Fiction:Saviki Metafleet

"Storm, Winter, Blood, Dusk, Void. We alone remain. Home is lost, but the Architect our God is kind, sustains us against the long, cold dark. We must not fall to the petty quarreling of our ancestors, no, we must have unity. An infinity of resources awaits us out among the stars; if we survive long enough, it will be ours."

- Akins, Storm Chrill, Father of the Confederacy

A loosely united squabble of mercenaries, pirates, scientists, and strategists, the Saviki Fleet Confederacy wanders the space between galaxies, plundering what resources they need from whatever they come across and leaving for the next possible target. The five Tribes—Storm, Winter, Blood, Dusk, and Void—maintain a relatively peaceful union in service to their Chrills and the mysterious Architect, with each content to mind its own business and not provoke the vengeance of the rest.

History
Thousands of years ago, the Saviki rose from their homeworld of Elekzil to build an advanced spacefaring civilization. It was during these Shining Days that the Saviki augmented their bodies to process Mana, a liquid substance produced by the Architect and distributed by the mechanical Regulators that to this day keeps the four-armed raiders alive. However, infighting and an outside threat remembered only as the Blizzard extinguished the Shining Days and forced the Saviki to abandon their world. Much of their advancements were lost, their historically noble Tribes warred for the Architect's favor and for resources, and billions of Saviki were cast out into the vacuum during purges.

Founding
However, after the extermination of the Tribe of Clouds, the remaining Chrills decided to set aside their quarrels to ensure their survival. Akins, Chrill of Storm, proposed a loose Confederacy in which each Tribe would remain functionally independent, but in attacking any of the others would risk vengeance of all of them, and in the event of an outside threat they would stand as one, unlike their ancestors during the Blizzard. The rest agreed, and the Fleet Confederacy was established.

===Pheras Conflicts=== The Saviki, in their wandering and raiding, have often come into conflict with the Spood Interstellar Federation, with first contact occurring on the planet Pheras. The Saviki's distinct lack of planets has made them a surprisingly difficult foe for the Spood, but the latter's vast resources have kept the pirates from total victory over any whole planet.

Society & Culture
The Confederacy is made up of five Tribes: Storm, owner of the largest fleet and currently led by Vekin, Winter, more focused on technology than raiding and led by the aging Dedrin, Blood, the most populous and militaristic with Orsik at the helm, Dusk, scavengers led by the manipulative female Chrill Pravis, and Void, a Tribe made almost completely of mercenaries under the guidance of Rikken. All five owe allegiance to the Architect, their mysterious god that resides somewhere in the heart of the vast flotilla.

This quasi-religious loyalty is not founded out of awe, but out of dependence. The Mana that has become vital to every individual Saviki's survival is distributed by the Architect-controlled Regulators, with no alternative source. Thus, to provide their god with the matter and energy to be converted into Mana, they raid and pillage entire systems, taking any compatible mass and leaving when the victim worlds are stripped of anything useful.

No biological species other than the Saviki are known to exist in the Confederacy. The Regulators and various other machines are mostly incapable of higher thought, and are not counted as specific members of the society.

Hierarchy
The Saviki follow a universal hierarchy most prevalent at the bottom of the spectrum. An individual's place on this scale can be roughly inferred by height, with taller Saviki having access to larger rations of Mana due to their social status.

Chrill
The leaders of individual tribes, the tallest of the Saviki thanks to the large and readily available supply of Mana they grant themselves. During the Shining Days and even before, Chrills were looked to as kings, respected symbols of justice and holders of great wealth in an age of plenty. However, with the transformation of the species after the Blizzard to desperate, nomadic pirates, the position of Chrill became that of a strategist and feared warrior-monarch, with justice forgotten in favor of strength and opportunistic cunning.

Zealot
Unbound by tribal distinctions, Zealots and their crews directly serve the Architect, accomplishing more covert objectives and pursuing high-value targets. Zealots are hand-picked by Initiators from among the higher ranks of Saviki, and taken to the Ark at the heart of the fleet of fleets. Most have a nearly suicidal devotion to the Architect, and will willingly sacrifice themselves to fulfill Its design.