Va'nu'ians

Va’nu’ians

Classification: Humanoid Sentients
Homeworld: Va’nu
Cousins: K’laisians
Average Lifespan: Most do not survive past their prime
Language: Va’nu’ian (primary), Common, Ri'Tachi for those who are Chosen
Physical Characteristics: Va’nu’ians vary in appearance. Many have silver or black hair with amber eyes, but some appear fully human, with rounded ears. Slender and agile, they are built for endurance and survival in harsh environments.

Forged by survival, Va'nu'ians are trained from childhood to endure pain, conflict, and deception. They are lean and agile. Often with silver or black hair and amber eyes, they may also appear fully human. Or any combiation of the two.

Their movements are purposeful, their gaze assessing. Every interaction is measured for advantage or threat.

Va’nu’ians are direct and pragmatic; they speak plainly, act decisively, and expect others to do the same. Affection exists, but it is tempered by the unyielding demand of survival: family, mates, and allies are valued, but none are placed above the self. They are capable of love, loyalty, and mentorship, yet their trust is hard-won and easily withdrawn.

Marked by clan insignias and personal achievements, Va’nu’ians carry the weight of their lineage visibly. They embrace hardship, excel in combat, and wield cunning as skillfully as a blade. To cross a Va’nu’ian is to risk more than insult—they are a race that measures worth through strength, endurance, and resolve.

General Overview

The Va’nu’ians are a warrior people whose culture is built upon the principle “the strong survive, the weak perish.” Cowardice is not tolerated, and weakness is punishable by death. Unlike their K’laisian cousins, Va’nu’ians inherited can wealth, property, and positions, creating a society where family lineage and merit coexist as markers of power. If it isn't inherited, it is earned.

Va’nu’ians were originally K’laisians who rejected the peaceful path of their kin and left K’lais to claim the harsh desert world of Va’nu as their own. This migration severed the Va’nu’ians from the Gifts of K’lais. Only by residing on K’lais for five consecutive years can a Gift manifest, fading faster than for native K’laisians once they leave the planet. Most Va’nu’ians are unaware of it being possible to regain a Gift, for most do not remain on K'lais for more than year. Let alone five.

Society and Structure

Va’nu’ian society is organized around Clans, with forty ruling families forming the governing body. Positions of power are gained through wealth, combat, cunning, and sometimes assassination. The Ri'Tachi add strength and power to a Clan. The more Ri'Tachi, the stronger the Clan. Training begins as early as age five, ensuring every Va’nu’ian is capable of survival, combat, and strategy.

• Inheritance: Property, titles, and positions are inherited. Death by challenge, assassination, or natural causes is a common path for succession.
• Family: Children are accountable for their parents’ actions, and parental affection is pragmatic. Some families intentionally raise cold, calculating children, producing highly capable Ri’Tachi.

Beliefs and Philosophy

• Conflict as Truth: Pain, war, and death reveal a being’s true nature.
• Lineage and History: Knowing one’s heritage is central to understanding life and survival.
• Survival Above All: Affection exists, but no one is placed above their own survival. Weakness is fatal.
• Pragmatism: Va’nu’ians are straightforward, blunt, and pragmatic, often appearing cold or ruthless to outsiders.

Common Maxims:

• “Descend. Adapt. Survive.”
• “Worth is forged, not given.”

Relationships and Social Behavior

• Va’nu’ians can love, mate, and raise children, but emotional bonds do not override self-preservation.
• Mates are different from spouses: a deep connection of trust, loyalty, and shared survival. Marriages can end in death if bonds are broken or unsatisfying.
• Trust is guarded; showing one’s back can be an insult. Affection is carefully measured, and grief is brief.

Military and Espionage

• Violence is integral to daily life; missteps can be fatal.
• The Ri'Tachi are the elite of the military. The equivalent of being the planet's covert operations units.
• Softhearted Va’nu’ians are sometimes used as offworld spies due to their adaptability and subtlety.

Culture and Customs

• Nude or near-nude appearances are culturally neutral; rituals, such as Ri’Tachi ceremonies, often involve disrobing to mark vulnerability and acceptance.
• Only military and secure facilities maintain full recordings; Va’nu’ values secrecy and selective knowledge.
• Children are trained to survive and excel; failure is fatal or leads to exclusion.
• Conflict, cunning, and endurance shape art, games, and social interactions.

Relations with K’laisians

• The Va'nu'ians have an uneasy truce with K'lais
• The consider K'laisians 'cousins' due to their shared ancestry.
• Va’nu’ians generally despise their K’laisian relatives who abandoned warring ways, considering them weak and traitorous. The hatred is lessening over time.
• Hostility can escalate quickly; initial encounters in space or on contested territories often led to combat in the past.
• All Va’nu’ians retain K’laisian ancestry. They chose to shift the apostrophe in their names to signal independence and identity while remembering where they came from.

Additional Notes

• Va’nu’ians are capable of long-distance travel without fatigue.
• Their technology uses amber indicators for acceptance.
• Offworld, Va’nu’ians manipulate, bribe, and threaten, but never “brainwash.”
• Children are expected to excel early in life, as mediocrity is punished.