Atlanti

### Title

The Youngest Among the Elders, The Original Humanoids, The Adopted Child of Lorien

The **Atlanti** (Hamanasu: Glory to Atlan), also referred to as the Original Humanoids, the Ancestors, the Progenitors, the Precursors, the Forerunners, among other names given by many different races, are a race of First Ones that originated from another galaxy. After crossing the Galactic Rim ino the Milky Way, over 300 million years ago, they were welcomed into the community of Elder Races by Lorien, until their final extinction in the physical plane during the 9,000s BCE. Being the first humanoid species in th Milky Way galaxy, their presence is balieved to have both directly and indirectly caused the proliferation of the arthopic body as new intelligent species evolved in the galaxy. In relation to Humanity, more specifically, they were directly created by the Atlanti in their image.

The Atlanti had access to a unique form of Transcendence they called Ascension. It was similar to Psionic Transcendence, but instead of ending in the shedding of their physical bodies to become beings of pure thought in Shadespace, beings that underwent Ascension would shed their bodies and inhabit a different plane referred to by the Atlati as *The* *Sublime* and by Humanity as *Subliminal Space*. The nature of Ascension and the power associated with it led to many conflicts with other First Ones over the secret, most specifically the Vorlons.

They were referred to by the other First Ones as "The Youngest Among the Elders."

## Characteristics

The Atlanti were actually a subset of the Hamanunes species (singular: *Hamanust*) that evolved hundreds of millions, maybe over a billion years ago on the world of Atlan, in the Cradle Galaxy, and from which the Ardori also descended. As such, most, if not every characteristic associated to the Atlanti, can also be used to describe the Ardori.

As a species, the Atlanti are anatomically similar to their Human creations. The Atlanti are often referred to as the Original Humanoids, as the overall anthropic form had never evolved in the Milky Way Galaxy before their arrival 300 million years ago. As such, and considering their reputation as *Lifeshapers* and *Thoughtseeders*, they are believed to be responsible, either directly or indirectly, for every subsequent evolution of the anthropoid spectrum within the Milky Way Galaxy over the next millions of years.

Externally, the Atlanti are almost indistinguishable from a Human, except for a few glaring differences. They are physically more imposing than Humans, with some individuals standing a full 20 inches taller than the average Human individual. They were physically stronger. Though they exhibited similar morphological differences, Their eyes came in a greater variety of shades than Humans and their iris had a somewhat eerie glow, which often intensified when they showed strong emotion or when using their pre-transcendant psionic abilities. Although the Atlanti had a naturally longer lifespan of tens of thousands of years and could maintain a youthful appearance for most of their time, they were not immortal.

The most notable deviation the Atlanti displayed from Humans is the naturally-occurring, runic and linear markings of various colors running up and down their bodies, more commonly arms, legs and head that often glowed brightly of their own accord, indicating a possible bioluminescent quality, though it has been shown that Atlanti can consciously *turn of*f their glow, which renders the markings invisible to the naked eye. These markings also had a habit of flaring when an Atlanti was using their advanced powers, which could indicate a biological function as a response to stimuli or strenuous activity. Though it is known that Atlanti are born with their markings, it is not known if these are a characteristic that is evolved or engineered (either biologically or cyberneticaly), like Human mechanosoma.

Another unique factor of Atlanti biology is their natural genetic memory. Referred to as *geass* or *geash* (Hamanasu: *genesong*), it allows for the Atlanti to pass down the collective knowledge of their race to their offspring, though this knowledge would become accessible to a young Atlanti only gradually until they reach maturity. An artificial form of geass is known to exist, an engineered form of genetic command created by the Atlanti based on their own biology. Though it can be used to pass down genetic memory, this artificial genesong is most often than not a form of genetic command imposed on an organism or species. Under the influence of a geass, an organism could be given a set of subconscious orders that would either be specific to that organism, or passed on to their children, in some cases lasting several generations. A version of geass was imposed on Humanity 9,000 years ago, which has affected them a great deal throughout their history and includes subconscious instructions on how to gradually achieve more sophisticated technology, a natural immunity to psychic incursion, and a natural distrust towards the Vorlons and the Shadows.

Atlanti possessed greater mental capability than Humans, with deeper, more comprehensive thought-processes that could match the speed and accuracy of supercomputers. It also included more esoteric abilities such as natural telepathy, a potential for great telekinetic prowess, though it required meditation and training, as well as a limited ability to "see", or at the very least understand prerequisites for potential futures. Based on this ability, the Atlanti would select a few individuals in order to run complex calculations in order to attempt to influence possible futures, in a process that was compared to the 21st-century Human science fiction concept of psychohistory. It is theorized that the extra-temporal perception that some Humans possess may be a watered down version of the Atlanti's own inherently ability to see possible futures.