Mosa, the enduring
Mosas are an amphibious race from a highly unstable world, evolved to cope with dramatic environmental changes. They retain certain features developed for survival in water, including powerful lungs and a set of gill slits on their torso. Mosas arriving on Earth typically undergo superficial surgery, implanting artificial hair follicles and skilfully folding the residual webs of their hands and feet. Mineral supplements shift the rich blue-black of their skin to some manner of brown or beige.
One of the mosas' most striking traits is their metabolic flexibility. They have a high degree of conscious control over their bodies' biochemistry, allowing them to alter certain physiological properties, and to regulate synthesis and breakdown of many substances. This makes them unusually resilient, allowing them to survive in many different conditions. Some mosas train to synthesise and exude useful chemicals, often augmenting their natural capabilities with biotechnology. Though most use these innocently, even benevolently, the species have a reputation as manipulators and assassins.
Their unstable homeworld has left mosas wary and curious, and their culture encourages preparedness as a key virtue. Passing effortlessly for human, they have little fear of detection. This assurance, and their innate adaptability, can make them seem cocksure or fatalistic. Evolved for smooth and agile movement through water, they are generally graceful and poised.
Abilities
Breathless: Mosas have powerful lungs and efficient gas exchange systems. They can hold their breath for twice the normal period, both initially and when making Stamina rolls. They suffer no ill-effects from altitude or decompression sickness.
Amphibious: Mosas are equally comfortable in the water or on land. They can breathe underwater using their gill slits, remaining immersed indefinitely. All mosas have the Swimming speciality.
Born Survivor: Mosas have evolved to heal rapidly to cope with dangerous environments. They heal damage at twice the normal rate, provided they have food available to fuel this healing.
Omnivore: Mosas’ metabolic flexibility means they can consume virtually anything when food is needed. A mosa can feed herself on rotting vegetation, wood shavings, frozen raw meat, organic fabrics or bones. She can drink paraffin for energy, or rehydrate with dilute acids. A mosa automatically succeeds in foraging for herself, unless trapped in an environment with no organic materials. She never becomes ill as a result, and can consume substances with Toxicity 3 or lower without ill-effects.
Mosas cannot sustain themselves on inorganic matter, such as stone, metal or plastics, but can consume and eventually digest them without ill effects, if the pieces are small enough to swallow. They can derive energy from light hydrocarbons such as paraffin, lighter fuel, methanol and turpentine without becoming ill.
Species Tells
Mosas cannot be readily distinguished from humans under most circumstances. Their gill flaps are a Blatant Tell, and must be concealed. Clothing is usually adequate, but sometimes mosas use synthetic skin patches to cover the distinctive flaps. Even this can be detected with a sufficiently minute inspection, though this is only likely during medical checks or very careful full-body searches.
Coming from aquatic stock, mosas have no sweat glands. They have other means of dispersing heat, including panting and diverting blood to the skin surface to cool. This does not cause them difficulty; however, under certain circumstances (such as strenuous exercise) this can be a Subtle Tell. Under medical examination, it may be a Blatant Tell; lack of functioning sweat glands is a recognised medical problem.
Gifts
The Mosa Gift pools are Autometabolism and Exocrine.
Affinities
Mosas are a physical species, with affinity for Physical Attributes.
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