Avaya Kin'toni Clan

History

The Avaya kin'toni are a semi-nomadic tribe that inhabits the large area of the Ennytai Calcareous Grassland. The Grasslands are deceiving in appearance, mostly tall trees and grass-like reeds grow in the area, with very few animals that are indigenous to the area. This is mostly a result of the great shattering in which a floods wiped out living organisms in many parts of the Galas land. As a result the Avaya cannot completely rely on this land to give them everything they need to survive.

Like a number of other clans the Avaya organised themselves into hierarchical subgroups to help with the dissemination of tasks within the clan. Their system, which still has much resemblance to their current system, was to teach every zu'aan converted child or adult zu'aan all the main tasks that needed performing. For example all the converted in the clan were taught how to gather wood and craftsmen-ship, and they were taught fishing and record keeping. Whatever the converted zu'aan excelled in, is what they were encouraged to specialise in as they grew up.

The newly minted kin'toni could not deviate from this as a fully integrated Avaya. This often caused problems every few generations when a clan member rebelled against the role they were allocated from conversion. The consequence was a splitting of the tribe for some time, with one part of the tribe living on the opposite side of the Grasslands. However, as kin'toni clans vied for power and and pushed to assimilate other kin'toni, the Avaya saw the benefit in fighting off infiltrating clans as a united clan.

Now and again their differences were known to cause friction among the clan, but the Avaya have not split since. With time, like many other kin'toni, the Avaya found themselves with no option but to form alliances with some of the growing kingdoms around them or risk assimilation. The clan saw this as a better way to maintain their autonomy within the reigning powers. The Adoni managed to convince the Avaya to join their cause, and the Avaya have since been conscripted into wars against the Ashat and Itkali.

This forced the Avaya to form a military subgroup within their clan. The Avaya choose to dedicate a minority of their clan to warfare, wanting to keep most of their clan members fit for their way of life, the semi-nomadic life. What makes the Avaya kin'toni stand out most from other kin'toni is that they are a mostly matriarchal society. It is said that the clan founder relied heavily on his wife when they were fleeing from other kin'toni that she was practically the defacto leader, hence the importance they place on the females of their clan. So much so that even females are conscripted into battle when wars flare up.

Psychology

As mentioned in their history, the Avaya clan is a matriarchal run clan, thus the female Avaya is held in high regard. Being descended originally from a z'uaan clan that was part of the civil day to day life, the Avaya largely struggled to find their footing in the increasingly militarised kin'toni movement. They had been trained as scribes, and farmers, and teachers, thus, having to fight to fend off assimilation, then fight because of alliances has not boded well for them. As a result they only train a minority of their clan to participate in warfare.

It can be said that their way of thinking is more diplomatically aligned than it is military aligned. Part of their reasoning with the Adoni kingdom was because of what the Adoni initially set out to do: free kin'toni clans from what they believed was oppressive rule from the rising Ashat and Itkali. If asked what the differences between the Adoni kingdom are from the Ashat and Itkali, the Avaya will tell you that within the Adoni kingdom, clans get to retain their identity. The Ashat and Itkali would argue that this is equally true within their own kingdoms too.

Much of how the Avaya think is also guided by their religion, the worship of the eyeless god. It is said that this is mainly influenced by their need for a sense of security and permanence. As a converted tribe, they struggled to buy into the idea of operating with honour as part of kin'toni culture. This is largely because they didn't not see any honour in being forced to transform from their zu'aan roots and nature. Despite this, the Avaya do practice some degree of honour, mainly among their own clan, but also with those they choose to align themselves with.

The Avaya believe that every humanoid has a specific purpose in life, and that that humanoid is only fulfilled and useful if they pursue that purpose. Often times the problem with this is that the purpose of an Avaya is often determined by a rigid system that doesn't allow for anomalies, even though the kin'toni themselves are already an anomaly. Some kin'toni, and even Avaya within the clan have been critical because they believe that this system decides to arbitrarily for an Avaya too early.

Others have pushed for it to be changed to allow for an Avaya to choose differently later in their integration process. That is still to change. However, most Avaya buy into this system and way of thinking, thus their system, for the most part has worked quite efficiently. This poses problems for the critics with the clan. Ironically, given their semi-nomadic lifestyle, the Avaya do not believe in having a rigid mindset about other things that require them to be in a place permanently.

Hence, the Avaya building structures are built in such a way that they can be collapsed or moved if need be. The Avaya are often mocked by other kin'toni clans for their rigid task/purpose system. It is often said that if you've met one Avaya, you have met them all. This referring to how they mostly espouse the same ideas with regards to how they determine their purposes in life. Very few Avaya, though there are there, are willing to outwardly express to different clans their disagreement with their way of life.

Biology

The Avaya are a very agile humanoid species. As mentioned before, the grasslands are not necessarily lush with rich vegetation, but the land area is covered in grass-like reeds. What also remains in the Ennytai Calcareous Grasslands are tall trees. To avoid detection by other kin'toni or other predatory clans, the Avaya settled for building their structures within these tall grass.like reeds. Avaya houses often have a pathway that leads in and out of their main boundary territory.

For common meeting places like the city hall, schools, the Avaya built their city in the tall trees that still stand in the grasslands. Thus, the Avaya are either walking through the reeds to their houses or they are looking down at their scattered shelters and can easily see an enemy approaching. Over time the Avaya built muscular arms that can extend beyond the reach of a regular kin'toni. If an Avaya is on the shorter side, their fingers drag on the ground a little. Their arms often seem disproportionate to their torsos and their lower limbs, even for the tall Avaya.

They like to keep long nails, that are often likened to claws as this helps them grip better. A number of kin'toni refer to the Avaya as barbaric because of how they keep themselves physically. Being a semi-nomadic tribe that mostly keeps to itself, the Avaya really don't care what other clans think of them. The weather in the grasslands is mostly predictable. In winter they almost always have darkness, during the summer times, they almost always have light. It hardly ever rains in the grasslands, but weirdly enough it does snow.

The snow is quite thick during the winter that the Avaya have learned to gather it as a water source during the summer times. Like a number of clans they have trained themselves to go long periods of time in the summer without water, conserving the amount they store for essential uses only. The Avaya grow fur during the winter and shed some of it during the summer except around the eyes, as this still protects them from the light. In winter their faces are almost barely visible with all the fur.

But an Avaya will look vastly smaller, weight wise during the summer time. As a clan that is averse to war, they have an ability to blend into their surroundings as part of their camouflage abilities. Often an Avaya can be standing right in front of you and you will not even notice it until it is too late. Like some wild animals, an Avaya's fur can take up the colour of the object they are blending in with and their hairs can somewhat imitate the shape of the object. However, this is to a limited degree.

They have also evolved to a point where their eyes naturally adjust to the bright moonlight that covers their land during the summer. Their eyes effectively act as shields during the summer, and allow them to see infra-red radiation during the darker winter times. This has given them a great advantage over other kin'toni clans, especially during times of war and when they hunt for wild animals during the winter times. They have orange irises with white sclerae and vertical slit pupils.

Culture

The Avaya kin'toni to a large degree still practice certain parts of the zu'aan culture. Their limited interaction with other clans allows them to do that. But to a large extent, they have created their own culture that also has elements of kin'toni beliefs. This is most likely because certain kin'toni characteristics, like the aspect of honour, are inherent with a kin'toni body. So try as they might to resist this, to some extent it's an irresistible character trait.

Even though the Avaya hold the matriarch in high regard, they still have a male leader at the helm. He leads with a group of councillors and advisors, of which these are made up equally of male and female. As mentioned before, the Avaya believe that each individual exists for a purpose. All captured and converted kin'toni are taken through rigorous schooling that requires them to participate in all the tasks that would be needed to survive in within the community. It is a system that is widely respected, but is criticised by some.

As a semi-nomadic tribe, the Avaya have created structures that allow them to rotate the hunting and gathering duties. A small group is selected for the months-long expedition. The hunting group is selected every four months. The Avaya hold a festival that drags into the night before the departure of the hunting group. Often times these festivals start with a religious ceremony, to pray for the success of the hunters and for their safe return. After the religious portion, celebrations with fire perfomances and dance and drink (mixed with blood to strengthen the hunters) last until the hunters have to leave in the morning.

Similar celebrations are held when the hunters return; thanks is given to the eyeless god for their safe return. In the event that a hunter dies on the expedition, the Avaya ensure that they return with the body of the fallen clan member. The Avaya tend to hold a week long funeral, mourning and celebrating the life of the fallen Avaya. The Avaya's clothes are given to the first turned in his or her family to keep as a sacred remembrance. When the Avaya move camp, the family of the fallen take a handful of the soil to remember them in their new home.

They believe that it is like moving with the soul of their loved one. Avaya buildings are collapsable or movable which means they often have to be very light. But lightness does not equate to dullness. The Avaya believe their buildings, that is their houses, their community structures are part of their lives. As such the designs are masterpieces that showcase their artistry and weave in parts of their lives and all the places within the grasslands that they have lived. When inspected closely, Avaya buildings tell the story of the Avaya.

This artistry is also found in their artefacts, their clothing and their weaponry. This allows them to carry their stories and their legends with them, without ever forgetting them.

Government

The Avaya kin'toni mainly deal with their affairs as a community. Community meetings are held for all major decisions pertaining to culture and community development. Every three to four years, the Avaya community decides on which part of the grasslands to move to. This is largely possible because the Avaya are a relatively small tribe that hasn't grown to the size of the Llyth Kin'toni Clan or the Ildril Kin'toni Clan for example. The community is however chaired by its ruling clan leader and his council of advisors.

The leader is selected every fifty years by the community. Potential leaders make their bids before the community days before the community. The community then deliberates over the candidates for at least three days before they decide on the next leader. Not everyone can campaign to be clan leader. It is often those who have shown particular strength in their areas of duty, those that show leadership qualities. At times this can result in competitive attitudes and animosity within the clan from time to time.

These are usually situations that are resolved by the community at large. The clan leader also adjudicates all disputes within the community. However, only selected members of the community participate as a jury that can influence the decision. Policing is relatively easy within the Avaya community. This is where the kin'toni character trait of honour plays a heavy role. The Avaya live in a largely honest system. Everyone looks out for each other. But no system is perfect.

So in cases of breach of trust a clan member is dealt an appropriate punishment depending on what the crime is. The Avaya rarely banish clan members from their society. It is only in extreme cases. They believe that it is better to exile than to execute. The main source of interference comes from the alliance the Avaya have with the Adoni kingdom. Every year, they have to meet with the Adoni kingdom rulers and discuss matters relating to their alliance. The meetings also involve what wars may be on the horizon. The Avaya agree on how many troops they can spare for the crusade.

Military

The Avaya are not a military centred clan. If it wasn't for the Adoni alliance, the Avaya would have no military wing. As part of the zu'aan ancestry , the Avaya believe in more diplomatic means of resolving conflict. The misconception at times is that the Avaya are cowards or not fit for fighting. Nothing could be further from the truth. However, with a growing kin'toni resilience and power grab, they had very little option but to train up warriors and soldiers within their clan.

The Avaya conscript a group of only a hundred into the military wing. These hundred are selected on the basis of bravery and physical abilities. In many ways, the system they use to determine what clan members will do in life, works really well for military selection. The reasons for the this are several, including their reluctance to fight. Because of this philosophy, the Avaya do not concentrate on military combat, although they can fight, but use their natural abilities to advantage the Adoni army.

The Avaya are grouped into sections: the military leaders and the scouts. Because their ability to camouflage, the Avaya scouts are sent in to infiltrate enemy camps, this helps with gaining information on enemy troops. As hunters, the Avaya are also able to use their tracking skills on the enemy and are able to set up traps. Even though they play a vital job that maintains the advantage of the Adoni kingdom, the Avaya are often disregarded as dumb or unintelligent by other kin'toni troops they fight alongside.

Not a clan of many words around other clans, their limited ability to create rapport doesn't help this misconception. What the other kin'toni do not understand, especially those of lower rank, is that the Avaya are actually very brilliant and astute observers. They also have an ability to hear unique sounds and the directions from which they originate. They have an incredible sense of smell, that also assists them in tracking their enemies. Their reluctance to speak more is mainly due to their hunting training.

When tracking animals in the wild, too much talking often results in losing prey. The Avaya believe the same even when fighting in war. Unfortunately, this does not bode well for them in the army bases and camps. Overall the Adoni kingdom recognises the Avaya abilities as advantageous. Hence the Avaya are sent out before battle to lay traps, track the enemy, determine what the behaviour of the enemy might be and then they are stationed in the rear of the attack as observers who can help change the course of battle if need be.

They are never put in the front lines, precisely because of their value. Man have espoused that what needs to change is the behaviour of the generals with their junior troops. Often the generals refer to the Avaya as beasts or mongrels because of their perceived anti-social behaviour. More and more kin'toni need to be educated in accepting the difference between the groups and extending honour beyond their own clans. This will significantly change the attitude within the army.

Religion

Religion informs a great deal of Avaya life and society and how they interact with each other. They are devout worshippers of the eyeless god. As to be expected this shows up significantly within their architecture and their clothing. The Avaya believe in an afterlife, and that when an Avaya falls they are received into the hands of this eyeless god. Because of their strongly held respect for their ancestry, it is said that the Avaya believe that one day the eyeless god will redeem the zu'aan clans, particularly those that have been faithful, and will restore them to a dignified humanoid existence and the zu'aan clans to power.

As can be gathered from this, to a large extent the Avaya believe they are trapped in kin'toni bodies and that that stops them from interacting with the zu'aan without destroying them. As is, they attempt to keep alive the existent Avaya as long as possible to avoid converting more zu'aan to their same fate. Thus their belief in the eyeless god helps them sustain themselves in this faith. Because of their semi-nomadic nature their temple for the eyeless god is one they can take down and erect at any new base.

Within the Avaya only a select view a chosen and dedicated for the duty of carrying the temple and its contents. They are also responsible for the cleansing ceremony when erecting it elsewhere. Although they wouldn't say they are polytheistic, the Avaya also believe in the power of the elements and nature, particularly the power of the trees that they live in. Each Avaya family unit blesses the tree that sheltered them before they leave. They say a prayer for it to the eyeless god then they mark the tree with a small portion of the blood, symbolising how their lives are grateful for having been sheltered there.

If a particular base shelter was really good for habitation, the clan has a tendency of taking pieces of the lans with them to the next base in the hope that the good charm that was present at the previous base will be present at their new base. They often take pieces of bark or long reeds and plant them near or around their temple of the eyeless god. In this way they ask for the same charm and favour to be present for them in the new place. There are many other religious related practices the Avaya follow.

It is hard to always pay special attention to all their religious practices as they change with each new generation. But they tend to record the important core tenets that they believe should never change in their architecture, weaponry and clothing.

Miscellany

Once in every four generations a newly converted Avaya can convert with different colour fur to the rest of the Avaya clan. Past generations used to fear this and would abandon these Avaya to the wild without integrating them. Other Avaya that were often abandoned were those that morphed with two heads after their transformation, they called these Avaya twins. It was said that one twin was transformed as an evil shadow to the original Avaya, but there was no way of telling which was the shadow, which was the real Avaya head.

With time and as they became more sophisticated in their culture, the Avaya began to celebrate these anomalies within their communities. These rare turnees have become so celebrated that often they are expected to have greater abilities than the average Avaya. Although this kind of pressure sometimes produce the desired results, it also sometimes causes too much pressure which ends in some of these special Avaya living on the fringes of their community, unable to to perform to their suer abilities.

Among themselves and within the community, the Avaya are very talkative and are always telling and retelling stories of their greta adventures in the different places they have lived. They particularly like to talk about their ancestry and how even though they are now kin'toni, they will never forget their true heritage and will uphold it for generations to come. However, when the Avaya do master the courage to speak to kin'toni outside their clan they have an odd tendency that does nothing still to further their reputation.

They can begin a sentence and a train of conversation that eventually trails off into a whisper as they look away from the person kin'toni they are speaking to. Often times when communicating they communicate in very short sentences and and in written communication. But, for the purposes of cooperation within the army and the Adoni Alliance, the army leaders are well trained in speech and confidence. Among other little known facts about the Avaya, and this skill is never seen outside the clan, is that the Avaya are very skilled dancers.

This they have perfected through their hunting festivals and celebrations. The dance even during the funerals as a way to celebrate the life of the fallen as they address them.

Nearby Groups

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Avaya Kin'toni Clan

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