Bareeka Kin'toni Clan

History

The Bareeka kin'toni are one of the most feared clans among the kin'toni clans. They are not friendly nor do they operate with honour, a kin'toni characteristic they fight off. Of all kin'toni clans they are one of the few clans that has managed to override the natural tendency of honour towards other kin'toni. They are ruthless pursuers of the remaining zu'aan humanoids who live in hiding. The Bareeka are a pirate kin'toni who found their way to the Uskelurade Coastal Bog. They have lived in the marshland for nearly two centuries now.

It is said that the Bareeka founder was one of the most blood thirsty kin'toni mutations to come out of the zu'aan experimentations. He went on a rampage in transforming many zu'aan into Bareeka forming a small group of bandits for himself before the zu'aan fought him off. These newly formed Bareeka were not interested in forming alliances with other kin'toni because they wanted to be the ones dominating and subjugating. While fleeing to the Coastal islands the Bareeka enslaved zu'aan that had not managed to escape to refuge cities and other kin'toni that may have been ex-communicated by their clans.

This is in the kin'toni wars that were taking place. With their captives in tow, the Bareeka formed the Tharis nation with the hopes of dominating from the Coastal Islands. They established themselves as a pirating nation. Because the Coastal Islands are home to a diverse ecosystem and wild animals, the Bareeka traded and continue to trade in the coveted vegetation and wild animals that are found nowhere else in Galas. In exchange the Bareeka gain gold that they use to trade for captured zu'aan slaves.

Because the Coastal Islands are connected to the mainlands of the Nara and Zelan nations, the Bareeka could not bypass these coasts without getting attacked during their pirating expeditions. Thus, the clan conceded to forming alliances with the Nara and the Zelan. These two clans have become the main trading partners for the Bareeka. However, this alliance has at times been a shaky one. The Bareeka, do not practice honour, and at times have attempted raids on the villages near their main trading partners, and even on Nara and Zelan themselves.

The raids on the Nara and Zelan were motivated by the perceived notion of betrayal on the part of the Bareeka. If the Bareeka felt slighted in any way by their trading partners, they didn't hesitate to try and invade them. They have never been successful in fully taking over the Nara and Zelan lands, but at times have been successful in stealing from them and taking some of the kin'toni from these clans captive. There have often had to be discussions to trade prisoners of war within the alliance.

Even though the Bareeka still convert captured zu'aan to increase their numbers, they also keep zu'aan as slaves for the menial tasks they feel take away from their main tasks of pirating and fishing. Many zu'aan among them have tried to escape, but unfortunately they do not get very far because the Bareeka are expert swimmers. They are often captured before they are anywhere near half way through their journey.

Psychology

The Bareeka do not act with honour among themselves nor do they behave with honour towards other kin'toni. Their reputation proceeds them. Having a treaty with the Bareeka is like having a treaty with the nature or the weather, there are no guarantees. The Bareeka are known to always think ahead and to always have alternate plans. Many of their trading partners have complained that they always have ulterior motives. If there is an opportunity to better themselves over the other clans, they will take that opportunity.

Part of this way of thinking stems from the fact that the Bareeka have always believed that they were the original duper soldiers intended by the zu'aan. In fact, the legend goes that the Bareeka tried to stop the zu'aan experiments before they could produce more kin'toni types. What many have speculated from this potential alternative history is that the Bareeka were the original kin'toni to start the rebellion against the zu'aan. Some kin'toni have been inclined to believe this and have often credited the Bareeka with starting the revolution, despite their reputation.

The nature of the Bareeka clan is to surround themselves in mystery anyway, thus it has been difficult to verify these statements. When it best suits them, the Bareeka like to claim the legendary rumours as true as a way to increase their stature among other clans. The Bareeka kin'toni tend to practice this psychology of not being completely honest even among themselves as well. However, over time, to ensure a stronger continuation of their clan, they have limited this dishonesty within the clan to petty things.

In the case of an egregious act a Bareeka can seek redress among the ruling council. If found guilty, the offender has to pay tenfold for their crime and is exiled from the clan for a period of time before they are allowed to rejoin the rest of the clan. As part of always having an alternative plan, the Bareeka are known to hide their treasure away from the coastal islands. It is said that they do not trust other kin'toni not seek revenge for some of the havoc they have wrecked on them. Their hidden treasure is a means of security in case any other clan manages to invade the islands.

The Bareeka are confident humanoids who use their intimidating stature to their advantage. Their known to smile when speaking, hoping that their wit will ease the minds of other clans if their scary appearance does not intimidate. Clans who have experienced the Bareeka often say there are two sides to a Bareeka, either you'll be charmed out of all you hold valuable or you'll be so scared you hand everything over. You can never trust a Bareeka.

Biology

The Bareeka kin'toni may not be the tallest kin'toni clan, but they are definitely among the tall kin'toni. They have muscular arms and strength in their legs. Selected Bareeka have had their blood mixed with the different creatures found in the sea to help them evolve their bodies making them fast swimmers. Those who have witnessed swimming Bareeka say that they move like a bullet in the water. They have managed to train their bodies to move in a rigid fashion that allows them to shoot through the water.

Additionally, the swimmers in the clan have amphibian like features allowing them to be in the water for long periods of time. It also allows them to cling to surfaces with ease. All Bareeka are flat footed which helps them move easier in the marshland of the coastal islands. They have pale skin that can be translucent in light. Of course, this makes their skin sensitive, more so then normal, so the Bareeka are inclined to generally stay out of direct sunlight. They burn to death within a few minuets of being exposed to sunlight.

As a means to protect themselves and move with ease they have fashioned hoods that cover most of their bodies except their feet. Their feet are often submerged in the swampy waters of the marshlands. The coastal islands are home to a scared animal called the Jaiua-ytrel. This creature cannot be found anywhere else in Galas. It was considered sacred to the zu'aan who made very effort to protect it. The Bareek have used it for its life giving properties. Though the blood of the Jaiua-ytrel cannot be considered an elixier to near mortal youth.

This does help the Bareeka keep their bodies strong and allows them to move with a speed and agility that they would not ordinarily posses naturally. Under the zu'aan the Jaiua-ytrel flourished and multiplied quite rapidly. At one point the creatures filled all of the coastal bog. However, because of their depends on this creature, the Bareek have had to find ways to genetically produce the Jaiua at a faster pace. The creature is nowhere near extension, however, the careless consumption has caused the Bareeka to take a more dedicated approach to preserving the Jaiua.

They have taken to supplementing their diet with fish and other sea creatures that are abundant in the marshlands. The Bareeka have an incredible sense of smell. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage because the Bareeka are sensitive to pungent smells. Smells have often been used as weapons against them in battle. They have tried to find ways around this by carrying plant soaked cloths with them and plugging them in their nostrils when fighting. The smells are not as effective when taken in through their mouths.

However, if the Bareeka are not careful and mindful of their hygiene, the smells can seep into their skin and start to burn it slightly. As to be expected, the Bareeka are not forth coming on this information, but it does seem that their sense of smell transfers even to their skin. They have light orange irises with white sclerae and vertical slit pupils.

Culture

As a pirate nation that is always on the move, the Bareeka's raiding group are always away from their home for at least four to five months out of the Galas year. They sail the seas near coastal towns either raiding or trading, and hiding part of their loot. The Bareeka often go in search of lost zu'aan wealth and treasure that they know were lost during the great wars. The remaining group of Bareeka are often left to tend to the shelters and help maintain the ecosystem of the marshlands, especially the important farming of the scared Jaiua-ytrel creature.

The dense marshlands are populated with mangrove trees. This has helped the Bareeka maintain their secrecy. Every few years, especially after a raid on the nearby mainland, the Bareeka move their shelters to another part of the marshlands. The density allows them to stay hidden from prying eyes and their sentries keep watch over the main entry points to the coastal islands. The density of the islands helps the Bareeka confuse any would be intruders. Because the Bareeka are a rambunctious bunch, the sound of their daily life.

Which often sounds like a celebration, is bounced off the trees, which means that an intruder would not be able to tell where the sound is coming from. The Bareeka live on what can be considered boat houses. This is not only because they live in marshlands, but because they believe themselves to be one with the water that surrounds them. Their houses are built with timber from the mangrove trees. They float and are anchored in place wherever the Bareeka are camping.

As if the dense forest isn't security enough, the Bareeka build structures that look modest on the outside. But walking into a Bareeka home betrays their wealth. To provide a light that isn't harmful to their skin, the Bareeka line at least one wall in every room with gold. High ranking Bareeka have ornaments that are made of gold and silver to show their high rank. It is plausible to imagine that these houses must weigh a ton because of all that gold, this makes the mangrove timber the perfect material for their buildings.

The Bareeka like very few other kin'toni give themselves bodily markings. High ranking Bareeka have markings that distinguish them from the rest of the tribe. High ranking Bareeka have a darkened lower lip and chin, normally with a piercing on their right ear. Ordinary Bareeka have markings that commemorate the day they are fully integrated into the clan. Looking at a Bareeka's markings, they seem random and can be confusing to an outsider because the ordinary Bareeka can have numerous markings that mean various things.

When a Bareeka kills, they get a marking, when a Bareeka commits an egregious crime within the community, they are marked. The difference with high ranking Bareeka is that an ordinary Bareeka cannot having markings on their face or have any piercings. The only unmarked humanoids in the clan are the zu'aan that are kept as slaves.

Government

Although they are one clan, the Bareeka are divided along generations within the clan. The founding generation rules over the incoming generations. Generations were decided on years. Fifty years determines the beginning of a new generation, meaning that newly converted Bareeka who come in after every five decades form the next generation. Each generation has its own Captain who recruits his own crew for raiding and trading. Each generation has its own slaves, and its own ships, its own insignia and flag, and its own trading and raiding routes.

This is how the Bareeka clan, even though they are one kind, form the Tharis nation. This is because, essentially, each generation rules and takes care of itself within the Tharis nation. Currently the Tharis nation is made up of five generations. The captains of each generation form part of the ruling council. Within the council they bring three of their own trusted advisors to form the ruing council. Except that the first generation is allowed to have a fourth advisor by virtue of the hierarchy. Within this council, the Bareeka have codes.

These are the closest to a form of honour. They cannot steal each other's loot and they cannot form treaties with other clans without informing the council. The first generation often has more deciding power within the council, but over time, the incoming generations have had some influence, particularly in situations where they have been fortunate enough to plunder more or make more gold that the first generations. However, just like the treaties they have with other clans, the internal Tharis nation treaty can at times be very precarious, simply because the Bareeka cannot always trust each other either.

For the most they have been able to keep peace among each other, but there's always the sense that the other captains are in it for themselves. Which is often true. If a Bareeka council member falls in battle, the captain of that council member picks another council member to replace them. If a crew member falls in battle, the captain decides who among their slaves they will choose to induct into the clan. However, when a captain falls, the crew vote for one of the remaining advisors to become captain.

It is then that the crew hold a lot of power of the advisors. In the three centuries that the Bareeka have existed on the coastal islands one captain has ever fallen, the captain of the second generation. It took a week before the crew could decide on which remaining advisor could take his place. For any disputes within the generations, the Captain of that generation adjudicates those matters, with the help of his advisors of course. For any disputes between generations the captains of those generations come together to adjudicate the matter.

At times because of loyalty to their own crew, judgements have been a very messy affair, with captains threatening to do each other in for what they may feel is an unfair judgement by the next.

Military

The Bareeka naturally are a fighting clan. As such each generation trains its crew in the art of war. Even the Bareeka that are left at the base camp are trained in the art of warfare. The only untrained humanoids within their clan are the slaves. However, this is not to say that these captured zu'aan do not know how to fight, they are simply not trained in the combat methods of the Bareeka. However, not many kin'toni consider them warriors, but rather bandits. The Bareeka themselves do not like this term.

They consider themselves warriors of the sea. Although when hard-pressed, they really see themselves more as pirate adventurers. The Bareeka favour using swords and cannons. On the coastal islands, the Bareeka have cannons stationed on every beach of the island. The beaches take up a small space within the marshlands, thus making them the perfect strategic point from which to launch cannon fire towards any oncoming enemies. As part of their weaponry, they also have slingshots fasted to the tops of the mangrove trees.

These slingshots are not visible to an oncoming enemy, but their fire power can certainly be felt from a distance. Each captain divides his crew into three wings, those that man the ballistas on the ship, those that fight with swords and those that wield daggers and knives for closer combat. Those that are trained for close combat are also trained for infiltration and spying. Most times, the Bareeka fight for themselves and their own agendas. Thus a lot of their battles are result of the raids they conduct on other clans.

But from time to time they have participated in battles with other kin'toni against other clans or other kin'toni. However, these battles are few and far between. This is mostly because the Bareeka do not like to be subordinate to any other clan, nor do they want to share ruling power with any other clan. Because other kin'toni have been difficult to subjugate, the Bareeka have mainly raided hidden zu'aan villages or traded with kin'toni clans. If they do percieve a kin'toni clan to be weak, they often plan a raid against them.

What often happens though is that they pick a clan that often has protection from the big kingdoms that have formed: the Itkali, the Adon and the Ashat. This has often proved difficult for the Bareeka because they are not very skilled at drawn out battle son land. When they raid, it is often a battle in which they send spies to scout out any potential treasure and resources, then they launch a ballista attack in the hopes of distracting the village before looting them. These battles do not last long. If they fail to secure their loot, the Bareeka will choose to leave rather than stick it out.

Religion

The Bareeka worship the seas and the moon. They believe that these two elements give them the great fortunes that they experience in their raids and their trading. Naturally as part of their worship they have markings of both the seas and the moon. Some Bareeka have markings that denote how either the seas or moon saved them from a fateful demise. Others just have markings that depict worship. They also believe that when not acknowledged, the moon and the seas can be very vicious and make life impossible for the Bareeka.

Often when their marshlands are flooded by high tides, the Bareeka believe it is time to give an offering to appease the moon and the seas. High tides are a sign that the Bareeka have been forgetful of their benefactors, and equally when the tides are low and the marshlands are muddy, the seas and the moon need to be appeased. Like many kin'toni, the Bareeka have a temple for the worship of the sun and the moon. Its a boat temple anchored in the middle of each generation's habitat.

Then there is a central temple that all the captains go to once a year as a show of their alliance to one another. The temples are laded with filigree and their priests use gold and silver utensils to carry out the rituals. They give offerings of the purest Jaiua-ytrel blood every year on the night of the full moon. A blood sacrifice mixed with the crews blood is poured out into the marshland swamp, then another blood sacrifice mixed with the blood of the captains is poured out, to show thanks on behalf of every Bareek member.

This is one of the few times that the Bareeka are more solemn and non-celebratory as a show of respect. As part of their religion, the Bareeka do not believe in an after life. They believe that they are granted this one life and after that they float into an abyss. For the dead, the Bareeka have a few ceremonies. For a fallen Captain they drain him of his blood and pour it out as an offering into the sea. They strip the fallen captain and but his body on a raft to be cremated by the sun. This is considered the highest honour in burial.

But for an ordinary Bareeka, they are not drained of their blood, but they are put on a rafter and cast off to sea naked, to be cremated by the sun. Fellow Bareeka from the fallen's crew accompany the body into the water until it floats away into deeper parts of the sea. Then they stand in the ocean and mourn as the watch the body cremate and float away. It is only after the body has completely disappeared that the Bareeka will go back to the habitats. For a captain at least six days of mourning are observed.

Details about his life are shared at nightly ceremonies. For an ordinary Bareeka, only the family hold a six day mourning. The crew will only mourn for day before they proceed with their regular duties and life.

Miscellany

It is said the Bareeka were the first of the super soldiers, the Zalria, to be created by the zu'aan. The legend goes that the first soldier eventually became the clan founder for the Bareeka. Before the Bareeka turned on the zu'aan, they were efficient soldiers who could win at any combat against other clans. With time it is said that the Bareek began to gain a consciousness and began to resent the control the zu'aan had over them. As they watched the zu'aan create more and more Zalria soldiers, the Bareek became more incensed so a plan hatched.

Realising they had strength in numbers and in physique, the Bareeka hatched a plan. While the zu'aan rested, the Bareek managed to find a way to break free of the genetic coding that controlled them. Some have rumoured that they found an antidote that 'cured' them from the control. That theory holds very little water because it begs the question why other kin'toni clans don't speak of the same history. In any event it seems that a kin'toni clan did find a way to break free of its restraints and the zu'aan were unable to control the outbreak. They were unable to reverse the damage.

What is known is that the Bareek were at the fore front of the rebellion that usurped the zu'aan empire. It is perhaps their reluctance to join any alliances or their surprise at not being able to swiftly defeat other kin'toni clans that drove the Bareek to the seas. As they evolved they lost their warrior prowess and became adept only at shorter battles. Thus they did not participate in the kin'toni wars.

Nearby Groups

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Bareeka Kin'toni Clan

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