Fifth of the exile races of Jijo. Described as horse-like with white fur and very patient. Known as seafarers and as musicians who are able to make musical tones with their throat sacs. They came to Jijo because an Oracle told them they would find their lost birthright on a forbidden world. Those Hoon in Galactic culture are respected and feared bureaucrats in the service of many Institutions, and mortal enemies of the rather pro-natalist and dynamic Urs. Hoon have a reputation for being sober, impecably proper, and insufferably officious. Hoon, in their capacity as incorruptible bureaucrats working for the Institute of Migration, authorized the "depopulation" of the Human colony world of NuDawn in the first decade of Terra's encounter with Galactic civilization. They refused to accept ignorance of Tradition as a mitigating factor, and refused to exercise any discretionary power to grant pleas for mercy; this, despite the fact that these imperious bureaucrats readily admitted that the laws they had to apply in this particular case were unjust. The massacre of the colonists was carried out with astounding efficiency and a minimum of terror or pain. Such Hoon forces as participated in the "Extermination of Illegal Settler Infestations" displayed neither pleasure nor remorse. They were simply professionally efficient.
Terragen-Hoon relations can be described as --at best
--cordial and correct. Terragen policy is to diplomatically back the Urs in
any confrontation with Hoon.
Uplifted the Soro 21.5 million (that is, 224.33) hab-years ago and shortly thereafter
retired to their home-world to become philosophers. The Hul are
moderate. They are, however, compulsive about their immediate environment. The Hul have mixed
feelings about their most illustrious clients.
Humans are considered a wolfling race by Galactic society, meaning that they claim to have evolved intelligence without the aid of a Patron. Galactic society considers the Progenitors to have been the only ones able to accomplish spontaneous Uplift, and for Humans to claim be like the Progenitors is "blasphemous." This has earned Earthlings many powerful enemies. In the first century, shortly after contact, two powerful allies [or rather, two resourceful allies], Kanten and Tymbrimi, pulled off a coup which gained Humans Patron status in Galactic society and allowed them to keep their clients. This further angered fanatic enemies. Humans also received an unlimited lease on Earth. (Other wolfling races have been found before, but all had some vague ancestral recollection of their patrons.) One hundred years prior to contact, Humans had finally matured and stopped all wars, poverty, and ecological damage.
Because of Humans' low status they have been allowed only those worlds in need of salvage from other races damages (with the exception of Calafia). However, Humans have turned this into a reputation for terraforming. Like the Kanten and Tymbrimi, Humans believe that dependency on the Library leads to an uncreative culture. Humans are very liberal in their uplift policies. They treat clients as equals, do not demand 100,000 (that is 216+215) hab-years of servitude (Probationary, Supervised Sentience in the parlance of Galactic Uplift) from Chims and Fins and allow client representatives seats on the Terragen Council. [Tg.M.A.A.: All of which is regarded by the vast majority of Galactics as recklessly permissive "parenting" that flirts with social and ecological disaster.] Humans have also allowed Neo-Dolphins a starship of their own --see Streaker. [Tg.Uplift Council: In fairness, all Patrons have to allow this --sooner or later. Most look forward to the day when their clients successfully demonstrate such maturity.]
A band of Humans illegally settled on the fallow planet
Jijo, becoming that planet-s seventh exiled race 200 years
before the events of Brightness Reef on the starship Tabernacle.
The Humans of Terra are one of the greatest surprises to Galactic society in the last few million years. [Tg.M.A.A. Note: most Galactics take poorly to surprises. Especially unpleasant ones.] They are the only living race to be known as "wolflings." Humanity came very close to annihilating itself and its home-world Earth, in the centuries before contact. Without guidance from a patron, the Humans experimented with many sorts of governments, religions, and philosophies that no Galactic would ever dream of. Humans have also gained notoriety for the nasty habit of gleefully finding loopholes in the information of the Galactic Library and then exploiting the resulting temporary advantage in most unsporting ways. [Tg.M.A.A.: Evidently many Galactics see our behavior as "not cricket."] They believe the Library to be overrated.
Humans are bilaterally symmetrical, omnivorous, oxygen breathers of mammalian descent. They bear an uncanny (but superficial) resemblance to their allies the Tymbrimi. A few Humans also have a small bit of empathy sense, but they are not otherwise endowed with any psionic abilities of note, except for the occasional Human with a measure of sub-conscious quantum probability control (that is, some people are unusually lucky).
(See also, Human
evolution, lithic technology,
anthropology,
primates.)
Although they have no official Galactic status, the Humpback Whales of Earth are honored "sentient-animals." The Humpbacks are brilliant philosophers and poets, and have the admiration of many old races who can fathom their deep musings.
Under the special protection of Earthclan, the Humpbacks are one of the primary sources of income for the Confederation --hundreds of races are willing to pay exorbitant amounts for their beautiful songs. An original piece was sung by Five Bubble Spirals, one of the Twelve Great Dreamers, for the Tytlal's fourth stage Uplift ceremony. This was indeed a great honor for the Tytlal.
Despite their amazing talents for singing, the Humpbacks simply cannot comprehend the cause-and-effect logic needed in the Galaxy. Their mindset and language is even more distorted than that of their Neo-Dolphin relatives [Ahem!! (Tg.Institute for the Promotion of Sapience.)].
The Humpbacks are the chief story tellers of the Whale Dream (the cetacean race-memory / collective-subconscious common to most large Terran sea mammals). The Humpbacks are probably revered by the Neo-Dolphins more than any other race. During the awkward years before contact, the Humpbacks were almost completely annihilated by Humans. If another such beautiful species had been killed (accidently or not) it is doubtful that Humans would have even their current meager standing in the Galaxies.
The Humans seem to be repentant, and currently are nurturing the species (and numerous others) and subtly genetically altering them to undo the generations of inbreeding that occured due to the scarcity of their race at one time.
(See also Cetatians, Orangutan, The Ecological Brink, Elder Races)
Note to Self: Add "secret
note" on covert (long range) plans for Whale uplift.
The eldest Tandu client species. Inqusitors were developed from one of the species domesticated
by the Tandu prior to Tandu uplift. Tandu and Inquisitors conspire to keep as much as possible about
the Inquisitors secret. Available information indicates than Inquisitors are much more functional than
either Acceptors or Episiarchs. The
Nght6 --and presumably the Tandu --belong to an Inheritor sect that encourages adherents to leave behind
only one surviving client species optimally configured to carry out the will of the
Progenitors. Many scholars of Tandu affairs think the Inquisitors are
probably the Tandu's chosen successors. There is also considerable speculation that the Tandu --who
mostly seem to interact with other sapients as clever machines --are more likely to interact with Inquisitors
as "people." If the Tandu do perceive Inquisitors differently than they do other sapients, it
is probably due to commonalties of biology and evolutionary effects of co-domestication similar to those posited for Humans and
dogs.
e3v5r1