Reifi

Reifi are a Soft race of creatures which dwell in the Heartguard. They are the smallest of all the races, being only around 30 centimeters tall on average. They have a reputation for being mischevious and iconoclast.

Biology
Reific biology is considered bizarre by many other species. For one, their skeletons are made up mostly of conductive metals such as gold and copper. These skeletons are thickest at birth, stretching out and growing thinner with age. The oldest Reifi become so delicate that they cannot move without cracking a few bones. This is a near-universal condition. At the point where it causes death, the Reifi have been known to grow to the size of an average Middler (about 150 centimeters). This amount of growth is exceptionally rare, however.

For many years, most races considered Reifi to be a completely female race, since both sexes can give birth. In reality, either sex can bear an unborn child to term once it has been conceived, and any amount of Reifi can contribute to a child's conception. Bizarrely, Reifi have been known to reproduce asexually, but the children born from a single parent are usually much less healthy than children conceived by two or more parents. Single-parent Reifi can be identified by a purple tinge to their green skin, and a more delicate body.

Culture
The Reific culture is less easily understood than most. It is anarchistic and ever-changing, with whole Reific civilizations growing and dispersing from day to day. The Reifi are extremely intelligent but incredibly unfocused on a mental level, which leads to sporadic academic brilliance in short-term studies, but a lot less dedicated history. Strangely, Reifi are very sentimental, in contrast to their lack of recorded history. They form strong bonds with others very quickly and believe that love is more important than hate. They are considered mischevious by some other races, but, as a rule, they don't perform any harmful jokes on others, though they do tend to let their humors run wild with them. Reifi are incredibly devoted to experiencing different emotions, and hilarity is one of the most treasured feelings of all.

Reifi were at one point hunted by Middlers for their prized skeletons, and there is still ill will between the two species, despite the Reific dislike of hatred.