Meajeyi: Mending Maggots

  Meajeyi appear as large, pulsating, blue-tinted white masses. Short, pale hairs stick out in erratic, lone clusters across their bodies. If one were somehow able to view the front-end of a meajeyi, they would be faced with a wide, circular mouth that inexplicably closes in on itself repeatedly, without opening. These creatures cannot be seen without eldritch insight, however, and so, to most, their burrowed tunnels appear as if from thin air. Thankfully, they are seldom found within human settlements, and are few and far between— though they do blight farmland on occasion. These downward-curved tunnels are about 4 feet in diameter and tend to only be 40-80 feet in length, growing over a period of about ten years. As the meajeyi feast, their bodies secrete a liquid substance that hardens into lyez clay, this is done both to ensure the stability of the tunnel, and simply to vacate waste from their bodies. The clay itself, once hardened, bears a bright white flecked with striking blue blotches.  

Growth

No one has witnessed an adult meajeyi. No one has seen one come into being, not even so much as an egg has ever been witnessed. How then, are they appearing within Qet? Where do they come from? Their life cycle appears similar to that of insects, as those that finish burrowing stop, and begin to pupate. Pupal meajeyi take on a bluer hue, and cease moving entirely. How long does this stage of life last? There are records of meajeyi that have lasted for hundreds of years as pupae, leaving occultist scholars perplexed.   Wherever they appear, all meajeyi immediately begin burrowing into the ground. Other creatures, be they animal, monster, or eldritch in nature— steer clear of their burrows, deterred by psychic warnings sent out by the larval beings. Insightful humans who encounter these burrows will receive psychic messages of their own— although these carry the opposite intent.  

After a day's travel, the man lead me to a tunnel, tied me to a rope, and lowered me steadily inside. As soon as my head had entered the passage, I could hear a voice— not through my ears, but through my mind.   "Come, enter, I can feel your suffering— and I can return to you that which has been lost."

— A blind wanderer

  Those who find themselves hostile to a meajeyi will quickly find the creatures to be impervious to all forms of damage— be they physical or magical in nature. They pose no threat, and will simply allow their attackers to tire themselves out until they accept this fact. Similarly, few have attempted to take meajeyi captive— in which cases, the creatures simply allowed them to.  

Unmixing Earth

The lyez clay produced by meajeyi is a great boon to the people of Qet. This material bears the strange property of being unable to combine or mix with other materials whatsoever. This unique property allows for the creation of lyez clay retorts, which can be used to brew alchemical concotions without worry of the vessel melting or contaminating anything heated within.   Lyez clay also sees common medicinal use by both healers and commoners alike as a laxative.  

Mending

If someone with an altered body— such as one with lost limbs, or alchemical mutations— were to approach a meajeyi, they will see a strange, blue light emanating from within the creature. Lit by this strange light from behind, will be what appears to be a human form that eerily resembles their own, pressing against the soft flesh of the meajeyi from inside. Waiting. Watching, as the meajeyi speaks once more.  

"I can return an afflicted portion of your body to health, unfortunately, there will be a cost— your very lifeforce will be weakened by the exchange. You may find that your heart beats a little more weakly, your stamina is a little lower, and your mind a little slower. A small price to pay, one I sadly cannot change— it is the nature of this trade. Pray you never need it again, however, for the price must always be paid— and should you receive this blessing time and time again, you will eventually fall lifeless."   "I accept." Anything. I said I'd do anything, and I would.   "Then reach down and place your eyeless visage upon my flesh."

— A blind wanderer

  Always, visitors are warned of the price— a weakened body. Few worry about this, however, and accept the being's blessing by touching its flesh with the afflicted portion of their own. This body part will be pulled into the maggot's mass, held for a moment, and then pushed out— healed. The light will fade, and the figure within will disappear.  

I could feel it— my eyes, they were back! I cried out with joy as I saw light for the first time in years— but then I looked down upon my savior, and my cries transformed into those of horror. It said nothing as I pulled out my knife and began slashing wildly at the loathsome beast I now faced— and in my frenzy, I had managed to slash across my own face, and take my eyesight once again.

— A blind wanderer

 

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