Selkes in Francalia

Introduction

The Selkes are a seal-like sentient people living in The Ocean  of Francalia.
They live in two separate kingdoms off the coast of Francalia.


Their magic is very specific and very powerful, they are in essence very gifted shapeshifters.
Selkes can usually take the form of other species.
They cannot take the form of inanimate objects as their anima would get lost into the aethers if they were to inhabit a soulless object.

Selkes are actually very fond of the human form, which they will use most of the times, albeit with some modifications to suit their underwater lives.

They live in two underwater kingdoms in the northern parts of the Ocean.
 Both Galanda  and Molluco  are to be found quite far away from the coasts of Francalia.


Very few human ships have managed to sail over the kingdoms to this day.
On the other hand, Selkes have been known to 'try out' living with humans - which they find fascinating (being the only other sentient beings they know of).

However, Selkes who have travelled around Francalia (unbeknown to humans) for a few years tend to come back to the ocean life they miss after a while.
There is deep enmity between Galanda, the northern realm, and Molluco, the southern realm.
The Selkes used to belong to one kingdom, but a schism occurred a millennia ago, and since then, the two realms have been at each other's throats.

Their differences lie in religious dogma.
All Selkes have faith in the same gods which they believe live in the dark parts of the ocean but are at odds about which gods are more important and who are the represents of the gods in their society.

Anatomy and Morphology

A Selke in its natural form will resemble a thin seal.
Like a seal, they have no hair, huge eyes, leathery skin (albeit pure white) and whiskers.

Unlike seals, their dorsal fins will be extended to become prehensile 'hands'.

Selkes are born both male and female and can choose their orientation at will, even none if this is what they want.

However, because of their shapeshifting nature, an adult Selke will rarely be in its natural form - it is actually thought to be uncouth and backwards to be in your natural shape (a bit like humans' obsession with clothes).
A Selke will not be able to shapeshift until they reach magical maturity around the age of 15.

They need to follow a strict regime of preparation exercises until then to be able to manipulate their gift properly, and it is not until they are 20 or so that they are fully trained in their magical abilities.

Skin

A Selke's skin is naturally pure brilliant white, but they will choose a different colour as soon as they can mutate - blues, greens and browns are fashionable at the moment with Selkes from both kingdoms.

Naturally, a Selkes's skin is leathery and coarse, but they are quite fond of the softer, bare skin of humans which they usually adopt.
They also like the long hair humans sport and they like to display long locks of different colours streaming like ocean weeds around their head.

However, underwater, they also sport gills on their neck to help them breathe the rarefied atmosphere of their ocean homes, and they will quickly change 'legs' for fins if they have to travel a fair distance.

In the same manners, they can make their whiskers appear when hunting for fish.

Eye Colour

The Selkes will rarely shapeshift their eyes (only in size) as they believe that the eyes are a portal to their anima.
As a result, Selkes will all have huge brown eyes to which they will add thick eyelashes.

Height and Weight

In their natural shape, Selkes are not as thick as seals but still quite muscular and heavy.
When they shapeshift into another species, they retain their mental abilities and anima but take on the physical characteristics of that species.

The Selkes cannot shapeshift into species that are a lot different in size and weight to them.
They can only go as far as being half of their original weight and size.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

The Selkes, generally, have the same perception and sensory abilities as humans - except from one important point: they do not feel the cold, and live quite happily in the freezing waters of the North Ocean.
When taking human form under the north sea, they usually keep their blood and regulatory organs to maintain their protection against the cold.

Because of their huge eyes which can refract light as they enter the water, Selkes have better underwater vision than humans.
However, their vision on land is not as good for the same reasons.

When they shapeshift - unless they introduce modifications - they will have the same sensory and perception capabilities as the species they are impersonating.

Life Cycle

Selkes can live for a very long time (150 to 200 years), and will only produce three to five offsprings during that time.
Selkes choose when and how to become fertile.

A Selke can become male and female in turn depending on how they see their role in the production of their offsprings.
They will usually have also different partners for each of their offsprings - this, in a bid to widen the gene pool and ensure a healthy progeny.

Usually, a Selke will not have another offspring until the one borne earlier is adult (15 years).
Also, until the offspring is adult, a Selke will stay with the same mate to ensure stability and continuity of care for the child.

Selkes will start to diminish into old age by the time they are 140 years old.
Old Selkes stay well within the confine of their families and clans and are respected and cared for by the community.

An old Selke will learn to take a backseat in the affairs of their family but will try to make themselves useful by helping to look after the young ones.

Habitat

Click on the country links to learn more about the Selkes in Francalia: Molluco and Galanda.