[Shi]

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SHI – Aliens on a New Planet

General Information:
The citizens of Seyal are known as the Seyalshi, or Shi, for short. The Shi are a slender, pallid alien race with graceful features that bespeak power and sophistication. They are roughly 2 meters tall, extraordinarily lightweight at only 20 to 30 kilograms, and have a wispy, vampiric presence. Upon encountering the Shi, many humans have a feeling of unease. They are ghost-like and stealthy, with three cold, emotionless black eyes, no hair and bony plates in their facial structures. The Shi move in a fluid, gliding motion as they hover 15-20 centimeters above the ground. They have gills instead of mouths, and no longer need to speak vocally as humans do. Instead, they communicate telepathically over short distances, perceived by other races as a “voice” in one’s head. Shi are asexual and reproduce by a form of cellular phasing.

The Shi have three castes: the Crown class (royal, elite oligarchs), the Warrior class and the Civil class (citizens and civil workers). An individual is born into a caste, but can advance to the Crown class with major achievement. Only the Crown class is eligible for body part cloning, leadership roles (ruling body, military commands) and leading rift excursions. Most Shi from any class exhibit the apex of arrogance, although other views are sometimes tolerated.

After millennia of space travel, the Crown class became bored and sought new challenges. Competition for excellence became the focal point around which society revolved. This manifested in every aspect of their culture from construction of buildings to science to martial prowess. Sophisticated dueling became an exciting event in their society, with the winners greatly celebrated. Shi in the Crown class are often well trained in physical fighting. They prefer melee weapons in battle, and see this as the noble way to fight. There is limited threat to the duelers, since if they suffer a catastrophic wound overwhelming the healing powers of the nanobots, they use cloning technology to replace organs and limbs.

Shi Government:
The Shi society is governed by an Oligarchy among members of the Crown class.
The membership of this body is comprised of five royal families. Once a part of the
Oligarchy, a family usually remains there.

Sudeva – They are explorers and scouts, curious and restless. They display an endless wanderlust and a drive to push the boundaries of exploration. It is said, “The eyes of the Sudeva see the whole galaxy.”

Vishal – They are responsible for external security, which means for the Shi removing other societies in the way of their relentless conquest. The Vishal are ruthless, even genocidal in their tactics. It is said, “Vishal expands the peace of Seyalshi.”

Anant – They maintain the Shi internal policies, improving the quality of life for all Shi citizens. They are most skilled in organizing and managing resources. It is said, “Immortality is worth living because of the Anant.”

Damir – They are most skilled at information gathering, and extracting information from all kinds of sources. They are scholarly and knowledgeable, and they maintain the vast data stores of the ancient Shi civilization. It is said, “Wisdom is a fact recorded by the Damir.”

Tilak – The Tilak are foremost in the fields of science, and they are responsible for the fantastic healing capabilities of the Shi. They are questioning and inventive, and in charge of scientific research and development. It is said, “When a Shi dies, the Tilak fail.”

Shi History:
The Shi invented a technology for travel through rifts in space/time and used them to explore and conquer. On Seyal are many dangerous and exotic artifacts acquired in these expeditions, some of which could be of untold value to other civilizations.

On a rift expedition long ago, the Shi found the Quay homeworld and decided they could make use of the Quay’s ability to withstand harsh conditions and adapt to difficult situations. They captured enough Quay to establish a mining colony on Talgon, a planet in the Seyal system. Talgon was a lethal mixture of radiation and toxins, but it had valuable deposits of a mineral used in rift technology.

Over the years, the Quay multiplied, and provided a hardy, disposable work force for the Shi. Some of the Quay spent time in the lower decks of Shi ships that traveled through rifts. On such journeys, the Shi used Quay laborers and scouting teams in areas that could pose dangers for the Shi. As such, some Quay received repeated, small-dose exposure to quantum particles, although neither the Shi nor the Quay knew the potential of quantum effects at the time.

When the mineral resources on Talgon were mined out, the Shi abandoned the mine and the Quay, and simply left them there to die. But the Quay did not die. With their unique adaptability, and tribal-style leadership, they survived. They squeezed an existence out of the planet’s limited resources, as well as old ships and equipment left behind by the Shi.

As Quay technology and numbers grew, they became more aggressive towards Seyal. Though the Shi possessed superior technology, the Quay were resilient to the nobler warfare preferred by the Shi, and their adaptability and underground colonies on Talgon proved a big nuisance to the Shi. Repeated raids by the Quay on Shi colonies and even a few on Seyal itself (some for supplies, some for vengeance) caused the Shi to decide to eliminate the Quay altogether.

When the Shi developed a quantum disruption device to destroy the Quay, the Quay staged a brazen raid on the Shi space station where the device had been constructed. In their escape attempt, the Quay’s damaged ship was pulled into the Seyal star and the stolen device detonated. The star was disrupted to the point that it was on the verge of exploding. Desperate, the Shi devised a plan to harness the exploding star’s energy and combine it with their rift technology to open a rift to move the entire Seyal planet to the safety of another universe. In retribution for the Shi’s ill-fated plan, the Quay launched a fanatical attack against Seyal with every ship they had. When the star exploded and Seyal moved through space/time, a large contingent of Quay life ships chased the Shi through the rift before the nova destroyed the Seyal system and every living being left behind.