The Xarisans are the inhabitants of the planet Xaris, and are avian humanoids under a theocracy. They are a fairly militaristic society, and their spirit of manifest destiny led them to become the ruling race of the largest and most powerful empire in the known Milky Way, with the emperor's title being Grand Archon. They are extremely intelligent and resourceful. The caste system divides clergy, nobility, and laypeople into four castes: Archos for the ruling clergy (similar to Cardinals), Nochris for the nonruling clergy (similar to Bishops and Priests), Lios for nobles, and Xanatos for the laypeople.
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Xarisans are avian humanoids, whose bodies are covered completely in feathers. They give live birth but are not mammalian; Xarisan mothers feed their young predigested meat. They stand seven to ten feet tall for males and five to eight for females. As humanoids, they have two arms and two legs with talons for feet, as well as one pair of wings. Average wingspan compared to height is approximately 1.618:1, the Golden Ratio, or φ:1. Longer wingspans are rarer and more desirable in scouts due to their ability to fly higher and with more endurance. Archons must have a perfect φ:1 ratio or they are not considered "cut from the cloth".
Xarisan females are generally more extravagantly colored than males, backward from avian species on Earth. They compete for the affection of the males, not only in etiquette but in beauty. Female members of Archosian families are notoriously extravagant, with layers of iridescent feathers, including a large blue or green crest, which often stands up slightly. Males also have some brilliancy in coloration, but it is sparser. They are generally light brown with darker speckles and a dark brown crest that lies flat against the head.
The Xakarun are the larger of the two subspecies. The Xarisans use them for beasts of burden and often keep them as pets, similarly to humans and horses. They are similar in size to the mythical Griffin, are very intelligent, and revere their masters as gods. The Xarisans often pamper them, which the Xakarun love.
A Xarisan poet once described them as "The noblest and most beautiful of our kind." They are often extravagantly colored, their brown feathers streaked with iridescent blues, greens and purples. It is believed that some of the more extravagant of the Archos have Xakarun blood, and some rumors exist of some of the wealthier Archons favor their female Xakaruns' beauty over their mates', to the point of having Xakarun mistresses.
The bonds of trust between a Xakarun and his or her master are some of the strongest non-familial bonds in the galaxy. As a sentient species, the Xakarun advise and follow advice from their masters. Companionship is closer than that of siblings. The relationship is so close that jealousy easily develops between two Xakarun that have the same master. This has led to a law that a Xarisan may keep only one Xakarun and a Xakarun may have only one master unless one or the other dies or beaks the relationship. The latter happens maybe once a millennium.
The Xakarun lifespan is approximately the same length as a Xarisan's. If a Xarisan gets a Xakarun that is the same age and takes good care of it, the two of them will be together for life. It's more common, though, for a Xarisan to have a Xakarun for half its life, and for a Xakarun to have two different masters. This overlapping cycle teaches each that death is a part of life, and teaches how to cope with loss.
The Xalur are the smaller of the subspecies, on average slightly smaller than humans. They are russet-colored and not very flashy, and the Xarisans consider them inferior. They make up the bulk of the slaves, while several hundred humans are still in captivity after the Xarisan war. They are largely flightless as slaves because their masters trim their feathers. Freedom is contingent on contract expiry, death of the master, or the master voiding the contract. Most contracts, though, are lifelong and include provisions for a Xalur's children to become slaves as well.
Xalur aren't as intelligent as other Xarisans, though their average IQ is around 105. (The average Xarisan IQ is 133 and the average Xakarun IQ is 125.) Their lifespans are much shorter, too, averaging eighty Earth years, as opposed to hundreds of Earth years for the other species. Because of this short lifespan and fairly high birthrate, a Xarisan may have dozens of Xalur slaves from numerous generations under his or her command.
Despite the Xalur's permanent status quo of slavery, they know that any uprising will be quashed, even if it means they are wiped out. They know Xarisans have numerous other races they enslave, ones that can be more submissive. Their survival as a species depends on their submission to their Xarisan masters.
There are freed Xalur living on Xaris, perhaps ten thousand in number. Most of them are artisans, architects and musicians whose masters gave them shorter contracts: instead of years, they were indentured for portions of their lifetimes. Though the Archons refuse to admit it, the bulk of Xarisan liturgical music and religious art came from Xalur slaves.
There are four castes in Xarisan society: Archos and Nochris make up the clergy, Lios consists of the nobility, and the laypeople make up Xanatos.
The Archos caste consists of the Archons, the ultimate governing members of society. They are clergy like the Nochri, but unlike the Nochri, they have political clout and the power to legislate. They also oversee religious activities, similarly to Cardinals in the Roman Catholic Church on Earth. The most powerful of the Archons is the Grand Archon, who serves as the emperor and religious patriarch, similarly to the Pope. They also serve as generals in the military, commanding legions of soldiers when necessary.
Archosian families dress is elegant robes, woven from thread made from floating plants with properties similar to cotton. The Grand Archon wears a pure white robe with gold trim, and the other Archons wear cream-colored robes with silver trim. Archosian wives wear green with silver, daughters wear blue with silver, and sons wear burgundy with gold. The trim is what sets them apart from the robes worn by the Nochrian and Liosian families.
The only way for a non-clergy caste member to become an Archos is to marry into an Archosian family. There are enough Archos and Nochris that an Archos would not need to "dip below" his or her standards to secure a mate. This promotes a strong sense of dynasty in the clergy, especially for the Grand Archon, whose rule is purely dynastic.
While females are generally somewhat oppressed, hidden away from society, there have occasionally been female Archons. Female Archons generally cause anxiety among the people simply because they believe women should not be in places of power, making them vulnerable to attack. Given the universal lack of dissent throughout the empire, though, this belief is mostly traditional.
The Nochris caste is made up of the clergy that are non-ruling, similar to Bishops on Earth. While they do have the power to make religious decisions as directed by Archons, they don't have any power in the actual governance of the empire, and their jurisdiction, unlike that of the Archons, begins and ends in whichever district they are assigned. The Nochris are vastly greater in number than the Archos, with approximately sixty million members (the Archos caste, in contrast, numbers approximately ten thousand across the empire).
The robes worn by the Nochris are very similar to the Archos robes, except for the trim. Instead of inlaid gold and silver, a Nochris robe will have a white hem.
The Lios caste is made up of nobles, the wealthy with political connections. They influence much of the legislation that goes on throughout the empire, and are known for their shrewd business practices. They are very religious, but have no say in doctrine or practice; the Nochris handle that. They number approximately one billion. Most of the warriors belong to the Lios caste.
The Xanatos caste consists of the rest of the Xarisans and their subspecies, numbering approximately twelve billion across the empire. They are the proletariat of Xarisan society, and without them the empire would crumble. They create weapons and ships for the Archons and their soldiers. Many are paid servants to higher-caste Xarisans, and the subspecies are usually slaves. If a particularly brilliant Xanatos warrior, scientist, artist, musician or theologian emerges, he or she is plucked from the lowest caste and placed in the Lios caste, or in the case of a theologian, the Nochris caste.
Xarisan females are usually hidden away from society, prized and revered. They are often seen as too fragile and vulnerable to be in a position of power such as Archon or Nochris. The opinion of this treatment is fairly positive among females, who view it as a freedom from the pains of society. Most females take to weaving, the arts or music as professions, though some in the past have inherited the seat of Archon, and one the seat of Grand Archon.