Cyren

"Cyrens are remarkably ferocious. If not for their lack of technological advancements, I am sure they would be an unrivaled imperial superpower."

- Antenocte

The Cyren (Pravicordilatro cyrenos) is a bird-like reptilian species native to Planet Cooler 341 (formerly Planet Cyren). A rare example of a sentient obligatory carnivore, they populate every region of Planet Cooler 341. Typically, however, Cyrens are found near bodies of water, particularly where there are cliffs stable enough to build nests.

Cyrens mostly feed on sea-life, though they will also feed on small land mammals and reptiles. Occasionally, they will also cannibalize fellow Cyrens, though this is rarely due to hunger and more often due to tribal obligation. Male and female Cyrens have identical plumage and are equal in size, so it is often hard to distinguish the genders outside of watching a pair mate.

Origins
Cyrens were a relatively new species, not appearing on the near-galactic cycle until the most recent observance of 30,000 years Before Age. Their relatively new age can help explain their lack of technological development.

Cyrens originally evolved from reptiles similar enough to the Dromaeosaurids to be classified within the same family. However, they evolved to become more bird-like through time. The low gravity on their planet, however, prevented them from fully evolving into bird-like creatures. Instead of wings, they grew arms with feathers, which could be used for effective gliding across the planet's many cliffs and rocky plains.

Eventually, the species became more and more self aware, and formed language as well as tribal structure. Though not all Cyrens lived in tribes, most did, and this became the sole example of Cyren government. Being an apex predator as well as sentient meant that the Cyrens swiftly dominated the planet, and spread to every region. Perhaps had they evolved sooner, they would have become space-faring by the time the Cooler found them.

Intergalactic Usage
Cyrens were an unknown species for the longest time because of their lack of space travel. However, by the early 600 Age, their planet had been documented, because it was located on the edge of Frieza's and Cooler's empires. Recon forces sent by both Frieza and Cooler were slaughtered on sight. Even larger forces, comprising of average power levels of over 2000 each, were ruthlessly cut down immediately. As such, even the avoided them for some time. This not only prevented annexation, but war between Cooler and Frieza, akin to the brief war that Cooler and Nitro waged, over who would get to enslave the species. Neither Frieza nor Cooler wanted to destroy them personally, however, because they wanted some way to control the species for later additions to their armies. They, however, were unaware of each other's attempts to conquer the planet.

Very few of those goals panned out. By the 700 Age, Frieza had forgotten about them. His records of their planets were still in the database, so this explains how was able to find out about the Cyrens. He specifically ordered his lower captain to get him one for his team, which was successful. However, Zarbon was forced to personally tame the creature. Frieza did know about this, but did not care too much, as after seeing Clen's taming, he deemed the species more work than they were worth.

Before Frieza could destroy the (now useless) planet, Cooler laid claim to it. Unlike his brother, he had no given up on the Cyrens. Instead, he took a more drastic measure, and went to the planet personally. There, he was witness to their brutality and skill, as he not only saw a public cannibalization, but also several tribes try to kill him. Though they were no match for him, he was impressed by their power.Realizing that he did not have the manpower or time to tame an army of these beings, Cooler merely took the single, most ruthless Cyren he could find. This was Digranite.

Aside from Digranite and Clen, both of whom took many months to train and mature, very few Cyrens have left their planet. Cooler had trained several dozen Cyrens after Digranite, and they were deployed in his army along with the rest of his alien slaves. Cooler was rumored to be taming even more of them, but after he was killed by, this claim was unable to be confirmed. With the assassination of Frieza, Cooler, and, all imperial infrastructure was destroyed. Though lesser captains and governors would rise up to try to take over the mantle, none of them were Cyrens. Since both Digranite's and Clen's deaths, no Cyren of sufficient power or position has emerged to make a name for the species on a galactic scale. As such, after this species was freed from its enslavement, it was simply left to flourish on Planet Cyren.

Appearance
Cyrens are reptilian/avian creatures, with long snouts and deadly talons. They are tall and bipedal, usually ranging from 6-9 feet in maturity. Their skin is scaled, like most reptiles, and is a dull grey. They all possess feathers, which cover a majority of their bodies, and these feathers vary in color; usually, this denotes rank in the tribal structure, with the darker red colors being of higher seniority, and the lighter blue and green colors being for lower-ranking members. Cyrens also have wings on their arms, but they are not large enough to use in flight. As the creatures have evolved, their need for wings has greatly decreased, especially with how spongy their bones are, and how easily they can jump. The fleshy wing vestiges can be used for gliding.

Cyrens possess the defining physical feature of Dromaeosaurids, with having the 'sickle' toe on each foot. Aside from that, they have the standard four toes of that family, with the first two being hyperextended. Each Cyren has three fingers as well. They also possess cloacas, and are able to do some gas exchange through them. Since Cyrens have become more upright than all others in their family, their evolutionary need for a tail has decreased with time. As such, Cyren tails are shorter than other Dromaeosaurids, and point downwards, not horizontally.

Lifestyle
Cyren young are born from eggs in small clutches of 1-4. At birth, they are very small, measuring only about six inches tall. Over the course of first five months of their lives, Cyrens babies are brought food by their mothers and fathers. They are taught to hunt at around six months of age, once they have reached 2-3 feet in height. At this time, Cyren young still do not possess feathers. Both mothers and fathers help teach their young to hunt. As one parent takes one or two of the young out, the other will stay and guard the nest with the other members of the tribe. Over the next two to three years, all Cyren children become adept hunters. They may or may not stay with their parents after learning how to hunt, though it is more common that they do not.

Cyrens start growing feathers around the age of sexual maturity, which is about 28 years. Before reaching this maturity, they may live with their parents' tribe, create their own tribe, or wander alone. The first set of Cyren feathers are all black, and they do not develop colors unless they are part of a group. A chemical in the Cyren brain releases when a Cyren is given position amongst others, causing some of its feathers to slowly change colors. Green is lowest color, and is often sported by males and females who have recently joined a community. Blue feathers are slightly more uncommon, and given to tribe members of status, who are also mated. Red, or crimson, feathers are the rarest, being reserved for tribal leaders; thus, only one Cyren per group will have them. Notably, Digranite, the Cyren in command of Cooler's legion on the Stomping Grounds had red feathers, showing he thought of himself as a tribal leader amongst them. Interestingly, it seems Cyrens do not need to be associated with other Cyrens to gain different colored feathers.

Behavior
Cyrens are powerful hunters. Although they are land-based creatures, they have the ability to dive to extreme oceanic depths (upwards of 2000 feet) to acquire food. They can also reach extremely quick speeds on the ground. Though this is dependent on their power level, the average Cyren can run anywhere from 45-55 miles per hour. Due to the gravity on their planet being low, they can also jump and glide easily, and many prefer to use these convenient, low-energy methods of travel over running. Though often gliding over a large area may appear as flight, Cyrens cannot naturally fly against the wind, or upwards. However, like all other species, if their ki is high enough, they can use that to fly.

Cyrens speak the basic tongue, though there is no pitch differentiation between the sexes. They possess the mental capabilities at least equal to most other intelligent species. However, Cyrens have no intelligent basis, and thus are all primitive. But when taught properly, they have the ability to focus their mental abilities. Digranite, for example, rose all the way to becoming Cooler's second hand man, and was by far his smartest soldier. Most Cyrens are vengeful and base, and lack patience. The best methods for training involve copious rewards and/or torture. Be careful to not assume them as dogs, as they will do far more than bite.

Cyrens are unique that, though they organize in tribal structures, they are neither patriarchal or matriarchal - each tribe is ruled by the strongest member. Whether the leader is male or female is irrelevant, and varies throughout the planet. In addition, despite being quite cruel beings, Cyrens are very loyal to their families. Males and females mate for life, and will even care for their young for up until they start growing feathers. Strangely, Cyrens do not re-mate once their previous mate has died.

Cyrens are otherwise complicated creatures. Being a sentient species, they have a variety of personality types, with many being solitary creatures, and many others living in groups. In such groups, however, it is assumed that a Cyren will care for its own children, and unmated Cyrens will find a mate to further the population of the tribe. Failure to do either of these is met with either exile or death, depending on the severity. Though each tribe has varying moral codes, most of them revolve around the importance of keeping a family strong; and doing things to this philosophy's detriment is grounds for death by tribal cannibalization. This example of cannibalization shows that Cyrens do not always eat out of compulsion, but sometimes out of obligation. Even if a Cyren has recently eaten and is full, if another is condemned to death by cannibalization, they will join in.

Cyren mating rituals are long and tedious. Once a male has reached maturity, it will present itself to a female that it wishes to mate with. In order to become a suitor, the male must chase the female and catch he Verbal communication is generally non-existent. Then, the male will prove itself by either killing a large beast, or a fellow suitor and coating itself in the dead creature's blood. At this time, the female (if accepting) will approach the male and lick the blood off. After being accepted, the male's feathers will turn white (regardless of tribal colors) and the two will become mated. White feathers means that the male will not be able to court or mate with another female during this time, as any other female will deny a male whose feathers look like that. They will then build a nest together, and live together in it. After that, the male will be required to hunt enough food for both he and his female for some time before the female will actually mate with him. This time can vary, but it is usually within 2-3 weeks. After that, if the female finds the male's abilities to be adequate, she will allow him to mate with her. Mating sessions usually last 4-6 minutes, and will be tried 10-15 times a day for the next week.

After the female has given birth, the male will usually mate with her again the next year only if they have a particularly small clutch of babies, or if their offspring die. Otherwise, the two will not mate again until they have no more children to take care of. While homosexual behavior is documented, it is rare to see mated couples. Only 4-6% of either sex are mated to the same gender, though a far greater percentage (at least 72%) have unofficially engaged in sexual intercourse with the same sex, mostly before finding a mate for life. With two members of the same sex, no mating ritual occurs.

Diet and feeding
The Cyren is an obligate carnivore, meaning it can only gain nutrients from eating other animals. Though Cyrens can, in theory, eat plants, they lack the ability to properly digest such things, so overeating plants leads to severe sickness and eventually death. Instead, Cyrens are mainly aquatic hunters. This is due to their preferred habitat; cliff-side nest communities. Since all water on Planet Cooler 341 is freshwater, Cyrens also drink their water from where they get their food. Cyrens may hunt fish near the surface, or dive deeper if they are unable to find anything. Cyrens have quite large lungs, so they swim extremely deep, and are unaffected by the pressure changes.

Cyrens tend to hunt animals which are smaller than them, as seen with their primary food source being small fish. They may consume upwards of a dozen of these a day. If a mated couple has children, they will seek out food for the children first. This will mostly cause a drop in personal consumption numbers, though not enough to affect the parents' strength.

Cyrens, however, also hunt land creatures. This can be for numerous reasons; the most common being that the Cyren is nowhere near a water source. In such a case, the Cyren may go after any animal, be they mammal, reptile, avian, insect, or amphibian. Cyrens tend to go after small prey in order to maximize efficiency for energy spent against energy to be gained from killing something. However, Cyrens will attempt to kill anything if they are hungry enough. They will even hunt other lesser predators in their food chain.

When hunting on land, Cyrens have employed numerous techniques. Being sentient, they have the ability to form strategy, and may employ trapping maneuevers, or swarm techniques. However, for a singular creature, the most common method is through quiet stalking. Once sufficiently close to the prey, the Cyren will then jump from cover, and rush at the creature at great speeds. They will then kill the creature through a combination of striking with the talons, claws, and teeth. The sickle toe is used to grim effect in these scenarios. Then, the Cyren will eat the creature raw, leaving only the bones when it is done.

A Cyren can go around 5 days without food, and about 2 without water. However, since the Cyren will likely have lost most energy by the fourth day of no food, or close to the second day of no water, it is rare that a Cyren going four days without food, for example, will live either.

Cyrens will also engage in group cannibalizations of deviant tribal members. This, however, is not the same as feeding. Though Cyrens do not overeat when they can help it, the general exception is with these cannibalizations. Doing so is considered an obligation of staying in the tribe, so all members participate. Outside of these, it is rare for Cyrens to engage in cannibalism. The occasional lawless or sociopathic Cyren may do so, but it is not common. But, cannibalism does not have the taboo it does on other planets, either.

Longevity and mortality
Cyrens have an average lifespan of 312 earth years. This is the same for both genders. They reach sexual maturity by the age of 28 and fully mature around the age 140. They stay in their matured state for a indeterminate amount of time (usually around 120 years) before succumbing to age. The aging process can take upwards of 60 years to fully deteriorate the Cyren body. Dying of old age is a rare occurance in Cyren society. Generally, a Cyren will die either in combat or of starvation. Since Cyrens are not very community-oriented, and will not help those outside their family, once a Cyren becomes too old to hunt, or too sick to, it rarely will have someone to bring food to it.

The largest mortality rate is with infants. About 40% of Cyrens survive their first year, and half that survive to mating age. This is due to numerous reasons, including starvation, sibling aggression, severe weather, and sickness. While Cyren parents will bravely defend their nests, it is still possible for a Cyren young to be killed during a hunting exercise, or while everyone is sleeping (by a rogue Cyren or lesser predator). After leaving one's parents, a Cyren is particularly vulnerable to starvation, severe heat, and other Cyrens. Because solitary Cyrens are territorial, this can lead to fights to the death if one intrudes on another's territory.

Technology
Cyren technology is extremely limited. They have basic wood-based weaponry and eyrie-style homes, but little else. They have no agricultural base, nor any standard cities. The largest tribes are located on the coasts near large bodies of water. Even the largest tribes are only a few hundred strong. Cyrens have no control over electricity or nuclear power.