Lock - a piece of a person's hair that coils or hangs together. + Loch – Scottish Gaelic word for a lake.
Lochs are intelligent creatures that guard lakes and large bodies of water, they are are generally solitary and are not easily befriended, they carry great wisdom and age but become often held back by their species general beliefs.

A Lochs biology is very similar to that of a sea dwelling mammal. 

[Biology]

Age range : 400 – 500 years. _ Height range: 170 – 200cm _ Weight range: Never known.

-Lochs originated from water dwelling animals but over time evolved into the form they are now, and are currently suited to both land and water. 

-Lochs have gills like filters situated  behind their ears and around there ribs, they can spend up to 6 hours underwater without surfacing but they cannot live under the water endlessly

-Lochs main way of travelling is over water. They rarely stray onto land for any long periods of time, if a Loch does decide to stray then it will need to keep its skin very well hydrated as it travels to prevent falling ill. 

-A Loch will not die from a lack of water surrounding them but they will be severely weakened. 

-The most noticeable part of a Loch would be its braid like “tail” that acts upon will. It’s connected directly to the back of the neck and is easily controlled, it’s actions are normally more precise then that of a tail on a usual animal, though will also act unconsciously on emotion.

-The Lochs braid is seemingly made out of a thick layer of hair like fibers, if one attempts to cut such a thing then they will have a hard job of it. 

-if the braid is ever damaged then it will hurt approximately 5 times more than cutting off a limb, the braid is attached directly to the back of the head, very close to the brain so it’s much more receptive to pain. 

-There are very few Lochs present in the world compared to its size but they live for a very long period of time to make up for this.

-Lochs in general have longer then usual clawed fingers for sieving through the bottom of lakes and swimming, they are also a great advantage in killing, they can also be webbed depending on their genetics. 

- Lochs are omnivorous and can eat what ever they please to survive, they only thing they need to intake regularly is water. they general don't need to eat often, a feast once every month will give them the ability to survive another. 

- The hearing of a Loch is there most acute sense and is very impressive, though looking like one Lochs actually have two sets of ears, with one set they can hear even the slightest of small noises from about a 500 meters above the ground, when underwater they use a system more like sonar with there ears easily picking up vibrations in the water around them. 

Mating is an optional thing for most Lochs but it is generally preferred. 

[Mating]

-A Lochs fertility rate is very low causing such few numbers of them. But due to their age span they can make up for this easily if they so wish. 

- Lochs experience natural sex change, the default gender of a Loch is actually gender neutral until they grow older, females are rarer in the species as they are the stronger in there hierarchy. (they are like clown fish if you need an example, you can take or leave this trait.)

-Lochs generally loyal to their partners but this is a personal choice

-Because fertility rate is low Lochs can generally enjoy themselves in such manners without the intention to reproduce. 

-Gender is never an issue for Lochs, and is seen as unimportant.

-Lochs can mate readily with other species but they cannot reproduce offspring from this bonding.

-Lochs who are looking for a mate will often search far and wide for someone suitable, and this process can take up to many years, this “phase” normally happens towards the middle of their life span but can really take place whenever a Loch feels like they are ready. 

- Entwining braids with another Loch is seen as a sign of up most intimacy and trust.

-A Lochs favorite courting gift is anything of value. The most accepted gift would be jewelry. 

Lochs abilities are very subtle, they do have magic but it is mostly internal and very limited. There magic is water based but also gravity based somewhat. 

[Abilities]

-Lochs can use water based magic up to a point. The abilities vary greatly from Loch to Loch. examples would be- the ability to use water to create a fine mist to hide their own whereabouts. And using water to see various places from far away, but they cannot move actual water to their will. They can use it but will never dare move it. 

-Unfortunately though not all Lochs can use these abilities and many rely on their brute strength alone. 

-An ability that ALL Lochs are born with though is the ability to control their weight, this enables Lochs to walk upon the water or in the water. Whichever they may wish. It’s an unconscious ability that has no need to be learnt. 

-A Lochs braid is very versatile and easily controllable so it is often used as a weapon of defense or offence and is treated like an extra limb, easily usable for killing victims or just helping the Loch in general. But many Lochs are very cautious about using it in fear of pain. 

-Lochs are killers by their nature but this does not always mean they enjoy killing.

- They aren't generally friendly to strangers. 

- Some of the well-used murder tactics are luring people in to their deaths by using their abilities to fool people into thinking the water is solid ground, or using there braid to drag the unsuspecting victim into the water and drown them to their deaths.

-Lochs don’t usual swim, they mainly walk upon the surface or bottom of the lake but when they do there braids play a key part in it.

There are few variations on Lochs that have evolved to do with their individual habitat

[Variations] – To be expanded on.

-Lochans are more petite versions of Lochs and often found dwelling upon ponds. This variant don’t usual rely upon water as much as Lochs do and travel from place to place easily. They are considerately more social and greater in numbers. 

-Linn’s an ever smaller version of the above that make their homes around large reoccurring puddles, they are much more land orientated and much less territorial and have adapted to be fluffier then the other two variants.

Lochs have very extreme beliefs that often shape their characteristics

[Beliefs]

-The basic Loch belief is that the water demands respect and peace, if one is to withdraw water or move the water from a Lochs territory they must first offer something of value to the water in exchange.

-If a Loch feels someone is being disrespectful to the water in any way they will not hesitate to punish the offending person. 

-A Loch will offer the water a sacrifice every so often to appease it, these sacrifices are given as often as a Loch feels it is necessary, which can range from once in a Lochs life time to once every day depending on the Loch in charge.

A Lochs own personal space plays a big part in their life but is never necessary. 

[Territory]

-Territory is very important to a Loch and it is established from early on, Loch children are sent off to find their own body of water from a young age. 

-Lochs are normally set upon there dwellings when they have chosen and will rarely stray, they often do not take kindly to any other Loch stepping in.

-Where they chose to live is a personal choice some prefer to place their belongings in the water and others prefer living upon the shore or an island nearby to the water. 

-Because there are so few Lochs, finding a place to live is fairly easy and conflict is never normally needed between the same species, but there are few Lochs that are greedy and will claim several lakes in the same area if they feel like it. If this is the case they will readily fight the current occupier for their territory and scare them away or kill them depending.

Though Lochs can be seen as unfriendly and killers, this is a general stereotype.

[Social]

-Lochs are hoarders and will generally collect one particular item to the point of obsession, they are naturally attracted to shiny things and spend much of there time collecting the offerings and things that have fallen to the bottom of their lakes and usually then proceed to wear them as a display of their power and importance.

-The items a Loch collects usual depends on how successful they are as their job as a guardian. If they install enough fear into the hearts of the surrounding dwellers and yet do not kill them all, the Loch will receive a large amount of offerings to the water during their life span

-Some people theories that the Lochs beliefs that the water needs offerings of wealth started out as a selfish excuse for the Lochs to demand treasure to appease their innate desire for shiny items. 

-Lochs are not social creatures but this is caused mainly by there territories location, if the location is placed in a remote area then it is logical for the Loch to not know much about socializing or interaction. 

- depending on the character some Lochs will actively seek out company. 

-Some Lochs do not have faith in the general beliefs and will leave their duty at the lake to explore the world and perhaps never come back, and some Lochs will not kill another being in there whole life span as they think it is not necessary. All these things depend on the individual. 

Hollow - having a space or cavity inside, not solid, empty: a hollow sphere.

Hollow Lochs, souls that must consume to appease there hosts with a never ending appetite while doomed to a slow death as they walk. 

Hollow Lochs are a term given to the unfortunate souls infected by a specific parasite that targets Lochs as a species in particular.

[Hollow Lochs]

- This parasite is picked up from certain water sources, there is no known cured.

- The parasite enters through the braid, and because the braid is such a sensitive bundle of nerves that is directly connected to the brain there is no way of halting its progress with out reducing the Lochs personal abilities to function. To cure it the braid would have to be amputated before the infection goes to far but that will take part of the motor and brain functions with it.

- The parasite eats the Loch from the inside out gaining control of it's body and consuming all it can find with it's host. 

- Hollow Lochs are extremely dangerous as the parasite takes away all senses of pain and restraint, allowing them to gain super strength.

- Some rare and perhaps mad individuals may seek out these parasites to gain this temporary strength that they give. There are rare cases of Lochs coexisting with these parasite hosts but it's not common and there life span will be significantly reduced in the process.

- It eventually takes over and the Loch becomes what essentially would be called a zombie in this world, the parasite stays inside it's host until the eventual death and decomposition of the body. 

Image by dio

Loch anatomy will be updated soon. This is the current redesign! 

the current features will still be applicable but I will be adding more variables.

NOTE - LOCHS VARY GREATLY IN PERSONALITY JUST AS MUCH AS ANY SPECIES, THESE TRAITS I’VE LISTED HERE ARE WHAT ARE SEEN AS TYPICAL FOR THE SPECIES BUT DO NOT HAVE TO APPLY IN ANY WAY. 

LOCHS FEATURED BELONG TO @rengulus chuchuns AND ME