Denizens of the Mighty Dry #6
’Oh, I be a brief flash in the dark, but I be a bright one, effendi.’ Semaiu the Pickpocket
Name: Famosi
Habitat: Everywhere
Lifespan: 10 - 20 years
Appearance: The Famosi are the last great experiment of a coven of scientists at the sunset end of the Quiet. They resemble caterpillars with humanoid faces, and instead of legs they are gifted with 60 - 120 human-like arms. The arms and hands can be used to walk or manipulate objects. They are grey of skin and communicate with one another using a language of subtle blinks and facial expressions.
Lives: The Famosi are renowned tinkerers and scrap merchants, and their wares are sought after across the Mighty Dry. Most live in large family groups of 30 - 100 individuals and they prefer small, enclosed spaces to make their homes. Most Famosi communities therefore form in ancient sewers, abandoned towers or even (to the consternation of their neighbours) within the walls of buildings.
Their single-minded quest as a culture is to cure themselves of the curse of their short life-span, but this is a forlorn hope. Short of the discovery of some kind of wondrous artifact of the Before Times, the question of longevity is purely academical for the Famosi. None live long enough to carry out the necessary research and those who abandon their family units to do so are rarely welcomed back and thus whatever knowledge they may have gleaned is lost forever when they die.
Even so, the Famosi are able to make a great many artifacts of the past work once more. Their genius seems in-born, rather than learned and few can explain the technical details of their works once they are complete.