The_Zorogia
Part of Fabhars_Alt_List
The Zorogia species was created by me, Uisce. I made this profile for the sake of not having to explain it in Uisce's profile, and also as a reference for those who wish to make characters that are of this species. In this profile will be a somewhat-detailed description of Zorogias' physiology and their natural abilities, and possibly information about their culture and/or religion. Also, if you want to create art of the Zorogia, feel free to, and I might even put it in this profile.
Physical Characteristics, Average Lifespan, and Habitat
Zorogia are an amphibious, aquatic species and have a humanoid body shape. Most Zorogia can be found in oceans and other saltwater environments, though they can also live in fresh water (Though they greatly prefer salt). A fully-grown Zorogia on average stands between six and seven feet (Males are normally slightly taller than females) and weigh around 130 - 145 lbs (They are somewhat thin). An average Zorogia lives around 300 years, reach full growth at sixty years, and puberty begins at thirty. Their skin is extremely smooth, partially translucent (Only their veins are visible, but even that is obscured when their bio-luminescence is at a certain brightness), slightly damp, and is usually light blue in hue, though darker shades do exist. Male and female Zorogia look very similar to humans of that gender, though neither females nor males have nipples or breasts, as the species is not mammalian. Females do, however, have a larger, softer chest region, similar in shape to human breasts (Essentially, female Zorogia have chests, they just don''t have tits or produce milk). Their bodies are completely hairless, as well. Sprouting from their heads where hair would be found on a human are ten to twelve long, thin tentacles, with adults' usually between five and six feet (Females' are usually longer). These tentacles are highly dexterous, though they have slightly less strength than the average human's arm. These tentacles have retractable, venomous barbs all along them, and contain a powerful paralytic venom, which can paralyze humans for roughly five minutes. Zorogias' hands and feet are webbed, and also have no nails. While Zorogia have a mouth, eyes, and a nose, they have no ears or any other kind of visible way of picking up sound. Instead, their entire bodies are highly sensitive to vibrations both in air and in water, even from long distances. Essentially, their entire bodies function as their 'ears'. Zorogias' eyes have a thin film covering them, which protect them from salt and other particles, and their irises are usually shades of blue, though yellow also rarely occurs. They cannot breath with their noses, though they can smell with them, much like fish. Zorogias' mouths are very similar to humans', though they don't have any sharp teeth, and instead of being hard, their teeth are quite rubbery, and seem to actually be part of their jaws. These teeth are used for chewing up plant matter such as kelp and seaweed, while fish and other prey is simply swallowed whole (How they are capable of stretching their jaws and mouths wide enough to consume larger creatures will be explained later).
Zorogia have a pair of lungs, and also gills, which can be found on either side of their necks. The gills, when exposed to air, immediately seal up, and oxygen intake switches to the lungs. The opposite happens when the gills are exposed to water. Because of this, Zorogia are capable of breathing both in water and out of it, though they can only stay out of water for a short period of time - A couple of hours, at best - before they need to become re-hydrated. If they don't enter some body of water, their bodies quickly start to dry out, particularly the skin, which will begin to crack and, eventually, bleed. Zorogia have both a large, central ink sac, and much smaller, pore-like sacks all over their skin. The main ink sac shoots ink out through the mouth, while the smaller sacs release the ink much like sweat. This allows a Zorogia to either blind an attacker by spraying the ink at it, or create a cloud of ink around his or her entire body and make a quick escape, though this is only capable while the Zorogia is submerged, as otherwise the released ink will simply make the Zorogia much slipperier than normal, similar to a human covered in melted butter or oil. The ink sacs take a while to replenish the ink, and thus it is only used in an emergency. A Zorogia's digestive tract is very similar to a human's in most aspects, with a few notable differences. Their acid is significantly more powerful, and is even capable of dissolving bones. They also have a special 'storage sack', which is similar to the stomach, except that it receives air through pores that are connected to the blood stream, can fill with water instead of acid, and is somewhat less 'active' than the stomach in regards to motion. This sack is connected to the rest of a Zorogia's digestive tract in two spots. Unlike a human, a Zorogia's throat forks, with one entrance leading to the stomach, and the other leading to the storage sack. Both entrances have sphincters, which can be opened or closed at will, allowing a Zorogia to direct what he or she has swallowed to one or the other. The storage sack also connects to the end of the colon, and has a passage similar to the intestines, though much cleaner and shorter. Zorogia usually use the storage sack for three things. One is to carry and protect their young, the sack acting much like a marsupial's pouch. Another thing that Zorogia use their storage sacks for is to hold personal items, such as pearls or jewelry. The third use is the least occurring, and that is holding other sentient species. Usually, a Zorogia will only do this to save someone who is drowning, though, if asked, a Zorogia might also simply do it for fun and pleasure, as the sack is quite sensitive, and interprets most contact as pleasure. This is simply so that struggling young will not irritate or distract the parent. Both male and female Zorogia have holding sacks, and both genders will carry the young.
Zorogias' bodies have a special, constantly occurring chemical reaction, which causes them to produce a bio-luminescent glow throughout their bodies, both inside and out, much like how an angler fish's lure lights up in an attempt to attract prey. The brightness of this glow can be controlled, and even muted entirely, and can also change to a variety of different hues. Zorogia utilize this glow in two ways. The first is to catch prey, letting their tentacles glow and wave about, waiting for fish to be attracted to the light, and mistake the tentacles for food. The moment a fish bites onto one of the tentacles, the Zorogia will extend its venomous barbs, quickly paralyzing the creature and then swallowing it. Zorogias also use their glow to see in dark locations, such as deeper parts of the ocean, and at night. Zorogia do not always glow, however, and will mute it if it might attract a nearby predator, and also when they go to sleep. Zorogia, much like starfish, can regenerate their limbs. Arms and legs take quite a while to regenerate, up to three weeks depending on the severity of the loss, while their tentacles only take up to three days. Losing a limb is still extremely painful, of course, and despite their ability to regenerate, Zorogia will do their best to remain in one piece. An extremely important fact to note about Zorogia is that the entirety of their bodies, skin, muscles, organs, and even bones are somewhat rubbery and stretchy. Their bones are the least stretchy and rubbery, and can only bend or stretch in small amounts (The exception being their jaws), and their digestive tract is the most second-most stretchy, only slightly less so than their tentacles. Because of this, blunt blows, while painful, will usually be unable to cause any significant damage to a Zorogia. This stretchiness also makes a Zorogia easily capable of swallowing whole large objects, from beach balls to even people.
Zorogia are amazing swimmers, capable of zipping through the water extremely quickly due to their streamlined bodies and webbed hands and feet, and use their tentacles to help give them an initial burst, spreading them out around them and then quickly 'closing' them, much like how you close an umbrella. Zorogias' blood is blue in color, as it contains the chemicals needed for their bio-luminescence, and also anti-venoms that counteract the poisons of most sea creatures. A Zorogia's puberty is very similar to a humans in some ways. Their bodies experience growth spurts, their voices change in pitch, and they become capable of reproduction. In addition, their lungs mature and become functional, allowing them to breath air, and their bodies begin producing venom. Zorogias' sexual organs are hidden within their bodies, and are only exposed when they want them to be. As such, other species do not often see these organs, and what they exactly look like is a mystery. (If you create a Zorogia character, feel free to give him, her, or shi whatever bits you desire, just know this won't be for all Zorogia, only yours.) Zorogia ave the rather interesting ability to give others a 'kiss' of air while underwater, by creating an excess of air in their storage sacks, and releasing it through their mouths. They do not, however, consider this kissing in the slightest, and in no way a romantic gesture. One last note is that Zorogia are extremely susceptible to electricity, and even a small static shock with stun them for a few seconds and leave a mark.
Culture, Society, Technology, and Mental/Emotional Characteristics
Zorogia do not have a central society or location where they gather. They have no villages nor towns nor cities beneath the water, and have no caste system, either. In general, Zorogia live in groups of three to four families, though smaller groups and even single families can be found as well. Larger groups, however, are exceedingly rare, and these usually only form for a few moments to trade gathered information before separating. Zorogia most commonly make their homes in underwater caves and caverns, though they will partially bury themselves in the sand if that is their only option. Their homes have a variety of carvings on the walls, made with sharpened shells and sharks' teeth, and usually detail the family's history. A 'farm' of seaweed or help can also be found outside of a Zorogia family's home. Zorogia cultivate an organic, spongy material for their 'beds', getting it to grow at the back of the cave, along the floor. Zorogia enjoy traveling quite a lot, partially due to their insatiable curiosity, and partially because they enjoy sharing knowledge they have gathered with others of their kind, and so oftentimes a Zorogia cave will be found sealed up by a large boulder, as the family has left for the moment.
In regards to technology, Zorogia are very primitive. They have no electricity to speak of, being underwater, and no fire either, for the same reason. Because of this, they cannot smelt any weapons or machines, nor create electrical devices such as telephones or computers. Note that this is not because they are intelligent, or the species has not existed for a long time, quite the opposite. It is simply because they are limited by their environment, and are only able to leave it for short periods of time. Most Zorogia know of math and the other sciences from conversing with land-dwellers, and how technology works. If they had some way to stay on land without becoming dehydrated, they would have already developed much of what humans have made, though progress might be significantly delayed due to their short attention spans. Their weaponry generally comprises of spears, tridents, and other long, thin weapons that can be quickly jabbed through the water, and these are often made of bone, as wood rots and metal rusts.
Zorogias' most noticeable characteristic is their insatiable curiosity. They are always wanting to learn and explore to the point that it is almost dangerous. They usually use their tentacles for exploration, the limbs very sensitive and highly dexterous. This has been a big problem when they are curious about others, as Zorogia, in general, have no concept of personal space or private areas, their tentacles eagerly exploring every nook and cranny of a person if given the chance. Usually, they don't even seem to pay attention to what their tentacles are up to, happily continuing a conversation or some other task while they explore. Zorogia also have short attention spans, and are easily distracted by new and interesting things. Because of this, one may find a conversation with a Zorogia abruptly ended as something else has caught his or her attention. Most Zorogia are rather cheerful and noticeably non-violent, though they will defend themselves when needed.
Zorogia also have an amazing memory capacity, capable of remembering msot anything they've been told, and able to repeat it word-for-word. Because of this, they have no need for recording documents, such as books (Which wouldn't really work underwater anyways), and instead simply share gathered information with each other when they meet. Because of this amazing memory, as well, they can learn new languages quite easily and quickly, as well, despite the fact that theirs relies on echolocation, a form of full-body sign language, and the hues they can create with their bio-luminescence, which is significantly different from words and the like. Speaking of other species and their languages, Zorogia are quite the friendly people and enjoy speaking with other species, often trading with them as well, their wares usually consisting of hand-crafted jewelry that incorporates shells and pearls, along with bone weaponry and sea creatures they have caught. Zorogia can often be seen on the shore, happily chatting away with a human or other creature, tentacles usually slithering about, wrapping around, and exploring the one he or she is having a conversation with.
In regards to inter-species mating, some Zorogia are uninterested, while others are happy to find a mate of a different species. In regards to their skills when it comes to love-making, it completely depends on individual Zorogias' techniques, though their tentacles often come into play. However, of note is that most Zorogia are unaware of other species' sexual organs, which explains why their tentacles often explore those regions without any notable hesitation. Should a Zorogia be informed, however, they would immediately remove the limbs from those areas, as they do have a vague sense of decency. Speaking of which, they do not wear any clothes, as cloth becomes heavy in the water, their body heat provides sufficient warmth, and their genitalia are almost always hidden away.
Zorogia often keep dolphins as pets, hunting with them and traveling with them often. They have also been known to keep jellyfish, being immune to the creatures' stinging and venom.
Religion and Magic
Yet to come!