Post by Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice* on Jan 23, 2010 16:28:26 GMT -5
Species Name: Ardi'lla ( Singular ) Ardi ( Plural ) Ardian ( Adjective )
Species Type: Humanoid/Insectoid
Planet of Origin: Ardia ( Orando in the Ardi language, which means; Gift of Sand. ) Ardia was a planet on the Outer Rim, undiscovered and with nobody near it.
Average Maximum age: 800 years of age is the common death rate, some are known to live up to 1000.
Age of Maturation: 27 ( The acceptable age of military service, thus their version of maturation. )
Average Height: 6 feet.
Average Weight: 157 lbs
Notable biological features: They are humanoid with squished, hammerhead looking skulls, and sharp, rowed teeth, a wide mouth, but its ability to open wide is poor, hence the need for the width of the mouth. Their epidermis is an outer shell of tough, brown exoskeleton. It is smooth, with bumps only around the chest piece that form the outline of ribs, and around the joints.
Number of limbs and Type: They have four arms and two legs. The arms are as humans, but a tad longer and covered with sharp ridges for digging, from fingers to shoulder. Their four arms have two on each side, jointing together around the shoulder. The legs have two knee joints, allowing them to bend over backwards much further and still maintain balance. They have only two toes that extend outward like claws, these can dig into the ground and latch them in. One phenomenal part of Ardian biology is that they regenerate quickly; in a single day, they can regenerate a severedfinger. In a week, a new arm. Unfortunately, the loss of their head or central nervous system ( Spine brain connection ) is fatal without question.
Their bodies are strong. An Ardi'lla can rip a humans skull off with far bits of ease, and move their arms quite quickly. They are acrobatic and graceful at times, and can also be simple brutes when needed.
Culture:
Early Ardi culture consisted of nomads roaming their desert planet, searching for some sort of oasis. Ardi life-span was only 12 years in those times, and their existence was rare. They were savage and ferocious, their entire life revolving around water and food, often hunting each other for lack of the latter.
A hundred years into the Ardi culture their culture became one of brothership as the first city was built on top of the “Har'diack'an” ( Har-De-Auch-En ) lake. It was a community effort to keep raider Ardi out, and maintain water and food supply, farming local animals reminiscent to armadillos, large scorpions, and avian creatures.
After the first Incarnate, known as “Hash” discovered the 'underwaters' ( A series of underground rivers ) and became their God their culture revolved around expansion for the glory of the Aurash 'God' and spiritual service.
~*~
Recent culture.
Family:
The Ardi are family based. The parents raise their children until they are old enough to perform mandatory military service for the Aurash. The parents can sometimes have up to twelve kids in a hundred years, and it is the responsibility of the father to teach the arts of war and the art of their trade ( architecture, merchant sales, farming, et-cetera. ) to their sons and their daughters. The mothers job is to teach etiquette, religion, morals, and general education to their children. This process is known as parenting. There is no gender hierarchy;( although the Aurash has never been female ) and the mother and father are treated with equal respect. The society tends to birth an equal number of sons and daughters, keeping the gender population at about even.
Architecture:
The Ardi have a love of simple, square architecture built not for design but for purpose unique to the buildings use and efficiency against weather, which can often be harsh with many, many sandstorms and avian “Akada” raids, semi-intelligent avian humanoids that swoop-down and make a meal out of a good Ardi'lla. Their buildings are made of sandstone or limestone taken from underground and are durable against the elements, though more sophisticated and purposeful attack could cause collapse. Their designs are intricately simple, and perfectly symmetrical. Exceptions to this tradition are the Aurash's palace. It is symmetrical, yes, but with grand designs. It is also the only architecture made with a precious, durable black element known as Onyx Stone. The palace of the Aurash is made with an appealing, decorated limestone walls reinforced on the inside with Onyx Stone; it is a large elevated building at 1000 feet in the air, with the great “Onyx Steps” that lead all the way to the top. The palace is only a single, circular floor with polished Onyx flooring and a throne made out of a precious stone called “Gratsu” a naturally polished gray stone that is the toughest substance on the planet. Aurash's Palace is in a high-mountain range far from the capital city, it is constantly well defended and a place for the Aurash to meditate. Pilgrimages are led here, where Ardi will worship and ask advice from their God.
Religion:
The Aurash is the incarnation of their God. Every 500 years the Aurash is reincarnated. Anything the Aurash says or does is complete and total law, there is absolutely no questioning of the Aurash's judgment. All people must worship the Aurash and pledge their lives to him. It is the privilege of every Ardi'lla to spend 100 years of their life in militant service of the Aurash, though many choose to spend even longer. Every day, the Ardi must pray and attend the ritual of the Aurash, where they offer one of their body-parts, severed, as tribute and loyalty.
Arts:
Ardi make pottery and sculptures out of limestone. Often times they will make statues of great historical figures or hieroglyphs of historical wars, battles, or moments.
Currency:
There is no such thing as Ardian currency. They have a socialist government that distributes food in proper quantity, decides where you live according to the job you perform. Usually, the job they perform is passed down by their parents prior job, but hard working and studying Ardi can qualify for bigger better jobs. Other than food and housing, you are free to barter your personal possessions.
Haaghdriguad:
Haughdriguad is basically the Hammurabi's code, or a list of laws to follow. The basic laws are: Do not steal from Aurash's family, do not kill Aurash's family, Protect Aurash's family, Serve Aurash, Remain Loyal to your Blood Family, Remain Fidel to your Partner, Raise Aurash's Children, And Obey Aurash's Priests, and you shall have the divine blessing of Aurash.
Technology:
There is no real technology. Ardian culture has discovered electricity and even advanced physics. However, as a precept of the Annubis, Aurash after the second great war, technology is used to a minimum. The only notable technology are lights, heat, air-conditioning, and Soboaroso, or space Machine.
Military:
Their martial combat is based off of strength and speed, and is primarily unarmed. However, weapons became an essential part of Ardian war in time. Common weapons were steel shortswords and halberds. No official ranged weapons lasted very long in military service save for the spear. Ardian's are melee combat adepts.
History:
The history of the Ardian race is broken into 1000 year periods called Terms. 75 Terms have passed since CoH, or creation of Har'diack'an, the first city. However, their history begins with Shrestesh, BcoH, ( Before Creation )
Shreshtesh was the first nomadic leader ever to write down his journeys. Five hundred years of history learned from Shreshtesh. He lead a band of sixty elite nomadic warriors, and is known as the first Dark Tyrant. He writes about thousands of years of simpleton Ardi who crawled across the sand searching for puddles of water, dying of thirst because of lack of organization, dying before they ever reached maturity. Shreshtesh had his band of sixty, the maximum number that any given oasis area could hold for a few weeks at the time.
The warriors that Shreshtesh lived to old-age, were experienced, and well organized by himself. It was his remarkable leadership and strategies that kept both him and them alive for so long. They were the only ones ever to exist for such a length of time. Shreshtesh is also the oldest recorded Ardi'lla in existence, his life getting him 1200 years of age before he was slain in battle.
Shreshtesh lead his people with brutality, slaughtering other Ardi nomads for the smallest amounts of water. And then eating them. When he was 500, he and his soldiers found and occupied Har'diack'an lake, but refused to allow any nomads near it. Selfishness drove him. He created no technological advancements and only kept himself and his men alive, allowing all others to die before their eyes. It was by no means a true civilization. Among those troops, a new-born child adept in the force. His name, was Deacan.
Deacan disagreed with Shreshtesh. He thought Shreshtesh was cruel. Shreshtesh made his first tactical mistake, he cast Deacan out of his group instead of killing him. By now, Deacan was 27, and could fend for himself. He fought formed his own group to defend themselves against the vicious Akada, the avian predator race, and searched the desert, finding small ponds and Oasis's they could share with other nomads. Deacan was the very first one to discover his force ability. In his travels across the desert planet, he studied and trained the force for a hundred five years. Eventually, he became an adept fighter and an Ardi'lla of great wisdom.
He had dreams for the lake of Har'diack'an. Dreams that Shreshtesh stood in front of. Deacan looked to his people, but none had the discipline needed to fight, and they did not have enough resources to stay in one place and train. Thus he went alone.
According to legend, for Shreshtesh did not live to write his 1201st day and report about Deacan's tale, Deacan fought single-handedly, killing the elite warriors of Shreshtesh and then the Dark Tyrant himself. He opened the lake to all and was the founder of the great city. Deacan was never considered an Aurash in his time, though hailed as King.
~*~
CoH, first Term.
Deacan grew old, and knew he would die one day. He had too much force-knowledge to allow that to pass away with him, so he used Force Sense to bring forth a disciple. This person was a lowly farmer named Hash. Hash and Deacan trained in secret. After 50 years, Deacan passed away. A new leader was elected, one that was not Hash. Hash went back to humbly farming, but still continued his training in the force. 200 years of humble training passed, the city was expanding, but it was completely restricted by the lakes perimeters.
One night, while Hash slept, he could feel the force flowing through the planet vividly, like blood-veins through a body. And vaguely, he sensed the underwaters, a system of thousands of underground rivers. Through a chance connection between this sensing of the force, and a questioning in his mind as to why the lake had never run dry, he explored under-water, and discovered these intricate tunnel systems, almost dying in the process.
A week later, after extensive exploring, Hash surfaced by the lake, walked seventy meters out of city, and began to dig, dig, and dig until he connected with an underground river. The Ardi were so impressed they thought Hash almost divine in knowledge, he explained and showed them the force. They thought he was a God.
It was not until the second Term that Hash would die, but before that he trained a disciple, Techraw. Techraw is known in history as the second Dark Tyrant. He waited for Hash to die, and then ruled over the land with an iron fist, expanding greatly and forcing military rule and subservience among his people. Those who opposed died horribly. All within his wake was assimilated, conquered, destroyed. Other Ardi cultures attempted to spawn their own city-states near underground rivers that Hash had discovered. The war was short, nothing stood up against Techraw. That is, until he had a son, force sensitive as well. This son was named Muraaaj.
Muraaaj did not like his fathers rule one bit. When he grew to age, he studied the dark arts of his father, but secretly he began studying his own, light side attributed arts. When Techraw learned of this, he sent his men after Muraaaj, who slaughtered them with his fathers own teachings. Then he moved on, and destroyed Techraw, silencing his three hundred year empire. Muraaaj became the second Aurash, and established the Trials of Truth and the Priests of Aurash, while also created the theory of Death and Rebirth.
The Priests of Aurash are users of the force enlightened by the Aurash. Muraaaj taught them compassion, mercy, humility, and wisdom, the four noble traits of Ardian society. Death and Rebirth is the Aurash's cycle, the Aurash would be born and destined to lead the people as an enlightened one. He was also destined to die and be reincarnated. But, before a new Aurash could be officially accepted as the reincarnation, he or she must pass the Trials of Truth, which were four tests that ensured without a doubt that one had Compassion, Mercy, Humility, and Wisdom.
Seven terms passed by, allowing Muraaaj's system to become truth itself, and fully develop their culture. Now, the new Aurash was Tak'dem, an Ardi'lla who embodied the beliefs of the Trials and the culture. There was one problem, however. Dissenters existed, who were unhappy with their blind faith to Aurash.
One of these dissenters was Sekhmet, the Third and worst Dark Tyrant. She despised the Aurash and the Priests, and even the very government. Openly. Nobody did anything, for the Aurash was merciful and allowed her opinions to spread, though they did not change government or their ways based on what this minority believed to be true. Things got violent.
Sekhmet had hundreds of supporters, some even in the military, some even in the Priesthood. She was a fallen priest by this time, and long kicked out. When she reached the age of 327 she decided what she must do. None of her supporters were willing to actually go against their society while the Aurash lived. What Sekhemet did was known as the first Aurashied Purge. ( Aurashied becoming an adjective form; purging those who believe in the four Noble Traits. )
Sekhmet was invited to a debate in the city center ( a large stage in the middle of the capital city. ) with Tak'Dem. They spoke very little, actually. Sekhmet's words are considered holy to the Dissident Priests, a group of Dark Tyrants and their cult followers that exist in modern times. Her words go like this,
“To me and mine what we deserve, what we have earned through our skill and power. I will not give what is mine to you, Aurash. Nor to your government. My house is mine and it is the only thing I consider holy. Humility and servitude makes one a drone. Compassion for all things makes one weak in heart. Mercy is a show of weakness. We must be proud of ourselves, self-seeking, and hardened when needed. THAT, is wisdom.”
With those final words Sekhmet used her mental forcepowers to crush the minds of Tak'Dem's guards, and physical force powers to leap the distance between her and Tak'Dem, grabbed him with two arms and with her others, focused force Strength. She punched straight through the exoskeleton and gripped his spine, tearing it out and holding it before his people to see.
Thus the purge began, the Dissident Priests waging civil war with Aurashied.
The Aurash's Palace, at this time known as Sekhmet's stronghold, is created.
The Dissident Priests thought they'd purged every last Aurashied, and ruled for six terms.
However, the Aurashied eventually rose up and retook what was their with the wise leadership of their new Aurash, Odin. He bought order and restored the Aurashied beliefs.
It was not until 30 terms later that histories greatest Ardian crisis occurred, called the Ardian extinction. The Ardian's grew in such size that their cities spanned half of the world, but one day stumbled upon an old foe. Akadan's.
The avian people's had their own, pseudo-empire. The Akadan empire ruled the other half of the world, and once they bumped heads, it got violent once more. Ardian's had, by now, discovered great things in the fields of technology, they had vehicles, computer knowledge, lights, and much more. When the Akadan empire struck, though, they could not defend themselves very well. They were a primitive fighter race, the best weapons they had to take out Akadan's were spears. Scores and scores of Ardian's lost their lives in each battle. The Akadan's laid waste to entire cities, eventually spear-heading straight to the capital.
The sole reason for winning this war was the invention of guns. Ardian's always had the technology, just no reason to create them. When Har'diack'an was attacked, bullets riddled the skies. This time it was the Akadan's turn to be massacred. Aurashied people did not stop with the protection of their cities. They pressed onward until ever last Akadan was extinct, a term or so later.
Three terms passed, and technology was on the rise, but so was a civil war. The Dissident Priests had returned, and their leader, known as the fifth Dark Tyrant, Soel, lead the war with guns blazing.
It was the most destructive war in Ardian history. Cities were war-torn, thousands lay dead on both sides. The war lasted three terms, until finally, Annubis came into the fight. He was elected Aurash, and lead the Priests of Aurash against the Dissident's in a covert operation. The Priests of Aurash slaughtered the Dissident's guards, and went straight for the Dark Priests themselves. It was an epic force battle, with Annubis and three Priests of Aurash coming out victor.
Annubis immediately set to cleaning the planet and restoring. Most technology was absolutely forbidden. Only the basics remained, and a few weapons that were hidden away in case they were absolutely needed; in other words, in case a force like the Akadan Empire ever struck again. Annubis was also the very first to discover how to become a force Ghost.
Many, many terms passed without any real Dissenters.
Recent history: It was discovered through science that one of the near-by asteroid belts had been disrupted, and in a few hundred years it was quite possible that the entire planet would have asteroids rain down on it, destroying everything.
The Aurash of that time, Torro, was not worried. He did not believe it. A peaceful Dissident Priest and former Priest of Aurash, named Aiden Tokono, disagreed, and highly urged the Aurash to allow ships to be built so they could find a new planet. The technology, Soboaroso, had been known, it was fully possible to do this. However, Torro would do nothing. Years passed, and tensions rose as findings found that asteroids were indeed headed on a collision course. A law was passed stating that astrology was forbidden.
Aiden declared that the Aurash had failed the Trial of Wisdom and was no longer fit to lead. A civil war, solely among the Priests of Aurash, and Aiden came out victorious. No blood was shed in this civil dispute. Dissident Priests were given permission to do what will. Aiden lead sixteen Dissident Priests up Torro's steps on the Aurash's Palace. The royal guard went into their own civil war, this one with much blood, some in agreeance with Aiden, others trying to stop him. Fifteen Dissident Priests made it to the inner sanctum, and waged a battle with Torro and twelve of his elite guard; armed with guns.
Aiden was the only survivor, surviving a bitter melee with Torro himself, until finally he picked up a forbidden weapon and shot Torro several times, then finishing him by pulling his spine out as Sekhmet did, and tossing it down the Onyx Steps.
Aiden became the new Aurash. His first decree was to abolish the final forbidden weapons, his second was that the Dissident Priests and the Priests of Aurash would work together to create as many ships as they could.
Aiden stepped down from leadership, because it was decreed he was not a reincarnation, only a temporary leader. In his place, Sempatou passed the trials and became God.
The ships were finished within Aiden's lifetime. It was close. They evacuated as many would go, leaving in twelve different cruiser class ships, one of which was Dissident Priest, the rest were Aurashied people. There were those who refused to leave their home-planet. It was not debated, Sempatou ordered everyone goes, and thus they were forced onto the ships.
The ships took off, and with not much time at all to spare. The asteroids had arrived, and laid waste to all.
~*~
Current history.
The Dissident Priest and Aurashied ships split up, and drift even now along space, searching for a suitable home.
Species Type: Humanoid/Insectoid
Planet of Origin: Ardia ( Orando in the Ardi language, which means; Gift of Sand. ) Ardia was a planet on the Outer Rim, undiscovered and with nobody near it.
Average Maximum age: 800 years of age is the common death rate, some are known to live up to 1000.
Age of Maturation: 27 ( The acceptable age of military service, thus their version of maturation. )
Average Height: 6 feet.
Average Weight: 157 lbs
Notable biological features: They are humanoid with squished, hammerhead looking skulls, and sharp, rowed teeth, a wide mouth, but its ability to open wide is poor, hence the need for the width of the mouth. Their epidermis is an outer shell of tough, brown exoskeleton. It is smooth, with bumps only around the chest piece that form the outline of ribs, and around the joints.
Number of limbs and Type: They have four arms and two legs. The arms are as humans, but a tad longer and covered with sharp ridges for digging, from fingers to shoulder. Their four arms have two on each side, jointing together around the shoulder. The legs have two knee joints, allowing them to bend over backwards much further and still maintain balance. They have only two toes that extend outward like claws, these can dig into the ground and latch them in. One phenomenal part of Ardian biology is that they regenerate quickly; in a single day, they can regenerate a severedfinger. In a week, a new arm. Unfortunately, the loss of their head or central nervous system ( Spine brain connection ) is fatal without question.
Their bodies are strong. An Ardi'lla can rip a humans skull off with far bits of ease, and move their arms quite quickly. They are acrobatic and graceful at times, and can also be simple brutes when needed.
Culture:
Early Ardi culture consisted of nomads roaming their desert planet, searching for some sort of oasis. Ardi life-span was only 12 years in those times, and their existence was rare. They were savage and ferocious, their entire life revolving around water and food, often hunting each other for lack of the latter.
A hundred years into the Ardi culture their culture became one of brothership as the first city was built on top of the “Har'diack'an” ( Har-De-Auch-En ) lake. It was a community effort to keep raider Ardi out, and maintain water and food supply, farming local animals reminiscent to armadillos, large scorpions, and avian creatures.
After the first Incarnate, known as “Hash” discovered the 'underwaters' ( A series of underground rivers ) and became their God their culture revolved around expansion for the glory of the Aurash 'God' and spiritual service.
~*~
Recent culture.
Family:
The Ardi are family based. The parents raise their children until they are old enough to perform mandatory military service for the Aurash. The parents can sometimes have up to twelve kids in a hundred years, and it is the responsibility of the father to teach the arts of war and the art of their trade ( architecture, merchant sales, farming, et-cetera. ) to their sons and their daughters. The mothers job is to teach etiquette, religion, morals, and general education to their children. This process is known as parenting. There is no gender hierarchy;( although the Aurash has never been female ) and the mother and father are treated with equal respect. The society tends to birth an equal number of sons and daughters, keeping the gender population at about even.
Architecture:
The Ardi have a love of simple, square architecture built not for design but for purpose unique to the buildings use and efficiency against weather, which can often be harsh with many, many sandstorms and avian “Akada” raids, semi-intelligent avian humanoids that swoop-down and make a meal out of a good Ardi'lla. Their buildings are made of sandstone or limestone taken from underground and are durable against the elements, though more sophisticated and purposeful attack could cause collapse. Their designs are intricately simple, and perfectly symmetrical. Exceptions to this tradition are the Aurash's palace. It is symmetrical, yes, but with grand designs. It is also the only architecture made with a precious, durable black element known as Onyx Stone. The palace of the Aurash is made with an appealing, decorated limestone walls reinforced on the inside with Onyx Stone; it is a large elevated building at 1000 feet in the air, with the great “Onyx Steps” that lead all the way to the top. The palace is only a single, circular floor with polished Onyx flooring and a throne made out of a precious stone called “Gratsu” a naturally polished gray stone that is the toughest substance on the planet. Aurash's Palace is in a high-mountain range far from the capital city, it is constantly well defended and a place for the Aurash to meditate. Pilgrimages are led here, where Ardi will worship and ask advice from their God.
Religion:
The Aurash is the incarnation of their God. Every 500 years the Aurash is reincarnated. Anything the Aurash says or does is complete and total law, there is absolutely no questioning of the Aurash's judgment. All people must worship the Aurash and pledge their lives to him. It is the privilege of every Ardi'lla to spend 100 years of their life in militant service of the Aurash, though many choose to spend even longer. Every day, the Ardi must pray and attend the ritual of the Aurash, where they offer one of their body-parts, severed, as tribute and loyalty.
Arts:
Ardi make pottery and sculptures out of limestone. Often times they will make statues of great historical figures or hieroglyphs of historical wars, battles, or moments.
Currency:
There is no such thing as Ardian currency. They have a socialist government that distributes food in proper quantity, decides where you live according to the job you perform. Usually, the job they perform is passed down by their parents prior job, but hard working and studying Ardi can qualify for bigger better jobs. Other than food and housing, you are free to barter your personal possessions.
Haaghdriguad:
Haughdriguad is basically the Hammurabi's code, or a list of laws to follow. The basic laws are: Do not steal from Aurash's family, do not kill Aurash's family, Protect Aurash's family, Serve Aurash, Remain Loyal to your Blood Family, Remain Fidel to your Partner, Raise Aurash's Children, And Obey Aurash's Priests, and you shall have the divine blessing of Aurash.
Technology:
There is no real technology. Ardian culture has discovered electricity and even advanced physics. However, as a precept of the Annubis, Aurash after the second great war, technology is used to a minimum. The only notable technology are lights, heat, air-conditioning, and Soboaroso, or space Machine.
Military:
Their martial combat is based off of strength and speed, and is primarily unarmed. However, weapons became an essential part of Ardian war in time. Common weapons were steel shortswords and halberds. No official ranged weapons lasted very long in military service save for the spear. Ardian's are melee combat adepts.
History:
The history of the Ardian race is broken into 1000 year periods called Terms. 75 Terms have passed since CoH, or creation of Har'diack'an, the first city. However, their history begins with Shrestesh, BcoH, ( Before Creation )
Shreshtesh was the first nomadic leader ever to write down his journeys. Five hundred years of history learned from Shreshtesh. He lead a band of sixty elite nomadic warriors, and is known as the first Dark Tyrant. He writes about thousands of years of simpleton Ardi who crawled across the sand searching for puddles of water, dying of thirst because of lack of organization, dying before they ever reached maturity. Shreshtesh had his band of sixty, the maximum number that any given oasis area could hold for a few weeks at the time.
The warriors that Shreshtesh lived to old-age, were experienced, and well organized by himself. It was his remarkable leadership and strategies that kept both him and them alive for so long. They were the only ones ever to exist for such a length of time. Shreshtesh is also the oldest recorded Ardi'lla in existence, his life getting him 1200 years of age before he was slain in battle.
Shreshtesh lead his people with brutality, slaughtering other Ardi nomads for the smallest amounts of water. And then eating them. When he was 500, he and his soldiers found and occupied Har'diack'an lake, but refused to allow any nomads near it. Selfishness drove him. He created no technological advancements and only kept himself and his men alive, allowing all others to die before their eyes. It was by no means a true civilization. Among those troops, a new-born child adept in the force. His name, was Deacan.
Deacan disagreed with Shreshtesh. He thought Shreshtesh was cruel. Shreshtesh made his first tactical mistake, he cast Deacan out of his group instead of killing him. By now, Deacan was 27, and could fend for himself. He fought formed his own group to defend themselves against the vicious Akada, the avian predator race, and searched the desert, finding small ponds and Oasis's they could share with other nomads. Deacan was the very first one to discover his force ability. In his travels across the desert planet, he studied and trained the force for a hundred five years. Eventually, he became an adept fighter and an Ardi'lla of great wisdom.
He had dreams for the lake of Har'diack'an. Dreams that Shreshtesh stood in front of. Deacan looked to his people, but none had the discipline needed to fight, and they did not have enough resources to stay in one place and train. Thus he went alone.
According to legend, for Shreshtesh did not live to write his 1201st day and report about Deacan's tale, Deacan fought single-handedly, killing the elite warriors of Shreshtesh and then the Dark Tyrant himself. He opened the lake to all and was the founder of the great city. Deacan was never considered an Aurash in his time, though hailed as King.
~*~
CoH, first Term.
Deacan grew old, and knew he would die one day. He had too much force-knowledge to allow that to pass away with him, so he used Force Sense to bring forth a disciple. This person was a lowly farmer named Hash. Hash and Deacan trained in secret. After 50 years, Deacan passed away. A new leader was elected, one that was not Hash. Hash went back to humbly farming, but still continued his training in the force. 200 years of humble training passed, the city was expanding, but it was completely restricted by the lakes perimeters.
One night, while Hash slept, he could feel the force flowing through the planet vividly, like blood-veins through a body. And vaguely, he sensed the underwaters, a system of thousands of underground rivers. Through a chance connection between this sensing of the force, and a questioning in his mind as to why the lake had never run dry, he explored under-water, and discovered these intricate tunnel systems, almost dying in the process.
A week later, after extensive exploring, Hash surfaced by the lake, walked seventy meters out of city, and began to dig, dig, and dig until he connected with an underground river. The Ardi were so impressed they thought Hash almost divine in knowledge, he explained and showed them the force. They thought he was a God.
It was not until the second Term that Hash would die, but before that he trained a disciple, Techraw. Techraw is known in history as the second Dark Tyrant. He waited for Hash to die, and then ruled over the land with an iron fist, expanding greatly and forcing military rule and subservience among his people. Those who opposed died horribly. All within his wake was assimilated, conquered, destroyed. Other Ardi cultures attempted to spawn their own city-states near underground rivers that Hash had discovered. The war was short, nothing stood up against Techraw. That is, until he had a son, force sensitive as well. This son was named Muraaaj.
Muraaaj did not like his fathers rule one bit. When he grew to age, he studied the dark arts of his father, but secretly he began studying his own, light side attributed arts. When Techraw learned of this, he sent his men after Muraaaj, who slaughtered them with his fathers own teachings. Then he moved on, and destroyed Techraw, silencing his three hundred year empire. Muraaaj became the second Aurash, and established the Trials of Truth and the Priests of Aurash, while also created the theory of Death and Rebirth.
The Priests of Aurash are users of the force enlightened by the Aurash. Muraaaj taught them compassion, mercy, humility, and wisdom, the four noble traits of Ardian society. Death and Rebirth is the Aurash's cycle, the Aurash would be born and destined to lead the people as an enlightened one. He was also destined to die and be reincarnated. But, before a new Aurash could be officially accepted as the reincarnation, he or she must pass the Trials of Truth, which were four tests that ensured without a doubt that one had Compassion, Mercy, Humility, and Wisdom.
Seven terms passed by, allowing Muraaaj's system to become truth itself, and fully develop their culture. Now, the new Aurash was Tak'dem, an Ardi'lla who embodied the beliefs of the Trials and the culture. There was one problem, however. Dissenters existed, who were unhappy with their blind faith to Aurash.
One of these dissenters was Sekhmet, the Third and worst Dark Tyrant. She despised the Aurash and the Priests, and even the very government. Openly. Nobody did anything, for the Aurash was merciful and allowed her opinions to spread, though they did not change government or their ways based on what this minority believed to be true. Things got violent.
Sekhmet had hundreds of supporters, some even in the military, some even in the Priesthood. She was a fallen priest by this time, and long kicked out. When she reached the age of 327 she decided what she must do. None of her supporters were willing to actually go against their society while the Aurash lived. What Sekhemet did was known as the first Aurashied Purge. ( Aurashied becoming an adjective form; purging those who believe in the four Noble Traits. )
Sekhmet was invited to a debate in the city center ( a large stage in the middle of the capital city. ) with Tak'Dem. They spoke very little, actually. Sekhmet's words are considered holy to the Dissident Priests, a group of Dark Tyrants and their cult followers that exist in modern times. Her words go like this,
“To me and mine what we deserve, what we have earned through our skill and power. I will not give what is mine to you, Aurash. Nor to your government. My house is mine and it is the only thing I consider holy. Humility and servitude makes one a drone. Compassion for all things makes one weak in heart. Mercy is a show of weakness. We must be proud of ourselves, self-seeking, and hardened when needed. THAT, is wisdom.”
With those final words Sekhmet used her mental forcepowers to crush the minds of Tak'Dem's guards, and physical force powers to leap the distance between her and Tak'Dem, grabbed him with two arms and with her others, focused force Strength. She punched straight through the exoskeleton and gripped his spine, tearing it out and holding it before his people to see.
Thus the purge began, the Dissident Priests waging civil war with Aurashied.
The Aurash's Palace, at this time known as Sekhmet's stronghold, is created.
The Dissident Priests thought they'd purged every last Aurashied, and ruled for six terms.
However, the Aurashied eventually rose up and retook what was their with the wise leadership of their new Aurash, Odin. He bought order and restored the Aurashied beliefs.
It was not until 30 terms later that histories greatest Ardian crisis occurred, called the Ardian extinction. The Ardian's grew in such size that their cities spanned half of the world, but one day stumbled upon an old foe. Akadan's.
The avian people's had their own, pseudo-empire. The Akadan empire ruled the other half of the world, and once they bumped heads, it got violent once more. Ardian's had, by now, discovered great things in the fields of technology, they had vehicles, computer knowledge, lights, and much more. When the Akadan empire struck, though, they could not defend themselves very well. They were a primitive fighter race, the best weapons they had to take out Akadan's were spears. Scores and scores of Ardian's lost their lives in each battle. The Akadan's laid waste to entire cities, eventually spear-heading straight to the capital.
The sole reason for winning this war was the invention of guns. Ardian's always had the technology, just no reason to create them. When Har'diack'an was attacked, bullets riddled the skies. This time it was the Akadan's turn to be massacred. Aurashied people did not stop with the protection of their cities. They pressed onward until ever last Akadan was extinct, a term or so later.
Three terms passed, and technology was on the rise, but so was a civil war. The Dissident Priests had returned, and their leader, known as the fifth Dark Tyrant, Soel, lead the war with guns blazing.
It was the most destructive war in Ardian history. Cities were war-torn, thousands lay dead on both sides. The war lasted three terms, until finally, Annubis came into the fight. He was elected Aurash, and lead the Priests of Aurash against the Dissident's in a covert operation. The Priests of Aurash slaughtered the Dissident's guards, and went straight for the Dark Priests themselves. It was an epic force battle, with Annubis and three Priests of Aurash coming out victor.
Annubis immediately set to cleaning the planet and restoring. Most technology was absolutely forbidden. Only the basics remained, and a few weapons that were hidden away in case they were absolutely needed; in other words, in case a force like the Akadan Empire ever struck again. Annubis was also the very first to discover how to become a force Ghost.
Many, many terms passed without any real Dissenters.
Recent history: It was discovered through science that one of the near-by asteroid belts had been disrupted, and in a few hundred years it was quite possible that the entire planet would have asteroids rain down on it, destroying everything.
The Aurash of that time, Torro, was not worried. He did not believe it. A peaceful Dissident Priest and former Priest of Aurash, named Aiden Tokono, disagreed, and highly urged the Aurash to allow ships to be built so they could find a new planet. The technology, Soboaroso, had been known, it was fully possible to do this. However, Torro would do nothing. Years passed, and tensions rose as findings found that asteroids were indeed headed on a collision course. A law was passed stating that astrology was forbidden.
Aiden declared that the Aurash had failed the Trial of Wisdom and was no longer fit to lead. A civil war, solely among the Priests of Aurash, and Aiden came out victorious. No blood was shed in this civil dispute. Dissident Priests were given permission to do what will. Aiden lead sixteen Dissident Priests up Torro's steps on the Aurash's Palace. The royal guard went into their own civil war, this one with much blood, some in agreeance with Aiden, others trying to stop him. Fifteen Dissident Priests made it to the inner sanctum, and waged a battle with Torro and twelve of his elite guard; armed with guns.
Aiden was the only survivor, surviving a bitter melee with Torro himself, until finally he picked up a forbidden weapon and shot Torro several times, then finishing him by pulling his spine out as Sekhmet did, and tossing it down the Onyx Steps.
Aiden became the new Aurash. His first decree was to abolish the final forbidden weapons, his second was that the Dissident Priests and the Priests of Aurash would work together to create as many ships as they could.
Aiden stepped down from leadership, because it was decreed he was not a reincarnation, only a temporary leader. In his place, Sempatou passed the trials and became God.
The ships were finished within Aiden's lifetime. It was close. They evacuated as many would go, leaving in twelve different cruiser class ships, one of which was Dissident Priest, the rest were Aurashied people. There were those who refused to leave their home-planet. It was not debated, Sempatou ordered everyone goes, and thus they were forced onto the ships.
The ships took off, and with not much time at all to spare. The asteroids had arrived, and laid waste to all.
~*~
Current history.
The Dissident Priest and Aurashied ships split up, and drift even now along space, searching for a suitable home.