Métamorphe

The métamorphe is a shapeshifting race that uses a cocoon to naturally shapeshift and heal.

Cocoon

The defining feature of a métamorphe is their cocoon. A métamorphe's cocoon provides them with heightened sensory abilities, allows them to regenerate, and enables their shapeshifting. Only when the cocoon is bonded to its producer's body can it be useful; métamorphes cannot make any use of each others' cocoons.

The thread of a métamorphe's cocoon grows from a single pore on their skin. The location of this pore changes whenever the métamorphe shapeshifts or heals over it. Since the métamorphe gains heightened sensitivity from the cocoon, they can easily tell where the thread pore is on their body under normal circumstances. Tugging this thread from the pore further stimulates its growth. The cocoon doesn't need to be one continuous thread connected to the pore; the thread can bond to itself and also to bodies, so it can be severed as necessary.

Parts of the cocoon vary in construction from tight-fitting to loosely-woven, from artificial and thin to wooly and thick, but not appearing molded or plastic. When métamorphes walk around inside their cocoons, it usually is woven as an artificial-looking bodysuit with various additional fluffy parts and underlying textures. When resting, métamorphes often construct their cocoons in an elliptical manner with a fuzzy outer coat.

Health

A métamorphe's bodily ability to heal and fight off illness on its own is dependent on the amount of time it was last developed in the cocoon. The longer it was developed, the longer the body can maintain those functions. However, areas of the body bonded to the cocoon can regenerate quite quickly and are nearly invulnerable to infection. If mobility is not a concern, métamorphes can fully enclose themselves in thick cocoons to overcome critical health issues.

Métamorphes can also bond their cocoons to other physical beings in order to heal them. The healer doesn't need to be familiar with the body of the being they're healing, but they do need to focus. During certain battles, the recitation of poems and chants has been successful in generating this focus.

While assuming a form with a digestive tract, a métamorphe can survive most mortal wounds except to their guts. In place of the heart and brain, the digestive tract is a métamorphe's most vital organ. An abdominal injury has similar effects to them as a head injury would to most others. Métamorphes can survive decapitation and heart ruptures, although they will usually be inclined to act as if their wounds are serious.

Shapeshifting

In order to naturally change form, métamorphes must be affected by a cocoon. They must be entirely encased in the cocoon. To assume a particular form, a métamorph must place the form into their subconscious; if this fails or no form is chosen, they will assume their passive form. Métamorphes typically have trouble assuming forms that are much different from their passive forms.

They aren't immune to unnatural changes of form initiated by others, as from curses. Such changes can even remove the cocoon thread pores from their bodies. The use of a métamorphe cocoon can reverse the effects of unnatural changes of form, however.

With intense focus, métamorphes can cause other physical beings to shapeshift for a time. The other being must be completely encased in a cocoon in order for this to be done. In this circumstance, unlike when métamorphes shapeshift themselves, the shapeshift does not deteriorate until it comes to an abrupt end. Métamorphes are largely responsible for replacing children of one race with children who they shapeshift into that race. These children are referred to in métamorphe culture as changelings.

Personality

The personality of a métamorphe has several core traits, but it also has exchangeable bundles of traits referred to as fragments. Each fragment is associated with a race, so when shapeshifting from one race to the next the fragment of the prior race is replaced with the fragment of the new race. The fragments are not personalities or identities of their own; memory retention and accessibility are constant across all forms, and a typical métamorphe's core personality anchors down their self-identity.

Though fragments meld with the core personality, they do not tend to meld with each other. A form consisting of an artificial hybrid of races will exhibit each race's fragment, but only one at a time. The passive form's fragment also occasionally and momentarily switches with other fragments during idle moments. While the métamorphe is encased in its cocoon, fragments will switch unpredictably and there could be no active fragment at all at some times, regardless of the form inside.

Fragments are created from and change with a métamorphe's perception and judgments of a race. Even if the métamorphe isn't being particularly attentive, their mind is subconsciously recording a handful of a new race's personality traits, behavioral patterns, and knowledge into a potential fragment. Mentally, creating a race-specific façade comes naturally; it's the physical form that can be hard to achieve.

One standard core trait is inquisitiveness regarding edibility. Even when a métamorphe is not hungry, their mind sometimes ponders on whether and how something or other can or should be eaten, what the experience would be like, and what nutrition would be gained, regardless of how mundane or exotic the thing is. This curiosity is not always expressed to others, but the offhand question or comment about the manner in which something strange may be consumed will eventually slip into conversation or under the breath.

Métamorphes are often drawn every which way, not necessarily indecisive but always looking for change to embrace. Those that desire particular states to return to and balance out at usually need the rest of their environments to be filled with innovation, fluidity, and the unknown. This trait doesn't necessarily make métamorphes completely unpredictable wildcards, but it does encourage anticipatory, awesome, and adventurous behavior and sentiment.

Nourishment & Appetite

Métamorphes have a high capacity for food and other sustenance, usually higher than that of the race they appear to be. Their digestive tract usually does not change much in form and function with the rest of the body, and it is very versatile in size and ability. A métamorphe may give themself away by overconsuming, which results in a bulging belly unnatural to the apparent race.

The appetite of a métamorphe for nourishment grows as they anticipate using their cocoon or as they more urgently need to enter their cocoon. This hunger does not cause physical pain for métamorphes. Malnourishment suppresses fragments, except for hunger-related traits which are augmented, and causes core traits to manifest more extremely, which can easily blow a métamorphe's cover. One of the most common ways of scrutinizing a shapeshifter is to observe their appetite and feeding patterns, and this method is especially effective in discovering métamorphes.

Garb

While métamorphes dress in whatever manner is appropriate for the identity they're assuming and can create clothing through shapeshifting, they also like to fashion their cocoons directly into articles of clothing. They typically bond portions of cocoon over their joints to maintain them. For example, an individual wearing cloth gloves, elbow sleeves, knee sleeves, cloth socks, and a cloth choker or scarf that all seem to fit on a color gradient is very likely a métamorphe. Many métamorphes hide their cocoon joint coverings underneath other clothing to avoid giving themselves away.

Race Relations

Though individuals may have personal views of other races, métamorphes do not hold any sort of blood bias. On the flip side many races are suspicious of, hostile toward, and ignorant regarding shapeshifters. Because of this shared persecution, métamorphes tend to bond more easily with other shapeshifting races.

Métamorphe children raised in racial communities tend to adopt the biases of that culture as part of their passive form fragment. Racial biases also slip their way into new fragments, but this is not so common; in order to fit into some racial communities, métamorphes typically must remember to act racist despite having no urge to do so.

Since doppelgängers were the earliest broad-spectrum shapeshifters to widely reveal themselves to the realms, métamorphes and others are sometimes assumed to be doppelgängers or have some close relation to them. Métamorphes neither are doppelgängers nor feel any closer to them as a race than they do to other shapeshifters. Some métamorphes find the doppelgänger natural form to be a fun one to shapeshift into, though.