Kaiue Kin'toni Clan

History

The Kaiue are a kin'toni warrior clan based in the P Puvesir Autumn Hills founded by Nysub Oetemori, who was a warrior of renown even in the days of the Xerea Zu'aan Empire, when he was an elite guardsmen in the company of the of soldiers whose responsibility it was to guard the emperor of the Xerea Zu'aan Empire of the zu'aan . Nearly the whole company was wiped out when the Emperor fled to Shytia Flower Island, there the angry kin'toni that had been charged with finding the Emperor had killed all zu'aan on the Island even the guardsmen.

As such the the company of the Guardsman was wiped out all except the contingent that was led by the founder of this warrior kin'toni plant. This clan is considered very similar to another found in the Ashat nation. These warriors leave their lives with honour honour and believe in the skill of their arms, they spend centuries perfecting the use of their longsword constructed in the Puvesir pattern as well as the use of their dagger. The small contingent of zu'aan guardsmen that were used to found the Kaiue kin'toni clan still remains the core of the whole clan.

And all leadership positions have been left for their occupation. That is not to say that the kin'toni of this clan are completely harmonious but rather follow a very strict chain of command that has been inculcated in the kin'toni since the time of the Xerea Zu'aan Empire. They were given the lands of the Autumn hills in return for their service to the Ashat nation as a mercenary company during their war, and since been given a place next to the Itkali kingdom, the skill and number of the Kaiue has only increased.

Their enmity with the Itkali runs deep and they have tough several wars against them, most recently the Itkali tried to claim a region of the Adon Kingdom and were thoroughly defeated in the field of battle. The primary reason for the contention with the Itkali is the belief of the Itkali is that the land that is currently held by the Kaiue is in fact theirs to claim. The claim that the Puvesir Autumn hills rightfully belong to the Itkali kingdom since the First Emperor, Dedunova Eelmalera, had won the same from the the Old zu'aan inhabitants first, and the Ashat Nation had wrongfully invaded and stolen it.

The Kaiue don’t agree with this tale, in their opinion the land has always been the property of the clan, for although they have not controlled the land for a very long time, the zu'aan that formed the company of the guardsmen of the Emperor of the Xerea Zu'aan Empire actually traced their roots to the region. This is evidenced by the fact that the style of weapons they wield now are the same weapons that were wielded by the company of guardsmen, and the weapon style has been named after the Puvesir Autumn hills, and is commonly referred to as the Puvesir pattern of sword.

Psychology

The Kaiue Clan of the Puvesir Autumn hills are fierce warriors, they spend nearly their whole lives in the pursuit of sword craft, treating the sword and the adjoining dagger more like an appendage of their own body rather than something external. They extremely invested in their skill, and the progress of a kin'toni in the clan is dictated by the level of skill that one is able to acquire with the sword. The warriors are also very expecting of others, like the Daera of the Mal Jade Cliffs, the Kaiue freely accept those kin'toni that are not of their bloodline.

They instead judge the kin'toni more on their ability than lineage, and though the top leadership positions are only occupied by the kin'toni that initially formed the company of the swordsmen that were tasked with the protection of the Emperor of the Xerea Zu'aan Empire, and as such are the kin'toni with the purest lineage, their rule is not based on that claim but rather on the level of skill they have come to posses. In this way the clan has gained one essential difference in its society when compared with other kin'toni clans.

Since most clans actually chose leaders on the basis of age rather than skill, the Kaiue go the other way, for them the skill with the sword and dagger is the only metric for leadership. Some kin'toni argue that it comes down to the same thing, as most kin'toni become better with their weapons as they age and grow as such they might as well choose with age rather than skill. The Kaiue have several examples that prove the contrary, many kin'toni hit a wall in the level of skill they can acquire, this isn’t always the kind of barrier.

For instance many kin'toni have biological limit, beyond which their speed and strength cannot improve, and though this limit exists almost all kin'toni, the Kaiue have found that different bloodlines have different limits. The Kaiue themselves have according to their study, have one of the lowest thresholds, while other bloodlines of kin'toni are able to continually become stronger and faster, the Kaiue begin to plateau fairly quickly. However, the best swordsmen of the Kaiue clan yet remain those with the original bloodline,

And the reason for this is straightforward, while most styles of fighting rely heavily on the use of strength as well as speed, the fighting with the Puvesir pattern relies a lot more on guile and tact than brute strength. This is where skill begins to lead away from age, for although one can continue to improve with age, there are others that seem to be innately talented in those traits. Despite their best efforts, this talent for the sword is not something that seems to relate to bloodline but rather the individual.

Many kin'toni have come to gain this talent over the years of training, while others seem to absorb it instantly and spend the years trying to learn to best apply it in combat.

Biology

As mentioned earlier, the Kaiue believe themselves to have one of the lowest capacities for strength and speed, however, several people severely disagree with this assessment. In fact may Itkali warriors claim that this is a form of propaganda that the Kaiue seek to perpetuate in order to try and disarm those that would face them in battle. The Itkali warriors, who have perhaps fought the Kaiue the most of all nations, claim that the average warrior of the Kaiue clan is perhaps twice as powerful as the normal kin'toni.

And are able to move with the speed of lighting, covering large distances in matter of days where the Itkali troops would take weeks. Although, the Itkali have a known habit of hyperbole, the claims of the Kaiue in regards to a diminished ability in strength and speed do in fact seem to be ones perpetuated to deceive their opponents. The only problems with this argument is the honour code of the Kaiue kin'toni, which all kin'toni of the clan hold above all else.

The honour code does not allow the kin'toni to lie outright, and in all fairness this claim of the Kaiue has done little to diminish their stature, no kin'toni clan on the landmass of Erea would claim that they were weak or a slow opponent. The Kaiue themselves have come up with certain theories as to why they believe they have remained weaker than the other kin'toni blood lines. Most commonly, he clan leaders believe that two of the theories that have been hypothesised are likely to be true, and the most popular theory is one that has to do with the nature of the virus that converted the zu'aan into kin'toni.

By now it is common knowledge, that the zu'aan were trying to create superior form of warrior when they accidentally made the kin'toni, and although many clans claim that this was an intervention of nature, the Kaiue believe that the kin'toni that came about had some traits that the zu'aan had wanted in their ideal warriors. Of those traits, the one that is of note for this clan is the trait of adaptability, and this is indeed true of all kin'toni clans. If an observer were to note the differences in all the kin'toni clans.

They would be surprised by the sheer variety in just the physical appearance of the different kin'toni clans let alone their biological functions. In accordance with this trait, a kin'toni is able to adapt not only to the physical environment in which it resides but also according to the role that it chooses to fulfil. The Kaiue believe that their chosen method of fighting has never required the strength or speed that is ascribed to the other modes of fighting but always been heavily reliant on the application of the mind.

They believe that when adapting to their role, their bodies chose to develop their minds so as to allow them to fight better than to waste resources in building up speed and strength. They have dark red irises with black sclerae and vertical slit pupils.

Culture

The Kaiue have a respected and reverent culture, they hold honour and selflessness above all other traits. These are reasonable traits for them to value since their ideology is heavily built upon the traditions and customs of the guardsmen of the Xerea Zu'aan Empire. Their culture pays heavy emphasis upon the valour displayed in the battlefield, the social status of a kin'toni is greatly dependent on how the kin'toni is perceived as a warrior not only in skill but also in demeanour on the battlefield.

In particular they are very reverent of those kin'toni that have presided in battle in defence of the kin'toni warriors of the clans or the common citizenry. This obsession with Martyrdom is another heirloom of their past as the guardsmen of the monarch of the Xerea Zu'aan Empire. In those times, a position in the guard was viewed as one of the highest honours that could be bestowed upon a worthy soldier, but it was also seen nearly as a confirmed death sentence.

The Emperor of the zu'aan empire was indeed one of the most powerful people on the whole planet, and many a organisations actively sought his death, the frequent attacks on the emperor’s life meant that his guardsmen saw regular combat. The regular combat in itself was not the reason for the heavy casualties the guards body had to sustain but rather the nature of the combat. The Puvesir weapon pattern is perhaps one of the most well deigned sword and dagger combination to have ever been created,

Its offensive power is surprisingly extremely high, and the manner in which the guardsmen used them relied only on the offensive capabilities of the weapon and none of its defensive capabilities. In fact, the old members of the Kaiue clan have a t number of occasions confessed that the guardsmen were actively taught never to ward off an attack with their swords, but instead taught to use their bodies as traps for the enemies weapons so that their companions may strike down the assassin.

This of course has changed significantly since the founding of the Kaiue clan, given enough time to learn the intricacies of their weapon and a reprieve from nearly daily combats, the old guardsmen were able to begin delving into the true nature of their weapons and explore possibilities of both attack and defence that the earlier zu'aan guardsmen had never had the opportunity to examine. In addition to the reprieve from combat, the guardsmen were also assisted with the luxury of time, and health.

In their zu'aan bodies, they could not spend decades practicing the same art without eventually being worn down with age, but as kin'toni the warriors were able to continuously improve their skill while suffering none of the ill effects of age. During this time, it can be said that the Kaiue truly developed into the fearsome warriors that they are seen as today and not the mere martyrs that they were at the time when they defended the monarch of the Xerea Zu'aan Empire.

Government

The Kaiue are governed by the most skilled warriors of their clan, and at present none of these officials are other than the original guardsmen that were made into kin'toni in the first wave. There have been some rumours of corruption by those that are unfamiliar with the ways and customs of the Kaiue society. In fact, the position of the warriors that are chosen to lead the government of the Kaiue is not truly seen as one of privilege but one of sacrifice.

It is thought as one of sacrifice due to the fact that the kin'toni that are chosen to fulfil the position of the leaders of the clan are denied the battlefield, but are instead required to spend their days governing the affairs of the Kaiue, and training the other members of the clan in the art of the sword. This denial of the battlefield is a severe sacrifice, for those that cannot win honour in the field of battle are denied the fruits of their religion. In this way, although the positions these guardsmen occupy are certainly positions of formidable power, by no means are they enviable.

This structure of society truly forces forward the progression of skill among the members of the whole clan, since the officials of the government are eager to pass on their responsibilities to another, in their capacity as both leaders and teachers they try and ensure that the clan members continually improve and improve enough to be able to best them. The process for claiming the ownership of a position in the government of the Kaiue is fairly straightforward, every year at the new moon of the the twelfth month of the cycle, the Kaiue celebrate the founding of their clan.

This festival includes many rituals that are both related to their tradition as well as to their religion, and one of the most important parts of this fete is the annual swords race, and these are mock battles that are held with almost all those kin'toni that are recognised as active warriors in the armies of the clan. It is mandatory for all such warriors to participate in the swords race, although a warrior may seek exemption from attendance due to special circumstances but generally this does not ever occur.

As not participating in the mock battle is seen as a refusal to administer to testing of skill which is seen as being an expression of pride. The swords race initially begins with mock battle with different companies of the clan armies, the battles begin early in the day and the kin'toni that lead the whole clan make the decision of choosing which company progresses to the next round, as the companies of the clans continue to be eliminated, the elders also choose individual fighters that stand out from the rest of the company.

Eventually the winners of the swords race face the elders, and in this way the race helps not only in finding the most skilled warriors but also in reorganising the armies according to the skill levels of individual warriors.

Military

The Kaiue are among the most numerous warrior clans in the whole of Erea, and are rivalled only by the likes of the Daera of the Mal Jade Cliffs and th Galaka of the Tamor Drylands. As their renown grows in the world, kin'toni from across the world journey to the Autumn hills to enlist in the ranks of the Kaiue, unlike other warrior clans that turn away all but the most capable warrior kin'toni, the Kaiue turn away no one. According to them, the only thing that is necessary for a warrior of the Kaiue clan is that of will, everything else can be taught, and is in fact taught with thoroughness.

Those that join the warrior clans are tested initially and put into different companies of the army, and all the companies are graded every year during the swords race by the elders of the clan. In this way, the company that is graded the least is required to take in the kin'toni that show the least promise or rather have the most things to learn. It must be understood that the purpose of assigning the companies a grade in the swords race is not for the sake of finding fault and giving out punishment but rather to find fault and a solution.

The company that is graded the least does not participate in active warfare for they have been judged as the weakest, and it would be dishonourable to have the weak fight a battle for the strong, and so the weakest company spends the greatest amount of training in training. Such companies are not forced to participate in the administration of the duties that are assigned to the armies, for instance let alone combat, the weakest company is not even allowed the much less arduous task of guarding and patrolling.

Instead most of their time is spent in arduous training with the the elders that the drill the whole company as well as the new kin'toni the most, aside from the weakest company all other companies are allowed an opportunity to train with the elders however the better they have been graded the less time for training they are assigned. The most skilled company, which is highly honoured by the whole clan is only allowed one week of training with the elders during the whole year, and spend nearly every day seeing active combat.

The differences in the skill of those in the prime company and those that are found in the zeta company is nearly insurmountable, the bonds of the company members are nearly as close as that of family, and even though one kin'toni in the company may be more skilled than the rest of the company the kin'toni is not expected to move to a better graded company unless the elders the difference in skill to be too great. Those that are promoted from one company to another have almost always been promoted to the prime company and never any lower ranked company.

Religion

The Kaiue cannot be though of as particularly devout kin'toni, they are certainly honest and trustworthy, and live their whole lives in accordance with the honour of their people. This honour that they lay claim to is not one that can be said to be motivated only due to the spiritual ideology that they follow but rather in how they view life. That is not to say that their religion has absolutely no impact on how they behave and the manner in which they lead their lives, as it certainly does but it isn’t as pronounced as it is in the kin'toni warrior clans of the other regions.

For instance, the Oola are an example of a kin'toni warrior clan that is extremely devout in the worship of their god of fire and war, while the Daera revere the forest life of their region as something very close to divinity. The Kaiue on the other hand do not actively think about their religion on even a daily basis, in fact some of the newer members of the clan have no particular knowledge about their religion, and spend nearly the first two centuries without actively learning about it.

The elders of the clan on the other hand are perhaps different from the rest of the clan in this regard, most of the elders spend a large amount of time in prayer during the course of the day. They actively follow the religion of their ancestors and hold rituals on a daily basis, but they certainly don’t force any of the other clan members to do the same. There are however pockets of reverence for the religion throughout the whole clan, some members of the clan are greatly drawn towards the religion than the rest,

And this is ascribed to the fact that they seem to feel the presence of the gods more acutely than the rest of the clan members. The religion of the Kaiue is commonly called as the religion of the fallen, the Kaiue believe that the warriors of heir clan join the fallen god upon their demise. However, in order to have the privilege of joining with their brethren that have attained the ultimate sacrifice, the Kaiue need to live their life in a certain way.

The most important condition for being accepted to being a part of the fallen god is a life of honour and sacrifice, the kin'toni needs to understand that the life they lead only makes sense as long as it is lived in service to those that are unable to help themselves, whether this be in the form of defending their lives from harm or teaching them the way of the sword. The elders who pray on a near daily a basis do so in order to remember the meaning of their sacrifice and to continue to bear the burden of not joining the battlefield.

It is a difficult thing since the glory of the battlefield is denied them but they are hopeful that instead of entering a cycle of rebirth, they can gain freedom and join the fallen god in death.

Miscellany

The Kaiue are an elite kin'toni clan that have only ever increased in their notoriety, their battles with the forces of the Itkali have been fierce events that will probably live in infamy throughout the history of the landmass of Erea. The Kaiue’s decision to join the Adon Kingdom is motivated by their thirst for battle, since the time of their occupation of the Autumn hills, the Kaiue have had an opportunity to engage in battle nearly every cycle of the year but their continue victories have meant that the kin'toni armies of their neighbouring kingdoms are thoroughly reluctant to engage them in battle.

This means that the warriors have had less opportunities for warfare, which has meant less glory won for their armies, with the rise of the Adon Kingdom, the Kaiue are offered the unique opportunity of not only aligning with kin'toni that are kindred with their way of life but that would allow them to have a near continuous stream of fighting. Besides the Daera, the Kaiue are the most abundant sections of the Adon Armies, and to a large part have been the cause for the fluid ease with which the Adon armies have carved through their enemy forces.

The Adon army battles are truly a sight to behold, between the arrow storms of the Daera and the picturesque fighting of the Kaiue, one is always struck with the power of the warrior kin'toni clans. Th famed Itkali blocks of the Ahe clan of the Itkali armies have been seen to positively dissolve in the wave of the Kaiue attack, generally attacking in a group of four warriors, the Kaiue are able to parry and dodge right into the middle of the army blocks and pry them open.

The wave of the initial charge of the Kaiue is buttressed by the arrow storm of the Daera, and just as the blocks begin to slow their movement, the Kaiue sweep in like a wind of death and destruction. In difficult battles that involve larger number of rivals, the Oola infantry is used to soften the flanks of the enemy host, as the Oola rean-laxkas charge into the armoured sides of the army, the Kaiue seep into the front and begin the process of dismantling the blocks.

There are rare battles indeed where the whole Kaiue host is required to be engaged, instead companies are usually sent forward in pairs to areas that seem to be offering resistance. The prime company however is almost alway found a field, and rarely have they required to be reinforced with additional companies. Aside from their near limitless time in battle, the kind of tactics that the prime company utilises also means that they have among the highest casualty rates among all the companies of the Kaiue,

However, this rate when compared to the rest of the Adon clans is minute, and is dwarfed by the casualty rate of the Oola and the Daera which see a lot less direct combat than the Kaiue warriors.

Nearby Groups

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Kaiue Kin'toni Clan

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