Difference between revisions of "Chlaenas"

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Chlaenas are a giant, chimeric race that resembles a tauric cross between a human and an octopus. Above the waist, like so many of Felarya’s giant predators, they resemble scaled-up humans. Below the waist, their lower body resembles the entire body of a cephalopod, minus the eyes and the beak. They can be found in many seas of Felarya, especially the ocean depths and Abyssal Plain of the Topazial sea. However, roaming Chlaenas have been known to go closer to the surface and even onto land.

A Chlaena’s body is made up entirely of muscle and soft tissue; they have nearly no bones or other rigid internal structure, which means that they have unparalleled flexibility and contortion abilities. Chlaenas are capable of greatly compressing themselves into tight spaces, or expanding their body to swallow a creature nearly their own size. While this helps a lot when it comes to large prey, a Chlaena’s compressibility can also work against them; relatively smaller predators might be able to stuff a Chlaena down their throat and swallow them.

While Chlaena must stay wet to survive, as long as they have ready access to water, they are able to traverse land much more ably than one might expect; Mermaids who climb up onto shore for safety from aquatic predators are often rudely surprised when a Chlaena merely follows them, dragging themselves onto land with their tentacles.

Terrestrial beings often find Chlaenas disturbing, for reasons they just can’t put their finger on. Maybe it’s the eight tentacles extending from their octopus-like lower body, or their large, staring eyes. Or maybe it’s the fact that they seem to be unnaturally cheerful, all the time… of course, the fact that their skin changes color to blend in with their background and reflect their mood might make them seem a bit eerie, too. And the boneless, ‘unnatural’ way that they move (particularly on land) tends to make intelligent vertebrates shudder. A Chlaena is capable of turning their head nearly 360 degrees around, so if they wants to look at you, they typically will not turn fully around to do so… which can be somewhat unnerving.

Chlaena, like the other Cephaloid races, have odd mindsets; they simply do not think the way the “normal” races do. Their logic is pretty much the only kind they are really capable of following, and their behavior can often be frustrating or frightening to those incapable of understanding their motivations. However, one thing you can rely on is for a Chlaena to be cheerful and honest, even when obviously inappropriate; of course, their honesty is by their standards- just because a Chlaena tells you that she is not going to eat you does not mean she is never going to eat you. “Of course I’m not going to eat you!” in a Chlaena’s mind means, “No, I’m not going to eat you right now. Maybe later !"

Powers and abilities

Chlaenas have strength roughly on par with that of an equivalently-sized Naga; while the Naga’s musculature and spine provide it with a great deal more constricting power, the Chlaena’s ten arms (two human arms and eight octopus arms) typically even things out.

A Chlaena is also capable of squeezing into very tight spaces, by compressing her flexible body and shifting her organs around inside her body. This allows a Chlaena to squeeze through an opening only 10-15% the size of her entire body.

Most Chlaenas possess a mild paralytic venom, which can help take some of the fight out of large prey; however, in all but a few subspecies, this venom is not lethal- it affects only the voluntary muscles.

All Chlaenas have the ability to change color to match their surroundings, which is also used for communication and to display their mood. This is due to millions of specialized cells in their skin called chromatophores, which allow them to rapidly change the color of their entire body, or select parts of it.

Nearly all Chlaenas have ink glands located somewhere in their bodies, which they can use to squirt a pressurized spray of ink into the water, quickly creating an underwater ‘smokescreen’ to cover their escape or give them the advantage in an attack. Some Chlaenas can even mix their venom into the ink, creating a cloud that dulls the senses of predator or prey.

Just about all Chlaenas lack the “Predator Sense” so common among the other Giant Predator races of Felarya (some subspecies are an exception, but they are very rare).

Most Chlaenas are capable of seeing in conditions with low levels of ambient light, and some are even capable of seeing into the infrared spectrum. The average Chlaena also possesses a very keen sense of touch, making some able to sense small vibrations and water currents.

Chlaenas also tend to have a fair degree of magical potential, which many of them use in pursuit of the unusual forms of magic practiced by their species. Most Chlaenas eventually learn the pressure-based Deep Magic common among the Abyssal dwellers of the Topazial Sea; this allows them to ascend and descend quickly without severe injury or death, by carefully regulating the pressure in and around their bodies.

Known Chlaenas

Cecaelias

Habitat: The oceans of Felarya, particularly Topazial Sea; however Cecaelias are drifters and wanders, and have been known to roam far and wide- one might pop up in the places you’d least expect to see one. Danger Level: Very High

A tauric cross between a human and a a squid, Cecaelias another chimerical Cephaloid race that typically measures 80’-90’ from head to base (the length of their tentacles is excluded from this measurement; some species of Cecaelia have tentacles twice as long as their body!). Their bodies are almost perfectly human above the waist; however below the wast their lower body looks exactly like the body of a squid, aside from a lack of eyes and a beak.

Unlike Chlaenas, Cecaelias have a semi-rigid internal shell and more bone-like structures (although not nearly as widespread as in vertebrates); this makes them significantly less flexible than their cousins, but also much sturdier. Cecaelia are still capable of fitting into tight spaces like Chlaenas are, but not nearly to the same degree; typically, a Cecaelia is capable of compressing himself up to 40%-50% the size of his entire body.

Cecaelias also have ten tentacles instead of eight; their primary pair are much longer and stronger than the others, which are roughly equivalent in strength to those of a Chlaena, perhaps slightly weaker. A blow from one of a Cecaelia’s main tentacles can strike with devastating force; they are capable of cracking it like a whip and dealing a strike three times as powerful as that from a Giant Naga’s tail. Unlike a Chlaena’s tentacles, the tentacles of a Cecaelia usually only have suckers at their tips; however, the tentacles of Cecaelias often have barbs and hooks made of the same horn-like material as their teeth and fingernails.

Although very similar in behavior to their cousins in some ways, Cecaelias are much more active and aggressive, cruising the oceans to wander and hunt prey in a shark-like manner; practically anything that catches a Cecaelia’s interest winds up in his or her mouth at some point. This, along with their wide roaming, often causes problems with other aquatic species when the Cecaelia wanders into ‘their’ territory. Being more or less non-territorial, Cecaelia have difficulty understanding such concepts, and often inadvertently start conflicts when all they wanted to do was investigate something interesting.

Cecaelias are excellent and speedy swimmers, able to cut through the water with seeming ease due to their jet propulsion ability and streamlined bodies; in the open water, they are much faster than Chlaenas, and many of the smaller species are capable of keeping up with or even outrunning Mermaids (who are among their favorite prey). All Cecaelias are also capable of changing their color to reflect their mood, although the ability to fully blend into their backgrounds is not nearly as common among them as it is among their smaller cousins. Venom is not nearly as common among Cecaelias as it is amongst Chlaenas, either; and those species that do have a paralytic venom typically have a very mild, non-lethal one.

Cecaelias have excellent senses and are able to hunt efficiently in conditions where all but the faintest glimmers of light are scarce; their tentacles help them sense nearby vibrations and water currents, and their eyes are capable of perceiving even the tiniest amounts of light against the pitch-black background of the Abyssal Zone. Like Chlaenas, most Cecaelias lack the Felaryan “Predator Sense” entirely; those few species that do have it tend to have extremely rudimentary forms of it.

Although as in Chlaenas, immature Cecaelias of both genders are nearly indistinguishable, it is a different matter for adults; although there is still a slight resemblance between the genders, mainly because all Cecaelias are more ruggedly built than Chlaenas are, the species is not androgynous. Male Cecaelias do look fairly masculine, and female Cecaelias do appear feminine at a glance… even if they behave oddly regardless of their gender.

And Cecaelias do behave oddly; not even Chlaenas understand them completely. They often act in a manner similar enough to how a Chlaena would behave for Chlaenas to be comfortable dealing with them, but there are times when a Cecaelia just does or says something that leaves the Chlaenas around her completely baffled. Needless to say, this means that it can be rather difficult for a human to comprehend their motives and thinking patterns as well; but those who manage to do so actually seem to enjoy the company of Cecaelias greatly… although as with Chlaenas, being a Cecaelia’s “Friend” doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re completely safe from him or her!

Powers and abilities

Cecaelias have strength that is roughly on par with that of an equivalently-sized Naga, and sometimes a little greater; their internal shell means that they’re able to exert quite a bit more force than Chlaenas can when it comes to hitting or squeezing something. Cecaelias tend to be quite a bit tougher and more physical than the average Chlaena. In addition, they have ten squid tentacles, and two human arms to make use of, which makes close combat with them a dangerous affair.

An adult Cecaelia is capable of shattering stone with one of his primary tentacles, with the same amount of effort one would use to lightly smack a friend upside the head. The muscular strength of these two tentacles is immense, and a matter of great pride among Cecaelias; seriously damaging or severing one of these two tentacles will always anger a Cecaelia, and may make you a dangerous enemy.

A Cecaelia is capable of reaching into and fitting into very small spaces, allowing him to squeeze through openings that are only 40-50% the size of his body. They are also capable of distending their mouths and stomachs to allow them to swallow very large prey, although they are much more limited on how far they can stretch than Chlaenas are. Like Chlaenas, this flexibility also works against them; they can be eaten by predators slightly more than half their size, should the smaller predator be strong enough to shove them down its gullet!

Very few species of Cecaelia possess a very weak paralytic venom; the average Cecaelia does not. Even for those that do, the venom is so mild it takes quite a bit of time or several bites to have a discernable effect; it is usually used to slow prey or a predator down, rather than paralyzing them outright.

All Cecaelias are capable of changing their color to reflect their mood; some species of Cecaelia are also able to camouflage themselves the same way a Chlaena can. However, Cecaelias typically do not have the mastery of this concealment ability that Chlaena possess.

Nearly all Cecaelias do possess ink glands somewhere in their body, which allows them to create a ‘smokescreen’ of sorts underwater, to confuse or hinder an opponent or pursuer. Some Cecaelias, rather than spraying a cloud of ink, are capable of firing a high-pressure stream directly at an opponent’s eyes and face to blind them.

Like Chlaenas, many Cecaelias practice unusual styles of magic. One is what is known as “Deep Magic” among the denizens of the oceans; it is based on precisely controlling internal and external pressures, and can be used offensively or for utility, allowing a Cecaelia to quickly ascend and descend to extreme depths without harming himself or herself. Deep Magic is fairly common among all the races living at the bottom of the Topazial Sea, rather than being strictly a form of magic practiced by the Cephaloid races; however, Chlaenas and Cecaelias seem particularly adept at it.

Known Cecaelias

• Credits goes to TheQuantumMechanic, Zoekin, Shaman, Xeno the hedgehog, and Fish for the design of Cecaelias