Tuller Hoc's Enchiridion to Sapiens of Órthros: Eternals

Grey is the immortal life.

Written by Lightk33per

As I assembled this compendium of enlightened species I was uncertain whether I should include the Eternals at all. After hours of analyzing text and tomb, then interviewing one, it became clear to me they are the place to start. The controversial speculation they are the first race and architects of Órthros is too charming to pass up. Indeed, they must be the opening. For every good book must have a beginning and where better to begin than Homo Primis. The Eternals, or as you may know them, the Greys.
Published 6161 BC

Basic Information

Genetics and Reproduction

Individual Eternals may appear masculine or feminine, but they are androgynous and infertile. They may take pleasure from sexual acts, though they do not have a libido. They have no sexual instinct. If they were to take part in sex for the first time, they must be taught the most basic act. This is dissatisfying to many, so most Eternals have never taken part. The few that continue to practice turn into unparalleled sexual partners. After all, they have an eternity to rehearse.

Growth Rate & Stages

Eternals do not age and are perpetually the same throughout their immortal lives. They will enter a period of dormancy after extreme trauma that will be further explained below.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Though immortal, Eternals must eat and drink to maintain consciousness. They must consume a single meal per day. They do not take pleasure in eating. To them, food tastes dull and uninteresting. Their taste buds are under developed compared to other sapien species. Food consumption is a chore.

Biological Cycle

If an Eternals body or mind significantly harmed, they will fall into a dormant state. Their body might lay where it fell for decades. Slowly being covered by natural growth turned grey. The return to consciousness is prolonged, arduous tedium. Imagine swimming up from the depths of the deepest ocean, tied to an anchor. You are halfway to understanding their journey. Once surfaced, they are restored and ready to get on with life. Awaiting the next long drowning.
If their body is destroyed, they emerge from a tree, cliffside or other natural structure after a century.
To them, this is not an unfamiliar phenomenon. It does not provoke any feelings of confusion or unease. Although several decades may seem a long time, for an Eternal its a single breath. Some may choose to go dormant. Eternals can become bored with the current state of the world.

At the bottom of a keep in Castel Carcerem there is a dungeon. In a dark cell, lays the slumped over bulk of Alvo Akker the Eternal. Sentenced to death for a crime only he remembers. Every few decades, he is reborn and hung once again, in front of a crowd. Destined to repeat his hanging for the foreseeable future, he is not perturbed. One day the Kingdom of Carcerem will fall. Its people will rot. The castle will crumble into ruin. Only he will remain, and so he waits.

Additional Information

Social Structure

An encounter with an Eternal is quite rare. Regarding themselves as vagabonds, they aren't in the same place for long. Long being relative to their life. An Eternal could move locations every few hundred years and consider themselves to be an errant hermit. They do not regularly congregate with their kind and see themselves less as members of a race and more as individuals. They acknowledge other members of their race as such but do not assign any meaningful bond, as related to this.
Common folk meeting an Eternal may treat them with reverence or disdain. The meer existence of Eternal is an affirmation of some beliefs and is in opposition to others. This polarizing effect causes most Eternals to avoid the public in general. People without a theological doctrine commonly view Eternals with neutrality.
Those who take time to speak with an Eternal, find themselves confronted with a solemn face and a stoic outlook. The countless long years have left them with little concern about the troubles of the day. Insisting that however grave the circumstance may seem, it will pass. Those seeking a sober conversation and rich knowledge of the world will never regret conversing with an Eternal.

Facial characteristics

There are a few common facial features between individuals. All Eternals share a humanoid facial structure. Two eyes pointing forward with a ridged nose running down the center leading to two lips parted horizontally, revealing teeth. They also share the most distinguishing feature of having solid silver eyes that view the world in black and white.
Apart from this, their facial structure is widely varied. Some may have small horns nestled in their hair or little black feather trimming the edges of their faces. These less mammalian features are exceedingly rare.

Average Intelligence

If you believe the myths, the Eternals had their ingenuity and creativity taken from them by the gods. This means their intelligence is precisely the sum of their knowledge. Whether this knowledge is gained through experience or studies, their lack of creativity does not hinder their ability to understand. Which makes me wonder to what length this myth is hyperbolized?
What does seem to be true is they have little to no original thought. When a new experience greets an Eternal, they are likely to study or examine it, eager to grow their knowledge. However, when confronted with an unfamiliar dilemma, they are slow to overcome it. Without help, it seems an insurmountable task, forcing them to walk away or wait out the issue. Luckily for them, there are few problems they haven't encountered before.
I believe Eternals do have some creativity. Perhaps, the gods only took away their ability to think originally. Further study of the Eternals' intellect may reveal what constitutes original thought to the gods.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Eternals have solid silver eyes that gleam, like a polished mirror. One of the most peculiar properties of their eyes is their reflection. It's of the world in black and white. They are one of the few sapient species with monochromatic vision. This does not seem to hinder their vision in the dark.
The Eternals´ sense of taste and smell are underdeveloped compared to that of other sapient species. A strong odor will go unnoticed and delicious food will be underappreciated. To an Eternal, everything smells and tastes dull and flat. They derive no pleasure from these senses.

Civilization and Culture

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Dievs Runa (godspeech). Also known as Celestial.

Common Myths and Legends

Few will argue against the simple fact that the gods created the realms, but some have said the Eternals molded Órthros. They were once the outstretched fingers of gods tasked with a single purpose. To mold the center of the realm scape. To forge a balance point, pillars keeping the external realms segregated. This central realm was to be an amalgamation of all external realms harmonized into one world.
The gods gifted Eternals with vision, ingenuity, creativity and the power to mold the constituents of Órthros as they saw fit. With this, they raised oceans, forged mountains and exhaled the sky. Soon flora and fauna flowed from the womb of the Eternals creation. The gods were pleased.
Worthy Eternals ascended to angelic prestige, rejoining the gods in celestial realms. Others stayed on Órthros believing their task was unfinished. Órthros had produced a new medium to manipulate. Life.
At first, life proved difficult to mold and early incarnations were unnatural abominations. Over time they learned to craft great trees, magnificent beasts, and complex symbiotes. Then, once their skill had grown enough they birthed mortal intelligence in their image. The first intelligent races born in quick secession. Among them were Humans, Elves and Dwarves.
This angered the gods. For they knew intelligence could never leave its infancy if it was to be mortal. The Eternals had created recurring, immature intellect and that is a dangerous concoction. They were stripped of their gifts, robbed of color and abandoned on Órthros. Cursed to look upon the world they created in shades of grey. Never to create again.
All unnatural life was banished to the external realms except the intelligent mortals. The had bartered with the gods to allow them to stay on Órthros. In return, they would worship them in prayer, ceremony, and sacrifice.

"I rented a room to an odd silver-eyed, white-haired woman last night. When I went to change the sheets the next morn they had all turned grey!" - Flora May, the housekeeper at Bloom Dale Inn

Scientific Name

Homo primis

Lifespan

Immortal

Average Height

4 - 7 feet

Average Weight

80lbs - 300lbs.

Average Physique

The proportions of Greys are that of average humanoids, though they vary widely within that range. They are most comparable to humans, dwarves, and elves.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Eternals have the most fascinating yet slightly disturbing quality regarding pigment. They only produce shades on a greyscale. That is to say, they are black, white or somewhere in between. They have no color. Their skin ranges from a charcoal grey to a bone-white. While their hair tends to be a dull silver. It can also be vantablack or pure white.
The most startling property about this grey colorless pallet is it extends past their skin. Every article of clothing, every object they hold, everything they touch, colors fade to the greyscale after an hour. Thank the gods the color returns within a day of parting from an Eternal, or I would have been stuck on the greyscale for the rest of my days.

¨I've been away. Searching for a reason but, there is no purpose to find. I've sailed the seas and fought many demons. I've seen the gods in the skies. I've looked into hell and watched many suffer. I've stared their devils in the eyes. Walked many roads to witness ancient idols and found the Great Gates of Fire.¨ - Melns Bal, Eternal, Shepherd of Fire