Laculli

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One of the oldest inhabitants of their home planet, **laculli** are a race of bipedal reptilians, consisting of different subspecies. Though they evolved from a common ancestor and share a lot of similarities, the different laculli prefer to stay with their own kind, and frequently butt heads over meaningless conflicts. Though mostly known by most races for being distant, proud and easily offended, the most distinct trait of all laculli is that every individual is biologically female.

## Etymology and Other Names

The word laculli is derived from the Fake-Latin term *Lacull Geni,* meaning "lizard kin". This is a name they shared with their extinct ancestor, the Drachslekt.

Laculli take great pride in their name, as they claim to be descended from dragons. While it's uncertain if there is any truth to this, it's considered unwise to call them anything else in their presence.

## Biology and Anatomy

A laculli's skin is leather-like and tough, hardened into scales on most parts of their body. Though the exact amount varies per individual, the most common places these scales seem to form are the tail, back, and limbs. All laculli have pointed ears and slit pupils, and their sharp teeth and claws indicate a mostly carnivorous diet. Their hair seems to grow slowly, and aside from the (usually short) hair on their head, they don't seem to grow it anywhere else. Their tail keeps growing their whole life, and most subspecies have the ability to detach it. However, the process of growing a new one is slow and painful, and this ability is more often seen as inconvient than useful. As such, an individual losing their tail is almost unheard of.

Despite all being biologically female, laculli still exist thanks to being able to reproduce both sexually and asexually, basically creating clones of themselves. Though the mutation rate seems to be high, offspring usually bears an uncanny resemblance to their parent, aside from a few differences. Laculli are ovoviviparous -- the eggs with their offspring hatch inside their body. Twins aren't impossible, but most laculli only bear one child per birth. Though it has been speculated there must be cases of male laculli, it hasn't been confirmed.

There are five different subspecies of laculli, each with their own distinctive traits and culture:

* Costura
* Zanguir
* Kalkida
* Tenill
* Aferi

## Sociology and Culture

Laculli are quite reserved, keeping most of their culture and history to themselves, acting defensive when anyone asks them about their unusual biology. The reason for this is largely unknown, though it's probably because most laculli don't know about it themselves. Since most of their original culture has been lost to history, only the few laculli who have been actively studying it could provide answers, but they aren't eager to share. What is known, however, is that the disappearance of male laculli and their contempt of magic seemed to happen around the same time their war with the closely related Drachslekt Nue took place.

Almost every laculli seems to struggle with the concept of gender, as their own languages have lost the need for gendered words. Because of this, laculli often refer to any individual with "she" regardless of their gender. As there's no other parent needed for reproduction, laculli are openminded with relationships. Depending on the subspecies, laculli could be mono- or polyamorous. They're rarely seen in a relationship with other races, likely because the way laculli reproduce is either weird or unusual to most. If they do, however, it's almost always with someone who identifies as female as well.

Tailless laculli are often seen as inferior, which is still a remnant from the now banned punishment of forcing one's tail to detach. This is especially a problem for laculli born without a tail, those who lost it permanently and those with a tail detachment disorder. Laculli as a whole are also wary of magic for reasons unknown, though some subspecies are more open to it.

Not all laculli are religious, though some still worship the same god (haha lmao work this out pauline) their ancestors once did. They also seem to have an admiration for the sky, which they see as both a connection to their distant dragon relatives, and the place their god resides. Religious laculli build their homes as high up as possible, to be closer to the sky and to be able to look down upon everything else.