Phase 2:Kha'orm Kin'toni Clan

History

The Kha'orm Kin'toni Clan was founded in 4E 152. They are descendants of bunker-dwelling survivors of the nuclear fires. The Zatarrina city state had burned the area to a wasteland in an attempt to cleanse the kin'toni. Most kin'toni died, but some in bunkers did not. These kin'toni tried to rebuild their lives using the zu'aan technology left over from the fall.

In 4E 152, a charismatic pair of kin'toni called Tira and Mira united those scattered remnants. Tira and Mira were a pair of strange, mysterious, and unable to be separated twins. They appeared from the North. They gained leadership via their charms and the promise of a shared destiny. Slowly, the lost kin'toni were united. The twins' beauty was both haunting and unsettling.

"Nobody knows where Tira and Mira come from. The two graceful, in sync kin'toni speak and move as two halves of one. I saw them singing nonsense songs and playing a game together. Tira and Mira move as mirrors, their movements flowing like water. When I asked them where they came from; they said: "We have always been one. Ever since we remember. There was never two, only two halves of one."

- Ja'varael, 'On the Twins: Tira and Mira of the Kha'orm Kin'toni Clan' , 4E 154

The clan faced a new problem two years after the Twins appeared. The clan relied on crumbling technology. It could not be fixed due to a lack of parts, maintenance, and fuel. Over the years, the clan's technology deteriorated to Iron Age levels. Even with this lack of technology, the clan endured. Using iron tools, they started digging tunnels and building an underground Empire from their bunkers.

The bunker and tunnel networks at first were dug out of mud. Later parts were deeper and carved from stone. Tira and Mira ordered a large hall to be carved in their name. The hall took many years to build. It was hard work as the tools were primitive tools. No one understood why Tira and Mira wanted such a grand construction and luxuries such as the silks they wore.

Some of the clan's members also started to die of radiation sickness. Those who did not die adapted to the irradiated region. The clan replaced their losses by recruiting from nearby groups. The strong survived and the weak died. Over the years, the clan expanded to eight hundred people. The Twins had their eyes on the lands of nearby clans and plotted how to try and take over.

"I saw the Twins in their cavern hall one day. Their hair was the red of sunset, and their skin was the white of fresh snow. They heard me come and looked up at me with coal-black eyes. With voices like bell chiming they asked me "Tira wants to know what you are doing here. Mira thinks you should leave." Together they asked me "What are you doing here?". I asked them about their plans of conquest."

- Ja'varael, 'On the Twins: Tira and Mira of the Kha'orm Kin'toni Clan' , 4E 154

In the Shattering, the clan tried and failed to take over the nearby Zae'ik Forest region. The local clan used their greater strength and numbers to their advantage. The Kha'orm was a small and frail clan that struggled with violent conflict. Their region was shunned and the local bands were few in size and number. The clan managed to drive away the local packs and bands of the outlying wasteland.

Many joined due to the charms of Tira and Mira promising a safer and more stable clan. Often, packs were ambushed when they went out to hunt. To deal with packs, the clan used their greater numbers and killed if they did not join. The main band that the clan drove away was the Xerous. The Xerous camped in a small cave hidden by bush. To deal with the band, the Kha'orm poured boiling water to flood the cave.

After the Shattering, the clan had problems with a sickness called the “Lalii-Hailika,” or "the Spotted Sickness". It was known for causing large, spot-like lesions that wept and became infected. The clan, as isolated as they were, had not managed to develop the immunity that many local clans had. This sickness, along with their losses in the Shattering ravaged the clan. The three hundred or so strongest clan members survived both the Shattering and the Spotted Sickness.

"I asked the Twins how they did not die of the Lalii-Hailika and they just laughed and went back to playing hop-stones and singing their nonsense songs. In a way, they are kind of childish, but they are cunning leaders. I did manage to record their songs and some of it appears insightful. Maybe I should ask more about their origins next time, as their origin is very mysterious."

- Ja'varael, 'On the Twins: Tira and Mira of the Kha'orm Kin'toni Clan', 4E 154

As of 4E 500, the clan worried about the rumors of the ice sheets from the North and South. They trust Tira and Mira to lead them through the new, dark times. The cold was slowly affecting the Wasteland. Winters grew longer and summers grew shorter. The climate slowly became wetter from more rainfall. The local animals moved on to new regions south of the Wasteland. The Wasteland's lifeforms that moved in were adapted to a colder, wetter climate

"The Twins do not seem worried about the incoming cold. In fact, they are not cold in their sheer, skimpy silk finery and gems. They just flick their long hair through their pointed ears. I asked about the incoming cold and they just laughed in their bell like voices. Tira said "Tira thinks you are being silly." Mira added "Maybe you should not bother us about such silly things."

- Ja'varael, 'On the Twins: Tira and Mira of the Kha'orm Kin'toni Clan' , 4E 154

Psychology

Biology

The Kha'orm are adapted to the hot, radioactive, barren Swudra Radioactive Wasteland. They are short, stocky, and incredibly dense of build.. Being very heavy and dense, they cannot climb anything but solid surfaces. Under their dull yellow skin, is thick, calcified bone plates to act as a form of biological armor. The skin itself is heavily sclerotized and leathery, containing embedded metallic compounds for radiation shielding. This skin is rigid and prone to tearing during high-impact movement. Their hair is sparse and wire-like, adapted to be highly reflective to protect from heat.

Under the skin, is a thin layer of fat that contains sequestered metabolic waste products to act as an secondary radiation absorber. If it is breached, it can lead to temporary, severe systemic sickness as the toxins are released into the blood stream. This hair offers no protection from the cold. The eyes are large, with an secondary, radiation-filtering nictitating membrane. The nose has specialized nasal membranes that for filtering out particulate matter from the air. The teeth are reinforced with high concentrations of heavy metals.

This makes their teeth extremely durable but also brittle under sudden, sharp impacts. Their claws are thick, keratinous and shovel-like claws. These claws are adapted for digging, making the delicate manipulation of tools difficult. Their nternal organs are compartmentalized using protective connective flesh as to lower the effect of localized damage or radiation poisoning. This makes their feeding process less efficient than other Clans. The reason behind this is that the compartmentalization slows down the rapid systemic distribution of absorbed nutrients.

They have very efficient, multi-stage kidney and hepatic systems to filter, process and excrete heavy metals and radioactive isotopes via urine and feces. This needs a higher intake or water, both or both as to systemic dehydration. Their blood vessels have s additional sphincters and thickening as to survive pressure of radiation-induced cell swelling. They have large basal stem cell reservoirs, for producing damage-resistant, heavily-mineralized tissue. The downside of this is very dense, heavy bones that stop them swimming or climbing.

Their bodies have increased production of internal cellular repair enzymes as to rapidly fix minor DNA damage caused by low-level radiation exposure. Their muscles contain specialized protein chains that do not denature under extreme heat. This is part of their adaptions to have exceptional resistance to thermal damage. They have cellular mechanisms that can absorb and metabolize low levels of environmental ionizing radiation for cellular repair. The structures of the mitochondria are altered to thrive in high-temperature environments.

This allows them to be resistant to the heat of the wasteland. The downside of this is requiring constant, low-level environmental heat. Without this heat, they have sluggishness, muscle stiffness and then hypothermia.

Culture

Government

Military

Religion

Miscellany

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