Opexos are a chimera-like race that calls two continents on Xochilla Vx home. The western continent is the land of the wingless, specializing in living off the land and exploring deep in the mountains. Across the sea, the East is the land of the winged, transporting rare resources from the floating mountains and excelling in the arts.
Opexos, generally, have a feline body, a head on their tail, and bones made of gemstones. Depending on whether they are an Eastern or Western variant, they will have wings, fur, bird feet or whiskers, scales, and reptilian feet, respectively. Both have evolved to handle the harsh lands of each continent.
The Western continent is known for its desert, lush farmland, and mountain ranges with interconnected tunnels filled with gems and other precious resources. The Eastern continent boasts rainforests, a tundra, and floating islands with rare resources and ever-flowing fresh water. On each continent, areas are quarantined off and are corrupt zones marked with a yellow glow on the map. The leaders of each area with a corrupt zone deal with them differently; however, the population knows these areas are not to be trifled with.
- Opexos range in height from 6ft to 8ft 2in, with an average of 7ft 3in. Rare Opexos can range from 5ft to a max of 9ft.
- Opexos who have lost limbs can seek treatment to create prosthetics fueled by magic.
- Although scales, fur, wings, and whiskers are not typically shared between the two, most Opexos share other traits.
Opexos do not care about gender, not believing that gender inhibits their way of life, but it does give them an advantage shortly after birth, and they can continue to enhance it later in their life if they choose. For example, males are stronger than females in their first few years of life, while females are much smarter. However, if that male does not continue to work on their strength after their 1st shedding (Puberty), then the female who has been working on her strength will become much stronger than that male after the 1st shedding.
The average lifespan of an Opexo is around 100 to 150 years, with the oldest known to be 200. Depending on their age, they go through different growing stages.
Younglings: Up to 18 years old
Baby Opexos will continue to grow through this cycle, learning valuable skills from parents and teachers until they become teens.
First Shedding: 19 to 25 Years Old
This is considered the teen-to-adult cycle for the Opexo, akin to puberty. Their bodies will have started to grow into their adult form. Their youngling fur on their body will start to come out in exchange for new adult fur, which is often longer, depending on their region.
2nd shedding: 25 to 26 Years Old
This is their prime. An Opexo has fully become an adult and will now help be productive members of society (if they haven’t already). Their scaled, furless portions would begin to peel off as their adult scales and skin come in. It will only last a year.
Elder life stage (3rd shedding): Starts around 85
The last stage of an Opexo’s shedding. Their bodies will have become a bit more fragile, more so near the late years of the elder life stage (Around 100 years old), and their hair/ fur will grow white. Most Opexo, once getting to this stage in their life, will often drop physically laborious jobs in exchange for teaching the younglings. Though again, they do not have to. Their final and last shedding will happen here; their scaled skin will start to peel again to a much more faded appearance, and they will get some wrinkles.
Opexos bones are made of many different gemstones. Many Opexos take pride in keeping their horns and claws clean, showcasing the brilliance of their bones to all those around them.
Their bones can be any type of gemstone or natural mineral - the common Opexo only has one stone type, the rare having two. In contrast, mythical variants can have elemental, glowing, and other mystical gems. No one is quite sure why their bones are made as such or why so many varieties exist.
Some speculate it is a gift from the Originaru, much like their tail companion, to ensure prosperity and wealth for all Opexos.
On the other hand, Opexos have heads on their tail that are deemed companions gifted to them by Ketara and Baniri, the moons of Xochilla Vx. The legends say that as Ketera and Baniri were never alone and had each other, they wanted the same for all Opexos.
Tail shares the same emotion as the host and acts according to their emotion. They do not need to eat and have no tongues to taste anything. They have large airways connecting to the hosts' lungs, so if they are ever buried alive, they can breathe if they have their tails out of the ground. This also helps them when it comes to swimming.
An Opexos tail is mostly made of muscles and a few nerves and has a slit nose and a mouth. However, if it is chopped off, they could bleed to death without medical attention. Opexos who lose their tail often find their mind breaking, usually causing immense distress to the host. Although some are strong enough to recover, insanity is a common side-effect of losing their tail companion. This effect is doubled if the tail head was once mythical and had a telepathic connection.
Opexos, with the mythical trait of Telepathic communication, will have tails with special heads with tongues. Opexos who can telepathically communicate with their tail are considered to have special blessings by Ketera and Baniri. They can taste different foods and are linked to the body's digestive system. Opexos with this trait must be careful not to eat too much for fear of overeating if their tail also likes to chow down.
Western Opexos live on the Western continent. They are skilled at climbing with their reptilian feet and can handle rough mountains - their scales protect them, and their whiskers help them balance. Many Western Opexos are miners or sailors, comfortable in many different types of environments. They are known for being more carefree and playful than their Eastern counterparts; jobs where they can use their hands are usually preferred.
Generally, Westerns have. . .
Whiskers, Scales, and shorter/ less fur
Reptillian feet, with or without a raptor claw
Large scales on their tail and plate-like scales on their lower body
Female Opexos typically have more muscle mass than the average male and are taller. Males become brighter in color during mating seasons
Eastern Opexos live on the Eastern continent, using their wings to soar above the land. Due to their wings and fur, they can handle the tundra and often go through the ice searching for different items. They are additionally known for being stricter than their Western counterparts, practicing in the arts, and wanting knowledge. Easterns are also not very good at swimming, being much more comfortable in the air or land.
Generally, Easterns have. . .
Wings that vary in style and fur that trails down to their abdomen
No whiskers and minimal scales
Have predator bird feet
On average, females are smaller than males, with smaller wings and less muscle mass. They also tend to be more colorful during mating seasons
Continue your journey. . .