Omine Kin'toni Clan

History

The Omine are one of the most recent kin'toni clans that exist, those who have heard this name are either in close proximity to the tribe, or are aware of their tragic story that is told by storytellers in their travels. 4E 470, this kin'toni clan was nothing but a peaceful and well developed zu'aan tribe. They mostly kept to their own and rarely left the wooden barriers of their small fortified tribe. The women worked in the fields, the men usually stayed and home building or forging, or joined the military.

This peaceful life is something that was taken for granted by the population of the then “Bura forest”, that almost pretended as if the rest of the world did not exist. However, one day reality, as it usually does, caught up with them. During a calm afternoon, a strange kin'toni appeared on their doorstep and threatened attacking if they were not given supplies. In an effort to avoid further problems, the zu'aan tribe offered them the supplies they could spare and that they had been gathering for months. Despite this generous action, the Radh clan decided that it was not enough and launched an attack on the zu'aan of the Bura forest.

Thankfully and also unfortunately for these zu'aan tribesmen and women, the winter came suddenly, it was a winter they had not yet seen. The kin'toni of the Radh clan were also caught by surprise and had little time to react. The kin'toni ended up fleeing but leaving many to die in the now Bura frozen forest. This region was one of the first to experience the foreshadowing of the Ice Era. It looked like the universe came in the aid of the zu'aan, most of them had survived, the number of casualties was very low and they could retreat into their warm homes, unlike the Radh.

However, this sense of false security was finally shaken, there was one infection in their midst. The panic started, “how could this have happened?”, many asked. Soon the whole tribe was strangely infected, somehow it spread from zu'aan to zu'aan with unprecedented quickness. This chaotic environment led to the transformation of the zu'aan to kin'toni, for some this happened quite fast and for other it took several weeks. The ones that took more time ended up getting devoured by the new-kin'toni that were hungry for the blood of the turning zu'aan.

As time went by, every single zu'aan became a kin'toni, running out of the tribe to avoid being infected or killed was impossible, the cold would freeze anyone to death within a couple of minutes. As the months went by, the members of the former zu'aan tribe now became the kin'toni of the Omine clan. The once peaceful and happy village was transformed into a place where desperate kin'toni waited for the winter to pass. However, there is still a problem, they do not know if it’s going to pass, or even if it’s going to pass.

Biology

The zu'aan that lived in the Bura forest were infected almost one quarter of a century after the initial outbreak, which means that their infection was vey recent and they are still experiencing the after-effects of the process. This means that many of them, every day, fall on their knees in pain and just can’t get up until the pain subsides. Because the infection was very late, the lust for blood that most members of the Omine clan feel is a lot stronger than usual. When it appears, it is as if someone has gripped your heart and is squeezing it, little by little, until it explodes.

In very severe cases, that have already shocked the clan, there are kin'toni that, as they are feeling this, they simply die. A spontaneous due to an enormous desire for blood is something quite uncommon and in this tribe is a problem that starts when a kin'toni goes about four days without consuming blood. Because of this, getting blood is essential and the lack thereof will have severe repercussions. Even a desire for blood that has been increasing for two or three days can cause vomit and abdominal pains intense to the point where one cannot move well. The winter appearing wasn’t all terrible for the members of the Omine clan.

It did make it impossible for them to leave, and it did make many of them die, but it also killed their enemies and, most importantly, gave them a resistance to cold. This mutation of the biology of the members of the Omine clan happened due to the infection happening right in the middle of below zero temperatures that no normal zu'aan would have the capacity to withstand. As the temperatures drop, the body of an Omine clan member tightens and fights off the cold through the heat generated in the tightening of the muscles. It is a rare phenomenon and it does make them slower and their intelligence is slightly lowered during the period they must do this for.

Additionally, to protect itself from the cold, the Omine have been developing hair in their body, some of them have only specific parts of their bodies that are covered in fur, but others have already started to develop a thick layer of fur that sheds during the summer, although many believe that the Omine have seen their last summer. The skin of the members of the Omine clan has a blue-ish tone and their irises are green with white and crescent pupils. The sun, as it usually does for other kin'toni, presents a challenge to the Omine, but this challenge is bigger than normal.

Thankfully, the sunny days in the Bura frozen forest are a thing of the past, most days, sunlight exists for around four or five hours then the region plunges in darkness. Apart from all of this, their bodies have not mutated as much as some other might during the infection, these Omine still look like the zu'aan tribe they once were.

Culture

The culture of the Omine clan is very interesting, because although they are a kin'toni tribe, they still kept the same rituals and festivals and cultural norms that they had as a zu'aan tribe. This means that the Jurgunar, the festival that the zu'aan of this region had to celebrate their independence from other zu'aan tribes, is still something that they strive to do each year. For one year it was impossible to celebrate this holiday. The zu'aan that managed to survive had just been turned to kin'toni and their lives were very chaotic, adapting to this new way of life was not an easy task.

It was, however, something they managed to do without losing their own identity. This means that the Jurgunar is now celebrated with the abundance of food that they have, wine is also something there is never a shortage of. Every year, songs of the zu'aan independence can be heard all over the Bura frozen forest. and despite the irony, that they are in fact kin'toni, the Omine are very proud of their culture and intend to keep celebrating this holiday. Even more ironic is the other festival that takes part in the last day of the year, it has received the name “The butchering of the kin'toni”.

And it is the celebration of every battle that ever took place in which kin'toni were killed by the former tribe that is now the Omine clan. It might look as though it makes no sense, they are celebrating the death of a species that they now belong to, however, they do not consider themselves as part of this species. Something that also sets the Omine kin'toni apart from other kin'toni is that they have families. Because the whole tribe was infected, that means that children were also infected, and most of them actually had an easier time resisting the transformation.

Therefore, there are still fathers and mothers and sons and daughters, even if they are kin'toni. Of course, this will be the last generation of families, the sons and the daughters will no longer be able to have children, but this already sets the Omine apart from other clans. The bond of the Omine families is very strong precisely due to the fact that they will be the last families in this community, they spend the most time possible with each other. Just talking and simply existing around one another. Fear is very common in these families, they have not grown up in a culture where not being able to have children is normal.

Therefore, it is a terrifying feeling for them to acknowledge this. Another problem the kin'toni of the Omine are faced with is the fact that they do not wish to kill more zu'aan tribesmen, the Omine themselves still consider part of the zu'aan tribes and do not wish to kill any of their own species. However, due to their increased thirst for blood, the Omine need to drink zu'aan blood and the only way to do this without killing any zu'aan is to create blood deals with these tribes.

Government

In the days before the Radh attacked this tribe and before the winter showed everyone in the region its power, the Omine had a leader who was respected by all the zu'aan of this tribe. She was a kind woman who was advised by several other members of the tribe and rarely chose to do something that she knew it hurt the people she was in charge of. All in all, she was a beloved ruler that mostly stood in the shadows of her advisors. and who’s role was more that of a pilar of strength for the community. Unfortunately, because of the peaceful period this tribe had gone through, the surprise and many zu'aan died due to the poor defense planning.

This shook the reigns of the chief; she had been tested for the first time since she had entered a position of power in the tribe. As the winter came and drove away the Radh, this ruler was faced with another two problems. She had to find a way to reshape their community into one that could survive colder weathers and she had to deal directly with an ongoing infection that turned out to be a way bigger problem than it should. The leader of the Omine that was mention is called Iri, she is the daughter of a powerful former, now deceased, member of the Omine clan and a nomad, despite her being one of the last people to get infected due to her intelligence.

Because of the respect the others had for her, there were almost no attempts on her life by the former zu'aan, now kin'toni. However, there were some attempts to steal her position and become leader of the tribe, these failed only because those loyal to Iri that had turned faster fought against the usurpers. Now that Iri can again focus on the clan itself, she is trying to adapt the Omine to their new and confusing reality. There is an enormous focus on rebuilding, in the war with the Radh, many of the defenses and main constructions were completely destroyed.

Additionally, the winter caused many of the constructions that had not been wrecked to be useless due to the lack of conditions for withstanding the cold. This focus on rebuilding has made Iri even more likeable that she was prior to the infection, the Omine feel like their leader understands their struggles and everything she is doing is for the good of the clan. Iri is also focusing on the blood trades with the zu'aan near their region. These zu'aan tribes do not wish confrontation and are quite empathetic to the situation of the Omine, therefore, they do their best to accumulate the blood they can, which then is sent to the Omine.

This has established a bond between some of the clans in the surrounding regions and the Omine clan. There are talks of potential alliances in the distance.

Military

The weakness of the military of the zu'aan tribe is part of what led to all of this problem. They were ill-prepared for a spontaneous attack by a kin'toni plan, maybe because they live in a secluded area or maybe because they simply had never considered the possibility in a serious manner. The zu'aan soldiers were undertrained and underequipped, but the biggest problem of them all was the numbers themselves, the percentage of zu'aan of this tribe that were part of the military was incredibly small. However, this all changed after the war and the sudden coming of the winter, Iris.

The ruler of the Omine, created a position for a military commander and this commander started recruiting several young kin'toni to join the military. The training facilities were also very improved, and the young soldiers were supplied with appropriate fighting weapons. The Omine army is still not a force to be reckoned with, but along with the defenses that have been built in the last few years. They cannot be walked over with ease. Among the defenses that were built are several moats with wooden spikes at the bottom, the walls were once again risen and the main wooden gate was fortified.

This military need to use appropriate clothing for fighting in the snow, but they also constantly need to wear garbs to protect them from the sun, which means that their garbs are made from a material malleable enough to cover them. But warm enough so that they do not die from the below-zero temperatures. The shoes are also very specific to this clan, they have spikes at the bottom because in the Bura frozen, as the name suggests, the ground itself freezes and walking is next to impossible without these types of footwear. Even if they do have the motivation to fight.

Omine clan fighters are mainly used as a way to protect the community and the trips to foreign kin'toni tribes to get their blood. Over the years there have been attacks, though not as big as those from the Radh clan, however, as they got closer to the Omine settlement, the enemy’s numbers were already very reduced due to the unexpected and violent weather, which meant that killing them was an easy task. The Omine take advantage of the natural characteristics of their region, the invaders are often not expecting to be met with a natural resistance.

Wnd as they are setting up camp because the ground is to frozen to walk on, the Omine appear out of nowhere, wearing their white garbs so that they cannot be easily spotted, and slaughter the entire invasion force, or just enough for them to flee. Animals are also very common in this region and a naïve invader might be confused to find some of his men dead out of the blue, but the Omine have trained “Sere”, a type of snow fox that is larger than usual and kills their prey without mercy and without making a sound, the attack is directed towards the neck.

Religion

The Omine used to have a seemingly normal religion, in which there was a God, named Asoro, he represented all the beauty in the world, the beauty in every single thing that was a part of reality, this meant that Asoro was beauty itself, and according to the tribe, he was a part of all that existed. All the zu'aan of this tribe used to have statues of him in their homes and pray to him on a daily basis. Worship came in the form of actions, some would kiss their wives and consider that worship, other would plant flowers in the forest and consider that worship, it was up to the individual to adore Asoro in the way they saw fit.

However, this quickly changed after the infections and the wars, the members of this new kin'toni clan screamed on the streets that Asoro should be found and burned at the stake in the town square. Death threats to the god were everywhere and his statues had been destroyed or vandalized. The Omine no longer saw the world as a beautiful place, they saw it as a cruel world that feed on suffering and pain, that takes advantage of the naivety of its members. Now their religion has evolved to something completely different, there is no longer a God, but there is a divine figure that is hated by all the Omine.

This figure is Wor, he is considered the personification of the kin'toni and the Omine all focus their hate for what the kin'toni did to them, on Wor. This devil has all the characteristics that could be considered bad and the statues that exist of him now are, unlike those of Asoro in the old days, made to be destroyed each year on a specific date. There is a prophecy that the Omine kin'toni will be able to find Wor and kill him and as they kill the devil, sticking an ice pick into his heart, they will be able to regain their former humanity and will go back to being normal zu'aan.

Furthermore, they believe that as they find Wor, the world will be engulfed in ice and when they kill him, all the kin'toni but the ones that kill him will be dead. The ones that created this prophecy were the priests of the clan, the priests were already priests before the infection and are considered very wise men that have spent all their lives studying to understand the future, the trust the Omine have in them explains their firm belief in the prophecy.

Miscellany

Nearby Groups

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Omine Kin'toni Clan

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