Indirian

The Indirians are a bidpedal humanoid race, not native to the quadrant

Arrival in the Quadrant

The Indirians are not native to our quadrant. According to their own complex history, they originate from the Perseus Cluster, which is also where the Dhaugosk Empire comes from. This star-cluster is over 200 light years from the edge of our quadrant and aside from the Indirians and Dhau, nothing much is known of the quadrant.
The Indirians first began to arrive in the quadrant in the year 1850 by Terran reckoning, in small numbers at first. Indirian nomad ships arrived and tried to shelter in various places with limited success. As more and more Indirians arrived, including several flotilla's bearing millions of Indirians, various races began to bar them from entry with some bloody clashes.
The Indirians began to find their place as scouts, mercenaries and traders and were tolerated if not accepted in various places and began to eke out a rough role in the quadrant.

Indirian Physiology

Indirians are humanoid and share many DNA similarities with Terrans, a quirk that led some to speculate that there may be a common ancestor, though this has never been proven. Indirians are naturally taller and slimmer than humans, with average male height of around six foot one and female height of five foot ten.
Indirians have sharper teeth than humans, with pronounced fangs and incisors. However they are still an omnivorous race.
Indirians have excellent eyesight thanks to the complex nature of their iris and retina that allows them to see better in the dark and over large distances. All Indirians are slightly colour blind however and see the extreme ends of the color spectrum in muted tones
Indirians have patterned skin, with colors ranging from purple, pink, gold and white. An Indirian could pass superficially for human until you get close to them
Indirians have a natural lifespan of about 100 years, with many Indirians living to around 150-160. Indirian DNA is incredibly hardy, with a natural defence to radiation (though they are not immune to it, just hardier than humans) and excellent resistance to viruses and diseases.

Indirian Culture

Indirians are an intense, somewhat enigmatic people. As a nomad race, they value their independence and can be very pragmatic, some would say untrustworthy beings. However Indirians are incredibly loyal to their ships crew, captain and their friends.
Indirians are a religious people who guard their own religion and culture taken with them from their old civilisation.

Nomad Culture

Indirian Nomads tend to travel and live in the same ship, which is generally a family affair. The head of the family is the Captain of the Ship and the best and brightest of the family run the key posts on the ship. But the younger members of the family will be required from an early age to learn how to look after the ship
Nomad Indirians value hard work, salvage and look out for other Indirians, though they are not above attacking each other for pirate loot or if hired by opposing sides.
Nomad Indirians are still seen across the quadrant but since Sycamore was founded in 2488, their numbers have fallen as more and more Indirians return to Sycamore to settle on an Indirian world.

The Right of the Dagger -Kas Atvan

Indirians are given a dagger when they reach adulthood, which is typically when they are eighteen or nineteen years old but this can happen younger. This is a sacred moment in the maturation of a young Indirian and its typically given to them by either their parents or by their ship's captain.
The moment is a quiet, secretive ceremony with only one or two witnesses allowed. The youthful Indirian is presented with a dagger and asked to promise that they shall uphold "Kas Atvan", the right of the Dagger and not allow anyone to take it from them. This is meant more symbolically than actually but some Indirians will refuse to ever be parted from their blade whilst others see it as more of notional thing, especially within Terran society where carrying a dagger could be seen as a threat.
The use of the dagger was generally for self defence but also teach to an Indirian quickness, deftness and that the "hidden blade" was sometimes much more useful than the seen one.
The dagger itself tends to be crafted for the user but some are simply purchased. Some young Indirian warriors who have proven themselves in battle may choose to take a blade from a fallen enemy as their right too.

The Ship and the Captain -Kater Atuva

Perhaps one of the most important and enduring Indirian customs is the respect for the Ship and Captain. All Indirians, whether born nomad or not, respect their elders and leaders as well as their community and see that as a sacred thing. Indirians are taught to respect their leaders until they prove they cannot lead, which makes Indirians in the armed forces fiercely loyal.
The Kater Atuva has responsibilities to the captain too, who must prove his or her worth to the crew of the ship and keep them safe, well cared for and not needlessly endanger their lives. A captain who proves unsuited to leadership or is failing can be asked to surrender their command and, if they refuse, can be challenged and removed from power after a Dagger Duel (the Kater -Ashvar)
In Terran Society, this has led many to consider Indirians to be somewhat conservative, with their natural deference to those in authority but this is a somewhat simplistic reading of their culture.

Religion

The Indirians are known for their religion and their adherence to it, with most Indirians espousing some amount of faith. The Indirians have generally never been willing to talk about it with outsiders or other races so very little is known. The Indirians have priests but there is no organization to their religion and no central doctrine, with practice and custom handed down verbally and in Indirian texts which are never shared with outsiders
What is known is that Indirians believe in "the Old Gods" and that these Gods are not always benevolent. They also believe in an afterlife of some sort and the "Honored Dead" go to a special part of this place.
Other races are forbidden from entering and practicing the religion.

Politics

Indirians have generally had their own politics from a ship level all the way up to Flotilla level. However these politics were not the traditional kind and generally promotion to Admiral amongst the Indirians was done on the basis of seniority and there was rarely ever any lobbying to be promoted to Admiral, the post being often largely ceremonial
Since joining the Terran sphere of influence, Indirians have been noted for their somewhat libertarian attitudes, preferring to not rely on the power of government. The natural tendency of Terran politics to belittle the leader is a foreign and somewhat disconcerting concept to Indirians and they do not share it.
In terms of partisan politics, Indirians are generally libertarian or moderate, though they do run the gamut of political beliefs which is often affected by location and upbringing.

Indirians in Terran Space

Indirians were often seen in Terran space during Terran expansion, with skirmishes and raids on the frontier leading to the so-called "Tomahawk War". However the obvious compatibility between Indirians and Terrans became more and more obvious and beneficial and during the days of the Terran Federation, Indirians were invited to settle in Terran space
Over time, they were extended the full rights of all other Terrans and were able to enter armed services, seek elected office and take part in politics
As of 2545, there are around 1.45 billion Indirians living in Terran space as Terran citizens.

Sycamore

In the year 2489, the Indirians who had aided the Terran Empire during the 1st Zzenddi War were granted the world of Sycamore.  This became the first permanent Indirian world to be granted in the quadrant and their first "home-world" since they had left their home-quadrant.
Sycamore gained a huge degree of significance to the Indirian people and many Indirians from across the quadrant have emmigrated there, with many more carrying out a pilgrimage to visit the world.
Sycamore is ruled by a council of Captains who appoint one of their number as "Admiral" who serves a life-term as the head of state.
Sycamore has been a fully independent world for its entire duration but many expect it to, one day join the Terran Republic.

Indirians in Dhau Space

There are also several hundred million Indirians in Dhau space, citizens as it were of the Dhau Empire. When the Dhau arrived in force, they brought many minor subject races with them from their "home-quadrant" and this included Indirians who were part of their Empire
Indirian Dhau, referred to contemptuously by other Indirians as "Kuvad-Kozan", serve in the Dhau military as scouts, snipers and soldiers as well as performing other roles in Dhau civilain life.

Indirians Home-Quadrant - the Indirian Empire

When the Indirians first came to our quadrant, they were cagey about where they had come from. Over time, they revealde that they had once ruled a large part of their home-quadrant until the Dhau had conquered it and broken their Empire up, creating a long lasting enmity between the two The Indirians have generally all abandoned any hopes of reclaiming their old Empire and most never talk of it.