Angels

Overview

Angels are creatures of Malakh, and viewed in light of such association with a slightly awestruck (or, similarly, contemptuous) air. However, the mysteries to the Angel’s unique capability to fly and their other physical charms that mark them apart from their fellow humanoids are grafted firmly in science. The Gods, after all, created the laws of science; it makes sense, then, that they would apply them to their other creations.

Life Span and Development (Average Life Span 350-450 years)

Angels develop rapidly in every physical aspect except for their wings. They keep a relatively youthful and healthy physique until well into their later years. Their physical strength is the last to leave, and generally at death they are still mentally fit.

1. Youth (0—14): Angels are born with the blue eyes that most adults retain. They are born with natural instincts retaining towards song, and often as toddlers play by leaping about in the way they will, as adults, jump to take flight. Their wings have not developed yet, nor have their voices fully matured. As an Angel grows, their voices develop in power and they learn the less instinctual and more subtle tunes from their parents. Their wings begin taking form, but they are not yet capable of flight.
   
2. Maturity (15—20): At this point in their young-adult stages, an Angel’s voice has fully developed and they are sexually capable of reproducing. Women, particularly, must be careful, as flying comes with a high risk of becoming sterile from the physical strain and from crashes in flight. Angels have developed highly prominent wings, and those wings now flap naturally in order to maintain balance, but most Angels are not able to fly yet, teetering on the brink.
3. Full Development (20—32): The full development of flight is reached in these years. Any serious injury sustained in wings at this point is permanent, as the body has incorporated the wings permanently into their system and the almost unconditional regeneration of the wings in the earlier stages of development is no longer necessary.
4. Physical Peak (32—327): The body of an Angel, having reached full physical maturity, grows and strengthens during this long stretch of time. These are the golden years for any Angel, from flight to song to mental sharpness. As with all things, the point in which this peak starts and ends varies from individuals, but usually around the ages of 275—285, the physical capabilities have maxed out and there is a long period of maintaining the same health level in all areas of an Angel’s physiology. The likelihood of an Angel reproducing decreases exponentially as the peak tops out, as the physical strain often damages the reproduction systems of both sexes. However, it is still not absolutely impossible, as the reproductive system hasn’t actually declined on its own basis yet.
5. Physical Decline (327—356): Around this time, an Angel’s strength, endurance, and speed in flight declines at a slow rate. The power of their voices also lessens, though not in so obvious a manner as flight, songs becoming weaker in their hold and warbling in their pitches. At this point, it is nearly impossible for an Angel to have a child, as the reproductive system has started shutting down on its own, in addition to the physical damage already taken.
6. Physical Low (356—413): At this point, an Angel is pushing on the upper limits of their luck, and drawing closer and closer to death. They become feeble and slow in flight, incapable of any sort of worthwhile distance, and their voices began failing them altogether.
7. Mental Deterioration (407—Death): As Angels develop, their mind develops the equivalent to an antibody to songs that other Angels would sing. However, as their physical health deteriorates, this guard in their brains fails, and they are susceptible at times to fall victim to their own tunes or to fall under the thrall of another Angel’s lullaby. Also, their ability to specify their songs goes down as their memory decreases.
8. Continued Decline (413—Death): As an Angel passes on, the last thing to go is their voice. Often, in fact, Angels die still able to sing a lullaby and put others into drowsy states, if huskily. They are known to often simply fall asleep in apparent good health (beyond their weakened flight and weakened voices) and die dozing peacefully.

Singing

An Angel’s voice directly affects the brains of other humanoids. The vibrations of their voices are unique in song, and trigger chemical reactions that release first floods of endorphins, followed rapidly by a chain reaction of the chemicals, leading to a flood of pentobarbital, relaxing the body nearly instantly and often putting the intended victim into a stupor. The songs then change to stop this reaction (too much pentobarbital can lead to death) and psychologically manipulate the brain to suppress the frequency of brain waves and lead the target into sleep. The depth of the target’s resting rate depends on the song and the duration the song is held.

Since every organism’s brain chemistry is different, the effect of a song varies from each individual. The instinctual songs Angels know from birth are the broadest songs, causing light drowsiness in all individuals; the learned songs narrow their focus. In examples, one song might encompass all humanoids, and produces light drowsiness. A more refined version of the same song focuses in on Shifters, and puts them into a light stupor. Getting more specific still, the song can advance to focus only on male Shifters, and produces a full sleep. Even better, the song is refined and perfected to focus on male Shifters from the ages 16—30 and can produce anything the singer desires. And so on, until the song is so effectively refined that it focuses in on individuals and can key into their individual nuances to the point that an Angel can temporarily take almost complete control of the conscious state of that individual. Such specific songs take a fully mature voice and a strong will, however, and it must be kept in mind that if a target is kept in sleep they can quickly die from the rapid production of chemicals and suppression of the mind.

Flying

The bodies of Angels have been designed to coincide with the need in flight to have a least amount of weight. Their bones are more delicate than other humanoids. Although Angels do not have the hollow-qualities that birds have, the marrow of their bones take up a larger space than in other humanoids. This leads to a fragility in the bones, but also takes away from the overall weight of an Angel. Wings of an Angel have the makeup associated with birds, however, hollow and light but incredibly strong to match up to the strains of flight. The fragility of their structure, however, is protected by stringy muscle-like tendons that resemble creepers on Angels’ bones. These tendons serve as protection and cushioning for bones and make them hard to snap. At the same time, the Angels’ bodies have developed a lithe quality that serves to help in flight maneuvers and help them when being buffeted around by the winds.

This strength in flight does not extend much beyond Angels and the few possessions they can carry. The more an Angel adds to their weight, and the greater distance they fly, the more likely they are to fail in fight. Like any other humanoid, Angel’s who are highly active can develop greater flight endurance and a greater capacity to carry loads. However, also like other humanoids, there is a maximum level to these abilities beyond which no mortal can exceed. To demonstrate this point, we will use the flight between the mainland and the nearest point on a Lithkan shore. A seasoned flyer that has honed their abilities and has fully matured would be able to make the trip with a load of about ten-twenty pounds (approx. 4.45 – 9.07 kilos) without having to rest, provided they were fully rested and had eaten well. An inexperienced flyer would make the trip with a load of about five-ten pounds ( approx. 2.27 – 4.45 kilos) and also might need to take a rest halfway through. An underdeveloped Angel would never be able to make the flight unaided, and an injured Angel, even fully matured and experienced, (particularly when fatigued) would not be able to make the flight, either. Also, carrying other humanoids for any large amount of distance is incredibly unlikely. A fully developed, extremely conditioned, and rather large Angel might be able to carry the average human about one hundred yards at a slightly slow rate provided they have the willpower until the strain snaps a wing or drags them down.

Also, Angel’s have a very high metabolism. The energy needed for flight would sap another being of its strength. In Angel’s, their bodies have developed the unique ability to retain energy from every last thing they eat and drink. There isn’t a wasted nutrient or molecule that passes through their intestines, and within an hour of eating a meal their bodies are already processing the energy gained.

Similarly, the Angel’s heart is structured slightly different from other humanoids. Set up in the same four chambers as all mammals, Angel’s hearts beat faster, pushing more blood in and out and replenishing the oxygen in their hearts faster. An Angel’s heart can take more strain than any other humanoids; similarly, however, should an Angel’s heart or blood flow be damaged, they are most at risk of any humanoids to die.

The size of an Angel’s wings also helps with flight. Generally the height-to-wingspan ratio ranges from one-to-two through two-to-three; the optimal flight is reached in individuals who have a one-to-three ratio. Angels who do not develop their wings properly are often incapable of flight. Wings are covered in the same feathers of birds, hollow points that operate aerodynamically to keep Angels in the air, and thermodynamically in keeping the blood flow in an Angel’s wings moving even during cold spells. It is harder for an Angel to fly in winter or in any particularly cold conditions. Extreme heat can also cause the blood flow to operate sluggishly. Wings are beaten at a rapid rate during take-off; to maintain flight for long distances, most Angels climb high into drafts and glide, using the minimum amount of energy to get to where they’re going. Wings are designed well for aerial ‘bombing’ (a steep dive at a nearly 100% vertical incline) and for pulling up sharply, as well as for performing the aerial acrobatics of other birds, but too many ‘bombs’ or tight flips and wings can become dislocated or the scapula (shoulder blade) of Angels (where the wings join with the body) can break.

Credit best served to Sweet Misery