Kiint

The Kiint are a highly advanced, and very old, xenoc species. Their dwelling world is Jobis, found by an Adamist scoutship in 2356. The Kiint then joined the Confederation the following year and are involved in the Laymil Research Project on Tranquility.

Physiology
The Kiint have an oval cross-section body 9 m long and 3 m wide with an icy-white hide. They stand on eight thick, elephantine legs and their two arms resemble tentacles, but can shape themselves into a variety of forms using tractamophic muscles. Their head is roughly as long as a human is tall, shaped similar to a shield, with two eyes in the middle just above a series of six breathing vents.

Being naturally telepathic, Kiint seem incapable of communicating vocally, however they can communicate easily with Edenists through the affinity band, and employ devices that can “speak” in sound waves for the benefit of non-affinity bonded humans.

Young Kiint are slightly whiter and have more rounded bodies than their parents, and are about 2 m long at birth, have legs about 1 m long.

Culture and Society
Kiint artefacts display tokens of aesthetics and semiotics, as evidenced i.a. by Malva’s home on Jobis, whose walls are ornamented with age-worn crest-like symbols.

Biology
There are many subspecies / castes / morphs of Kiint, one such is an aquatic subspecies of Kiint, having flippers and fins. Growing to larger than 15 m long, they are flatter than a terrestrial whale, with a thick tractamorphic tail. They have six buds of tractamorphic flesh, spaced along their flank, serving as appendages helping to propel it through the water. Their head is similar to other Kiint, however it is more streamlined and has six gills instead of breathing vents.

Culture and Society
Kiint are completely provided for by Corpus and its Universal Providers (robotic drones that provide any material need, including sustenance). Corpus, like the Edenist Consensus, is a philosophy and a form of government. Corpus institutes laws and in many ways controls all Kiint society, allowing them to focus on developing their knowledge base, Corpus is viewed as all wise and all knowing, allowing Kiint to consult Corpus for information and much more.

As the Kiint no longer have to worry about taking care of their physical needs, they are devoted to developing their knowledge base. Wisdom is their equivalent of money, and they are interested in the development of Humans and other xenocs. A notable human interest is the Laymil Research Project which eight of their scientists are assigned to, working side by side with human scientists on Tranquility. But even though the Kiint are unified in their goal of knowledge, dissidents do exist, usually as a result of philosophical disagreements, turning their backs on their race. But there are some worlds in the arc where they are free of the central society to pursue whatever they wish.

Observers
When the Kiint discover a xenoc species they take genome specimens which they use to create clones. These clones, called Kiint Observers, then take unobtrusive jobs on their homeworld, where they aid the Kiint in recording the history of said xenoc species. They believe that conscious thought is the greatest gift of the universe, as a result they try to study any entities they find, that way if the species dies they have records of them and the knowledge wouldn't be lost. Though they have been successful in observing many species, the Kiint have found it difficult to observe the Tyrathca, implanting only a few observers.

The Kiint Observers are educated by the Kiint, this includes the prime rule of zero intervention when dealing with other species, especially primitive ones. They also live longer than the average member of their species, allowing them to record history for a long period of time. Once the Kiint Observers have fulfilled their duties, they retire to a Kiint world, living in what can only be described as a retirement village, of which there are hundreds, housing more than eight hundred xenoc species.

Technology
The Kiint have the technology to “teleport”, a sophisticated application of a distortion field, allowing them to transport from one location to their exodus facility in their home system instantaneously. This technology or ability was developed during a period when the Kiint were engaged in interstellar travel.

This ability was first observed by the Confederation when the Kiint scientists working on the Laymil Research Project used their ability to teleport from Tranquility when Al Capone's Organisation fleet arrived.

Homeworlds
The Kiint homeworld is not Jobis, nor is it located in the same galaxy as the Confederation, instead it is in an arc of thousands of planets orbiting a star located in another galaxy. Jobis is one of many scientific mission outposts in the Confederation, while the planets in the arc were constructed by the Kiint, by extracting matter from their sun and compressing it. Riynine, one of the worlds in the arc, has cone shaped mountains of pale rock, crinkled with pale-purple gorges, emerging from blue green vegetation with large rivers threaded through the valleys. Nestled among the contours are Kiint domes of varying sizes, with many human-like skyscraper towers mingled among them. There are numerous sculpture like buildings dotted around the place, and no roads or paths connect the buildings.

Riynine
Riynine, like many worlds in the arc, has a Congression, a gigantic city that floats serenely through the planets atmosphere, made of crystal and shining metal. One such Congression is twenty kilometres broad, the nucleus is a dense aggregation of towers and circuitous columns of light. From there eight crenated peninsulas radiated outward, each with short flat spines. This was where the vast number of xenoc species gathered to perform exchanges, some give ideas others need knowledge to make ideas work. The Corpus provides this, while the Congressions act as junctions for those who seek and those who wish to give. Every FTL capable species eventually visits the Congressions, which is one of the greatest information exchange centres known.