Kiik-Kliik
Physical Description
The Kiik-Kliik are, by far, the most unusual of all the sentient races of the Kolldrunn. Out of all the races recognized as belonging to the advanced species, the Kiik-Kliik are the only race that is non-humanoid in their appearance. They are tall, and thin, their bodies having an appearance not unlike that of bamboo. Unlike bamboo, however, six tenticular appendages protrude from bottom of their shafts, each one about as long as their flexible, shaft-like bodies.
The unusual biology of their appearance does not stop there. Near the top of their bodies sits three sensory, arranged more or less in analogue to where one might expect a face to be positioned. The two organs on top are actually a single sensory organ, consisting of two holes the Kiik-Kliik's body. If one were took closely, they would find that these two holes lead to hollow chambers within the body of the Kiik-Kliik, and that the surface of these hollow chambers plays host to countless millions of tiny filament structures. Sound vibrations enter into these chambers through the two wholes and bounce around them, disturbing each of the countless filaments in a slightly different way. From all of these slight disturbances, the Kiik-Kliik mind is then able to put together a perfect internal representation of the outside world.
To put it another way, the Kiik-Kliik do not have separate sensory organs for sight and sound, but rather both senses are recreated using a sort of hybrid system. The result is that the Kiik-Kliik have omni-directional and omni-vantaged sight at all points in space within their scope of hearing. In terms of the human analogue, we can think of this as having a detachable camera through which we might view the world, and being able to position that camera at any point within earshot, make this camera as large or as small as we wish, and orient the lense of that camera at any angle in three dimensional space!
This is, quite honestly, one of the most amazing and powerful abilities for any race to possess, and it has served the Kiik-Kliik well over countless different occasions throughout history. Having said that, the ability is not without it's disadvantages. For one thing, the Kiik-Kliik are completely color blind. They can not read markings on flat surfaces unless those markings are thick enough to physically obtrude somewhat from the surface in question. Their sight encounters difficulty when crossing between two different physical mediums, as well. Kiik-Kliik will thus find their vision somewhat scrambled if they are in air, and they are trying to look from a vantage point underneath water. Further, the Kiik-Kliik are at a complete disadvantage in environments of vacuum. Early enterprises with Kiik-Kliik in space caused alarm amongst them, as they found themselves to be suddenly robbed of their sight in various situations. The very silent atmosphere of space has caused difficulties, to say the least.
Some mention should also be given to the persistence of any image formed this way by the Kiik-Kliik's sight. At first, it was thought that the Kiik-Kliik required a constant supply of sound to maintain their peculiar form of vision. After investigation, however, it turned out that the Kiik-Kliik have no such auditory requirements. Having heard a sound in any sort of environment, the Kiik-Kliik immediately gains an intimate understanding of the layout of it's entire environment, extending to the limits of a Kiik-Kliik's range of hearing. This picture of the environment then stays with them, perfectly viewable at any time in the future. The only drawback is that the image the Kiik-Kliik has in their head of their environment does not update automatically as the environment changes. The initial impression remains static until another sound is made, at which point the Kiik-Kliik will immediately gain an updated image of their environment. A Kiik-Kliik does not have to be present in any sort of environment in order to place their sight within it's bounds, as well. Rather, so long as a Kiik-Kliik has been in a place before, the Kiik-Kliik can place their sight within any point in space and time of their memory of that place.
Beyond all of these interesting corollaries, the omni-sight of the Kiik-Kliik also places them at a severe disadvantage when dealing with any phenomena that moves faster than the speed of sound. If an environment is changing more quickly than sound waves can propagate, errors in processing and action can occur, though this sort of severe disadvantage did not afflict the Kiik-Kliik until the second half of the modern period, as human technological acheivement began to outstrip their incredible powers of auditory sight.
So far we have discussed the two holes at the top of the shaft, analagous to where one might expect eyes to go. The third sensory organ comes just below these two holes, in the form of a sort of tympanic membrane stretched over a larger circular opening and resonating chamber, which itself is lined with muscles of vocalization on the interior. A perfect complement to the auditory sight of the Kiik-Kliik, this Tympanic membrane functions the Kiik-Kliik's means of vocalization. In other words, the Kiik-Kliik have high fidelity mono channel speakers for mouths.
This unusual apparatus is their primary means of communication with each other, with the Kiik-Kliik language being composed mostly of clicks and pops. Yet having said that, their tympanic membranes are capable of reproducing an incredibly wide range of sound, far wider than all other sentient races, and the Kiik-Kliik are thus capable of learning to replicate all other sentient languages, as well as completely reproducing music and non-linguistic sound. The originally development of the Kiik-Kliik language, then, is likely because of the muscular dexterity that complex waveforms require. Operating their tympanic membranes via muscles in the mouth, most Kiik-Kliik can not maintain very complex sounds or vocalizations for extended periods of time.
History & Culture
The Kiik-Kliik are a very old race, with their species predating even the Galadrians of the Galadrian epoch, back into the days of shadow and mist. Despite this, as a race the Kiik-Kliik did not even themselves know this until being discovered by a most unusual and improbably accident. An exploratory expedition had been formed to explore claims of a large landmass far to the west, where most had previously thought only ocean existed. There was some credence to the claims, as this vast landmass would ultimately reveal itself to be the old continent of Mu, though we must save the tale of that place for another day.
The expedition did not find the continent of Mu, however, but rather was completely blown off course by the raging storms that nearly encircled that place. The original crew did not survive, except one, who found himself shipwrecked to the far north and west, discovering the island chains of modern day Koitl, and in the process, the Kiik-Kliik.
The Kiik-Kliik, it would seem, had survived there on the Koitl island chains for eons, completely undisturbed by the developments of the outside world until near the very end of the common period, right before the events of Agefall. They found themselves fascinated with this man, who himself probably felt more vexed by these gossip-loving creatures. This was the beginning of the entrance of the Kiik-Kliik onto the world stage, and from that very beginning already they were to change the course of history.
For the man that washed ashore that fateful day was no ordinary man himself. The events that followed played a direct hand in bringing about the period of Agefall. The reader, of course, no doubt is familiar with the significance of those days, though the actual tale of what happened is beyond the scope of this article. I will simply refer the interested reader to the written accounts of one of our esteemed colleagues, a Mr. DruidPeter, whose works on the excavation sites of the Polniegseule and the far East have yielded untold archaelogical riches.
The Kiik-Kliik social life is quite different from that of the other races. Having lived so long on the Koitl islands, their particular bodies and biology removed any real requirements for the development of any sort of agriculture, animal husbandry, architecture, artwork, or any of the things that we so often associate with civilized races. Instead, they seemed perfectly content to live most of their lives roaming the various sulfur baths that are so numerous in the region due to volcanic activity.
The sulfurus hot springs served as a rich source of nutrients and food for the Kiik-Kliik, who consume algae and bottom waste as well as being filter feeders. What's more, the Kiik-Kliik use these sulfur baths as their primary means of reproduction. A single Kiik-Kliik will release both sperm and eggs from the bottom of their shafts into the volcanic baths. There the sperm and eggs of many different Kiik-Kliik will mingle and become fertilized. The resulting zygote will then get trapped in the muddy basin of the bath floor. There it will germinate and become one of thousands of little stubby knobs on the bottom of the bath floor.
When the stubby knob on the bottom of the floor is ready, it will attempt to free itself from the bottom by using it's tentacles to break through it's muddy surroundings. The process of doing this will occur 14 months after the conclusion of the mating season, at which point the Kiik-Kliik that are successfull will suddenly break free and pop up to the surface and into the blinding light. There, they are are greeted by their "elder brothers and sisters", the generation that came before. In this state, the newborn resemble walking bamboo shoot stubs with tentacles. They will grow tall and thin in the coming weeks, until they reach an average height of between 4 and 6 feet in length.
Being born this way, millenia after millenia, the Kiik-Kliik thus have no system of parentage. They have no family structure at all, in fact, besides a classification of themselves as belonging to one of the 4 most recent generations. Carrying on like this for centuries, the Kiik-Kliik had no system of technology, no historical or intellectual heritage, but instead carried out their own unique rituals and cultures based on how they saw the world.
The arrival of men changed all of this, as the Kiik-Kliik are nothing if not insatiably curious. They love to gossip, and to talk, and examine and explore the ways of others. In the environment that they had been living in, there really had been no need to develop any sort of infrastucture or technology, but once introduced to such things the Kiik-Kliik proved themselves to be quick studies, and promptly embarked towards other lands. This was their own golden age of expansion and exploration in miniature.
Of course, the Kiik-Kliik did not make their first appearances on the mainland of the Atlayaslandern all at once. A small group proved invaluable in aiding the shipwrecked pirate towards his goal of returning to the mainland, where they made quite the sensation upon making landfall! Again, the specific details and the adventure that followed may be found in the written works of Mr. Druidpeter, but for the time being, let us continue onward, upward, and through the events of agefall, into the early modern period and the present.
The Kiik-Kliik proved themselves to be very helpful to humanity as well as the other sentient races in a great many different ways. But before this happened, they had to negotiate a puzzling realm and crash course in the ways of the civilized world. Kiik-Kliik, once they ceased to become a sensational curiosity, had to contend with the harsh effects of anti-humanoid racism. Their appearance and different biology at first caused problems in the matter of trade, as there was little that the Kiik-Kliik needed, but a great deal that the Kiik-Kliik wanted to experience.
Much of the early attempts to motivate and integrate Kiik-Kliiken into societal work forces lead to unusual friction and misunderstandings. To the Kiik-Kliik, learning new things and becoming skilled at various trades was less a matter of occupation and more a matter of challenge and fun. Having no need to purchase food, nor any need to seek out lodging other than for reasons of tourism, and certainly no need for clothes, the Kiik-Kliik found themselves in an advantageous position in terms of the job market. Employers could not threaten Kiik-Kliik with termination for not working, nor could employers coerce Kiik-Kliik to work in ways or at tasks that a Kiik-Kliik itself did not desire. Having said that, neither could employers reliably forbid the Kiik-Kliik from working and learning tasks purely out of interest and curiosity, either.
Furthermore, Kiik-Kliik biology is naturally complentary towards that of other sentient races. Being filter feeders and consumers of waste, their presence immediately offers value as a natural plumbing system. If it weren't for the fact that the Kiik-Kliik could never really be coerced into just being a reliable plumbing system, no race would probably have ever actually developed one.
Indeed, much of the differences betweek the Kiik-Kliik proved immeasurably helpful in combating racism, as much of the explicit human incitements towards them fell flat in the eyes of the Kiik-Kliik. Attempts to anger or spark disobediance, or to fan the flames of conflict in any way quickly ran into the problem that the Kiik-Kliik just don't really treat conflict like the way the other races do. In the only war that occurred between humans and Kiik-Kliik, humanity was utterly and resoundly defeated. Yet the Kiik-Kliik made no terms of surrender, declared no spoils of war, acquired no property, and even refused to sign the offered treaty on the grounds that, "the terms did not make sense."
The Kiik-Kliik did not press for damages, did not ask for reparations, and indeed many Kiik-Kliik showed up for work in the days that followed. This was probably the only time in history that surrealism emerged as a worldwide shared experience. Humanity and the other races eventually realized that the Kiik-Kliik could not be dealt with as they dealt with each other. They were a breed apart, and this ultimately led to a natural, organic, and amicable relationship between the Kiik-Kliik, Humanity, and the Elkkes.
Today, Kiik-Kliik range the entire gamut of the workforce, serving as Engineers, automobile mechanics, butchers, fry cooks, construction workers, lawyers, and even politicians. They were the third race to enter into the accepted charter of sentient species, being officially recognized by Humanity and the Elkkes midway through the Modern era. Their own unique brand of culture has also been appropriated by human pop culture in various ways, with perhaps the most unusual example being the usage of their likeness in pornography. The Kiik-Kliik themselves are asexual, and indeed did not even know the true manner in which they reproduced until human science and medicine pointed it out to them. Nevertheless, their inclusion in the burgeoning and popular genre of "tentacle porn" has become a rich staple in the pop culture diet, particularly in the high tech regions of Oddumbra and the Suvyetslandern.
The Kiik-Kliik Rites of the Dead
Amongst all of the unusual traits of the Kiik-Kliik, one in particular deserves special attention. The Kiik-Kliik lifespan is slightly shorter than the average human lifespan, being about 80 years long, and when a Kiik-Kliik begins to approach their years of old age, their bodies undergo a transformation to indicate this. Their normally thin, bamboo like bodies begin to thicken and shorten. Their flexibility decreases, and the Kiik-Kliik will in general experience a slow decline in energy, reaction time, and range of motion. It is at about this time that they make a journey to one of the Kiik-Kliik ritual grounds to prepare for death.
The original Kiik-Kliik ritual ground is the one located on the island chains of Koitl, high up in the forest mountains of the main island's volcano, Köchtka. The event is marked as a grand occasion, with all the younger generations in attendance as the elders make their way into the grounds in a grand procession. Many humans and Elkkes also attend as a way of paying their respects and saying goodbye to friends that they have made. The grounds themselves are kept up by Kiik-Kliik priests, who act as gardeners and landscapers. These priests perform rites of sanctity, and provide for the selecting of spots and negotiation of final wishes during the grand event, and serve as greeters for guests and tour guides during the off season.
As for the Kiik-Kliik who are dying, there never is any one moment when a Kiik-Kliik can be said to truly "die". Rather, amidst all this pomp and circumstance, throughoug the entire 6 day festival of the Rite, these old ones select and stand in a spot, their designated final resting place. As time goes on, the Kiik-Kliik will then move less and less, finding it more and more tiresome to do so. The different spots are arranged in hierarchy, and according to certain sections, so that visitors to the grounds may walk amongst the most recent arrivals and even hold conversations with the Kiik-Kliik of that section. Eventually, however, the elders become less and less responsive, until it can be said that they hardly may talk at all, and then finally, don't ever talk again.
With the passing of the seasons, the tympanic membrane rots away to reveal a resonant chamber inside. Wind comes in from the ocean, and winds its way through the mountain peaks. From there, it makes its way all throughout the ritual grounds. A great symphony of sound resonates all throughout the valley where the grounds are kept, travelling for miles in all directions. The many different voices of each Kiik-Kliik are all different from each other, yet together harmonies into a many toned melody of over a thousand parts, thus signaling the end of another generation.
