Apakan

			Intelligent Lifeform Index

Apakan
Four Letter Code	APAK
Federation Status	Neutral
Planet of Origin	Tsun
Encountered	Unknown
T/E Rating	T0/E0
Current Tech Level	N
List of Named Apakans
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Apakans are a peaceful people genetically engineered by an unknown species and originate on the planet Tsun.

Apakan

Home System

• Quadrant: Beta
• Location: Tyrellian Sector
• Proper Name: Inyoni System
• Star: K class (orange) star
• Companions: It is the 4th of 8 planets in the system
• Moons: It has 1 moon

Home World

The planet Tsun.

• Proper Name: Tsun
• Diameter: 11,215 km (6,969 miles)
• Gravity: 0.90 standard gravity with a density of 3.3
• Axial Tilt: 11.8% with normal seasonal changes
• Orbital Period: 372 days
• Rotational Period: 25.7 hours
• Classification: M
• Atmosphere: 1.06% is a standard pressure with 75% nitrogen, 23% oxygen, 2% trace chemicals
• Climate: Mainly a temperate planet with tropical and arctic zones
• Terrain: It has rolling plains, hills, forests with jungles, swamps, some mountain ranges, and vast crystalline deposits
• Population: Just over 3 billion

History

The Apakan Emblem.

Apakans were genetically engineered from migratory birds native to the plant Tsun roughly two-hundred-thousand years ago by an unknown civilization (“the Engineers”), a process, dubbed the Great Enlightenment, only confirmed four hundred years ago by scholars but suspected for much longer. This awareness of creation shaped their cultures, all eventually abandoning religion for science, and investing heavily in embracing the gift of intelligence they were given.

Unbeknownst to the Apakans, a machine was in operation within their star system that effectively cloaked Tsun from all outsiders, granting them the ability to develop independently of galactic forces. Only when the Apakan reached the space age did the machine self-destruct and allow their world to be seen. It is presumed this machine was built by the Engineers.

Government

While once divided by region and differing cultures, the Great Enlightenment brought the people of their world together, eventually culminating in a single united government.

Apakan society is divided into a caste system with each caste democratically electing three representatives who are then members of the Court of Nine, the ruling council of Tsun. It is the Court that governs the world.

Description

Apakans are bipedal humanoids that evolved from avian species native to Tsun. In comparison to most other humanoids, they have a lighter skeletal system with many hollow bones and a powerful musculature but do not possess wings to fly.

Most Apakans have lost almost all their feathers, with only the crown remaining, and wear clothing akin to kimonos, robes, hakamas, and baggy pants. Some peoples in colder climates have retained their feathers and very rarely wear clothes.

Physiology

An Apakan female.

It is fair to say that Apakans are a balanced mix of avian and humanoid characteristics. They have a complex biology dependent on enzymes, chemicals and hormones just like almost every other humanoid known but they differ in their unique set of organs and their ability to sense deception.

The average Apakan is 5'7" tall and weighs 200lbs.

Integumentary system

Most Apakans will produce feathers only in localized areas of the skin (usually the scalp), though there are populations in colder climates whose skin is largely covered. Apakan skin does not have sweat glands and sebaceous glands. It consists of two layers, the epidermis and dermis. The outer layer is generally very thin and pliable. The dermis is thicker than the epidermis and contains blood vessels, fat deposits, nerves and free nerve endings, several types of neuroreceptors, and smooth muscles.

Beak

Instead of mouths, Apakan have beaks or bills. Although beaks vary in size, shape and colour, they share a similar underlying structure. Two bony projections –the upper and lower mandibles– covered with a thin keratinized layer of epidermis known as the rhamphotheca. In most Apakan, two holes known as nares lead to the respiratory system.

Respiratory system

Apakan lungs are relatively small in proportion to their body size and are made up of millions of tiny alveoli, which expand and contract as they breathe. Their lungs are composed of air chambers whose walls are made of a thin layer of squamous epithelium surrounded by capillaries. Air sacs are connected to the lungs and act like furnace bellows to draw air through the lungs. As air passes through the ductwork of the lungs, oxygen in the air is exchanged for carbon dioxide in the blood of capillaries within the chamber walls.

Digestive system

Apakans possess a crop, a thin-walled expanded portion of the alimentary tract used for the storage of food prior to digestion. The size and shape of the crop is quite variable among the people but all produce a nutritious crop milk which can be fed to their young by regurgitation.

There are three general ways in which Apakans drink: using gravity itself, sucking, and by using the tongue. In the modern age however, fluid is mostly obtained from specially manufactured food, especially when in company of off-worlders. Due to being unable to swallow by the "sucking" or "pumping" action of peristalsis in their esophagus (as humans do), they drink by repeatedly raising their heads after filling their mouths to allow the liquid to flow by gravity, a method usually described as "sipping" or "tipping up". This can be an unsightly process for other species.

Reproductive system

Apakans reproduce by internal fertilization, during which the egg is fertilized inside the female. As the males have no phallus, sperm is stored in the seminal glomera within the cloacal protuberance prior to copulation. During copulation, the cloacae touch, so that the sperm can enter the female's reproductive tract. This can happen very fast, sometimes in less than half a second. The sperm fertilizes the egg, then the hard-shelled egg develops within the female. The hard-shelled eggs have a fluid-filled amnion, a thin membrane forming a closed sac around the embryo.

The average amount of eggs laid is 7 and after the eggs hatch, the young are helpless and blind, requiring extended parental care. The mother will supply the young with vital nutrients until she can wean them off her, at which point the worker caste are tasked with raising them in the form of brood care.

Vocalization

The Apakan vocal organ is called the syrinx; a bony structure at the bottom of the trachea that produces sounds without the vocal folds of mammals. All Apakans can control the two sides of the trachea independently, ultimately producing two notes at once.

Genetic engineering

Having been uplifted by another species, Apakans were designed to sense a lie (a sense called Intuitive Polygraphy). The feathers will erect when sensory organs detect body language indicative of deception. It would take an extraordinary individual to fool an Apakan and, in fact, not even a Vulcan has achieved this feat. It is possible for a highly trained Apakan to control whether the feathers erect, effectively concealing the discovery of deception.

Psychology

Apakans generally lean heavily on evidence-based practice. They have little tolerance for any belief or claim that cannot be backed up by science, becoming frustrated by religion and even literary works of fiction. If it is not in the pursuit of wisdom, it is a waste of time.

In rare cases, the young can suffer extreme Separation anxiety disorder, an anxiety disorder in which the infant experiences excessive anxiety regarding separation from their biological parent upon placement in brood care. If not properly treated, the young is at risk of death due to failure to thrive.

Because of their ability to detect deception, Apakans cannot outright lie to one another without that lie being immediately exposed. It takes a highly intelligent, some may say sociopathic, individual to be successful in their deception.

Often regarded as cold and dismissive, Apakans are driven by critical thinking, hard work, dedication to the team, and the pursuit of knowledge.

Religion

Religion existed prior to the Great Enlightenment but was shunned shortly after and has since been actively erased from history records. They instead have a total devotion to science and the belief that because they were directly designed by a superior intelligence, they have more purpose than other species.

Mythology

Ancient cultures had many myths and legends, all abandoned in modern times. The closest they have are the remaining unanswered questions surrounding the Engineers but, as a species, they are driven by evidence, rather than speculation and fantasy.

Society

To an outsider, the caste system may represent three different classes. This is not the case within Apakan society, however, with each individual being treated equally regardless of caste, gender, or ethnicity.

All Apakan young are raised in the Worker caste until such time they are aptitude tested to determine their lifelong caste (usually at twelve-years-old). If at any time an individual does not feel they are suited to a particular caste, they may request a transfer and their aptitude is once again tested.

Worker caste

They are the engineers, construction workers, miners, manufacturers and caregivers of Apakan society. They excel at manual labour, in cooperative environments, and are quick problem solvers, but struggle when isolated from a team.

Soldier caste

They are the defenders and enforcers. By nature, they can be slightly more aggressive than members of the other castes and devoted entirely to the Apakan way of life. It is an unwritten rule that soldiers commit suicide if they can no longer serve their squadron.

Academic caste

They are the scientists, teachers, linguists, historians, and diplomats. Their main purpose is to progress Apakan society and culture to the point they will one day meet their Engineers.

Culture

Due to their caste system, Apakans are known for their co-operative approach and can make excellent team members, but generally have little time for art. As such, much of their architecture is reminiscent of brutalism, with only some additions to serve aesthetics.

Mating

In general, Apakans produce one generation every nine years under controlled conditions, to maintain a zero population growth. Outside of this mating ritual, Apakans are free to take companions as they wish but procreation is forbidden.

Yovara Sohl is the time of mating and a major part of the reproductive cycle. It occurs approximately once every nine years during adulthood. It is a celebrated month-long holiday that involves males proving their worth –and the privilege of passing on their genes– and the females choosing their mate based on the display.

Brood care

Young are raised under brood care of Workers and, as such, very little emphasis is placed on biological lineage. As a people, they do not have a strong need to bond with their own offspring but instead will bond equally with any young they are charged to raise.

Because all Apakans possess a crop, and are able to produce nutritious crop milk that can be fed by regurgitation, it has never been vital that the mother specifically care for newborns. In modern times, regurgitation isn’t even necessary due to a wide variety of nutritional formulas, but the tradition is still very much practiced.

Beliefs

With the Great Enlightenment confirming their unique Intuitive Polygraphy sense was genetically designed by the Engineers, much belief has been placed in honesty and truth. “May the truth set you free” is a common saying amongst all nations of Tsun.

While truth has become an overwhelming rule to live by, this unique ability has also birthed a need for manipulation and the orchestrating of events so that, when questioned, a person doesn’t need to lie. These people, when discovered, are usually banished from society.

Fight or Flight

Between the ages of nine and eleven, children are taken to an isolated region in small groups and left with little supplies. There they must spend five nights with minimal supervision, with an emphasis on developing and harnessing cooperative skills. Though all measures are taken to avoid fatalities, death can occur due to weather, sickness, and predatory wildlife.

The term “fight or flight” refers to the environment in which the group is placed; they either fight and survive within it or they try to escape it. Both are equally valid courses of action.

Language

They use language like humans, joining specific ‘chirrups’ together to form complex sentences. There are differences in songs, calls and conversations. It is possible for Apakans to mimic words and phrases in other languages.

Upon encountering humanoids outside their solar system, Apakans invented a vocal enhancer that translates their vocalizations into many other languages. All people are taught standard sign language in case of technology failure.

Customs

There are a variety of customs across the different regions of Tsun, with the biggest differences being between those in colder and warmer climates. However, since the Great Enlightenment brought unity between all people, numerous shared customs became common.

Greetings

The most common greeting across Tsun is when two individuals press both palms of their hands together and pop the tip of their upper beak against their lower beak. This is also the easiest for other humanoids to replicate by instead clicking their tongue.

Technology

Apakan technology is on par with the majority of Alpha Quadrant species. They prefer to use their own vocal enhancer technology, which can be customised by the user, rather than rely on universal translators.

Economy

Apakans do not have a monetary economy. Each individual is given what they need when they need it, and in turn is expected to work at providing a meaningful contribution to society. Nobody takes more than they need and due to zero growth population, there are no issues with scarcity.

Military

They operate a fairly small military, most of which acts as a defense for the Inyoni System. They have one fairly large space station in orbit of their seventh planet, Klo, which is dedicated to studying the aquatic life under the ice of its moon, Kloku. It has a staff of approximately 8,000 and can house an additional 35,000.

Federation Intelligence Files

The Apakans are a warp-capable people, genetically engineered to sapience by an unknown species roughly 200,000 years ago. They are driven by scientific achievement and have colonised two other planets in their home system.

Sources

This is an original Starbase 118 species created by Kyso Nohx.