Rhani, truthfully, are a people made entirely from my own mind and set to story as such. Their culture and appearance follow, and if for any reason you should want to create a Rhani character, send me an email with your plains. I'm not apt to let you, but it never hurts to try instead of ripping off ideas. I've already started a full length novel dealing with their history and culture, as based around one important female leader they had. Their homeworld will change in the course of this book, and as such I'm not going to name either, as the Rhani tongue is complex in such matters and it gives me a headache to think about it. *G* And yes, you heard me right.. Rhani TONGUE. They have an entire language they call their own, and one day it'll make it up on this site. I promise!
And without further adieu, may I present my gentle warriors.. the Rhani....
Description:
The Rhani possess two seperate forms - a living form and a fighting form. Occasionally they will walk around in their fighting form, or certain rituals or Rites (of which they possess a great deal) require they be in this form. The other form is, as it sounds, a day to day living form.
The living form looks almost totally human in structure, except the Rhani are slightly longer and leaner, bodily speaking, and no matter how old they are, nor the "wear and tear" visited upon them in their lifetime, they have what humans consider to be a perfect body. Little fat, no wrinkles, muscles, the whole "Gawd they're perfect" speel. However, their skin is not what we consider flesh toned, but the pattern of a wildcat. Tiger, bobcat, ocelot, or leopard, any feasible cat-coat pattern is likely to appear on their skin, and certain coats do not have to run in the bloodline. For example, the main character of my novel, Zykali, is patterned like a white tiger while her father looks like a leopard.
Their hair is thick and tawny, like the mane of a lion, and generally matches their skin pattern. As for eyes, they look human but are cat-slitted in a variety of natural colors, generally those that go with the natural cat patterning. And as for clothing -- usually very little. Since the Rhani live in the forest, they don't want anything to get in their way as they climb trees and run around, so they usually wear a breechcloth on bottom, and the females wear an added breast-binding cloth on top. On occasion they'll wear wooden bangles, or things made of shells, depending on where their forest is located. The clothing reflects their natural surroundings, of course, and those that live by the sea are likely to have shell jewelry, those in the arctic regions will have fur-lined clothing, and so on.
And as for their fighting form, remember I told you earlier that their skin is patterned after a wildcat. When in fighting form, they become their cat, but standing up on its hind legs - a cross between a human and feline. And, they also have wings - feathers, typically, for the females and bat wings for the males. Their claws are like scythes and their canines huge, in warrior form they make an impressive foe, and are hard to kill. In this form, they are prone to wear even less, unless they expect heavy weaponry and then they will wear specially crafted armor.
Culture:
They're peace-lovers at heart, and strive to keep it at all costs. But, when peace cannot be kept, they are made fierce warriors and are known for their guerilla tactics. There are those among the Rhani who are specially selected to become Hunters, or "Purifiers". They come from all walks of life, as the Rhani choose those who are most appropriate and have no care for money or standing, and are taught to use their minds to their full advantage - meaning they seek out those whose souls are not clean of sin and decide whether or not it is apt to take their life. They are the assasins of evil, and the beholders of truth. It is because of this they are so widely respected and honored.
The Rhani's tongue is so complex, however, they find it exceedingly difficult to speak other tongues, so they improvise by using their minds. All are adept at MindSpeak, though it is only the Hunters that learn to kill people with their minds - learning over a hundred different ways to kill a man.
Another thing about the Rhani language is their names. Compared to most, at birth their names are somewhat short and concise, like Zykali'shi. But as they grown and mature, they receive additions to their names for feats they have accomplished. Because she was a hunter, Zykali's name will change, then change again when she takes over leadership of her Clan. Therefore, a Rhani's name shows exactly who they are using tags, and who they have been. Most Rhani's names, by the end of their life are over twenty characters in length.
Speaking of the end of their lives - Rhani, technically, don't have one. They live much longer than humans do, and they do not age as we do. They do, however die, but only from someone killing them, or from them willingly giving up their own lives for some reason or another. But that itself is unlikely, as every Rhani has some part in their society, whether it be as a source of wisdom, or just to amuse the little ones as they dance around. Take the Oldest known Rhani for example - The FluteMaster, the wisest and perhaps most crazy of them all. He's been alive since our world began.. several hundred millenia. Then how, you may ask, have they not overpopulated themselves? Easy. Their gestation time is also very long, and they are careful. They also have spread out a long way on their new world, as their population had sorely dwindled in the last. They're in constant balance - they make certain they are.
Which brings into play their religion. They believe in a God and a Goddess, both who keep them eternally, living or dead. Their Goddess, Ashay'na birthed them to their father and God, Zenha'yi. Their religion interweaves through their everyday lives through their Rites and rituals of sorts. As mentioned before, they have hundreds of each.
Location:
The new Rhani world is spacious enough for them all, and is inhabited by few other cultures. They do, however, have a few settlements off their new homeworld, and permanant gates are set up from them to their new home, so there's always a route of escape. The homeworld includes all the natural regions : desert, forest, jungle, and arctic regions, and in all there are varios types of forest, either formed from ice or from sand-planted trees. There are even forests that border on the edge of vast seas, therefore creating an element within an element, so to speak. Hundred of Rhani villages are spread through out these regions, some even overlapping two, and as in real life, the dialects differ from region to region, as do the Rites and festivals. Physically, there is little difference between the Rhani of any locale, except for their clothing and how thick their fur is.
For now, that's all I have. Expect more in the future.. and if you have any ideas/suggestions, please, mail me!