Life forms on March Earth can come into existence via the usual means of reproduction available to pre-Cataclysm organisms, but the new energies of a post-Cataclysm world also allow very different means. Most common is "spontaneous generation" or "spon-gen": The manifestation of life without physical source, literally things manifesting from nothing. Spon-gen organisms usually (though not always) follow the fiction-based logic of Lore (e.g.: a clockwork-themed location like the Chimewilds almost exclusively spontaneously generates clockwork-themed life) or some slightly twisted version of Earth Sense (e.g.: an environment with a lot of large grazers may generate a large predator to balance them). Statistically, fully inorganic organisms (synths) are vastly more likely to be spon-gen, as they are unlikely to be able to reproduce as easily as organic life does.
Aside from spontaneous generation and traditional reproduction, individual organisms may have various exotic origins ranging from the simple to the convoluted. The actions of sapient life, extraplanar visitors, and the unpredictable effects of leftover Lore energy from the Cataclysm can all work their influence, as well as local anomalies and other isolated weirdnesses. Within the Infraflux supercountry, life forms are crudely divided into "natural" and "artifical" categories, depending on their origins, with "artificial" generally applying to anything other than pre-Cataclysm style procreation.
"Named Species"
The generic term "named species" isn't an official designation, but an easy shorthand used to describe an organism that has a consistent form and origin, usually one that's part of a collective of very similar specimens or a repeating pattern of spontaneous generation. For example: The giant fire-spouting trees of North America's Foglands are called Foglands Redwoods. They are only found in that location and are all vaguely the same. Another example would be Catseyes: A group of 61 spontaneously-generated Synth folk who were all created in the same event. Named Species by definition have cultural notoriety. Many life forms on March Earth spontaneously generate en masse or are specifically tied to a location or event, but to be a "named species" implies there is cultural awareness of their existence.
Variety of Life
Loosely, life forms on March Earth can be sorted into various categories based on physical composition, energies, and origins. Mainly this is useful to do for people, not plants or animals, since generally the Wilds are left to take care of themselves and the infinite diversity and mutability of life on March Earth makes wild "biology" a challenging and somewhat futile pursuit.
An average organic person from Infraflux
Organics
"Organics" refers to a vast spectrum of creatures that have bodies that follow similar biological mechanisms and chemistry to life that evolved naturally on Earth pre-Cataclysm. A true rainbow of diversity of creatures of every size and shape, breaking the boundaries of Earth Sense rules or adhering to them, surreal or familiar to human sensibilities. The majority of life on March Earth is still fully organic, comprising roughly 70% of all organisms, people included.
True Species
The term "true species" refers to a finite number of creatures on March earth that still follow the Earth Sense rules of speciation; i.e.: they cannot reproduce with anything other than their own kind. True Species range from the worldwide seafaring Phinny people, to the unassuming Milchgurke cucumber. Generally most people are aware of a short list of True Species, and they have cultural siginficance worldwide. Notably, Humans are not True Species, which has contributed to their widespread genetics and present day rarity compared to their pre-Cataclysm population.
Synth is a very broad category that encompasses all life forms that are made of inorganic/traditionally non-living materials, either completely or almost completely. Synths can be made of metal and robotic in appearance, or made of animated fabric, or even be creatures of incorporeal materials such as gas or flame, though that is very rare. A solid 25% of all life on March Earth contains inorganic material, and synths are found everywhere. Most people on March Earth only refer to people as "synth", finding synthetic wildlife and plants so unremarkable as to not require sub-categorisation. A row of organic flowers with a single metal one would collectively just be "a row of flowers" unless one were specifically referring to the metal one.
A non-humanoid, fully Synth person
Synths often exist in ways that would be impossible in pre-Cataclysm Earth. A person made of animated ceramic can not logically function or move without shattering, and yet they do, sustained by the Lore energy that broke the rules of Earth Sense and still drives all life on March Earth. Some particularly illogical Synth may additionally be sustained by Shine or Dim energy, often refered to as "Shine-tinted" etc. (see below).
AI, SAI, NAI
When a synth exists as an incorporeal digital intelligence as we are familiar with it today, they are often referred to as an AI. An AI person is a SAI (Sapient AI), and an AI of lesser intelligence is known as a NAI (Non-sapient AI), though this isn't used as much. The dividing line between SAI and NAI is fraught with controversy, as is the question of whether NAI are truly living creatures that should have the same rights as animals. SAI being uncommon outside of large cities and hefty outposts that can support their server space, their voice on these social issues has been quiet until relatively recently.
Semi-synths
If a synth person is so heavily organic (or vice versa) that both sides of their physicality affect them strongly, the Infraflux ID system categorises them as "Semi-synth". This is mainly for medical reasons, but being a mixture of inorganic and organic often comes with unique challenges as the body tries to balance Earth Sense, Lore, and any other type of energies that might be mixed in. Semi-synth people can look like what we might call "cyborgs" but their inorganic parts can also look like anything else a synth can, down to partially stone or pure energy. Non-sapient organisms are almost never called "semi-synth" in casual conversation, though many of them technically would fall under this category too.
Many life forms on March Earth could not exist in a pre-Cataclysm world simply due to violating the laws of physics and biology. Their existence is sustained by the rules of Lore: a metal rose still grows and buds and blooms, because that's what a rose does, regardless what it's made of. If an organism cannot survive without the energies of Shine or Dim, however, they are often refered to specifically as "Shine/Dim-tinted". Tinted organisms are a lot rarer than the general background nonsense of March Earth, and have specific effects on their surroundings that may include interfering with magic, leaving Dim/Shine energy in their wake, or being inextricably tied to hotspots and unable to leave without ceasing to exist. Tinted people are rare and usually attract some attention, especially from magic users, who can often see the presence of their extraplanar energy.
GMO/Artificial Life
Genetically Modified Organisms, GMO's, are organic, genetic creations made to precise specifications, usually by a science institute of some sort. In Infraflux this is almost exclusively the ArchiLab organisation, with the ArchiFact division handling production and distribution. The most common form of GMO organism are food crops, with customised genomes allowing the mass cloning of plants and other simple life forms that are 99.999% guaranteed to be safe for consumption. GMO is also responsible for meat production, with insensate cell cultures growing cruelty-free flesh globs for cities worldwide.
In cases where GMO is combined or replaced with the creation of Synth life or other, more arcane processes, the organism is referred to more generally as "artificial life". The creation of more complex forms of life this way blurs the lines between artifice, magic, and the natural generation of the planet, with the results becoming less and less predictable the more complex the organism.
Biomachines
Creating customised GMO people is very much possible, but generally considered unethical and in Infraflux it's highly illegal. Some in Infraflux argue that the ethics are questionable for ALL artificial life. Of particular controversy are ArchiLab's Biomachines: Powerful creations that function similarly to animals, which may have synthetic AI-like intelligence, itself another controversial topic. Biomachines are built for their purpose, and one of the major things that makes it such a thorny topic to tackle is that the "governing" AI of Infraflux, The Seven, is powered by seven enormous Biomachines in secret locations worldwide. Biomachines are officially not considered people, even when capable of speech.
Figuring out if a life form is a person or not is no easy matter on March Earth. Judging by appearance is useless, with people of every possible size and disposition. The ability to speak or emote is likewise not a good indicator, as there are people who lack the voicebox to speak verbal language or possibly even lack the ability to assign meaning to words.
A person? An animal?
When in an Infraflux city or other large settlement it's usually safe to assume that the beings walking past you on the street are all citizens and not pets or beasts of burden, especially since pets are generally uncommon in such places for that exact reason (nothing more socially awkward than somebody trying to politely engage your tame animal in conversation).
The Rule of Three
When encountering entities in the Wilds, being able to tell if they're people (or showing them that you are a person) can mean the difference between life and death. A common method is the "rule of three": One side initiates by making three signals (tapping/flashing/etc.), two short and one long (or delayed). The other party responds with the reverse pattern, one long and two short. The exchange is then repeated with the responder going first, as confirmation. This is such a well-known exchange with a long history that even the wildest, most human-distant sapient entities often know the correct response. While this in no way prevents either party from deciding to murder each other, it's a very simple way to avoid misunderstandings while away from society. Doing the rule of three call and response within a settlement would be quite strange, and some might even take offense that you questioned their personhood.
Darwinchild Species
Most famous among the True Species, the Darwinchild races are intelligent people who "ascended" from some of Earth's most intelligent organisms within the first 100 years following the Cataclysm. Four species remain today:
A'aii'k AKA Phinnies: Dolphin people descended from hybrids of various Delphininae toothed whales. Globally widespread and with their own nomadic nation and complex, influential culture.
Umnthi: Elephant people descended primarily from African forest elephants. Clinging tightly to their cultural heritage and existence despite being prone to health conditions, they are uncommon outside the african continent.
Freed: White-skinned, radioactive human-descendants with luminous green blood and eyes. Freed were originally known as Freistrahler and emerged in central Europe's huge radioactive zone.
Hookbearers: Cephalopod people of unknown descent. Extremely rare, solitary, and nocturnal/aphotic, with their own mysterious rituals and non-verbal language.
Additionally, there have been two Darwinchild species known to have existed in the past, but they are no longer around. It's quite likely that there have been more, but their extinctions followed too quickly for there to be genetic or historical record of them.
"Chatterers": Parrot people possibly decended from hybrids of Keas and other parrots, Chatterers are known to have arisen on the Aotearoa islands and gone extinct fairly recently, with the last pure-blooded Chatterer existing perhaps as recently as 100 years ago. The local population in the Aotearoa isles reflects their existence, with many people there carrying Chatterer blood and the South-west Pacific being known for having many people with avian traits.
Unnamed simian people: Great ape descendants are known to have arisen some time after the Cataclysm and subsequently gone extinct. Very few traces of their existence or details of their nature can be found, possibly due to their similarity with Humans making them hard to distinguish.
The original sapient, technological species of Earth, humans as a concept on March Earth are treated with a celebratory, nostalgic viewpoint. It's generally assumed that humans must have some kind of innate wisdom about the Earth, as they are a "noble ancient race" that propagated the force of Lore. It's assumed they must be somehow interwoven with the pre-Cataclysm primal laws of the planet, generally known as Earth Sense.
Homo sapiens was never able to remain a True Species after the Cataclysm and pure-blooded humans are very rare in modern times. One's percentage or ancestry of human blood is a common topic of social conversation, and "high content" human-blooded individuals and even human-lookalikes enjoy a degree of social standing with a side of immediate stereotyping from the general populace. Of course individual opinion of humans varies widely, ranging from spiritual awe to complete disdain, and may not reflect popular cultural opinion at all. High content human descendants with obvious human features may choose to avoid the attention and questions they inevitably receive, but for many a small percentage of non-obvious human DNA is often a low-key bragging point.
It was obvious even in early post-Cataclysm times that humans were becoming more and more altered by strange forces and intermixed with all of the new non-human people that were manifesting. As with all new things, this frightened some people enough to try to close themselves off from it entirely. Early March Earth saw the formation of xenophobic "human only" settlements in all parts of the world. After 400 years, most of these have dissolved, but their presence has left occasional hotspots of high-content human genetics across the map. Where these human-centric (or humanoid-centric) colonies remain, they are exclusively independent, categorised either as Recluse States or existing in remote locations in the Free Wilds.
Extraplanar Entities
Since the Cataclysm it came to light that the world we know exists as one of a multitude of "planes" that can be considered layers of reality; alternate dimensions with connections to our own. These are divided into "upper" (Shine) and "lower" (Dim) planes, with the planes increasing in energy the further away they are from the Material Plane where we reside. Each of these planes has life of its own, of strange and mysterious sorts. For the most part, extraplanar entities are a very rare encounter, with the exception of Spirits. Spirits are from the planes directly adjacent to ours and find it a little easier to cross over, or are sometimes sensed where the boundaries between planes are thin. All extraplanar entities have a weird and hard to define intelligence, but are generally considered sapient by default.
Warm-type/Cool-type Spirits: Entities that resemble and represent things in the material world. Spirits commonly look like animated assemblages of objects or chimeric creatures. Spirits of both types have a lot of influence on the objects or locations they are connected to. The art of dealing with Spirits is known as Witchcraft.
Demons: Manic entities of will and motivation. Demonic crossover into the Material Plane is rare and usually accompanied by great destruction and/or creation. Demons are commonly "obsessed" with one or more action or concept. The art of calling on demons and directing their power is called Summoning.
Darkbeasts: Lethargic entities of calm and nullification. Darkbeasts crossing over to the Material Plane is extremely rare, but when they do they often seem to get stuck; abiding in a single location for years or even decades, stilling and darkening the surrounding area. Calling Darkbeasts is rarely done deliberately but also falls under Summoning.
Angels: Shine planes beyond the Demon Plane are collectively called the Angel Planes. The entities known as Angels embody aspects of the laws of physics themselves. Angel Planes stack and increase in power to an unknowable multitude, but even a lower energy Angel is a burning twist in the fabric of reality. Although supremely unwise to attempt, the art of using the power of Angels is known as Angelomancy.
Cold Ones: Counter and parallel to the Angel Planes are the Cold Planes. The entities known as Cold Ones are chaotically-formed and deadly to any life that exists in a predominantly Shine-based universe like our own. The deeper the energy of a Cold One, the more indistinct it is as an individual. The art of using the power of Cold Ones is known as Deep Sorcery; Cold Ones are surprisingly amenable to being utilised, but their power is extremely dangerous.
Extraterrestrial Entities
March Earth's direct encounters with extraterrestrial life have so far been limited to a single species: The spacefaring Geometrids, also known as the Oau-thzzae. Although it's known that an extremely small number of them still reside on Earth, for the most part the average person is very unlikely to have had direct personal contact with one. The Geometrids have passed on to March Earth sciences a few pieces of knowledge about other extraterrestrials they have encountered, though Earth contact with these races has yet to occur. Geometrids are shy of media attention and most of them have not been seen for many decades, and it's unknown how many have left the planet to resume their travels.
In Infraflux, life forms are categorised in knowledge databases according to their origins and/or nature. Every Infraflux citizen has their designation tied to their personal ID, which allows very quick analysis and action in the event of an emergency situation. The IDs generally follow the format of an abbreviation followed by a sub-category (e.g.: NPAO-03).
Person Natural Organism (PNO)
Persons of natural parental birth and/or organic construction and needs.
Organic Person (01)
Most inhabitants of Infraflux, people who are primarily organic in construction. Ancestry of organic persons can involve Lore-formed beings, spon-gen beings, Shine/Dim tinted individuals, human ancestry, and even Darwinchild DNA, but must be at least one generation removed from these origins.
Semi-synth (02)
Organic persons whose construction significantly involves inorganic or semi-organic elements such as wouldn't be found in pre-Cataclysm Earth life.
Darwinchild (03)
One of the four sapient True Species that hyper-evolved in the early years of the Cataclysm and still retain the inability to reproduce with any but their own kind: Phinnies, Umnthi, Freed, and Hookbearers.
Human (04)
The original PNO of Earth.
Shine Reliant/Dim Reliant PNO (05)
Organic people whose continued existence relies on being sustained by extraplanar force to the point that they resemble extraplanar beings themselves. Also known as Shine/Dim-tinted.
Person Artificial Organism (PAO)
Persons of artificial origin or inorganic construction, in such a way that has not existed in Earth's natural history.
The inorganic nature of PAO's often gives them longevity and a lack of material needs, resulting in less economic impact. Particularly unusual PAO are often sustained by a tint of either Shine or Dim. Many PAO are spontaneously generated.
Synth (01)
A term technically only for sentient persons, but used often for any kind of synthetic animate life. Synths are persons made entirely or almost entirely from inorganic materials such as plastic, rubber, or metal. Most often they can't procreate and are often a result of spon-gen events (see below). Commonly they are sustained by Shine.
Sapient Artificial Intelligence (SAI) (02)
A Synth person wholly or partially without a body: a computer/network/neural/etc. consciousness whose origins are usually independent of any deliberate construction by persons Synth or otherwise. The definition of PAO AI's (SAI) versus NPAO AI's (NAI) is one fraught with controversy.
Person Spontaneous Generation Life-form ("Spon-gen") (03)
Umbrella term for any individual whose origins stem from a single event of creation, usually in the context of some kind of Shine or Dim event (rarely Lore, unless in the case of ancient individuals). Catseyes are an example of a spon-gen person type, and are additionally Synths.
Shine Reliant/Dim Reliant PAO (04)
Constructed people whose continued existence relies on being sustained by extraplanar force to the point that they resemble extraplanar beings themselves. Also known as Shine/Dim-tinted.
Any constructed organism that may mimic the attributes of a natural being, but only borrows those from the original source. NPAO beings do not have the same rights as either wildlife or people, and are usually considered property.
Built Machine (01)
A built machine is any machine created by the design process and construction of a thinking individual or a company for commercial, practical, or recreational purposes. It is important to define a built machine from a Synth or any inorganic creature or device brought about by spontaneous generation for legal and ethical reasons.
Calculating Machine (02)
Calculating machines are defined as any built machine that behaves through computations in some form of interactive manner. Basically anything with a little piece of computer technology, such as an ID card or a game console. Calculating machines also have the slightly shadier definition of "anything you can hack through" though obviously this isn't an official standpoint.
Non-sapient Artificial Intelligence (NAI) (03)
An AI is defined as any calculating machine that possesses the intelligence to adapt dynamically to a task. A NAI is any AI that cannot be considered a person, though this definition is a little nebulous at times. NAI is a more official designation and generally such programs are called simply "AI", though that confusingly may also be used to describe intelligent SAI people as well.
Robot (04)
1.) A robot is a term for any kind of NAI connected to a built machine that is capable of influencing its surroundings, and which moves with complex programing. This can be a free-standing chassis or simply part of a construction plant.
2.) The term "robot" is rooted in the meaning "slave", and this is also historically an extremely rude insult to any Synth or otherwise mechanical being. Due to the severity of this insult, the first definition of the word has become outdated, like the words "bitch" or "bastard". The term "En-Pow" (NPAO-04) is sometimes used to avoid having to say "robot" when talking about the machinery in polite conversation.
Biomachine (07)
Biomachines are almost exclusively made by ArchiLab. They are hybridised constructs of mechanical and organic systems designed with a specific task in mind, and may include magic in their construction. They can be free roaming and creature-like, or integrated into a building or other system. Although they are a form of calculating machine and can have AI-level intelligence, they are not classed as semi-synth. They are expensive and difficult to make, and not often owned by individuals. The Seven is named after the seven globally distributed biomachines that keep it running.
Clone (06)
Cloning is the duplication of any organic being by copying its genetic code. With many kinds of Infraflux creature it is not a viable procedure. Clones of anything sentient are illegal. The creation of clones for research purposes is strictly controlled, and most non-GMO clones are found in ICNS buildings.
Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) (05)
Although many of these are cloned extensively after their creation (such as crops and livestock) they are allowed to be released into the wild after they have met certain regulations. Due to the morphic nature of Earth, new designs have to be developed every few decades, as the GM food types will change when left by themselves in the wild. Genetic Modifications on sentient beings is very expensive and is usually carried out by a reliable Farsight Clinic, and does not change the status of the individual to a GM Life-form.
Non-Person Natural Organisms (NPNO)
Things formed or developed without direct intentional influence from people, which exhibit the traits of life. Considered part of the environment and/or a natural resource.
Variform Fauna/Variform Flora (01)
Naturally breeding and reproducing Earth life that follows the odd genetic logic of March Earth. May be partially or wholly synthetic, but are generally able to reproduce.
Non-person Spontaneous Generation Life-form ("Spon-gen") (02)
Life forms created in a single event of creation, often in combination with surges of Shine or Dim energy. Often unable to reproduce with other kinds of life.
True Species (03)
Life forms that still use the original genetics system from pre-Cataclysm Earth and are unable to reproduce with any but their own kind. Often under heavy legal protection. The term True Species also applies to the Darwinchild races, though they are not categorised as such since it's implied.
Shine Reliant/Dim Reliant NPNO (04)
A wild organism with its continued existence reliant on being sustained by extraplanar force to the point that it resembles an extraplanar entity itself. Also known as Shine/Dim-tinted.
Influenced Fauna/Influenced Flora (05)
Variform or spon-gen life that displays attributes or ideas from a localised source such as a city, or a hotspot of some kind. Very frequently tied to Lore hotspots and Cataclysm ruins. "Themed" life.
Cataclysm Relic (06)
A Lore-created life form left over from the Cataclysm.
Other Categories
Hybrid Organism
A life form that is a direct cross between two major categories is displayed in an ID with a slash, such as NPAO-05/06 for a GMO crop that is also cloned extensively in agriculture, or ETP/PNO-01 for Morris, who is half mongrel organic and half extra-terrestrial Geometrid.
Radioactive Organism
An additional categorisation to both person and non-person life, displayed in an ID as an asterisk after the ID (e.g.: PAO-01*). Most often called by the colloquialism "clicky" (used as both adjective and noun), after the clicks of a Geiger counter.
Extraplanar Entity (EE)
Spirits, Demons, Darkbeasts, Cold Ones, and Angels.
Extra-Terrestrial Person/Organism (ETP/ETO)
Any Material Plane life form from origins other than Earth or Earth's inhabitants.
Unknown Entity (UE)
Often used colloquially to describe something unknown and unsettling/scary, as in: "I was out on the Flats last night and boy, did I see some kinda yooie." A large percentage of the people who use this phrase are unaware that it originates from the ID system.
Inhabitants
