Aitectli

Aitectli are an amphibious humanoid species that comes from deep beneath the ocean floor.

NOTE: this is a closed species, to apply contact the author, Aioun#9497, on discord.

Physiology
The Aitectli are amphibious Fish humanoids, forever bound to not stray far from water. Their stature is around 5'5", with a generally slim build, with spare ecceptions.

Hemo-pneumatic System
Their skin needs to be mantained wet and/or slimey for their wellbeing, as their respiration is aided by their skin being very vascularized. This is helped with use of naturally gelly lotions and substances, and the wearing of respiratory aids on one's head, like glass bowls or similar water carrying implements. Aitectli are aided in breating not only by their skin, but also by a dual respiratory system: they have lung cavities like humans, but also sport gills on their neck, ribs and shoulders, which can all be retracted into the body when out of the water to prevent essiccation. During these periods of dryiness, these cavities can also hold a small amount of water for allowing some respiration, although very limited. This system is akin of the ones in arthropods like crabs.

Aitectli blood is bright purple/fucsia (sometimes more blue, sometimes more red depending on the individual), and is functionally between mammal blood and horseshoe crab blood, having both hemoglobin, red, like mammals, and hemocyanin, blue, like octopi and horseshoe crabs. With these last ones they also share important immune cells that are exceptionally sensitive to toxic bacteria. When those cells meet invading bacteria, they clot around it and protect the rest of the horseshoe crab's body from toxins, and the same happens in the Aitectli body.

This dual system emerged because of a defective gene that makes both individual system defective on their own (moreso the hemoglobine/mammal side of it). This means they have to partially work together to make up for the shortcomings. This allowes Aitectli to survive in both air and water but needing both to properly oxygenate, although air is a lot less necessary than water, as they can and often do go for weeks without a breath of air, depending on the subspecies, with the deep-sea subspecies getting all the 'air' they need from sporadic underwater cave airpockets and oceanic vents.

Muscolature
Evolving in the liquid enviroment meant a lesser development of muscolature for the purpose of weightbearing, water aiding with boyancy. Which resulted in the forementioned slim built and a lesser ability to carry weight in the form of armor. This resulted in the Aitectli usually wearing only boots and helmets as armor goes, while preferring lighter or no armor alltogether. Gravity also isn't kind to their fins, hair and other soft parts. Since they are usually held aloft by water, they tend to adhere to the body or flop when out of it, and only a few go through the hassle of flexing the extensor muscles that often accompany the fins and ridges, as to give them a more erect shape, as it takes energy to do so.

Diversification
The Aitectli are one of the most diversified of the Alathra species, with a great deal of personal variability and uniqueness. Many subspecies arose from a basal ancestor, each one perfectly adapeted for a particular habitat. From the black meanders of the deep ocean, with its denizens of bioluminosity and transparency, to the dull colors and frills resembling dead foliage of the swamps, to the vibrant colors of the coral encrusted reefs, every denizens sports on his or her skin the signs of ages of evolution. Said skin is not scaley, like one of a fish, but leathery like an seal or a dolphin, taut and dense, with a dense but thin layer of fat that makes them immune to most cold temperatures. This layer is thinner in subspecies native of hot climates, but still present.

Commensals
Its not uncommon to spot a Aitectli with actual vegetation growing or weaved into tentacles, hair or limbs, sported either as jewlery or clothing. This kind of vegetation must either grow on an individul who never leaves the water for long, or be very resilient to drying, for the more adventurous. The same can be said for corals and anemones, (which are actually animals), eager commensals of their host, and sometimes photosyntetic.

Deambulation
Aitectli evolved a system to walk on land efficienltly but also being able to swim swiftly: their pedal fins are foldable. When swimming, the long surface is unfurled forward and kept semirigid by simple muscolature. When on land, this flap is folded upward against the bridge of the foot, covering it up to the ankle and to the sides. It's the Aitectli version of walking around with curled toetips, unconfortable, but doable and easely gotten used to with exercise. Often soft and confortable straps, or spats, can be tied to the foot to keep the fold in place and allowing for the muscles to relax, while providing support and protection for the underside of the foot and especially for the folded fin, which is innervated and sensible to touch.

Its important to remember that while humans are used to have their feet callousing over, in the sea there is little use to walking and especially avoided in the sharp reef, so the foot of the Aitectli is not as resilient. Also in this case, regional evolution has a hand in how much this is true, more for the reef and less for the shallow and full of currents water of the swamps, where stabilization using hands and feet are prominent.

Alcohol
As its common with every other gilled creature of the ocean, Aitectli are incapable to hold alcohol at the level of humans, as it's toxic to their gills. They can drink low volumes of it (or even better, diluted), with harsher repercussions than what a human would face. They can drink more of it if they are careful to not let it touch their gills, which is very hard especially in the case of ther neck gills, which are connected to their esophagus (throat).

Alcohol is nontheless produced in Aitectli culture as a disinfectant and to regulate hydration of the skin in pathological cases, and so in their mind is more connected with hospitals and clinics than bars and taverns, and so consuming alcohol is not seen as a common "recreative" activity.

A special outliar is the case of "Octli", also known as "Pulque" by humans, which is a drink consumed during special religious rituals, much like Ayahuasca in the Amazon basin.

Post-Iceage Changes
Aitectli biology also has shifted slightly: they are now less able to survive out of water, although they still need air to live. Since some tunnels have been collapsed intentionally (or not intentionally), airflow from the surface, although already scarce, has almost been cut off, and new 'air' mainly comes from dissolving gasses with the water, and some underwater vents (which arent that breathable anyway). This is reflected in smaller 'breast size' in women, and generally bigger gills overall. Its also a bit harder to 'curl their toes' which they use to fold back their fins, although still doable. Aitectli skin is also less vibrant, with both extremes of paler and darker skin being more common, with some even going very close to albinism and melanism (rare). Aitectli, now having slightly faster evolution than before (but still very slow), have changed similarly to what happened to Aioun before the ice age: more bioluminescence, some rudimental echolocation, and a keen sense of smell especially for metals, while eyesight has become slightly photosensitive, preferring lower light levels. Another common adaptation is thin "barbs" or wiskers-like appendages around the body (on the head only around the face, not on it) to tell better where walls are.

General proportions have not changed much, although is now less rare to see very slender aitectli (comparatively), the layer of fat has instead become thicker, so they cancel eachother out most of the time

On Aitectli aging
Aitectli have a slow metabolism when in the subterranean, similar to the corrispective of the great depths of surface species.

An Aitectli can live up to 1000 years in the subterranean, if he or she never gets sick or injured, as the Aitectli have advanced medicine for medieval times, but still absolutely primitive compared with modern medicine. They dont have germ theory, but they know how to keep wounds clean and its connection to illness, and how to concoct some basic antiseptic and antibacterial substances, and how to set simple fractures (a compund fracture might be a death sentence).

A whole other situation is the surface, however. While in the subterranean life is meek, slow and uneventful, the surface is in comparison a warzone: daily temperature, humidity, light and other condition changes, very active creatures, and the people are always up to something, be it drama or outright war and violence. Emotions are also hightened in surfacers, while they usually aren't in the subterranean, so an aitectli will probably be overwelmed by surface life, reason for which even in the Nauhtli experiment, the aitectli kept to themselves. This harsh enviroment impacts the Aitectli lifespan and life quality. While cancer-like illnesses are not common in the subterranean, they are on the surface, for all of this stress. Aging of the tissues is also accelerate by the stressed metabolism, with rapid aging (comparatively) showing its signs.

Aging starts immediately when the Aitectli breaches the surface, but it starts imperceptibly, as is not perceptible day to day. In practice Aitectli start to age at a only slightly lower pace than humans, when they used to age an order of magnitude slower.

A middle aged Aitectli of 600 might get to 700 or 800. An Aitectli of 800 will probably not reach 900.

An Aitectli of 100 might reach 400, but will look more like an aged teen than an adult.

Newborns are a mistery, although they might be better adapted to the surface, they wont live as long as their 'deep' bretheren, but will develop less serious complications. They will age faster, reaching maturity more similarly to a human (although still slower than one), but will age properly, avoiding the 'old teen' look.

Another problem with the aging conundrum is that what has been said above is only in the case of perfectly healthy living. War, injuries, "exotic" illnesses/germs (to the aitectli), worse hygiene (from cohabitation with surfacers, if there has ever to be any), heightened stress (above the baseline surface-level) will severely impact the lifespan aswell, sometimes cutting it short prematurely. There are a lot more chances to be attacked aswell, compared to the depths, where violence is rarely a thing.

Post-Iceage TLDR
Aiounnae'Kael succesfully jumpstarted Aitectli culture recovery, although she will not be remembered by name, but only as a very important nameless ancestor. They regained or reconstructed the old culture, which they liked very much and completely adopted, even more than the 'surface' one. The old Language was also decoded and adopted. "Common" was deemed unworthy and slowly abandoned. The manuscript was not the only source for the recovery, and it was quickly abandoned when the culture in it was all understood, since the other informations in it were causing the 'curiosity-cancer sickness' in the researchers. But not before one old tech was understood enough to be implemented, although still only on a 'instruction said this' mechanic. The 'Shield Guardians'. Which was short lived because the need for it was quickly lost.

The Nauhtli experiment failed. After what became of the health of the Tlatoani, being considered a curse of the surface (and in a way it was), the remained Aitectli fled back into the depths where they emerged from, bringing back rumors of 'ill enviroment where to spread', steering Aitectli culture away from trying to get close to the surface again. The existence of the surface was shrowded in myth with time, and knowledge about surfacers was so corrupted as to portray them as dangerous beasts (the aitectli have been traumatized a bit by the yetis). An idea of a "Hell above" also has started to appear, barely habitable and hostile, which isnt that far off. (Aitectli age faster and have a faster metabolic rate when they surface than when they are in the subterranean).

Since the perceived 'threat' was abandoned by fleeing the surface, the 'shield' technology was not really needed anymore, and was shelved and forgotten, the Aitectli having an innate fear of old tech anyway, but since it had "served them" in more recent memory, it was deemed not as dangerous as the other tech, although still "gateway" to more dangerous ones. Where once after the "Fall" the culture of aitectli was lost and primitive, after the "resurgence" and ice age, they regained or reconstructed the majority of their culture, (with some lives lost in the sacrifice), and are now around the level of culture of the Mesopotamian civilizations. They adopted a form of writing that resembles the technique of cuneiform, but instead of triangles, they use a simple tool with the end carving a "crescent moon"/ arch shape, which then is used to create the various letters. This is also recreated with the help of brushes on different media.

Language
After the end of the world started, and the Aitectli fled back to their subterranean cities, they readopted their original language, rediscovered by their Mothertongue ancestor (Soh'mat Mokabag), and completely forgot Common (english). They kept only the alphabet of Common, used as a for of writing their own language, in a non-cursive function.

The most common are the 'Common' and the 'Lowercase', with the 'Uppercase' being used only in solemn occasions.

The Aitectli language, differently than english, is written how it's spelled, with sounds being consistent across the positions of letters, and so when learning Common, the aitectli would probably have an accent similar to italian or greek/latin or even spanish, which can be roleplayed by writing the sound phonetically. Eg: 'Hello, how are you doing?' becomes 'Elo, au ar iu duin?' or anything in between the two.

The sound and letter equivalent to "Z" is also absent, althought the aitectli can mimick it by mixing the T and S sounds.

Religion
[Main article: Tidalism]

Its unusual for an Aitectli to have a different religion than Tidalism, in which case agnosticism and atheism is usually preferred to an outright different religion. The Rulers (Tlatoani) of the Aitectli are usually also the head of the religion.

The Aitectli seem to have a special regard for smooth stone, not only in architecture, but seemignly in a more spiritual level, as if the stone itself was alive. This interest is not explained in their religion, and it seems to be the only case of departure from logic and reason of the Aitectli culture.

Post-Iceage: Aitectli are now a lot more religious, with especial reverence toward the Ancestors.

Myths
Aitectli myths are usually based on history, being retold so many times to have lost details, but rarely exaggerated. They are usually the source of moral teachings and warnings, or to inspire greatnes and wisdom. These myths are deeply connected with their worship of the ancestors, around which the majority of myths revolve.

The Fall
The most common, important and yet not openly spoken abou myth, is of the 'Fall '. It's strongly embedden into aitectli culture, lore and beliefs, that a great tragic apocalypse happened to their ancestors. The great ancestors committed the final sin of Nekronos, and were punished for it. In their final moments, in an attempt to save the future of their species, 'they made sure the past wouldn't repeat itself', by means unknown.

'Old knowledge' is considered something 'radioactive' and to be kept hidden and buried, or something that has to die with the person that knows it. (This is also reflected in the sixth tenet of Tidalism)

The Betrayer
A much more recent myth, is the one of the Betrayer. This myth tells the tale of a demonic being that tricked one of the ancestor into bring a second downfall (regarded as lesser a downfall than 'the Fall', but still apocalyptic). This myth can be equated to the figure of 'satan' in christian religion, and is also tied to a new concept: 'the hell above'. Although in Tidal religion there is no place like hell in the afterlife, where sinners would go, since access to the surface was cut off during the ice age, and because of the events right before it, the surface had gained a 'mythological' nature to it, an uninhabitable place of demons, disease and death. This belief is further strenghtened in aitectli that have recently got lost and found themselves above the ocean floor by the presence of the 'drowned' and other various undead, not to mention the constantly warring attitude of the 'dry folk'. The 'drowned' are regarded as the souls that were rejected by the ancestors from entering the afterlife, a great dishonor and something though of in horror. Killing a drowned is seen as a mercy to the soul, and a moral thing to do to rid the world of the corruption. The soul of the drowned doesnt get then accepted into the afterlife, but simply disappears, as souls are not considered immortal per se, but need to be immortalized and elevated by the actions of the living.

Mind
The Aitectli aren't folks of high emotions, both negative or positive, and not very inquititive or curious, compared to the other species of Alathra. They deal more in 'black and white' or in practical terms than phylosophical (with rare exceptions of course). They deeply respect traditions, and seldom question them. That said, there is little to question, as the culture has settled in one of honesty and respect, and traditions are meek and unintrusive.

Their homeland is remote and unknown, hidden from the outer world, and shielded from cultural contamination. Despite this, there seem to be a common ancestor with the cultures of the outer world, and some hypothesize the Aitectli to be the 'living fossils' of cultures.

Curiosity
This low aptitude for curiosity and exploration is episodically dotted with slightly more curious individuals, once in a very long while, a century or two, which then go on and explore a bit further than the Aitectli that come before, sometimes creating new settlements, or reclaiming abandoned ruins (more common), tho even these exceptional individuals still have a lower amount of curiosity compared to humans.

If the lack of curiosity is a naturally occurring genetical trait or an artificially created one, it is unknown, but the effects of going against it are chronic and escalating.

Even a 'more curious than average' Aitectli, if pushed by necessity to sport curiosity and 'go look in the dark', he or she will start to feel physical effects of the cognitive dissonance, ranging from headaches, nerve pain, general inflammation and, if the cognitive dissonance is experienced for very long periods of time, even autoimmune degradation. The symptoms will start very slowly to appear, sometimes taking a while for the individual to notice, and will keep getting worse the more the 'curiosity' is sustained.

This doesnt seem to apply as much, if at all, to investigating for reasons other than curiosity, like the case of searching for an intruder, investigation to the end of law-enforcement, and immediate problem solving.

Pre-Iceage
[Note: this information is not currently available to anyone outside the Aitectli culture, and even the Aitectli themselves only have an inkling of this, passed on in forgotten myths] Although the ruins of the ancients show the Aitectli used to have an extremely advanced civilization and technology (which would now be considered almost like magic), the state of such structures tells a story of something cathastrophic happening, a cataclism of their own creation, a direct consequence of this technology, probably mixed with hubris and arrogance.

Because of this event, the species was forever changed in both its biology/psychology (the lack of curiosity) and their access to knowledge and technology, thrusting them back to before the middle ages, to a primitive state.

Slowly, even the ancient language was forgotten (although not completely), in both writing and speech. Other languages seeped in from outside to replace this vacuum, leading to modern Aitectli being able to speak and comprehend the common language of Alathra.

Even with the most important parts of technological advancements gone, and even with curiosity dampened, the Aitectli still manage to find ingenious ways to navigate day to day problems, by using the 'natural technology' of their own enviroment.

For example, they dont have sheep in the depths, but it is possible to gather the excretions (Bisso) of seashelled creatures like clams to create fine clothing: this material is used by the animal to stick to rocks, and it hardens like cement, but treated in a specific way, it can become strand-like and be woven.

They also dont have strong glue (weak clue can be done with fish), but there are some animals that construct their 'shells' by glueing together small pebbles and sand around them. This substance can be more easely used than the clam one, as the animal is an anellid (Sandcastle Worm), but it works basically the same, creating a strong but resilient bond.

Use of Dry Spaces
Although Aitectli prefer to stick to a wet enviroment, they are fundamentally amphibious, and so benefit from dry spaces. Just like a Human kitchen has a faucet and a sink, a model kitchen of an Aitectli also has a source of air, often imported from outside of it (like an oldschool kitchen before the advent of plumbing in the human world), or even better, from a gas pocket within the kitchen itself, which gets plugged so to not let the air escape.

Just like water falls in air, air floats up in water, and this mechanism is taken into account when collecting the air, with big buoyant baskets or bells held on top of the 'faucets' of the air pockets to collect the air floating up. These air bubbles get used in 'dry rooms' (or in the bells themselves) where mixing of dry ingredients needs to occur. This allowes Aitectlis that are permanently bound to water to perform 'dry labour' like drying kelp, that when is then covered in oils as dry, becomes hydrophobic, allowing similarly hydrophobic inks to be used to write.

Medicine
Another use of 'dry rooms' is in the medical field, where blood in the water would make a cloud, making visibility almost null, or when there is an infection of the skin, where water would worsen it.

Although it is told that Aitectli knowledge of medicine was once much more advanced, nowadays the available knowledge is sparse and almost primitive, with surgeries at a medieval level, and strictly performed by the elders. Although the aitectli themselves used to believe in their general inferiority in regard of medical matters, this was in fact due their innate isolationism.

It turns out, after having more contacts with the outside world and having a measure of comparison, the aitectli have more advanced medical practices than their otherwise primitive technology would have suggested, having erected one of the firsts or the very first hospital in Alathra, and have knowledge on how to set a broken bone (although still struggle with compound fractures) and a general knowledge of hygene and basic antiseptics and antibacterial substances, maybe because of their close contact with water. Their naturally strong immune system usually attacks any toxin or bacteria in their bodies, but since it does that by clotting, which is itself a risk, they have developed a need to get ahead of this process by developing better medicine, maybe a remnant of their ancient knowledge, now lost to time. In fact they dont have an advanced understanding on why what they do works, but only that it does.

Architecture
It is said that the very word "Aitectli" means "Architect from the ocean"

Aitectli architecture is quite cohesive, in line with their sticking to traditions, and features smooth stone buildings with a round or square base, with enormous carved murals and domed rooves. This for the more permanent and important buildings. Aquamarine stone is used as accents and is more prevalent on the more presigious buildings, like temples. Very often artificial structures integrate directly coral, or have coral growing on top of them, especially in the subspecies that come from the reef. In other subspecies, native hard materials are incorporated, like mangroves in the swamps, and stalagtites in the flooded caves of the deep.

For more temporary or leisure related shelters, they prefer ones made of textiles and wooden poles, mainly tents and awnings.

Post-Iceage
Aitectli have now more advanced technology, not primitive anymore, but more similar to the kind in the Mesopotamian civilizations, or slightly more advanced. It is not easy to provide a real world equivalent since the Aitectli had a very different enviroment to contend with.