The Wenwehhek

The Wenwehhek are a species that dwell in the many rivers of the planet Duvvked, a world of almost perpetual rain that is teeming with life. Although they are adept at swimming, the Wenwehhek are air-breathers, living in nests that line the shores of the planet. They have two paddle-like feet and four little appendages on the “chest” that they use like fingers. A blowhole on their head allows them to breathe even when wading almost entirely into the water.

Rappuko is a teacher at a Wenwehhek nursery. The Wenwehhek lay eggs in communal nurseries where teachers raise the pupae, determining what their ideal use in society should be, and teaching them what they need to know to do that. Rappuko cares pretty deeply for her pupal pupils, and tries to set them up with occupations that will make them happy. But if everyone just goes into the jobs that they will enjoy, who is going to do the crappy jobs? Rappuko is going to make someone unhappy, or else society itself could be doomed.

Aflicksh is the type who constantly wants to talk about how great he is to anyone who will listen. Unfortunately for Aflicksh, he isn’t so great. For instance, he tries to tell people he can swim faster than anyone in the local river system, but he can’t. He has actively avoided many challenges to race and prove his speed, but he never accepts them. “I haven’t got to prove anything to you,” he says. The same thing goes for Aflicksh’s claim that he is the loudest yeller on the planet. He likes to say it, but never seems to have the time to prove it to anyone. It seems like that might be an effective way of deflecting the issue, but really it has gone on long enough that nobody think Aflicksh is anything but a jerk. That includes Aflicksh, though. He’s so sick of putting up with his own lies, but coming clean at this point would be so embarrassing that he can’t do it. He’s just fully committed to being the big jerk who talks about how great he is.

Creditt is the loudest yeller on the planet. He doesn’t know it, though. He played yelling games when he was younger, but never at a professional level, so even though he knows he was good, he has no idea that he’s the best. It doesn’t really come up much in his job, which is to clear rivers that have been blocked by mudslides.

A Fact About the Wenwehhek: The Wenwehhek don’t really eat for pleasure. Feeding is remarkably casual for them, accomplished by just resting their heads on the surface of the river, with their open mouth in the water, and waiting for small animals to drift in, then snapping the mouth shut. In strange circumstances, like an emergency trek through one of the planet’s rare non-rivered areas, they might fill a bowl with water and food to recreate this, but usually eating is just a matter of taking a break and stopping off at the closest stream for a minute.

Universe: White

Niftari

The Niftari are a species that lives on a planet called Carasteranak. They are a furry, slow-moving species that walks on hooved back feet and the elbows of their forelimbs. They are very solitary creatures and, once they leave their litter, they only join with other Niftari for the purpose of mating. Any natural predators the Niftari once may have had were gotten rid of in earlier times, so now Niftari are free to leisurely wander their planet occupying their time as they like.

The planet Carasteranak is smaller than Earth but its gravity is actually stronger owing to its unique makeup. Also, its days and years are both much longer than Earth’s. In most ways it seems like a very slow-paced world.

Vennis is a clockwork maker. The most advanced technologies of Carasteranak are clockwork masterpieces and Vennis’s are quite advanced among these. Though Vennis has created many things, the last several years have been spent on the latest project: a vast, complex device that can do complex mathematics, which Vennis suspects will make it even easier to calculate the best way to make still more complex clockworks.

Beodsom is an expert at mixing ingredients (plants, fluids, etc.) to create powerful potions of medicinal value. Though they are an asocial species by nature, Niftari “medics” like Beodsom are wont to track the scent of others who smell sick and give them potions to make them well again. There is no exchange of goods or currency for this (or for any other occupation on the planet), and the only reward the medics get is knowledge that they have helped others, and respect for doing so. These rewards are enough, though.

Igidup is an explorer. Though Carasteranak is small, and almost all of it has been traversed by Niftari of the past, no maps were ever kept. That means that every new place Igidup reaches is new to Igidup, at least. There’s little danger in exploring either, so it really is a nice quiet life.

A Fact About the Niftari: Niftari eyesight is such that they have never seen the stars in their sky, except the one around which their planet orbits. Still, they are a contemplative enough species that the idea of other worlds with other life has occurred to them, at least on a theoretical level.

Universe: Silver

Tkrkvts

The Tkrkvts are a species that live on a moon of a gas giant planet they call Vvk. They have not yet realized the cosmological position of their moon world, but think of it as just the area “Under Vvk” so that is what we must call their world. There are many larger species Under Vvk that would potentially be predators of the Tkrkvts, were it not for the fact that the Tkrkvts have evolved to be extremely poisonous. It can still happen that a Tkrkvt will be eaten, so they absolutely do not think of themselves as the “top of the food chain” of their world, but the fact that predators will almost always die afterward gives them the impression that they are, in a way, being avenged by the universe, so they must be some kinda special.

Tkrtk lives in the largest city-hill Under Vvk, amid a massive bustling population, and Tkrtk wouldn’t have it any other way. An active go-getter, Tkrtk is always seeking out new ways to help out the city-hill. A lot of the rest of the population thing Tkrtk is an idiot for that. (City-hills being, basically, hills that have been hollowed out and turned into cities, of course. They live in those.)

Hrkrtr has gone missing. Nobody Under Vvk is sure where Hrkrtr has gotten to. Ain’t nobody seen Hrkrtr in years. It’s weird. Of course, we know that Hrkrtr was abducted by aliens, but you can’t expect the Tkrkvts to know that. They haven’t even thought up the idea that there places other than Under Vvk. Anyway, Hrkrtr eventually made friends with the aliens and now travels with them. It’s fine.

Crsytk is a nomadic plumber. The vast pipe system of the Tkrkvts is probably their most advanced technology, so the plumbers are well respected, but few in number. Crsytk and fellow plumbers will often travel vast distances to whichever part of the world they are needed. They’ll be honored guests in the home of those they are helping, and their coming will be big news in the area around. It’s all very nice, but Crsytk has an ulterior motive for travelling, Crsytk is trying to locate the Tkrkvts who killed a plumber years ago, and who got away with it. Crsytk will get revenge even if it takes the rest of time.

A Fact About Tkrkvts: Though the Tkrkvts have a vocal language (one which incorporates noises made by scratching at the ground), they also possess the ability to mark things with a pheromone-like system. Because of this, no form of written language has ever been produced. Instead, they have worked to develop methods of saving pheromone-information by applying it to materials that will sustain it for generations.

Universe: Green

Skwivs

The Skwivs are a large snail-like species who have abandoned the shells they evolved with in favor of robotic shells with arms and legs and stuff. They call their planet “Skwivda” and the world is make up of numerous city-states, most ruled by monarchs who have inherited the role from progenitors. There is a near-constant state of war on the planet, with the city-states sending battle parties to raid each other as a matter of course. In addition to stealing wealth from each other, the taking of slaves remains a common practice.

Vukpuk is a warrior for one of the world’s richest armies. At the start of the warm season, the army leaves their city state and begins wandering the lands raiding whatever cities they happen to come across until they return home in time for the cold seasons with all their new wealth. Every third year of such service, the warriors get the option to stay home as guards, but Vukpuk has never taken that option, preferring the life of a wandering pillager.

Leckvar is a shell builder, designing robotic bodies for use in special circumstances. That includes bodies designed for mining or deep sea travel and so on. While that is rewarding work, Leckvar’s real passion is creating “soul shells”, which is what Leckvar calls shells intended for the ghosts of the dead to wear to return to the world of the living. There has not yet been any sign that soul shells will work, but that does not stop Leckvar.

Burgsel is a slave who is forced to work as a medic/shell repairer for a wandering army. Though Burgsel hates having to care for slavers, the other option is death, so Burgsel does the job as well as can be expected, all the while fantasizing of finding a way to take down the whole army all at once.

A Fact About Skwivs: All Skwivs have an inborn sense of proximity to others of their kind. A Skwiv can tell innately if another Skwiv is nearby, or if a crowd is in the distance in a particular direction.

Universe: Silver

Bosonobes

The Bosonobes live on the planet Zips. They are a furry bipedal species with massive hoof-like feet that evolved from a herd animal that lived in the planet’s marshy lowlands. The species is even more obsessed with mating rituals than humans are, and it colors most aspects of their society. A physically attractive specimen of the Bosonobe equivalent of a male is will display large horns and a large club tail, while female-equivalent Bosonobes show off long and shiny fur.

Senek Loww is a Bosonobe lawmaker, which is a hereditary position passed down family lines to those who have produced an adequate number of children (the exact number varies among different Bosonobe cultures). Senek inherited the job after her third child was born. Senek has been a champion of laws that prevent the childless from having a say in society. After all, if they don’t have children, why do their opinions matter?

Thaver Tumm is a manual laborer in the big city. He has no real attachment to his job, he just considers it a halfway decent way to make a living. Like most Bosonobes, most of Thaver’s energy is spent on attempting to mate. He spends all his free time at the watering hole trying to impress potential mates. Though Bosonobe society has become too advanced to actually condone fighting rivals, there is still a lot of posturing involved, mostly showing off one’s club tail by shattering trees and ice sculptures and so on. If Thaver has ever had any doubts about this being the best way to spend his free time, he certainly hasn’t thought too deeply about them, and his society absolutely reinforces the message that this is what Bosonobes are born to do. That said, Thaver has not been especially successful and has begun setting aside a significant part of his stipend to save up for prosthetic horns that would slip over his real ones to make them appear massive.

Guvv Chay is considered a particularly Bosonobe, so life is good for her so far. She is frequently courted, but has yet to conceive a child. Guvv doesn’t know it yet, but she is incapable of having children, and this coupled with her good looks makes her an example of one of the most reviled groups on the planet: the Mate-Ruiners. Even through it is through no fault of her own that she cannot reproduce, Bosonobe culture treats Mate-Ruiners as if they were purposely trying to sabotage the species. In a few years Guvv’s lack of offspring will be seen as suspicious, and after that she will be reviled.

A Fact About Bosonobes: Although over sixty percent of the planet’s surface is covered in water, the Bosonobes have not yet developed any kind of technology for travelling on it such as boats. The closest they’ve come is making small rafts for carrying things through marshy areas, but even then the Bosonobes generally wade through the water while pulling the raft behind.

Universe: Narsidon