-Other Races: U'phuu-
U'phuu are unusual, serpentine creatures that are like resplendent birds in the amazing paradise that is their home. The spitting image of a utopia, the warm, low-fauna planet has plenty of rain and sunlight, and the peaceful U'phuu look like color-changing ribbons in the midst. Not many visit the U'phuu and their home world, but those who do come back with fantastical tales of verdant foliage, stunning cloudscapes, and floating islands. The sheer vibrancy of the world is caused by the large amounts of sunlight it receives, refracting off the gases in the atmosphere. Unfortunately it also causes a lot of jealousy between races, and many accuse U'phuu of taking all of the beauty for granted. As if proving it, U'phuu who do travel outside their world often find other places harsh, dull, and unforgiving. Such depressing tales that reach their friends and home only encourage the serpents to remain elusive and keep to themselves. They are considered allied with the Intergalactic Republic, but do not attend any of its meetings or visit it, and know little to nothing about Karitzuians and other races, earning them a reputation of child-like ignorance.
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Biology
U'phuu resemble snakes or worms as big around as a human being and over twice the length. They have rounded heads with large, dark, and reflective unblinking eyes, which can range in shape from circular to elliptical. These eyes are sensitive to color transitions and vibrancy and can see both visible and ultraviolet light. U'phuu have no true mouths, just a small hole that acts like a straw, and they drink only water or sap. They do not need to take breaths as layers of gills coating the throat absorb air as it passes through; this allows them to breathe any non-caustic gas and liquid, including water. They are decorated with fins that vary the most - from rounded clownfish fins to elaborate betta ones - that can be spinal, ventral, or even flanks. Their tails also have fins to give them a distinct paddle shape.
U'phuu do not have scales like a snake, instead having very thick translucent skin that deters both water and pests. Distributed throughout the skin are millions of tiny pockets filled with liquid and special pigments, giving it a characteristic glittering look. The pockets react to minute changes in temperature and electricity that occur when U'phuu change their moods, effectively changing their color. Depending on the size of the pockets, changes can look patchy or come in waves of color. Young U'phuu who haven't fully developed these pockets are dull grey, while deceased ones are white, suggesting that U'phuu flesh is close to black in color. There is no neutral color for U'phuu, although they can revert back to grey if they're trying to hide something.
The combination of lower gravity, pocketed skin, fins, and even internal air sacs give U'phuu a universal, characteristic slither that they use on the ground, in water, or even in the air. To maintain health and flexibility for this systematic movement, U'phuu need to keep their skin wet, choosing to swim through the shallows or in clouds. Should the skin dry out too much it will become stiff and lose its luster, quickly crippling the U'phuu. U'phuu are also sensitive to higher-gravity and colder environments, which slowly petrifies them into land-bound or icy statues.
U'phuu do not have scales like a snake, instead having very thick translucent skin that deters both water and pests. Distributed throughout the skin are millions of tiny pockets filled with liquid and special pigments, giving it a characteristic glittering look. The pockets react to minute changes in temperature and electricity that occur when U'phuu change their moods, effectively changing their color. Depending on the size of the pockets, changes can look patchy or come in waves of color. Young U'phuu who haven't fully developed these pockets are dull grey, while deceased ones are white, suggesting that U'phuu flesh is close to black in color. There is no neutral color for U'phuu, although they can revert back to grey if they're trying to hide something.
The combination of lower gravity, pocketed skin, fins, and even internal air sacs give U'phuu a universal, characteristic slither that they use on the ground, in water, or even in the air. To maintain health and flexibility for this systematic movement, U'phuu need to keep their skin wet, choosing to swim through the shallows or in clouds. Should the skin dry out too much it will become stiff and lose its luster, quickly crippling the U'phuu. U'phuu are also sensitive to higher-gravity and colder environments, which slowly petrifies them into land-bound or icy statues.
Society
Thanks to their utopian living - a lack of predators, plenty of warmth, sunlight, and water, an undisturbed planet - U'phuu are not only peaceful, but blissfully ignorant of everything around them. They have never needed to develop anything beyond stone-age tools, and are often mislabeled as dumb animals thanks to this and their lack of obvious communication. However, when brought out of their comfort zone, U'phuu show surprising intelligence when it comes to empathy and psychology. The strictly-color-changing communication they exhibit toward each other graduates into whistling vocal communication, using fins expressively, and quickly-learned body language. They are also experts at predicting intention and behavior, even when it comes to stolid species that lack a lot of traditional cues, and easily comprehend complex psychological problems. A lot of these abilities seem to stem from the U'phuu preference of web diagrams: for every action, they don't expect one reaction or cause, but multiple at once, often seemingly-detached from one another. This manifests in the complex, cryptic social construct they govern themselves by; U'phuu don't have a hierarchical system like most species. Instead they appear to act almost like a hivemind, with each member being acutely aware of another's actions and feelings. For some species this is hellish because there's no sense of privacy; something U'phuu obviously aren't as aware of, as they continuously annoy other races with their nosiness.
Trivia
- U'phuu were one of three races that were created originally for an online roleplay.
- U'phuu do not have vocal cords, but can flex or constrict their throats in order to whistle various tones. Their mouths are immobile and lack saliva but luckily they don't need it. Because of the skull being a solid piece U'phuu can't pronounce sharp sounds such as Ts, Ks, and Xs. Ns and Ms can be pronounced with difficulty using the throat.
- Due to the above, U'phuu names consist mostly of long vowels with as few consonants as possible, such as Fusu, Iphi, an Oonu. They only have one name each, and thanks to sound similarity it can be rather confusing.
- Changing color is a very hard reaction to control and can fluctuate wildly. Here are the basic colors of U'phuu emotion:
- Pink = Embarrassment, guilt
- Red = Anger, hatred
- Orange = Fear, shock
- Yellow = Happiness, amusement
- Green = Discontent, jealousy
- Teal = Calm, indifferent
- Blue = Sadness, mourning
- Indigo = Pride, authority
- Purple = Curiosity, confusion
- Grey = Stolid, hiding emotion
- U'phuu have no dimorphism.
- Waste is entirely gaseous and exits through the skin.
- U'phuu lack the ability to smell or taste anything.
- U'phuu are very particular about the hardness of their water as it affects its quality and how it feels. They hate saltwater and are tolerant of hard water, but are fine with soft water. They are sensitive to harsh chemicals dissolved in water as well.
- U'phuu never truly sleep. Instead they go through a sort of trance or meditation when resting, usually while drifting through wind or water, in order to clear their minds. A full rest like this usually takes 14 hours, but U'phuu can function somewhat okay on 10. Those living with other races that go into deeper sleep learn to meditate in small bursts almost all the time so they don't lose any rest, giving the impression that U'phuu are very oblivious and torpid creatures.
- A pacifist lifestyle keeps U'phuu mortality low on their homeworld, and they grow just a bit quicker than a human. They live about 90 years on average.
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