Changeling

Allowing a Changeling to stay in the village because they haven't caused any problems yet is like letting a snake rest in the hen-house because it's still hunting the rats.

— Concerned Villager

Changelings are humanoids commonly thought to be descendants of Hags, or the creations of paranoid wizards. People more educated on the matter typically follow the theory that changelings are a form of shapeshifters that are closely related to mimics. Changelings have a long history of suffering from predjudice due to their unusual abilities, uncanny natural appearance, and mysterious origin.

Basic Information

Anatomy

In their natural forms Changelings are humanoids with porcelain white skin, and almond shaped eyes with black sclera and irises. They have long straight white hair with a slightly blue sheen, and sharp angular teeth with perfectly homogenous sizing and spacing. Their limbs and fingers are slightly longer than an equivallently sized human. Changelings have very little body fat thanks to fast metabolisms, and their musculature appears unnaturally well defined. Additionally Changelings all look nearly perfectly identical to eachother; varying only in limb lenth, eye size, and height. Their sexual dimorphism is very minimal with males losing the blue sheen in their hair, and females developing a slightly more pronounced chest and hips upon reaching full physical development. Their overall appearance has been described as "uncomfortably perfect, and yet agressive and predatory".
It's possible that despite their fearsome appearance Changelings might have been able to integrate into other Humanoid societies if it werent for the ability of fully developed Changelings to transform into perfect replicas of other humanoids. When transformed a Changeling mimics the physical appearance and voice of the person they're copying without effort. Manerisms also aren't hard for a Changeling to copy due to their very observant nature. There are many legends of Changelings replacing loved ones before devouring the family, or acting as perfect spies for foreign powers. While Changelings have been used as infiltrators a few known times throughout history, the majority of such legends are simple fearmongering by people terrified of something they do not understand.

Genetics and Reproduction

Reproduction and Compatibility

While changelings were once thought to be able to reproduce with nearly any humanoid, more recent evidence points to Changelings being able to reproduce only with creatures of Fey ancestry such as Elves. Perhaps more facinating is that the level of Fey ancestry needed for reproduction is very low. Humans with distant Fey related lineage appear to be viable candidates, while those without are not. Scholars have speculated that they may also be able to reproduce with other members of the mimic family, but due to the difficulty in studying this, the theory remains almost entirely speculative. The nature of a Changeling's reproductive options have made them very difficult for taxonomists to categorize and nearly every time the existance of Changelings is brought up in academic circles they're re-categorized according to the predominant theory at the time.
While it was previously thought that all children of a Changeling would come out as a Changeling, recent investigations have uncovered that while a Changeling's genetics seem to be very dominant in cross-species children, there are varying levels of mix between changeling and non-changeling parents. All children seem to possess some level of shape-shifting, and naturally black eyes, but as the line gets further from a full Changeling the children adopt more of the features of their non-changeling parentage. There still appears to be a chance of a full Changeling emerging from the lineage at any point though, and this may be a contributing factor to the legends of Changelings replacing infants with their own young.

Infertile Transformations

While Changelings are capable of cross-sex transformations, and the transformations can mimic the externally recognizable sexual organs of the opposite sex, these transformations do not allow the Changeling to concieve differently than their natural sex: female changelings do not produce male reproductive cells while transformed into males, and male changelings do not have eggs, nor uterus while transformed, and thus cannot become pregnant. Despite this, sex-accurate transformations can concieve while transformed.

Changelings have a very low conception rate, but many of the other hurdles posed during birth and post-birth care are reduced, as such the natural survival rate of birth for both mothers and children is much higher. Gestation is approximately seven months, and newborns are completely dependant on their mothers for a time, similar to most live-birth humanoids. Birth for Changeling mothers is comparatively easy, their natural tranformative abilies lend more flexibility when needed, and this reduces the injury rate of both mother and child considerably. Many Changeling mothers only report suffering mild discomfort a few times during the process. Though their birth states are similar, changelings leave infantilism behind very quickly, and within a period of about a year they become the equivallent of a human at age six.

Growth Rate & Stages

Early Life: 0-3 Months Old

Changeling infants are greedy little usurpers; abominations that prey on your kindness. Throw that thing back into the forest where you found it before it destroys your family and then the rest of the village.

— Village Elder

Physical Development

Changeling infants have larger than usual heads and eyes when compared to the proportion of their adult counterparts. They also have much smaller hands, but slighlty larger feet. Their infant skin feels slightly cold to the touch and is frequently slightly damp. It's believed that they regularly sweat to release an overabundance of internal body heat, which is generated by the rapid rate of physical change their bodies undergo during this time.

Like A Cuckoo

Changeling mothers cannot poduce breast milk, but their infants still require assistance feeding. It's not uncommon for the mothers to become desperate, and resort to deception to get their babies fed. In areas with few wet-nurses or where Changeling descrimination is extra high, it's unfortunately common for mothers to trick new mothers into temporary adoption of the infant. If the Changeling infant has been long enough without having their first meal, they can develop a habit of voracious over-eating which sometimes leads to the starvation of the adoptive parent's child. This is brutally hard on the adoptive parents, and contributes to the unfavorable reputation of Changelings and insidious monsters.

Mental and Social Development

During infancy Changeling mental development focuses on learining to identify others around them by fluctuations in their emotional states. It's believed that this stems from the inability to identify their parents by appearance or voice due to the transformation abilites of adults. This has also made Changeling children appear very fussy to non-Changeling parents, developing strong preferances for specific individuals.

Abilities Development

Infant transformation abilities are rarely active, but when they do activate they seem to do so at random, and often in rapid spurts. Near the beginning of their infancy most of their transformations are flawed, partial, and most often mimic those closest to them. Near the end of infancy their transformations become more frequent, and mimic those who have most recently garnered their interest or attention, sometimes transforming back and forth between individuals as they observe conversations. Transformations are typically brief, and mimic faces and hands almost exclusively. These early acts of immitation lack precise proportion control, and always happen at the infant's natural size, typically sporting one or two exaggerated features.

Early Life: 3-9 months Old

Physical Development

Motor function improves significantly during this stage of development, and at about six months most changleing children can walk and begin rudimentary attempts to climb things like furniature to mimic their grown counterparts. Due to the rapid growth that will take place from six months to a year in age Changeling bones are little more than mildly hardened cartilage, making bone related injury extremely rare and effortless to regenerate. The softness of their bones leads to changeling toddlers often appearing to wobble in their legs despite their otherwise good sense of balance. By nine months of age most Changelings are the size of humans at three years of age.

Mental and Social Development

Around four months old, Changelings begin speaking their first intelligable words, and augment their speach with transformations they associate with their communications; such as mimicing faces and expressions they've seen others use while eating, or performing other activities. During this time their minds are working over what kinds of expressions others make and are receptive to. Changelings in non-changeling homes are believed to develop a tendancy against smiling during this phase because their sharp toothed smiles are considered alarming by those who don't know better. By about 9 months most Changeling children speak full and mostly proper sentences when they choose to speak, though significant delays have been noted in cases of mistreament most commonly found in non-changeling homes.

Abilities Development

During this stage changelings begin to gain control over their shape shifting powers and start shape shifting less. They also begin to hold forms in their sleep, though may still involuntarily change during intense dreaming. By 7 months transformations are significantly more accurate and convincing. By 8 months transformations begin to take on extended durations exceeding four hours, and transformations are typically full-body affairs; though they're still limited by their physical size. By 9 months most changeling children can maintain a transformation for an entire day.

Early Life: 9 Months - 18 Months Old

Physical Development

By the time a Changeling child is a year old they are physically equivallent to a typical human six year-old. Their rapid physical development will slow some at this point, though still remain accelerated when compared to human counterparts. As the Changeling grows in size and puts on weight their bones gain a bit more rigidity to acomodate, and around 18 months they're as hard as they will ever be. Fully developed Changeling bones are still considerably more soft than those of other races because of their need to shift and reshape as the Changeling's shapeshifting abilites become more developed.

Mental and Social Development

He just keeps staring at me. I feel like he's waiting for me to make a mistake; for me to slip up just once so that he can pounce! But he never does, he just keeps staring. I can't take it any more, I feel trapped. It would be better if he'd just slit my throat already.

— Adoptive parent of a Changeling Child

From nine-months until about two years-old is a critical time for mental development among Changelings. Communication skills develop rapidly during this period, frequently coming in spurts of sudden understanding and change. Between bursts of social and mental development Changeling children spend large periods of time engaged in intense, direct observation of others, with little to say or add themselves until the next social or mental break-through.

Non-Changeling parents report intense and unnerving stares from their Changeling child. These reports of intense staring likely stem from a combination of the inability to discern what a Changeling is looking at due to their naturally black sclera, and some genuine over-active observation on the part of the child. In mixed societies, or mixed parentage this period of development is especially dangerous for Changelings because their behaviors are viewed as extremely unnatural, evil, insidious, or otherwise suspicious, and in many cases the child will meet an unfortunate end brought on by others feeling threatened by behaviors that are benign.

Abilities Development

At around 18 months old a Changeling's shape-shifting abilites begin to develop the ability to change their body size. Estimates put the maximum variance for this age at around ten-percent difference in either direction for both measurements.

Adolescence: 2-5 Years Old

Physical Development

By age three, Changelings physically resemble the gowth stage of a human nine year-old. They spend the majority of their time transformed. From three to five years-old Changelings undergo significant muscle growth, and spend large amounts of time engaged in intense physical activity as a form of play. They seem compelled to run everywhere, and push themselves to their limits on a regular basis. Some believe that this period of increased physicality helps them develop a good sense of their own physical form, and what it's like to move intensely while transformed as well.

Mental and Social Development

Around two-and-a-half years of age Changeling children enter a phase of social testing where they constantly seek interaction and forms of valadation from others. This is believed to be the time in a Changeling's life when a lot of their outward personality starts to take shape. They constantly test and measure their social role and the reactions of others, learning how to fit in with new groups. It's not uncommon for Changelings - raised in environments where they're the only Changeling - to experience frequent social rejection during this phase of their development. This is also when many Changelings learn to mimic speech patterns, small muscle ticks, and a myriad of other subtle and subconscious behaviors.

Abilities Development

By age 3 most Changelings can pull off physically perfect imitations of others within their size range. By age four most Changelings have the voice and behavioral copying skills to be considered a perfect double for short periods of time. They can also handle about a 15% difference in size and weight from their own bodies. From age four onward most changes in transformation ability are brought on by practice. The speed of their transformations will get much faster, their accuracy will allow them to copy even more subtle details and accurately infer things about the original they haven't seen.

Puberty and Early Adulthood: 5-10 Years

I was in love with her; 'still am, but I'm not sure she could ever love me. When I looked into her eyes; her real eyes; there was nothing but an overwhelming blackness that threatened to swallow me. I couldn't do it ser, I can neither marry the woman I love, nor slay the monster that threatens my home: for they are one and the same.

— Young Knight of Sapnirtugard

Physical Development

From five to ten years of age, Changelings will go through several more growth-spurts, but their physical growth slows considerably again around age seven, as their bodies change gears to work on their reproductive abilities. Most Changelings hit puberty around seven years old, and are mostly physically matured by age nine. At seven years old they have the stature typical of a human of fourteen, and by nine years old they appear the human equivallent of seventeen.

Prior to age six Changelings have no reproductive organs, and could be considered to be sexless. As they develop through puberty, their natural bodies will change in accordance with their transformation habits, developing sex organs and becoming sexually dimophic according to the transformations they embody most frequently. Those who frequently take on female forms will have their rib-cages expand (though notably they lack breasts in natural form), and their hips widen silghtly; while those who become males lose the slightly bluish tint in their hair. To outsiders the changes are incredibly subtle.

In rare circumstances Changelings can fail to develop sexual characteristics of any kind, the Changeling usually dies by age fifteen if their bodies still haven't finished this stage of development, officially the exact cause is unknown, but a recent autopsy suggests that it could be a form of cancer unique to the species. Changelings are sequential hermaphrodites; every five or so years their natural bodies will go through another puberty like cycle - lasting about a month - during which some changelings will go through a horomonal shift that can change their sex organs according to more recent habits, environmental, and social factors. The disease has yet to be found during or after resexing has occured, and appears limited to something present during the first.

Mental and Social Development

Mental development slows significantly for Changelings around 10 years old, having reached adulthood. During this stage of their lives Changelings usually begin their long search for a partner, and in most cases leave their homes to become nomadic for a time.

Abilities Development

By age 10 changelings are typically fully physically developed and can shapeshift in a manner which can increase and decrease their apparent weight and size by about 25%.

Individual Identity

Changelings commonly struggle to develop personal identities due to their ability to rapidly change nearly everything about themselves outwardly. Their predisposistion to copy even mundane ticks they see in others, and biological compulsion to blend in as someone else often leads to participation in new religious movements, lifetime military enlistments, or other groups where group identity is stronger and more important than individual identity. Changelings are especially vulnerable to group identity when isolated from others of their kind, or in hostile environments.

Immoral Reputation

Incidents of Changelings getting swept up in group identity have lead to a false reputation for a lack of morals as a species. Nearly all Changelings have a reasonable sense of morality, and while the exact particulars are variable, the issue is that in the wrong environment the Changeling instinct for fight-or-flight often kicks in, with the flight equivallent being to hide or blend in. The strength of this instinctual response to danger is hard to contend with, and likely stronger in Changelings than in many other humanoid species.

The struggle for personal identity is one that changelings most often endure alone since it is rare for changelings to gather in numbers. Changelings with a strong sense of personal identity or ambition make for exceptionally charismatic leaders.

The Winds are Changeling

The Changeling city of Altmire is an interesting exception to typical changeling identity rules. The city has a tradition called The Ceremony of Faces where changeling children make themselves a new "face" by crafting a one of a kind mask which acts as a form of identification inside the city, and the children choose a name for the mask which becomes their name while they possess it.

Additional Information

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Changelings are exceedingly observant as a species, with near edictic memory, and much greater eyesight, hearing, and natural balance than humans. Their sense of taste, and smell are less potent however, and as a result Changelings take less joy from food. Changeling vision is very sensitive to motion even in extremely dark environments. Changelings also have two other senses that humans don't have: emotional projection and charge sensitivity.

Emotional Projection - Changelings can sense the emotional state of others around them even through thin walls without ever having seen the target. They are particularly sensitive of distress or agitation, violent intent, and excitement. It's believed by some that Changelings are mildly psychic as a defense mechanism, though due to the rarity of Changelings willing to identify themselves, this theory remains untested.

Charge Sensitivity - Changelings are sensitive to magic and electrical energy, able to detect large sources of magic from far away, and able to detect the electrical charge in others, even from an infant. This sense has been described as "like a mild itch on your skin" and appears to be directional, but imprecise.

Scientific Name

Mimica Erectus Prudens