Neemal

Neemal is a blue kuparkuke from the planet Fungaia.

As Kinoko’s best buddy in the world, Neemal is the sensible and level-headed sidekick to his more rebellious and free-spirited friend. He’s a planner and a thinker, never one to wander into the unknown unprepared, and he’s a skilled healer with a wide knowledge of herbs and fungus. He’s very cautious and usually over-prepared, but in a group it balances out, because his friends are notoriously under-cautious and under-prepared, in his experience.

Neemal has a deep fear of the unknown, and that includes unfamiliar technology. He’s terrified of aliens, and even moreso of visiting any worlds where he might encounter them. He despises space travel, and he does his best to avoid touching anything electronic. On the flipside, he’s extremely loyal and devoted to Kinoko, and would never let his best friend go into danger without him.

Physical appearance

Neemal is a blue kuparuke. His fur is mostly a deep ocean blue, though his face and chest are white, and the tips of his ears and tail as well as his nose are all a bright yellow. His eyes are bright green, and his hair, like his best friend Kinoko’s, is big and bushy, but it’s less spiky than Kinoko’s, being softer and more fluffy instead.

His gloves and boots have a simple design and are coloured a deep golden yellow. When travelling, he wears a green scarf and carries a small but heavy mushroom backpack. He keeps his backpack stuffed full of all the things he might need on his adventures, like maps, guides, waterskins and herbs, and always a few extras for his friends, who he knows are unlikely to carry their own.

Personality

As a blue kuparkuke, Neemal has a more serious nature than his friends, and he sees the world in a more logical way. Whilst they’re driven by their hearts and emotions, Neemal is driven by his mind. He’s very analytical, and the smartest of his friends.

Even though he’s the youngest (and also shortest) out of all Kinoko’s friends, he’s arguably the most mature, and he’s very protective over the others – and that does include Cosmo, even if he doesn’t really like him most of the time. He’s very sensible and risk-averse, and he tries his hardest to avoid trouble even though his friends keep finding ways to get him and themselves into it. He’s always the one with a plan, and his friends can always depend on him to keep his head screwed on even when they lose theirs.

Although he’s not as adventurous as Kinoko, and tries to avoid trouble wherever possible, he’s proven himself capable of surviving against the odds if it means protecting his friends, especially Kinoko.

Unlike Kinoko, who loves finding out about absolutely everything space has to offer, Neemal is deeply distrusting of aliens, and he despises and is fearful of technology. He’d rather do things the old-fashioned way than take risks with unfamiliar devices and electronics. He’s a technophobe, utterly incapable of getting his head around anything with a touchpad or screen, and he’d rather stick to what he knows than dare to experience anything new.

Despite that, Kinoko couldn’t ask for a companion more loyal than Neemal. Even if he might hate going into space, or travelling to new places, or meeting new alien species, or playing with some frightning new technology, he’ll do it, because he’d never see Kinoko go into danger by himself (or with Cosmo, which in Neemal’s mind would be even worse).

Skills and abilities

Unlike Kinoko and his friends who’re happy rushing headfirst into danger, Neemal has a skill for planning things out before taking action. He’s fearful of the unknown, so he takes the time to think things through, studying up as much as he can before taking any journey and obtaining maps of the road ahead. He’s always equipped with essential survival tools, even if that means lugging around a great heavy rucksack, and he’s pretty good with things like directions (but, boy, does he ever panic when he’s lost).

Whilst many kuparkukes practice or rely on shamanism and ritualistic healing, Neemal has a talent for producing effective herbal remedies. His primary role with the Enoki tribe is foraging for herbs and fungi but, being very analytical, Neemal likes studying their properties, figuring out what applications they might offer beyond seasoning for food and their uses in rituals. He’s always carrying his mortar and pestle for crushing herbs and producing powders, and he knows remedies for numerous poisons and afflictions.