Nádi (NAH-dee)

Soft, melodic, often echoing zíno and nature.

Examples:

Líra, Néra, Sálen, Vésha, Mírai, Sieth, Télun, Váya, Sádri, Melai, Rísha, Halya, Vésa, Nírith, Lyané, Mésara, Tásha, Shéya, Róren

Patterns:

Endings: ‑a, ‑ai, ‑en, ‑eth, ‑ya

Common syllables: Li‑, Né‑, Vé‑, Sa‑, Me‑, Sha‑, Si‑,Ro-

A little more grounded, but still musical.

Examples:

Dovan, Kéran, Rushe, Mésar, Lóven, Vadek, Toren,  Vashen, Rúmid, Halen, Sárik, Jorin, Témar, Velun,  Mosha, Rávi, Naren, Keshar, Lomir, Vetash

Patterns:

Endings: ‑an, ‑en, ‑ar, ‑id, ‑or, ‑un 

Roots: Do‑, Ke‑, Ru‑, Me‑, Lo‑, Va‑, Ha‑, Na‑

Common among Wáni, scouts, mediators.

Examples:

Saren, Talin, Loré, Vétan, Shadi, Lóren, Meru, Tavi, Shén, Varo, Lúnai,  Kelan, Rashi, Velis, Tárun, Oren

Family names grow from three roots:

1. Hóllow Legacy Names – taken from ruins, spirits, or old banners. 

2. Beast‑Path Names – tied to Néshar’s rivers, trails, and beasts. 

3. Deed‑Names – earned later in life which sometimes replaces older names.

Common patterns: 

Compound words: Root‑, Stone‑, Song‑, Star‑, River‑, Hóllow‑, Ward‑,  

Second elements: ‑keeper, ‑watch, ‑step, ‑path, ‑echo, ‑ring, ‑ford, ‑bough, ‑vein, ‑light.

Examples: Hóllow‑Echo, Star‑Vein , Root‑Ring, Song-path, Peace‑Ward, Song‑Mist, River‑Chord, and Stone‑Root.

Deed‑Names / Honor‑Names 

Granted after notable acts; can be used alongside or instead of family names.

Examples:

Beast‑Friend, Storm‑Singer, Root‑Keeper, Fog‑Walker, Peace‑Binder, Path‑Watcher, Melody‑True, Ward‑Bearer, Hóllow‑Speaker, Star‑Rooted

Example: 

“Lira Stone‑Root, called Zoan‑Soother.”

Ritual Names 

Used in Wáni or Nímari rites only, often tied to a specific melody, beast, or Hóllow spirit.

Major Language Groups & Dialects

Lírena: Nádi uses the common language with pauses. They tend to listen in their surroundings.

Silent Signs & Drum Codes:  Hand signals and soft drum/horn phrases used when beasts must not be startled. Some codes echo old Wáni rhythm‑notation from Hóllow.

Two Anchors: 

 Hóllow / Zíno Rings: symbol of ancient unity between Nímari and Wáni. It’s now half‑remembered and haunted by the cultures. 

 Néshar / The Wild Melody: living outpost where that unity’s ethics are practiced daily.

Self‑Image: 

 They see themselves as the keepers of the quiet oath. The ones who remember that zíno was once shared freely refusing to let fear turn zíno into chains.

 Mixed Ancestry: 

 Nímari roots bring reverence for living roots, trees, and organic shapes. 

 Wáni roots bring discipline of melody and careful notation. 

 Rásen roots bring strength, construction, and defense.

Drawn from the Peace‑Oath Monoliths of Hóllow and Néshar’s founding rules.

1. No Blood in Sacred Places 

   Hóllow, the Fire Circle, Wáni Lodge, and certain marked stones are “quiet grounds”: no killing, no spells cast in fury.

2. Beasts Are Never Property 

   Branding, chains, forced breeding, and cruel experiments are abhorrent.

3. Zíno Bound by Ethics 

   Shádu and Vétar zíno may heal, calm, guide, and shield—but never enslave minds or serve laziness.

4. Truth in Memory 

   Hiding or falsifying records about zíno use or Hóllow history is a grave offense; memories‑crystals and scrolls are treated as near‑sacred.

5. Restorative Justice 

   Harm is met with listening, restitution, and service to beasts or kin; exile is the last step when trust is broken.

Overall Level

Tools and devices are handmade, small‑scale, and gentle on the land.

They work mostly with wood, stone, crystal, glass, plant fibers, and modest amounts of metal.

Celestial Craft uses water, wind, sunlight, and careful design.

Zíno is separate: for healing, calming, and oaths—not for driving machines.

The Nádi would say of their craft:

“Our tools are wood, stone, metal, and light.

The wild lends us its strength through water and wind.

Zíno is for hearts and oaths, not for turning wheels.”

Lower your voice near beasts, spirits, and the Wáni Lodge. 

At Hóllow, never shout; speak as if in a listening archive. 

Do not touch carvings or crystals in Hóllow without permission from a guide; touching runes can cause dangerous zíno tingles. 

When entering a long‑house, tap the doorframe twice (once for kin, once for beasts) before stepping in. 

Kin who are visiting are corrected gently if they talk of “taming” or “owning” beasts.

Materials: 

 Local wood, leather, wool, and rough cloth. Occasional blue‑white crystal chips sewn carefully into collars, cuffs, or pendants.

Styles: 

 Layered tunics and trousers/leggings. 

 Wide‑shouldered cloaks or ponchos with rounded edges—no abrupt shapes to spook beasts. 

 Colors: earth tones with muted azure or gray accents, mirroring Hóllow’s stone and crystal.

 Role Markings: 

 Wáni: stitched sound‑waves or circles at cuffs; sometimes a subtle ring motif. Other motif is an inverted teardrop with claw marks.

 Beastwardens: simple pawprints, horn silhouettes, or tail‑swirls. 

 Hóllow‑tenders (those who guide in the ruins): a small ring‑pattern near the shoulder.

Armor is light: leather, layered cloth, and bracers; heavy metal is rare and avoided near beasts.

Art

Root‑Circle Motif: 

  Curving root‑shapes entwined with perfect circles or rings, drawn from Hóllow’s corridors and sigil‑floors.

Memory Carvings: 

  Wood and stone carvings showing beasts and kin learning together; sometimes spirits are hinted at by negative space or faint inlay.

Instruments: 

 Bone flutes, ocarinas, drums, and stringed instruments tuned to calming modes. 

 Some incorporate shard‑crystals that hum faintly when played.

Story‑Crystals and Cords: 

 Simple crystals that hold a short-spoken lesson or melody when touched. 

 Knotted cords and woven bracelets that record events in color and pattern.

  Architecture

Hóllow Influence: 

 Ringed layouts: Néshar’s fire circle, long‑houses around it, echo Hóllow’s ring‑complex. 

 Doors and paths curve gently like Hóllow’s root‑corridors. 

 Some foundations and boundary stones are set in partial circles or ovals, referencing the sunken courtyard.

Practical Outpost Style: 

 Wattle‑and‑daub or plank walls. 

 Thatch or shingle roofs. 

 Round‑cornered doorways and wide entries for safe beast passage.

Inside are small stone fragments from Hóllow set into hearths or walls as a blessing.

Everyday Food: 

 River fish (roasted, smoked, or stewed). 

 Root and mushroom stews with herbs. 

 Thick porridges and flatbreads baked on stone.

 Hóllow‑Inspired Dishes: 

 Star‑Vein Stew: a pale fish stew with white roots and blue‑herbs, meant to look like crystal veins in stone. 

 Ring Bread: round loaves with a hollow center, shared at concord gatherings.

 Ritual / Special Foods: 

 Peace Bread: slightly sweet bread broken and shared after reconciliations or successful mediations between kin or beasts. 

 Onyx Snow Tea: dark, bitter winter tea with a hint of honey, drunk on cold nights when Hóllow’s stories are told.

 Custom: a small portion of any feast is set aside at the Fire Circle with a few quiet words for the spirits and beasts.

Dawn Listening 

 Each morning, many Nádi stand for a few breaths in silence, hearing river, beasts, and wind before speaking.

 Hóllow Pilgrimages 

  Small groups occasionally travel to Hóllow: 

 to renew Peace‑Oaths at the monoliths, 

 to listen to spirits, 

 to copy surviving inscriptions or melodies.

 Seasonal Observances: 

 Spring: blessings for births and new litters; gentle melodies for pregnant beasts. 

 Autumn: food offerings at beast‑paths and at Hóllow’s courtyard, thanking the wilds.

 Quiet Hour 

  After dark, there is usually an hour when only necessary speech is allowed. The Nádi voices are low like instruments soft as if Hóllow itself is listening.

Place: 

  Preferably near the Fire Circle; if not, a coal from that fire is brought to the birthing place.

Rites: 

 A Wáni hums a steady, simple calming tone. 

 A Nímari kin traces a small root‑sigil on the threshold. 

 Within a few days, the infant is carried to the Beast Yard or, symbolically, to a safe stone from Hóllow. 

If a beast or spirit shows interest standing near, sniffing, or flickering into sight. That is a sign often inspires part of the child’s name. A tiny bracelet with three knots (life, breath, path) is tied on the child’s wrist.

Called “Walking the Ring”:

Trial Route: 

  A youth, with a mentor nearby, must traverse three places in a day or two:

  1. Crossing Stones – shows they can read river and weather safely. 

  2. Watch Knoll – they must spend a watch shift with minimal guidance. 

  3. A Hóllow Threshold or Marker Stone – there they recite the Peace‑Oath or a simplified version.

Demonstrations:  Knowledge of zíno laws.  Respectful behavior toward beasts and any spirits encountered.   Ability to choose caution over bravado.

Afterwards: 

  At the Fire Circle they declare which groups they’ll serve (Wáni apprentice, Beastwarden, Rásen Hand, worker, crafter). 

They receive a new bracelet with color threads matching their chosen paths. The bracelets will have their first deed‑name.

Body Care:  The dead are washed and wrapped simply.  A small shard of crystal or a smooth river stone is placed in their hands.

 Burial:  On gentle ground near forest edge or a quiet river bend—never in active beast‑paths or sacred thresholds.   Nímari may plant a sapling or place a carved root‑stone at the head.

 Rites:   Wáni hum a low, steady melody; if the deceased worked in Hóllow, this may echo an old teaching tone from the memories‑crystals.   Beasts that were close to the kin are allowed to approach once, if they choose.

 Ongoing Memory:   A token (carved beast, small ring‑stone, or knotted cord) is hung on a communal memorial near Néshar.   On certain nights especially those with odd lights or hummings from Hóllow. The stories of the dead are retold, and the living listen for their spirits.

Drawing blood inside Hóllow, the Fire Circle, or before a Peace‑Oath Monolith. 

Using Shádu or Vétar to dominate minds, force obedience, or drive beasts as tools. 

Breaking or looting Peace‑Oath Monoliths, memory‑crystals, or teaching relics. 

Mocking or deliberately startling beasts and spirits. 

The Hollow’s Turning 

Retold as the night when a star portal opened. The zíno had taken the Hóllow kin away to the unknown. Some say they became protectors of all wilds; others whisper they are bound within the stone, singing still.

 The Shrouded Cavern 

A hidden place of the Nímari–Wáni lies beneath Hóllow or in the wilds. Their zíno, protects the place with illusions, spirits, and singing crystals. Many have sought it finding themselves changed.

 The Peace‑Oath Stones Speak 

  Tales where the monoliths glow or hum when oaths are broken nearby. The stones are said to cause sudden silence or dizziness as warning.

 The Silent Beast Procession 

  A legend that once each century kin can glance upon beasts walking or flaying. A line of lyna, vexra walking while zoan and loxies fly through the Hóllow’s courtyard. The beasts are perfect quiet being guided by unseen Wáni songs.

Véndal’s Last Nímari Guide (name disputed) 

  The one said to have shaped the first Peace‑Oath and helped open the star‑portal. Some Nádi claim descent from this guide.

The Triad of Founding Néshar: 

 Saren Quiet‑Horn (Lead Wán): 

  Wrote the strict code after the Misused Melody incident. Destroyed several powerful driving melodies to prevent future abuse. 

 Ráshen Stone‑Root (Rásen Hand founder): 

    Insisted warriors must guard Wáni, not command them. 

 Vésha River‑Chord (Peacekeeper): 

    Negotiated early treaties with traveling warbands and caravans.

Lira Hóllow‑Echo, “Ring‑Speaker” 

  More recent kin believed to have spoken with Hóllow spirits. They use a memories‑crystal reviving old teaching phrases for Wáni training.

Ideals:

Composure in the Presence of Beasts and Spirits 

  Beautiful kin stand steady when a zoan snorts nearby or when a Hóllow spirit flickers at the edge of sight.

Weathered, Not Ornate 

  Wind‑burned skin, river‑callused hands, and root‑scratched boots are admired more than fine clothes.

Quiet Voice, Strong Breath 

  For Wáni especially, breath control and a steady voice are marks of beauty. Someone whose voice can carry a melody softly through a root‑hall is revered.

Subtle Glimmer 

  Jewelry with tiny blue‑white stones (echoing Hóllow’s crystals) is prized: a faint, starry glow in dim light.

The Nádi thinks of their role first not their gender. They don't think of gender as male or female for duties are mixed. Any gender can be Wáni, Beastwarden, Rásen Hand, scholar, or Peacekeeper.

Balanced Traits 

  Calm, care, courage, and endurance are expected of everyone. Protecting beasts and soothing kin are not gendered tasks.

Markers, Not Rules 

  Some use hair braids, ear beads, or pendant shapes to signal gender or identity. There is no imposed dress or job division by gender.

Spiritual Flexibility 

 Because Hóllow spirits can appear as guides, students, or beasts of all kind. Nádi are comfortable with fluid or non‑binary identities; they often say “the wild doesn’t count genders.”

Shared Watch 

A good start to courting is volunteering for a watch shift together. They will go to the Watch Knoll, Crossing Stones, or even in a safe part of Hóllow’s courtyard. Sharing quiet, not chatter, is romantic.

Guided Walk in the Hóllow 

  For braver pairs, a gentle, respectful walk through the safer halls of Hóllow. The way each partner treats spirits, relics, and lingering wards is a test of character.

Song and Silence 

  Wáni may offer a short melody meant for your ears alone. They played soft enough not to affect beasts for its a song. Kin might weave a small bracelet with crystal slivers from the quarry, echoing Hóllow’s veins.

Beast & Spirit Favor 

  If a familiar beast chooses to rest near both, or a Hóllow spirit appears turning a page or tracing a sigil. While they’re together must taken as a quiet blessing.

Partnership of Paths 

 Ideal relationships share both the risk and rest. One might travel more while another hold the home. Both will understand each other’s dangers.

The Unbound Vow

Beasts and partners are never bound to the other kin. There are common terms: my path‑companion and my shared‑fire.

Respect for Solitude and Duty 

Time apart on patrol, in root‑halls, or in zíno study is normal. A partner who tries to pull someone away from their duty is seen as immature.

Shared Codes 

Many couples reaffirm the Peace‑Oath principles together: no violence in anger, no zíno used to dominate each other.

Most named groups fall into three broad currents. One kin can belong to more than one group.

Keepers of Song, Path, and Memory

These are the kin who guard Hóllow and its knowledge.

 Path‑Keepers (includes the Hóllow‑Keepers and some Wáni): 

  Maintain the safest routes in Hóllow, repair what they can, and quietly control who is allowed into the deeper root‑halls.

 Wáni Circle of the Ring: 

  A loose network of Wáni in outposts like Néshar. They keep calming and healing melodies, fragments of Hóllow notation, and sometimes interpret memory‑crystals.

 The Quiet Archive: 

  Scribes and record‑keepers who copy inscriptions, stories, and songs. Officially neutral, but their choices about what to record or omit give them quiet influence.

 Together, outsiders often just call them “the Hóllow‑folk” or “Keepers.”

Roaming Wardens and Practical Defenders

These are the kin who move, watch, and quietly keep others alive.

 Beastwardens’ Drift: 

  A wandering fellowship who travel between outposts and Hóllow, mapping beast migrations, poacher routes, and strange zíno disturbances.

 Rásen Hand Concord: 

  A shared training tradition among practical defenders and builders. They teach non‑lethal tactics, evacuation methods, and fortifying outposts in ways that still respect the Peace‑Oath.

 In most villages, they’re simply known as “Wardens” or “the Rásen Hands.”

Debates over Hóllow’s Secrets

These are more like stances than formal orders; they cut across all the groups above.

 Open Ring Concord: 

  Believe more of Hóllow’s knowledge should be recovered and shared. They support founding more small outposts like Néshar in a loose “ring” around the wilds.

 Veiled Root Circle: 

  Believe the Shrouded Cavern and high‑risk zíno lore must remain sealed. They favor strict control of access to Hóllow and sometimes quietly hide or “lose” dangerous texts.

 Most Nádi have sympathies with one side or the other, even if they never swear a name.

External Powers & Hidden Threats

From the Nádi point of view, these are not “their” organizations but dangerous neighbors and intruders.

 River Princes of Línasha: 

  Small lords and merchants who control stretches of the river. Some honor Néshar as neutral ground; others try to exploit beast‑paths and rumors of zíno for gain.

 Chain‑Keepers (secret, outlawed): 

  Poachers, slavers, and experimenters in hidden camps. They want to break the Peace‑Oath, enslave beasts, and weaponize stolen Wáni methods and Hóllow relics.

 Claimant Orders of the Hóllow: 

  Various outside groups who claim rightful ownership of Hóllow’s legacy. Some are frauds, some are sincere, and a rare few may hold real relics or partial lineages.