Welcome, stranger. Worry not, unlike most others of my kind, I have no intention of harming you. The culture of the Ssik? Yes, I know that. While my people are brutal and warlike, we do keep records. I suppose I should start with history, on the Conquest of the Mmig.

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History Edit

The Conquest of the Mmig Edit

In year 24 BT, under the Skull Moon, to you that's Galactic year 120045, our people were diverse in culture and binary in form- the upper caste Ssik'Liih and the lower caste the Ssik'Fyyth, now referred to as "Shock Troopers". For centuries now, we had been at planetary war, on and off. Alliances were made, cultures exterminated, and lives ruined. The citizen Ssik'Liih'Tzinx-Kraax of the Mandibular Moon had created in the city of Drrek a cult around himself, and the bodily modifications he could preform. In fact, we have a record of one of his speeches. The translation is rough, but the message is there.

"Our kind, the stronger, smarter Liih and the low Fyyth have existed unchanged for hundreds of thousands of years. We have, for all that time, striven for unity, for happiness, for peace. We have found war. Our children are left without a family of home; our sick and dying without healing of respect. The savage, animal tyranny of the Tl'ekh warlords have brought us nowhere. The old system, with the Tl'ekh who proves himself strongest leading hordes to senseless battle, must be obliterated. It must martyr for our righteous cause- the cause of the Ssik'Mmig! I have toiled since the Tibial Moon on creating a third caste- the Mmig of which I speak. We will become rulers of this new world, the chosen few, to rule, as is told by the great one, LaDucaray! Rise, people of Drrek! Our bloodlight hour is at hand. We must revolt!"

Now that's a lot to take in. Let me start- Tl'ekh is the ruler of an army, as you surely have surmised. The position of Tl'ekh is ancient, in fact modeled after the Alpha status of my kind's pack hunting ancestry, and, disregarding cultural formalities such as ceremonies and outfits, had remained almost unchanged from it. At that point, however, the Tl'ekh ruled over vast swathes of land and armies that reached populations of over ten thousand. While those numbers aren't impressive in these days of interstellar colonization where armies are counted in trillions, it was enough to control large percentages of what was at the time the only world available.

LaDucaray is our only god, a war god and a subject of much debate among scholars. To be honest I do not believe in most religion, but LaDucaray has some substantial evidence behind his existence- reports of his appearance, personality, and message are almost exactly the same, despite coming from sources that supposedly had no contact with each other. He has made eerily accurate predictions- in fact, he mentions in one text a Liih by the name of Tzinx conquering the world. I suspect he is real, but not as Godly as my culture believes. Doubtless though, LaDucaray, if he exists, is immensely powerful.

Well, I suppose that's enough background information for now. Tzinx had discovered a way to alter the body and genetic makeup of Ssik, and through our kind many others. Information on how many died in the process of learning this have been snuffed out by Tzinx's followers, known to you as the Ssik Empire, but it's a big galaxy, and it's very hard to destroy information. You mustn't tell anyone, but I in fact have been looking into this. I haven't found anything yet.

But I digress. Ssik'Liih'Tzinx-Kraax of the Mandibular Moon and his army, led by the *genetic variants* known as Mmig conquered Drrek rather quickly. The city was renamed Drex and, 212 years later when we became a space faring race in the galactic year 120291, our year 236 AT, the planet was dubbed Drex, as opposed to our word for dirt which is what we knew it as previously. Drex is now known as the capital of the mighty Ssik empire and the most deadly planet for non-Ssik in the galaxy. From the city Drex, then, Tzinx conquered the main continent, renaming the city Tzinxopolis and the continent Drex. Conquest of the continent took sixteen years. Tzinx then made sure anyone with a position of power was a Ssik'Mmig, one of his creations. Interestingly, Tzinx never modified himself in any way. While the official fact is that he was being selfless, the hushed whispers say that becoming a Ssik'Mmig was painful and dangerous. Tzinx's empire conquered, through bloodshed, almost the entire planet. Tzinx continued to lead his army through the planet until his untimely death in 0 BT, Galactic year 120069. Our calendar today starts with that year. His daughter, Ssik'Mmig'Tzinx-Vliss of the Sternal Moon would finish taking control of the planet, barring a single continent. The conquest of the Mmig was over.

The Birth of the Chancellory Edit

In the year 57 AT Ssik'Mmig'Tzinx-Vliss of the Sternal Moon felt her time was coming soon, and she was without an heir. The system she used was not much more complex than that of the Tl'ekh her father despised. She decided her parting gift to the world word be a stable government. She formed the chancellory, Six Mmig of different opinion and hatchmoon, to rule in her absence. Each chancellor would choose his next in line, who would choose *his* next in line, and so on for a total of six in line, including the chancellor. The names of most chancellories are lost to time, but the first are recorded. The Sternal position was held by Tzinx-Vliss herself, the Mandibular by Hmmal-Kross, Carpal by Kluss-Kluss, Tibial by Hmmal-Ythh, Skull by Frezz-Czon, and Tarsal by Tmon-Piimba. Our propaganda has made them out to be brilliant leaders with a plan for planetary prosperity. "The First Chancellory" is used as an expletive and a promise. As is common, real records of their personalities went missing or, more likely, were outright destroyed.

Tzinx passed away at the age of 81 the next year. Little is know of her next in line, Xinz-Czon. The Xinz lineage was killed in the year 279 AT when their colony Xinzia was rendered inhospitable in the Last Battle of Xinzia. What is known is that her death resulted in the Chancellory reorganizing much of the structure. Each chancellor had his Subchancellor, who served as second in command, replacement in the case of impeachment or death, and general right hand Ssik. The Subchancellor must be of the same hatchmoon as his superior, but there are rumors of Chancellors changing their hatchdates. Each Chancellor also had their own personal militia. The central military, however, would be led by a Fuehrer. Ssik'Mmig'Raatk-Ythh of the Carpal Moon was chosen for this role. Under the Fuehrer would be the Generals, the number of which varies. Below the Generals were the Minor Generals, then a Planetary Archon added during the start of the interstellar age, then Brigadiers, the rank that no longer receives press from position alone, then Colonels, who's jurisdiction ranges from small squadrons to massive fleets, then finally Captains, which later became starship Captains. At the time of our single planet empire, the only rank lower than captain was soldier, but a chain of command was established once Captains began piloting vessels and more than two ranks were needed.

Bioindustrial Revolution Edit

Throughout the revolution of Tzinx-Kraax and the Chancellory, life for the populous remained almost unchanged. They worked for whoever was in power, toiling to keep the herds of grazers in check. For most of our history, we kept our food animals is large ranches, using up enough space to comfortably double our population. This all changed in the 60's. Scientist Ssik'Liih'Thman-Ciit of the Tibial Moon realized in 62 AT that he could, using the technology invented by Ssik'Liih'Tzinx-Kraax of the Mandibular Moon, create a creature that didn't need wide open spaces and produced as much meat as possible. His first attempts were flawed and simplistic, dying a few hours after creation. Thman had gotten too ambitious, altering his subject too drastically. After months of experimentation, he discovered that he needed gradual change- each generation clearly distinct from, but definitely similar to the last. After 8 long years, he revealed the fruits of his labor and put it to market. Ssik'Liih'Tham-Ciit is probably responsible for our planet's interstellar exploration. Nonetheless, the thought that Tzinx's technology could be used to make efficient herd animals surely would have been eventually.

Thman-Ciit's creatures radically changed the face of our planet. 60% of the surface, previously, was devoted to letting herd animals feed and wallow. in 124 AT, by which time all herd animals but those owned by the eccentric were replaced by Ciitons, only 2% of our surface was devoted to it. The population of our planet exploded. By the time our population was nearing populace per land of before the Ciitons, the Chancellors, who by now had experienced multiple revolutions that had absolutely no actual effect, realized something must be done. And so, they offered a large sum of money to anyone who could invent space travel. Failing that, they created a military subsection devoted to space travel. It was not until 142 AT that the first Ssik spacecraft was launched.

A Colony on Ytiss Edit

The first Ssik spacecraft launched promptly exploded. It took our kind seven tries before launching a spacecraft that survived. It was not until the year 157 AT that we made a spaceship that succeeded in staying in orbit. It had taken 30 years for the Ssik to master space travel.

We found nothing on our moon. On our sister planet Ytiss we found our first extradrexal life. Nothing was sentient- all life on Ytiss was lowly evolved, still entirely aquatic. Biologists tried their hardest to simply study them, leave their environment untouched. Bioindustrialists, on the other hand, wanted to experiment of Ytiss and had the money to do so. Thman Company created it's own spaceship and a colony on Ytiss. In 161 AT, Thman Company renamed the planet Thmanis and declared it a sovereign nation, separate from the Empire. There they experimented on the native life, rapidly accelerating evolution and making workers for themselves.

The Tzinxian Empire of planet Drex did not approve of this. War was declared in 174 AT. The Thmanians were not unprepared; they had engineered creatures of battle. Massive flying creatures, easily able to outmaneuver Tzxinx's primitive spacecraft, toxic parasites, inflicting upon their enemies horrific wounds and terrifying symptoms, and a whole host of super soldiers. The Drexians soon realized this was could not be fought on the planet's surface- it must be fought from the sky. Drexian spacecraft, one out of the atmosphere, was unmatched by anything the Thmanians could produce. Thmanian technology was biologic- it could not survive the vacuum of space. The Drexians had spent the time the Thmanins spent on bioengineering on war ships. When faced with enemies they could not beat, Thmanis surrendered.

Terms of surrender were harsh. For sterters, the planet was to be renamed Ytiss and the Thmanians stripped of their name. Second, the Drexians were to have complete access to the Thmanian creations. Finally, Thmanian leaders were to serve the Chancellory or be executed. Many chose the latter- the Ssik are a proud kind, as the Allies have experienced. It is a well known fact that Thmanis exterminated the majority of their creations upon surrender, as well as the data on how to make them. There is speculation, little of it based on fact, on just what the Thmanians created. More than one Ssik story is about the wild creations of the Thmanians, creatures unparalleled even today, over a hundred years later, despite only having a little under 20 years to research. There are more that take place in an alternate history where Thmanis won it's independence and eventually conquered Drex, leading to a galaxy of biological spaceships and entirely organic technology. Nonetheless, the Drexians made good use of the knowledge Thmanis didn't manage to destroy, or rather, let survive. Ytiss became a thriving colony, and to this day has a spark of pride, of rebellion. Rebellion would be foolish, as they are a moment's ride from Drex, the hub of the Ssik Empire.

Leaving the System Edit

In the year 200 AT, the Ssik had advanced far enough to leave the solar system and travel to other stars. The first sentient life we met were the Dubel. The Dubel were large, twice as large as our Mmig. Records show that they were large even by Galactic standards. They were shady merchants, but they took us under their wing. They told us the galaxy was chaos, with no grand council or legal system. This worried the Dubel and fascinated us.

We eventually left the Dubel's territory, now our territory, and went to explore our galactic arm. We found that they were right- the galaxy was lawless. We found for example that the Wolu, an insect like race, had wiped out the innocent Vtissians, a repltilian specie. We enslaved the Wolu and mutated them into unintelligent creatures as a form of justice. But no one else was interested in justice, at least, that we met at the time. We were exploring, only leaving a few poorly managed colonies here and there.

Eventually we managed to make the jump from our arm (Now truly our arm) to a nearby one. There we met the Nychus and the Schiz Ming. Like the Dubel, they did not like this disorganized galaxy. They wanted a Galctic Council, a unified Galaxy. The Ssik wanted to help them. We formed a trifecta, the Niss Alliance in 236 AT, galactic year 120205. The Ssik found that we and the Nychus had much in common- they were Knights and we, warriors. We found power in strength and the ability to take. The Schiz Ming were pacifists and diplomats. We used them as our peaceful front, an extending friendly hand of the Niss Alliance. The Niss made little leeway- we were not forceful enough, we didn't push it. Nonetheless, it was an idealistic time, where the Galaxy was ours and no one was in our way.

That time did not last long.

When Ssik'Mmig'Thiss-Pimbaa of the Sternal Moon, contemporary Fuehrer, died in the year 241 AT, he let in power the Ssik responsible for the great Ssik-Allies war which has lasted almost a century. His name was Ssik'Mmig'Hmmal-Rachh of the Mandibular Moon. He did not like the Ssik's place in the Niss alliance. The Ssik decrees could be vetoed if the Nychus and Schiz Ming so agreed. Hmmal did not like this. He decided the Ssik needed to do something to prove they don't need Niss Alliance, to ourselves as much as to the Nychus and Schiz Ming. They would eliminate the Grox. The Grox, as you know, controlled the core of the Galaxy. They held incredible power, and seemed untoughable to the Niss empire. Hmmal's battle planning and strategies, along with his engineer's work, allowed us to carve a bloody swathe through the Grox territory. Conquest was arduous. Eventually, however, we reached the Grox homeworld, a path of dead or and conquered planets behind us. The Grox's last stand was reportedly a pathetic one. We conquered their planet quickly, and named it Rachhis after the Fuehrer that let us conquer it. It was neighboring a giant white disturbance- the Galaxy's mysterious core.

Hmmal'Rachh decided that one day he would visit his planet and journey into the Disturbance. At the time, however, he was preoccupied with leaving the Niss Alliance.

The War Begins Edit

He decided, without the Chancellory's permission, to eradicate the Dubel. The poor Dubel, who had guided us. The Dubel, who had taught us of the Galaxy. Believe me when I say the Dubel massacre gives me grief every night. My kind and the evils it has done bring me no end of sorrow and regret.

Hmmal'Rachh took control of the Chancellory by military force. They were stripped of their personal armies and rendered to figureheads, powerless puppets of the military. The Ssik Empire became a military state. We became worst enemies of the Nychus and evil to the Schiz Ming. The Niss alliance, the Dubel race, and any hope of respect for the Ssik in the next thousand years, all destroyed by one man.

Hmmal proceeded to conquer every planet within a day's radius of Drex, our home planet. The Nychus and Schiz Ming were absolutely horrified; this turn of events came out of the blue, the Ssik, it seemed, were so intent of Galactic order. Why, then, were they conquering the Galaxy? That, too, I am looking into. I suspect it was simply to feed Hmmal'Rachh's megalomania, or perhaps the idea that once we control the galaxy, it will be in order. Maybe there's something bigger at work. I'm not sure, and as a scientist I can't completely ignore any possibility.

In the Galactic year 120331, our year 262, the Nychus and Schiz Ming declared war on the Ssik Empire, an empire two hundred and eighty two years old. The rest has been documented in your Skinta Datafiles.

Culture Edit

Naming and Moons Edit

Most outworlders I meet, not that I've met many, seem confused at Ssik names at first. The formula is simple, really. It goes "Ssik'Caste'Family name-Given name of the blank Moon", where blank is the moon the Ssik was hatched under. Drex has only one Moon, which makes exactly six rotations around Drex in the time it takes for Drex to rotate it's star. We call each rotation a "Moon" and use it to measure time. Which Moon a Ssik is hatched under is said to have an effect on that Ssik's life. Scientists currently believe that in reality it is a combination of the child being treated the manner of their supposed fate and simple placebo effect that makes this effect "come true", but it isn't rare to see someone who wholeheartedly believes in them, and everyone does judge Ssik a bit on what moon they were hatched under, not that they would admit it. As such, the current Moon is important to our culture, despite being an interplanetary race. Partially due to the culture split caused by the war and partially due to plain old stubborn pride, the Ssik still primarily use Drex's year and Moon, while most other races use Glactic year and the twelve months that come with it. Each Moon is named after a bone, and Ssik commonly wear the bone of their Moon. Skulls are worn by everyone, but only on the head of those hatched under the Skull Moon.

The six moons are:

The Skull Moon Edit

The Skull Moon is the first moon in our calendar. It roughly corresponds with your March and April months in season. The Skull Moon marks the end of the dry season and as such is a time of joy and prosperity. The first day of Skull is the New Year while the seventh is the holiday of Kraaxis, currently celebrating the life of Ssik'Liih'Tzinx-Kraax of the Mandibular Moon, but historically simply a celebration of the first hunt of many kinds of hibernating prey. Ssik hatched under the Skull Moon are said to be "geniuses, destined to think". The Skull Moon's enemy is the Mandibular Moon. I myself was hatched on the third of the Skull Moon.

The Tarsal Moon Edit

The Tarsal Moon is our second Moon. It corresponds with your May and June. The Sternal Moon is a time of plenty, and is the only moon with no holidays. As such it is loved by children and hated by the working class. Ssik hatched under the Tarsal Moon are said to be "Quick and cunning". The Tarsal Moon's enemy is the Carpal Moon.

The Sternal Moon Edit

The Sternal is our third Moon, lining up with your July and August. It has the holiday of Achnilis, when we celebrate the unification of the planet Drex with the orbital bombardment and annihilation of Frilt, the unconquered continent. Frilt is always on the fiftieth day of Sternum. Ssik hatched under the Sternal Moon are "Stout, tough warriors". It's enemy is the Tibial Moon

The Mandibular Moon Edit

The Mandibular Moon is our fourth, corresponding roughly with your September and October. It is prehistorically a sad one, heralding the end of the wet season and the time when many animals go into torpor and can't be hunted. It's also the Moon of Tzinxis, when we celebrate the hatching and death of Ssik'Liih'Tzinx-Kraax of the Mandibular Moon, on the seventh day of Mandible. Ssik hatched under the Mandibular Moon are said to be "Conquerers, destined to lead". It's enemy is the Skull Moon

The Carpal Moon Edit

The Carpal Moon is the fifth, lining up with your November and December. It is the time of crafting and preparing, when we ready our weapons and tools for the wet season. The twenty-sixth of Carpal is Spear Day, nowadays celebrated by kids decorating their own spears. Spear Day is mostly considered a children's holiday and work isn't called off. Ssik hatched under the Carpal Moon are "Fierce and powerful fighters" The Carpal Moon's enemy is the Tarsal Moon

The Tibial Moon Edit

The Tibial Moon is the fifth and last of our Moon, lining up with January and February of your calendar. It is the time of hope and the future, with the Skull Moon and wet season soon to come. The forty-ninth of Tibia is Dreent, the day when the ephemeral is said to cross over into our world, but is nowadays associated with drug users and their hallucinations. Ssik hatched under the Tibial Moon are said to be "Dreamers and oracles". The Tibial Moon's enemy is the Sternal Moon.

Art Edit

Yes, the Ssik have art, despite what I hear most outsiders believe. Ssik art primarily revolves around smell and sound, with images being used sparingly. The idea of moving images was introduced to us by the Schiz Ming, and faded out of style when we cut ties with all other races. We Ssik pride ourselves as storytellers, recounters of battle and sharers of emotion.

Rrsth'ill is the Ssik art of telling long stories. One word it can translate to is "Epic". Rrsth'ills were traditionally historical, and where most of what we know about the time of Tl'ekh warlords, when written history was scarce and Tl'ekh would have epic tales of their conquests recorded. Tl'ekh Rrsth'ill have given your layman Ssik a romanticized view of the time period. Rrsth'ill are characterized by a lack of olfactory record- they were first created at a time when the ability to artificially produce smells was rare. Common themes include military conquest, economics, and philosophical quests told through parable. LaDucaray appears regularly in Rrsth'ill. There are some Rrsth'ill that have risen to fame.

Rrsth'ill of Ssik'Missh-Ghog of the Sternal Moon Edit

This epic of Missh-Ghog is one of the oldest known, and possibly the first. It is the result of centuries of oral tradition, and involves Missh-Ghog's quest to conquer the plains of Drex. Missh-Ghog allegedly was the first warlord to conquer by force another Tl'ekh's terriotry. The story starts with a meeting with LaDucaray. While most tales involve the Ssik recognizing LaDucaray, Missh-Ghog does not and tries, at first, to kill the god.

Many Ssik look up to Missh-Ghog, seeing him as the paragon of leadership and power. Interestingly, Ssik'Liih'Tzinx-Kraanx of the Mandibular Moon did not, spurning the ideal of Missh-Ghog. He allegedly attempted to destory the Rrsth'ill, and it is only thanks to the continent of Frilt, who held off the Ssik Empire until long after Kraanx's death that we still have it.

Rrsth'ill of Ssik'Fyyth'Yr-Thys of the Skull Moon Edit

The most interesting thing about this epic is that it is not about a Liih or a Mmig but a Fyyth, the lowly worker caste of the Ssik. Taking place during the Tzinxian Revolution, it is about a young worker who sees multiple battles important to history and eventually becomes one of the first Ssik to join the artificial Mmig class. LaDucaray here takes the role of mentor, guiding Yr through battles safely, and Yr is told repeatedly of his "great destiny", at the time it was a preposterous idea to have a Fyyth be of any importance, let alone having great destiny. To this day the story remains controversial, especially among the more hierarchical planets.

Olfactory Art Edit

During the Bioindustral Revolution, one use for the newfound technology was the creation of small organisms whose only purpose was to produce a particular smell. The technology to keep these creatures alive for more than a few weeks was not perfected until 178 AT, long after the revolution. These organisms are carefully placed on a sheet made of various nutrients in varying amounts and areas, giving the illusion of either something physical or an emotion to Ssik. These sheets can be experienced best by standing directly in front of them. During the period of peace between the Ssik and the visual minded Schiz Ming, artists toyed with giving each organism a color then painting them, allowing the media to be experienced by both visual and olfactory life forms. Sadly, these "paintings" have all since died.

Olfactory Writing Edit

These organisms were later put to a different use- writing. Almost all texts written after the revolution were written in odorous text, to give it a depth perceivable only to Ssik.