Elafiale

-- OUTBOUND TRANSMISSION --

-- SENDER UNKNOWN --

-- SUBJECT: ELAFIALE --

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Preface

While their entry onto the galactic stage was turbulent, the Elafiale have a fascinating anatomical structure and adaptations. I have enjoyed detailing them, and under better circumstances, I would enjoy providing you with these reports, but I know where your dark fascinations lie.

History

The species here do not know of the Manifold Drive. Instead, their travel to new stellar systems is relegated to hyperlanes and gateways that serve to bypass them to some extent, though not to systems off-network.

While it seemed most major hyperlanes had already been discovered, a prevailing theory held that additional networks might be overlaid on the primary ones. “Intralane space” it was called. Inside these additional networks, it was hypothesized that separate societies, not unlike the three major powers, existed—effectively another galactic society running in parallel with the first.

Another widespread lane network like the one that permeates the current paradigm was never discovered, but the theory still holds water, especially when in 3501 FE, the Hegemony managed to open a path into the Thdellvas Lane Network, giving access to a large new series of stars and a number of new species. The Thdellvasi, an avian species after which the network was named, had organized the others into a mercantile trading consortium.

I will not detail the specifics of this community or the arrangement with the Hegemony that followed, but five years later, the entirety of the union inside the newly opened lane network had been absorbed into the Hegemony. The Thdellvasi themselves became a new Tier 2 species that now heads the organization Midas, responsible for resource generation and distribution for the Hegemony’s member species—a vital organ that the burgeoning Hegemony was in desperate need of at this point in time. Many of the species continued on as they were in roles that supported the Thdellavsi as their clients, but a few, the Elafiale included, were poached and placed elsewhere.

It was clear that the Elafiale had an unnatural aptitude for spatial navigation and traversal, and because of this, they were placed under the Kanogril of the military branch as a Tier 4 species that specialized in carrying out the fleet actions given by their patrons, and serving as traffic controllers for any number of Hegemony installations.

Unfortunately, as I alluded, this transition was quite turbulent for the Elafiale. Kanogril society is structured around obedience and strict adherence to the chain of command. At some point in their ancestry, a biological quirk developed that saw them become rather cruel to those beneath them, likely as a way to display authority and suppress any challenges from outsiders to those who lead their small cohorts. Conversely, they are unwaveringly loyal to those placed above them in the chain of command.

For the Elafiale, this meant they were subject to harsh treatment from their Kanogril masters. Unrealistic requests, decreased rations, long working hours under sub-optimal conditions—there seemed to be no end to the number of complaints raised by the Elafiale. The ISF took note of the developing situation, and recruited many disgruntled Elafiale as pilots for their shuttles. It became clear to the Hegemony’s internal analysts that if the situation were to continue on its current trajectory, the Elafiale would revolt altogether within the decade.

This was the start of the reformation of the Hegemony into its modern incarnation—one that attempted to preserve cohesion between its members through understanding, and becoming something that members wanted to be a part of, rather than cohesion enforced  purely through domination. It was to become something closer to what it had been in the beginning.

The first order of business was the relations between the Kanogril and Elafiale. It had been known that the Kanogril behavioral quirk was biological and involuntary. The same individual being repressed would, within minutes, be treated with the utmost respect and obeyed without question if the individual were placed in a position of authority. To take advantage of this, the Elafiale became largely self-governing, with only certain representatives and those in high positions such as admirals needing to interact with Kanogril regularly, serving as a buffer for their prickly antics. Additionally, there were certain Elafiale that were actually given positions above the Kanogril, that would then act as directors for how underlings would be treated.

This, on the whole, was successful. Relations between the two are still somewhat coarse to this day, but interaction is minimal, and the efforts undertaken to understand the other have yielded begrudging respect and the ability to cooperate despite differences.

Today, despite being a Tier 4 species, the Elafiale have distinguished themselves. They produce, own, and operate a large number of the Hegemony’s battle groups and are prominently represented in positions of authority such as admirals, commodores, and hyperspace aperture and station administrators. Even outside the realm of the military branch to which they are beholden, they are commonly seen working as shuttlecraft pilots and navigators for the large cargo haulers Midas runs—a callback to their roles in the TLN nearly two thousand years prior.

Morphology

As I prefaced, the Elafiale have a fascinating morphology that seems to have strongly influenced their psychology and culture.

Using our system of astral-taxonomy, the Elafiale general morphology is Antilopinae primary, with Cervidae secondary. The immediate visual is that of a slender, hexapedal gazelle. The differences, however, are readily apparent.

First, the eyes. Elafiale have six glassy, black eyes that are arranged in triangular clusters of three on each side of the head. If I had to hypothesize, I would say that the reason for this was an adaptation to the numerous large predatory avian species on their homeworld, most of which appear to now be extinct, to my disappointment. Elafiale are most comfortable in the wide-open grasslands and savannas that cover most of the planet. Accompanying this are numerous rocky pillars and karst regions that host nests of the aforementioned predators. With their six eyes (four of which face upwards), Elafiale have an excellent field of view and constantly watch the skies. This is no doubt the source of their preternatural ability to understand and work within three-dimensional spaces—their brains are on par with avian and subaqueous species in that regard. It does seem to have had some drawbacks, which I will lay out below in their society.

Aside from their eyes and their antlers (which I will review later), their heads are almost eerily similar to a terrestrial gazelle—no notable differences in muzzle structure, teeth, or ears. Even their dimensions are analogous; they stand roughly 1.2 lengths tall to the shoulders and 1.1 lengths long.
 
The legs are another story; the split limbs are an unusual adaptation very few species exhibit. Elafiale are technically hexapods, but I hesitate to label them as such—the front limbs branch at the “Respunil” (their fused radius-and-ulna analog) and form a second limb behind the first. This limb is most often used for stability, but can also be used with others for manipulation.

All six hooves are cloven, but the front four are triangular, tripartite, and decidedly more slender and elongated, with a central terminus that allows the three parts of the hoof to flex independently of each other—“fingers”, or their closest equivalent. They almost look too delicate to walk on! The weight distribution across six legs helps relieve stress.

I was impressed by their ability to manipulate objects with such dexterity, using such rudimentary grasping extremities. Even more impressive is how they accomplish the task. The lateral mobility of their limbs—especially inward—is greatly hindered by their body, so instead of using the second set of limbs as the graspers, Elafiale will bend the front limb backward and use both hooves on the same side in tandem—very unusual! From observing their fawns, it seems this trick—bending the forelimb back to hold an object with the second set— takes quite some time to master. The earliest I have seen an individual successfully accomplish a firm hold is roughly 2 years—late into the Elafiale development cycle. From genetic samples, I deduced this correlates with hand-eye coordination development in their brains, and trying to work with and instruct fawns to lower the age has borne no fruit and has incensed many parents.

Their coloration is also strange—their fur is green! This is due to an unorthodox mix of copper from their cupric blood (also unusual) and a bile-based pigmentation. Along their flanks, they are striped with thin lines of black, brown, and white, the last of which extends to their undersides, neck, and muzzle. They do blend in marvelously with the grass, especially when viewed from above.

Elafiale have antlers that grow symmetrically and in inorganic, almost fractal patterns upward and out. They always bisect at a set angle before continuing on. The reason for this is unknown, but they are hypnotic. Males are roughly 23% larger than females, but they both have antlers. Males’ racks are larger. Female antlers grow only upward and back and generally split only once or twice before terminating, giving them a “tuning fork” appearance.

This is another area where the Elafiale almost defy classification. They are technically pseudo-mammals like the other species I have mentioned so far, but the males produce a substance from a patch on their stomachs that serves a similar purpose. However, rather than any sort of milk analog, the compound is diluted, pre-digested chyme from their intestinal tract. While many species find this “gross”, Elafiale fawns get their initial gut flora through this process.

Aside from their blue, cupric blood and the chyme-secreting glands the male Elafiale possess, they are otherwise standard internally. This report includes the genetic profile.

Society and Culture

The Elafiale culture can be succinctly summarized with a single word: symmetry. They seem almost obsessed with it. From politics to art, symmetry appears in nearly every aspect of their society. As far as art goes, it seems that the more detailed and intricate something can be while still maintaining symmetry, the higher the quality. They commonly hold live competitions to see which entrant can compose the most complex, symmetrically sound piece. Most Elafiale will even go so far as to dye their fur so the markings on one side match those on the other.

Earlier, I mentioned that the Elafiale’s excellent perception has aided their comprehension of three-dimensional space, often required for sound tactics in void navigation. However, there has been a consequence. It appears the Elafiale fight-or-flight response has been driven into overdrive by being a prey species and constantly having to watch for threats from above. Many species would consider “skittish” to be their primary trait.

On occasion, this works out quite well: paranoia about ambushes and being willing to call off an operation on nothing more than a “gut feeling” has likely saved more ships over the course of the Hegemony’s history than anyone would like to admit, but being too eager to call a retreat can be costly and inefficient. Because of this, Elafiale selected for ranks captain and above must be extensively screened and specially trained to overcome the biological self-preservation urge. Even amongst those individuals, Elafiale will become noticeably tense around superiors. Even if they are calm underneath, as conversing with them proves, their bodies will not let them relax. You can imagine the antisynergy that developed from the Kanogril, who see timidity as weakness and pounce.

Elafiale familial units are organized into classical nuclear families. Both parents help raise their offspring, who leave only when they find a mate. The idea of communing in large groups as a herd, as many species of similar morphology often do, is completely foreign to them. My current theory as to why involves the sheer size of some of the ancient avian predators on their homeworld. The birds would have no trouble catching any Elafiale if noticed, and there was practically no defense against attacks, so the Elafiale learned to hide rather than run. Contrary to their primary function, congregating into herds would serve no purpose except to signal their presence to those seeking an easy meal.

One final note on their symmetry quirk: for practical constructs, such as their ships or buildings, they allow leeway. Symmetry is important, but not at the cost of practicality. They are very much unlike us in that regard. At least we value symmetry; I sometimes humor myself picturing the collective meltdown the Elafiale would have at seeing anything Arkonias builds.

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Updates to come, my misguided progenitor.