Sensarets

Adapting in a habitat of giant predators and competing animals, Sensarets are one of the few species that evolved to overcome such perils in ways that ignored their diminutive size. Due to their instinctual, empathic communication that have only developed further through generations, they were able to warn of approaching dangers or where to find resources without needing to be near to one another. This sharing of information would lead to an intelligent, perceptive community that vanquished the need for trial and error. Even at only a tenth the size of the average creature, Sensarets have shown a level of survival unlike any other species they know of.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Sensarets stand on average at seven feet tall, their two arms and legs a similar, gangly length to each other. Their reptilian scales differ in shades of green and yellow that fall off until a juvenile is fully grown, although if an adult's scales are scraped off, they will grow back. Along the back of their skull is a row of small horns known as a crown.

Genetics and Reproduction

Sensarets reproduce sexually, but require an empathic bond between both mates in order for conception to begin. As sex outside of reproduction is seen as unusual and rarely desired, this form of mental contraception seems to be a primal leftover of their evolution. Once pregnant, a female Sensaret will typically give birth to two or three offspring after twelve months.

Growth Rate & Stages

Infant: Once a Sensaret is born, they are completely dependent upon their parents for food and protection. They can crawl within a few months but lack a basic understanding of the world until their empathic abilities are developed enough for them to learn from adults. This varies in time between each infant, rarely younger than the age of three and only older than the age of five if the child is impaired in some way. Juvenile: Once an infant can interpret and express emotions, it is classed as a juvenile and will begin to spend time away from its family group. Juveniles are placed together in a school to encourage their own emotional bonds, then are slowly dispersed throughout the community to learn new skills from specialised adults to act as mentors. Although there are occasional exceptions to schools in some parts, it is seen as unhealthy for a juvenile to only interact with family members by even the most isolated group. Adult: A Sensaret will reach sexual maturity around the age of thirteen to fifteen, whereupon it will be close to the size of an adult and treated as such. It is common for an older juvenile to have already bonded with their chosen mate before adulthood, so the graduation ceremony can be accompanied by a public bonding for those who wish to.

Ecology and Habitats

While there are still Sensarets that live in the Ugon Forest, they are less numerous and are at risk to predators. Fruit and seeds are easy to come across and they rarely struggle to find a source of water. Kabeshi Sensarets have no natural predators in the savannah but have had to adapt in many ways in order to avoid starvation and dehydration, such as taming Rukanines and distilling salt water.

Dietary Needs and Habits

All Sensarets are omnivores, capable of digesting a number of hardy plants although the Kabeshi mainly consume meat due to the scarcity of nutritious vegetation in the grassland. Ugon Sensarets rarely make attempts to hunt, not needing to due to how many fruits are in the forest.

Biological Cycle

Sensarets are almost always fertile even up until old age, although few care to have children after middle age. Despite losing physical strength and mobility as they get older, Sensarets maintain their empathic abilities up until a few days before death where their emotional connecting begins to fail. It's unclear whether this empathic dry up is a result of being close to death or if this is a result of being unable to communicate mentally any longer.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Sensaret society has maintained a simple hierarchy that has only slightly changed throughout their change to larger settlements. Families generally manage themselves, with the member who is most experienced and holds the most knowledge regarded as leader. In the greater community, these figures who are specialised in certain subjects hold an even higher standing of authority, they being the adults who will mentor groups of juveniles. However, even with the simplicity of this structure, it has in recent years fallen into a degree of corruption among the leading families. Specific skills and knowledge are hoarded by these families so that no one else can usurp them in their specialised subject. The most likely explanation for how it has been possible for such an empathetic being to behave so selfishly is down to how the wealthier families constructed their homes closer to the gemstone caverns by the ocean, meaning they were more distant from the emotions of the poorer farmers on the outskirts.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Sensarets have basic hearing and daytime vision, their primary source of perception and communication being a form of empathic interaction. This is a complex, mental ability where a Sensaret can receive the emotions of another and inform them with their own feelings, resulting in unique languages that alter between families and even individuals. Such an intense form of expression means that Sensarets rarely argue and are often incredibly nurturing of those they interact with regularly. Being able to relay emotional information when apart is what allowed the species to survive and evolve so successfully under the feet of dangerous predators. Unfortunately, as more and more Sensarets have gathered together in Hudulah, this has resulted in empathic connecting becoming too intense for most as they are unable to shut out the feelings of others they can constantly sense.

Origin/Ancestry

Ugon Sensarets; their scales are deeper green, their tails longer and used for climbing, hence why they spend most of their time on all fours. Kabeshi Sensarets; their scales are more often a faded yellow, their tails shorter so they can stand upright

Lifespan

95 years

Average Height

6.8-7.5 feet

Average Weight

85-110 kg