Kitsune
Fast Facts
Height: Around 8' at the shoulder
Weight: Average of 3500 lbs
Length: Average of 29', head to tip of the tails
Lifespan 500 years
Diet: Highly varied: Aether, rice and other cereals, fruit, mammals, birds, fish. Apex predator.
Rarity: Extremely rare; can sense mortal activity and will hide. Only found in a section of the Wildking's Forge near the Astralar Mountains.
Tier: Tier 5. High magical ability, physical might, perception. Apex of its ecosystem.
Note: These facts refer to an adult, 9-tailed Kitsune.
Appearance and Biology
While kitsune (also known as tailed foxes) resemble common foxes in several (physical) aspects, in many others the differences are remarkable. First and foremost, they're aetherically attuned, or magical in nature. Due to pragmatic reasons, only adult, fully realized (see Life Cycle) Kitsune are going to be discussed here; the complexity of their life cycle makes it necessary for this subject to be described in depth on its own section. As depicted in art and legends, Kitsune morphology is fairly vulpine in nature; however, the first and most remarkable difference is their tails. Fully-realized Kitsune have 9 magnificent tails, roughly as long as their body length. Typical adult coating is white; while this was thought to be just artistic embellishment drawn in by Karnor artistic tradition, it's been proven that their tail tips, paws and ears show distinctive darker spiral patterns that become more apparent as Kitsune grow in age and power. Their size is also truly remarkable; while very few adult specimens have been spotted, they are very large in size, only matched by very few species on their habitat and standing over every mortal race (except for some Jastai).
The most fascinating aspect of their biology and source to their supernatural abilities is their aether channeling system, a unique ensemble of specialized tracts and organs that naturally connect the mystical elements of the world with organic structures. This is the reason why tailed foxes are born with inherent magic, as opposed to mortals, who need runes to make up for this lack of natural connection. Though their inner biology is more complex than the level of detail we'll get into, understanding the structure of this system and the difference between organs and tracts is fundamental.
Tracts are the most simple in terms of comprehension; they form pathways that channel absorbed aether and distribute it. The aether absorbing pathway mainly starts on the Kitsune's ears and paws; these are the main sources of aether, though it's also absorbed directly into their tails and passively through their skin in a much weaker way. These pathways are connected to the main tract, parallel to the spine, that starts under both ears and ends in each tail, dividing ninefold at the sacrum to end in the effector organs located in each tail tip. Other organs they connect to are the brain and blood vessels, to form a connection to aether and get nourishment and reinforcement from it as well (though they still require food to survive). Tracts are very subtle structures that give aether a path and a direction without encasing it; they are extremely fine and resistant enough to survive deep wounds.
The organs of the channeling system are different from tracts; they actually gather and harness that aether with a purpose. There's two types of organs: receptors, both in ears and legs, and effectors, in the tip of each tail. In fact, all these organs are located under spiraling dark fur patches; it's the concentrated aether that makes these spiral patterns appear when it flows through skin. This darkens their hair and the slow, natural release of aether towards their surroundings forms natural spirals that end up engraved on Kitsune fur.
Receptor organs have two functions. The first is aether absorption; tailed foxes absorb the aether that powers them through those organs, process it and than then redistribute all that aether using tracts. The second one is a sensory one. By sensing the small traces of aether that go through the receptors, Kitsune get vast, detailed information about their surroundings, especially about the presence of living beings (their characteristics and current state) even in long distances. Of course, the closer to their object of interest the clearer their perception. By using this acute aetheric perception they can even interpret ripples in aether emissions to interpret emotional states and superficial thoughts. This is done using the receptors under their ears, which detect all emissions over the ground level, including airborne information. Their paws detect the aethereal pulses in the ground instead; Kitsune are able to detect the vitality of land and the living beings on contact with it, including plants. In fact, by detecting raw aether instead of physical stimuli, Kitsune attain spiritual awareness and are able to perceive all sorts of spirits, which are mainly aethereal in nature. Using both kinds of receptor organs, Kitsune obtain an acute perception of their surroundings that they use to find whatever they need and conceal themselves from undesired intruders.
Effector organs form the true core of Kitsune power, being the source of their magical abilities. As aforementioned, they're located on the tip of each tail; this means that Kitsune get more powerful with each tail they grow. Each effector organ is connected to the tract system, which constantly supplies them with the aether absorbed by receptors. It's stockpiled there, compressing into highly dense aether that the tailed fox can manipulate. The effector organs are able to manipulate aether, shaping and transforming it upon release. This way, kitsune can produce a varied array of powerful magical effects. However, although it's substantial, even their storage capabilities have limits. While their power isn't being used the aether channeling system is still working, absorbing and spreading that aether, finally reaching effectors. In order to prevent overcharge aether is released into the environment at the same pace as it's taken in; this processed, released aether has revitalizing properties that are more potent the more realized the kitsune is.
There's several other significant characteristics to tailed foxes. Their intelligence is largely unmatched in the animal kingdom; fully realized kitsune are probably as intelligent as mortals, even though their brains function in a very different way, and can easily understand complex concepts and associations. They have good hearing, eyesight and sense smell, though this is strongly complemented by their aetheric senses. Kitsune are also rather physically strong; they are surprisingly fast and agile and boast a good amount of strength, given their size. They have great motor control over their tails, being completely prehensile.
Abilities
As previously stated, their tails allow Kitsune to use their own magic, natural abilities unrestricted by the limitations of a rune. Their effector organs shape their aether to produce unique effects that help them thrive in nature and help nature thrive at the same time. Their Receptors also give them supernatural perceptive abilities that will be expanded on.
One of the most famous in legends is kitsune mental abilities. Though often exaggerated in folklore, they do posess natural empathic abilities, as they are able to extract information about other's mental state through interpretation of their aetheric emanations. They manifest this ability almost from birth, encouraged and nurtured by their mothers, and it evolves over time. When they grow up a little, around the appearance of their third tail, they become able to blurrily express their emotional state using a primitive form of empathy, that turns into crude telepathy that allows them to show images and convey feelings when they grow up. Uncommonly, powerful kitsune have mastered this mental connection so much that they're able to momentarily hijack a foe's brain and disrupt their thought process, stopping them for a second, maybe a little more in cases of severe attacks.
Other remarkable ability is their illusions. Similar to what humans would produce with the rune of Masquerade in a way, tailed foxes are able to produce illusions to conceal them and confuse or scare their targets. Around the time their third tail starts to appear, small kitsune have to start to hide, given that they start being too large to fit in their small hideouts. Their first illusions are small at first, needing at least a decent hiding spot to fill the gaps in and render themselves invisible. However, they're able to keep them up as cloaks while they sleep as long as nobody comes too close. Their illusions rise in power as they do; fully realized kitsune are able to conceal large areas of forest territory or summon visions of large natural dangers such as beasts or wildfires.
Their main means of attacking is magical as well; kitsune produce a legendary golden flame called foxfire, shot from the tips of their tails. Foxfire pursues the chosen target, and only spreads to beings that the kitsune's senses deem dangerous or malicious, burning them. It doesn't burn those the kitsune intends to protect or inflict any kind of collateral damage. It's shot in the form of fireballs, and they can't be fired in rapid succession from a single tailtip; the more tails a kitsune has, the more fireballs it can produce, and thus can fire faster and with more power.
Although their perceptive abilities have already been explained, their reach is remarkable. Kitsune can detect the presence of lifeforms on a large radius, and other natural phenomena such as rivers, mountains, winds and chasms as well. Fully realized adults can detect clear presence of unspecified living beings in a mile radius, and their characteristics and intentions at less than 300 feet, though precision takes focus and a calm environment. Past the 6th tail, kitsune are able to sense the most subtle of aether traces, and thus became able to detect spiritual presence, such as ghosts and more powerful spirits. They tend to ignore them though.
Habitat
Kitsune inhabit the area of the Wildking's Forge next to the Astralar mountains, West of Kalzasi and Eikaern. A lush forest nourished by two rivers, it's a perfectly secluded place for Kitsune to live in. It has plenty of vegetation and biodiversity, and these conditions mark it as a place of very high vitality tailed foxes can thrive in, as they naturally prefer areas with a great life presence. This is partially upheld by a symbiotic relationship in which the forests give shelter to kitsune, and in echange the kitsune population revitalizes the forest to make it as vibrant as it is.
Some kitsune might try and cross the rivers or the mountains that close their territory; however, few dare to, preferring the calm environment of the forests they practically rule. If sightings of Kitsune within their known territory are incredibly rare, sightings out of it are even more strange; however, there's legends about tailed foxes across the whole span of the Wildking's Forge. Whether this is due to these legends spreading or individuals appearing in those locations is subjected to speculation.
Temperament
Given their magical abilities and their physical might, it's no wonder that kitsune are at the apex of the food chain of their areas and have no usual predators (though other apex predators might be able to challenge them). However, their behavior is not especially predatory; they gain nourishment from aether and plants, and only hunt for a protein intake. The forests they inhabit provide excellent nourishment to them; because of this and their nature, they have developed a symbiotic relationship with it. The forest provides a great flow of aether and food sources, and they provide their natural vitality and act as regulators of the ecosystem; whenever a danger becomes prominent enough, a Kitsune will instinctively face it in some way. They are protectors at heart; why they don't enjoy conflict, they will engage in a fight to protect what they deem is worth preserving.
In other instances, Kitsune are calm creatures that lead contemplative lives. They are usually loners, and, while they don't reject other individuals of their own species, they separate after a brief interaction. They spend most of their time calmly observing their surroundings and learn about any changes going on; they are curious beings at heart, since they need that curiosity to grow and develop on their own. They are also playful, for that same reason; playing is a different way of experimentation and interaction. There's been cases of kitsune using their illusions to prank humans that walked too deep into the forest, which has earned them a reputation as tricksters. Another reason behind this is that they don't like to be disturbed; they generally view mortals as sources of natural destruction, and thus avoid them; that's what makes sightings so rare. If a mortal spots a Kitsune, it will be a rare instance in which (most likely) the tailed fox has shown itself.
Life Cycle
A kitsune's life cycle is, perhaps, the most unique thing about them. Kitsune don't grow up with the passing of time, but with the knowledge they gain as they interact with the world. Their temporal lobes, the side of their brains that stores knowledge andf memories, is heavily interconnected with the rest of their brain; it particularly affects their frontal lobe, related to intelligence, and their growth hormone centers. Because of this connections, higher temporal activity activates these areas, stimulating their growth. As a result, over time, the amount of growth hormone produced grows when Kitsune learn new things, and so does their intelligence. When certain thresholds of hormone blood level are surpassed, it triggers a reaction in a special area of the sacrum, and a new tail starts to grow. This process repeats as the level rises, until the ninth tail appears. Because this growth isn't tied to age but experience, it's referred to as realization; a nine-tailed kitsune is fully realized.
Kitsune only reach reproductive maturity when they're fully realized; finding an eligible mate is hard, as not all kitsune reach full maturity, or they don't do it at the same time. There's no specific mating season; kitsunes form companionships from time to time, akin to romances, and couples sometimes stick together until they decide to mate; after a while, the mother alone raises 1-3 pups, born covered in a bronze-orangish coat. Their father only approaches them from time to time bearing food offerings and plays with kids. Pups are protected and breastfed by their mothers for months, and when they've learned how to forage and hunt small prey on their own they're encouraged by their mothers to leave their side and explore on their own to ensure they properly develop. They might still try to go back to their mothers in some cases, so the process repeats itself until the kits become independent. For a while, both parents look out for their wellbeing; after some months, when most of them grow their second tail and have proven that they are able to thrive on their own, the couple splits and the pups are left to their own devices. Years will pass until their parents decide to mate again, usually with a different mate.
Independent cubs usually stay in the area of the forest surrounding the one they were born in, and slowly explore outwards; the vitality surrounding them usually marks the limit, but some can be curious enough to seek experiences outside these zones of the Wildking's Forge. Their fur lightens as they grow, the spiral patterns appearing over organs over time. Bronze gradually turns golden, then silver, and when they reach full maturity, Kitsune are mainly white. This growth process is slow and it takes years; Kitsune may stop learning at some point and settle, which makes their growth process slow down until it virtually halts. Not all achieve their ninth tail; the ones they do do it in 50 years on average, but this process has huge variablities that depend on each specimen's individual temperament, demeanor and experiences. Kitsune can live up to 500 years, but many die earlier for unnatural causes, trying to defeat a threat to the ecosystem.
Uses
There's no modern records of kitsune being hunted; in the few instances in which remains have been found, after natural or unnatural means, they have quickly decomposed and rotten. Applications of kitsune materials are only speculative and most likely not possible.
