'We are not alone.'

Self-explanatory. ACH's Ascendancy or some other is apparently composed of mammoth fire breathing owl commandos, but logic dictates that apparently everyone else is human, and I simply refuse to believe that. So, if you have a unique species post a few facts and a picture. If you don't, well, let this topic die


Taln is composed of several races, but I'll spotlight the most prominent, the Tiens

Crappy picture:



Tiens were, like most races in the former Cerean Empire, evolved from avians as the planets in their respective star systems stumped the evolutionary growth of conventional mammals. Those that didn't go extinct from natural causes were hunted down either for sport or food by the various burgeoning 'bird' races. But, as the discovery of ancient spacefarer tech on the Tien homeworld began to take center place and intergalactic colonization started, members of the species sent to other worlds in the star system adapted to new environments. These colonists soon bred with 'purebloods', spreading their modified genes. Unfortunately, a marauding band of exiled humans soon attempted to exploit the region, and while the Tiens had made preparations, they were insufficient. As the humans constructed vast automated strip mines they polluted the atmosphere, making life all but unsustainable for anything other than the exiles and their environmental suits.

Word began to spread through desperate cargo vessels and through damaged communications nodes, and a widespread panic ensued on most of the core worlds in the Tien star system, dubbed 'Phalanx' by the newcomers. Most planets were in widespread anarchy whilst the exiles pushed further and further inward. Only outward worlds, where the bipedal gene was dominant among the Tiens, managed to escape in a collection of old and partially dysfunctional colony ships from the Golden Age, as it was called by the Tiens obliviously en route to the Entima Cluster.

The Entima Cluster is essentially the birthplace of those other avian species mentioned earlier. Sparaks, Hajji, and Conhas. All three already had an alliance in place, and welcomed the Tiens to join. As time dragged on, however, it became apparent that the newcomers were too much of a drain on the system, and the races were not friendly to the concept of the Tiens, blessed with a high birthrate, misplacing them, and subsequently made war. The same characteristics that condemned the Tiens to hostilities proved to be their saving grace as well. For as much as the nimble Sparaks harassed the Tien ships, or how many mighty Hajji showed up to fight, or how many plans the Conhas carefully crafted, the Tiens gradually settled worlds inhospitable to the opposition and built, bred, and battled, eventually driving the trio of avian species to near extinction.

And they would have ceased to exist, as well, had it not been for the ruling hierarchy of the Tiens smartened up and realized that their talents could be useful. The newly ascendant Tiens formed the Cerean Empire, composed of the former trio of races and, of course, the now large population of the 'invaders', as they were later called. However, the newborn empire's first days were anything but prosperous. Various revolts took place, and the threat of civil war loomed on the horizon. In addition, many issues were made apparent concerning the economy and various civil services (or lack of them). Quite a few innovations took place during this period, including the optimization of the Paramount Drive, offspring of an FTL relic first discovered in Phalanx. There was also a massive emphasis put on military service, and, in fact, the overall strength of Cerea's armed forces, presumably in fear of another incursion similar to the Ialis Conflict that took place when the Tiens first discovered the technology that enabled them to explore the stars. Some were strongly in the belief that there was a connection.

They were partially right to worry. Not even a decade into the burgeoning civilization's beginning, strange angular ships jumped into the far off colony world of Jekur. Negotiators were sent, but none returned. The Eighth Fleet under Rear Admiral Kilovu, a Conhas (many of them held similar positions due to their tactical prowess) subsequently engaged the enemy fleet ominously holding position off the planet's North Pole. Marines sent to board the largest ship that ostensibly served as the offending fleets flagship were slaughtered by furred creatures vaguely resembling cats. Later waves beat back the enemy at a heavy cost, but those that survived the action shakily describes their fallen comrades "mutilated, as if to be eaten". The diplomats appear to have met a worse fate, when the Marines finally managed to gain control of the ship, they found them half consumed.

Cereans everywhere were disgusted and, at the same time, horrified. The Eighth Fleet was composed of the latest and most advanced warships, and its Marine contingent was a detachment of the 83rd Heavy Infantry Division, and most of the members of the particular unit were Hajji at that. (Coupled with advanced training a fully armed and armored Hajji is a formidable foe) Despite all the favorable factors, the Eighth suffered approximately 70% casualties to what appeared to be a vanguard to any offensive the mysterious enemy was apt to send.

The Argor Wars lasted more than a century and destroyed multiple worlds beyond return. The Cerean Empire was about to share near the same fate as three of its member species, albeit as renewable food sources, when a miracle occurred. Turmoil within the Falin state was tearing it apart. Relieved, Cerea turned to face another threat to its borders, the exiled humans that now called themselves the Eurayus Remnant were prospering in their own portion of the galaxy, and expanding as well. Scouts sent decades ago reported that if the trend continued they'd be right at the borders of Cerean space within 20 years. Emperor Aiun Iyuj quickly overruled the Parliament to enact a draft, an event commonly known as the 'Hostile Generation' where children as young as 15 were taken from their families to serve in the rapidly rebuilding Cerean fleets. This was particularly controversial in the wake of a 'Sole Offspring' policy put in place a few months before. Iyuj, director of the war effort against the Falin for half his life, 80 years, was forced to step down or face impeachment.

The damage was done, however. True to its nickname, the 'Hostile Generation' grew up fighting off the humans, who had themselves faced dramatic genealogical change in order to adapt to the new worlds they settled. After the various skirmishes were over and Eurayus accepted they could not push the Cerean lines back, the former children went home and had hatchlings themselves. Following the ad hoc administration of the Parliament over the position of Emperor, it was a member of the Hostile Generation that rose to the throne. Consequently, Cerea experienced a huge military buildup as patriotic citizens lined up with their parent's blessings at the recruitment offices. It was now considered a dishonor to one's family to not serve for at least a decade in some capacity in the armed forces, which coincided well with many machinations within Parliament to facilitate trade and the construction of many new fleets of advanced warships.

When rebellious Falin forces came knocking, 7 of Cerea's 23 fleets (not including irregular detachments) were dispatched to end the threat. What with the smallness of Cerean space in proportion to the titanic Falin Republic, High Admiral Fuzhe Raynus was able to leave the capitol's naval base and engage the enemy within mere days while the Falin armada was still on approach. Outgunned, the Falin commander attempted to beat a hasty retreat, but his forces disobeyed and attacked the approaching Cerean fleets without delay, believing their ships still superior to those they faced but a few decades ago. Only the Falin flagship and two vessels classified as frigates made it out alive. The day was still not without casualties. Two fleets suffered the loss of more than a few ships, but they could be replaced, a stark contrast from the first contact so many years ago.

Satisfied, the Emperor and his advisers turned to a new goal: Unification. Having beat back assaults from both Eurayus and the Falin, Cerea was now realized as a threat to both. That's not to say neither of the other civilizations were weary of each other. That said, Emperor Yusarl was confident that a peace convention would be in everyone's best interests, interests that would bring them to the negotiating table. The summit was held on a station built discreetly by Sparak engineers in the galactic core, and while all parties involved arrived with heavy contingents of guards, thankfully, other than verbal ones, no shots were fired. Thus began the Franican Alliance, a series of talks and treaties that enabled cooperation and co-development, and presumably would lead to a less shaky, more peaceful future for the three factions.

Unfortunately one thing the Alliance failed to account for was the political schism ongoing within Falin, split between those who would attack Cerea again, and those who wanted to move onto new ways and usher in an age of galactic peace. Thousands of Falin died each day in the bloody internal civil war, and in the midst of it all a squadron of Eurayus ships warped in on the far edge of Falin space to engage in more directed negotiations, but were welcomed by a flotilla of rebel ships unconcerned about the political repercussions. Which came swiftly and surely as Eurayus's representative on the Alliance blamed the Falin Republic as a whole, and subsequently withdrew from any further talks, effectively leaving the Alliance. Knowing they were a dead end, loyalist Falin and Cereans resumed their own talks, while presumably Eurayus did the same with rebellious factions within the Falin. Both sides input resources, money, and even ships to fuel a futile proxy war within the Falin state. But, Cerea did not give up, and after a little over a decade another diplomatic vessel was sent into Eurayus space to discuss an end to hostilities. It was promptly destroyed.

The mere night before news reached the capitol Yusarl died of natural causes while he slept, and was quickly replaced by Ivus Nevantia, a young, bright rear admiral quickly rising through the ranks. Nevantia did not take the news well, inciting rage among citizens of the Cerean Empire with a brief yet powerful announcement broadcast over all channels. With it, the 8th Fleet made its way to Eurayus space as a formidable force predicted to be capable of continuing the war for more than half a century. Meanwhile, the 4th and 11th made their way to rendezvous with the Falin loyalist 21st Armada so as to eliminate the rogue Falin once and for all. Thus, the Guardian Wars began, and lasted for near a millennium.

Whilst 3 fleets were out to play, the remaining 20 steadfastly guarded Cerea's borders from any campaigns the enemies might attempt to start, but while they did quickly overwhelm a recorded 56 assaults, by the end of the 989 years of war the real threat lay not from exterior enemy fleets, but from interior populations. Many were weary of further engagements as generation after generation shipped out to foreign spaces. And as were the waves of Cerean fleets swiftly replaced, so was the ruling government. A grand total of 4 throne-switches occurred during this period, with twice as many rotations of Parliament officials. Ironically enough, machinations within Cerea destroyed it. An Sparak idealist named Ru Bannay organized a revolt on the capitol world which quickly overran palace guards and resulted in the death of the current emperor, plus a majority of Parliament members who were in session. Within a day, Bannay had restructured the Empire into a semi-democracy, led by a council with herself as the chairman. Reactions across Cerea were mixed, especially in the military. Four Praetors were in orbit at the time of the coup, but their hands were tied and all were unsure of what action to take. Engagements across the galaxy initiated by Cerean fleets ended as abruptly as they had started as the instigators slowly fell back to the capitol in confusion.

Of course, not all respected the newfound authority, and ironically enough Cerea experienced an even more desperate fracture than the Falins into three factions – The loyalists, who believed they owed their allegiance to the capitol, emperor or no, the Boku, whom were composed nearly entirely of military defectors vowing to put a heir at the head of the Empire again, and last but not least the Taln, a former civilian attaché to the 49th expeditionary force, whom are also coincidentally disloyal to the new regime, but the force as a whole have opted to leave the system for a new one like their ancestors instead of fueling a war against their own kind. It is uncertain what the outcome of the battle within the former Cerean Empire is, but we are certain it ended bloodily either way.

Now, I know what you're thinking right now:



So I'll just finish off with a few quick facts

• Many Tien apparel is centered towards the right hand side of the body, and, in fact, right is, for lack of a better word, 'right'. To be called 'left winged' is the ultimate insult in Tien culture.
  
• A Tien's status is judged by his 'collar', which varies based on occupation/position in life. 'Bare collared' can be likened to being referred to as an 'idiot' in your cultures.
  
• EVERY single piece of clothing worn by a Tien in public has a backpack attached; this is a homage to the days before their physiology changed, where their gullets were located on the back of the body and thus needed to be protected. It now serves as a useful compartment, as Tien 'arm structure' or lack of it disallows any other sort of bag.
  
• Tiens may appear fat, but that is only their bone structure. Beneath that is a series of interwoven muscles that allow a surprising amount of strength, particularly due to the wings no longer used for flight.
  
• Tien wings, or any other avian race for that matter, are composed of skin, muscles, and bone, covered by a layer of conventional feathers. The 'wing' is actually subdivided into several appendages similar to human hands.
  
• The feather layer is more of a vestigial trait; sproutlets of feather commonly grow over the body and can be shaved or plucked without much hassle, similar to human hairs. However, feathers are a sign of maturity and typically aren't bothered, or are simply clipped where garments will cover up the bare skin.
  

So, share.

I'll put up more pictures of Tien ships/weapons provided my Laziness Meter isn't full at the end of the day.

TRULY INCREDIBLE

Kobialka wrote:

TRULY INCREDIBLE

Thanks.

Guess everyone's a bloody human around these parts >_>

All I gotta say.

Legion wrote:

Kobialka wrote:

TRULY INCREDIBLE

Thanks.

They do not have opposable thumbs or opposable ANYTHING for that matter.

Well, I suppose a little history can't hurt TOO much... Well, very ancient history.

So, about 50,000 years ago(We live for very long times, so it would be like 5000 years ago for your kind), there were nations of sorts, although they were in constant movement, and had no borders, and they were divided by races. There are 107 species of naitive owls, and there were 42 nations. Many of the species joined together, most notably the Yruut and the Kviig, and there were also many species that refused to join any nation, simply staying in a hollow of some sort, and not really doing much. There was, however, a nation, with about seven member species, a number that scared many other nations. Several of the species in it have been lost to time, but the few we know include my species, the Greater Fire Owl. This nation began doing things that were unheard of, they began building permanent hollows, factories, and weapons(The most advanced at the time was an air propelled acid) that were able to vanquish any foe. The other nations began to fear the group, as they were steadily growing more powerful, and they too began to settle down and build permanent homes. This was all part of the nation's, know as the Mnevg, the Coalition, cunning plan. They had developed a weapon to conquer all others, a weapon that is still used today. Using the same principle as the pressure gun, a recently developed weapon, they created a bomb of sorts, except this bomb didn't burn with the hot white fires of the others, this bomb didn't burn at all! The bomb utilised a super powerful, super localised pressure disturbance to cause the pressure to jump from 14.72 PSI to about 21 PSI. THis pressure increase would cause instantaneous death or horrible maiming to anyone in the nearby area, but the weapon could only be used to effect in a heavily populated area, so the Coalition scared the other nations into settling down. The Coalition didn't want to kill everyone, so they made 35 of them, and then dropped one into the most heavily populated cities, and threatened the other nations with certain death if they did not join. So the Coalition steadily grew, and with a few passive brainwashings here and there, the other races became content with the Coalition's leadership, and the Coalition became the current nation I am "king" of today...

Cool story, right?

The Librarians, creations of the Xerians.

The Librarians are arguably the most powerful, ancient, and peaceful civilization in the Universe- if it could be called a civilization. Created a mere 20,000 million years or so after the supposed Big Bang, these mechanoids wield the most advanced and least-understood technology in the universe.

The Librarians were created by a long-extinct civilization called the Xerians. The Xerians were Snake-Like creatures, with long scaly bodies. They were sentient, and created a civilization to explore the seemingly empty universe. Due to the lack of stars except their own, the Xerians formed a unique culture. Their primary religion was Tal' Margertha, named after their massive, short-lived star, and consisted of 3 gods. The first was the Dust God, named Ertha, who composed of all matter and created everything solid they could observe. The second was Marg, the Force god, who was responsible for all of the forces including ElectroMagnetism, Gravitation, and others. The last was Tal', who was the God of Light. He was responsible for all ElectroMagnetic waves, and later, FTL travel. The Xerians would usually praise the gods, one after another, when a new technological discovery was made. Curiously, although these gods were prominent in their lives, it never took a solid form, and nothing was oppressed because of the religion. This meant it was optional, but there was an unwritten or spoken rule about it and those who didn't believe were frowned upon.

The Xerians accomplished a level of understanding about their universe umatched by any other organic race since. Their space program was a huge success, and every day many ships left the planet Tarsonian's surface, their homeworld. They did not have currency or money, as Tal' Margertha taught that the individual is insignificant, but the whole is key. Therefore, just about every Xerian pitched in on about every major project or even minor project brought to them. Government consisted of a voting on ideas by the general populace, where everyone voted on their Holo-Screens which project to work on next before a set date. When this was reached, a small team counted the results and announced the project. There was a leader, the Jarmarthi, but he was merely a figurehead, and was used for announcement purposes. Otherwise, he was an ordinary citizen. All information discovered by anyone else was freely accessible to anyone else for their own use, and all schematics for anything were open source. Therefore, everyone had access to whatever they needed to know, and since they prefered to work, the populace was always working on something.

The Xerians discovered the original FTL drive. During a test of the Tal' Singularitha Particle Collider, the Xerians noticed that intense gravitational fields affected light. They measured the effects, and it made light faster, when approaching the gravitational well. The Jarmarthi announced the discovery, and within days, thousands of Xerians had poured in to the research center to design and create the first FTL drive. The theory was that if the Field was strong enough, it would speed up particles past the Speed of Light as well as light, and they already understood how to amplify fields farther away from the Origin. It was completed in months, and the first prototype ship, the Heraltha, was launched. This was the first test of the drive. The ship powered it up, and attempted FTL travel, but was met with disaster. The neutrons in the atoms were left behind when it jumped, reducing the ship to unstable isotopes which blew up. Undeterred, they continued designing. The second one worked, but the schematics became corrupted and the ship was lost in a dust cloud. The third onw failed to start, and it was discovered that the core had shattered. More designs went through, until they finally found one that was satisfactory for them. And, just in time for them.

It was the perfection of the FTL drive that led to the discovery of other systems. The first Xerian fleet was made, completely unarmed since war was unheard of, and was sent 3 parsecs away to a strange gravitational anomaly. When they got there, they discovered another star, and more planets. Excited, they reported to the homeworld at once, and a wave of excitement spread throughout the civilization. Colony ships were quickly built and launched, each headed to different anomalies for colonization. So begins the Golden Age of Xerian expansion.

But the system discovery also led to a wave of fear. If there were other systems, there were likely other empires, and they may be hostile. This thought almost led to a revolt when a large city became struck with fear over a rumor. When a foreign fleet jumped in to the capital at Tarsonian, the public was hysterical. This led to the hasty creation of the Xel Ruling Council, a governing body meant to coordinate project efforts and to deal with Alien Civilizations. This strange fleet turned out to be a field of Space Rocks, but the Council was secure.

The Xerians continued to expand, still headed by the Council. War had come when a system revolted, and this led to the creation of the first weapons in their history. Everything seemed to be fine, populace happy, technology improving, when a series of catastrophies began to ensue. The sun Tal' Magertha was expanding, rather fast, and it was calculated that it would cause all of the other systems to expand too. Tarsonian and the others would be incinerated. In face of this calamity, the Council embarked on the greatest and longest lasting accomplishment, named Tar' Aadnias. This was a two part project, a library storing all of their information they had gathered over their 2,000 years of space-faring, and an AI capable of preserving itself for trillions of years to come. This AI would embody the Xerians, sharing their instinct to work collectively on projects, gain knowledge, and to protect life. It would also create a civilization that would envelop the world ans pass down the Xerian heritage for eternity. Facing imminent destruction, the project had to be completed hastily, leading to a fatal error in the AI that caused it's sleep to last 10 times longer than it should. The Xerians launched it, and everything they had known was contained in a 3x3 Steel box, surrounded by 15 feet of Reinforced Steel and buried in an asteroid.


So ends the Xerians, and begins the Librarians, 200,000 years after the Xerians were Extinguished.

~The Book of The Library, Chapter 3, "Who created The Librarians?" Earth, 2569 A.D.

Fenway wrote:

The Librarians, creations of the Xerians.

The Librarians are arguably the most powerful, ancient, and peaceful civilization in the Universe- if it could be called a civilization. Created a mere 20,000 million years or so after the supposed Big Bang, these mechanoids wield the most advanced and least-understood technology in the universe.

The Librarians were created by a long-extinct civilization called the Xerians. The Xerians were Snake-Like creatures, with long scaly bodies. They were sentient, and created a civilization to explore the seemingly empty universe. Due to the lack of stars except their own, the Xerians formed a unique culture. Their primary religion was Tal' Margertha, named after their massive, short-lived star, and consisted of 3 gods. The first was the Dust God, named Ertha, who composed of all matter and created everything solid they could observe. The second was Marg, the Force god, who was responsible for all of the forces including ElectroMagnetism, Gravitation, and others. The last was Tal', who was the God of Light. He was responsible for all ElectroMagnetic waves, and later, FTL travel. The Xerians would usually praise the gods, one after another, when a new technological discovery was made. Curiously, although these gods were prominent in their lives, it never took a solid form, and nothing was oppressed because of the religion. This meant it was optional, but there was an unwritten or spoken rule about it and those who didn't believe were frowned upon.

The Xerians accomplished a level of understanding about their universe umatched by any other organic race since. Their space program was a huge success, and every day many ships left the planet Tarsonian's surface, their homeworld. They did not have currency or money, as Tal' Margertha taught that the individual is insignificant, but the whole is key. Therefore, just about every Xerian pitched in on about every major project or even minor project brought to them. Government consisted of a voting on ideas by the general populace, where everyone voted on their Holo-Screens which project to work on next before a set date. When this was reached, a small team counted the results and announced the project. There was a leader, the Jarmarthi, but he was merely a figurehead, and was used for announcement purposes. Otherwise, he was an ordinary citizen. All information discovered by anyone else was freely accessible to anyone else for their own use, and all schematics for anything were open source. Therefore, everyone had access to whatever they needed to know, and since they prefered to work, the populace was always working on something.

The Xerians discovered the original FTL drive. During a test of the Tal' Singularitha Particle Collider, the Xerians noticed that intense gravitational fields affected light. They measured the effects, and it made light faster, when approaching the gravitational well. The Jarmarthi announced the discovery, and within days, thousands of Xerians had poured in to the research center to design and create the first FTL drive. The theory was that if the Field was strong enough, it would speed up particles past the Speed of Light as well as light, and they already understood how to amplify fields farther away from the Origin. It was completed in months, and the first prototype ship, the Heraltha, was launched. This was the first test of the drive. The ship powered it up, and attempted FTL travel, but was met with disaster. The neutrons in the atoms were left behind when it jumped, reducing the ship to unstable isotopes which blew up. Undeterred, they continued designing. The second one worked, but the schematics became corrupted and the ship was lost in a dust cloud. The third onw failed to start, and it was discovered that the core had shattered. More designs went through, until they finally found one that was satisfactory for them. And, just in time for them.

It was the perfection of the FTL drive that led to the discovery of other systems. The first Xerian fleet was made, completely unarmed since war was unheard of, and was sent 3 parsecs away to a strange gravitational anomaly. When they got there, they discovered another star, and more planets. Excited, they reported to the homeworld at once, and a wave of excitement spread throughout the civilization. Colony ships were quickly built and launched, each headed to different anomalies for colonization. So begins the Golden Age of Xerian expansion.

But the system discovery also led to a wave of fear. If there were other systems, there were likely other empires, and they may be hostile. This thought almost led to a revolt when a large city became struck with fear over a rumor. When a foreign fleet jumped in to the capital at Tarsonian, the public was hysterical. This led to the hasty creation of the Xel Ruling Council, a governing body meant to coordinate project efforts and to deal with Alien Civilizations. This strange fleet turned out to be a field of Space Rocks, but the Council was secure.

The Xerians continued to expand, still headed by the Council. War had come when a system revolted, and this led to the creation of the first weapons in their history. Everything seemed to be fine, populace happy, technology improving, when a series of catastrophies began to ensue. The sun Tal' Magertha was expanding, rather fast, and it was calculated that it would cause all of the other systems to expand too. Tarsonian and the others would be incinerated. In face of this calamity, the Council embarked on the greatest and longest lasting accomplishment, named Tar' Aadnias. This was a two part project, a library storing all of their information they had gathered over their 2,000 years of space-faring, and an AI capable of preserving itself for trillions of years to come. This AI would embody the Xerians, sharing their instinct to work collectively on projects, gain knowledge, and to protect life. It would also create a civilization that would envelop the world ans pass down the Xerian heritage for eternity. Facing imminent destruction, the project had to be completed hastily, leading to a fatal error in the AI that caused it's sleep to last 10 times longer than it should. The Xerians launched it, and everything they had known was contained in a 3x3 Steel box, surrounded by 15 feet of Reinforced Steel and buried in an asteroid.


So ends the Xerians, and begins the Librarians, 200,000 years after the Xerians were Extinguished.

~The Book of The Library, Chapter 3, "Who created The Librarians?" Earth, 2569 A.D.

Nice story!

Same to ACH, but you really need some paragraphs in der. Glad to see no one's making OP races up yet with 'one bajilion shps!!11!! The key to the fun here is being realistic

Legion wrote:

Nice story!

Same to ACH, but you really need some paragraphs in der. Glad to see no one's making OP races up yet with 'one bajilion shps!!11!! The key to the fun here is being realistic

Agreed.

We don't use paragraphs here...

bump.

Is it shameless?

Okay. Who Necro'd?

Kobialka wrote:

Okay. Who Necro'd?

It was Tiel. Please don't do that, Tiel.