What are some Kyruku customs?

Kyruku culture is as diverse as the stars are many, and there are many, many topics to cover in this section, as their customs can differ from place to place with startling rapidity. Let us toss a dart at the board and work our way out from there, shall we?

Kyruku culture is based strongly on an honor and privilege system. In a way, it could be likened in ways to many Asian cultures, but in other ways, it focuses on the individual as much as it does the empire as a whole. Personal freedoms are strongly guarded, and granted to all citizens of the Kyruku empire as a whole, however, insults and slights can create feuds that endure far longer than they may within other societies.

As an example, and as mentioned earlier, Kyruku prize their tails as their defining feature, and pride themselves on the appearance of them. The title Elder is given to those of the species who have grown more than seventy tails in their lifetime, and as a custom, they are to be honored, and greeted first when engaging in polite conversation. Interrupting an Elder while they are speaking is seen as most disrespectful. Within Kyruku culture, it is considered proper to greet those higher in standing than yourself first, and if of equal status, those of greater age.

If one Kyruku were to say, accidentally tread upon another’s tail, it is seen as a sign of gravest disrespect, accidental or not. If it is done as a deliberate action, or even attempted with forethought to the action, it is cause for an honor bout. These are fights had to either restore one’s honor, or resolve conflicts in a civilised and cleaner manner, and are fought using traditional Kyruku fighting staffs. The staffs are each as tall as the wielder, often made of silver or other precious or expensive materials, and feature an eight inch, double edged blade on each end.

The rules of these bouts are simple. The first to give in or be incapacitated by his opponent loses, and their fate is placed in the paws of the victor. Rarely do such bouts end in death; it is seen as uncivil to kill a foe who has been clearly bested, however, if the reason for the fight was cause enough, it is a possibility. Typically, the victor will sever one of his foes tails and the matter will be resolved, however, the defeated is forbidden from having the appendage surgically reattached, and is forced to wear the mark of their defeat.

Due to the nature of these bouts however, and the general trends of Kyruku culture over the ages, these are seldom seen but in higher classes of society and amongst officer ranks in the military, however, in settling civil disputes, they are still sometimes used as a legally binding trial by combat if agreed to by both parties. They are not used in criminal cases, unless the accused wishes to carry his family staff with him to a firing squad.

Guests to the Kyruku facilities are afforded the rights of guest, and are protected from harm or undue harassment for the duration of their visit, something the security forces take very seriously. Hospitality is important to Kyruku, as it reflects on them as a species in whole. Infringements on the right of the guest is typically considered a serious offense.

But even more so that hospitality and kindness in Kyruku culture is valuing the importance of secrets. Those who reveal another’s secrets without permission are often shunned, a more serious penalty than most realize, as the shunning can go from simply those close to the individual to businesses refusing to serve them, and even everyday people refusing to acknowledge their existence until such time as they have paid penance for their offence.

Those who reveal serious and state related secrets are executed without trial or question. Many pieces of information about the Kyruku are best kept to the Kyruku, and the species as a whole is expected to know and understand the importance of the reasons why. Those who commit treason have their names stricken from all records, and their bodies incinerated so that no trace of them remains.

However, not all of Kyruku culture is quite as grim. One such part of their culture is the celebration of the stars, a ceremony commemorating the launch of the first Kyruku colony ship. Throughout the empire, two weeks of festivities, feasts, games of strength and skill, and celebrations are held in synch to mark the exact time, beginning a week before the launch, and concluding a week after. The festivities reach their highpoint at the center, by launching a new vessel into orbit, or the departure of a new colony vessel from Keyross itself to further expand the empire.

Kyruku society is governed overall by the Kyruku Royal family, who frequently visit the larger colonies closer to the homeworld on matters concerning the wellbeing of the empire, or to formalize a colony’s entry into the empire. As figureheads of the species, they garner significant respect and admiration, and several occassions are held in their honor each year, including four royal balls each year, for prospective partners for the royal children to make themselves known.

Another signifigant event in the Kyruku calander is the “Draya’Dx’Ivayar” (Pronounced Drey-YA-dux-Iv-Ah-yar), or the Fall of Suffering, commonly referred to as the march of the black coats for the military parades held by Royal army ceremonial regiments for the duration of the night. This commemorates the first major military defeat of Kyruku armed forces during the defence of Suffrage, an outer sphere Kyruku colony during the first decades of Kyruku venturing beyond their home world... Fifty brigades of troops, armour and air support, as well as orbital assets were sent to spearhead a counter attack, and suffered a ninety five percent casualty rate when they were ambushed by a vastly numerically superior alien force. During the day, ceremonies are called at dawn, noon, and night, and lights are kept half dimmed throughout the facilities. The wearing of black clothing and cloaks is considered proper mourning attire.

Within Kyruku culture, food and liquors are considered standard fare, usually made with exotic spices and well presented, as presentation is considered paramount in cooking, as it is in their own persons. A fine Kyruku liquor first created on Terra known as Ambrosia is very much a common drink, though it’s use is restricted to a most of two or three shots on any day. The liquor itself is an iridescent green, luminescent from several of the Keyross imported ingredients in the fermentation process, and a highly addictive substance. This had led to it becoming an expensive commodity due to the lengths one must go to in order to acquire it within the confines of the law.

When consumed, the drink has been known to induce feelings of warmth and happiness, followed by a long burst of energy and heightened sensation, making it a popular party choice. However, once the ingredients from Keyross enter the subject's system (Namely the sweet, bioluminescent fruit found in underground caverns on Keyross, that ordinarily, are moderately poisonous.), it can induce a variety of effects, some, much more serious than others.

Primarily, this is depended on the skill of the maker, and the most expensive vintages are specially crafted to include only non-harmful side effects. These can include feelings of euphoria, feeling energized and restlessness, arousal, sharply increased perception, to weightlessness, dizziness, hallucinations, dulled senses and motor skills, fainting, seizures, coma, and even death if too much is consumed. The severity and range of effects increase tenfold with every ounce that is consumed.

In conclusion however, many, many customs and practices of the Kyruku species are kept hidden from the rest of society, considered to deep and personal to share with other races. As always, they are a secretive sort, and prefer their own privacy to many large open displays. Much more about them will be revealed in snippets as you continue to read, but for now, this section hopefully will provide a basic overview of some of the more defining customs and cultural elements.