“When the Qu left, the Hand Flappers were forced to endure all kinds of predators, to the point where they were nearly hunted to extinction. Those who managed to escape into cave systems were forever scarred as their ignorant kin flapped and yelled, alerting predators, but it turned out to be a good distraction.

Despite this, the Hand Flappers did not evolve to be more quiet, but rather the opposite. They evolved into the Screechers.

The Screechers’ main method of self defense is to surround would-be predators, all the while flapping and screaming non-stop. Their scream was so loud it could make some creatures deaf, but not the Screechers themselves, as they have flaps in their ears that allow them to muffle sound. Even with this decent defense mechanism, they still tried to make themselves as the most unappealing food, their legs and arms were covered in irritating bristles, and some will rub their skin with poisonous mushrooms. Only avian predators were willing to regularly hunt them, but it wasn’t enough to put a noticeable dent in their population, and so they thrived.

In the caves which they call home they built mining machines, as the caves were getting crowded and they themselves were too weak to dig. With these they dug out a sprawling network of homes, commercial areas and even military bases to take care of the avian problem. During this industrialization the Screechers themselves did not change much. True to their flashy nature, they did not wear clothes.”