[SPECIES? DEVELOPMENT] CADAVE FURES

[Pear]

CADAVE FURES

 

[CW: Mentions of Death, Including Implications of Animal and Child Death, Gore, Body Horror, Brain Damage, Infection, Filth and Rot]

  

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ORIGIN

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• First named in Ancient Prosperity, Cadave Fures (translation: dead bodies) or the less nice Cadavefures (body thieves), often shortened to Cadave (though there are many other regional names they go by), are an undead phenomenon as old as scrap ghosts. They have a chance to form in any heartless body with an intact brain, generally using the concentration of original scraps attached to the body with ones from the surroundings mixed in. This reanimation process is as close as it gets to full revival, though you’ll never get the exact same person back. They were not created by a god and the first of its kind is undocumented.
  

 

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CULTURE

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• Cadave are a worldwide occurrence, not specific to any particular zone. Though forming in places with high concentrations of scraps is common.
  
• Most are solitary though if possible they like to form groups with other Cadave. This is due to them being generally less accepted in many societies due to the nature of their existence.
  
• Some that return to their body while being mostly intact will want to return to their loved ones in life as they still have strong attachments to them. Though the response to them is variable even then.
  
• Cadave are incorporated into religious beliefs around the world. For some their own revival is affirming and for others it is viewed as a punishment. Many cults are formed around people specifically wanting to come back as Cadave when they die. Since they are not that common of an occurrence there is a high chance they won’t succeed outside of mass-death events though.
  
• Many unethical (and rarely successful) science experiments have also been done to see if Cadave could be made, and there have been stories of people ripping the hearts out of their significant others in a desperate attempt to extend their time together.
  
• There are ethically sourced pelt-suits designed specifically for Cadave, though they are hard to find.
  
• Access to education and housing becomes a bit harder to get when you’re legally dead and weren’t technically born either.
  
• Combat ability varies based on the body they are bound to, though ones who are poorly stitched together or have advanced stage decay are prone to falling apart if a lot of stress is put on the body. The first sign that a Cadave has overexerted itself is when sludge begins dripping out of the seams.
  

 

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APPEARANCE 

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• Their eyes are generally dark with glowing pupils.
  
• Their body contains glowing black sludge that can be seen dripping out from various exposed openings (such as tear ducts, nostrils, mouths, and wounds). It is not completely opaque, as things can be seen very faintly through it.
  
• They can take the form of any organic species as well as adding or mixing in parts from others to suit the body type they’re most comfortable with. This strongly correlates with having a very mixed mind with no dominant body plan.
  
• If parts are missing due to injury or an extreme mismatch to the body they’re bound to they can fill in the gaps and even substitute full limbs with sludge. The further off a solid base this goes the more unstable and drippy it is though.
  
• Size can have extreme variance and isn’t bound by the species alone due to the ability to change their overall size with more additions.
  
• Skin generally takes on a blotchy, mottled appearance unless preserved or covered by fur.
  
• In cases of slime bodies being inhabited the slime will take on an oil slick-like appearance as the sludge only partially mixes in.
  
• Fur length and texture varies depending on the pelt-type as well as level of care they take. It cannot grow back if cut off. New fur can be glued on or threaded in instead.
  
• Voices are generally raspy, wet, and low.
  

 

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BIOLOGY 

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• Their bodies are generally composed of a skeleton with sludge in place of muscle and blood (if applicable), a newly formed heart, a working brain and a layer of skin to keep it all in. If any organs are still present most will discard or absorb them since they don’t need them.
  
• The sludge is innervated and is capable of processing non-painful sensory input surprisingly well. Though in the case of artificial or leatherized skin being used for a casing the tactile sensation is reduced. Visceral pain is not felt due to lack of organs though they are capable of experiencing somatic pain as well as headaches due to their sludge still carrying signals from the few original parts they keep.
  
• Despite the lack of painful sensations, sludge that is exposed is still capable of being overstimulated, which is why they prefer to cover it up.
  
• Sludge can carry oxygen and nutrients to the brain and bones the way blood does, though this does not mean those parts are completely in healthy working order. Bones can still be brittle depending on the age of the body when it died and the brain may have a bit of damage depending on the length of time without oxygen.
  
• Due to their sludge not having any self-cleaning properties the way most slime does, the organic parts of their bodies are more susceptible to bacteria and fungi. In the case of bodies where the sludge acts as blood replacement it is not capable of dealing with toxin buildup from organs either, which is why disposing of dead and rotting parts is preferred. Allowing rot can turn the sludge itself toxic and make inhabiting a body much harder as it could affect the health of the living parts. Purifying the sludge is required before switching to a new body if this happens.
  
• A lot of manual care is required for more life-like skin as it is still very dead. It must be cleaned regularly to prevent widespread infection if it has not been preserved. It also needs to be moisturized regularly if they do not want it to dry out, as well as needing regular cleaning and patching up due to there being no proper wound healing.
  
• They can replace any missing teeth in a mouth with new teeth that are surprisingly sharp. This and the claws are the only places where they’re capable of solidifying to this degree, most likely due to the being smaller parts.
  
• They prefer to eat fatty and protein-rich foods but are capable of ingesting really anything, including scraps. Things that are not protein, fat, or scraps cannot be absorbed and will be disposed of after they’ve extracted what they can.
  
• Their energy level is based on how much they’ve eaten and they tend to need a lot more rest than most people. However, sleep only slows the loss of energy rather than restoring it. They can temporarily shut down their brains and slow their hearts to one beat per minute that way almost no energy is used, though this means this kind of sleep is always dreamless. They are capable of hibernation whenever due to there being no limit on how long they can sleep, many will simply play dead.
  
• They do not shed any scraps they formed with due to them being bound to their body but will easily shed new ones.
  
• The level of memory capacity an individual has partially depends on the state of their brain upon revival, though they’re capable of filling out missing areas the same way they do with the rest of the body.
  
• They can cover their inner ears and noses in a thin layer of sludge in order to hear better, this choice is mainly for aesthetics since they can really peek it out from anywhere to hear or smell.
  
• Their eyeballs get their color from the gel and tears being replaced with sludge, similar to most fluids in the body. They prefer to create their own eyelids as the originals tend to dry out quickly and being forever unblinking unnerves people.
  
• Their sludge has limited strength, so ease of movement depends on both how cumbersome the body is as well as their level of mastery of the body they inhabit. Natural movement is easier to get the hang of when they are more like the person the body contained before. Most newer Cadave tend to shamble, crawl, or drag their feet along as zombies do.
  
• They will exhibit behaviors most similar to the ones attached to the body they inhabit as well as picking up ones from the local scraps they used to form. This is not limited to people though due to fauna also leaving scraps as well as bodies that can be utilized in their formation.
  

 

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LIFE CYCLE/FAMILY STRUCTURE 

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• They do not have a set lifespan as they are undead. However, they are not incapable of a second death. Many will simply go into hibernation for an indeterminate time if they find their bodies are too destroyed to function or if they’ve been completely immobilized (i.e. by being locked in a coffin and/or buried). Removing a Cadave’s heart will unbind them from the body, destroying the heart will kill them completely.
  
• They are not capable of reproducing unless the respective body parts are still viable, but even in that case the reproductive window doesn’t last very long. They cannot produce any genetic material of their own.
  
• Many celebrate their re-birthdays during the month of Darkest Night since it is around the time many will randomly form. Those that consider this an extension of their body’s life will celebrate their body’s original birthday.
  
• Children only exist in the form of ones that have reformed largely with the scraps of children.
  
• Similar to how it is with fauna scraps it is possible for Cadave to have child scraps or even separately formed personalities that haven’t fully mentally developed inhabiting their brain as well. How they handle this fact is up to the individual.
  
• Older Cadave are more likely to adopt Cadave children as many mortal families do not know enough about undead children to care for them.
  
• Since the brains and skeletons are still alive, ones that have not fully matured yet will continue to grow. Children are encouraged to add patches as they grow so their skin will accommodate this. You are generally able to spot a Cadave that has been around since childhood this way, assuming they hadn’t already decided to swap their skin out.
  
• Cadave have a spectrum of different orientations and with no innate preferences towards monogamy or its alternatives. Local culture tends to decide what they go for.
  

 

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EXAMPLES 

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Tolore

"The name’s just an anagram. Don’t tell anyone though.”

Once a traveling conman who would pass themself off as a knight, regularly hired to retrieve or guard valuables before disappearing along with them.

• Over 8 ft tall and made of a combination of Armor Dragon and Amber Trace parts. They were most likely a Trace first with the armored parts being added later.
  

Petri

"No, no, no it’s pronounced PEH-tree, NOT PEE-trey! You know, like petrichor?”

Just your run of the mill undead Soup Beatfox, nothing to see here.

• About 5 ft tall. Note the sludge mixed into the slime and the slime mixed into the sludge. As well as the pretty rainbow sheen covering their body. Or, well, it’s more like an iridescent biofilm, it’s teaming with iron-oxidizing bacteria!
  

Bili Querubin

"Only one of these heads has a brain, but it’s not always the same.”

This one has a rotation of heads, wings and limbs they like to use. Depends how fearsome they wanna look on a given day. You know how it is…

• Approximately 6 ft tall. Their faces have a bit of a gaunt appearance with lips pulled back in permanent, drooling snarls.
  

Conie

"What do you mean my disguise sucks? I’m not even wearing a disguise!”

As fashionably evil as it looks, this suit was NOT sourced directly from corpses! Instead it was made using discarded Dopple skins. Does that make it ethically sourced? I don’t know.

• Approximately 7 ft tall. They appear to be a Dragonfly Neuroth in a makeshift Dopple suit.
  

 

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RULES 

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This is a species development thread! Here you can have discussion on the species presented, and offer suggestions/ideas for developing them- thus directly contributing to the species! Anything is fair game so long as it follows the restrictions (if any are listed). This main post will be updated as we go, allowing for people to always have an up to date resource on the species. 
  

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Restrictions/No-go's

• Keep it SFW!