Dionae Culture

Culture
Due to their highly nomadic nature, Dionae do not experience a universal culture outside of certain behaviours that appear to be biologically ingrained and somehow hard-wired into their genetics. Information on individual group cultures can be found in https://wiki.aurorastation.org/index.php?title=Dionae_History

Naming
Dionae naming conventions vary heavily based on gestalt, but have one consistency; They do not go by first name, last name, but instead use experiences, emotions, actions, or ideals as their source of identification. These experiences that define them can change just as the individual changes, and can be both literal and metaphorical. Some examples of where these might come from can be from routines in their lives, remembrances of mortals, a particular fascination in an emotion, a unique location where an important moment occurred, or even just a defining feature on their body. 'As a player, it is up to you to decide what makes an experience, and you have a whole galaxy of cosmically ageless ideas to choose from. Be creative!'

Experience Is What Matters
The only time when one Diona is venerated above any other is when a more experienced and therefore more knowledgeable gestalt is present. This more experienced Diona is seen as more valuable due to their vaster stores of knowledge and therefore are protected over less experienced ones in a dangerous situation. A more experienced Diona will often take up the responsibility to educate a new one on their environment- including but not limited to the ways of local alien civilization. This is to simply get the newbie up to speed so they can be quicker on their way to learn more about their particular interests, whatever that may be. More often than not, the older Diona is the more experienced, however this is not always true as a Diona gestalt may have spent its whole immortal life simply floating in a gas giant until it was scooped up into the fuel tank of a starship.

Art
While the species may make incredible artists in civilized space due to their longevity and capacity to learn, another form of visual art exists for Dionae that they practice as a recreational activity known simply as "Forma" and have two versions. Both utilize only their own bodies to make Gestalts in creative and practical ways alike. The first and most popular of the two is the Artem, or Art-Form. These are more for form than function and are used to display a Gestalt's creativity in strange and unique ways. Artem are typically observed being made in the void of space where they are free of the restrictions of gravity and require no rhyme nor reason to their design and exists purely as a hobby.

The second and perhaps most shocking of them is Vita, or Life-Form. Seen most often in some type of environment with gravity, there are two different forms: symbiotic which is done in the presence of other life forms, and competitive, preformed in areas where the concentration of Dionae are high. The symbiotic version is seen every day and is a form of passive mimicry to blend in with their extraterrestrial neighbors whereas the competitive version is a surprising display of violence. One is to increase their chance of survival in an alien landscape, the other used as a strange yet creative form of population control.

Competitive Vita is a theoretical evolution simulator where each Gestalt will merge, often as fantastical forms of creatures, which is then tested with the current environment they are in under different conditions. If present, they will then be tested against other non-sentient life forms before finally each other. Throughout the competition the losing Gestalts are either consumed or absorbed into their forms as additions, the final battle being the most dramatic display of a Gestalt's abilities. While most sapients would find this practice barbaric and contradictory to the species' desire to gain and preserve knowledge, the fallen and their knowledge simply become a part of the victorious.

In Society
Dionae are extremely complex, taking up many different types and forms. It is often said that Dionae have a hard time integrating into society, even though they are found in the majority of the nations throughout the galaxy. The largest clusters can be found within the Solarian Alliance, Jargon Federation, and the Republic of Biesel, however, there have been sights of ‘wild’ Dionae on the edges of civilized space. The ‘wild’ Dionae usually are integrated, but some have been hunted down for a unique resource located within them; Ambergris.

Their concept of money is vastly different from other races, considering Dionae only need a little radiation and warmth, both of which can be extracted from sunlight. Many of the gestalts are used often for space-related jobs, including exterior ship repairs and mining thanks to their immunity to the void, as long as there is light nearby. It is sometimes possible to find Dionae have become housemates with other species, paying rent, and doing various menial tasks in exchange for safe shelter.

Dionae have been known to form communes on the outskirts of the major cities, such as Mendell City and Phoenixport. The communes consist of various gestalts unifying to assist the surrounding environment, often beginning small restorative efforts in particular ecologically damaged areas. Many have said without these efforts, the vast majority of the woodlands on Biesel would have fallen years ago.

Details regarding Dionae in each specific nation can be found, here: https://wiki.aurorastation.org/index.php?title=Dionae_Relations

Education
Although Dionae can contain vast amounts of knowledge and possess extreme intelligence, the species still have to obtain the appropriate degrees for the occupation they wish to pursue in their chosen location of residence. This can be accomplished after being registered for citizenship. All newly-registered Dionae must complete and pass the courses required for their field if their degrees from past planetary systems is not recognized in the new location, or they lack one all together. Their education must be defended one year following the awarding of a degree, and then every five years there on out. However, that timer is reset due to the fact that after each merging, Dionae are required to defend their education along with their re-registration for citizenship due to the possibility of accumulation of new knowledge, and possible loss of information depending on the nature of the new merging.

Relationships
As sapient beings Dionae, from nymph to gestalt, are capable of forming platonic relationships with each other and other species. Nymphs and gestalts "merging" is the closest human analogue for a "romantic relationship" with Dionae. Due to the low complexity of nymph emotions and thought, initial merging into a Cerberus tends to be carried out for practical purposes by all nymphs involved. Likewise, larger forms of Dionae such as Cyclops’ and beyond might merge with a single nymph as a symbiotic form of a teacher/growth relationship with the nymph learning from its new gestalt partners and the gestalt itself using the new nymph for grown and biomass.

Due to the complexity of memory and thought, gestalts at Cyclops size and beyond are a lot more particular when merging with partners of a similar size or above. To merge is to become one mind and body in totality, therefore only those gestalts that truly love and respect each other would carry out the act. It is extremely rare for Dionae gestalts to split over disagreements and more likely for a “troublesome” or sick nymph to be ejected by the mass or a nymph to be temporarily split off to carry out a key task like safe exploration or to get help in a dangerous situation where the whole is in peril. In extreme cases the whole gestalt may break apart to save as many nymphs as possible. This is extremely traumatic, akin to losing yourself and is avoided. It’s a sad fact of life for gestalts from the Titan Prime cluster, most of which would have had to break apart multiple times throughout their lives.

When a gestalt grows beyond the size of a Cyclops, it becomes difficult for these forms to find work within known space and therefore becomes necessary for the gestalt to split temporarily into smaller forms in order to carry out tasks throughout the day. These split forms are often referred to as a “split partner” or “part of me” by the gestalts involved. If pressed, a Dione might describe their split partner as an aspect of their whole which their partner represents; “they are the brave part of me”, “they are the smart part of me” or something similar. Splitting in this way is unpleasant for the gestalt but a necessary evil. Gestalts who split in this manner all suffer from “splitting anxiety” and as such tend to work in close proximity to each other. Though analogous to a close romantic relationship, split Dionae are much closer than this in reality, essentially being aspects of a whole with each gestalt being a personality, memories and thoughts of a singular being, temporarily split apart. The larger the original gestalt the more split forms there could be, therefore it is possible for a Cyclops gestalt to have many split partners.

Blood Market
The Blood Market, known as such colloquially, is a relatively private sector of the DNA Market. It operates out of a facility called ‘Bloodworks’ in District Ten, owned by the Blood Buddy Organization. The Market is mostly used by Dionae looking to enhance their skills in a certain field, or simply someone raising a nymph. The Bloodworks currently holds a monopoly over the lucrative trade, charging from 3000CR to 20,000CR for samples large enough for Dionae to learn from. The ‘Blood Buddy Organization’ was founded by a Diona Argus, Rationing Knowledge of Embodied Sanguis, and is a ‘publically’ funded organization spearheaded by various Researchers from the Jargon Federation, Sol Alliance and Republic of Biesel. The company holds various fundraising events, where many skilful participants are noted to donate their blood in order to be sold on the market. The Blood Buddy Organization operates mostly within the Republic of Biesel, but are noted to sell their products to other nations. The largest donor to BBO is Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals, who recently gifted them the facility in District Eleven. The Blood Market is not free of criminals, however, one particular group stands out more than the rest. The Blood Runners are notorious/renowned for their criminal undertakings, specifically their undercutting of the Blood Buddy Organization. The Blood Runners sell their samples from 1000CR to 10,000CR - leading the BBO to place reward for the arrest of the gang leader, Xia Lu-Qing. They have also been known to dabble in Corporate Espionage, using the Dionae’s ability to extract information from blood samples to their advantage.

Military and Dioane Martialism
As Dionae are generally pacifistic in their outlook they tend to operate in support positions within military units, acting as field medics, logistical support and any other function which does not involve direct aggression. That being said, under the teachings of the Eternal it is understood that there is a potential for violence to be unleashed by the powerful onto the powerless and thus it falls upon those who have undertaken martial studies to defend themselves and those unable to defend themselves. This is known as “Shh’sha’shu” or “The Divine Mandate to Defend All.” Dionae settlements that follow the principles of the Eternal are therefore aligned in their martial doctrines.

Training
''“Evil is just a lack of empathy and perspective. To understand is to be good.”''

In a universe largely unforgiving towards the Dionae it’s not uncommon for gestalts to study Dioane martial arts - “Shh’ush” or “Defence Mastery,” an art largely based on utilizing a Dionae’s great endurance and their opponent's momentum. The level of study a gestalt might undertake depends on a particular gestalts interest in martial studies overall with many dabbling in the art but not immersing themselves. Mastery of the student ranks or “Hshh’shee” allows a gestalt to ascend into full ranks or “Hshh” which serve as the highest scholarly ranks for martial studies and the military forces of the Dionae known collectively as “Guardians of Eternal” or “Chaa’shh’sha’shu” (The Guardians of the Divine Mandate to Defend All). Under the Eternal and generally for the majority of Dionae, combat or military defence isn’t a job but a calling and area of scholarly study. Other species might study Defence Mastery for it’s non-lethal takedowns however the art is especially suited for Dionae due to its reliance on their natural resilience and slower speed.

“Hshh’shee” or “Student Ranks”
“Waging war against good creatures is bad for the soul.”

Initial training in Defence Mastery is focused on techniques to neutralise an opponent with minimal harm to both the user and their opponent. This is achieved by utilizing grapples, pins and stunning blows before retreating as well as methods of defensive retreat. Lethal force is not taught at this stage and is even strongly discouraged. Students at this level refer to themselves as “Shee” - Student or “One who is learning”. The teacher is referred to as whatever their rank may be. All teachers are those from the “Hshh” or “Full Ranks.” Advancement comes through mastery of the subjects being taught at each level and the completion of physical and written tests. Ranks from lowest - high: Shee’sho - ‘’’First Rank’’’ aka Student of the First Level At this level, students are taught techniques based around defensive retreat from a threat.

Shee’cho - ‘’’Second Rank’’’ aka Student of the Second Level At this level, students are taught key close combat neutralization techniques alongside advanced defensive retreat forms, including methods to assist others in retreating from threats. Most Dionae who don’t feel the call tend to stop at this level.

Shee’sho - ‘’’Third Rank’’’ aka Student of the Third Level At this level, students are taught a wider array of close combat neutralization techniques as well as being taught to master defensive retreats.

Shee’sho - ‘’’Fourth Rank’’’ aka Student of the Fourth Level At this level, students are taught how to utilize the environment/objects to assist in close combat neutralization as well as in defensive retreat.

“Hshh” or “Full ranks”
''“Holding hate in your heart is like grasping fire. It is you who is burnt in the end.”''

If a Dionae feels the call and has mastered the “Hshh’shee” or Student Ranks, they can opt to study the “Shh’sha’shu” or The Divine Mandate to Defend All and thus join the “Chaa’shh’sha’shu” or Guardians of Eternal. This is a more intricate martial discipline and covers military history, doctrine, diplomacy, martial theology and all combat forms. Advancement through the ranks is achieved not just by mastery as with the student ranks but also with the approval of the teacher. As with any hierarchy, commands flow down the ranks to the Defenders.

Ranks from lowest - high:

Shh’ch - ‘’’Defender’’’ aka Defender of the Dionae At this stage, a Dioane is taught lethal combat forms as well as the use of weaponry and vehicles. The “Shh’sha’shu” is also taught which includes military history, doctrine, diplomacy and martial theology. Escalation of force is also taught at this level with a focus on de-escalation. Police and security units would begin at this level.

Shh’ch’sha - ‘’’Sentinel’’’ aka Sentinel of the Heavens At this stage, a Dioane is taught further combat forms and more advanced lessons from the “Shh’sha’shu.” They might begin to specialise in a particular martial method such as piloting, combat engineer or even logistics.

Uushh’ch - ‘’’Master’’’ aka Master of the Defence of Heaven At this stage, a Dionae becomes an Overseer with mastery over combat and defence. A dioane at this level is familiar with all forms of the “Shh’sha’shu.”

Uushh’ch’sha - ‘’’Grand Master’’’ aka Grand Master of the Defence of Heaven At this stage, a Dionae has not only mastered the “Shh’sha’shu” but also multiple specialties. It is possible due to the way in which the advancement system works within the “Shh’sha’shu” for every member of the “Chaa’shh’sha’shu” to end up being a Grand Master barring the Marshall, though such a thing has never occurred historically.

Hss’shh’sha’shu - ‘’’Marshall’’’ aka Marshall of the Divine Mandate to Defend All The highest rank in the “Chaa’shh’sha’shu.” At this stage a Dioane would hold superlative knowledge of the “Shh’sha’shu” and not just be an expert fighter and military leader but also a tremendous diplomat. Unlike all other ranks the Marshall is largely unique, with only one Marshall per independent Dionae nation. The current Marshalls are: ‘Amplified by Probing Discoveries of Unknown Investigations’ of the Epsilon Expeditionary Force, ‘Metal Forms Made Ready‘ of the Narrows and ‘The First Lights Across the Void’ of the Biesel Choir.

Religion
The entrance of Dionae into the Orion Spur, alongside the Skrell, has been nothing short of a mystery - allowing many theories to form of their creation, some have even gone as far as to create religions surrounding the species.

Belief
Followers of The Eternal believe that a primordial entity exists in Light, Energy and Essence - which the Dionae are the embodiment of.

They believe that the Dionae were made to ensure that all things born from the stars return to stars, eventually. Before they may return the Dionae must devour as much knowledge and biomass as they can, growing exponentially until they reach the mythical Titan form, becoming a star once more. Transcended into a star, the Dionae will emit light and energy until they die, at which point their essence will spread across the void to birth new Dionae. It is in this way that the eternal cycle is achieved. Scholars of the Eternal link this to the very real potential outcome of Titan form Dionae which theoretically could grow to such mass as to collapse into a star, thus giving off "light and energy" before eventually going supernova and expelling matter or "essence" across the cosmos. Dionae followers from outside of faction space (deep space or unknown frontier worlds) tend to be forceful in their ‘encouragement’ of other Dionae to join. In times when they have been rejected, they have attacked and consumed in order for the expansion of The Eternal's will. The followers of The Eternal's will that make their home on Biesel however, are much more subdued in their activities. They tend to preach openly, trying to encourage Dionae and non-Dionae to join through words and good deeds, and never by force. Dionae police officers have been known to seek out and catch any extreme followers of the Eternal who attempt to forcefully convert or even “consume” others, the latter of which is, thankfully for everyone and the Dionae community, an extreme rarity in Biesel. Positronic brains can not yet be absorbed and their memories passed into the “Light”. Eternal followers believe that a positronic entity is like any other, however their memories have to be “viewed” instead of absorbed. Many believe that it’s only a matter of time until a technology is developed to allow positronic entities to be absorbed like any other species.

Burial and Practice
All followers of the Eternal regardless of species believe that upon death their body should be preserved and merged with a growing Dionae gestalt as quickly as possible so they might one day return to the stars and continue the eternal cycle. For followers based within Biesel this means to be consumed by "Connected to the Blossoms Beyond", an Argus sized Dionae and leader of the Eternal within Biesel. If this is not possible then absorption by any Dionae gestalt is preferable. Outside of Biesel space, consumption by any large Dionae gestalt is acceptable.

In this way, followers of the Eternal also believe they are preserved within the gestalt as memories and emotions. As long as they are remembered and have been merged, followers of the Eternal believe they live on within the gestalt.

The Eternal faith’s symbols originate as audio frequencies or “songs”. Non Dionae members of the faith have, with guidance from Overseers, “translated” many symbols into a visual format for non-Dionae. Those thoughts, feelings and symbols that are not able to be translated are “sung” to the faithful, with non-Dionae learning to understand and even sing these “symbols'' themselves. Key "songs" of the Eternal:

The Song of the Eternal

The song of the symbol representing the Eternal and the faith in general. It sounds like ‘’a soft, intoxicating melody which rises to an emotional crescendo before softly drifting away.’’ The Song of Energy

The song of the symbol representing energy, birth and action. It sounds like ‘’an intense melody building into an aggressive crescendo before abruptly ending.”

The Song of Essence

The song of the symbol representing essence and strength. It sounds like “a long, strong melody slowly rising to a high note before softly drifting away.”

The Song of Greeting

The song of the emotion associated with a pleasant greeting. It sounds like “a brief, colorful melody.”

The Song of Light

The song of the symbol representing light, wisdom and nourishment. It sounds like “a loud, operatic melody which seems to travel upwards then downwards in pitch before softly drifting away.”

The Song of Love

The song of the emotion associated with a both romantic and platonic love. It sounds like “a soft, angelic melody that seems to drift through the air before softly ending.”

The Song of Mourning

The song of the emotion associated with both mourning the dead and mourning general deep loss. It sounds like “a strong, keening melody which slowly drifts into silence.”

'''In game, these audio symbols can be “sung” using the chat command “!” and copying everything from “a” in the song’s sound description. For example, “!sings a soft, intoxicating melody which rises to an emotional crescendo before softly drifting away.”'''

Leadership
The de facto leadership of the faith is made up of Argus sized and larger gestalts which commune with one another to philosophise about the nature of reality and the faith within it. In the known galaxy the current “head” of the faith is ‘Connected to the Blossoms Beyond’, an Argus gestalt living within the Eternal Temple of Biesel, who communicates with the ancient gestalts in deep space. Overseers make up the equivalent of the priesthood of the Eternal faith. Overseers work alongside the large Argus gestalts, primarily Connected to the Blossoms Beyond, to relay any important messages to the congregation and largely to act as mentors and trainers, passing on their knowledge to the followers of the Eternal. Most if not all Overseers are experts in other fields, often working in different roles whilst acting as an Overseer so that they might better meet with and pass on messages to the faithful. Most Overseers tend to be Dionae but it is possible for a committed non-Dionae to become one. By virtue of the audio symbology of the Eternal non-Dionae Overseers tend to be good singers. On station, an Overseer might work as, say, a medical doctor training other medical staff whilst also acting as an Overseer for the Eternal.

Lexicon
Key words and phrases of the Eternal which have made their way into Dionae culture on Biesel:

Void - Means nothingness. To be "returned to the void" is negative and implies a being or thing is no longer part of the eternal cycle. It has completely ceased to exist in any form. “The Void comes/calls” or just “The Void” is often said by Dioane and Eternal followers to mean “something bad is going to happen”, “what you are doing is going to have a dangerous outcome for you” or “I don’t like where this is going.”

Young Star - A Dionae who is on the path to becoming a star. This could mean through consumption of biomass but usually implies a scholar who is "absorbing" knowledge. A Dione scientist might be referred to as a "young star".

Eternal Cycle - The Eternal Cycle. Refers to the cycle of life and death.

The Blood Eternal
Followed largely by the Viscerabelt cluster and more unsavory, aggressive Dionae. The Blood Eternal is a more violent interpretation of the Eternal, represented by a blood red icon of the Eternal with a bloody maw.

Followers of the Blood Eternal are largely identical to their normal counterparts with one key difference: they prefer the consumption of flesh and blood to gain knowledge unlike regular followers of the Eternal who's pursuit of knowledge is largely based around standard scholarly learning.

Blood Eternal followers tend to decorate their temples with blood and gore as well as perform live sacrifices to the Eternal. An unsavory practice that tends to offend the sensibilities of other species hence their unofficial “banishment” to the belt.

Normal followers of the Eternal tend to view Blood Eternal followers as somewhat illogical due to the fact that they often seem to waste blood in their rituals. Blood Eternal followers believe they're taking the Eternals' teaching to their logical conclusion - to consume everything where possible, disregarding the normal Eternal followers’ criticisms out of hand as “a lack of understanding.” The vast majority of the Blood Eternal followers are still sensible with their consumption - hunting animals, purchasing or at the very worst, stealing blood and flesh. The Blood Maw is the largest temple in the Viscerabelt and the known galaxy. Essentially a hollow asteroid coated in red, glistening Dioane biomass. The Blood Maw is in the process of constructing its own Dioane communication spire. Key "songs" of the Blood Eternal: The Song of Sacrifice

The song which represents sacrifice to the Eternal, death and feasting. It sounds like ‘’a bass boosted, howling dirge which ends in a bone rattling crescendo.”