The Amuni were created in response to the Euclide, after Yuukuj removed their souls and turned them against humans. Amunuku, one of the original murdon leaders, continued to have hope for humanity and took aside a select few euclide, returning their souls and further altering them to love humans, as he does. In order to do so, he injected into them a sense of faith: Religion. He gave the amuni the belief in many human religions in order to give them something to identify with, to make bonds stronger. He informed them that it was their task in life to defend humans from the euclide, and set them free.
Amuni continue to have a deep respect and love for humanity and their religions, and have sworn themselves the enemy of euclide. The majority consider it their goal not only to defend humans, but eradicate the euclides species.
Like all LC, the amuni can come in all shapes and sizes, resembling earth's living (and sometimes extinct) animal species. They grow anywhere between 3'-6' feet at the shoulder. This includes those that resemble field mice to giraffes! Despite the animal species the LC looks like, its size will be no more (or no less) than what is common for the average amuni. Most are between the size of a large dog and a rhinoceros.
Unlike the other LC species, Amuni must take a permanent mate in order to breed. They are infertile throughout most of their lives, only coming into heat when suitably stimulated (no, not like that!). They require time to form an emotional attachment, and will only be receptive to partners they've bonded with.
Permanent is somewhat of a misnomer. While an amuni must have spent suitable enough time with an individual in order to reproduce, they don't actually need to stick to one mate. They may have multiple mates at any time, and may leave a permanent mate to find a new one. It takes several years of time together for a pair to become breeding compatible, though. But once this bond is formed, they can produce young several times a year. For this reason an amuni will only take a few mates during its lifetime.
Amuni take longer to gestate and mature than any other LC species. Pregnancy lasts for 11 months, just shy of a year. The offspring are born with their eyes and ears shut, completely blind and deaf, and very weak. They rely entirely on their parents for the first few weeks of life. But they are quite intelligent at this point. Unlike other species, pregnant Amuni form a temporary telepathic bond with their unborn children. They may speak to them and teach them before birth. This blind and deaf period is considered "humbling" to the species.
At about four weeks of age, Amuni infants will open their eyes and ears, and begin to walk. They don't reach sexual maturity until 20 years of age, but will reach their maximum growth at around half of that.
|
Lifespan & Maturity |
|
|
AGE |
PERIOD |
|
>1 year |
Infant |
|
1-20 years |
Child |
|
20-50 years |
Adolescent |
|
50-250 years |
Young Adult |
|
250-600 years |
Adult |
|
600 < |
Senior |
In order to aid them in their quest to protect humanity from the euclide, Amunuku gave them the ability to sever soul strands. This is does not come without a price, though. The euclides can return a soul strand naturally, but a sudden snap of the connection can mean permanent damage to the individual's psyche. The owner of the soul strand will feel after affects such as migraine, physical illness and nausea, and, on occasion, can be put into a temporary coma.
Occasionally permanent damage does occur, including memory loss, personality change, and dementia. This is rare, and normally occurs only when a soul strand has been held by a euclides for an unusual length of time. Because of the sudden and messy severance the soul strand might not be completely removed from the euclides mind. This means that some memories and personality traits will remain with the euclides, and the euclides traits may end up passing onto the human.
It is not an easy process for an amuni to cut the soul strand connection. Higher ranking amuni have better chances of removing the soul strand than lower ranking ones. But the euclides' rank will also affect this. A follower has no chance in severing the soul strand held by a puppet master. Likewise, a script writer has no chance in holding onto a soul strand against a pope.
Life shields are entirely unique to the amuni. No other LC can utilize this ability. A life shield is an invisible aura that can encompass any individual the amuni chooses. The shield protects them from emotional, psychological, and physical harm, rendering humans useless to the euclide. Their soul strands cannot be extracted when a life shield surrounds them.
The life shield is visible to all LC and murdon, and appears as a pale coloured glow, reflecting the current emotional state of the individual. Blues and green indicate a state of calmness or contentment, where-as red and black indicate emotional turmoil. Humans (who they are most often used on) can't see them, and won't notice that it's there. They will feel a slight tingling warmth come over them when the shield is first put in place, but it is otherwise unnoticeable.
The number of shields that can be produced, and the duration they can last for, depends on the amuni's rank. Higher ranking amuni can have several life shields that last for fairly long durations, whereas lower ranks (such as followers) can only maintain one, for short periods of time.
Deities can only be created by two known murdons: Amunuku and his loyal brother Xonomuku. They are the only two who have perfected the art of bestowing amuni with such a rare and powerful blessing that they are altered in body, mind, and abilities. An amuni must be humble enough not to request that they be blessed, and therefore it is entirely the decision of the murdon brothers, who is worthy enough to become this prestigious rank.
Deities are recognizable by their larger size - they tower over most amuni, with quadrupeds generally topping off at 7-10 feet at the shoulder. Giants amongst their peers. They also sport at least one pair of luminescent ethereal wings. These wings have no physical mass, and cannot be harmed or destroyed. They are transparent, but constantly give of a pale, warm glow, which can be felt as physical heat. These wings will grow and shrink in size throughout the deity’s life, and are a representation of their power only. They cannot allow the individual to fly.
Not that flying is an issue for deities. All deities have a keen grasp of levitation, and can choose whether or not to put their feet on the ground with barely a thought. All deities may also phase from solidity to an eerie mist, allowing them to pass through any solid object.
Deities will always be granted one special deity ranked ability upon earning their wings, and are generally more adept as using their type abilities than other amuni.
Cardinal:
Bishop:
Priest:
Missionary:
Follower: