Tamatarou

Scavengers in The Dragon Wastelands will tell you the slime on Tamatarou’s face is a curse, a remnant of some foul creature they bested but could not escape. They speak of a carved cane that moves less like a walking aid and more like a duelist’s blade, parrying phantom winds. Others, more mystically inclined, claim the display case on their head contains a trapped soul, and the goo is the spirit’s constant, failed attempt to break free. They see a grim warden, forever bound to their ethereal prisoner. But one cartographer, who shared a campfire with them during a storm, tells a different story. They say that inside the glass is a single, perfectly preserved cherry blossom, and Tamatarou only tapped their cane to keep time with the rhythm of the rain.