Database and Lore

Kun, the Shin’Fo’Mil Stronghold

*Spoilers if you haven’t read Gabatrix: The First Peace* “We aren’t just Shal’rein, we ‘are the true Shal’rein,’” Greater Adjunct Alca’fin. There are many worlds of the Itrean race, each with different characteristics. The planet of Kun is a traditional Shal’rein world, one that dates back countless years with a population that is equally as ancient. However, the preservation of the past also carries a cost, one of blood and sacrifice. History The Planet of Kun’s history is somewhat well recorded and defined. During the Era of Old Space, the Itrean explorer Hesik began evaluating a large area, over 6 light-years wide, spanning several solar systems within a massive supernova filament. The heaviest remnants of ancient dust had formed a series of smaller red or brown dwarf stars. Either called the Hesik Nebula or more commonly known as the Hesik Expanse, the region was cataloged approximately 220,000 years ago. Hesik’s greatest discovery was the first planet he thoroughly investigated. At the time, the Shal’rein valued watery worlds more than any other clan species, which usually preferred landmasses with some water. However, as the Shal’rein had been slowly readjusting and evolving their bodies to leave the water more, the need to have complete watery worlds was slowly decreasing over time. The Shin’Fo’mil, or as they prefer to call themselves, the Helera’kun, follows its roots very similarly to the Fo’mil religion of the other Itrean clan species. However, the Shin’Fo’mil still follows slight deviations to its approach. Their goal, much like the other Fo’mil, was to retain their originality and culture. Any induced bio-evolution was pushed away to preserve the body and ensure that the Shin’Fo’mil were as close to the original Shal’rein as possible. However, unlike the other Fo’mil, the Shin’Fo’mil are more to themselves rather than being outward. Their strong sense of self-determination had forged strong bonds with one another more considerable than those the other Fo’mil had ever accomplished. Many Itrean historians consider the Shin’Fo’mil an even more ancient religion, one that even helped inspire the creation of the other Fo’mil sects that the other Itrean species had embraced. As a result, the Helera’kun desired to have a world of their own. Instead of living in cloisters, villages, or cohesion like the other Itrean Fo’mil, the Shin’Fo’mil preferred to live isolated together. Most Shin’Fo’mil today are as close to the original shark species of former Earth as they come; however, there is still evolution that has transformed their bodies over time. Unlike the typical Shal’rein of today, the Shin’Fo’mil lack breasts and hair, being typically bald with fins. They are bipedal with two arms. However, they can only leave the water for a limited time before needing to go back into it again. Most of these reasons stem from the need to keep the gill slits and lungs hydrated, as breathing outside the water can cause them to dry quickly, leading to illness or physical damage to the body. They also don’t give birth to live young, laying egg-like pouches in the ocean floor nurseries, much as the ancient Shal’rein had done long before. Hesik’s exploration had revealed a watery planet that was located at the complete edge of the great nebula. While somewhat close to the Yutilian Kingdom of Gui’optre’s territorial border, the watery world was something that the Yutilians would hold no desire in having. The Shal’rein Helera’kun decided to claim the planet as their new home, hopefully serving as a station and launching point to mine the planets inside the Hesik Expanse. The planet Kun's name was adopted shortly thereafter. While mining was sparse and territorial battles were marginal during the Era of Old Space, the Helera’kun held little blood feud with the neighboring Yutilian Kingdom. Tragically, the only true antagonists of the Shal’rein, along with most of the Shal’rein’s ancient history, were fighting other Shal’rein. The competition for watery worlds was still present by 210,000 years ago, but more prevalent was that of expanding subclans. Within 10,000 years of the colonization of Kun, subclan Shinta, what ultimately became the even more powerful Gok’shinta, had launched an all- out invasion of the world. Despite all the efforts to repel them, the Helera’kun were forced to surrender and become a vassal state to the Shinta subclan. Much of Kun’s history is unknown during this era, as mining increased in the Hesik Expanse, eventually drying the region by 200,000 years ago. Much as the spirit of the Helera’kun remained, the Shinta were domineering and oppressive towards Kun’s population. The desire to be free had been an ever-present, often forcing Shinta to engage in barbaric practices to keep the population in line. Kun has always served as a sacrificial and sometimes economically deprived world despite being a fortress world of the Hesik Expanse. Regardless, despite the attempts to rebel against Shinta and Gok’Shinta’s hold over the Helera’kun, Planet Kun had still served as a hesitant ally. Helera’kun soldiers fought well, even surpassing and forming some of Gok’shinta’s greatest underwater legions. Despite fighting with antiquated equipment, such as the Shal’rein laser trident, the Helera’kun were often courageous and unending in their resolve to win the fight. By the time of the Emphra War, the Helera’kun suffered heavily as the Emphra had smashed through the Shal’rein fleets and landed in the water. Kun was among the third Shal’rein world to be invaded by the Emphra in the early 2280s. The long sieges of the horrid ones resulted in over 50% decimation of the entire population. Underwater nuclear devices were used constantly in an attempt to eradicate them. However, by 2291, with the advent of new vulnerabilities discovered by the Itreans, the Kun quickly eradicated the Emphra once and for all. Kun’s recovery process was slow even during the era of the United Itrean Republic. Much resentment has persisted in the Helera’kun that Gok’shinta had betrayed them during the Emphra War, often forcing the Kun to fend for themselves during the worst years of the invasions. However, there are many arguments that have persisted between both sides where Gok’shinta had tried to fight and defend the Helera’kun at times, only to place less value in defending them when more important worlds were being attacked. According to one Shal’rein historian, “The loss of Kun would have been tragic, only because of the loss of life. The Emphra would have only gained food and biomass, not the infrastructure to replace their ships. We knew it, and maybe the Emphra knew it too, yet the Helera’kun would never know our priorities….” The end result was that Kun remains in a damaged relationship with the Shal’rein clan. The population remains in a state of unease. With the advent of Zilik’s Disease, the Kun have further lost 50% of the post-Emphra surviving population. The results have been devastating on their morale, often forcing constant arguments that Kun will never fully prosper until it’s finally free of Shal’rein clan control. Kun measures about 2/3 the size of Earth while entirely covered in water. Currently, there is only a small tethered orbital space station that houses and maintains the majority of Kun’s fleets. The original space station was scuttled during the Emphra War. *Spoilers if you haven’t read past Gabatrix: The Batrice Crisis arc* By the time of the discovery of humanity, the true tipping point for the Kun was a transmission that emerged from a hidden comm relay station from one of the Shal’rein military outposts in the Hesik Expanse. Done in part by Christopher Darin and the Blue Buccaneers, the Helera’kun were subjected to the truth that humanity offered the cure for Zilik’s Disease. Already angered and holding resentment towards Gok’shinta and the Shal’rein clan, Kun launched into action, civil war broke out on the watery world. The Helera’kun Rebellion is one of the first more recent recorded events of a complete outbreak of conflict with one clan species. Organized by Greater Adjunct Kas’ora, daughter of the great Adjunct who fought in the Emphra War and associate to Master Adjunct Gular’shel, Kas’ora was left in a difficult scenario. Under her guidance, the first goal of the rebellion was to get as many of the Helera’kun civilians interested in moving to T’rintar or human controlled worlds away from Kun. Kas’ora, even in her stubbornness, knew that she wouldn’t win in a prolonged conflict against the full might of the Shal’rein forces. Much as the other past rebellions and conflicts of Kun’s past, the Helera’kun were inadequately equipped and was guaranteed to lose the war. Instead, by throwing themselves at the mercy of the T’rintar and UHN alliance, there was a possibility that Helera’kun could start anew, finding homes and potentially finding human mates that were willing to produce offspring immune to Zilik’s Disease. In the end, she and many of the Kun population had gotten their wish. While displaced, some of the Helera’kun have settled down on the world of Oshun as the Shin’fo’mil have an almost complete watery world to themselves with the human population that lives on the small island landmasses. While a controversial choice by some, the Kun have given their promise to defend their new potential mates and Oshun with their lives until Kun will be free from the Shal’rein clan. As for planet Kun itself, it is unknown as to the true everlasting effects that the rebellion as caused. It is expected that many of the ringleaders will be executed by the order of the Autarch. Until then, planet Kun has a long road ahead of it until the rest of the population will be allowed to be finally free.