Telkan

The Telkan are a race of semi-arboreal bipeds, native to Telkan-1 and Telkan-2.

Appearance
Telkan are gracile creatures with fur, long bodies and shortish stocky limbs. They stand approximately 4' tall. Their hands and feet are paws with small vestigial claws. They are native to old-growth forests, where they used to live in burrows under tree roots.

They resemble anthropomorphic foxes, with upright, mobile ears and wider muzzles. They tend to be self-effacing and non-violent, as per their species' gentling by the Lanaktallans, but they are able to learn to overcome this.

Telkan have three sexes: Male, Female, and Broodcarrier. The different sexes show morphological differences, noted below.

Common fur patterns contain browns, blacks, and golds in solid and dappled patterns.

Male
Males are tailless, walk upright, and have short fur all over their bodies.

Female
Females have short tails, walk upright, and have short fur all over their bodies.

Broodcarriers
Broodcarriers (Also referred to as Broodmommies by podlings) are the third sex of Telkans, they exist in a gestator and then carer role. They have longer and fluffier fur than the males and females of the species, and a much longer and fluffier tail, which can be used to support podlings and wrap around other for comfort. Their mammary glands are hidden under their fur and are used to nurse podlings.

They tend towards a simpler mind, talking in short incomplete sentences that convey feelings and not complex ideas, but responded positively to being taught basic iconography before the second battle for Telkan. Their nature means that they're focused exclusively on caring. Be it for podlings (which come first), male and female Adult Telkan, and any other species that is in distress, wounded, or in need of general soothing. They've been known to give their lives to protect their charges.

Broodcarriers have empathy so deep that it's telepathic, it's also strong enough to currently be affecting the Sleeping Ones. Exposure to a Terran Descent Human recovering from a fractured SUDS hit connected the broodcarriers to the wavelength and it has since penetrated further. It's described as a 'low level memory sharing' that's passed by frequency that the Telkans naturally have.

The Broodcarriers have managed to preserve an oral history of Telkan culture even though it is forbidden by the Lanaktallan, this is passed on to podlings as teaching songs.

To harm a broodcarrier is to enrage the entire Telkan race (and any nearby Terrans as well, though this is not due to the telepathy, more due to pack bonding.)

Broodcarriers walk upright, but in times of stress will revert to all fours. They have also been known to, once learning that Terran soldiers can be trusted, bark at them in a sharp, commanding manner to order them to protect broodcarriers and podlings in danger.

Physiology
Their diet consists mainly of plant matter, nuts and berries. They have wide grinding teeth in their maws and decent vision. It was confirmed that this was not a natural evolution, and that Telkans were originally omnivores.

Fluffy badasses, comparable to humans tbh.

Telkan are one of the few, if any, races that match the human set of emotions on a virtually identical basis. This explains certain individuals ability to energize and melt Warsteel in the same manner as the Enraged Ones.

History
Telkans originated from the second habitable planet in their system: Telkan-1.

They been through a lot.

The Book of Telkan

Vuxten
Supreme Telkan badass and war hero, husband of Brentili'k.

Brentili’ik
Madame Director, de-facto leader of the Telkan people, wife of Vuxten.

Kelvak
Telkan war hero, Deceased. **Four and four is eight Marine podling hold the gate**

Ralvex
Second Telkan Marines, Hesstlan war hero of the defense of Nemarlie.

Mukstet
Telkan co-pilot of stealth Striker hovercraft Foxtrot Nine-Two.