Prologue: An Empire Falls
Prologue: An Empire Falls
The Illithites' story begins a very long time ago. There one was a time when the Illithite Grand Empire stretched its nefarious tendrils across the entire Galaxy, its mighty fleet backed by Shroud-weavers bearing enormous psionic potential. System after system fell to their rule as enemy empires were crushed before them. But it was the Illithi's practice of biologically assimilating their conquered foes that led to their downfall - they had evolved from parasites, and their young needed a sentient host in order to develop past a tadpole stage. Horrified by this abominable practice, enemy nations set aside their differences and banded together against the Illithite fleets. In a series of decisive battles, the Illithites were driven back to their home system. There they made a final stand, in the shadow of an enormous Star Fortress so mighty that the combined forces of the enemy fleets could not hope to defeat it in direct battle. But the Illithites' treacherous foes found another way to destroy their hated enemy.
By setting off massive Hyperwaves in three different places just outside Illithite space at precisely the right distance from the Illithites' home star, the allied forces were able to detonate the sun itself, setting off a supernova. The Illithites' homeworld, Snamon, was flung into the depths of space, and all who lived upon it perished as they were first scorched by radiation from the supernova and then frozen solid as Snamon drifted further and further away from its star.
Millions of years passed as Snamon tumbled through the void, its surface covered in the frozen remnants of its atmosphere. No light shone upon the blasted planet for eons, aside from the faintest glimmer of distant stars. Eventually the planet's journey through the Galaxy came to a stop as Snamon was captured in the orbit of a black hole, doomed to slowly spiral inwards over billions of years until finally being devoured into the singularity at its core. Yet it was this very black hole which proved to be the Illithites' salvation.
Tidal forces from the singularity's immense gravitational pull re-heated Snamon's core, and geothermal vents spewed toxic gasses to the surface. Snamon's frozen atmosphere sublimated back into existence. Uncounted eons passed once more as the planet's atmosphere grew thicker and thicker. Finally, life sprang once more into this primordial soup. Millions more years passed as it evolved into complex (and often crab-like) forms. Finally, Snamon's fledgling life grasped for a semblance of intelligence with the rise of the Gizakyi, mantis-like creatures of significant strength but little sentience to speak of. Still, the Gizakyi's limited curiosity was enough to seal their fate, as eventually they discovered a sealed Illithite vault, the lone surviving artifact after millions of years of weathering. The Gizakyi managed to open the vault, and were infected with Illithite tadpoles.
The first Illithite hatchlings found themselves alone and confused. The psionic network their distant ancestors had created was long gone, though its faintest remnants echoed through the void as a scar on the Shroud, and awakened in them a longing for their higher purpose: to restore the Illithite to their dominant place in the Galaxy. Two thousand and two hundred of our years later, the first Illithite interstellar vessels had been built, and were ready to begin their renewed exploration of the Galaxy.
The Illithite is roughly humanoid, tall but thin; they stand perhaps eight feet tall, but rarely weigh more than two hundred pounds. The top of their skull is thick and hardened, like a shell; below it are four eyes, a pair of breathing tubes, and a number of short but strong tentacles surrounding a beaked mouth. Their coloration varies from reds to blues to purples, with individuals of high status showing particularly vibrant hues. Their coloration can change throughout their long lives, if the need arises.
When they first reached interstellar flight, slightly more than two thousands years after they first returned, the Illithite society had devolved a great deal from its former glory. Many individuals were somewhat psionically gifted, and could sense the scar upon the very psyche of the Shroud their ancestors had left hundreds of millions of years beforehand. As they lacked the deeper understanding of the Universe that their precursors had, they began to worship this connection as a god. The black hole in their sky - with its majestic accretion disk halo - would be the centerpiece of this faith. They named it Shak-Cor - The Becoming God.
This faith is the very core of the entire Illithite society. Their leader, an absolute and unquestioned god-emperor, is a powerful psion (though at this time the Illithite did not yet understand this, they naturally gravitated towards psionically powerful beings in leadership roles from the start) and worshiped as Shak-Cor itself. The heir-apparent is known as Cor, the Becoming.
In the name of their dark god, the Illithite seek to conquer the Galaxy.
For now, they rely upon the labor of the Gizakyi. These beast-like creatures are only barely intelligent enough to serve as proper hosts to the Illithites. They greatly resemble our world's mantis shrimps, with massive eyes to see in the dim light cast by Shak-Cor's accretion disk, but they are huge, reaching up to a ton in weight. The Illithite are eager to find more worthy hosts - and more capable servants.
Snamon is a lonely world, cold and dark. It orbits a black hole in the southern quadrant of the Galaxy, and is dimly lit only by the light given off by the black hole's accretion disk.
Snamon is often bathed in radiation, and the tidal forces of the black hole Shak-Cor have generated intense geothermal activity in its belly. An entire ecosystem has sprung up around these sources of energy.
This ecosystem is by no means rich, however. Snamon is mostly lifeless, and thoroughly bleak. Yet somehow, life finds a way.
Prime Minister Jeltesh the Brute is the squid-woman responsible for ensuring the smooth operation of the humble world. The colorful Gizakyi have to be carefully managed if they are to complete the tasks that the Illithites require successfully and efficiently. Her savage epithet, a relic of a bygone age when Illithites clans following different interpretations of the Divine Guidance and pledging loyalty to different emperors savagely fought one another beneath dark sulfurous clouds. Now it is mostly ironic - Jeltesh is most brutal when she effectively manages the planet's sprawling bureaucracy.
She is the second most powerful squid-person in the Empire of Shak-Cor - second only to the great god-emperor, the corporeal manifestation of Shak-Cor itself - J'klang the Striker.
Years before he came to power, the young Cor had visited an orbital observatory with a powerful telescope used to study exoplanets - the worlds orbiting the neighboring stars. The scientists in charge of the observatory managed to use the black hole's gravitational lensing to greatly increase the range of their telescopes, allowing clear observations of the neighboring star's planets. The astronomers were stunned to discover a massive planet in the star's habitable zone which seemed to have liquid water on its surface. The young J'klang even claimed to have spotted some sort of structures on the planet's surface.
At that moment, J'klang declared that under his rule, interstellar flight would be achieved and earned his epithet - the Striker. Now, four years into his rule, his pledge was about to come true.
This wasn't J'klang's only scientific initiative. His realm's top three scientists were each put in charge of one Research Ministry and given a different mandate.
Nithkur the Marauder, so named for his tentative grasp of the intricate Illithite social norms, was put in charge of the Ministry of Physics. His first order of business was to upgrade the Ministry's particle accelerators to account for new quantum experiments which were proposed following the discovery of the Hyperlanes. The hope was that this would lead to opportunities that Nithkur could not even imagine yet.
Geldeia the Fiend, named for his gruesome biological experiments, was put in charge of the Ministry of Society. His pet project was the complete mapping of both the Illithite and Gizakyi genomes - a tall order, as the two species evolved entirely separately from completely different abiogenesis events. Still, completion of this project would bring the Illithites one step closer towards fixing the Gizakyi's many flaws.
Narnool the Gruesome, named for his DIY prosthetic arm, was put in charge of the Engineering department. His arm wasn't very attractive, but it worked well - exactly the sort of engineering the Illithites valued, outside of their temples. He set about rebuilding his research facility, bringing it up to his very exacting specifications, which he claimed would greatly speed up subsequent work. The long-lived Illithites always tend to view the bigger picture.
Will the Illithites ever learn the secrets of their origin? Will they reclaim their place in the galaxy? Or will they be defeated and destroyed by their enemies? Find out next time!
The Illithites' story begins a very long time ago. There one was a time when the Illithite Grand Empire stretched its nefarious tendrils across the entire Galaxy, its mighty fleet backed by Shroud-weavers bearing enormous psionic potential. System after system fell to their rule as enemy empires were crushed before them. But it was the Illithi's practice of biologically assimilating their conquered foes that led to their downfall - they had evolved from parasites, and their young needed a sentient host in order to develop past a tadpole stage. Horrified by this abominable practice, enemy nations set aside their differences and banded together against the Illithite fleets. In a series of decisive battles, the Illithites were driven back to their home system. There they made a final stand, in the shadow of an enormous Star Fortress so mighty that the combined forces of the enemy fleets could not hope to defeat it in direct battle. But the Illithites' treacherous foes found another way to destroy their hated enemy.
By setting off massive Hyperwaves in three different places just outside Illithite space at precisely the right distance from the Illithites' home star, the allied forces were able to detonate the sun itself, setting off a supernova. The Illithites' homeworld, Snamon, was flung into the depths of space, and all who lived upon it perished as they were first scorched by radiation from the supernova and then frozen solid as Snamon drifted further and further away from its star.
Millions of years passed as Snamon tumbled through the void, its surface covered in the frozen remnants of its atmosphere. No light shone upon the blasted planet for eons, aside from the faintest glimmer of distant stars. Eventually the planet's journey through the Galaxy came to a stop as Snamon was captured in the orbit of a black hole, doomed to slowly spiral inwards over billions of years until finally being devoured into the singularity at its core. Yet it was this very black hole which proved to be the Illithites' salvation.
Tidal forces from the singularity's immense gravitational pull re-heated Snamon's core, and geothermal vents spewed toxic gasses to the surface. Snamon's frozen atmosphere sublimated back into existence. Uncounted eons passed once more as the planet's atmosphere grew thicker and thicker. Finally, life sprang once more into this primordial soup. Millions more years passed as it evolved into complex (and often crab-like) forms. Finally, Snamon's fledgling life grasped for a semblance of intelligence with the rise of the Gizakyi, mantis-like creatures of significant strength but little sentience to speak of. Still, the Gizakyi's limited curiosity was enough to seal their fate, as eventually they discovered a sealed Illithite vault, the lone surviving artifact after millions of years of weathering. The Gizakyi managed to open the vault, and were infected with Illithite tadpoles.
The first Illithite hatchlings found themselves alone and confused. The psionic network their distant ancestors had created was long gone, though its faintest remnants echoed through the void as a scar on the Shroud, and awakened in them a longing for their higher purpose: to restore the Illithite to their dominant place in the Galaxy. Two thousand and two hundred of our years later, the first Illithite interstellar vessels had been built, and were ready to begin their renewed exploration of the Galaxy.
The Illithite is roughly humanoid, tall but thin; they stand perhaps eight feet tall, but rarely weigh more than two hundred pounds. The top of their skull is thick and hardened, like a shell; below it are four eyes, a pair of breathing tubes, and a number of short but strong tentacles surrounding a beaked mouth. Their coloration varies from reds to blues to purples, with individuals of high status showing particularly vibrant hues. Their coloration can change throughout their long lives, if the need arises.
When they first reached interstellar flight, slightly more than two thousands years after they first returned, the Illithite society had devolved a great deal from its former glory. Many individuals were somewhat psionically gifted, and could sense the scar upon the very psyche of the Shroud their ancestors had left hundreds of millions of years beforehand. As they lacked the deeper understanding of the Universe that their precursors had, they began to worship this connection as a god. The black hole in their sky - with its majestic accretion disk halo - would be the centerpiece of this faith. They named it Shak-Cor - The Becoming God.
This faith is the very core of the entire Illithite society. Their leader, an absolute and unquestioned god-emperor, is a powerful psion (though at this time the Illithite did not yet understand this, they naturally gravitated towards psionically powerful beings in leadership roles from the start) and worshiped as Shak-Cor itself. The heir-apparent is known as Cor, the Becoming.
In the name of their dark god, the Illithite seek to conquer the Galaxy.
For now, they rely upon the labor of the Gizakyi. These beast-like creatures are only barely intelligent enough to serve as proper hosts to the Illithites. They greatly resemble our world's mantis shrimps, with massive eyes to see in the dim light cast by Shak-Cor's accretion disk, but they are huge, reaching up to a ton in weight. The Illithite are eager to find more worthy hosts - and more capable servants.
Snamon is a lonely world, cold and dark. It orbits a black hole in the southern quadrant of the Galaxy, and is dimly lit only by the light given off by the black hole's accretion disk.
Snamon is often bathed in radiation, and the tidal forces of the black hole Shak-Cor have generated intense geothermal activity in its belly. An entire ecosystem has sprung up around these sources of energy.
This ecosystem is by no means rich, however. Snamon is mostly lifeless, and thoroughly bleak. Yet somehow, life finds a way.
Prime Minister Jeltesh the Brute is the squid-woman responsible for ensuring the smooth operation of the humble world. The colorful Gizakyi have to be carefully managed if they are to complete the tasks that the Illithites require successfully and efficiently. Her savage epithet, a relic of a bygone age when Illithites clans following different interpretations of the Divine Guidance and pledging loyalty to different emperors savagely fought one another beneath dark sulfurous clouds. Now it is mostly ironic - Jeltesh is most brutal when she effectively manages the planet's sprawling bureaucracy.
She is the second most powerful squid-person in the Empire of Shak-Cor - second only to the great god-emperor, the corporeal manifestation of Shak-Cor itself - J'klang the Striker.
Years before he came to power, the young Cor had visited an orbital observatory with a powerful telescope used to study exoplanets - the worlds orbiting the neighboring stars. The scientists in charge of the observatory managed to use the black hole's gravitational lensing to greatly increase the range of their telescopes, allowing clear observations of the neighboring star's planets. The astronomers were stunned to discover a massive planet in the star's habitable zone which seemed to have liquid water on its surface. The young J'klang even claimed to have spotted some sort of structures on the planet's surface.
At that moment, J'klang declared that under his rule, interstellar flight would be achieved and earned his epithet - the Striker. Now, four years into his rule, his pledge was about to come true.
This wasn't J'klang's only scientific initiative. His realm's top three scientists were each put in charge of one Research Ministry and given a different mandate.
Nithkur the Marauder, so named for his tentative grasp of the intricate Illithite social norms, was put in charge of the Ministry of Physics. His first order of business was to upgrade the Ministry's particle accelerators to account for new quantum experiments which were proposed following the discovery of the Hyperlanes. The hope was that this would lead to opportunities that Nithkur could not even imagine yet.
Geldeia the Fiend, named for his gruesome biological experiments, was put in charge of the Ministry of Society. His pet project was the complete mapping of both the Illithite and Gizakyi genomes - a tall order, as the two species evolved entirely separately from completely different abiogenesis events. Still, completion of this project would bring the Illithites one step closer towards fixing the Gizakyi's many flaws.
Narnool the Gruesome, named for his DIY prosthetic arm, was put in charge of the Engineering department. His arm wasn't very attractive, but it worked well - exactly the sort of engineering the Illithites valued, outside of their temples. He set about rebuilding his research facility, bringing it up to his very exacting specifications, which he claimed would greatly speed up subsequent work. The long-lived Illithites always tend to view the bigger picture.
Will the Illithites ever learn the secrets of their origin? Will they reclaim their place in the galaxy? Or will they be defeated and destroyed by their enemies? Find out next time!
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