Kaleshi

The Kaleshi were once an extremely proud, wealthy, and powerful race that ruled over a vast space empire in another corner of the galaxy, hundreds of years ago. Due to their own intense hubris, they drew the ire of a Majin Lord who was charting the space for his own dreams of conquest. He played the Kaleshi against each other, using their legendary greed, and exploited the incalculable potential energy that resulted from the following civil war to permanently, magically change the Kaleshi. This twisted spell rendered them nearly inverted versions of themselves, driven insane by an inexplicable need to spend every moment serving others. The majority of the crippled race was corralled by the Majins, and they exist today as self-driven slaves of countless Majin. Some, however, maintained enough of their sanity to escape the Majin's net to search the galaxy for other masters.

Physiology

The Kaleshi are descended from several species of closely-related, fleshy humanoids with subtle, insect-like qualities who coexisted and evolved for eons. Because the subspecies divide still exists in their race to a subtle degree, not all Kaleshi are exactly alike in anatomy. They all have many traits in common, however, to the point where it is not difficult to identify any Kaleshi for their race from appearance.

Kaleshi are hatched from buried eggs, rather than birthed as most mammalian species are, but the eggs are fertilized in a manner similar to human conception. They are all humanoids, or mostly humanoids, that possess a shale gray skin that is similar in texture to a lizard's scales, but much finer. Their most noticeable common quality is usually the horns that emerge from their heads at various points. The number, coloration, size, and shape of these horns vary from one member of the species to another. Kaleshi who are of higher castes in their society tend to be born with longer and more elaborate horns, and the bigger these horns are, the more the person they belong to tends to prize them as a symbol of their pride. Longer horns are sometimes forcibly styled into unorthodox shapes during their youths, so as to project the individuality of their owner. Their eyes are yellow, with universally black pupils, which have the ability to see into the infrared spectrum -- allowing them to see perfectly well even in places where most would see only pitched darkness. This also allows them to see anything that has heat as though it was glowing. Their mouths are full of pointed teeth, and many have long fangs for canines that protrude slightly even when their mouth is closed. Their hands and feet, while usually mostly human-like, are usually adorned with claws, which sometimes are attached to venom sacs.

Kaleshi blood varies in color across the visible spectrum, and was once used to gauge the caste an individual was born to. Those closer to red were of lower rank, while those closer to violet were the most respected. This was primarily because those with redder blood had more physically superior genes, while those with more violet blood tended to be more cunning, and possessed of natural psionic talent. There once was an assortment of blacks and grays in the bloodlines, but these tended to be subsentient brutes, capable of only screaming and herculean destruction, and were bred out of the racial gene pool long ago, when Kaleshi stopped having to fight for themselves.

Speaking of physical activity, Kaleshi never become "fat" as humans and some other races do, due to sedentary lifestyles and inactivity. Their appetite for food diminishes and grows with their physical activity, and their bodies waste whatever cannot be used in the relative short term. Their muscles, on the other hand, can be either weak and lacking from disuse, or bulky and powerful from excessive use. This variable metabolism requires them to eat regularly, however; they cannot fast for longer than a few days, and it often has immediate, visible effects on their well-being.

Variations in Kaleshi have been known to include, but not be limited to adaptations to aquatic environments (allowing some to exist entirely underwater), extraordinarily refined taste that can actually "see" better than their eyes, specialized reproductive systems that can custom-breed swarms of lesser organisms, increased numbers of limbs, and glands that can excrete useful substances, like a spider's silk.

Former Society and Behavior

The Kaleshi Empire once covered thousands of stellar systems, and enslaved or subjugated hundreds of conquered races. Its borders grew as their burgeoning population required new lands to rule over. Despite this aggressive stance toward other civilizations, they were not necessarily overly cruel or demanding masters of those they brought under their thumb, and they were clever enough to avoid hostilities and foster trade with empires they believed might be too resilient, powerful, or well-connected to bring low. While they were not particularly well-liked as a race, due to their obnoxious elitism and greed, they were generally tolerated by their bigger neighbors, since the products and services brought by the people they controlled were often enormously cheaper than similar goods from free peoples who decided their own market worth.

At the top of the Empire, there sat her Imperial Deific, the Empress of the Kaleshi. Their leader was always a female, and was always very, very carefully bred and raised in a highly manicured environment, away from the rest of the populace. As a result of this extreme care and treatment, the Empress always has the most purple violet blood of all Kaleshi. Some rumors reported that it even possessed an ultraviolet glow proportionate to her power. Though this Empress almost never saw battle first-hand, her psionic powers were said to be so exceptional that she could speak directly to any of her subjects from any distance, and if she so wished, a fully grown Empress could bodily move and crush entire planets with her mind. It was through her will and direction that the Kaleshi Empire grew and thrived. Her intellect was said to be unfathomable. Her image projected respect and fear into even the greatest of her own people. A single Empress could often live for hundreds of years, sustained by her own stubborn and psychically dominating refusal to age.

Directly beneath her was a cult of dark enforcers, those of violet blood, who carried out the spirit of the Empress's will and acted essentially as free agents of the crown, with authority to do almost anything they wanted, so long as it was in the favor of the Empress. They frequently operated in the shadows and used their mental powers to make others their puppets. They also wore elaborate costumes and masked their identities on the rare circumstance that they met someone in person, so as to protect themselves from being targeted by assassins. The masks would then be copied and given to other people, who would be forced to wear them when they carried out the cultist's bidding. These masks became part of their identity as much as their own real faces, and only the Empress ever saw an adult member of the cult without their mask.

Then came the regional administrators and politicians, of blue and indigo blood, who presided over whole star systems and clusters, often in groups. To many outsiders, they were the face of the Kaleshi people, and they tended to embody the best and worst of their stereotypes. They forever yearned to own everything that they could, and have command over the greatest, best, and most luxurious things possible. Possessed by material greed, but tempered by a wily cunning that took most other races by surprise, these power players knew what to say to whom to make things happen in their favor. They knew what moves to make to progress themselves and their Empire. Theirs were the lives that lower Kaleshi dreamed of having. Tragically, it was through their own avarice and manipulative ways that the Empire was destroyed.

After the administrators were the commanders and leaders. These green and yellow blooded individuals marshalled the many Imperial fleets and armies, including their slave warriors. They also governed planets, or provinces of planets. Some green-bloods were bred specifically for upkeeping the Home Swarm, a host of sub-sentient creatures genetically spliced and bred to watch over the Kaleshi homeworld, where their people generally went to deposit their eggs, and those eggs were then hatched and raised by the Swarm until they reached adulthood.

The lowest of the Kaleshi were the red-bloods and orange-bloods, and these formed the bulk of Kaleshi society. This wasn't to say that they were, by any means, at the bottom of the Empire's pile; they simply tended only to have authority over one another, or over groups of other races. They often ran businesses and oversaw the finer details of the Empire's economy. When they entered the battlefield, they were given the best equipment available, and generally had their own vanguards of warrior slaves. Usually lacking psychic talent, these warriors were instead extraordinary martial masters, capable of taking on groups of enemy warriors at a time.

For the majority of the Kaleshi, including those as high as the administrators, common behavior didn't include anything particularly bizarre. Those of higher caste obviously led more luxurious and catered lives than those below, but their personalities, for the most part, ran the normal gamut. Kaleshi simply tended to be ambitious creatures who always were looking to better their lot in life, and were almost never simply satisfied with what they received. Though greedy by nature, they were as likely to be good or evil as most other races, which factored into which avenues they were willing to pursue to achieve their goals. Generally materialistic in nature, Kaleshi were big on gift-giving occasions, and the idiom "It's the thought that counts" rarely enters into their minds. Giving something of low value on such an occasion would be akin to a direct insult.

Lacking families, many Kaleshi track their specific genetic strain, bearing symbols of their heritage. In youth, they research those who achieved greatness within their strain, and compare their own personalities and merits with their biological celebrity forebears. They never knew who laid their egg, nor do those who lay eggs ever seek out their offspring. Though raised by the Home Swarm, Kaleshi young hatch mostly independent already, and live most of their young lives with only minimal assistance and guidance. Their natural ambitions guide them to learn necessary skills. They are not, however, generally allowed to leave their homeworld until they fully mature.

Kaleshi society was highly technologically advanced. Computers were interlaced throughout everything, and almost all Kaleshi were at least savvy with operating most common computers. Most were capable of crafting their own software, as computers were simply additions to the host of servants that surrounded them, and knowing how to make them do what you wanted them to do was a crucial part of their life. They placed high value in scientific pursuits, and a significant portion of their populace were scientists in their own rights. They specialized in bioengineering; the Home Swarm was one of their crowning achievements, as they invented an entire ecosystem that revolved around their own race. They also were quite skilled at manipulating and interfacing technology with psychic energy.

While they were aware of magic, the Kaleshi were mostly never any good at manipulating it. They instead conquered races who were powerful mages, optimized their progress as only a race of bureaucrats could, and then made use of them whenever magic was called for.

The Curse

The curse of the Majin wrecked the Kaleshi Empire nearly overnight, turning calculating overlords and powerful psions into servile doormats. Oppressed and enslaved races quickly realized their masters were suddenly powerless, and uprisings mounted everywhere. Entire space armadas happily surrendered to a single flotilla of Majin forces without a single shot fired, out of their sudden desire to be helpful. The Imperial Deific, who lived her life in an unassailable flying fortress where every Empress has ever been hatched and lived out their lives, encountered one of her slaves, whom she had treated with particular cruelty in the past, and was ordered to kill herself. She was so eager to do so that she winked the entire ship out of existence.

The magic does not simply make a Kaleshi want to serve others, it makes them need to serve others. Their very life force drains with every moment they are not living in service to someone who is not a Kaleshi. It is possible for a Kaleshi to refuse a request or order that another has made, but it takes great willpower to do so, and results in detrimental health effects. While they can delicately maintain their sanity to a certain degree by regularly performing services for people, they innately seek out someone to whom they can form a bond of servitude for. Through such a bond, made through the willing consumption of some of the Kaleshi's willingly-given blood, their burden is lightened considerably when they are close to their master. In addition, they are empowered by the uniqueness of the one they choose to serve, drawing energy and strength from power wielders, for instance. Every service they perform for their masters grants them renewed vigor and pleasure proportionate to the scale of the deed, and the sacrifices required. As the master becomes stronger, so do they. While bonded, however, they do not experience relief from their curse for helping others. This also insinuates that they will have no particular urge to help them, either. They also find it almost impossible to refuse a request made by their master, if they believe it is possible to perform. They will generally not stop trying to follow a given request until they have either been ordered to stop, or can not possibly conceive any way to continue pursuing it.

This bond can be traded between masters every so often, if the first master orders their Kaleshi to give blood to the second. It is also possible for the master to simply break the bond by ordering the Kaleshi to be free. This breakage does not relieve the Kaleshi of their curse, but returns them to an unbonded state. It is also utterly excruciating and tortuous upon their souls, leaving them writhing in pain for weeks before they can return to some kind of stability -- that is, unless they somehow form another bond first. If a master should die, the bond is broken as well, but far more catastrophically; there is a good chance the Kaleshi will also die from the after-effects. Should they survive, recovery can be long, harsh, and even fatal in itself, if they are not properly looked after. A maintained and served bond, however, can lead to a sort of twisted Stockholm syndrome, where the Kaleshi grows fond, affectionate, and sometimes even falls in love with their master, irrespective of their normal sexual preferences.

There are whispers in the galaxy that there is a way to remove the curse entirely from an individual Kaleshi, but the circumstances are both complicated and extraordinarily difficult to execute. Because so many Kaleshi were taken in by the very ones who manufactured the curse, knowledge about these methods is all but non-existent. It is said, however, that a Kaleshi who is bonded to a master for long enough, and who serves them loyally enough, begins to feel something of a "tunnel of light" in their mind, and that this "tunnel" may lead one to freedom ... or death, or insufferable loss. Few have bothered to research a counterspell for the curse on the race as a whole; only Kaleshi really cared for their own company, during their twilight years, and now that most of them are servants to the wickedly evil Majins, their reputation has only suffered.