Eximus

Those who live in the sky above Shem, but below the SupernalRealm.

Basics

• Taxonomic Order: Illittum

• Alignment: Celestial

• Energy: Serendipity

• Lifespan: 2,000 years

• Diet: Sky fare

• Habitat: Sky islands

Origins

Eximi are children of the mafi girma, formed from their feathers that got caught in the sky.

Description

Skin blacker than night, eyes bright in every color of the rainbow, hair like curled strands of precious metals, bodies like humans. Their arms have white feathers. They stand between 6’ and 9’ tall.

Procreation

Eximi reproduce with each other sexually. They are physically capable of reproducing with coeligians, angels, mafi girma, nanmai, and jark’aqaña, but they tend to only reproduce with one another. If they reproduce outside their species, the species of the offspring follows the birthing parent. Reproducing outside of celestial illittum or inmortals is only possible with supernatural intervention.

Powers

Eximi fly on the winds of fortune. They can sense these winds, but not control them. When they take flight, they are uplifted by serendipity, allowing them to move with incredible speeds. As serendipity guides them, the winds of fortune in their wake are filled with it, meaning anyone behind them is granted good luck.

As beings of serendipity, eximi always take the high die.

Vision

Eximi can see vast distances. Every eximus has a different esoteric vision to complement their farsight, though this varies by individual and always has a basis in a different celestial energy.

Weaknesses

Misfortune energy will break them.

Nations

There is only one nation of eximi, the Alatus, who dwell in Gyrah.

Culture

The Alatus live in a series of small islands in Gyrah not far from the main imperial islands. They are able to live freely because of their innate good fortune, which calls winds that batter away the airships of Urayme or Psyara.

According to their own oral traditions, the eximi were formed when the mafi girma fell from the skies, scattering their feathers in the atmosphere. They were tasked by their progenitors with protecting the skies and preventing grievous misfortune from befalling Shem, and so central to their culture is watching the skies for incoming disasters. When major impacts seem possible - i.e., an incoming comet or asteroid - they take flight in a ritual called the bonum turbo, or “good whirlwind”, which spins the winds of fortune such that they eject any approaching doom.

Except during these times, the Alatus live in small communities. They get by hunting and sky-fishing, keeping small farms, and gathering condensation. Their communities are matriarchal, keeping all property in common, and raising children together. Survival comes easy to them, due to serendipity, so their days are filled with events that others would find remarkable - their skynets capture flying fish and edible birds while non-edible creatures somehow evade them and yet they make no effort to position them reasonably; their plants yield remarkable fruits and the weather is always perfect for them; the bracing winds somehow miss their villages; and needed materials will literally fall from the skies. This is the result of many eximi living in one place.

Because they have such easy lives, they spend much of their time engaged in arts, music, dance, and other leisure activities. They work on perfecting their flying boats, create beautiful droning music, design intricate sky dances, and make arts that flow with the strong winds. They love colorful streamers and ornamented nets and flags. They love fashioning or coloring clouds with special chalks and powders.

The Alatus keep watch on the skies via telescopes they design themselves, made from glass they spin from colored sands. Others who have examined these scopes say they have no scientific or esoteric value, and that the eximi catch incoming space rocks because of their supernatural luck and not because of any skill with making these devices. The Alatus assert that it is the act of making that matters.

Among the Alatus, children become adults at the age of 21. Communities are led by elders, whom are elected. Because they rely upon serendipity, the Alatus do little training or teaching, so adults have very few skills applicable in the real world.

The Alatus are among the few beings who form bonds with the ilaaliye, alien eyes that keep watch over Shem and warn of danger. The Alatus believe the ilaaliye are messengers of the Celestial Realms and honor them as spiritual beings.

Esoterica

As beings of serendipity, eximi have extreme good fortune. This is amplified when they are together. They are the finest at engaging with serendipity. They cannot abide the energy of misfortune. The energy of fortune becomes serendipity when it interacts with them. They sometimes wield other celestial energies, various aetherial powers (especially kiiric yihi, bijalee, and the bright), and paradoxical energies (flux, complexity). They almost never wield infernal powers, and they prefer not to use poioumenonic ones (fate is terrifying to them).

Religion

The eximi believe that they are descended of the mafi girma, and therefore, they worship them. They also believe that there is a goddess, named Fortunata, who creates serendipity and blows it towards them. They honor her through rituals and superstitions. Among them are vincere, people who are overtaken by religious fervor and the winds of good fortune, who fly up and call people to special rites or prayers. Those who speak the words of Fortunata and spread her will are called vox fortunae.

Mortals who make a pilgrimage to visit the eximi are called wrecca (from their own language).

Gender

Among the Alatus, gender is seen as fluid and unimportant.

Economy

The Alatus live in primal communist societies.

Military

Among the Alatus there are warriors known as torfianists who use serendipity to hit miracle shots with their bows. Otherwise, they rely upon their good fortune to protect them.

Language

Their language is based on Latin, because of their proximity to Urayme and Psyara.

Trade

The Alatus trade food and other materials that fall from the sky with other nearby communities.

Occupations

Some common occupations include the following:

• Bona Uxor: the witches who use superstitions to help the women of the community.

• Ortu: those who make or sail boats on the winds of fortune.

• Reperator: healers who mend the fortune of others.

• Sciretor: an investigator who follows their good fortune to find answers.

• Torfianist: an archer who relies on serendipity to hit their target.

• Vincere: beatificers of serendipity.

• Vox Fortunae: prophets of Fortunata

Outside View

Most mortals have no idea eximi exist, but those who do, especially the Uraymeans, portray them as sources of danger, as thieves and isolationists, sometimes even cannibals.

Notables

• Prima Uxor, Eximus Manifest, Aeonian

Estimated Populations

• Alatus: 7,777

• Other: 3,333

Sample Stats

PRO 8
ATH 8 Flight 11
STR 8
AWA 9
WIL 8
PRS 9
STH 8