Fenafolk

General

Fenafolk roam the seas of Askvìniké in pods, leading simple lives in search of food and survival. Most consider fenafolk to be monsters due to their genetic similarities to most bipedal species. Despite their physical likeness to people, they are more akin to fish in the way they act and survive.

Typically, they live in deeper ocean waters where there are larger fish or animals as it is easier to sustain themselves, but there are sporadic instances where they are found closer to shore, and this is where most attacks are found on people rather than sea life. Often it is due to them either getting lost, or due to a particularly smart pod learning that land animals or people go into the water near beaches or river mouths, and then the pod sticks around.

Fenafolk are smaller than their bipedal cousins. Their proportional tail length wildly varies, even amongst individuals from the same pod: some have tails similar to the length of their torsos, while others can sport long serpentine tails, up to 1.5x the length. In open ocean, they grow larger in size; while genetically the same, those with more space to grow, larger prey and less hunting pressure do tend to grow bigger. A unique form of fenafolk finds the deep-sea its home. While museums have few specimens of them, they are rarely witnessed in person. In the sparse records relating to them, there are notes of larger eyes and pupils, better equipped for the dark, and they are significantly larger than their shallow-water cousins.

The entire pod is involved in hunting, which can be anywhere from 10-30 individuals; what fenafolk may lack in physical strength, they make up for in numbers. While adults do tend to protect their young, they have no other social hierarchy or structure. They attack with speed over strength, using both their teeth and claws to overwhelm large, singular prey animals.

Physical Features

Eyes

Fena folk have eyes built for the dark, and for exposure to sea water. They have very little visible sclera; their iris make up most of the visible portion of the eye, providing extra space for the pupil to dilate. This allows them to see deep into even very dark waters. Both common and deep-sea fenafolk have tapetum lucidum in their eyes, which allows for better night vision. In the few wet specimens recovered of deep-sea individuals, the tapetum lucidum is much thicker providing superior night vision.

They also have nictitating membranes: clear "third" eyelids that protect the eyes from excess salt and debris, while allowing unobstructed vision underwater.

Webbing, fins and tail

Where finafolk's bipedal cousins sport legs, they have iconic tails. From the waist to the tip, the tails are covered in scales, and can sport fins along their outer edges and tip. The scales can vary greatly. From smooth and hydrodynamic, suited for speed and agility, to thick and enamel-like, to protect against predators or rough surfaces. The location of the pod can influence the appearance and function of the scales. They grow and determine their type during the juvenile stage, their specifics generally fixed by adulthood. For example, fenafolk may develop thicker scales if they live near coral reefs, where they are prone to abrasions from the rough coral. Those in open ocean will have smoother scales for additional speed, so they can keep up with larger prey.

Fingers are connected with a thin membrane of skin, or "web", which offers better resistance for swimming. The still have opposable thumbs and jointed fingers, allowing them to grab onto food and tools, and manipulate complex objects. Their finger span is somewhat limited by this webbing.

Teeth and claws

Claws adorn the fingers of fenafolk, but not in the typical manner we are used to seeing. Most claws are made of keratin but fenafolk lost their old keratin nails through evolution, and instead the distal phalanx bone is elongated, to the point where it protrudes from the skin, in a similar way teeth do. They continue to grow throughout all life stages, so if one breaks or cracks, it will eventually be replaced.

Similar to sharks, Fena folk have evolved to have multiple rows of crowded, sharp teeth. Their herbivorous molars have been lost over time and now only pointed teeth perfect for carnivorous hunting remain. Fenafolk primarily hunt and kill their prey using their teeth, are mainly just used to wound or grab. Teeth are frequently lost or broken while hunting and a new baby tooth will move forward from the rows behind.

Gills

The gills of fenafolk start at the shoulder blade and extend down the sides of the abdomen, finishing at the hip. As their arms move while swimming, it circulates fresh water over the gills and improves oxygenation. All fenafolk are fully aquatic and cannot survive or breath outside of water, specifically salt water.

History

While fenafolk are known to most, if not all people in Askvìniké, they don't have a prevalent place or significance in history. They have however, sparked rumours and myths which still circulate today. Sirens are a mythological creature, one born from ne'er-do-well along the coastlines. After discovering the existence of fenafolk a few hundred years back, pirate con-artists used to fashion fake tails and sit along the coast looking for their scam victims. They would lure the victims with promises of magic, wealth or love and rob or kill them when the opportunity arose. It has since been been disproven that sirens exist; all fenafolk exhibit minimal social intelligence and are not capable of complex language.