Level 1 Shra

Zar

Overview

Though it has been referred to my various names throughout the cultural and social development of the vnou, Shra refers to the mental prowess and power of each vnou. Their telepathic ability and biological drive to Connect is a base racial trait of all vnou. The extent of that ability has been roughly charted though modern science can’t fully explain it – much like modern science can’t fully explain how the brain really works. There is a chemical and biological basic understanding of brain tissue and interconnections or bundles of axons – but it has been nigh impossible for neuroscientists to define what specifically creates the Shra and how it manipulates the world, and other vnou.

Shra Chart

1. Zar
2. Vna
3. Kuad
4. Dez
5. Dhath
6. Pra
7. Chlur
8. Lo
9. Blouz
10. Zmutwe

Historically

Lower Shra, and Zar in specific, have had a history of being enslaved. For much of vnou history, Vna and Zar were considered a step above property – too weak to fight off any other vnou or their mental manipulations. Though a Zar is capable of resisting a Vna and Kuad, socially and culturally that had not been acceptable for a very long time. Before Shra were graded and the chart was made, the social dynamics of the vnou were rougher, more chaotic, but it always resulted in the Zar equivalent on the lowest rung of society.

Social Standing

One of the changes that came with the Reconstruction was the creation of the Shra chart and the social arrangement and interplay of the Shra levels. While the concept of lower Shra being property hasn’t entirely been eradicated, there has been a lot of rights advancement in that regard. Generally, depending on which country or state the vnou live in, every vnou has a base level of rights that have been afforded them by the nobility that they may not entirely be aware of that is then manifest through law. Bureaucratic by nature, many of these laws can seem trivial when it comes down to specifics in the vnou life, but most will navigate their entire lives without much fuss and very little restraint. Or perceived restriction. Some things just are and they always have been.

While common vnou still practice tagging their lower Shra and Bya, they see the act as something a bit more personal and celebratory than the nobility. It’s part of the Connection process, a symbol of a bond, and a dated but culturally significant token given to a Bya from their Dha. It’s meant to symbolize the Dha’s protection over the Bya. In the modern day, that’s usually what that tag represents – a Connected Bya and nothing more. The filed paperwork along with the registration is just another one of those things that’s part of their lives.

For nobility, this tag has far more meaning. They are seen as property of their Dha, and by extension that family, and it is incredibly insulting for one Dha to try and command another’s Bya. Tagged vnou often take on a sort of reflected status of the one they are Connected to, so it has the duel effect of both turning them into property but elevating them depending on who they are property of.

Tagging

For lower Shra, and a guarantee for Zar, is tagging. Lower Shra, once they are Connected, have an ear tag that has their Shra grade, registration number, and birthdate. This tag is worn at all times and, for Zar, it is assigned to them when they are given their grade. It is a visible representation of the vnou’s social rank and serves to set the weaker apart. In the modern era, it is believed that tagged vnou should be protected and it’s usually a crime, in various degrees, for a higher Shra to bully, bother, or try to command a tagged vnou. While there is no law saying said tagged vnou is property, there is still a sense of behavior that they belong to whomever their tag-holder is – generally their Dha.

Registration information is updated when the vnou moves, when responsibility for them transfers to someone else, if they move into another family… So any vnou can look up the registration number and know the fundamental, and necessary, information about a lower Shra. Who they belong to, where they live, what their job is, if any, if there are any rules that should be observed if the registration number is looked up, and if they’ve any schooling.

Shra Pull

A vnou’s base mental ability is all about force of will and its application on the world around them. The draw one vnou might feel toward another is referred to, officially, as a Shra Pull but it is much more personal than that. If a vnou believes in love at first sight, it can manifest in that way. For others, it is a heavy attraction. For some that don’t notice anyone, it can be something as simple as finally seeing someone. It’s a force that draws two vnou together because they’ll be highly, mentally compatible.

In the abstract, some vnou call this attraction or the one they’re pulled to as their soul mate.

In reality, it is the opposing Shra’s being drawn to one another. High Shra are drawn to mentally compatible Lower Shra. The higher the Shra, the more likely they are to be attracted to someone of a lower Shra of a compatible personality. Thus, for vnou, Zar are the ones that are most likely compatible with everyone and are the highest draw for Zmutwe. This has left noble Zar as something highly sought after, even if they are considered the weakest, because of their higher pull toward the strongest vnou. Nobility have even gone so far as to pull common vnou into their family, or Fa, if they are Zar if there is an available Zmutwe in the hopes of them Connecting.