Fiction:Brood of War



"Our path is long and treachurous. Many times, our race has been at war. However, now our race shall unite! Brothers and sisters of the Zazane, we are...the Brood of War!"

- Tyraz Breek upon forming the Brood of War

The Brood of War is an alliance between several Zazane subspecies that have come together after the Fourth Ottzello War, when the Salsetthe Republic exiled the Zazane and UNO from the Milky Way Galaxy. The most notable members of this alliance are the Zazane of the reformed Zazane Empire. They live under the rule of a council, though each member is selected through their species' traditional political system. The council consists of eight members.

The Brood of War was formed as a way to increase the strength of the Zazane race as a whole, the previous Zazane Empire putting their species' survival before their traditions, although they covered this up by saying they would offer acceptance and forgiveness to all heretics and rebels, though those who refused to join would be destroyed. They are still an aggressive and war-loving nation, although now they have diplomats and increased skills in peace talk as well as military power and technological ability.

History
Main Article: Zazane Empire

Before the Brood existed, there was the Zazane Empire, the most famous group of Zazane known within the Universe. The Zazane Empire underwent multiple leaders before they reformed and became the Brood, the last of their mighty leaders being Tyraz Breek. Tyraz proved a fine ruler to them and thus earned his place in the Council, ruling over the Drik Zazane, Drik meaning "Original" in Zazane. During the Reformation, Tyraz sent out a message of peace to all Zazane heretics and rebels, and would kindly welcome them back with open arms. By this time, rebels had grown into their own empires, some more adept at skills than others. The first of these "rebel" empires was the Zazane under the rule of Yun Zorin, a warlord who Tyraz grew to like and was even named after one of Tyraz's ancestors. Yun and the Zazane Imperials would become the first members of the Brood, with Tyraz and Yun kindly telling stories about the Zazane's past to both empires and how now acceptance will be given.

Yun would later convince his old empire's enemies, the Republic of Shanoii, to come and join the Brood. The Republic of Shanoii's leader, Bo Has, would settle his differences with Yun, seeing as he was a rebel leader from Yun's empire (which was ruled by his father at the time), and treated Tyraz with great respect, seeing as he ruled the Zazane from which he descended from.

By luck, these three Zazane empires found a technologically advanced race of peaceful Zazane, known as the Kordalu. Yun and Bo saw them as gods, after having abandoned their belief in Umbrux. However, Tyraz knew these were more heretics, and gave them his offer. The Kordalu leader, the female known as Astral Highland, spoke with Tyraz, and the two spoke for days before finally coming to terms with each other. Astral Highland and her Zazane agreed to give the secrets of their technology to the rest of the Zazane so long as the Kordalu become diplomats for this new alliance.

Thanks to the new technology, finding rebels and heretics was more easy. The Zazane eventually discovered three Zazane factions near the edge of Andromeda, and saw this as an opportunity. The three factions were fighting a religious war to purge each other in the name of Umbrux, and when they saw Tyraz and sensed his powers of Descension, they all joined his side, the next three council members being Harik Kusobar, Otori Nemph, and Rilla Vatrax.

The last Zazane rebel group located was an empire almost matched in military strength to the Zazane Empire, calling themselves the Honoured Ones. The Honoured Ones were prepared to fight the Zazane alliance, but after some peace talks, figured that they would be much stronger if they joined. And so, the last member of this alliance was Wikartan Xyhoros.

Society
Society differs for each member of the Brood. The Brood respect each other's societies and some are very close to each others. For the war-like members, society is based around bloodshed and worship to each others gods and deities, although all are just different views of Umbrux. For the diplomatic races, society is based around peace and technological advancement for the war-like members and themselves.

The planet of Riveliata, which is HQ for the Brood and the base of the Council, has a utopian feel to it, being covered with Vida'Rra technology. However this technology cannot be accessed, with the only exceptions being its powerful defences and its ability to be invisible to radars and sonars. The Zazane that live here are not restricted by the "interbreeding" rule, and thus hybrid Zazane are allowed to live on Riveliata so long as they cause no disturbance.

Names are still important to all Zazane, including the Kordalu who have no actual Zazane names, but use the same method for naming their children. Honour is still witheld in the name, and thus the Zazane who refuse to join the Brood are often called Havrenar Tejar, or Nameless Ones.

The caste system has been abolished, although the Brood still use barely-sentient races as slaves and soldiers. However, they cannot be used as personal slaves, instead only being used for purposes that help society as a whole, except as a food source.

Standard Naming System
Used by all members except Kordalu

Zazane names consist of a first and second word, and when referring to each other they always say each other's full names. This is because the words in their names are words from the Zazane language. An example is the name Tyraz Breek. Tyraz in Zazane means "blood", and Breek means "emperor", thus Tyraz Breek means "blood emperor".

The second word of a Zazane's name is a family name. Usually, it is the surname of the father that is given to Zazane babies, but sometimes a new surname is picked.

Kordalu Naming System
Used only by Kordalu Zazane

Kordalu names use the same method as the standard naming system, but instead refer to themselves in human language, as they have had at least some contact with humanity. They see the human language as more elegant and beautiful than their own, and have thus decided to abandone the usage of Zazane words in their names, being replaced with human words. However, they can be referred to in Zazane language.

Kordalu names consist of a first and second word, and when referring to each other they always say each other's full names. This is because the words in their names are words from the human language. An example is the name Astral Highland. Astral in Zazane is "Gutarri", and Highland is "Vyorez", thus Astral Highland in Zazane is "Guttari Vyorez".

Kordalu have also abandoned the inheritance of surnames, instead selecting their children's last names themselves. Kordaly may choose to name their children after themselves however, as the leader of the Kordalu, Astral Highland, is the 3rd generation of Kordalu to be called Astral Highland.

Animals
The use of animals is fairly important in the Brood. From pets to beasts in gladiatorial arenas, animals have always been featured in Zazane culture. In Zazane culture, the souls of heretics and rebels are devoured by a massive Koda, which are used as beasts in Zazane arenas to entertain crowds, either pitting them up against each other or Zazane warriors. The name of this mythological Koda is Gogorae, meaning "Devourer" in Zazane. The Koda died when the Zazane entered the Universe, but thankfully, due to developing alliances, the Koda were able to be cloned back into existence and now populate several jungle planets within Zazane territory. The Koda are more ancient than the Zazane themselves, existing some centuries before the Zazane evolved.

A common pet within the Brood are the small Orti. Orti are good pets, as they have an excellent sense of smell and hearing. Their eggs can be harvested and used as food.

Warfare
Zazane warfare is carried out by the Holy Scion, a large military force consisting of Zazane warriors from each of the different empires. Together, they outnumber and outpower the military of the Zazane Empire before its reformation. The Holy Scion is considered almost unstoppable by some large empires and almost every small empire, as the Zazane Empire before the reformation was known for its mighty military force.

Also, since the Reformation, the Zazane ships have been icreased in power and technology as well. They have managed a more powerful method of hyperspace travel that will allow whole fleets to travel from one area to another thanks to the Kordalu, although if they ever manage to discover the secrets of the Vida'Rra technology on Riveliata, they might be able to do this in seconds across the entire Universe. The ships are also now equipped with more powerful Shidium weaponry, and have now discovered a more deadly form of Shidium: pure Shidium. Pure Shidium is too dangerous to be used in energy weapons, as it is highly unstable. This form of Shidium is used for planets that Zazane wish to destroy after having felt its lived to its full use. Pure Shidium, when in large amounts, can create an extremely powerful reaction that can reach to system-wide destruction from the explosion of the planet its meant to destroy. It is seen as a form of super-weapon, so pure Shidium is hardly ever used.

Warriors
The Holy Scion has a ranking system based upon skill, reliability, and belief in the Council. They are the main fighting force of the Brood, and each Scion is a respected member of society by civilians, no matter how high or low the rank is. The ranks in order are Minor (Shotul), Major (Shotulas), Ranger (Haskar), Stealth (Jorda), Special Operations (Niddo Ho), Special Operations Officer (Dorae Niddo Ho), Special Operations Commander (Tanaris Niddo Ho), Honour Guard (Zazanii), Honour Guard Ultra (Zazanii Vertai), General (Skorda), Zealot (Berdantes), Field Marshall (Zandoa), Supreme Commander (Orvalia Tanaris), and the Councilors (Sangtai).

Aside from these Zazane warriors, the Holy Scion use Cyrodi slaves as soldiers, and they have their own ranking system within the Scion, which follows: Minor (Jah), Major (Jahan), Heavy (Dakai), Special Operations (Kolotul), Ultra (Nakakai).

Weapons
Zazane weapons have advanced considerably, and still run on Shidium. However, no weapon runs off pure Shidium, as it is physically impossible. The Brood have managed to build new weapons to suit more needs for the Holy Scion, and some weapons are only exclusive to some Scion members. The Scion weapons are considered holy items by civilians of the Brood, who are only armed with a standard energy pistol. The weapoon considered most holy is the Zazane Ceremonial Blade, which is mostly used for religious purposes.

Ships
The ships of the Brood is called the Fleet of Ruin. They get around by use of energized Shidium, and some ships are equipped with pure Shidium cargo which can cause system-wide destruction. The ships release small amounts of energized Shidium as they get around, which can later be recycled by smaller Zazane ships as usage to get around as well. The Fleet of Ruin earned this name because of the powerful Shidium weaponry they are equipped with. Such strong ships are needed if they wish to combat empires such as UNO. They often come in large numbers, with at least one ship in each wave carrying a pure Shidium bomb. This ship is known is given the title of Toar, which means "Ruin" in Zazane.

Technology
Mostly all of the technology created by Zazane runs off Shidium and/or is constructed by Shidium. The Brood have constructed large rings referred to as "Takorin", or "Angel", which can keep a population of several thousand Zazane. Takorin are not usually used as permanent residences, they are mostly used to monitor planets they find interesting or are used as a large radar which can detect a quartre of a galactic region. When a Takorin is considered useless or without purpose anymore, the crew set it to self-destruct within the next 48 hours, and the end of which the Takorin destroys itself in a large burst of energized Shidium which is later recollected by Zazane ships.

The Brood has a new source of Shidium; conversion. They have been given the technology by the Kordalu to turn solid materials into solid Shidium which can later be turned into energized Shidium or any other form they please. The conversion takes place within 12 hours. The conversion is carried through the use of Shidium shards, which emit energized Shidium, being intensified and the emitted energy being exposed to it. Within 12 hours, most solid materials would have eventually gained Shidium properties and thus can be used in almost the exact same way as Shidium.

The Brood also gather energy from stars. The energy of the stars is absorbed gradually by spherical structures that are without life, known as Arkadii, or "Spheres". Arkadii will spin and orbit around the selected sun, close enough to gather energy but far away enough to resist getting turned into nothing but dust. The Arkadii will absorb the solar energy and store it within themselves, the interior strong enough to resist the high amounts of radiation and heat. Also, it will eventually turn into Shidium energy due to being exposed to a whole sphere which emits small amounts of Shidium energy. The process takes longer than solid conversion. After being converted, the Arkadii slowly orbits away from the sun, ready to be collected by Zazane ships.

The Brood has some of the most magnificent technology on the planet of Riveliata, with it being a Vida'Rra planet. However, they are unable to use this technology due to being unable to decipher how to use the technology, and most importantly, what it does.

Artificial Intelligence
The Brood now has its own AI. The AI can think for itself, and has been designed for social purpose. It resides on Riveliata with the Council of the Brood. The AI is called Vorta, which means "smart" in Zazane. Vorta was created by the Kordalu Zazane, and was programmed to have a masculine personality. Vorta behaves somewhat unlike a Zazane, yet he is armed. Vorta's job is to learn as much as he can about the Universe around him, and may also help the Zazane decipher the secrets of Vida'Rra technology. However, Vorta is allowed to think for himself and will decide whether or not he wants to help.

Drik
The Drik Zazane were the original species of Zazane before the many subspecies started appearing all over the Universe. The species itself is well over several millions of years old, while the empire they had, the Zazane Empire, was around for several thousand years. They are famous for their love of war, and also their honourable nature.

Yundei
The Yundei Zazane were one of the first Zazane rebel empires, seperating in the time of Nix's rule. The leader of the Yundei back then was Yun Zorin II, father of the current leader Yun Zorin III. The Yundei had formed their own empire and forgot about Nix's empire, only just hearing of it again after the Zazane Empire rediscovered them near their territories.

Bodei
The Bodei were actually rebels of the Yundei, and had completely forgotten about the Zazane Empire until recently. When they were rediscovered, they treated the Drik Zazane with much respect, giving them the title of "precursors". They are led by Bo Has, who launched the rebellion againt Yun Zorin II because he disagreed with the way that Zazane leaders were chosen.

Kordalu
The Kordalu were Zazane that were lost at the time when the Zazane first entered the Universe. During the time they were lost, they became Savage, and gathered what technology they could from worlds inhabited by minor empires. However, eventually these Savages fused themselves with the technology they stole. The Savages started becoming more civilized, and with their mental link and fusion with technology, they decided to become more peaceful. Sometime after, the Kordalu were rediscovered by the Brood. They became a big help to the Brood. They built their ships, weapons and other things.

Borealis
The rebelled from the Drik Zazane in search of a new life in the Borealis Galaxy, led by. The galaxy's Cold Relays caused several side effects on these Zazane, making them blue and highly resistant to the cold. These Zazane were famed as thieves and as members of the. Even after joining the Brood, about 1/3 of their population is still a member of the.