The Many Castes of the Sskltheen
I have spent much time travelling around our part of the world, though my adventures have merely proved to me that the world is far larger than I ever imagined. I leave it to other explorers to seek out the lands that I could not reach, I am old, and I have lived a rich life. I have seen many great wonders, crossed beautiful lands and conversed in a multitude of tongues with a number of races that many of my countrymen don’t even know exist. One of the strangest (and dare I say, most terrifying) races I encountered was the Sskltheen, as I have chosen to transcribe the hisses, clicks, whistles and hoots that make up their verbal communication. They have a strict caste system that is largely enforced by the fact that the castes can differ physically, often greatly. Finding this of great interest, I befriended a travelling Royal from one of the less xenophobic nations, who promptly took me back to its Klthdom (a Klth being their equivalent of a monarch) and allowed me to stay a while to learn of their culture and people. I have since learned how lucky I was to chance upon such a friendly Sskltheen, as many in the region seem to now be incorporated into the Klthsstkl Klthdom, a highly aggressive and xenophobic polity. Regardless, I learned much about their caste system, and I shall present the fruits of my knowledge here. I must warn that there are numerous sub-castes that I know nothing of, and new castes are often created through cross-caste breeding when required, and some castes seem to be castes more out of tradition than any actual physical difference, so use my writings as an informal guide and not a proven truth.
The Royal Caste
These are the largest intelligent caste. Their armoured sacs are enormous, with their plates coloured a deep purple, a colour that all Sskltheen seem to revere. They vary greatly in size amongst eachother, with smaller ones being around four metres from beak to sac-tip while the largest can reach eight metres. They have six tendrils which are all of a normal size, a few metres long and not particularly thick. Their beaks are larger than any other caste bar the Warrior caste, and produce the loudest noises. Their hoots from the air chambers underneath their gas sacs can cause hearing loss in any man that strays too close to an overexcited Royal, though doing this is highly inadvisable as they would have little difficulty killing a human, even by accident. Other Sskltheen seem to almost fear Royals, especially the powerful ones. Only the Slayer sub-caste of Warriors seems immune to this. I do not know the cause of this fear, though I feel we would glean much more about this curious race if we learned it.
The Shaman Caste
The Shaman
The Shaman caste is probably the least common, on par with Royals, though the culling of Royals reported during Klthsstkl expansion has likely skewed that ratio. Priests are not large, around half the size of Royals, but are still highly revered in Sskltheen society. They have eight tendrils, six that are only one to two metres long, while two reach three to four, and are far more powerful. Their armoured plates are a bright yellow. They fulfil the religious functions of the Sskltheen, though I am still unclear as to what their religion actually is. I was never permitted to attend any rituals and no Sskltheen ever revealed to me what they believed.
The Warshaman
The Warshaman is an even less common sub-caste of Shaman that performs the rituals for the Warrior caste. I do not know the reason for having a specialised sub-caste for the Warriors alone but it was never questioned by any of my hosts. They are largely identical, though their lesser tendrils are larger and they have streaks of red amongst the yellow on their armoured plates.
The Warrior Caste
The Warrior
The Warrior is the most common baseline of the Warrior castes, and as such, I will only discuss deviations in form amongst other Warrior sub-castes from this one, so use this as a description of the rest unless otherwise noted. The Warrior measures between five to six metres when fully grown, with deep red colouration on their armoured plates. Their armour is also thicker than that of most other castes, which serves them well in war. Their tendrils are around four metres long, and are thicker than a man’s torso. I have seen them use their tendrils to crush the gas sacs of other warriors, and once witnessed a particularly rowdy warrior ‘whip’ the head off of some domesticated creature I could not identify. Their ability to so casually decapitate a beast of moderate size made me far more cautious around them than I had been previously. They seem far more aggressive than most other castes, and have a separate language that seems to mostly involve hooting, forgoing the other sounds they make. I wondered as to its purpose, until I realised their hoots carry over a far longer distance, allowing them to coordinate large actions without requiring them to be in sight of one another. They are the most loyal to the Klth, though can occasionally be standoffish with smaller Royals.
The Slayer
These creatures seem to be designed to kill other Sskltheen. While most of their body is identical to that of a Warrior, they only have two long, thick tendrils with natural blades on the end, and have an innate ability to use them to pierce the gas-sac of another Sskltheen with relative ease, considering how well protected they are. These are the only Sskltheen I saw that seemed to not fear the Royals, not even the Klth. While they had a seemingly undying loyalty to their leaders, they were brave, fearless, and were entirely devoted to the art of war. Other Warriors seem to mingle with them rarely.
The Warlord
Slightly bigger than the average Warrior, though usually far more intelligent. They fulfil upper leadership roles within Sskltheen armies, while capable Warriors are usually the leaders of smaller squads. There seemed to be more colour variation on their armoured plates, with colours other than red occasionally making an appearance, though for the most part my hosts had to point out Warlords as I had trouble distinguishing them from their troops. No Sskltheen seemed to share my difficulty.
The Scout
A recent sub-caste, born from the coupling of Messengers and Warriors. They are about half the size of a Warrior but can reach speeds unimaginable to their far more bulky cousins. Their colouration is darkish brown, which often allows them to camouflage in the forests and jungles they live in. They have keen eyes, and usually fulfil a scouting role in Sskltheen armies, hence the name.
The Middle Caste
The Middle caste is the most confusing caste. They seem to be intelligent on par with Royals, but lack the physical bulk and aggression required to take and seize power, while Warriors can often be disdainful towards them, occupying a higher rung in their social hierarchy. They are about three to four metres from base to tip, with eight three metre long tendrils used to carry out their duties. Their thinner armoured plates are a lovely blue. They are easily the most sociable caste, and I befriended many Middles during my time in the Klthdom. While there are numerous sub-castes, there appears to be no difference between any of them physically, so I feel that separating them into sub-castes is done more out of tradition and recognition of the work they do than any real separation between them. They fulfil the roles of diplomats, merchants, administrators, essentially any job that requires intelligence but is seen as beneath a Royal, and they are caste-named after their career. I feel that if the Sskltheen were led by the Middle caste, they would largely be a much more agreeable and less terrifying people.
The Low Caste
The Low caste is a grouping for a number of incredibly different Sskltheen forms that share a complete lack of power, respect or autonomy, all being grouped at the bottom of Sskltheen society. They are largely unintelligent except in areas required to fulfil their function, and are often mistreated by Warriors, though attentive Warlords often put a stop to it. There are a number of Low sub-castes, I will detail some of the more common ones here.
The Lifter
The Lifter sub-caste is enormous, and the backbone of any capable Klthdom. They are barely intelligent, seeming to be far more like enormous floating beasts of burden than actual intelligent people. They are capable of speech, but their vocabulary is as limited as their understanding. They will follow any order without question, even to death. They are around fifteen metres from base to tip with four long tendrils similar to large tree trunks in their length and girth. They use these to effortlessly carry enormous weights through the sky, without tiring or stopping unless food and water is needed, of which it needs surprisingly little. Their armoured sacs are the thickest of any caste,
The Messenger
The smallest of all castes, the Messenger is about one metre from base to tip. They have four tendrils about half a metre long. They are used to pass messages between higher castes, and as such have an incredible capacity for speech and conversation but almost none for originality. They are exceedingly fast in the air, reaching speeds I did not dream a Sskltheen could ever hope to achieve. Their speed allows them to excel at their purpose while giving them the ability to survive and thrive around much larger and more powerful castes.
The Labourer
This caste essentially carries out all of the manual labour required in a Klthdom. They are exceedingly common within a successful Klthdom. They are about the size of a Warrior, except have brown plates and four long, powerful yet slow tendrils. They have great strength but have trouble applying it quickly like the Warriors can, so are not as capable in combat. They can hold a conversation with other Sskltheen, but seem content to quietly carry out the work assigned to them, occasionally whistling to their neighbours to stay aware of their surroundings. A likeable, if dull caste.
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