Benaughts

"...even through the thick stone wall, I heard the hiss of the growth chamber's door opening, and the rush of liquids spilling out of the pod and into the grated floor. A moment later, a series of disgusting pops signified that the body that had just been pulled from the chamber had been disconnected from the tubes and wires that had been keeping it alive as it slept. Already I felt wiser and more aware, despite that I had just undergone the same harrowing experience a mere hour before, when I was birthed from a similar tube, given only simple clothes and a word that was to be my name, and told to wait in the chamber next door. As my new sister was pulled from her sleep, I remembered my own pain and confusion as my bionic eyes and artificially enhanced lungs had struggled to cope with the new level of reality that came with conciseness. Already I felt an instinctual loyalty to her, and my other two siblings who sat with me already in the dark stone chamber. I knew we were born together for a reason, and with a purpose. When my sister came into the room, still wet from the growth fluids and with legs shaking with weakness, she was followed by the strange creature who had freed us. Sitting at the head of the simple stone table he handed each of the four of us a single piece of paper, with an image of a face, and the instructions to memorize it's features."

— Excerpt From Entry 001 From The Journal of Atlas, of the Ivicks Guild

Basic Information

Anatomy

Benaughts are artificially created cyborgs, made using a mix of living tissue and bionic parts. Their muscles are bound around a robotic skeleton, which can be controlled by the cyborg's brain to allow them to shapeshift. A Benaught can stretch and compress it's muscles to make itself look taller, fatter, or more frail at will. The face of a Benaught contains hundreds of tiny robotic parts, allowing the features of the face to shift to an even greater extent than the rest of the body. However, to be able to control this ability well enough to make a convincing face takes months or even years of practice for young Benaughts. Even most fully trained Benaughts usually have only three or four well-known faces they can shift between. To mimic an existing face, a Benaught typically needs to study and memorize that face well, which can take weeks.
Externally, Benaughts look identical to humans, although they contain a variety of enhanced bionic parts, most notably specialized eyes and other sensory organs.

Genetics and Reproduction

The creation of new Benaughts is one of the most important parts of their culture. New Benaughts are artificially grown in a process which takes nearly three years to complete. While the biological muscles and skin of a Benaught are slowly grafted onto their robotic skeletons, specialized Benaughts called Curators are in charge of overseeing every aspect of the creation of a new being. Curators consider themselves artists, as they meticulously design the physical features and personalities of the growing Benaughts. Because of the lengthy and complex nature of this process, typically a Benaught guild will usually receive only about four new members every three years. Guilds often have great rituals and celebrations around the birth of a new batch of warriors, which can vary widely from group to group.

Civilization and Culture

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Benaughts live in small societies called Guilds. Guilds are usually located in small, secret locations on heavily populated planets, where they offer their services as mercenaries. Because of their shapeshifting abilities and enhanced combat prowess, Benaught Guilds are often some of the most effective assassins, bodyguards, and spies available. All Benaughts are created with the expectation that they will become mercenary warriors, as this is the sole way in which most guilds make income. However, some Benaughts may become specialized for other tasks later in life.
The individual cultures and rituals of different Benaught Guilds are as varied and complex as different groups of humans, but a common theme throughout all of them are ideals of honor and loyalty. Most Benaughts have an instinctual loyalty to their Guilds, which is placed into their minds as they are grown. These ideas are further reinforced by a Benaught's training and education, which stress the importance of the survival of the Guild. Betraying one's guild is seen as the worst crime a Benaught can possibly commit. It is not uncommon for guilds to have entire groups whose purpose is the hunting and execution of traitors.
Benaughts also have a deep instinctual loyalty to the other members of the group they were born with. These batches of four always contain two men and two women, who refer to each other as brothers and sisters. Most Benaughts will lay down their lives without hesitation for one of their siblings. This loyalty is extremely important within Benaught Guilds, as sibling groups will work together for the rest of their lives. When a client hires the services of a Benaught Guild, they will usually be given command over one group of siblings, who have trained their whole lives to work as the most efficient team of killers possible.
An interesting part of Benaught culture is their obsession with identity. Because they are constantly changing their names and appearances, Benaughts are constantly fearful of losing their true selves. For most Benaughts, the face and name they they were born with and given by the Curators is considered their true self. Benaughts often hold the idea that they are people, with their own ideas and personalities, as very sacred, as in many parts of space they are thought of simply as mindless killing machines.

History

Benaughts are known to have been created during the time of the Empire, but the original purpose for their creation has been forgotten. It is known that, at some point, the Empire decided that the creation of Benaughts was to be outlawed, and ordered all living Benaughts to be killed. This would prove to be a difficult task, and resulted in the majority of the race going into hiding, with their skills as saboteurs and assassins making them particularly sought after in the criminal underworld. In the modern day, after The Collapse, Benaughts usually organize themselves in Guilds, which operate in hiding as expensive but highly effective groups of mercenaries. Although there are dozens of these Guilds in known space, their numbers are usually fewer than 100 members, led by only a handful of Curators. Because of this, the total population of Benaughts likely never exceeds a few thousand.

Origin/Ancestry

Near-Human Race

Lifespan

Immortal, unless killed in combat

Average Height

5-7 ft.

Average Weight

220 lbs

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