Homo Fährmann

Names

 * Scientific name: Homo Fährmann.
 * Common name: Charonian, Ferrymen.
 * Gender names: Male: storytellers, Female: spirit-walkers

Overview
During the last years of the Collapse. As the war between the Alliance and Union reached it apex. A new super-solider was developed by the Alliance in the city of Charon, to help lower the loses in the meatgrinder of Dalvanberg. It was created to be a two man group, that would be able to tunnel through the toughest of rock, whilst continuing to fight off the lines of Union soldiers. It would be able to be created quickly, and be deployed within days. Leading the ordinary soldiers in to battle.

Named Charonians by the soldiers of the alliance, after the ferryman of the dead in pre-collapse ancient Greek myth. The Charonians were human soldiers altered but a parasitic snake like creature that attaches to the spinal cored of its host. borrowing it head in to the brain steam, whilst the tail stabs into the upper back. leaving the parasites spine exposed.

Once the parasite has attached to the host. It will used the pain of it's attachment to force the individual into the fetal-position. Where it will produce a cocoon that wraps around the host, beginning the conversion process. Depending on the host being male or female, alters how the conversion process will takes place. With the male, the conversion is quick ending within 3-5 days. Due to the minimal alteration to the host structure that is required. However the cocoon will still not open till a female cocoon is ready, due to the need for pairs in the tunnels. It was created to wait for a suitable mate before leaving it cocoon. As for the female the conversion process is slightly longer ending within 7-10 days. Though like with the male, the female will wait till a mate can be found.

Manufactured sexual dimorphism (Anatomy)
As was just discussed the Charonians was created to fill two job that till that point had killed thousands. One the creation of new tunnels, without loosing people to cave-ins and two the defence of the tunnelling equipment. These jobs were what forced the creation of the extreme dimorphism between male and female Charonians.

Starting with their similarities. They both have a metallic exoskeleton that covers the majority of their body. Giving them a insectoid appearance. However they are still classed as vertebrate as they retain their internal skeleton. The exoskeleton mainly exists for extra protection from both firearms and falling debris, that are a constant within the tunnels of Dalvanberg.

The other main similarities are found on the head and upper body. beginning with a carapace that covers the entirety of their face. It is a thick, bony and metallic with crystal like structures protruding around the upper forehead. Where the nose would be, is now a bulge, that is covered in small holes that act as a filter. Filtering out the ash coated air of the tunnels.

As for the mouth. It is now a interlocking mandible like structure, that covers the human like mouth below. protecting it again from the debris that get kicked up during the tunnelling. Their teeth are large molars, that are hardened by bone like protrusions capable of grinding down rock, and ore. That they ingest adding it to their exoskeleton.

For their ear they have lost them completely like with their sense of sight, instead relying on their parasite that protrudes from their brain steam. This parasite has a manufactured ability to emits a electromagnetic pules, ever second. Creating a detailed 3D map of their surroundings. That unlike sight and hearing can emit through the dusty air and detect enemies up to a mile away. They also use this ability to communicate with one another, being able to do so even whilst in the cocoon, assisting in finding a mate.

now moving onto the differences, between the sexes.

Male anatomy
Males stands on average 1.5M (5ft) tall. With their overall body structure looking very similar to a homo sapiens. However they differ on their hand, and feet. That look insect/bird like in structure, with their feet having two finger like structures facing backwards and a single finger facing forward. In addition to this the fingers are covered in thin filaments that act like sider legs, giving them the ability to attach to walls with ease. They also have a ball and socket joints on their elbow and knee, allowing for increased flexibility.

As for their hands, they still retain the five fingers though they have the same structure as the feet. Unlike with the female that will be discussed later, they have kept the same human body plan due to the need to use human weapons and interact with the world like any other human. Helping to build barricades and defences with the human soldiers, and speaking with them that the female has lost the ability to do.

Female anatomy
Female stands on average 2M (6.5ft) tall, and unlike the male are cold blooded. This is due to the high temperatures the tunnels can get to. However they do require additional warmth when near to the surface or in a cold spot relying on their male to be a source of heat during, these times. As for their body structure. They have pillar like legs that resemble a rhinos or elephants, though, the internal resemble a organic hydronic piston. Giving them extreme lifting potential, which is necessary due to the high chance of cave-ins whist she is tunnelling. Heading up the body the chest is highly macular though still resembles that of a homo sapiens. However they do have small hook structures that evolved after Die Nihil for carrying their young. Next the arms, the most highly modified portion of their body.

Starting with the hand, the fingers has fused together and elongated into a pickaxe like structure. That are coved in metallic bone allowing them to pick at the toughest of rocks. As for the thumb. it has relocated in to the palm of the hand and had been altered into a piston much like the once in the legs, with the tip being shape into a rocky jackhammer. allowing for the female to chip away at rocks that her fingers can't.

For more strength. The arm of the female has evolved a locking mechanism in the elbow and shoulder. Ensuring a stable platform for the jackhammer appendage. Whilst the arms themselves has been packed with muscle both to give the arm more power and to mitigate the amount of vibrations the rest of the body will feel from the tunnelling process.

finally the female unlike the male, walks on all fours like that of a gorilla. folding their fingers back and into groves along their arms whilst they walk on their knuckles.

Reproduction/Behaviour
In the world post Die Nihil you would think that a species created from a parasite that is forcefully attaches to unwilling human subjects would go extinct. Though this couldn't be further from the truth. In fact they thrived. Utilizing both human and parasite DNA. The Charonians where able to produce viable offspring. With the embryo developing within the mother for a time, till a egg forms around it. Then the egg is birthed, with a mostly devoted child that has the parasite already attached, having been there since the beginning of its development.

Then like with the cocoons of the collapse. The child will stay inside the egg communicating with the mother and father through EM pulses, till a suitable mate can be found. Once a mate is found, the eggs will start to synchronize EM pulses and start hatching at the same time. Once they have hatched they will stay with each other for the rest of their lives.

As they mate for life, if one dies the other is more than likely to die soon after. Falling in to a deep depression, starving themselves and walking in to dangerous situations. Though more often then not, they will just walk onto the surface of Dalvanberg, to get lost within the endless vale. The only thing likely to save them from such a fate, being their children. Ensuring that they will survive and thrive, is their only goal other than loving their mate.

Diet
In the world of the collapse, the Charonians where forced to consume the only constant food source in the tunnels of Dalvanberg; the corpses of human soldiers. Whilst it was against what they wanted, it was a question of survival, and the alliance wouldn't feed them anything else. Thankfully in the world post Die Nihil, the land began to dare fruit. mushrooms, insects, and bioluminescent plants, all began growing within the tunnels. Allowing the Charonians to completely change their diet to vegetarianism. It has now became a culturable taboo to feed on any form of creature other than plants. Being seen as reverting to monsters that humanity force them to become.

In addition, as has been discussed in the species overview. The Charonians feed on rocks and ores, that they dig up during there tunnelling. This is a essential aspect to their diet. Being used in the construction of their exoskeleton. Hardening it, against cave-ins.