Who are the Aralia? Part 2

Lifecycle

The initial development of the Aralia from egg into bipedal stage takes approximately six months, at the end of which time, the child stands approximately 3 feet in height, but possesses basically the same proportions as an adult. Over the next year, the child will progress to full height and stature, and it is during this time that he is indoctrinated into the ways of Aralia society and the importance of loyalty to clan and race.

Once the child is fully grown, his education begins immediately, being trained in the trade of his clan, whether this takes the form of an academic course of study, military drills, or even manual labor. Aralia are quick learners, and education generally takes on some aspect of on the job training; children are effectively put to work within a year of their metamorphosis, taking on the menial tasks of society. The young essentially serve as the lowest rung of the work force.

The child serves and learns in this fashion for approximately 8 years, before his body begins to age and weaken, and within a matter of months, returns to the familial pool and enters into a form of coma. It is then that the child enters the first of his hibernations.

Aralia have evolved with a peculiar solution to the problem of longevity. Like many of the salamander species who share much of their genes, they possess a regenerative gift, able to regrow lost limbs or tails, and even some secondary organs. However, in the Aralia, this regenerative gift takes on an additional form. The body, once it reaches a certain level of aging, senses it's impending expiration and triggers a system-wide development of undifferentiated cells, a similar reaction to the blastoma that form around a severed appendage, but on a much wider scale. This process consumes a remarkable amount of energy and nutrients, which ultimately induces a hibernative state in the body. This state lasts approximately two to three weeks, during which point much of the body essentially regrows itself anew, leaving it as youthful as it was after it's first year of newborn life.

The Aralia call this the As-namsu, the first death, and it is considered to mark the child's entrance into adulthood. This state is normally induced merely by age, however, extreme physical trauma or injury can incite this regenerative state early, essentially cutting short the Aralia's childhood. Those unfortunate enough to experience this regeneration early are often stigmatized by the rest of society. Their intellectual growth stunted, these Zal-namsu are considered failures, having not even been able to survive to a natural As-namsu, and are relegated to a life of permanent menial labor and barred from ever ascending any further in their social hierarchy, and even from breeding.

This regeneration process will repeat itself approximately every 8-10 years, overall about 4-6 times over the course of the Aralia's lifetime, though individual examples have displayed shorter or longer lifetimes. The process is extremely complex, and is still not fully understood by Aralia medicine, though some experiments have been successfully completed in forced triggering of the process, and indeed, some rumors persist that in times of labor shortages, Aralia governors have essentially created Zal-namsu by inducing early regenerations in children, in order to provide a larger stable of menial laborers.

By and large however, the upper limit on regenerations seems to be mostly unavoidable, eventual final death being caused by degenerative failure of crucial organs like the brain which remain largely intact during the regeneration process and as such do not benefit from its healing effects, as well as an overall reduction in the kind of stamina and energy reserves required to survive through the hibernation. Some experiments have been made towards trying to extend the overall lifespan, but the procedure is incredibly difficult and has a rather poor success rate.

It is also not an "extra life" in any sense. The regeneration can be triggered by critical injury, but the subject must still survive the ordeal. If the heart has been destroyed or stopped, or too much blood loss has occurred, or the subject suffers brain death, the regenerative process will be unable to trigger as the systems that manage it shut down with the rest of the body. At best it may trigger in the final moments, but it will at most succeed in producing a permanently comatose individual, and is likely to simply fail, running out of the necessary energy as the body expires, leaving only a half-regenerated form.

Who are the Aralia? Part 1

The Aralia (from "arali", meaning underworld, and "a" or "lilia" meaning child or offspring) are an intelligent, amphibian descended species, whose principal habitat prior to the Nightfall event was underground. Their development of sentience predates that of humanity by a number of thousands of years, and as a result they are significantly more advanced technologically than ourselves.

Appearance
Aralia are bipedal, and are approximately 5 feet tall on average, with a tail that extends about 3 feet from the hindquarters. The tail is highly flexible, but not prehensile. The head is of a similar shape to that of a salamander's, except for a more prominent domed shape to the top of the skull, indicated a larger brain than that of their primitive cousins. Their hands and feet contain 4 digits, 3 fingers and an opposable thumb on the hand, and four stout but long toes on the feet. They are hairless, possessed instead of extremely smooth skin that is actually covered in extremely small, slick scales.

Their skin color varies significantly, and is one of the major individualizing factors in an Aralia's appearance, presenting patterns and coloration as wide-ranging as the amphibians from which they descend. Common skin colors are grey, black with reddish patches, and green or yellow with a whitish patch starting from their chin and running down through the legs and past onto the tail. Patterns however can range from spots, to stripes of all varieties, to splotchy patterns, to solid colors.

Males and females of the species are largely indistinguishable from each other, their sexual characteristics being largely internal. Some have suggested theories regarding sex affecting the patterns on the Aralia's skin, but as of yet no evidence has been able to be pieced together, while some of what is extant seems to contradict this, in that skin color and pattern are often shared familial characteristics.

Biology
Aralia are cold-blooded, like all amphibians, and particularly adapted to cool, damp climates, due to their amphibian nature as well as the nature of their habitat. They respond poorly to much warmer temperatures, as well as to extremes of cold, and temperatures too far from their comfort zone can negatively affect their energy levels. Lack of moisture is also problematic, as their skin does not hydrate itself well and can dry out easily. As a result of this, a large body of Aralia technological research centers around climate control systems, and when outside of their own home environments, Aralia scouts and military units usually wear climate controlled armor suits. However, like humans, there is considerable variation by local climate as to what constitutes an individual Aralia's personal comfort zone.

Aralia are primarily carnivores, but also supplement their meat diet with various species of fungus, and also some low starch, low sugar vegetation. Their metabolism is especially effective at producing energy from relatively small amounts of carbohydrates, and as a result consumption of foods with a higher concentration of sugars can cause havoc on the metabolism if not taken in extreme moderation.

Reproduction takes place through intercourse, with the male of the species impregnating the female, who then lays the inseminated eggs into a familial pool constructed for the purpose. The entire extended family lays it's eggs into this same pool; Aralia offspring generally are not aware of their direct parent, nor are their direct parents aware of which of the offspring are their direct descendants. The young develop through a tadpole-like stage, through to a stage strongly resembling that of their salamander cousins, before finally learning to stand on their hind legs. During this period, care of the young is shared collectively with the entire extended family unit, and as a result of this, familial bonds tend to form with the broader body of the family or clan rather than individual parents. This has lead to a much more communal tendency on the part of the species, favoring the importance of clan and state over individualism.

This attitude towards the importance of the greater good of the race also leads to a form of instinctual eugenics, as young children who appear to possess sub par genes or capabilities are often culled and even eaten, such as the sick or those possessing of genetic maladies or lesser intellect of physical capability.

Another writing sample

Just for fun, here's another sample of Aralian text. This one is a brief battle report, discussing the destruction of a rebel human force that attempted to attack an Aralian outpost. You'll notice the use of underlining as a way of indicating proper names. A transliteration of the text follows:

A-aga: Birtu 345

Kibala dud-gar Aralia kizrum 345. Kibala kizrum us. Nu dirig dub-gar udnamekam.

Nubanda Kelara, Birtu 345

Approximate translation:

Report: Fort 345

Rebel forces attacked Aralian unit 345. All rebel forces killed. No further attacks expected.

Commander Kelara, Fort 345

Today's update

I've continued work on the Aralia script, and have managed to produce a font out of the alphabet. It includes the basic characters, numbers, and some basic punctuation marks. It's very rough, I have no experience with font design, and the editor I was using was very awkward, so there's no doubt all sorts of wierdness.

Download now!

First words.

So, after hours of research and experimentation, I am able to present what may be the first piece of the alien language written.



Transliterated: Aralia en abzu

Translation: Aralia (lit. "progeny/seed of the underworld"), rulers of the waters beneath the world

This is actually an archaic name for the Aralian nation, from before Nightfall. More recent texts which refer to the official name of their state generally read "Aralia en arali, en abzu, en anki", "Aralia, rulers of the underworld, rulers of the water, rulers of the heaven and earth", a much more lofty title suited to their present dominion over the Earth.