Emergence of a New Subspecies

Emergence of a New Subspecies is at once a scientific and religious text, detailing the advent of a new subspecies of humanity.

It was recovered from the lair of Balzanok in Mount Durnach.

## Description

Bound in leather warped from the heat of its site of storage, the Emergence of a New Subspecies seems primarily a treaty detailing the classification of a new subvariation of humanity, the Kalashtar, as well as commenting on their biological, cultural and religious beliefs - and how these stand apart from both the Principal Sixteen and previous paganistic beliefs.

## Research

### Completed by Naldri

Scholars have long noted the variations in the most numerous of Aita's Principal Races, humanity, and a number of theories have come to be pertaining to the origins of such subspecies. The one most believed, for there is both religious and scientific precedent for such an assumption, is that these variations stem directly from the resulting choices of Tohmos the True, who deliberated over the peoples of Ahlus, choosing those fit for rule. To them he granted his noble blood of blue, and so as the lineage of the Strong-Willed has mixed with those more mundane as such bloodlines have prospered, and in doing so it has created a spectrum of subtle variants. Much as a painter would vary the hues upon their palette and canvas, this has created a natural deviation in features. The human folk of Atralran are famed for their blonde hair and striking blue eyes, those of Sunstone and Kingbourne olive-tan skin and shallow set eyes of hickory-brown. The men that reside in Tviatin and Masnga Niai have dappled bands upon their neck and chest, those that occupy the cold expanses of Courrakey often possess deep brows, the palms of their hands and soles of their feet larger than most. Few others instead postulate that these represent variations that improve the chances of the race in their given surroundings, traits that have developed with time, but such suggestions are rarely given much thought in light of further, more compelling evidence. Therefore, what is the purpose of the newest identified cultural and racial subvariant of humanity, the so-called Kalashtar?

A true appreciation for the presence of the Kalashtar has only recently occurred, an occurrence unremarkable. Beyond a proclivity to lithe and lissom body morphology, this subrace shows the same variations in the continent. There is not a forthright hair, eye or skin hue, but most of the Kalashtar are instead unified in their cultural behaviour. Regardless of their geographical place of birth or chosen location of residence, all known individuals (of which there are estimated to be no more than eight thousand) have shown a general austere and outwardly dour outlook, renouncing simple pleasures in place of focused meditation and dedications made in the name of a paganistic spirit known to them as il-Yannah, the Great Light, whom they believe will one day regain the strength necessary to reclaim its throne from il-Indlatavar, the Thirsting Gloom. This belief seems to be a far departure from on a previous footnote in the religious history of Ahlus that pertained to this so-called Great Light, a theological clash that culminated in the Cleansing of the Glare in 103AG.

The Path of Light teaches that il-Yannah rules as a benevolent force in the Dal Quor, granting all creatures capable of dreams pleasant experiences of enjoyment and reflection during their restful hours. Spirits reach into the minds of the dreaming, guiding them on the path so as to not find themselves lost in the otherwise inhospitable darkness of the night. Such a faith had always stood at contrast to the conventional worships held by most within the continent of Ahlus, and so prompted a variety of responses. Those less versed in the final details and breadth of the conventional Ahlusian Pantheon oft assumed those upon the Path were simply a variation on the typical worshippers of those deities associated with Light - specifically Aita the High-Mother and Taranis the Morning Eye. Others instead pointed fingers of heresy, their voices louder than those more ignorant to the difference. As unrest reached lawmakers and rulers, they decreed to outlaw the worship of the Path of Light, declaring only those with sinister intentions would surely deny the truth of the events of Aita's Second Gift. While this happened extensively within the Realm of Atralran and the Duchies of Tynd, those that faced the cruelist persecution were those within the borders of the Empire of Raq. This culminated in the Cleansing of the Glare. Chapels were burned, peoples forced into conversion or put to the sword. The holiest relics that one held centre stage at the Yannahsur Temples of Atralran, Tynd and Raq were scattered and lost, and so with it the faith faltered. In such a faith, il-Yannah held absolute control over Dal Quor, in contrast to the beliefs reported by the modern Kalashtar. One must pray to the High-Mother that they have the sense to keep to the true faith, of those zealous may find their ire stirred once more.