This is the updated data on the Shra'Nishian species that I created. They made their first appearance in the story I wrote "The Beginning of the End and a New Beginning" which can be found here:

https://www.furaffinity.net/view/1721792/

The cub ref sheet can be found here:

https://www.furaffinity.net/view/3521648

I know that there are some inconsistencies and the data sheet posted here is the official info on the species.

The Shra'Nishian 'Spirit' or 'Ghost' walkers (C)  ainoko


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Critiques and suggestions are greatly wanted and appreciated
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Shra’Nishian

A new mammalian species Created by Ainoko Ironrose which can be found in the short story “The Beginning of the End and A New Beginning”



The biggest biological anomaly ever found in the universe can be found in the Aquarius system on a planet named Lemdirea. The planet is the fourth planet of 16 in it parent system, and has 6 moons and is a Class-M planet that is 10X the size of Earth. It is surprising to see such a large planet supporting a temperate climate like this. Lemdirea is exactly like Earth in every way save for it’s size. The planet’s days are roughly 20 Earth standard hours long, a month is 34 days, and a year is 750 days long (nearly two Earth years).

The dominate species on the planet are called the Shra’Nishian, they are a mammalian species that possesses traits that no one has seen anywhere else in the known universe. The Shra’Nishian are unique in the fact that they change form upon maturing into adults. Their planet is populated by various sub-species (wolves, foxes, lions, tigers, snakes, dragons, pandas, etc. There are even other species that have yet to be classified). They are long lived, the life span of the Shra’Nishian is about 370 years.

They communicate via many forms, vocal, sub-vocal, hyper-vocal, scents, body language, and mental. It is amazing to find a species such as this that can communicate via such a wide spectrum, this also means that communicating with them will be very difficult, as to them, we are deaf in most areas. That is not to say that we can’t communicate at all. They have concepts that are hard to put into terms that we can easily understand. In their language, the Shra’Nishian refer to themselves a “Spirit” or Ghost” walkers.

That is just one aspect that makes them an anomaly, another is their children, or as they tell us, cubs. The cubs are very non-descript in appearance, generally favoring either a generic feline or canine species, their fur ranges from snow white to obsidian black and is rarely more than one color, and are genderless, they grow no taller than 3.5 feet tall. We have found that odd and exciting as the Shra’Nishian adults are either male, female or hermaphrodites (true ones at that). Having no gender, the cubs have no genitals thus having no obvious way to eliminate bodily waste like their parents.

The biggest anomaly about the Shra’Nishian is apparent when their cubs make the transition to adulthood. It seems that when a cub reaches the age of 35-40, they go through a ritual that cannot be easily explained. From what we have learned from the Shra, the cubs begin to search for a safe haven to nest during their transition or test. According to ancient Shra’Nishian lore, their gods take the cub’s souls to test them to see if the cub is worthy to assume the mantle of adulthood. Anywhere from 1/3 – ½ of the cubs who undergo the test return as adults, the rest, those that are deemed unworthy are never seen alive again.

This is where the Shra are interesting, the cubs, after locating a suitable spot to nest somehow spin a cocoon around their bodies and seem to phase out of the physical plane into a different plane (although one can still see the cocoon and cub, but not make physical contact). From what we have learned, the cubs spend anywhere from 6 months up to 5 years in their cocoons as their spirit walks with another soul. We were not told what happens during the test, just that the cub is to interact with another species, guiding that person for a undetermined amount of time. Only the Edlers and fathers of each social group will know when the cub is about to emerge from its cocoon, and will go to help the cub return back to the physical world if needed. I have found it quite amazing that the parents of the cubs who fail the test, don’t grieve the way our parents would if they were to lose one of their cubs. They just accept that as a fact of life. During the test, the cocoon gradually becomes opaque, that is where the oddity begins. I was lucky to be invited by a clan Elder by the name of Taulein to witness a cub that is about to emerge from its cocoon.

What I witnessed was nothing short of mind blowing. I arrived with Taulein to a small cave set in a box canyon, just in time to witness a cub cocooning itself. The cocoon seemed to seep out of the cub’s body, like sweat after one has had a vigorous exercise regimen, and it was glowing with a soft bluish light. It seemed as if the cub had just curled up into a ball and went to sleep. We stood there watching as the cubs cocoon finished forming and then phased out of our physical plane. We then went over to an alcove where I observed a black cocoon that appeared to be turning grey. From the look on Taulein’s eyes, I was able to tell that whoever was in this cocoon was in some sort of trouble. As he entered the small alcove, he put up a paw, stopping me from entering. He then traced a pattern that only he could see on top of the cocoon, and then went rigid as the alcove was bathed in an intense golden light. When the light faded a few minutes later, a tall, handsome fur stood next to Taulein. Apparently from what I was told later, the young male had become trapped when the spirit he was guiding, left his body leaving the male in his place, resulting in the young male forgetting what happened. It is amazing to see what the cubs change into during their test. The new adult bore no resemblance to the small balls of fur that proceded him.

From what I later learned, the Shra’Nishian are an ancient species. When the cubs take their test, they are walking and guiding spirits from all species in the entire universe, past, present and future, not to mention that they might know the fates of all species as well. It is also amazing that despite the knowledge that they acquire during these tests, they still live in a semi-primitive society. This world should be quarantined in order to keep those who would try to exploit their knowledge for their own gains.