K'i'ik'el
"Whenever I think of vampire nobility, I imagine a statuesque man in a black cloak and rich clothing with hair slicked back, red eyes, fangs peering from beneath their upper lip... What do you imagine?"
"They are people like us... only faster, stronger, and hauntingly beautiful..."
- Overheard Conversations
Overview
Language
The K'i'ik'el have their own complex language of their own syllables and sentence structure.
It's a secret language only used by other K'i'ik'el that is not taught to outsiders.
It was created to give the K'i'ik'el some privacy while in normal society to speak of problems exclusive to their race without fear of compromising themselves.
It's a secret language only used by other K'i'ik'el that is not taught to outsiders.
It was created to give the K'i'ik'el some privacy while in normal society to speak of problems exclusive to their race without fear of compromising themselves.
Appearance
The K'i'ik'el appear to be average humans, if not more pale than usual and leaner with more tone or muscle, their faces tend to be narrow or elf like with a fair yet feral appearance.
Sometimes the K'i'ik'el have eyes of an unnatural color which could draw suspicion.
Those turned into K'i'ik'el appear how they would if they were untouched by age, injury, disease, conditions, or hardships with some of the minor alterations of paler skin and leaner build added.
Sometimes the K'i'ik'el have eyes of an unnatural color which could draw suspicion.
Those turned into K'i'ik'el appear how they would if they were untouched by age, injury, disease, conditions, or hardships with some of the minor alterations of paler skin and leaner build added.
Habitat
K'i'ik'el are a race and widely diverse with only a few social generalities, they are meant to be watchers, observers of the world that keep the memories of time immemorable for the future to learn from past mistakes.
A majority of the K'i'ik'el associate with a noble house, or bond very closely with family or the one who turned them, this is done mostly for social reasons, but again as a diverse species they are just as likely to be found alone as they are in a community.
A majority of the K'i'ik'el associate with a noble house, or bond very closely with family or the one who turned them, this is done mostly for social reasons, but again as a diverse species they are just as likely to be found alone as they are in a community.
Traits
Immunization: All K'i'ik'el are resistant if not immune to the effects of poison or disease.
*Gift of P'isib: As a K'i'ik'el they are cursed to watch times change, but to never change with time. In effect they are doomed immortals unable to die unless killed.
Spatial Walk: Physical boundaries are nothing to them. At will they can casually climb, walk, or run up or along any surface.
**Black Ritual: The undead body of a K'i'ik'el is trapped in a time where they are free from age, illness, or disease. Any injury is quickly healed as if it never occurred so long as they are full of blood to mend their broken bodies.
Savage Gift: All K'i'ik'el possess retractable claws and fangs that are as strong as steel. The fangs are designed to slide into flesh and aid in draining blood from the host, or tearing flesh from bone. The claws were designed for climbing and gutting their prey, but were mostly meant to have effect on other K'i'ik'el and is the traditional weapon of choice whenever a K'i'ik'el is called to duel. It is another one of the only weapons that can bypass their regenerating ability.
*Gift of P'isib: As a K'i'ik'el they are cursed to watch times change, but to never change with time. In effect they are doomed immortals unable to die unless killed.
Spatial Walk: Physical boundaries are nothing to them. At will they can casually climb, walk, or run up or along any surface.
****To Kill a Monster: K'i'ik'el are able to regenerate most wounds, but silver, fire, radiant and magical damage can cancel out this ability.
Blood Reliance: Blood is their only source of neutrience and is the fuel for their undead bodies and their regeneration ability. If they were to become bloodless they would be weakened and like a normal human, without any supernatural abilities. An extended period of starvation will drive them mad, eventually they will fall into a deep slumber, a state of aestivation where their bodies become more corpse like until they touch blood once more.
K'i'ik'el are required to drink blood, but more specifically a solution of Iron, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen. So any creature who's blood contains these chemicals to a greater or lesser degree is safe for a k'i'ik'el to drink, provided nothing dangerous is added to the solution.
Blood in arteries carry oxygenated blood away from the heart. Blood in veins carry deoxygenated blood to the heart. Most prefer blood from arteries, not veins.
*****The World Is Bland: Food has no flavor, nothing stays down, no neutrience is gained from eating regular food. A K'i'ik'el cannot help but vomit up anything but blood.
Blood Reliance: Blood is their only source of neutrience and is the fuel for their undead bodies and their regeneration ability. If they were to become bloodless they would be weakened and like a normal human, without any supernatural abilities. An extended period of starvation will drive them mad, eventually they will fall into a deep slumber, a state of aestivation where their bodies become more corpse like until they touch blood once more.
K'i'ik'el are required to drink blood, but more specifically a solution of Iron, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen. So any creature who's blood contains these chemicals to a greater or lesser degree is safe for a k'i'ik'el to drink, provided nothing dangerous is added to the solution.
Blood in arteries carry oxygenated blood away from the heart. Blood in veins carry deoxygenated blood to the heart. Most prefer blood from arteries, not veins.
*****The World Is Bland: Food has no flavor, nothing stays down, no neutrience is gained from eating regular food. A K'i'ik'el cannot help but vomit up anything but blood.
History
Background
The K'i'ik'el can trace their history back to the very first K'i'ik'el Progenitor, the Progenitor of progenitors. The first man who discovered the black ritual that created the first K'i'ik'el thousands of years ago.
The K'i'ik'el are undead by nature, but probably the strangest undead in existence, almost a perfect mimicry of life. Undead but they are indeed a race, intelligent, independent, diverse, and with means of procreation. But their undeath is a secret they guard closely.
The K'i'ik'el are foreign to Arethil. The noble K'i'ik'el of House Armon came from a land to the South of the continent and landed at port near Belgrath.
They arrived quietly but have not been idle, they have done their best to learn all they can about the world they have arrived in and are always on a quest for information until they can bring all their people back together and reestablish their House and noble status.
The K'i'ik'el are undead by nature, but probably the strangest undead in existence, almost a perfect mimicry of life. Undead but they are indeed a race, intelligent, independent, diverse, and with means of procreation. But their undeath is a secret they guard closely.
The K'i'ik'el are foreign to Arethil. The noble K'i'ik'el of House Armon came from a land to the South of the continent and landed at port near Belgrath.
They arrived quietly but have not been idle, they have done their best to learn all they can about the world they have arrived in and are always on a quest for information until they can bring all their people back together and reestablish their House and noble status.
Lore
The K'i'ik'el blend in with general society, not letting people know what they are. In the land they originated from people knew of the existence of K'i'ik'el, but they were so skilled at blending in with society that people wouldn't even know if they met one or not.
If discovered they are often mistaken for vampires given their similarities with reliance on blood and other unnatural abilities, but this is not the case.
If discovered they are often mistaken for vampires given their similarities with reliance on blood and other unnatural abilities, but this is not the case.
Notes
*Gift Of P'isib (Notes): The undead bodies of the K'i'ik'el are frozen in a time where they are untouched by age, illness, or injury. Those born into the K'i'ik'el race such as the pureblooded children of the progenitor or fullblooded offspring can still age but the process is slow.With maturity a K'i'ik'el can learn to alter their age/appearance to whatever point of life they have already experienced.
**Black Ritual (Notes): The K'i'ik'el are designed to be a tank type creature, their strength coming from their ability to recover from damage vs absorbing or deflecting damage. Their ability to heal is powered by the blood they consume (or their own blood), and once that blood is gone they are as weak as a normal human, with all their supernatural abilities gone.
**Black Ritual (Notes 2): The K'i'ik'el do not die from blood loss, but any K'i'ik'el without any blood is called "bloodless" and is in a perpetual state of starvation until they feed again, it takes tremendous willpower to not turn feral and attempt a killing spree to sate their thirst. While bloodless a K'i'ik'el will age and eventually go into a state of deathlike aestivation, where they will remain dormant until they are given blood to awaken them.
Silver has the effect, though, of slowing a K'i'ik'el's ability to heal so greatly that over enough time it could effectively destroy a K'i'ik'el. The paralysis effect makes it so much more dangerous than other materials in that a K'i'ik'el could be incapacitated simply by chaining them up with silver chains, handcuffs, or wires. Despite a K'i'ik'el's incredible strength, the paralysis effect makes it so that they cannot break free of these chains without outside assistance.
****To Kill a Monster (Notes 2): While silver does all of the above effects on the K'i'ik'el, just as some people are able to resist such electrical currents, some K'i'ik'el are able to resist the effects of silver. But especially those closest to the living such as the Pureblooded or Progenitor K'i'ik'el, or even the rare occasion of a Fullblooded K'i'ik'el.
*****The World Is Bland (Notes): The K'i'ik'el are solely reliant on blood. Any other food tastes vile and nauseating making it nearly impossible for a K'i'ik'el to want to taste it let alone chew and swallow it. Forced attempts to eat will result in throwing up whatever was consumed. Continual forced attempts to eat food will result in sever internal bleeding and eventual death especially in the bloodless. The one thing they can manage to consume without ill effect or foul taste is wine.