Sapient race native to Ottansey. The Halira resemble whales in much the same way that sharks resemble dolphins -- form follows function. But the Halira are reptiles, albeit intelligent ones. Their tails are covered with cilia, some centimeters long, which can be used as delicate manipulating organs. The Halira are more flexible than whales, able to curl into a ball if necessary.
For every eight females, one Halira male is born. Of these males, approximately one in twenty is a Great Father, with the ability to produce the enzyme modorin, which causes filial devotion in others.
When Humans first arrived on Ottansey, there were as many as a billion Halira and over six million Great Fathers. By 4072 CE there were less than one million Halira, and the last Great Father had been killed.
The Song of Death, which started about 3500 CE, entered its final phase about 4070 CE.