View source for Lleill

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The Lleill are an alien species of organic shapeshifters that reside in expanded pockets of realspace known as the Glamour, or Whitespace. They naturally gravitate towards an appearance that is reminiscent of a rabbit/hare and deer, the most persistent features of which tend to be long ears and antlers.

=Overview=

* The Lleill have their own language, known as glamour speak, with the key ,L
* They are natural shapeshifters, with organic, fleshy bodies. Despite their ability to transform their appearance, they can only take forms that allow their internal organs to function properly.
* They primarily reside within the glamour, though they are able to survive well outside of it.
* They are naturally resistant to temperature and atmosphere changes, but not entirely immune to them. Whilst they can survive modestly well in low oxygen atmospheres, they can not survive forever in a vacuum.
* They have a natural aversion to metal, generally avoiding spending extended periods of time on metal structures.
* They have a limited amount of energy that they expend on their glamour based abilities. This can be restored either through their glamour rings slowly, or rapidly through consentual physical contact with other beings.

==Naming==
Lleill typically have names with similarity to celtic origins, typically taking the form of a given name followed by a descriptor in their own language. For example, they may take a name such as Angharad Y Gwyn, which roughly translates to Angharad the White. 

Names are considered very important by the Lleill, believing that names hold an inherent power. They very rarely present their full name unless they are with someone that they absolutely trust, but will often give their given name as a courtesy. Generally they believe that somebody giving their full name means that they too are offering themselves with full trust. They find the idea of anything, whether it be a person or an object, not having an explicit name to be unacceptable. To be named is to exist.

'''From an OOC perspective, the language is based on Welsh specifically, and using Welsh names for the Lleill is absolutely encouraged.'''

==Natural Appearance==
[[File:LleillRef3.png|left|thumb|194px]]
Despite their ability to shift their physical form, they do tend towards a natural form that takes an appearance similar to a hare and deer, with large ears and antlers. A couple of notable features from this form is that they tend to have wide eyes with an unusual colouration to them, and carnivorous teeth often accompanied by long fangs. Their eyes can host a wide range of colours, which are often very vibrant, with a one central white pupil and no distinction between iris and sclera. The coloured portion of their eyes tend to be speckled with smaller, duller white spots, presenting an image reminiscent of a star constellation.

Their body shape can vary a lot, but they are often seen with digitigrade legs, medium length but very bushy tails and longer claws. Their feet tend to be paw-like, whilst their hands are often more humanoid, but these are not hard and fast rules.

=Biology=
The Lleill have an unsurprisingly complex biology, of which very little is currently understood. Being natural shape shifters means that they are able to rapidly reconstruct their physical appearance to mimic other species that they have encountered. However, they do have a consistent system of organs which are not dissimilar to those found in most organic life in the Milky Way, containing a heart, lungs, gastrointestinal system and other vital components.

Lleill can not transform themselves into a form that is not capable of utilising these vital organs, meaning that they typically take the form of humanoids, but they do have a considerable amount of leeway with these forms. Their ability to transform does not necessarily allow them to regenerate parts of their body that are lost, typically if one were to lose a limb, they would not be able to instantly reform it.

==Reproduction==
The Lleill reproduce through mammalian sexual reproduction under normal circumstances, but their ability to transform themselves allows them to potentially adapt to other species’ reproductive systems. However, they always require at least two parties to produce offspring and are not capable of asexual reproduction.

A Lleill mate with their own species fairly infrequently, keeping their total population at a relatively low level. A Lleill mating with another Lleill will always produce an offspring that is also a Lleill, regardless of what physical form either of the parents might have taken.

However, the Lleill are known to more frequently mate with [[species]] that are not Lleill, outside of the glamour. This leads to an offspring referred to as a [[Hanner Lleill]], or just Hanner, by other Lleill, which refers to them as a half Lleill. A Hanner never inherits all of the traits of a Lleill, and in many cases is completely indistinguishable from the species of their non-Lleill parent, but a small portion of these do retain the ability to shapeshift.

==Lifespan==
Lleill typically have a relatively long lifespan, but not massively so, averaging about 120 years. Whilst they are somewhat resilient to disease, they are far from immune to them. The most typical cause of ill health in older Lleill is cancer, which in their old age restricts their ability to properly shape shift, and ultimately leads to them perishing.

==Diet==
The diet of a Lleill varies as much as their physical form. They are perfectly capable omnivores, but typically tend towards a diet befitting the form in which they are taking, primarily limited by the teeth that they have in said form. A Lleill in their more natural form does tend towards carnivore diets as they have typically a very sharp set of teeth designed for tearing flesh.

=Behaviour=
The behaviour of any specific Lleill is almost entirely unpredictable, but they often do not interact with the world in a way that most organics of realspace do. Many of these creatures find amusement in the way other species behave and are often fascinated by them, either as curiosities, potential friends, or even threats. It is not uncommon for a Lleill to enjoy playing tricks on other species, sometimes as tests, sometimes to produce reactions and often for reasons that simply aren’t explained at all.

However, despite what might appear to be a very disorganised species to those from the outside, Lleill very typically are highly ordered and follow a strict set of rules that they set for themselves. It is not uncommon for them to apply these rules to the creatures around them too, and if these rules are not properly explained to others, they can be easily offended when said rules are broken.

==Abilities==
The ability to shapeshift is one of the most notable properties of this species, allowing them to take the physical appearance of any other species that they like. It allows them to rapidly change the colour of their fur, grow their hair or even change their height.
As an extension from their ability to shapeshift, they are also able to actively camouflage themselves, rendering themselves almost invisible. This can still be detected by some technology, and they are still required to interact with the physical world around them.
They are able to transmute materials into a material that they refer to as glamour. Their unique ability to shape this glamour material allows them to create a small range of fascinating objects from almost anything.

They are able to leave traces of glamour in locations, by which they are able to return to via teleportation. These traces are known as rings of glamour and the lleill are able to restore their energy here that they expend on other abilities. Whilst these rings can be destroyed, the lleill to whom it belongs will always know who has damaged their rings.

They are also able to restore their energy through close, physical contact with other species. This energises them rapidly, but it does require the other living being to consent to the physical contact and can leave the other being feeling very drained or even in medical harm. 

==Aversion to metal==
Lleill have an inherent distaste for some metals, most notably those containing iron. Whilst they are not directly harmed by it any more than other creatures, they find themselves sensitive and uncomfortable to its presence. For this reason, a Lleill will not normally reside in a place such as a modern facility or space ship for large amounts of time. They are, through some mental effort, able to tolerate the presence of metals for short periods of time.

=Culture=
==Origin==
The question of where the Lleill came from is an almost impossible one, that they themselves do not hold the answer to. It is very unlikely that any species could simply pop into existence inside of the glamour, which suggests that some very long time ago, a species had found themselves in the pocket by some other means. Regardless of how they came to be in the glamour, they have clearly adapted to it well over time, and it may very well have shaped them in return.

==Glamour==
The glamour is a [[bluespace]] anomaly, sometimes referred to as whitespace purely because of the colour of it. Bluespace typically extends realspace in some way via the use of Alden-Saraspova particles, as seen in bluespace bags or beakers, making an object bigger on the inside. The glamour is no different, it is a pocket of realspace stretched to its limit and sustained in some way by Alden-Saraspova particles, presumably tied to some point in realspace.

Physics inside of the glamour are somewhat less reliable than they are outside of it, allowing practised inhabitants of the space to alter the physical world around them by some unexplained means. The Lleill refer to it as a place of change, in which you are able to change yourself, others and be changed by the glamour itself. The Lleill refer to the space as sapient in some way, as though it has a mind of its own, believing that everything inside of the space is entirely deliberate.

The Lleill reside inside of the Glamour and refer to it as their home. The space is expansive and Lleill typically claim a plot of it for themselves and settle down, shaping the space as they see fit to live in.

==Society==
There is little in the way of societal structure within Lleill culture, with the population being spread rather thinly throughout the glamour. Lleill live in small groups or often alone, but do interact with other Lleill living in relative proximity. Interactions with other Lleill vary as much as interactions amongst any species, with having acquaintances, rivals, friends and lovers. That being said, there is a general respect for one another’s spaces ingrained in their culture, with little in the way of uninvited intrusions onto other properties outside of intentional offences. Typically, the further a Lleill’s property is from another’s, the more distinct their belief system will become.

The Lleill family structure varies wildly too, where some Lleill are raised amongst polycules, and others are raised by single parents. However, the wellbeing of their offspring is considered of the utmost importance amongst the Lleill, and the parent-child bond between full Lleill is a fundamental component of passing down their culture.

Whilst a majority of Lleill reside in permanent properties within the glamour, where they order their own lives as they see fit, some Lleill are known to spend little time in any one place. These Lleill are known as Storïwr, roughly translated to storytellers. Important members of this culture, these individuals travel between Lleill properties to learn of developments happening within groups, and spread this information to others. Whilst these storïwr follow strict rules about accessing other Lleill properties, they are generally welcomed enthusiastically by others.

==Realspace==
Lleill enjoy interactions with realspace, but they typically slip in and out of the glamour into realspace locations quietly. When in realspace, they often disguise themselves as local species and amuse themselves with interactions with the people they encounter. Their strange behaviours relative to the species they are mimicking often give them away to some small extent, and whilst very little tends to be known about who had visited, this frequently leads to stories about mysterious beings.

It is not uncommon for a Lleill to move into realspace to mate. The Hanner Lleill that are produced from these encounters are often left with the non-Lleill parent to be raised, but this is not always the case as Lleill very often have different motivations. Whether a Lleill might visit their Hanner offspring varies massively on the Lleill themselves, but they do typically at least take an interest in them and hold some significant value in watching them mature.

They often make landmarks in places that they visit which they use to easily locate places that they have visited previously via whitespace. These landmarks are often left completely unexplained to locals, but Lleill are known to rather aggressively defend these structures and menace those who deface them.

==Language==
The [[Languages|language]] of the Lleill is known as Glamour Speak, with this natural language having structural similarities with celtic languages and being able to be represented with their respective alphabets (although the Lleill do not use those alphabets themselves). Lleill much prefer to converse in glamour speak, but their realspace observations of other species often do allow them to speak other languages from outside of the glamour. They will often create objects that allow individuals to understand the words that they speak, without having to speak another language themselves.

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[[Category:Lore]]