Vyllk (Vilk)

Vyllk are a race of flightless bipedal avianoids with monotreme type behaviors in their evolution. They are native to the planet Cauven, with a history and relations that have established them as a "sister" world to the OA recognition. Their world has modestly lower gravity, and it once suspected they flew around it like many other creatures. However as they grew, and cold eras assaulted the planet, they gravitated more towards settling in and began to evolve as a flightless bird with more mammal-like qualities and diets. They lightweight ones can still "flutter" a bit with their elbow-wings, but they have long been without a full flying ability, and their religious mythology encompasses legends of an ethereal space of infinite flight that was lost to them.
With a shift of intaking animal milk, and building constructs with social gatherings, they began to grow their brains and become more of the dominant race of Cauven... before others got involved. They were technically among the few species working with Ryclin and even some other ryclin allies before the OA itself was officially established and involved, though much of their early history with the ryclins were erased by allowing themselves to be consumed after certain milestones of cooperation were achieved, and its suspected few-to-nobody with serious experience made it back to document the stories of their own account.
Their culture is deeply religious, but in an odd way of favoring a collective altruism, whilst a search for individual experience, both of which allowing room for a lot of progress. They are deeply compassionate towards other races, and a striving effort to learn and adapt, but can almost become too self-destructive or experimental in such a cause to simply 'experience' anything. This has lead them to be self-sufficient enough to develop portals, rockets, and augmentation, but also careless enough that they will sacrifice their own life for peace agreements or another's benefit. Among their shared contributions, one of the most noteworthy of their trade is a strangely flexible tough metal called Koovrot. However, they're also known to be tasteful with flavors between goose, duck, and chicken, and have developed an industry that will feed many number of other races they've started to co-exist with, as well as even allow cannibalism among themselves. Ryclins love them for this reason, but even Vahamins or co-workers from beyond the OA sides have opened themselves to processing them into canned meat that is imported around.

Basic Information

Anatomy

They are feathery beings with strange flexible beaked mouths. They have an inner jaw with more vocal flexibility, a strong vocal cord, and even some muscles and flex in the beaks themselves, allowing them to match and go beyond most vocal patterns - though some older languages rely more on simpler noises and sounds that evoke an era before such flexibility. They have "wings" of longer feathers along their arms, and five-fingered hands that end in rigid talon-like claws with a rough texture. Their feet end in little crow-like talons, with three forward toe-claws, one at the back, each flat without an arch in the foot. The species has short tail that ends in long tail-feathers, which can often work in tandem to allow them to flip up and open into a 'fan' for colorful effect.
Male 'Raptors' often have large crests along their head, and shorter tail feathers that display less fanning. They often have slightly longer beaks but shorter wings than the females. They are marginally taller on average than the females, and have more upper-body strength, as well as a unique nerve or neck muscles to sometimes extend the crest. Females - sometimes called Harpies - often lack full crests (but some have a smaller colored pattern similar to one), but often have more wing feathers and far longer tails than their male counterpart. Their tail is more colorful and often layered with patterns that can sometimes be hypnotic on extension, and they often have stronger leg and tail muscles from more use of this in dance or mating rituals. There is a misleading idea among foreign ryclin & humans that harpies share the same mammal dimorphism, and in return they sometimes struggle to tell them apart at times. While females do distribute milk to the young, they are still egg-laying monotremes with underdeveloped milk-stores that are only needed for the newly hatched to develop better. Harpies only grow out 'breasts' when pregnant or overweight, as otherwise all harpies are practically 'flat-chested' and the gender is better told apart by crest size, fan colors (or tail-length if concealed), hips, or wing span.
Mild differences are held between ethic groups of the Kwuaf and the Jyoon. The Kwuaf devolved longer straight beaks, and slightly longer necks - especially the raptors. The beaks have more of a blunt tip, and were once used for breaking into tall cacti, or reaching tall trees. The species is generally a little more taller, and the females more often have colors of pink, lavender, and cyan hues, while males more often host red-brown and oranger shades common. The Jyoon were more mountainous birds, with shorter stature, more rounded dull beaks, but richer body feathers and fur, and a dominance in more deep blue, or darker colorations and slightly less vibrant feminine colors.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

Their environment has become used over time by an intersection of omni-versal travel from a variety of odd races, including a large effort by the OA trades. As such, Vyllk have slowly adjusted elements of their culture to change with others using their property, portals, mapping, or minerals. However the vyllk themselves as a species have been used more specifically different, with an arguably darker fate... even if they're quiet fine with it. Vyllk are physically used as food, oil, or even plucked for their feathers as decoration by numerous other species. Oddly enough this started first among their own kind, with a couple of distant towns canabalizing their prisoners and eventually giving meat or colorful feathers to some of the first outer-contacts.
Food and lard extractions are far the most used exploitative piece of the race itself. The vyllk themselves have begun to make it common for some select roles or eggs of individuals to be contributed as trade sacrifices, while others send criminals to places to be fed up and consumed. Mankind has even started a measuring system of a Vyllk's feeding size or edibility, by analogies to the circumference of old terran birds, and such talk has crept into common place with Vyllk's own society. It might be common to hear of 'brave sparrows' or 'lazy chickens' as a way of referring to somebody by their habits, role, or exercise.
Sparrow: Lean worker or warrior type body class, rarely eaten in this form and makes up the majority of living culture standards and average physique.
Grouse: Slightly pudgy. Probably just eats well or has a poor habit of their own accord, but a few cultures actually highlight this as an ideal body type - likely because trade influence has started to suggest its better for a broader public to be so easily used and consumed.
Chicken: Very out of shape, oily gleam in their feathers, and rounding out. Likely to be sacrificed even if they're not full self-conscious, and those managing to live long on this shape are often thought as greedy or arrogant and often nicknamed 'Rylie-bait' for the fact Ryclins enjoy eating this form the most.
Turkey: The bird can barely move and is actually more of a blob than their analogy-name. They rarely get this big on their own, and often too much for even the average ryclin (unless they're okay with become immobile themselves). This class of vyllk is likely on deliberate feed to be carved, or retain some kingly spot of power, greed, and laziness that allowed them to naturally become this close to a heart attack.

Civilization and Culture

History

Zysapharian alliance

Vyllks were once working with the Ho'naht and Ryclin races during early pre-OA days. They especially collaborated over the location that would become Dustin, finding it through common rift anomalies and using it as a testing ground for discoveries. Residents even moved there, and were heavily motived by sheer discovery and companionship to forward their ally's advancements, even often giving themselves to feed the ryclin. With time it became common and careless for them to be swallowed up, potentially leading to the eventual decline when engineering plans became cluttered and hard to contain with the occasional builders suddenly 'disappearing' into another's stomach. It was suggested that barely any vyllks truly left, and that the original vyllkard workers of early Dustin were erased in consumption. Its believed this confessed history, has helped motivate the current landscape of vyllk meat production where its marginally more regulated even as the demand to consume them has increased.

Common Myths and Legends

The Culture Of Twin Gods
Their culture is virtually unified in their religious system. The story has it that long ago, in a far away world and time, the vyllk were nothing more than wandering birds in the clearest and most perfect skies. Yet their souls were found wanting, and yet all they did was fly, at peace with the aura in the sky. Glorious wings, lush plumage, ever shined talons that never stained themselves of blood, they kept on, flying without desire to try new experiences or worries of the land, all while unsure why they had an emptyness. Father and Mother to this flock of birds, named Yuzi and Mojni were both worried for their children. As a harsh lesson with great benefits, they guided them away from the usual path, whirling up into the stars until they began to suffocate. Aching and dizzy, they fell into another world, waking up through another realm of land, and wingless insanity. Stripped of flight, they were forced to learn. However, Yuzi and Monji showed them. Taught them to forage for food, to guard against dangers, to bathe in waters, and slowly, they found soul with it. However in their wandering, the gods departed from this realm. Remained was a changed race that went on to become the Vyllk.
The vyllk call them the twin gods, as they both were 'born' into their current world at once (Often spoken of together as one name: Cossi), and acted as one to provide for their children. They see them as the first and prime beings, and ones giving and generous, but unable to deny their children the rewards found in sacrifice. They wished to show the children a new world full of opportunities, struggle, and depth, and wanted them to live to the fullest, passing down a virtue most of the Vyllkian people still hold close, likely a part of their altruism. They will sacrifice themselves for other sentient organisms, and make sure the others live a good life. However they also find value in their own abilities, and some will still guard the self to a point, or take a stand against more broad threats and manipulative presence. In the end, the final goal is the thought that death after a life of fulfillment or favor will return the soul to the greater sky realm beyond with wings full, as an 'ascendant'.
Temples have been made across time, depicting various images for the twins, with some offering sacrifices of objects or less sentient life as a way to "show" the gods what they are seeing in the world. These places are sacred, but unlike most religious roots, are not always protected from vices, as some are in fact encouraged as a way to show appreciation. Drinking, feasts, and mating dances, sometimes prostitution, can be held on certain temple ceremonies. These religious places are fiercely guarded by those sometimes called "Talons to Aura" (or Duava Enklic in their religious language), who hold themselves as priests or monks with authority. However they have not held solid power enough to stop wandering ideas, and one such schism is whether or not the gods are still separate or one, with regional division making for added conflict with this minor depiction issue. 
Being religious has encouraged the Vyllk to mostly advance, rather than stagnate. Few philosophy sects that would hold them back have endured, and in fact they have studied and raised technology like their planetary portal network with hope to one day physically reach the Twin gods, or to at least spread their message with other planets and ecosystems. The vyllk wish to see and know things, experiencing what is out there in the world they have been blessed and condemned to. Augmentations, weapons, hunting, contraception, chemicals, war, lesser idols, nothing material is seriously off limits unless one temple tried some odd experiment or interpretation, but rather its about the morality of the person to want the most of life or be able to share or enhance another's. They revel in the material world as a part of the religious experience, and wish to know more.

Lifespan

75 Years

Average Height

1.5m

Average Weight

Naturally light per size, with less muscle and bone density. Quite a number however, tend to fill up on fats.

Average Physique

Varies by purpose, but many citizens start out skinny or cardio-strong. Their arm muscles capacity is very weak. Can put on enormous weight if overfed

Geographic Distribution

• Cauven
• Cylonis
• Dustin
• Eldaras
• Kyberus
• Vaxhora

Related Organizations

• Cosmic Ascensionism
• KasMax
• Kyberian Discovery Alliance
• Nebula Sweep Agency
• Second Siivakian Empire
• The United Cosseyrie Wings Government

Related Technologies

• Smart-Gear
• Solid-state Television
• VividbrAIn

Related Materials

• Cauven lard
• Koovrot
• Vyllkard Meat