WORLD BOOK WORLD BOOK WORLD BOOK 0073 0073
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Chapter 3: RACES & REALMS
Avian Kinship
Penmai feel a close kinship with birds of all kinds,
a relationship forged high in the arboreal canopies.
Birds feel it, too, and often alight near them and flutter
about. It is common for a Penmai to be absent-mindedly stroking a bird with the long fingers of one hand
while a couple more perch upon his shoulders or atop
his head. Each is completely comfortable in the others’ presence. Beyond simple companionship, Penmai
and avian creatures share a non-magical, non-psychic
communion and an innate understanding of purpose
and attitudes. A Penmai can sense a raven’s despair or
alarm, or a starling’s joy or caution—not so reliably that
one can depend on local avians for an ever-present, detailed scouting report, but sufficient to be aware of broad
emotional trends among their winged compatriots.
The Penmai-sanid relationship demonstrates this affinity most fully. Sanid are large, black birds with long
black beaks and white and orange feathers along their
head and tail, common all over Khitus but especially
fruitful in and around forested regions. Sanid allow the
Penmai mastery of the skies.
Rumors & Whispers
Like their history, Penmai obfuscate and prevaricate on all
details unless they have reasons for either trusting someone
or needing to communicate something. Thus, it is possible
that other races and factions have heard every possible slur,
lie, or insult about the Penmai because they themselves
have spread them. What is true or not about the Penmai?
Perhaps not even they know, as what may be true for one
village and its Penmai may not hold true for all of them.
The one recurring legend that Penmai tell with any
certainty must have some truth to it, though how much
is hidden and unknown. Still, the majority of the Penmai believe some, if not all, of this, regardless of any
factual verifications (or lack thereof).
• Penman tales tell that all of Khitus once lay swathed
in jungles and forests, and their decline is most
alarming to all those tied to them.
• The Dragon Kings who watched over the Penmai
have not departed but instead have reverted to animalistic intelligence and these the Penmai still worship; they wander the forest floors today as unintelligent, extremely dangerous dragons indifferent to
the Penmai reverence lavished upon them.
• Many Penmai (and their aerosto allies) feel that eventually these animalistic dragons will rediscover their
minds, their power, and reassert their dominance.
• The subaorsi groundlings, the Penmai believe, will
one day destroy themselves and leave behind a para-
dise wherein the forests and jungles will regrow their
proper all-encompassing canopies across Khitus.
Prajalu
Outsiders publicly consider the human Prajalu tribesmen to be skilled traders and craftsmen, but treat them
cautiously. Their reputations—as poison crafters or child
stealers—and their odd family dynamics give others
sufficient pause or paranoia to always tread carefully
around the Prajalu.
Prajalu stand slightly shorter than other humans, but
they all have more powerful muscular builds. They have
fair skin, blonde to white hair, and blue or paler (some
completely white) eyes. Prajalu tend to have round facial features with flat noses. They take their outward appearance and hygiene seriously, bathing and grooming
often. Colorful, billowing blouses and pantaloons are
common, as are modest jewelry adornments, though
some warriors wear considerably less. Parasols are currently fashionable. Prajalu change their clothes several
times per day when possible, even once or twice during
a single meal, as a symbol of personal pride and wealth.
Prajalu are noted for their exquisite posture and poise, a
signature of their upbringing and self-confidence.
Prajalu ride thakal and swafa mounts, the latter often
adorned in bright “clothing” of braids and streamers.
They live simply in single-story, open-air garden dwellings of wood and black stone, up to eight homes sharing
a common garden or courtyard. Throughout all this, their
mounts and many pets wander and graze freely, though
they are kept away from cooking fires and food stores.
History
The Prajalu peoples moved north toward the warmskied equatorial lands earlier than any other humans,
then scattered thinly across the western steppes and
pasturelands they found there. This abundant paradise,
basking beneath the bright sun and washed by rains,
kept them a simple people. By the time Makadan and
Attite cities rose like monuments to progress toward the
end of the Barbarian Age, the Prajalu lagged far behind,
proud yet unsophisticated.
In the intervening millennia and through the Classic
Age, the Prajalu have never caught up to other cultures,
technologically or magically. A mystery to others, the Prajalu simply shrug and admit they felt little need to compete, content with the attentions and ministrations of
two Daragkarik over their lands. Others with closer eyes
on smaller activities know that some Prajalu learned the
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