Thyoran
Thyorans (“joyous ones” in ancient Arcadian) were a peaceful species of small, quiet sophonts who originated on the planet Thyor in the Twymin system. Unique in the galaxy as the only species to possess a biological telepathic network based on quantum mechanics, this telepathy was their greatest advantage in forming civilization -and their greatest obstacle to communicating with other civilizations. The Thyorans and Aehr were the founders of the Alliance of Spacefaring Civilizations, which in time evolved into the Galactic Democratic Federation. Tragically, their timid and peaceful nature made them easy targets for the Khraakgn Empire during its campaign for galactic superiority, and the species is now widely thought to be extinct.
Biology
Anatomy & Morphology
Thyorans were bipedal, with two lean, webbed limbs supporting their bulbous torso. Their rounded heads were attached to the torso by a highly articulated, gracile neck, and sported two eyes and a small proboscis mouth amid an array of prehensile sensory tendrils, with which they manipulated their environment. The Thyoran skeletal system was largely based on hard, durable polymer, supported by partially hydraulic musculature. Their respiratory system relied on a pair of spiracles at the base of the neck, though their skin could absorb oxygen directly from water, and their blood was cobalt-based, turning dark amber when carrying oxygen.Perception & Sensory Capabilities
Thyorans perceived the world through a pair of focal eyes and a set of four tympanic ears tuned to different mediums (air and water), as well as their chemosensory antennae and tactile tendrils. The entire species shared a network of quantum-based telepathy, allowing them to communicate complex ideas to any member of their species instantaneously. This method of communication was based on the entanglement of quanta between individuals which had previously been in close proximity to each other and relied on extremely specialized neurological structures, which unfortunately meant that no other species was able to share in this telepathic network.Ecology
Geographic Origin & Distribution
The Thyorans originally evolved in the warm bogs of Thyor, though its blue-white sun Twymin was already dying by the time civilization arose under its bright rays. The Thyorans, knowledgeable of the life cycle of stars, anticipated its violent death, and enlisted the help of the Aehr in building an artificial star system that they called Ringstar to preserve their biosphere and others whose suns were reaching the end of the main sequence. When the time came, the entire planet's ecosystem was moved to a designated construct world within Ringstar. The Ringstar, unfortunately, was subsequently destroyed in a cataclysmic attack by the Khraakgn Empire, causing the presumed extinction of the reclusive, peaceful Thyorans.Habitat & Survival Factors
Thyorans were able to tolerate a reasonably broad range of environmental conditions, though they were most comfortable in their native environment: humid, warm, and surrounded by nature. Thyorans were a reclusive species, and did not establish significant presences on other worlds besides their own until the impending death of their sun forced a great exodus from the home they loved so dearly.Civilization & Culture
Major Organizations
The telepathic network uniting all Thyorans provided the basis for their global civilization; to them, any sort of ethnic or national identity was synonymous to their identity as the Thyoran species. Under the young ASC, which they helped to found, their official representative entity was identified as "the Thyoran People."Major Language Groups & Dialects
The Thyorans had no written or spoken language; nor did they have a codified numeric system or measure any quantity in a manner recognizable to other sophonts. All information was stored in the collective consciousness as raw thought; the entire concept of language -simplifying the vast complexity and nuance of the world into semi-standard units of thought- was utterly alien to them, and it impeded their efforts at contact with other civilizations for a very long time. Numerous translation matrices were created with the help of artificial intelligence, but all failed for various reasons. The Thyorans, therefore, gradually developed a form of sign language in order to be understood by other sophonts, but to them it was a poor facsimile of their truest form of communication. A Thyoran individual name could be, for example, a very specific moment in the morning on a summer day when the sun was at just the right angle in the sky to make dew sparkle on moss by the lake they spent their childhood in. Other beings, constrained by the limits of language, would simplify that to some variation of "Summer Morning Dew", but doing so destroys the infinitesimal details that make that moment -and therefore the name- unique and deeply personal.Culture & Heritage
Thyoran culture was, for the most part, very strange and largely shrouded in mystery. Their ability to communicate with one another in pure thought, with no room for dishonesty or misinterpretation, produced a unique utopian society that functioned in near-total silence. It was once said that the works of art produced by the Thyoran people had the ability to resonate so deeply with those that experienced it, regardless of species, that for a moment the observer could almost feel the presence of the universal consciousness that defined these strange, taciturn bipeds. Indeed, the Thyorans as a whole were themselves a work of art, crafted by the chance whims of evolution to elevate the experience of existence to a height never known before or since. Together the Thyorans basked in a shared understanding of the universe; a sense of emotional and spiritual wholeness that the rest of the galaxy could never hope to match or comprehend. Their extinction was an unparalleled tragedy; the sense of cosmic kinship that the Aehr named them for extinguished forever.
EXTINCT
I love the telepathic network of communication that these interesting beings used to share, it's fascinating. It's also really cool to look into an extinct species like this, I'm used to reading about ones that currently exist, rather than ones that used to exist! I'd love to know how the knowledge on these creatures was gained -- through archaeological records? Written histories from other species? Forgive me if it was mentioned and I missed that! I've also added this as one of my chosen articles for the reading challenge :)
Ah, thank you!! I'm glad you enjoyed it so much! :D Thyorans are definitely among my favorite sapient species I've created, in large part due to their unique telepathy. While it's tempting to include everything in the present, it's also important to remind ourselves that some things will be forever out of reach, and some mistakes are irreversible. Extinction is a very good tool to establish those themes. Thyorans were co-extant with many other species that survive to the modern day, including the Aehr -the civilization responsible for galactic leadership- with whom they cooperated most closely. On the cosmic timescale they have only gone extinct quite recently, much like our dodos on Earth. Knowledge of the Thyorans persists in historical records, written accounts, textbooks and scientific articles, overall cultural memory, and especially surviving examples of their own artworks (guarded closely by the Aehr.)
Those are some really great points to think about, and I agree, it's very important to include things such as extinction! *takes notes* And thank you for responding with some more info! It's very interesting to learn more there :D