:>>Lifecycle: Athiyken cannot "die" in the strictest sense of the word, at least not immediately. They can be killed and their bodies do wear out and die at the end of their Cycle, the lowest ranking individuals aren't any powerful than the average dragon. Once they have passed on, whether by natural or unnatural causes, the spirit of the Athiyk is reassigned to a new body and begins a new Cycle. For every 100 life Cycles, a new set of wings is acquired and the Athiyk becomes more magically powerful. At first they retain nothing from their previous lives other than maybe a few faint, residual memories. As they experience more and more Cycles, they begin to keep more memories and magical strength from their previous lives. Eventually, in the final Cycle of their life, they regain the memory of all they have seen and done, as well the magical power they attained.
Once they have reached this final Cycle they will have experienced roughly 1,000 life Cycles and lived over 500,000 years. Only one Athiyk of each group can be at this final stage at a time, governing their respective group. When a new Athiyk ascends to their final Cycle, the old one will finally die and their soul reach a final rest with the other Athiyken who have attained their final Cycle. This makes way for a new Athiyken soul to be introduced into the Cycle.
:>>Subgroups:
Hell - as the name implies, these Athiyken govern "hell", a place of torture for those souls that have been deemed corrupt and foul. And, as with the Heaven Athiyken, the judgement of corrupt or not is left up to the Highest Hell Athiyk's own personal opinion. There is a similar shift when a new Highest comes to power in hell, souls could be allowed into heaven if the Highest decides they are truly not corrupt. Hell Athiyken are darker colored, with red, black or dark grey fur and black manes. Hell Athiyken primarily have abilities in pain, fire, necromantic and illusion magic. (example of a canine Hell Athiyk)
Reaper - as the final subgroup, Reapers are those that exist in the physical realm and are responsible for reaping the souls of the departed. They are not malicious, nor are they forgiving. Most have an "it's my job" attitude and cannot be swayed by the pleading, bargaining or anger of the souls they collect and judge. They are found in all shades and hues of color, and are believed to be the product of a long ago mixing of Heaven and Hell Athiyken blood. Reapers wield powerful shadow, sapping, and binding magic. (example of a feline Reaper Athiyk)
The Highest Reaper Athiyk is in charge of a place they call Naubol, but is more commonly known as Limbo or Purgatory. In the shift of power between Highest Heaven and Highest Hell, and the souls that are moved between the two, some are not accepted by either. They end up in Naubol, a place of neither ecstasy nor punishment. It is simply a grey place where the souls do nothing but wait until it is decided whether they are accepted into heaven or damned to hell.
:>>Tattooing: it is a ritual that young Athiyken receive a tattoo almost immediately after their birth. It will be a blend of both parent's tattoos and will be embellished as they grow and come upon milestones in their lives (upon reaching maturity, their first "judgement", first born offspring, etc.). Most Athiyken also have piercings of some sort, Reapers especially have taken to them. Heaven Athiyken show a preference toward brightly colored feather adornments, and Hell Athiyken like spiked jewelry and over-embellishment of their tattoos, which can sometimes cover their entire bodies.
Tattoos are always abstract tribal designs, never actual images or lettering, though the artist may incorporate a tribal design that resembles an animal or other object. Tattooing itself is a highly ritualized process, and the tattoo artist is usually a member of the Athiyk's family. A parent will always give the very first tattoo, usually four or five hours after birth.