritualized form of martial art. Their martial arts are taught like tai-chi, in slow motion and without an actual opponent. They emphasize discipline and spiritual harmony over physical prowess, though they are unquestionably effective. Public debates are often preceded by martial displays which are not accorded nearly the same honor as the debate, but nevertheless serve as an opportunity to intimidate your opponent and attempt to gain a psychological edge.

***

Players who wish to play an Anakarix should decide which school they belong to and then begin to detail specifically the philosophical outlook of that school. What is your primary worldview? How do you obtain, filter, classify and make meaning of knowledge? What behaviors or life-patterns are required of members of your school? How often and well do you debate? (How many piercings are in your dewlap?) What relationship does your school have to other schools of thought? Which are similar or in harmony with yours? Which are opposed? How does your school explain the Cheldrun?

Appearance: The Anakarix are giant lizards, the size of Komodo Dragons. Varying in type and coloring from iguana-like, to gecko-like, to crocodile-esque, they are absurdly diverse. Some exhibit the bright colors of poisonous snakes and frogs, others are the muted tones of desert lizards. Most have some ability to camouflage themselves. Though they do not wear clothing they are famous for the many piercings they sport in the flap of skin below their jaws called a dewlap. These piercings, made of Never Gems, represent the victories of an individual Anakarix in debate, thus they are a status symbol and a warning to opponents. As Anakarix age, their scales turn gray and then white, thus the oldest of them are practically albinos.

Example Schools: Anaturists, Astrologists, Diggers, Heliophilists, Laughers, Naturists, Nihilists, Spiritists, Renouncers

Example Names: Asterakalys, Boristakon, Dankonubis, Hackara, Jujukamon, Keracka, Koriakalys, Monikostomon, Oblongata, Pukassa, Saborakalys, Vojashaka

Example Attributes: Armour, Environmental Influence (fog), Heightened Awareness, Heightened Sense, Jumping, Melee Attack, Melee Defence, Mind Shield, Special Defense (poison), Tough, Weapon (poison spit)

Example Skills: Acrobatics, Area Knowledge, Biological Sciences, Climbing, Cultural Arts, Etiquette, Languages, Medical, Occult, Physical Sciences, Poisons, Social Sciences, Wilderness Survival, Writing

Anakarix attitudes towards….
Cheldrun	The riddle of the Cheldrun will be the defining question of our epoch. The school which most adequately explains this conundrum will be remembered as the greatest of all.
Allskins	The paradoxical Allskins are simultaneously the most exalted and the most despised caste of Cheldrun. Their tarnished glory is a moral lesson of great power.
Biomade	The reach of the intellect often exceeds the reach of true understanding. Observe these children of genius to learn the nature of hubris.
Mechified	Wisdom does not value a person according to the same standards. This caste is considered foolish by most, but they have an intelligence which pierces the mysteries of our physical world. A wise person will listen.
Karians	We are the answer to a question which is no longer being asked.
Anakarix	Does the planet know that we have been thinking about it and studying its secrets for so many millennia? Will it care when we are no longer around to ask questions?
Gogajin	The donkey-sons have never wondered why - a habit we simply cannot comprehend.
Jevumm	We can admire the cleverness of the hunters so long as we are safe in our tree-tops. They are the razor’s edge of wit – useful only to cut with.
Prill	The dedication of these singers to the past is remarkable. We commend their preservation of ancient wisdom and wish only that they would explore the possibilities of genuinely new insight.
Vorax	Even from our high vantage point we have never seen or known as much about Karia as these majestic birds. It will be a travesty when the last one is dead.
Zipsum	Life for a Zipsum is too fleeting to permit exploration of deep mysteries. The skip across the surface of the water, blissfully oblivious to the horrible depths below.

Mechified

Blue Collar Machines...

The First Minds divided the Cheldrun race into three castes when the Great Experiment was launched. While Allskins remained unchanged and the Biomade began genetic manipulation the Mechified underwent extensive cybernetic surgery.

Unfortunately, in such a situation someone usually falls to the bottom of the heap and that ended up being the Mechified. Numerically the largest of the castes, and always the caste which was most pragmatic, the Mechified have for millennia been the working class of the Cheldrun. Some embrace this condition with pride, others chafe against it quietly, some rebel violently, but it is extremely rare in Cheldrun society that you will see any Mechified in a position of authority.

Partly this is because the Mechified are unused to the very idea of having authority over others. From the very beginning of the Great Experiment the Mechified have tended toward a radically egalitarian mindset. Whereas the Biomade set an Oversight council above them to direct their experiment, the Mechified made it the individual responsibility of each Mechified to innovate. Every Mechified from early childhood begins tinkering and learning about mechanical engineering. Every Mechified directs their own gradual mechification over their lifetime, improving and converting their normal body functions. Since any person, regardless of genetics or social class can theoretically achieve radical breakthroughs in mechanical augmentation, Mechified culture has eschewed any kind of hierarchy.

Alongside this egalitarian push for innovation in the Mechified psyche is a brand of extreme pragmatism. While every Mechified is looking to improve themselves and finding clever and new ways to do that, mostly they look for small improvements designed to achieve practical results. Most Mechified choose a very specific function which they wish to excel at, for example “steel driving”. They then go about designing mechanical augmentations which make them more efficient at that task. In this case a piston arm, a reinforced frame, and stabilized legs, maybe even additional legs or supports. Many of these improvements will be relatively standardized based on the innovations of the generations before, but each Mechified will seek to tweek it just a bit to make it better. Every time a Mechified successfully makes an improvement he shares his discoveries with others who are then free to build on his designs. The Mechified are, in other words, an open source caste.

The unfortunate side-effect of Mechified pragmatism is that they have developed themselves so effectively into purposeful machines that the people who do feel comfortable having authority over others have typically regarded them as tools. Under the traditional rule of the Allskins, the Mechified were treated with dignity, but nevertheless expected to serve as laborers, warriors and do all manner of high risk work. The Biomade who now run the city-states of Karia feel less need to treat the Mechified with dignity. As a result the Mechified fill the lowest rungs on the ladder. They work the Blackrock mines (a dangerous and deadly job), serve as enforcers for the corporate police forces, muck the gutters, work assembly lines, do construction, and do anything else with extreme conditions and a short life-expectancy.

If it weren’t for the fact that the Mechified do actually find this kind of work fulfilling, there would have been a massive rebellion long ago. Mechified pride themselves on their ability to do what no one else wants to or is able to. Even they however have their limits. They reached their limits toward the end of the Flight with the old Saish-maintained traditional hierarchy. Along with some persuasive Biomade they rebelled and shattered the former Cheldrun way of life. At the time, the Biomade had promised them an equal share of a future open to anyone with brains and a strong work ethic. It has proved to be an empty promise. So many Mechified are again reaching the end of their patience with the Biomade leadership. In various cities and in the workforce of many corporations unrest is stirring.

The problem is that the Mechified are so egalitarian that they aren’t very good at organizing a resistance. Indeed, many Mechified whose lot in life isn’t quite as dire are happy to fight against their brothers and thus the caste is divided and conflicted within itself. Mechified enforcers clash with rebellious Mechified laborers, who strike industrial targets seeking to cripple the power structure. Unions are organizing in secret, but the Biomade can read minds and these groups are often crushed, cruelly, before they even take shape. No real progress is being made, but the ferment is spreading.

Mechified are born in the normal way to two parents and raised in tight-knit nuclear families. The parents usually begin the child at a very early age experimenting with mechanical parts and even wearing various exo-mech suits for practice. At the age of 8 kids are allowed to pick their first cybernetic enhancement. These are usually like training wheels, intended to be traded in at a later date for a fully-functional model. By 12 Mechified are beginning to articulate their Forged Destiny (or goal for personal mechification). By 15 they receive their engines and begin doing serious mechanical augmentation. At 17 they are considered adults and they commence working in some role suited to their function.

***

Players who wish to play a Mechified should determine very precisely what practical purpose they have chosen to serve – they’re function. With a clear idea of their function they should detail what mechanical modifications they’ve made to themselves and what modifications they’ve yet to make. Every Mechified is pursuing their own “Forged Destiny” defined as the perfect state of mechification for achieving their goal. What is your Forged Destiny? What job has your capabilities lent itself to? How do you feel about Mechified social oppression?

Appearance: Mechified can vary wildly in appearance depending on the mechanical augmentation they have done. The human portions of them are muscular and covered in grease and they tend toward dark complexions. They are usually humanoid in appearance, though you do see some that have replaced their legs with treads or added limbs. Their mechanical portions are powered by an engine which hisses and glows red with heat. When Blackrock is inserted in the engine it blazes white hot and spews oily smoke. When they move gears grind audibly and metal plates clank together, pistons send out a hiss of steam, and their weighty steps echo like hammer blows.

Example Names: Ajax, Asante, Barrett, Crank, Forrick, Hammer, Hezekiah, Jack, Josiah, Joshua, Karak, Mack, Moses, Pile Driver, Samuel, Tyrone, Thock, Winston

Example Functions: Artillery, Assembler, Bullet-Spitter, Driller, Forger, Hammerer, Joiner, Painter, Solderer

Example Attributes: Alternate Form, Armour, Elasticity, Extra Arms, Features (technological), Jumping, Massive Damage, Special Defense, Superstrength, Tough

Example Skills: Architecture, Artisan, Demolitions, Driving, Gaming, Intimidation, Mechanics, Physical Sciences, Piloting, Sports, Street Sense

Mechified attitudes towards….
Cheldrun	The makers. The builders. The designers. We could create whole worlds if we set our minds to it.
Allskins	The old lords are no longer our masters, which is good, but their disgraced state almost makes us feel pity for them.
Biomade	Whatever they say, the Biomade have made themselves the new masters. Damn their freakish intelligence. We’re they’re equals and they had better acknowledge it.
Mechified	We are the guts of the operation. Take out one gear or piston and a whole machine stops working. Well we’re the whole damn engine. What would they do without us?
Karians	What the fuck is that? If I didn’t know better I’d say these half-animal freaks were a twisted Biomade genetic experiment.
Anakarix	Huh? A talking lizard. If one of those monsters spits acid in my face I’m gonna rip its tail off.
Gogajin	Now these guys are good for some entertainment. They’ll rip a cow in half if you get them pissed off enough, which is easy to do. Just say something about his mother.
Jevumm	What was that? Did you hear that? I swear if it was one of those cats I’m gonna start letting the lead fly. I don’t want one of them within 50 meters of me.
Prill	Would somebody please make her stop singing that Enya shit. It’s doing my head in!
Vorax	I heard there was some sort of bird out there that couldn’t handle the smoke. What’s their problem? They’ve got the whole sky to breathe in, just stay the hell away from the smoke.
Zipsum	Dammit. Something’s jammed in my gears. Hey look at this! It’s a fucked up little squirrel. I must have stepped on it back there.

Gogajin

Bawdy Brawling Burros...

Up in the misty highlands, dancing to boisterous fiddle music, the rambunctious Gogajin have changed little since the days of the Dusk Sages. True, life is a little harder now. The land doesn’t yield its fruit as easily, and those who go off to serve other Karians sometimes end up enslaved or dead under the advancing armies of the Cheldrun. But the Gogajin have never feared hard work or danger. Nor have they ever changed even the slightest bit because of outside factors. They remain stubbornly free. Stubbornly poor. Stubbornly happy. They will die stubborn if need be.

Gogajin are known as donkey-sons, because in their animal forms they look like oversized, muscular… well, donkeys. They can get as big as thoroughbred horses, and they come in a wild variety of grays and browns. Gogajin have a lifespan of 70-80 years, though they live hard so their later years are often spent as invalids. They have a tight-knit intensely communal society which cares for the young and the elderly even in times of hardship.

However, Gogajin have a wild, uncontrollable adolescence that is spent outside the clan for the clan’s safety. In their adolescence Gogajin are raging hormonal balls of destruction. When the 3-5 year period of adolescence has passed the donkey-son may petition the clan to be permitted to return. The clan subjects the petitioner to tests of stability and self-control before eventually admitting them back in. The alternative is permanent exile, which to a Gogajin is an unthinkable punishment. An eternity away from kin is worse than death. Gogajin that commit crimes or are rejected by the community get exiled. Often those Gogajin kill themselves rather than live alone.

Even beyond adolescence the Gogajin have a rowdy culture. This requires a lot of adjustment when the Gogajin interact with other races – the usual hearty backslap is “aggravated assault” to a Cheldrun. When new Gogajin meet, they posture, they flex and heave and try to stand as tall as they can. If this doesn’t resolve things, they invite each other to engage in absurdly energetic and violent sports that are best played far from furniture or members of other races. One popular example is “catch” – which involves each competitor choosing the largest object he thinks he can lift and throw. If he fails to lift it he loses. However, if he succeeds, the other competitor is obliged to catch it. A dare is a deadly serious matter in Gogajin culture.

Donkey-sons live, work and play hard. They are fond of alcohol and they make many varieties of potent brew which other races cannot stand. They are bawdy and rude. They do not mate for life and they have a communal ethic which basically allows men and women to sleep around quite freely. Gogajin therefore come across as coarse and unrefined to other races. A Gogajin would not understand why his sexual advances were unwelcome to a Biomade woman, particularly given how well endowed he is…

The Gogajin live together in small villages, mostly made up of kin, in highland and mountainous areas. They work the land and forage, but their rough habitats mean they are never farther than a hard winter away from starvation. Thus they send many of their strongest and ablest to work as menial laborers and mercenaries for other races in return for trade. The Gogajin have a very low racial self-image so the highest status among the Gogajin have no trouble being considered servants to other people. Though they are proud and stubborn as a people they do not consider themselves above servitude. This humility means they often get abused by less kind Karians, and they are favored slaves of the Cheldrun.

***

Players who wish to play a Gogajin should take plenty of time to detail her relations to her clan and the many members of her family. To a Gogajin nothing is as important as kin, so the character should have a well developed family background with details about each person and what they mean to the character. Why is this character out of the village? Are you a laborer or mercenary? Are you a slave or prisoner of war? What achievements are your proud of? What happened during your adolescence? Players should put some thought into the character’s spirit. How resilient is it? Has time away from home weakened your heart?

Appearance: Though few people would consider a Gogajin beautiful in human form, most would consider them impressive. They are built like they were chiseled from granite, with muscles that other races don’t even have. They tend to wear their hair long (men and women) in braids or dreadlocks and often full of beads and feathers. They favor loose, light clothing with open necks and no sleeves to show off their form. Kilts are in style among them, and if the weather is hot they are just as comfortable working naked as anything else. In human form they retain the long ears and tail of their donkey shape. As donkeys, they are larger and bulkier than a normal ass would be.

Example Clans: Creideamh, Dilseacht, Fiochmahr, Gra, Griolsa, Muinin, Muintir, Neart, Paisean, Stalcach, Teaglach, Troid

Example Names: Adair, Ahern, Andraste, Bran, Cairbre, Casidhe, Diarmaid, Edana, Fodla, Grim, Hagan, Keena, Kennard, Larkin, Mab, Maghnus, Orla, Rogan, Sloan, Troya, Una

Example Attributes: Armour, Combat Technique, Damage Absorption, Extra Actions, Extra Defences, Jumping, Massive Damage, Melee Attack, Melee Defense, Shield, Special Defense, Superstrength, Tough

Example Skills: Acrobatics, Animal Training, Artisan, Climbing, Cultural Arts, Domestic Arts, Gaming, Intimidation, Powerlifting, Swimming, Wilderness Survival, Wilderness Tracking

Gogajin attitudes towards….
Cheldrun	They are a people without a soul. No love for the land. No kindness for their kindred. Why do they live?
Allskins	Seems like these people have a healthy admiration for tradition and heritage. We can respect their adherence to their lineage despite the odds.
Biomade	These poor bastards have no respect for kith or kin. Their lives are empty and without purpose since they have no blood ties to build upon.
Mechified	Well now if you aren’t born strong as a Gogajin I suppose it makes sense you’d want to try and build yourself that way.
Karians	We are the salt of this earth. We spring up out of the dust so that Karia will have someone to love her. Someone to climb her heights and plumb her depths. We are her admirers.
Anakarix	No sense of fun, these philosopher dragons. What if we like to spin ‘em by the tail? Can’t they laugh?
Gogajin	We are the ones who get the most joy out of life.
Jevumm	Many a Gogajin has gotten tore up good because he underestimated these kittens, but they’ll respect you if you’ve got a torch in your fist.
Prill	Now here are some folks who make some pretty music. If only they appreciated our style of dancing more.
Vorax	Boy it would do my heart good if I could see one of these birds again.
Zipsum	Ha ha! Perhaps the only people with a sense of humor to match our own, these little furballs are as fun as they are fast.

Jevumm

Fire-Fearing Tigers...

In the era of the Dusk Sages the Jevumm were feared and respected. The Sages themselves treated the great cats with caution, bartering knowledge of storms for safety from the hunt. The Jevumm roamed all over the land bestowing a kind of primal order to things, where creatures were categorized by their strength and intelligence. The weak and the dim-witted were prey for the mighty Jevumm, who feared nothing but the lick of fire.

The arrival of the Cheldrun, the Cataclysm of Fiery Skies, has been devastating to the pride of the Jevumm. The children of steel are masters of fire, using it to power their machines, cook their food, burn their fuel and as a weapon against the forest. From the perspective of the Jevumm, the Cheldrun hide their weakness behind the power of flame to usurp the place of the tiger-people at the apex of the food chain. With wounded egos the Jevumm have slowly retreated deeper and deeper into the jungle as the Cheldrun loggers advance, muttering curses and threats, but slinking away from the churning machines all the same.

The Jevumm are perhaps the least ‘civilized’ of the Karians, because they don’t have to be. They’ve always been the scariest race, able to take what they want – produced by others most of the time. They have the least peaceful interaction with other Karians. Indeed, the other races carry torches with them on long journeys to fend off the tigers, and then it rains and they all get eaten. Since the days of the Dusk Sages the Jevumm have been associated with storms and rain, when outdoor fires are put out and people disappear into the jungle without a sound.

Known as tiger-people, the Jevumm are actually quite diverse. Each tribe manifests as a different variety of great cat, from lions, to jaguars, to cougars and every type of tiger. They have a shorter lifespan than humans, dying on average near their 50^th year. Mothers can be quite protective of their offspring, but Jevumm culture sets the 5^th year as a firm boundary line at which point the cub must prove itself strong enough to survive. Fathers often step in at that point and chase the cub away into the jungle. Cubs that are too slow or weak often get killed by their fathers.

Jevumm aren’t very numerous, preferring wild places with low populations where there are plenty of individuals and small groups to prey on. They live mostly solitary lives, though they do gather occasionally in tribes. They are highly intelligent and proud, but also lazy and not courageous. They have sporadic interests that stave off boredom – notably poetry. Think, indolent cats that like to play with their food.

Amongst themselves they have a storytelling culture driven by one-upmanship. When summoned together from their wide-ranging territories for a tribal meet it is customary to share stories of prowess, usually told in verse. Everything between two Jevumm is a competition and it does occasionally get violent, though intraspecies fighting is rarely lethal. Sometimes a tribe will announce a Wild Hunt, which involves many Jevumm working together to bring down large prey or to break up a persistent group. Hunting cooperatively like this, the Jevumm are positively terrifying. Even so, these Wild Hunts have not been successful against the Cheldrun.

***

Players who wish to play a Jevumm should decide what type of great cat and thus what tribe they are from. Different tribes will have different cultures and personalities depending on the variety of cat. Players should take this into account and detail out the relationships of the character to the tribe. What status does this character have in an ultra-competitive society? Players should consider the poetry that they may have written, and how they will relate to the other races, since the Jevumm are not always peaceful with other Karians.

Appearance: In feline form the Jevumm appear like a type of great cat according to their tribe. They often decorate their manes with beads or wear jewelry on their paws, in their ears and noses. In their human form they are muscular and feral looking with pronounced feline features, including ears, tails, sometimes whiskers, and sharp teeth, and nails. They dress in a robust manner which emphasizes their physical strength and grace. Gold jewelry, rich fabrics and clothing which clings are all a part of their style.

Example Tribes: Bathara (Lion), Govelara (Bengal), He’ekara (Cheetah), Kibara (Siberian), Nahamara (Panther), Ostera (Cougar), Yobara (Jaguar)

Example Names: Aburala, Igola, Ihlosi, Isilo, Ithayiga, Kakhona, Leeu, Paka, Shenxisa, Ukaba, Varissa, Xelela, Yomisa

Example Attributes: Combat Technique, Extra Actions, Extra Defenses, Heightened Awareness, Heightened Senses, Jumping, Land Speed, Massive Damage, Melee Attack, Melee Defense, Special Movement (fast), Superstrength, Tough

Example Skills: Acrobatics, Area Knowledge, Burglary, Climbing, Controlled Breathing, Cultural Arts, Interrogation, Intimidation, Performing Arts, Seduction, Stealth, Swimming, Wilderness Survival, Wilderness Tracking, Writing

Jevumm attitudes towards….
Cheldrun	Hiss! The fire-lovers are a plague on Karia. At every opportunity, when they are separated from their beloved flames, we will eat them.
Allskins	The weakest of the fire-lovers, we enjoy the smell of their terror on the breeze.
Biomade	These fire-lovers are mind-sensors. They cannot read our thoughts, but many a hunt has been spoiled because they detected our approach.
Mechified	More than anything we hate these fire-lovers who incorporate the flames into their own bodies, fueling engines that drive them like demons of destruction.
Karians	We are the people that belong, a natural outgrowth of Karia’s will to diversity and strength.
Anakarix	Undesirable to eat, these tree-dwellers are clever enough to make up for their sloth and weakness.
Gogajin	Perhaps the only people with a physical prowess we can respect, they are still no match for us because of their dim wits.
Jevumm	We are the storm-bringers, the lightning-harbingers, the ones who promise death-rain. We are to be feared. You are to be eaten.
Prill	Ha! Singing is no defense against tooth and claw. They eschew their nature to the detriment of their survival. They will sing sad songs while we feast on them.
Vorax	The world is mourning the death of these raptors, but it is their own weakness which destined them for the grave.
Zipsum	So… hard… to… catch… so… little… to… eat… waste of our time.

Prill

Singing Sorcerers...

Before the Night of Fiery Skies, the Prill were singers of the mysteries of the universe. Under the tutelage of the Dusk Sages they harmonized and categorized in musical notes the primordial sounds of creation. Their potential was extraordinary. Their music could literally move mountains. One day, they might have been able to compose melodies of planetary impact. That opportunity never arrived, however. What came instead were the Cheldrun.

The arrival of the Cheldrun was a mixed event for the Prill. On the one hand they are not without their curiosity, and it is possible that the children of Steel bring lore of value. However, this small good is far outweighed by the traumatic departure of the Dusk Sages and the industrial onslaught of the Cheldrun against the forest. For years after the departure of the Dusk Sages, the Prill stood in shock doing nothing, but the impending annihilation of the Vorax among other things jogged them back into action.

They assembled the massed choirs and in an historic move vowed, as a people never to use their customary animal form, a fox, until the danger to the forest was averted. Since then the choirs sent emissaries all across the continent to the other Karians seeking solutions to the war with the Cheldrun. Some are using guerrilla tactics. Some advocate total war. Some advocate peace accords, or concessions. All of them are using whatever power they have to attempt to stem the tide of Cheldrun expansion.

These emissaries have had only limited success, not only because the Karian peoples are so disparate, but because the Prill themselves are so distinctive in their mindset. Like the Vorax, the Zipsum and the Anakarix, the Prill consider themselves lore keepers, but of a different type. Whereas a Vorax or a Zipsum could tell you about foreign locations and people, an Anakarix could tell you about the nature of life and the universe – Prill lore revolves around the Dusk Sages. Of all the races the Prill have the most lore about the Dusk Sages, but they haven’t managed to incorporate it deeply into their own culture because it is so different. They study it like studying an ancient civilization or like studying angelology. The wise know they’re missing something, but they don’t know what.

What’s more they record all their knowledge in music. To a Prill songs are sacred, so using them for entertainment is heresy for a Prill. Their culture is complex and they have many superstitions and unspoken taboos which they teach through song – but they take a long time to learn, so newcomers are always offending the Prill and not knowing why, or bringing bad luck on themselves accidentally and being shunned. Those Prill who interact more with other cultures learn tolerance around these areas, slowly. Many of these more tolerant Prill also find a stirring love of instrumental music (which the Prill don’t have in their own culture). It edges toward heresy to enjoy it so, but it isn’t technically singing, so they think it’s okay.

Prill have human length lifespans. Culturally they make no distinction between males and females. Children are raised by the choir of descent. During adolescence a young Prill singer will be fostered out to a variety of different choirs until he/she discovers which choir is a most natural fit. After a series of rituals for entering adulthood the Prill is then inducted into the Choir and begins the process of learning the music. Different levels of mastery (called tails) are attainable within each choir, and tails confer status upon the individual singer. Society is highly regimented. Everyone knows their place in the choir and keeps to it.

That is, unless a particularly talented singer is selected to become Guardian of a Song. Each choir has a repertoire of songs that it keeps. They may be sung by the whole choir, but one singer is particularly responsible for the song – and to see that it is passed to the next generation. There is never more than one Guardian per song, in a choir. It is common for Guardians to take apprentices from among the most talented singers in the hopes of finding a suitable heir for Guardianship.

The Prill are mostly a culture of maintenance and tradition, but there is some innovation in them as well. Those who study the lore of the Dusk Sages occasionally make new breakthroughs, and especially gifted singers occasionally compose new songs, which become part of a choir’s repertoire. This is exceedingly rare, however, and it is not greeted with the excitement you might expect. Prill consider the new to be suspect and accept it only begrudgingly, while extolling the value of the old.

***

Players who wish to play a Prill should ask themselves several questions. It is my expectation that Prill player characters would be guardian of a song. Which one are you guardian of? Be very detailed in describing your song, what it sounds like, how it moves you personally and what you can do with it. Then select a choir that would be appropriate for that song. Obviously there will be some overlap, for example both the Choir of the Oceans and the Choir of the Elements have their own versions of the Song of Water. You should spend time detailing your relationship to the choir, standing within it, friends and family in the choir etc… Prill rank status by “tails” the highest ranked Prill in the world for many generations now have been up to 6 tails. How many tails have you earned (for what)? Represent this with Organizational Ties.

Appearance: Like the Zipsum, the Prill are ravishingly beautiful in their human form. Unlike the Zipsum they are not vain and so their appearance is somewhat less “by design”, though what they lack in cosmetic preparation they make up for with mystery. This is because Prill carry themselves as though always lost in another world adjacent to our own. Though they can tend to be grave there is a faint sense of humor in their expressions. The degree of “fox” in their appearance varies. Some have ears and tails. Some have pointed noses and sharper teeth. Some just send out “foxy” vibes. They dress in a ritualistic fashion to indicate their choral allegiance, standing within the choir, tails achieved, and knowledge of primordial songs. The elaborate gowns are a visual language to other Prill which most outsiders miss completely.

Example Choirs: of the Dead, of the Earth, of the Elements, of the Fauna, of the Flora, of the Forest, of the Mountain, of the Oceans, of the Seasons, of the Sky

Example Names: Aki, Autumn, Faia, Fuzei, Gogyou, Haru, Hazumi, Inari, Kasai, Kinzoku, Koudo, Kyuuka, Mizu, Mokuzai, Spring, Summer, Tei, Tsuchi, Uxinta, Winter

Example Attributes: Aura of Inspiration, Block Power, Companion, Energy Bonus, Features (appearance, perfect pitch), Heightened Awareness, Heightened Senses, Organizational Ties (choir), Power Flux

Example Skills: Acrobatics, Administration, Animal Training, Artisan, Cultural Arts, Domestic Arts, Etiquette, Occult, Performing Arts, Stealth, Visual Arts, Wilderness Survival

Prill attitudes towards….
Cheldrun	Alas, the children of steel are misguided and deaf to the discordant nature of the song they are singing.
Allskins	We share a respect for tradition with these people, but they have no sense of how their tradition is corrupt and doomed to end in catastrophe.
Biomade	These perpetual innovators are like fruit flies – in two or three generations they’ve lost all sense of who they were.
Mechified	We lament the cruel joke that has been played on these monsters. However, the destruction they wreak on the forest cannot be tolerated.
Karians	Weep children of mana! Weep! For we are the guardians of this land and under our watch it is wasting away.
Anakarix	Wisdom is in these tree-dwellers, though not the courage to use it.
Gogajin	Courage, however, the Gogajin have in plenty, but the only song they sing is folly.
Jevumm	The opened mouth of a Jevumm sings only of hunger and self-interest.
Prill	We are the oath-keepers. We will not avail ourselves of our animal-form until the forest is safe. We are never at home. We are never at rest. We have condemned ourselves to estrangement from ourselves until the threat is ended.
Vorax	The saddest song that can be heard in Karia is the cry of the Vorax.
Zipsum	These singers are perpetually captivated by the next song they hear. Their heart is good, but we must deal with them like children or they quickly lose interest.

Vorax

Invisible Raptors...

Other than the Zipsum, the Vorax were the most numerous of the Karians in the days of the Dusk Sages. In the past two centuries they have gone from being ubiquitous to being on the verge of extinction. They are a tragic and forlorn species that remembers with exquisite agony a time not so distant when they were the far-ranging lore keepers of Karia.

The Vorax are magnificent, enormous, birds of prey in their animal forms. They have long lifespans (100-125 years), and they mate for life in familial groups called “nests”, which are then organized into flocks. There used to be thousands of flocks all around Karia.

The plight of the Vorax is difficult to explain. The simplest explanation, put forward by Cheldrun biologists, is that the Vorax are extremely vulnerable to toxins in the air. The increase in blackrock burning has poisoned and killed Vorax by the millions. However, even those Vorax far from Cheldrun cities have been mysteriously dying. Sages among the Anakarix and Prill believe that the ancient lore-keepers are bound physically to the health of the planet in a more intimate way than the other races. As the planet itself withers, the Vorax die.

No one knows precisely how many Vorax there are left living, but the number is vanishingly small. In some places it has been so long since the last Vorax sighting that they are simply presumed extinct. No one thinks of them any longer as a society or includes them in discussions of world affairs and this is for the simple reason that in every meaningful sense they have no society left. Their culture and way of life has completely disintegrated under the extreme pressure of impending extinction.

The tragedy of the Vorax is compounded by the fact that by nature they are intensely social. The support and unity of nest and flock is ingrained in every Vorax at an instinctual level so much that it is doubtful any of the survivors have escaped some level of madness. Those that remain are subject to all manner of irrational behaviors, the most common of which being The Search.

The Search makes little sense to outsiders, but it is the only thing keeping some Vorax alive. They depart their nests suddenly and begin flying, thousands of miles over every region calling for others of their kind. It is an ominous and desperate sound to hear a lone Vorax crying his lament overhead. Those who are observant believe The Search has a pattern and a purpose, which the Vorax have not revealed – or perhaps they don’t know themselves. Anyone long enough lived to remember the Vorax in their heyday simply wouldn’t believe that this regal race will disappear entirely, without a sound.

More than anything else it is the situation of the Vorax that is spurring other Karians to take the threat of the Cheldrun seriously.

***

Players who wish to play a Vorax should take time to consider precisely how the extinction is affecting them. Have they watched their family die? How long has it been since they’ve seen another Vorax? Why are they still alive? How is The Search playing a role in their life? The Vorax are fast and silent predators, who have traveled far and wide and know a great deal about the world. Players should put some thought into the knowledge this Vorax has gained. They should also detail the flock and the nest from which they come as it will shape who they are.

Appearance: Even in their human form the Vorax appear avian. They are fine boned and sharp featured. In place of hair, a cascade of feathers tumbles from their head. They are beautiful in an exotic, alien sort of way. When they take their bird form they are colossal raptors with feathers ranging from deep purple to blood red in color, black talons and a black beak. As birds they can turn invisible for short periods, becoming only a faint shimmer in the air.

Example Flocks: Fushidara Torimure, Ganjou Torimure, Naiya Torimure, Puchi Torimure, Reikoku Torimure, Yukai Torimure

Example Names: Male: Audagei, Aukolon, Aumelix, Austabor, Auvanya
Female: Bafara, Baheila, Bajunei, Bamunas, Baporoo, Batalon

Example Attributes: Aura of Inspiration, Features (Appearance), Flight, Heightened Awareness, Melee Attack (Talons)

Example Skills: Acrobatics, Animal Training, Area Knowledge, Artisan, Cultural Arts, Foreign Culture, Languages, Navigation, Occult, Stealth, Wilderness Tracking

Vorax attitudes towards….
Cheldrun	Murderers! Genocidal maniacs bent on the destruction of everything of value. They rained down on us from the sky like a plague from the heavens.
Allskins	These are the only Cheldrun with any sense of reverence or tradition, but they are blind to the fact that they have inherited a tradition that bends only toward death.
Biomade	It is a shame that anything living should be gifted with such a mind only to waste it on selfish exploitation.
Mechified	They can hardly be considered living beings. Rather they are poison-spewing rambling engines of destruction.
Karians	We are the beating pulse of Karia. When we cease to be, so will the planet.
Anakarix	The ones with scales are the memory and knowledge of Karia. We admire their insight. To survive they must share it.
Gogajin	The ones with hooves are the strength and vigor of Karia. We admire their valor. To prosper they must unite.
Jevumm	The ones with claws are the temper and passion of Karia. We admire their ferocity. To protect they must eschew caution.
Prill	The ones with tails are the empathy and emotions of Karia. We admire their compassion. To preserve they must endure wounds.
Vorax	We are the ones with wings. We are the joy and flourishing of Karia.
Zipsum	The ones with gills are the flexibility and virility of Karia. We admire their curiosity. To restore they must remember.

Zipsum

Aquatic Turbo Squirrels...

Unlike most other Karians the Zipsum barely remember the countless eons under the protection of the Dusk Sages, though they've heard it was a golden age of safety and plenty. Back then, the Zipsum were eager servants of the Sages, running messages, being eyes and ears, receiving gentle strokes and sitting at their feet learning lore. All of that changed just over two centuries ago with the explosive arrival of the Cheldrun and the subsequent, sudden, departure of the Dusk Sages.

With a lifespan of about 20 years, achieving maturity around 3 and bearing children around 5, the Zipsum have been through almost 40 generations since the cataclysm. It is no wonder then, that they have already forgotten most of what the Dusk Sages taught them, but they are aware that they once were wiser and more powerful than they are today.

It is this awareness that has propelled them into their new role as information gatherers, spies, and couriers. Just 10 years ago they realized that the Vorax, the traditional keepers of lore among the Karians, were dying out and other Karians were forgetting the magics of the Dusk Sages just as the Zipsum had. In a rare moment of complete accord the heads of the 21 circles agreed that the Zipsum should learn everything they could. (They argued and were unable to come to complete agreement as to why or how the information should be organized and recorded.)

The Zipsum have excitedly taken over for the Vorax as the keepers of diffuse knowledge among Karians. Endlessly curious and universally underestimated, the Zipsum are perfect information gatherers, though they can rarely distinguish secret lore from really good recipes or exciting stories. By trial and error they learn and absorb a huge amount of information, but it is not very organized and so not all that useful. The 21 Circles (100 member committees from each of the 21 tribes of Zipsum) have yet to come up with any use for the information gathered and in the meantime all Zipsum everywhere are improvising - a normal state of affairs.

Because of this chaotic dispersion Zipsum vary as to their attitudes toward the Cheldrun. There are basically two types of Zipsum: 'domesticated' and 'wild'.

Domesticated Zipsum have decided to submit to servitude (even slavery) among the Cheldrun in order to spy on them. Savvy domesticated Zipsum, jabber to wealthy Cheldrun by the hour, who pay for the privilege of possibly learning absurdly important information that no one else knows. Others have become smugglers, petty thieves, beggars and pranksters. These Zipsums do not consider themselves "owned", though they may appear that way. Nevertheless some of them grow very comfortable in Cheldrun civilization and have a difficult time adapting back to the forest.

Wild Zipsum are impervious to conquest. The Cheldrun have been trying, ceaselessly, since Zipsum enclaves are nearest to the cities among the Karians. However, their speed and disorganization makes them basically impossible to master, corral, or even restrain in large numbers. Some of the tribes have run into more trouble when the Cheldrun descend to slash and burn tactics, but this has led to a fierce resistance among them. Wild Zipsum disdain their domesticated brethren and loathe the Cheldrun. Unable to mount any serious threat to Cheldrun forces they resort to sabotage, and guerrilla tactics, which is a continual annoyance to the Cheldrun.

***

Players who wish to play a Zipsum should determine whether they will play a domesticated or a wild Zipsum, which of the 21 tribes they will come from, and should discuss in detail their background and travels with the GM to determine what kind of knowledge they may have stored up in their cranium. Zipsum are often skilled martial artists and archers (in human form), though their culture prizes far more the arts of foraging, scouting, exploration, and information gathering.

Appearance: In their human form Zipsum are svelte and beautiful people, with natural allure. They are beguiling brunettes with an aura like a fine mink stoll - inviting and sensual. They do not retain their animal features like ears or tails, but they have an animal magnetism. They are fond of simple clothing made of luxurious materials like silk and satin. They carry themselves with grace, like dancers or martial artists. In their animal form they appear as normal sized squirrels with a small set of gills behind their ears and webbing between their toes. They come in a wide variety of colors, from normal browns and grays, to pink, yellow, green and anything else. Their fur color is affected by what they eat, so they may change color throughout their life.

Example Tribes: the Cascadejumpers, the Cloudclimbers, the Duststorm Tribe, the Lightningstrike Tribe, the Riverswift Tribe, the Thunderrunners, the Windspring tribe etc...

Example Names: Brags-too-Much, Eats-through-Nose, Head-breaks-Rock, Jumps-over-Jevumm, Kills-giant-Frog, Pretty-like-Flower, Smiles-like-Wolf, Wet-behind-Ears, etc...

Example Attributes: Combat Technique, Extra Actions, Extra Defenses, Features (animal empathy & appearance), Heightened Awareness, Heightened Senses, Jumping, Melee Attack (Unarmed), Melee Defense (Unarmed), Mind Shield, Organizational Ties (tribe), Ranged Attack (Bow), Ranged Defense (Dodge), etc...

Example Skills: Acrobatics, Area Knowledge, Burglary, Climbing, Foreign Culture, Forgery, Gaming, Languages, Navigation, Seduction, Sleight of Hand, Stealth, Wilderness Survival, Writing, etc...

Domesticated Zipsum attitudes towards….
Cheldrun	Oooo! Shiny cities, bright lights, whirring motors, smart peoples. What is not to like about these wonder-workers from the stars?
Allskins	These are soft and nice people compared with the others. They pay us money and listen to us tell our stories.
Biomade	Smoothskins are mindsensors, but they cannot read us, so they do not like us. They are dangerous, but they have a lot of information. Treat with caution.
Mechified	How it hurts when they kick us with their metal feet! They are rough and rude people, who make loud noises and terrible smells.
Karians	We are the people of the past. Cheldrun are shiny and new. We should learn from the new people or we will be dead people.
Anakarix	They move too slow. The future is fast, fast, fast. They will not make it long, before the future outdistances them too too much.
Gogajin	Strong, strong, strong and when they are drunk they talk so much. They make good allies if they are willing to work hard for the city people.
Jevumm	While we are in the city they cannot eat us! They are scared of fire, but the city people use it in everything. Phhhhhbttt!
Prill	They are so pretty, but they are only worried all the time about the forest. The future is the city. They should sing city songs.
Vorax	We miss the Vorax. They were the only people who knew more stories than we do. Too bad they get sick around the Cheldrun.
Zipsum	We are fast and smart and if we learn from the Cheldrun we will become faster and smarter.

Wild Zipsum attitudes towards….
Cheldrun	They are stinky and horrible. They think they know everything, but they cannot see and hear everything we can. We will learn all lore to defeat them.
Allskins	These are the most impotent of the Cheldrun, despised even by their own kind.
Biomade	These are the ones who know the most, among the Cheldrun and therefore the ones we must really fear.
Mechified	They look scary, and they’ll hurt you if you let them get close, but they can never catch us.
Karians	We are Karia’s emotional expression. Our jubilation is her jubilation. We must grow in happiness for her to grow in happiness.
Anakarix	Boring! They do nothing but sit, sit, sit. If you can get them talking, though, they know so much.
Gogajin	They make us laugh and laugh when they are drunk. They are so stupid, but we like them.
Jevumm	Hiss! We hate them. They eat us and scratch us if we are not careful – but they are easy to scare with fire.
Prill	So many rules! They are always following traditions and rituals and talking about the past. They are stuck like ants in tree sap.
Vorax	Sigh. We miss them so much. They were storytellers before us and they knew so much about far away places.
Zipsum	We are the fastest and smartest people anywhere and it is our job to use our fast and our smart to make Karia happier.