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Posts tagged bathing room

A wee little comic: “Abrade Groom”

A wee little comic: “Abrade Groom” published on
Valley of the Silk Sky: Abrade Groom

Here’s a quick one-page comic about exfoliation:

If you yearn to know more about the wheres and whys of Daraz grooming behavior, please turn your attention to this appendix post.

This one-page VotSS comic is actually the first one I ever completed. I created this as a one-page backup story for the Fearful Hunter graphic novel, wherein several different artists offered their takes on human/monster romance. [Fearful Hunter is 18+ and not at all asexual, and VotSS is 13+ and a lot asexual, so there was a bit of a line to walk on how to present this in a way that was appropriate to both comics.]

Chronologically, this is the most recent comic, taking place several years later than the others. It is also maybe not 100% canon. I had a big burst of ideas for stories when I first started writing VotSS, but not all of those ideas are things I’ll ever actually use. And some have already been lowered into the trash. So when I did this comic, I was sort of guessing at where Hali and Razi would be at this point in their lives.

All I can tell you is that, early on, I had a big thing planned for how Razi gets that scar. Whether or not that particular storyline is still worth pursuing is a matter for another day!

Pocalo Infrastructure: Plumbing

Pocalo Infrastructure: Plumbing published on

Valley of the Silk Sky - plumbing

I know what you’re wondering: how the heck does plumbing work in this weird world?

While there are a few different means of collecting and distributing water in the Valley, let’s focus on the one most relevant to the main comic: the plumbing of the Cashel Waystation. which is located in the interior of the province of Muru.

The Cashel Waystation receives most of its water via a large pipe from the provinces above (who get their water mostly from rainfall and snowmelt), and holds it in a reservoir.

“So, wait, they’re drinking and bathing in the runoff from the upper provinces?”

Technically yes, BUT. At the bottom of the reservoir is a filtration system, accessed via the topmost room of the main building, where those two little slit windows are. One of the many duties of the waystation attendant is maintaining that filtration system so the water stays clean.

“So, wait, the waystation is basically a giant Brita filter?”

Ahem. Kinda sorta yeah.

The bath is left running all the time to provide some humidity to the air, and to keep the water flow going to the provinces below. Gravity provides the water pressure.

Drinking water is filtered more thoroughly and piped separately from bathing water or toilet water. The Cashel Waystation has pit toilets that use only a tiny amount of water to flush waste down a pipe leading to Eradu, the province directly below. Eradu is nicknamed The Swamp for various reasons, of which this is one. It tends to be the last stop for a lot of the waste from the provinces above.

“Surely the residents of Eradu don’t care for living in what is basically a giant sewer.”

Correct! They do not. Which is why most people who live in Eradu actually live on the hillsides around the edges of the Valley, and not inside the web structure of Pocalo itself. Humans mostly try to avoid venturing into The Swamp itself if they can.

Daraz Society: Bathing and Grooming

Daraz Society: Bathing and Grooming published on

The underground cities of the Daraz are always built around a subterranean hot springs pool (of which there are many throughout the Valley). While all Daraz engage in similar bathing rituals, it’s especially important for the Harcos, the warrior/hunter caste.

Their body armor is made if very thick skin and/or keratin, and requires a great deal of maintenance to keep clean. Without regular exfoliation, they run the risk of skin infections, particularly down in the joints where the plates meet. Harcos organize into quads (groups of anywhere from 2 to 5 individuals, though the most typical number is 4, hence “quad”), and quadmates are responsible for grooming each other.

The act of being groomed releases endorphins and tends to make the one being groomed a little (or a lot) sleepy. As such, it’s typically a pre-bedtime activity.

In a pinch, grooming can also serve as a means of calming down a Daraz who’s having a freakout.

Forehead grooming is itself a dominance act (“I’m in charge here, and you need to settle down”), generally deployed by the older quad members to keep the younger ones chill.

Valley of the Silk Sky - Daraz bathing room

Valley of the Silk Sky - Daraz grooming

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