Helocytus: Difference between revisions
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It is important to regard the cultural elements of the people of the Garden of Beasts, which would also be a remark on some of the lesser known and unseen elements of the Children of the Vein at large by extension. Several Vein clans have a presence in the Garden of Beasts, but it is the Vein of the Hydra that claims the Garden as their seat of power. To those involved at the highest levels of state in the greater Beacon Space sector, they may be familiar with the Hydra’s diplomats, who play a significant role in preserving the interests and values of the Children of the Vein within the competing space of interstellar politics, but beyond that, the Hydra largely operates outside of the spotlight of Children of the Vein’s medical tourism, missionary work, and trade networks. Nevertheless, the Hydra is a major power in this burgeoning polity: they are the warriors, the priests, and most important of all, the monster-makers.
The Vein of the Hydra leads a radical fundamentalist bloc that eschews electronics and conventional technologies on Helocytus entirely, believing the purpose of every technology or scientific innovation can be accomplished with bio-engineering - and thus far, they haven’t been proven wrong. The large bulk of the Veins sail through the void on living ships that resemble sea creatures more than conventional starfaring vessels, they build living drones of blood and bone in place of machines, they join in symbiotic union with sentient, hulking organic monstrosities they call bioshells in place of the mechs of other empires, and all communication and media is serviced and provided through organic alternatives. It is no secret of course that the Children of the Vein maintain their hegemonic influence not just through trade and economics, but by force - despite their strange ways, the weapons, bioships, drones, and bioshells of the Children of the Vein make their martial bio-technologies a premiere competitor across Beacon Space, and the Vein of the Hydra plays no small part in many of
So you may be wondering, is murder illegal in the Garden of Beasts? Well, that’s a complicated question, but the simplest answer I can give is no. There are conditions, of course, as one might expect - challenges and duels over any number of matters, but especially those of philosophical differences, are commonplace here. The spectacles of violence between theologians often draw crowds seeking affirmation in their beliefs, and achieving victory through the death of your challengers is respected. Of course, this leads to sometimes mercurial philosophies as one philosopher wins a duel and ends up slain by the next. Ultimately, you cannot change the philosophy of an entire culture by winning a single fight as who knows what the next challenger brings, but you can reaffirm the righteous self-assuredness of all in a culture of violence and might through the simple act of participating in it. One is of course free to use their own abilities to defend themselves against sudden attackers with the use of deadly force in the Garden as well, but a cowardly, hidden attacker is looked down upon, and if their name becomes known, the justice of Beasts will surely see them dead in a week.
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