Varuna

## Nalu

   The Nalu are a unique, shape-shifting aquatic people who live in the ocean. They are exceptionally strange and share very few similarities with the other races of the world.

### Biology and Anatomy

The Nalu can take on many different traits and have a multitude of sub-races. Nalu can have fur similar to that found on aquatic mammals, fish scales, or smooth skin. They also have a wide range of sizes with a different placement of fins, whiskers, or other traits across their bodies. The Nalu are highly adaptable and can live in any climate across the world. Their diet consists of meat of seafood and plant-life.

The Nalu possess a natural ability to shape-shift, allowing them to adjust their bodies for both sea and surface travel. This power can also be used on other races, and can be so powerful as to change a person from one race to another. The Nalu can also possess hydrokinesis, though this is rarer among them. Those that have this power are highly prized because it is seen as a source of divinity.

Nalu reproduce unusually compared to other races. When aroused, a Nalu, whether male or female, will secrete a fertilizing liquid that forms like saliva in their mouths. If another Nalu swallows this liquid, they will become pregnant, again regardless of gender. After ten days, the impregnated Nalu will lay a clutch of up to six to eight eggs, which will hatch after seven weeks.

Nalu develop in stages, going through five ten-year stages before reaching proper maturity:

* In the first stage as hatchlings, they will be the size of shrimp and require a great deal of protection.
* In the second stage, they grow to the size of a hand and begin developing the first of their features.
* In the third stage, they will drastically grow to the size of a small child and their features will grow and become more pronounced. In this stage, it is possible to discern which sub-race they are. They are still physically weak in this stage.
* In the fourth stage, they will grow to the size of an adult and their features will grow to their full size, but they still are not properly matured. It is during this stage that they need to adjust to their features and are given education and taught to hunt by their parents.
* In the fifth and final stage, their reproductive organs will begin to develop. Upon the end of the ten years of the stage, they will be fully mature adult Nalu.

### Nativity and Distribution

Nalu can be found in any ocean in the world, except for the dangerous Living Depths. They adapt extremely well to any climate and can live in any country on the surface. They tend to live together groups, large and small. They have a strange inclination to be near the shores of Evershade and often interact with the people there.

### Contributions

The Nalu have supplied the world with many treasures from the seafloor, such as precious gems found only in the ocean, pretty seashells, or exotic sea animals found deep below the waves. In the past, they were the ones who taught the other races how to swim. They often serve on rescue teams that save drowning travelers. They also teach hydrokineses and offer their powers of shape-shifting as a service to those willing to pay for it.