Embalids

An eerie cross between snakes and slugs, embalids are a jungle-dwelling creature native to Jindiara, Iyakel, Estall Bay, and other tropical regions. There are many different kinds of embalids, and almost all of them are large, bright, heavy, and quite dangerous. They are listed in detail below but their generic characteristics are as follows: They are born in small, soft eggs which are attached to trees as they are laid. They are usually fixed to the bottom of large branches in dense groups so that it is difficult for other animals to find them and eat them. Their eggs are usually coloured like wood and are textured quite roughly. Internally, they are similar to snakes except their jaw is simplified and they have an internal skeleton made of hard segments like a lobster's tail. The soft and spongy appearance of the embalid is purely due to its outer layers of skin and adornments. Embalids vary in size from the length of a finger to several meters, the latter being quite heavy.

Instead of slithering along the ground like snakes, they use the whole bottom of their body, which is a complex arrangement of muscles, to push themselves forwards like a snail. Also like a snail, they secrete a sticky mucus at the front to help lubricate their path, protect their underbelly, and to help give them extra grip when climbing trees. Embalids have a single, long, powerful tongue which is quite flexible. Usually, it acts like a tentacle, dragging food it desires directly into its mouth. It's able to project its tongue with surprising speed and accuracy, much like a frog catching flies, and it will then withdraw the tongue as quickly as it appeared. Usually, though, the tongues of larger types move slower than those of smaller types. Inside its mouth, there are muscles lined with tiny sharp teeth which it uses to grind food into a pulp which it can swallow and digest. These teeth are not directly inside the creature, but are about 1/4 down its body, so in the case of larger embalids, the immediate inner mouth is harmless and a victim's hand or foot can be pulled out harmlessly with enough effort.

Embalids do everything slowly except defend themselves. When threatened, some can propel spines and/or withdraw sensitive organs like eyes and tongues with dazzling speed. Embalids have a variety defence mechanisms as they are too slow to run and too clumsy to fight back. To carnivorous animals, embalid flesh tastes horribly bitter, though in some places it's a delicacy when cooked. This in itself is enough of a deterrent, but other kinds use techniques such as a coating of sticky or slimy mucus, defensive spines which are either already protruding or can be protruded, projectile ink or acid, poisonous flesh, intimidating patterns and colours on the skin, or camouflage.

Embalids are very moist creatures and risk dying if in the hot sun for too long. Not only does their mucus keep their body moist and cool, but they will often spend time in water, and are very active during and after rain or at night. Some kinds are able to move underwater and hold their breath, such as the roshang and silver balid. Unless the weather is dry and warm, they will spend all their time moving and looking for food using their sense of smell. Their eyes, though large, are often thought to be useless to the creature as they do not seem to respond to visual stimuli. Most embalids are carnivorous but generally do not eat large animals. Most eat insects, slugs and snails, eggs, rodents, small reptiles, or carcasses left by predators.

As stated, some embalids are a delicacy when cooked, and sometimes their mucus can be eaten too. In cultures such as the Keid, embalids are considered to be a great source of food and other useful resources such as poison or their tough internal skeleton. In genereal, however, it is recommended that embalids be avoided altogether; there's almost no telling how it will react when threatened or how safe it is to approach, touch, or eat. As a whole species, they are referred to embalids, but as individual types, they are balids.

Estall Bay Varieties

Angel Balid
Slender and small, only about 9cms long, the angel balid is one of the smallest kinds. They are the most harmless kind of embalid, with no distinct mechanism besides a small spine between its eyes which can easily be avoided when eating the creature raw. Angel balids come out in large numbers during rain, and are one of the most commonly known balids. They get their name from the two rows of soft, white, feathery protrusions of delicate flesh down their backs.

Silver Balid
The silver balid, measuring about 30cms on average, is one of the most water-loving balids. It often lurks around shallow water, sitting just under the surface underwater and shimmering in the light like a piece of silver. They are streaked with light and dark patterns which reflect light, and are smooth and without fleshy adornments, unlike other kinds of embalids. They defend themselves with a very slippery second type of mucus, used only by some balids. Not only does it make them very difficult to hold, but sharp objects tend to slide aside against the soft flesh of a silver balid.

Bitter Balid
As its name implies, the bitter balid is one of the most foul tasting, and in the case of mature bitter balids, eating the flesh can make a person seriously or fatally ill. They grow to an impressive 60cms and can weigh about 20kgs. They are brown and green in colour and appear to have skin of fleshy bark, somewhat like a toad. They are one of the more aggressive predatory embalids, and will eat almost anything that appears edible. They have two spiny protrusions above their eyes, pointing forward, to protect their faces, as they are unable to close the protective layer of skin over their eyes like other embalids. They are the only kind of balid known to not be eaten by any other living thing.

King Balid
By far the largest of the Estall Bay embalids, the bulky king balid can reach 90cms in length and can weigh up to 50kgs. They are quite brash and will wander anywhere they please, often roaming into civilised areas and attempting to eat the feet of passerbys with their long, strong tongue. Like the angel balid, they boast rows of beautiful, flaky, fleshy decorations along their backs. They are coloured like bright foliage and flowers, possibly as a form of camouflage. Within these fleshy appendages, however, are small, sharp spines which are poisonous in older king balids.

Jindiara Varieties

Maapoga
The smallest embalid known, the maapoga is rarely beyond 6cms in length. It is also one of the most beautiful kinds, striped with intense purple and white patterns, dotted with bright red petal-like appendages like small flowers all over its body. This beauty is a warning; it is extremely poisonous and it coats itself in an acidic toxin when irritated. If its touched, the acid burns the skin and the poison enters the wound. It's highly effective and easily fatal to even large mammals. Despite this, if cooked properly and for a long time, it is perfectly edible and considered one of the best animals to eat by Keid.

Tufa
The tufa is about 25cms long and somewhat fat. They have a stone texture and are dull yellow in colour. They also have four firm horn-like appendages protruding from either side of their face, though they seem to be only for display. More mature bull tufas have larger, darker, more jagged horns. The larger horns are often taken from dead tufas and carved into daggers, as the material is quite strong and holds its shape very well. Tufas seem to enjoy climbing to great heights, such as up rocky slopes or tall trees, possibly in search of bird eggs to feed on.

Malit
Malits are reasonably large, growing to about 50cms in length and weighing up to 15kgs. Unlike other embalids, malits' bodies are asymmetrical; their white bodies are covered in large patches of deep maroon which sprout flower-like blooms made from strange variations of flesh. These flowery blooms smell strongly of meat, and this attracts flies and insects to the malit. To defend itself, it will vomit a spray of sticky, red-purple mucus with surprising force. This mucus severely irritates the skin, can cause blindness if shot in the eyes, and acts as a powerful bleach.

Roshang
The second largest known type of embalids are the roshang, able to grow up to 2.5 meters long and weighing as much as two grown men. They are slender and quite flexible compared with other embalids, able to wrap around branches and trees and reach up with their body to access higher places. They are orange in colour and are surrounded by a spongy rim of flesh around the base of their body, thought to help catch moisture during rain. Roshang are known to frequently feed on rodents using their fast, strong tongue, which can strike a pebble a meter away. They are also the fastest embalid, though they are easily outrun by a slow human walk.

Ukuma
Easily the most destructive and feared embalid is the ukuma. With an average length of well over three meters and weighing as much as a large horse, the ukuma is a hassle to encounter. They are known to climb up the walls of Keid houses and slide across roofs until the structure simply collapses under the weight of the slug. They are also known to eat sleeping animals as large as wolves and sometimes even humans or Keid. There are several Keid stories about ukumas that come out at night and eat misbehaving children in their sleep. They are very bulky, often high enough to block the view of a standing person, and are black-blue with bright green and yellow patchy stripes down their body. They too have soft, feathery appendages on their backs, much like the angel balids.

Iyakel Varieties

Though it's known that Iyakel boasts at least three large types of embalids, little more is known about these creatures. The largest is believed to be as heavy as a man and coloured orange and black like a tiger.