Blue Cross Science Journal, vol. 2

Impiskins as sentient beings by Vanessa Assis Flores

Introduction

Impiskins are a subspecies of hyena demi-humans inhabiting floor 49 of the NAZ. They are amongst the first demi-human species ever discovered by humans but unlike other hyena demi-humans they're strictly limited to just one floor. Their names comes from [...]

Biology

Impiskin biology, as is the case with all other demi-humans is [...] Most of the differences between humans and Impiskins are on the outside. They have yellow or light brown skin with black patches, hyena tails, as well as big cat-like ears. That's where the differences begin and end. This means that they're more similar to humans than to other species, including hyenas. This allows humans to even have viable offspring with them.

Culture

Impiskin tribes live a settled or semi-nomadic life, depending on how they go about survival in the desert. Those that settle do so mostly in valleys where there's access to water, often times tending to crops on a small scale but still mostly living from hunting. The semi-nomadic ones live from war and fighting. They raid other tribes or travelers, setting up bases near trading routes.

The highest value for Impiskins is survival of the tribe. This means that they're extremely loyal to their own kin but can be very cunning and deceitful towards outsiders. To them ends justify the means, which often leads them to enact barbaric practices when they feel like the survival of their tribe is in danger. Fortunately, thanks to Blue Cross's humanitarian initiatives in Floor 49, more and more Impiskin tribes have regular access to food and water, limiting the possibilities of Impiskins going savage.

Another defining feature of Impiskins is their signature laugh. It's high pitched and animal sounding but for Impiskins it's like their traditional form of singing. It's used in their riutals related to both war and prosperity. They use it during funerals and child birth, hunting and when they sit around the fire. They believe that through their laugh they can communicate with the spirits.

Issues

The harsh climate of the desert made Impiskins very resilient but it doesn't mean that every tribe is thriving. Many suffer from lack of reliable water and food sources. This rarely leads to starvation but often causes various diseases which decimate their population, especially those without access to medical care that only Blue Cross provides.

Another huge problem is that Impiskins, despite being a majority of the population of Floor 49, are often victims of discrimination by the Ufezelans. Ufezelans set up their cities and colonies in the oases, taking up the valuable land and resources all for themselves. They then allow no access to it for the Impiskins as they are very prejudiced against them. They also often times drive out Impiskins from the scarce fertile valleys, enslaving and ethnically cleansing them in the process. Despite Blue Cross's many pleas for Ufezelans to stop, the Ufezelan city states never budged on the "Impiskin issue".

Summary

Impiskins are sentient just like humans and other demi-humans. Their cognitive skills are well-suited for learning languages and science so with enough care we should soon see Impiskins among our ranks as equals.

Big thanks to @Fire Warrior for providing the ai gens and giving a feedback during the bot-making process!