Senti are a species of nomadic, metallic humanoids commonly mistaken for machines. With a rich half million year history and a unique relationship to death, these people are raised to believe that the self relies on the family, the family on the community, and all things are evil when out of balance.

Senti have been nomadic for approximately five hundred thousand years, choosing to live between stars and build mobile superstructures they call Flotillas. Since the Skydas War, they have actively avoided war, surviving primarily by being difficult to find.

As Nomads the Senti live primarily in ships that they own, control or have built. Though meeting a nation or corporate entity that welcomes them may find fresh places for them to live in, from Ships to stations, to even planets. Senti find their homes with other miners and explorers since Senti are skilled at mining for themselves. They are common throughout the sector, especially in Secunda Major System where the Mining Guild has established itself, though difficult to actually seek out. Due to the sheer distance between systems, it's unlikely to find a Senti flotilla even if one is actively looking for it, despite their often being the size of a continent. These Flotillas are constructed of welded hulls and burial steel patches between derelict ships found in the Senti's travels. They are often modified to sport full service shipyards, factories, and biospheres to manufacture foodstuffs, equipment, and fuel. However, when they do come into a system, the Flotillas are easily detectable as far as three light-months away, and are too large and unmaneuverable to safely enter a system. They will often send large mining and salvage ships in order to make contact. The nature of Senti flotillas and their uniquely decentralized power systems makes them fairly easy to detect and identify at range. They normally stay out of this range from any system, and it would be necessary to enter a three light-month range of a Flotilla to detect it by sensors. Often times, they will have arrived before detection can be confirmed as a fleet or as a single vessel.

The average Senti stands at a hair over 1.75 meters in height and weighs close to 190 kilograms despite a powerful and slender figure. This is due to their body chemistry, being carbon metabolizing iron based organisms. The species, for the most part, exhibits a sexual dimorphism common among hominid species, in a primary bell curve of male to female. They are notably capable of swapping biological processes on the fly to temporarily adapt to an environment until they can return to normal, and stop utilizing more effective processes that cause long term damage to the body.

Their bones are high purity steel, preventing breaks but ending with bent bones that can be just as painful. Their hair colour ranges from white straight through to almost black, as do their eyes. Other known variations are shocking shades of red, often attributed to rust. Several are known to exhibit a silver to burgundy fade through either genetics or specialized treatment techniques.

Senti blood uses copper as an oxidizing agent, turning it bright blue when oxygenated, and a darker, more green blue as it exhausts this. Their bodies are a scant 40% water, as the rest of their fluid needs are taken up by various oils that are produced within the body (Including blood plasma, making saline-based IVs extremely dangerous). The skin often has a metallic lustre to it, earning them the nickname “Silverskin.“ Other common slurs include “metalhead,” “toaster”, “slag,” and “rust eater.”

The fact that Senti have such a high heavy metal content grants them a certain level of armouring and heat resistance, at the cost of being extremely susceptible to cold and needing to take in toxic (for most hominids) levels of various metals to survive. Senti cannot survive at temperatures below 4.5°C (Without heated clothes, can be lethal in as little as 30 minutes), despite being able to not simply work, but live active, productive lives in temperatures exceeding 90°C. The upper limit to their work temperature is theorized to be close to 150°C. Life spans are up to three hundred standard years, and they never truly stop growing, occasionally reaching a height of 4.5 meters, with a mass of up to approximately 2400 kg. Due to the sheer mass that Senti muscles have to move, they don’t produce much in the way of body fat, and an obese specimen is a health concern, not to be expected to live more than about a year. Moreover, their growth rate may cause their mass and caloric needs to override their ability to consume required calories, leading them to die of starvation and Hypometallicism, as opposed to old age.

Normally, this mass starvation can happen between 270 and 330 years of age, depending on a variety of factors.

Senti genetics uses a familiar 4 base pair, 23 chromosome XX/XY sex chromosome pattern, though their genetics are unusually plastic. Approximately 1 in 10,000 having a genetic marker from extraspecies sexual contact, allowing senti genetics to adapt and bond to other humanoid species. Though the chances of producing a viable child are low, it is not an unknown occurrence.

Senti enjoy up to three centuries of fertility, and as they grow, can produce more children per pregnancy, depending on what their bodies can handle. The largest on record is a tricentennial birthing fifteen. Such occurrences are extremely rare, however. More common is centennials regularly producing triplets and quadruplets. This is normally managed by low fertility and long gestation, with Senti being, on average, less than half as fertile as humans.

They normally start off with an 18 month gestation period resulting in an otherwise fairly normal baby that will go through childhood at the same pace as other children. At age sixteen, they are offered an option to “test out” into adulthood, being tested in writing and in practice on basic life skills, such as astronavigation, cleaning, ship maintenence, laundry, cooking, and local government paperwork such as taxes. A failure of this non-optional test will result in the teenager being placed on another ship to learn the skills from another family for a year before being allowed to retake.

If a child has not learned the skills of adulthood in their original home in sixteen years, they are not going to learn them in another year at home. This process will repeat every year until the test is passed.

Normal legal adulthood is between sixteen and twenty one years of age, depending on when the test was passed.

There are Five (5) main stages to life for Senti.

Precentennial (Precents), young, charismatic, energetic and chaotic, by Senti standards, can seem foolhardy and brash, by older standards. Centennial (Cents), older and wiser, more adult Senti that have learned to cool their heels a little, but still have their fun. Bicentennial (Bicents), masters of their craft, stubborn, and wise, they typically prefer talk and getting younger, smaller Senti to do much of the heavy lifting, though will readily step in when needed. This stage is where mass starts to become an issue, and calorie needs increase to near infeasible. They will often know their end is near, and start acting like a tricent at this point. Tricentennial (Tricent), very old, very wise, and nearing the end of their life, these giants will often return to the chaotic and mischievous ways of the precents, though have dedicated what remains of their lives to teaching what they have learned over the last thirty decades. Deceased. Senti are post end of death, and their bodies can be melted down into the anomalous metal Burial Steel, which can manifest mute “ghosts” alongside minor reality bending effects. The only way to truly kill a senti is to ensure their body cannot be made into burial steel, such as long term gallium addiction, complete destruction of the body, or isolation. After burial steel is made, every piece containing any trace of the person must be destroyed completely to kill the senti.

This species shares many traits with common species of hominids, suffering the same array of diseases and ailments as are common to the sector, with one notable exception, which is detailed in the next paragraph. From a dietary standpoint, they can, and do eat many of the normal omnivorous food items enjoyed by the rest of the sector. Several species of plants notably native to the flotillas provide many of their dietary needs. It should be noted, however, that salts and sulfides of many heavy metals are required for their health.

Hypometallicism is a condition unique to Senti and stems from an inability to consume or process sufficient copper, iron, magnesium, or other heavy metal salts needed for bodily processes. In this case, blood will often switch to an iron-based hemoglobin, first, leaching iron from the skeleton to more efficiently deliver nutrients and oxygen to vital portions of the body. This will turn normally blue, blood-rich tissues red. This includes the lips, tongue, inside of the mouth, conjunctiva, retina, and other tissues. Other needed metals will be leached from surrounding muscles, tendons, and skin, and can be very painful, putting the victim at risk of injury. This will also often reduce the metallic lustre of the skin, and hair may start falling out. The lymphatic system will normally be clogged with cell waste as the Senti starts losing weight quickly. Neurological damage and organ failure will often shortly follow.

There are other diseases caused by environmental factors, including oxidation of the lipids in cellular membranes, often caused by acid burns, long term acidic vapor exposure, an overly rich (Above 25% O2) atmosphere, or some viral infections. Examples of such illness are shown below.

Senti are known omnivores, subsisting on a variety of fruits, plants, and domesticated food animals, though pregnant females are known to switch to a partially geophagic diet to supplement nutritional needs during pregnancy.

Senti have several ethnicities, dozens of languages, and are surprisingly variable in their basic physiology, with eye colors ranging across the color spectrum due to metallic buildup in the iris, and hair ranging across the metallic tones of steel, including rust shades due to an iron compound similar to keratin rusting.

Generally speaking Senti have very strong emotions, using them to balance their decisions against logical choices. They can be seen as enigmatic or chaotic, even secretive, though are known to make plans that operate uninterrupted and unknown. Senti are motivated to do the greatest long term good, believing that “If one leaves a positive mark on their community, then everyone prospers. If one is to leave a negative mark, know that it puts everyone at risk, from enemies to loved ones.”

Senti sexuality is as complicated and messy a thing as human sexuality, existing on a spectrum of romantic attraction and sexual attraction versus repulsion that is partially relative of gender identity, though notably, attraction is less physical, and more based on skillset. Generally, senti will be attracted to those who have complimentary skillsets to their own, and who can offer a strong support to their network. In this romance, the compatibility of personalities is explored before the pair is added to the family of the partners.

The Senti claim to be technologically and culturally on par galactic standard, in many ways. Their culture is a lot more pacifistic and accepting than many worlds, as their more resilient bodies allow themselves to defend each other and themselves far better than most equivalently sized mammalians. Aggression simply isn’t needed as much, and they are not inclined to combat, war, or destruction, preferring to trade and build lasting relations. They believe that the longer route that leads to less bloodshed will invariably be superior to the loss of life for a noble cause. They do make provisions for necessary evils.

Like most nomads, Senti have many customs or rituals that may seem unusual to those unprepared. For example, in death, the corpses are put to use, being forged down into a high quality steel that can preserve as much as half their mass. This steel is used in the repair of ships, specifically that of the deceased's family, in the manufacture of armor, and in the growth of the flotilla.

In the case of the victims of a violent death at the hands of another Sapient, their steel will be used in the manufacture of a specialized knife for law enforcement use. This weapon is designed to kill only one species, quickly and efficiently. These weapons will be issued to the closest relative joining the force upon their graduation, and will be reforged and adapted with larger blades and handles as their users grow, using the steel of other victims mixed into the original. This knife has many uses, as an efficient tool for various cutting and small prying jobs, and as a vicious weapon, capable of cleanly killing a specimen up to a century older than the wielder. This knife will always be folded into the burial steel of its wielder on their death, giving the victims used to make it a proper burial and a chance at redemption through the life and use of the blade.

Being gifted a blade can be a very powerful symbol of love, a request for permanent companionship, a request for protection by the receiving, and an acknowledgement of their own inability to harm their loved one in the case of requirement. However, this is a rare thing. Often Service Knives are issued with jewelry or suit components made from the same batch of Burial Steel.

Burial steel jewelry can often be gifted to family members if enough is left over from ship repairs and upgrades, and is often gifted depending on the relationship to the giver. This symbology may not be obvious at first glance.

Raw burial steel ingots are common gifts among potential life partners. If a relationship does develop, this ingot will often be formed into something more meaningful to the pair. This is often added to the collective of ancestral and personal steel pieces passed down through the generations or folded into the burial steel of the person who owned it at the time.

Senti language is a series of complex tonal languages using very specific compound words to describe objects, and using tone or melody to represent the subject’s movement, orientation, and relativity in three dimensional space. They do make use of adjectives and adverbs, though descriptions are generally short and to the point, expecting the conversee’s own knowledge base or access to a knowledge base to fill in the gaps. Due to the highly contextual and tonal nature of the languages, they can be difficult and time consuming.

Senti believe that a name means nothing. It is a piece of the mother and a piece of the father, blended to make something new and worthless without the self determination to give that name meaning.

Naming conventions are fairly simple, with a new name being generated from mother and father, but completely new. More often than not, that means taking sounds from both names and forming a coherent word. Their family name is the name of the ship they are from. Often, Senti families can be quite large, and polyamorous in structure, having many groups that may not be related by blood, but all sharing in social and familial bonds. The ships are usually named after the first name of the last person of the previous family that owned the ship. For example, the Freighter Soren was named for its last captain, about seventy centuries before first contact, where it was captained by Aliset Soren, her father being one of the guards for first contact.

Examples of names are:

• aliset_soren, daughter of Setiel and Saliten Soren.
• Terattel Nascen, son of Atteli and Alterren Nascen.
• Telisen Attina, daughter of Raeteli and Surasen Attina.

Artesans of all forms are highly valued members of Senti society, with Smiths, singers, writers, and others, even seeing engineering as an art form in of itself. Art and creation are hallmarks of senti culture, and their artesans prefer organic, fluid designs and complex forms that would be impossible to achieve with gravity.

Senti fashion is generally very pragmatic and makes heavy use of wrap styling and disguised pockets. However, most articles are skin tight and will fit easily under their space suits or other environmental attire. Images coming soon

Senti typically do not call their spirituality a religion, and worship is minimal at best. They generally regard three deities.

If'ni, Infinity is an amalgamated Goddess of the ancestors. Believed to be a protector and the literal spirit within burial steel, invoked in the production of Burial Steel. She welcomes souls to the afterlife, allowing them to join her in her work and piecing together new ones from pieces of herself.

Skydas is a mythical warship, a cautionary tale of wrath, and the god of necessary evils. Not evil in of himself, but capable of it when not in careful balance. Responsible for the judgement of souls who had to be killed before they are allowed to pass on to If'ni. Also keeper of souls in the Service Knife.

Listia, or The Librarian is the deity of raw information, a sentient trickster of half truths and misleading words, or a patient teacher of hard data, life lessons, and honesty. This deity swore an oath of truth, as lies bring only destruction. The Senti call the truth-speaking nature of their abilities Listia's Oath, which they claim renders them incapable of mistruth, as “There is no such thing, and the Universe destroys to make room for the new truth.”

All senti abilities are derived from the deities and the interaction between them. Technically, there are seven abilities. Instinctive knowledge of language, sensing the location of burial steel (up to 1.5 LY without specialized equipment), and the ability to harden reality to deny others' powers or soften it to amplify those same abilities is Listia. If'Ni grants the ability to see the aura and see the scars left by memories, the raw power to do basic magic, and a deepened connection to one's body, amplifying health. Finally, Skydas can allow a person to take control of entropy, creating time dialations and rapidly aging or decaying matter, accelerating biological processes, and severing spells from the user or simply tearing them apart.

Interactions between these three deific powers creates new powers that the user needs to find balance in.

If'Ni+ Listia lets the user soften and twist reality to form naturally occuring anomalies. Listia + Skydas allows a user to manipulate the balance between forces, energy, and matter, along with particle density. Skydas+If'Ni allows for the ability to transform energy to matter and back again, transmutation at the atomic or subatomic level. When all three are together, we're not sure what happens.

Most Senti do not have a strong connection to all three. Usually only having one or two, typically If'Ni and/or Listia.

No one can use Senti magic without being recognized as family by If'Ni. Then, and only then will burial steel have power for them.

Intellect over Strength, despite size essentially means that they rely on intellect more than brute strength to solve problems, often coming up with unusual and elegant solutions that indicate much greater intelligence than they display through IQ testing. This different way of thinking is partially responsible for their ability to come up with new tools and technologies as fast as applications for them arise. Much of this is caused by the disproportionate size and strength differences between Senti, and their long nomadic history, making brute strength solutions dangerous, ineffective, or unnecessarily costly.

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Generally speaking, senti operate on a “Part of the crew, part of the family” hive mentality, building large family groups and polyamorous support networks capable of rapid adaptation and an efficiency some would see as surprising or inconvenient.

A senti that is caught alone on a new ship will release loneliness and fear pheremones, instinctively gravitating towards other groups of senti or people similar enough to form familial bonds.

Senti government is a nebulous collection of committees and volunteers, each offering their expertise for certain decisions. This system is only possible due to their strong cultural focus on a “greater good,” and a mutual, team based survival instinct. Other Flotillas had greed. Most that survive to this day have seen the failings and mass deaths caused by greed driven politics, and generally avoid them.

The point of the Senti legal system is to make sure everyone is helped and doesn’t need to commit those crimes. It’s encouraged to go to the police or other law enforcement first, and breaking the law should be a last resort, but if it is needed, the crime will not be punished.

The Senti law enforcement system is built that all social servants are fully trained and certified officers of the law, ensuring that underfunded police stations are never short-handed by means of that police station also being City Hall, City Water, Social Services, and the regional Fire Department. Due to how quickly that setup could turn tyrannical, they have many legal protections in place, and different branches of law enforcement can’t communicate without a court system order that says a crime has been committed and who needs what information on who.

Senti criminal activity is usually limited to elaborate cons and nonviolent coups, often taking months or years to plan. Violent crime does happen, but it’s rare. (Perhaps one in 250 million crimes have violent intent, though 1 in 100 million will turn out violent) That said, their system of law bases punishment on necessity, not on the crime. Rapes and crimes with no clear motive and no need will get a Senti executed. However, if a Senti citizen were to kill another Sapient to protect their family, or as a response to a capital crime, law enforcement will investigate the claims and release the offender. The major exception to this general rule is something they call the First Law, which is a shared cultural belief that any who would violate the autonomy of mind, body, or soul, have no place in society. These offenders represent an immediate risk to long term safety and peace aboard the Flotilla, being members of a sapient species, but no longer people. Thusly, any form of sexual assault, torture, emotional or physical abuse, nonconsentual non life saving body modification, nonconsentual behavioral, memory, or neural modification, or unwarranted murder will be met with immediate lethal force upon their discovery and the identification of a perpetrator.

Senti do not have an official military, except in their own myths, having more than enough cultural skill to defend themselves individually. There is simply no need for a group of people trained to fight a war the Council has no intent to get into.

Senti pirates are often described as friendly thieves, preying on ships from major corporations, and would rather incapacitate a crew and only leave enough for the raided vessel to return to a nearby planet or station instead of killing the crew and leaving the ship. Slavers and others that violate the Senti First Law, however, will find their crew murdered and their ship gifted to the victims. Often times, Senti pirates will also make an effort to repair any damages the victim ship took in order to allow them to get home. There has never been a reported attack on refugee ships or ships going to developing or disaster stricken worlds from Senti pirates.

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