Laeynkin Arts
Arts and artists of many talents hold a revered position in Laeynkin society. Those with musical and theatrical talent are usually considered at least the equal if not the betters of those with equivalent magical or physical talent. They have a complex repertoire of plays surrounding their religion and goddess, Aria.
They also have a vast array of historical and allegorical plays. Because of the musical nature of their language, they don't sing, but they have a wide variety of wind and percussion instruments which they use to create haunting music. Artists are generally entitled to free food and lodging simply as a matter of course in recompense for using their skills for the public good. They also get a stipend from the government, though in the case of painters the university buys their work directly either for t heir own offices, and occasionally for export.
Artists do not lead extraordinarily wealthy lives, but it's also far from a meager existence. Magic is considered to be completely separate from the performing arts and it's use is rare and frowned upon in this field.
Unicorn poets, writers and storytellers are quite common, so common in fact that it has undermined the value of these as arts in and of themselves. Almost all unicorns write, read and tell stories, and occasionally poetry as well. As a result, while one with particularly unusual talent may receive a stipend from the government, generally these are simply done for pleasure with another task performed for income.
Culture
Laeynkin unicorns enjoy their leisure hours in many different ways. Some engage in amateur arts, such as drama clubs, or practice musical instruments. Simply strolling about Aletheiu, or travelling through the portals to a distant and secluded place for relaxation is considered fun. Kefetiu unicorns have not had an enemy to fight on their own soil for centuries, but martial combat continues as an important way of life for the bipedals.
Weapons practice and other physical activities including the bow, the sword, the staff and the way of Po Ling are common 'pleasure' activities for male and female alike, though only those dedicating full time to the study of Po Ling advance beyond the beginner stages. There are tournaments every few weeks, and those who come both to participate and watch range from amateurs to experts to the simply curious.
Games of strategy are frequently engaged in, many of these arbitrated by artificial entities much like 'computers' in today's world. (Thus these games are somewhat akin to strategy computer games, however, the interface is far different.) Some however do not require the use of a terminal and like chess, are based on a board divided into an arbitrary number of zones.
Some simulated physical warfare is also known to take place in which groups of several dozen unicorns will set up a mock battlefield in the forests near Aletheiu and engage one another in combat and strategy. This simulated warfare is primarily practiced by younger males, but it's not unheard of for females or older unicorns to participate. Inquisitors never participate in such games, they consider themselves above such matters.
Living
Almost all the Laeynkin unicorns in Kefetiu live in Aletheiu. And almost all of those live in the massive spires which are made of an ivory like substance. There is no lack of space, so all citizens of Kefetiu are given quarters regardless of their productivity to society. However, position does affect the quarters which are allotted to the individuals by the Registrar General.
Novice students and the positionless receive the quarters nearest the ground, and while hardly cramped these are nothing compared to the palatial facilities given to adepts, teachers, and other 'important' individuals in Kefetiu's research driven culture . The spires are constructed from an extremely light, extremely strong substance devised by Kefetiu's skilled alchemists.
The spires themselves are somewhat 'alive', but certainly not sentient. All quarters generally contain a 'terminal' with which magically stored library information can be retrieved, communications can be conducted, or games can be played.
Those who choose not to live in Aletheiu lead considerably more primitive lives. Though they generally stay near a portal which will permit near instantaneous transportation to Aletheiu or any other important part of the sphere these external communities generally want little to do with the research lifestyle most Aletheiuans hold. They have their own town councils, and most consider themselves independent from Aletheiu (though this is not really the case).
Generally those outside of Aletheiu live in single story wooden structures with thatched roofs. They tend to have their own (comparatively amateur) musicians, and enjoy activities such as climbing, fishing and sailing. Those on the coast sometimes enjoy swimming with their dolphin neighbors to the east, and diving down to explore the coral reefs which stretch for most of the coastline.
Many of these outside communities maintain farms which provide a large fraction of Aletheiu's food supply. A Kefetiuan staple is alfalfa, but they also gather fruits and provide other foods which are transported to Aletheiu in exchange for whatever the outlying villages might happen to need.
Calendar
Bipedal unicorns keep careful track of time through the use of the stars. The date and time can be extremely important in magical processes, particularly divination. Their calendar is divided into two parts, BI, before integration and AI, after integration. Their calendar is split into ten equal months, Ine, Qin, Jal, Min, Loa, Oni, Hul, Yne, Enk, Ryl. Each of these are divided into precisely ten weeks, which consist of precisely ten days. The unicorns consider the precise evenness of their planet's rotation on its axis in relation to the orbit around their sun to be a sign of divine providence.
Time is generally judged by the position of the sun. Summer and winter solstice are considered highly magical events, so while the magic users perform their most powerful acts alone in their laboratories the more common folk of Kefetiu go out and celebr ate with music, dancing, reverie and tales of the good spirits and their Goddess. For students of magic the solstices are not a fun time, since these are the magical 'peaks' many of their exams fall into this period.
Crime
Crime is a very unusual occurrence in Kefetiu. The existence of diviners make stealing extremely difficult, since the object is generally easily located so long as it remains within the bounds of the sphere. Occasionally due to tempers fights ensue (usually between males). They are occasionally fatal, but this is rare. The winner of the fight is judged by a selected group of nine peers, and if found to have committed a serious wrong he or she may suffer any of a number of punishments. The judge of this trial is always an elder inquisitor and the defendant is not permitted a lawyer or equivalent.
The state/university's case is represented by a younger inquisitor, or one who is injured and can't function in his regular duties. The punishments meted out can include forced community labor, expulsion from Kefetiu, or worst of all transformation into another creature, usually a creature of another nearby sphere where the unfortunate criminal is deposited. (There is nothing more humiliating to most unicorns than not being a unicorn any longer.)
If a foreigner commits a crime, they are generally ejected from Kefetiu. If it is a wrong that can be righted, the individual may be forced to make recompense monetarily or by performing civic duty. If a foreigner kills a Kefetiuan either Laeynkin or Kenoqkin they are summarily executed without trial.
The Inquisitors are responsible for investigating criminal matters, and appointing the jury of peers when an incident occurs.
More Life
Kefetiuans are generally tolerant of foreigners in their midst, but won't share their secrets with them. Particularly unique travelers may be given lodging in exchange for making themselves available for study by the university. This generally involves a lot of questions and a close (not always pleasant) physical examination by druids/biomancers.
Social status in Kefetiu depends entirely on the talents of the individual. Anyone with sufficient ability will be accepted by the university, and trained. How far this takes them will depend on individual ambition and ability. The best paying and most coveted positions are all in the senior levels of the five schools of magic, followed closely by the Inquisitors. Compared to these lofty ranks, even the most talented of artists ekes out a meager existence.
Kefetiu has borrowed their furniture designs from surrounding bipedal spheres and as such it is very mixed. They like couches, and large beds. They also prefer eating from the ground, sitting cross legged on thick rugs at a low table. They use both chop sticks, and fork and knife like utensils based entirely on personal preference. Some prefer the traditional way of simply eating straight out of a bowl or off the ground with their muzzles though this is regarded as 'common' by most. Like several other aspects of their culture many of their eating habits have been acquired from other spheres.
Diet
Laeynkin unicorns are strictly vegetarians. They eat a wide variety of fruits, herbs, roots, grasses, leaves and even thistles which are gathered from the forests around Aletheiu. Laeynkin eat five times a day. Once shortly after waking up, late morning, mid afternoon, evening, and a short time before bed.
Laeynkin make use of alcohol, which occasionally leads to fights, particularly among males. More than a few injuries can and do occur if these escalate into drunken duels. They ferment the juices of some roots for a type of beer, and a sweeter grape like fruit from the north for wines. Particularly coveted both domestically and in foreign spheres is ice wine, when the grapes are harvested by laborers after having been frozen. Since wines are a lot of effort to make and much appreciated within the sph ere they are rarely exported, though the precious few bottles that are shipped are worth a small fortune on the open market in Mythrayel and other merchant centers.
Most of the staple products such as grains, alfalfa, beets are grown and tended by those in the laborer class with the assistance of some magical devices to make their jobs easier. (Such as a self propelled plough.) The alchemists have developed wondrous fertilizers, and if there is ever a bad harvest the aid of druids can usually fill up the gap. Despite this, fully half of their food is imported in exchange for Kefetiuan made items including building materials, various alchemical mixes, crafts, perfumes and luxury items. The percentage of the population directly involved in the university or the service industry for the university is simply too high for them to be able to be fully self sufficient.
Bipedal unicorns can survive on flowers and leaves, but these are not regarded as a proper 'meal'. Sometimes flowers or leaves are sugar or honey glazed and sold as treats in stores.
Fashion and Dress
For those studying Po Ling or who have received weapons training it is fashionable to wear one's weapons and armor. It is extremely taboo for a unicorn to wear a weapon in which he or she has not received training. Punishment for this crime is usually the confiscation of the armor and weapons in question, community service and possible expulsion if the individual committing the offence is affiliated with the university. Their armor tends to be light, they don't like being confined by heavy plate. Light chainmail (made from alloys devised by the alchemists and generally worn overtop an undershirt to prevent chaffing with their fur)or just a heavy leather like substance with key metal and occasionally wooden pieces are the most popular permutations.
New ones are given special gowns to wear which will clearly indicate their new status to all. The remainder of Kefetiu is a hodgepodge of styles borrowed from other cultures. Typically however, they prefer loose clothing such as robes, though pants and shirts aren't at all unheard of. Much of their clothing is made from a silk like substance spun by a worm and collected by the laboring class. Some of the more exotic clothing is imported from other spheres such as Mythrayel or Rolarii. The gathering of the silk is generally done by hand, but the actual manufacture of garments is made somewhat automatic through the use of enchanted equipment. (Nevertheless, the art of a skilled clothier is very much appreciated!)
Although many Kefetiuans simply wear white, other colors are available to those who wish to stand out. Occasionally, unicorns will even dye their manes, hair, tails, or even their entire bodies. Preferred colors are blues, reds, purples and oranges.
The acolytes of the five magic schools always confine themselves to a white robe, with unicorn glyphs on them to indicate to which school they belong. Higher ranking scholars wear white silk robes with colored glyphs upon them to denote their special status.
Education
Around age eight, most Laeynkin parents put their children in introductory martial training. This doesn't involve weapons, or fighting. It is mostly mental and physical exercises intended to establish a firm foundation of mind and body. Some children do very well at this, others do not. Those that do not often attempt to study in other areas, such as music or theater. Those who find the system to be completely ill suited to them normally leave and join one of the fringe villages scattered throughout the sphere to become a laborer.
Those who succeed especially well at martial training may continue to become an Inquisitor though this is an extremely long and tedious process. The others eventually find the field of academics that interests them most, and go on to be teachers, researchers or may eventually leave the university to go into the service industry, creating and designing exports, trading, or providing services and entertainment for those who ARE in the university. Roughly 40% of Kefetiu works directly for the university ( e.g. scholars, students etc), which doubles as the government. Almost all of the remaining 60% engage in support activities, farming, running stores catering to the university, conducting trade for needed goods etc.
Foreign Relations
The Laeynkin unicorns have several, contradictory, doctrines for foreign relations. Depending on who is in power, they can take on an imperialistic attitude, believing their culture is superior to others and meddling in the affairs of other spheres, or the absolute opposite, believing they have no right to interfere with the internal processes of other cultures. After having been stung several hundred years before by a series of ill conceived decisions on foreign matters, resulting in several wars, they remain cautious towards actively meddling in the affairs of others.
In Shrilk, for example, though they find their incessant warring wasteful, they don't presume to enter the fray on one side or another, or even pick and choose favorites on any basis save which griffin clan doesn't harm their own interests.
The Laeynkin will trade with others, and the goods they produce are coveted, but their unusually peaceful and productive society permits them to pick and choose who they deal with.
Though the Leaynkin don't have military action in mind, usually, the University does maintain a fairly considerable intelligence network mostly to soothe their collective curiosity. If there is a secret, the Laeynkin unicorns want to know it. The spy network is in some cases managed through their large embassy in the Core, though for some worlds that's too conspicuous. As an ultra tech race they are a member of the Free Core Alliance who have taken it upon themselves to 'police' the Core. As such a large branch (about 50) of inquisitors operate out of the embassy in the Core, enforcing the peace forcibly if need be. Of course, what they don't see, they don't do anything about...
The Laeynkin feel their neighbors in Shrilk are primitive and impulsive. The predatory day to day bloody nature of griffins upsets and disquiets them. They generally prefer to have as little as possible to do with Shrilk, though since their coastline is barricaded with dense coral reefs that make shipping impossible they have little choice in terms of trade but to travel through Shrilk to access the trading center of all the local spheres, Mythrayel.
They are perplexed by the 'money grubbing' centaurs, who seem focused entirely on profit. To them the centaurs seem to have a lot of potential, which they fail to realize in their constant pursuit of trade. They consider themselves superior in most ways to the centaurs, both morally, spiritually and technologically, dismissing centaur electronics as 'amateur' compared to their command of magic.
Rolarii interests the unicorns considerably, but they have much to learn yet about this strange and distant land.
Government
The Laeynkin university and the government are one and the same. The 'executive' body consists of the Inquisitors who hold the military power. The main rule is held by a representative group which consists of the head Inquisitor, a single Dean for each school of magic, a representative for the artists, and a single representative for 'labor' class. Orders of this council are carried out by the Inquisitors. Though the council fancies itself to rule all of Kefetiu, they have little influence outside of Aletheiu itself and basically none at all over the Kenoqkin unicorns.
The Inquisitor representative is chosen on the basis of his martial skill and strategic ability. The laborer and artisan representatives are voted on by those in their 'class'. There are elections every ten years for these posts, and any who choose may run, though typically there are no more than a half dozen candidates. The five academic seats are chosen by those who have reached full professor status in their faculty, again by vote.
Greeting / Language
Laeynkin are usually courteous to one another, unless they've gotten into a disagreement. It's quite common for strangers to stop one another to exchange words of greeting, or chat about one issue or another, particularly if one recognizes another to be in the same social category. For example, one Alchemist would very likely greet another on impulse (identified usually by their chosen clothing), but probably wouldn't stop to speak with a laborer without a reason to do so. Laborers speak freely to one another, but would feel out of place approaching one of 'higher' rank without having something more specific than a greeting in mind.
Laeynkin unicorns all speak the same language, and common tongue, though the villages outside of Aletheiu have some strange accents which the city people find amusing. Their language is very singsong and musical. The musical nature of their speech is re lated to why they don't feel that singing is very special as a performing art, though they can appreciate an especially beautiful voice.
The heads of the five magical schools are referred to as 'Deans'. The head of the Inquisitors is 'The Lord Inquisitor' and all other Inquisitors are given the honorific 'Sir' or 'Inquisitor'. The laborers and artists have no honorific. Professors are also sometimes called 'Sir' or 'Professor' if one is trying to be especially polite. Besides the Inquisitors, those outside the government/university cannot hold honorific titles.
Philosophy / Religion
Everything benevolent, protective, and loved comes from the Kefetiuan goddess, Aria, who appears most often in art as a beautiful winged quadrupedal or bipedal Kefetiuan mare. Almost all unicorns worship Aria, to greater and lesser extents. This is done at home, or in a quiet place. Each unicorn is believed to have a special and direct relationship with this mare, thus foregoing the need for dedicated clergy - diviners fill what vacuum remains in this area. It is sometimes claimed that Aria grants visions, insights or dreams to her most ardent followers.
Diviners have the closest relationship with Aria, and are respected accordingly. Though they hold no mass worships, a Diviner may be approached by those who feel they are not communicating or 'in tune' with the Goddess. Diviners offer spiritual advice to those who ask it.
Business & Economy
Kefetiu has a fixed currency established by the university. The value of items go up and down in relation to this currency. The money is for convenience only, and in many cases trade still takes place through barter, particularly with foreign spheres since Kefetiuan money would be worthless outside the sphere anyhow. There is no need for a mint or other coinage, each individual's account is stored in a crystalline magical 'computer' kept deep within one of the central spires. Vendors and most unicorns carry a complex but tiny device which allows transactions to take place.
Foreigners doing business with Kefetiu generally stick with using the barter system. Though if they choose they can open an account in Kefetiu and exchange their goods for direct currency which can then be spent to buy the goods they want back. Some spheres have become angry with Kefetiu believing that their merchants may use it as a tax haven, or to deposit money from black market trading. The Laeynkin simply ignore these accusations, and any additional demands that they reveal the account balances of those foreigners who deal with them, stating that they don't wish to get involved in the internal affairs of other cultures.
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