Gonga

**Gonga** are a race of **Jellyfish** humanoids that are native to the Western portion of Svarga, particularly to the lakes and rivers located within the caverns in the Tapo District of. They are naturally shy, and while initially avoiding contact with the humans of Svarga, they learned to coexist with them given time, and have since integrated within the society with relative ease. They can walk on land, able to retract their tentacles as to allow for clear movement, however they greatly prefer to be in an environment that is at least semi-aquatic. Because of this, the majority of them either yet remain in Tapo District, where they enjoy the vast natural freshwater reserves, or have more recently been found to be living in Mahar District, where they have enjoyed the tropical waters as much as the next person.

A less forthright way to designate them is that their names are all single, not holding last names but rather only a single name that they choose within the first 10 years of their life.

## Appearance

Gonga, sometimes referred to as Jellyfolk, take on the appearance of human females, often sporting umbrella-like hats atop their heads, as well as a dangle of tentacles that drape from their bodies. While the tentacles are retractable, the umbrella-like hat is not, so while on land this is the only thing that can consistently differentiate between a Gonga and a Human.

When in the water, Gonga become translucent, sometimes near-transparent, and if their tentacles are out they glitter with a dazzling array of colors that change based on the Gonga's mood, and the purity of the water they are within.

## Biology

While they take on the appearance of human females, it should be noted that Gonga are actually genderless, and reproduce asexually by splitting themselves in a process that takes approximately 50 days. Interestingly enough, though, newly born Gonga often do not resemble their parent, and are unique in their quirks and traits, both physically and personality-wise.

It is also very possible that a Gonga that appears to be wearing clothes isn't, as Gonga have the ability to change the appearance of their skin, and subsequently can create the appearance that they are wearing anything they so desire.

The average life expectancy of a gonga is several hundred years if healthy, and maturity is reached around the age of 25.

While they do not require water to survive, they flourish when it is nearby, especially when said water is in good health, and if gone a long time without access to submerging their entire body in water, Gonga tend to become depressed.

They can live equally in both fresh and salt water, with no adverse effects upon themselves when changing between the two.

## Strengths & Weaknesses

The flowing tentacles Gonga possess are alike to those that jellyfish themselves possess, being covered in nematocysts. They can be controlled by the Gonga when in water, however if they are out when the Gonga is on land they simply drift along with them, unable to be controlled whatsoever. The severity and strength of the nematocysts differs from Gonga to Gonga, however even the weakest of them will provide a painful shock on contact.

When underwater, Gonga can use the umbrella atop their head to propel themselves with great speed, and can change trajectory with ease while moving.

Underwater, they also have great regenerative abilities, able to heal wounds at great speeds. However, this is reversed when on land, where they become (compared to humans) relatively fragile to damage, in particular blunt impacts. This is in part due to the fact that while on land, they are incredibly light, making it hard to resist force.