Vazhanem

Vazhanem are a vampiric species that are concentrated within Cy’ǧetauria, though are able to be found all over the world. They are composed of animated stone and live through the sustainment of magical energy.

## Physiology

Vazhanem are humanoid, and mostly resemble rather tall humans. The pigmentation of the Vazhanem’s skin is typically grey, though the colour is subject to change depending on the prominence of minerals. They hardly have hair on their bodies, except for their heads. Typically, the hair of Vazhenem is white, though there is variaton amongst subspecies. The species resembles a human in the structure of limbs, though they have an extra finger one their hands, giving them 6 fingers on each hand. Their hands were crafted specifically to excel at both climbing and rending flesh. Vazhanem stand at a height of about 8 feet on average, giving them a size advantage over their prey.

Being vampiric, the Vazhanem have a set of fangs in place of canines. These are excellent for drawing blood from all sorts of creatures. Their senses are also finely attuned to detect blood nearby, though it is unknown whether this through smell or a sixth sense.

Vazhanem are a nocturnal species. Their eyes are able to see in the dark excellently. They also see on a different aspect of the colour spectrum than humans. Vazhanem are able to sense waves as low as infrareds. This allows them to see normally and also detect heat signatures. However, their eyes are unable to detect the colours dark blue and purple. Their eyeballs and pupils are black. Their irises though are universally white across almost all subspecies. The white iris emits a slight bioluminescent glow.

A Vazhanem cannot remain active permanently, it needs sleep. When entering the sleep state, the body repairs itself naturally. When sleeping, a Vazhanem is pretty much a statue, meaning they can sleep in any position. Most can stay awake for 80 hours straight to function properly. Afterwards, they need 16 hours of sleep to recover

### Lifespan

Vazhanem could theoretically live forever, as their magical bodies are sustained with fresh blood; however, as they age, blood becomes less efficient at keeping them alive, and so they die. The typical “Inefficiency Age” is 700 years. A death from this manner is akin to a death from old age

Vazhanem are immune to all natural diseases, though if a disease is magical in nature, (meaning it has effects on magic) it is sure to hurt them. Their stone bodies may be tough but they can be eroded through constant strain. When a Vazhanem’s body shatters, they die.

When a Vazhanem dies, there are 3 common causes. Firstly, from lack of blood consumption, they shall turn fully into stone. Secondly, a Vazhanem can be shattered into pieces. This shattering only takes place in parts that regular humans would be vulnerable to ie the torso and the head. A Vazhanem can indeed survive all their limbs being cut off and through a long period of time regenerate. Thirdly, if a Vazhanem’s magic is somehow completely and utterly disconnected from them, they fall to the ground dead, becoming like a human corpse. This dispelling of magic must be permanent rather than simple suprresion.

Over time however, a strange thing begins to happen to the Vazhanem’s bodies. Over time, as they consume more and more blood, their skin grey as stone starts to soften into “Angel’s” features. They begin to take on the biology of mammals. Their skin turns lighter and begins to resemble bone rather than stone. Their eyes gain a hint of red to them. Lastly, their intelligence and charm increases dramatically. These Vazhanem are called the Vazeal, and they closely resemble Vulra, the fallen angel.

#### Reproduction

Vazhanem have no genders and reproduce asexually. Throughout the world, there are nexuses of blood magic that spawn Vazhanem. They call it them the Varinjael. This nexus is typically a shallow pool of blood. The nexus connects the Mortal Plane to the Plane of Blood, a place where it is believed souls and life are manufactured. This connection is sustained by feeding blood to the nexus, typically requiring sacrifice.

The souls from the Plane of Blood then seep into the surrounding rock, and over 6 months they carve themselves out of the stone in their fully grown form. During this time they are fully rock. They are in an inactive state for 1 more month to give magic time to settle jnto their body and turn it organic. In total, the Vazhanem reproductive cycle takes 7 Months. During the formation period, the statues move ever so slowly as the well warps the stone. This creates statues that seem like they’re reaching out at passersby. It makes them seem alive when they yet aren’t.

### Diet

Vazhanem primarily subsist on the blood of creatures. They absorb nutrients from this blood which keeps them functioning. The Vazhanem however, still need nutrients for other sources and still eat herbs and meats. However, the amount of solid food they consume is significantly less than typical humans.

In regards to blood, Vazhanem feed on any sort. They do however, prefer the blood of sapients. The blood of sapients sustains them far more than the blood of typical creatures. However, the blood of particularly magical creatures like dragons is equal to the blood of sapients.

## Behaviour

Vazhanem are omnivorous, but require blood to survive. This makes them incredibly aggressive towards other races. They are nocturnal, and hunt when others are asleep.

Vazhanem tend to hunt in groups. They favour shock tactics. In the dead of Night, they blare hunting horns all around a target to confuse and shock the quarry. Then, they descend upon their prey and swiftly cut them down. Then, they drag away their bodies and disappear into the Night.

They are also masters of ambush tactics since they don’t need to produce light in order to see in complete darkness, they only need to be looking at their prey since they can see infrared waves.

Vazhanem often mark their territory by displaying bodies around their borders. This act often unnerves other races and instills a great dread of the Vazhanem in them.

## Subspecies

**Murlavazha [Polar Vazhanem]**

Can be found in places with permafrost such as tundra or polar environments

Adding permafrost to Vazhanem Stone. It makes them incredibly resistant to cold but more vulnerable to heat. Their skin is lighter compared to others.

Their eyes are more adapted to the sun given all the stupid snow around, which means they have worse darkvision than normal Vazhanem. They also have enhanced Infrared Vision.

Their main prey is dwarves, meaning their magical potential is naturally lesser than other subtypes, because they’ve never needed to develop it.

They hunt by burrowing themselves in the snow and waiting. They hunt in groups. When they move, their skin helps them camouflage against the snow.

**Luzhivazha [Igneous Vazhanem]**

Can be found in places with lava flows or around volcanoes

Adds substantially more igneous rock to Vazhanem Stone. This makes them incredibly resistant to heat and pressure. When submerged in water, it begins to steam. Strong against heat or cold, though prolonged exposure to cold environments or cool liquids is fatal. This is in contrast to normal Vazhanem, who can withstand cold eternally given they live in caves where heat is rare. Their hair is black to match with the environment around them. Their skin is darker compared to other Vazhanem.

Their eyes see perfectly fine in both bright and dark environments. However, they do not possess the standard infrared vision since they live in an environment with too much heat.

They are naturally attuned to the fire element.

They prefer to hunt using shock tactics. They prefer rushing in directly before an enemy has time to prepare, meaning they have substantially more stamina than other Vazhanem.

**Zaguvazha [Desert Vazhanem]**

Can be found in deserts or other similarly sandy areas

Adds sandstone to Vazhanem stone. This makes them incredibly resistant to all changes in temperature, but extreme heat or cold immobilizes them. Their skin is pale, the colour of the sandstone they spawned from. Their hair is a shade of blonde.

Their eyes are very adapted to brightness, but their infrared abilities are more advanced than other species. These ones have the most advanced eyes amongst Vazhanem.

The Zaguvuzha’s hands are well adapted to burrowing in the sand. They prefer to hunt by digging through the sand and catching their prey off guard from below. Since food is scarce and prey can be easily caught off guard, they hunt alone.

**Vazhael**

Over time, a strange thing begins to happen to the Vazhanem’s bodies. As they consume more and more blood, their skin grey as stone starts to soften into “Angel’s” features. They begin to take on the biology of mammals. Their skin turns lighter and begins to resemble bone rather than stone. Their eyes gain a hint of red to them. Lastly, their intelligence and charm increases dramatically. These Vazhanem are called the Vazhael, and they closely resemble Vulra, the fallen angel.

This subspecies is more like an evolution than a different category. The sheer amount blood they’ve consumed boosts their strength to greater than that of normal Vazhanem. These Vazhael are often found in positions of leadership or government.