Skinwalker

**Skinwalkers** are a species of shapeshifters prevalent in Native American folklore. They are an extremely rare and mysterious supernatural breed, who appear to share some similarities with both witches and therianthropes.

## Description

Skinwalkers are believed to be sub-sect of shapeshifting witch-like beings. They wield powerful, ancient magicks, and possess the ability to transform into any animal they desire, frequently taking on the form of coyotes, wolves, foxes, eagles, owls or crows. Some Skinwalkers even have the power to turn into other people. A skinwalker can transform into any animal by first wearing a pelt of the animal in order to properly transform into said animal, but they eventually lose the need for such an item as time goes on and their powers grow.

In human form, Skinwalkers often exhibit typical alien behaviour. Quiet, distant, and seemingly uncomfortable in their own skin, they may be confused or completely disregard human customs. Their physical appearances often appear to be Native American in origin, with facial features and skin colour reminiscent of the Navajo, from which the original legends were first told, though there are said to be others of their kind scattered across the world, embedded with most human cultures. Skinwalkers are also known to wear tribal face paint, incorporating certain symbols that have symbolic meaning in their culture. Like most Night Worlders, they boast an unnatural beauty and attractiveness to them, but their aura is said to be quite the opposite.

Most of the lore about Skinwalkers says that they are evil beings, but according to Noshiko, this is not actually the case, as folklore also claims that Kitsune are evil when many of them are actually good or neutral. Skinwalkers believe in controlling the inner animal and are very knowledgeable about their people. They also seem to possess knowledge on other creatures as well, such as Kitsune, as evidenced by the fact that Kira and Noshiko came to them with the belief that they had the necessary skill set to help Kira learn to control her inner Fox spirit. They were also familiar with Oliver Mikaelson and his destiny.

## Powers & Abilities

### Powers

* **Super Strength:** Skinwalkers possess superhuman levels of strength. One Skinwalker alone was able to cause a large crack in the earth beneath her feet by simply pounding it with her staff. Another one of the Skinwalkers was able to throw a spear with such force that it knocked Kira backward, impaled her through her shoulder and pinned her to a large, solid boulder behind her.
* **Super Senses:** The Skinwalkers appear to have superhuman senses, as they were able to tell that Noshiko and Kira Yukimura had arrived at their home despite the fact that they were underground, and they were able to sense that Kira was afraid of her out-of-control abilities, likely due to listening to her heartbeat or interpreting the chemo signals in her scent. Since they are animal shapeshifters like Werewolves, Werecoyotes, and Werejaguars, it is possible that they possess the same heightened eyesight, sense of smell, and sense of hearing that the animals they transform into have as well.
* **Shapeshifting:** Skinwalkers are presumably able to shapeshift into the form of whatever animal they desire, though this has yet to be shown in the series.
* **Terrakinesis**: Skinwalkers appear to be able to manipulate the earth. They could move around underground, then quickly rise up out of the earth before they confronted Kira and Noshiko Yukimura. They could also use their super strength in conjunction with their terrakinetic abilities to shake and crack the earth beneath their feet just by tapping it with their staffs. Additionally, they seem to be able to control the desert sand and atmosphere on and around their land by creating dust clouds that can conceal their presence.
* **Immortality**: It is implied that they are immortal, due to the fact that they walk with each other forever.
	+ **Longevity**: Because the Skinwalkers told Kira that she would walk with them as Skinwalkers forever, it is suggested that they are extremely long-lived, like Kitsune, or are possibly even immortal.
* **Necromancy**: The Shiprock Skinwalkers were able to both communicate with Theo's late sister as well as summon her from beyond the grave so she could capture Theo and put an end to his wrongdoing by dragging him underground.
	+ **Mediumship**: Skinwalkers have the power to communicate with the dead.
	+ **Undead Summoning**: They can also summon the dead.
* **Oni Summoning**: The Shiprock Skinwalkers were able to summon a Desert Oni.
	+ **Apparition Projection**: Skinwalkers also appear to have the power to conjure and project a person or object into reality, normally Oni.
* **Magic:** The Skinwalkers appeared to possess some kind of mystical power, as evidenced by how they were not only able to magically repair Kira's shattered katana, but they were also able to imbue it with their own power, allowing her to use their terrakinetic abilities through the katana to create a large sinkhole in the earth; through this sinkhole, Theo's late sister was able to crawl up, grab Theo, and pull him underground with her as punishment for his crimes against her. Afterward, Kira was able to close the sinkhole as though it was never there, suggesting that the sword acts as a sort of key to the underground prison.
	+ **Underground Prison Creation**: Additionally, the prison their power created seemed to involve the creation of a mystical dimension of sorts in which Theo experienced an endless loop of the same dream while his body remained in a kind of suspended animation that required no sleeping or eating on his part in order to sustain him. In this dream or hallucination, he was forced to break out of a cubby in the morgue of Beacon Hills Memorial Hospital, only to be caught by his sister Tara, who would then rip out the heart he stole from her and had transplanted into himself out of his chest. Once Theo was "killed," the dream or hallucination would restart anew.

### Skills & Abilities

* **Natural Medicine**: The Skinwalkers are very knowledgeable about holistic medicine, as they used a special wrap to help Kira's stab wound to heal faster. Since Skinwalkers are known as medicine men and women in folklore, it is likely that they are very skilled at other forms of healing as well.
* **Combat and Weaponry**: The Skinwalkers are impressive warriors who were able to best Kira in a battle, though Kira admitted that she was holding back out of fear of losing control. They are especially skilled with melee weapons such as bow-staffs, swords, and spears.

## Weaknesses

* **Mountain Ash:** As supernatural creatures, it can be assumed that Skinwalkers are unable to pass through barriers created by mountain ash.