Tokaya

A short introduction
The Tokaya race is one of the most common sentient races that inhabit planet Nakti. They are thought to be one of the most ancient races that is living on Nakti, and is currently one of the most common races on the planet.

They are a hybrid reptile race, which mixes reptilian features with canine ones, and they exist in several sub-races and variations according to their country of origin and ethnic histories. These subraces can be considered as different ethnic groups of the Tokaya. They are a warm-blooded and mammal race, meaning that their blood is warm, they possess mammalian features and they give birth instead of laying eggs.

The origins of the Tokaya
According to historians and archaeologists, the Tokaya are considered one of the most direct descendants of dinosaurs. Indeed, according to the fragments of skeletons retrieved by archaeologists, they believe that during the early years of the Paleolithic some dinosaur species begun to evolve to the changing environment.

One of the most important mutations was their ability to walk on two legs instead of fours, gaining a rough erect position. The most ancient remains of Tokaya found so far, show that they still had many beast-like features, especially in the shape of their feet, that resembled the ones of dinosaurs rather than the three-finger anthropomorphic ones of current Tokaya, and their curved posture. Around the mid Mesolithic, they begun to evolve again, gaining a more erect posture and the shape of their legs and feet evolved into something more humanoid-looking. The current Tokaya appeared in the late Mesolithic, when the first nomadic tribes appeared in the Southern Naktian regions.

Characteristics of the race
The Tokaya are an hybrid reptile race, consisting in the union between dinosaurs and canids. While males have full reptilian features (reptilian muzzles, tails, horns and scales), the female retain these characteristics, but they have a canine muzzle and nose, unlike their male counterparts.

Both sexes feature floppy canid ears. Their shape differ according to the individual, but they all have them, unlike some other reptilian races of Nakti. The Tokaya also have hair which differ in their kind (straight, wavy or curly) and colour. Unlike reptiles, the scales of the Tokaya are soft and almost subtle-looking, especially on females. Horns are featured on both sexes, usually they have a pair of large horns on their head, which differ in shape according to the individual, and other small horns on their head or cheeks.

Their hands consist of five fingers while their feet have only three toes, a characteristic shared with the Anu'Dar, the Bel'Tan, the Hatran and the Emer.

The anthropologists believe that the Anu'Dar and the Bel'Tan are related to the Tokaya.

A particular characteristic of Tokaya and their sub-races is that they are mammals. This means that unlike reptiles, they don't lay eggs and the females have breasts and can lactate. They are warm blooded too, and this makes them unique among the Naktian races.

An interesting variation of the Tokaya race is the Ustran Tokaya, also known as the Ustran. Unlike the regular Tokaya, the males inherit the same canine features of females, retaining only the scales, horns and reptilian skins from the Tokaya. It's believed that the Ustran Tokaya are the intermediate chain of evolution between dinosaurs and canids, while some historians believe that they might be as ancient as the current Tokaya.

Notable Tokaya
Some of the most famous Tokaya are the current queen of Abun, Kaliendra Wacha of the Ahkis clan and her husband, the Prince Consort Faad IV Emver of the Unas Clan. The founder of Abun, king Yaz "Buraldkin" was a Tokaya and the Kingdom of Abun is believed to be the homeland of that race.

Notable Ustran Tokaya
Two notable Ustran Tokaya are Amara Re Mur, a former theif and assasin turned head of the E.E.Q; and Benga Ra Otto the current ruler of the nation of Nylus.