After a Geal Worm has been killed within its dissected body one can find a brilliant sac, the liquid from which can be extracted and used directly. It has anti-inflammatory properties, helps stave off infection, keeps food from rotting for long periods of time, and will also give most things it is rubbed on a bright glow that lasts for 2-4 hours.
Cultural Usage
Geal Essence is used by the Nomads both medicinally and ritualistically. The Nomadic tribes all cover their bodies in Geal Essence tattoos that resemble simple Meyda-circles. The tattoos lose their glow at a slower rate than Geal Essence applied topically, but still require a kind of replenishment through ingesting the substance. These pieces of glowing Meyda-work help to manage temperature, but do not function unless they glow, thus each Nomadic tribe in the Twilight Desert moves across the sands as their need for Geal Essence drives them.
Acquirement Process
The process of hunting a Geal Worm begins by baiting a swath of sand with the glowing flesh and juice of the Twilight Fruit. The fruit’s concentrated energy pulled from the sand originally by its parent tree draws Geal Worm’s from over a mile away. Being extremely territorial, the distance between Geal Worm’s ensures that 9 out of 10 times only one Worm will make it to the food with enough of a time buffer for the Nomads to move on when their kill is finished. Geal Worms feed predictably from beneath so a large net with a number of metal plates affixed to one side is placed over the baited sand. Unless the Worm in question is of unprecedented size, the plates will completely inhibit it from submerging again after taking the bait. Then several Nomad hunters will pierce the worms head with large barbed spears using their combined strength, they wrestle with the creature until its inevitably swift death.
Once the hunt is successful the worm is loaded onto a large sand sled and dissection begins as the hunting party leaves the still-dangerous area surrounding the bait. Two or three Nomads cut a long incision from a predefined point between the Worms simple eyes down to its tail, they can then extract the mysterious organ that glows brightest. The Geal Essence must be removed and stored quickly or it is rapidly dispersed within the corpse as the organ containing it breaks down quickly once the Worm’s life functions have ceased. The rest of the tribe will spend that day and the next skinning and butchering the creature to use for food, shelter, and clothing.