Hrexxin

Note
This race is not part of the Exodus continuum. It belongs to a Spiral of Worlds universe.

The Hrexxin
The Hrexxin are a race of bipedal biomechanoid beings that constitute one of the four Empires that make up the Imperial Congress. Their devotion to technology and scientific advancement is matched by few, and in all things they strive for union between biological life and machine life.

Physical description
Very few people have ever seen a Hrexxin, so it is not widely known what they look like. What usually is seen is biomechanical suits that the Hrexxin meld with. These living suits are most often custom made/grown by the Hrexxin as a rite of passage, thus there can be tremendous variety in them. Once melded, it is extremely painful for a Hrexxin to be removed from the suit and the suit will almost always die from the experience.

By nature, a Hrexxin adult stands around 5' 6", is bipedal, and as thick skin ranging in a variety of colors, depending on their diet. Their body is comprised to a large degree of minerals, giving them a very angular look, as well as a lot less flexibility and agility. Their heads are small affairs, mainly serving as a vessel for a disproportionate mouth and eyes. They have no visible ears or nose, smelling through their mouths and hearing sound vibrations throughout their entire body.

Self Maintenance
Within every Hrexxin lives colonies of nanites and other such biomechanical beings, inherited from the parents at birth. Often times, infants will be injected with upgraded versions of these devices, which will become an interdependent part of the Hrexxin's genetic makeup. By the time the Hrexxin reaches physical maturity at around twenty years, it will have interface jacks grown directly into the nerves in the arms, legs, spine, and head. This allows the Hrexxin to meld with its suit.

Because they are not a carbon based life form, falling more under the lithomorph form of life, their biology has very few comparisons to humans. They do not respire, they need to eat only very seldom, however they do spend in a good deal of time in a sleep like torpor. They do, however, have a circulatory system.

It is a common misconception that because Hrexxin are never seen outside their suits, that they are physically weak and vulnerable. In fact, Hrexxin are extremely hardy and can survive untold rigors and hazardous conditions. While incapacitating one is not as difficult, killing one involves high levels of trauma to both the head and torso.

Diet
Because they are part machine and part biological, their dietary needs are many. While they do not need to eat often, the combined needs of the machinery and the living parts requires minerals and biological food sources. They can eat almost anything and garner nutrition from it.

Approximately once a year, a Hrexxin will experience something called the Restoration, which is a massive eating binge usually lasting several days. During this time, A Hrexxin will typically isolate itself, eating everything that it can fit in its mouth. This biologically driven process will not stop until the body has recovered every nutrient it needs. The Restoration can be avoided by simply ensuring that the more obscure, trace minerals are included in the diet, but often there is one nutrient or another that gets missed.

Because the Hrexxin eat so many solid foods, they have extremely acidic saliva, which can reduce most minerals into a digestible paste.