Zhelt -- Желт

Basic Information

Anatomy

Zhelt are incredibly simple beings, anatomically. They are composed of a translucent, gel-like substance surrounding an incredibly acidic nucleus, which functions as brain, stomach, lungs, and whatever else they might need to sustain life. Both substances can be reshaped, but the nucleus cannot shift nearly as quickly or as drastically as the gel.

Skydda the Maiden's Shield by Joel Brisbane

Genetics and Reproduction

When a Zhelt with two or more nuclei wish to reproduce, they temporarily join the nuclei together and form a zygote - child nucleus - which is then split off and given some 'donor gel' from the parents to protect it.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Zhelt can eat practically anything due to the strength of their nucleus' acid.

Additional Information

Facial characteristics

They blobs. They have no faces.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Their ancestral species is native to Stirge, and the majority of them have remained there.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Tremorsense. Capable of perceiving sound, movement, air fluctuations, etc. to form a mental image of the world around them, sometimes far more accurately than sight or hearing alone might.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

In interacting with humans, the Zhelt have learned that they are frequently colors of the rainbow. The humans seem to think that this is beautiful or somehow indicative of their character. As such, they try to name their offspring after their coloring. Not having eyes, their guesses are usually wrong. However a significant contingent purposefully attempt to have the most boring, "normal" names possible.

Beauty Ideals

Being functionally blind, the thing that matters to a slime is not color or detail or anything like that. They care about SHAPE. Curved or round or scrawny, each Zhelt has a preferred bodily form, usually humanoid, though there are many outliers.

Gender Ideals

Zhelt are Genderfluid. Literally.

Courtship Ideals

Zhelt will spend years of their lives with a prospective loved one, doing as much together as physically possible, sometimes to the point of non-permanently binding themselves together as preparation for what would come if they were to join together in a permanent relationship in order to have children.

Relationship Ideals

For any sort of potentially-reproductive relationship, Zhelt must fuse together into a single, multi-nucleus individual, forcing both parties to give up/share individuality and freedom of movement in exchange for one-ness. If there is no need/desire to reproduce, this fusion isn't strictly necessary, but it is sometimes undergone simply to prove a couple's devotion.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

By their nature as slimes, Zhelt cannot speak in the traditional sense. There are three ways that they typically get around this.
1. Sign language.
2. Painstakingly creating the parts necessary to create and form audible speech.
3. Magic.
When they communicate, it is typically in the language of the locals. That is to say, often Russian, due to the influence of the Stirgan humans.

Common Etiquette Rules

Do not stick things in them. Do not poke them. Don't point out that their food is floating inside of them. They know.

Common Dress Code

Zhelt favor form-fitting, fully-covering clothing. Something that can allow them to maintain a human shape without putting effort into it.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Zhelt culture largely pulls from that of Northern Stirge [Add link to this later]. Zhelt cultural heritage is steeped in guilt for the deaths of thousands of humans over the years, which is how the Zhelt achieved sapient and a souled existence in the first place.

Common Taboos

Eating anything intelligent is abhorrent. If the person was already dead, it's uncouth and bestial. If they were killed BY the Zhelt, it is worse than murder; it's the dissolution of everything the Zhelt have tried to escape since gaining sapience.

Historical Figures

Kartina - Famous Zhelt artist, specifically known for their глубокая живопись or 'Deep Painting', a method of painting in thick layers that would generate a three-dimensional effect. They are also surprisingly adept at using color despite their natural blindness. Intense, difficult to be around, very loud.

Lifespan

40 - 120 years

Average Height

0.7 - 1m

Average Length

1 - 1.25m in diameter

Average Physique

Depends on the shape and size of the form the Zhelt takes - if it deviates from the natural one - but most end up appearing as slightly doughy humanoids.