Gentlesophonts:
The following Sophont Brief on the Aeroi first appeared in *Melbourne
Times* #2.
The Aeroi were the first extraterrestrial race encountered by Terrans. Aeroi
civilization is apparently not much older than Terran although the Aeroi did
achieve jump drive, with its subsequent interstellar expansion, several hundred
years prior to any Terran state. In a sense, because it was an Aeroi ship that
first discovered a Terran settlement, the Aeroi actually 'encountered' Terrans.
Physiology: The Aeroi are descended from arboreal, air-breathing grazer stock.
A typical Aeroi measures 1.2 meters in height and masses about 35 kilograms.
Aeroi are able to 'stand' to a height of approximately 1.6 meters and their
'wingspan' measures nearly 2.6 meters. Their coloring tends to be a variety of
shades from pale yellow through a deep orange. They are hairless but their
tough skin provides good protection. Aeroi are exceptionally agile both on the
ground, their primary environment, and in the air. Aeroi flight capability is
limited primarily to gliding although actual 'powered' flight is possible under
certain conditions (dense atmospheres, lower gravity). Aeroi are limited to
speeds of 20 kph on the ground but have been known to approach 100 kph in
flight.
There are two Aeroi sexes with physical differences limited to the sexual
organs. Aeroi young are born after a gestation period of six months encased in
a hard-shelled envelope somewhat similar to the eggs of Terran avians.
Multiple births are extremely rare. The young are 'hatched' from this envelope
after a period of two months. Females were originally responsible for the
envelope-stage young while males generally cared for the hatchlings. These
traditional roles have become obsolete with the rise of technological
civilization.
Aeroi reach sexual maturity in their early twenties at which point they
generally leave their parents' care. Aeroi bond in exclusive female-male pairs
although these pairs seldom last beyond the period required for child rearing.
Both Aeroi females and males remain fertile into their early fifties. Life
expectancy commonly exceeds 120 years.
Aeroi posses exceptional visual (extending into the infrared range), auditory
(extending beyond Human high-frequency ranges) and taste senses but have no
olfactory organs. A pair of eyes are located at the front of the head, as
is the mouth. An ear is located on both sides of the head. Breathing
orifices are located in this region as well. Tactile senses are somewhat
limited due to the protective nature of the epidermal layer.
Aeroi manipulative appendages, which hang from the lower portion of the
abdomen, are highly agile and posses generally higher strength than those of
Humans. The 'wing' appendages also terminate in manipulative members although
these possess less strength.Their 'wings' are also quite agile - giving them
great maneuverability in the air despite being limited to gliding flight most
of the time. Aeroi utilize the 'wing' appendages for ambulation and are also
quite mobile on the ground.
Aeroi speech organs are able to produce most Human sounds and both Dolphin and
Human speech is well within range of Aeroi hearing. Much of Aeroi speech
though, occurs beyond the range of Human hearing but not of Dolphin hearing.
This allows Aeroi to communicate to Humans if necessary but also allows
protected communication in the presence of Humans.
History: Aeroi sentience is attributed to changing environmental factors that
lead to decreasing food supplies for early Aeroi groups. The gradual decline
in available vegetation lead to the need for increased cooperation among
far-ranging Aeroi groups in locating sources of food. Family bonds dominated
most groups with numbers ranging from 12 to 30 individuals. As the
environmental conditions continued to worsen, the need for manipulation of the
environment lead provided a further impetus for intellectual development.
The deteriorating environmental conditions led to increased conflict among
early Aeroi groups. The scarce grazing areas though also served to maintain
great physical distances between groups. Conflict became more 'strategic' in
nature and was focused on migration and grazing patterns rather than actual
confrontation between groups. Records of violence between Aeroi groups does
not survive in the historical record.
Eventually, groups learned that conflict could be managed. Cooperation, in the
form of mutually beneficial arrangements, became increasingly common. Conflict
still exists but takes the form of competition in the formulation of
arrangements.
Aeroi groups grew into clan or tribal organizations but mobility remained
important. Even though technological advancement and improved environmental
manipulation have decreased the need for mobility it remains quite important in
the Aeroi psyche. These 'tribal' affiliations also remain quite strong.
The advent of technological civilization led to increasing mobility in the
search for resources and to competition among tribal groups. This served as a
primary driver in the Aeroi move off-world and, with the discovery of jump
drive, into interstellar space.
The first record of Aeroi contact with Terrans is with worlds settled from the
Ehime Prefecture late in the 29th Century. Since that time Aeroi economic
interests have expanded through most of the Colonies Sphere. Until recently,
much of this period was characterized by intense economic conflict with the
Meren.
Psychology: The Aeroi are highly individualistic but are also strongly
influenced by tribal bonds. Competition among tribal groups is almost
instinctual and the importance of individual contributions to this conflict is
widely recognized. Aeroi can be ruthless to those outside their own tribal
group but are exceptionally compassionate to tribal members.
While the Aeroi seem to thrive on conflict they find violence as abhorrent.
This is not so much a revulsion toward violence as it is a recognition of
violence as being blunt and inefficient tool. In a sense, Aeroi see violence
as 'beneath' them.
Aeroi see conflict and competition as natural methods of providing improvement
and innovation. The idea of cooperation in an environment free from
competition is completely alien to the Aeroi.
To a certain extent, the Aeroi see outsiders as natural. Aeroi tribal groups
have always seen each other as outsiders. While this has prevented a cohesive
racial attitude from developing it has provided the Aeroi with an advantage in
dealing with non-Aeroi sophonts. They see non-Aeroi as no more 'alien' than
other Aeroi tribes.
Society: In modern society, Aeroi tribal groups are generally organized around
some sort of commercial enterprise. These groups are often insular and because
of this highly diversified in their activities. The Aeroi respect for the
individual leads to a great deal of tolerance for diversity within the group.
Each tribal group provides its own governmental structures. In this sense
there is no Aeroi government per se. Instead a variety of organizations, all
of them Aeroi, compete in a broad range of activities. One might even say that
there is no Aeroi society, but rather a collection of Aeroi societies.
Aeroi tribal entities are almost exclusively commercial ventures. These
entities are fierce economic competitors both among themselves and with
non-Aeroi groups. The Aeroi seem to have some difficulty interpreting the role
of Terran governmental entities. For this reason the boundaries between
economic and political competition are often blurred from the perspective of
Terrans.
The Aeroi distaste for violence is apparent in that Aeroi military and security
organizations are almost exclusively staffed by non-Aeroi. In general, Aeroi
military forces tend to be small and conflicts limited. The Aeroi prefer, and
are usually able, to resolve conflicts by non-military means.
*****
Happy Travelling,
David Johnson
Houston, Texas, USA
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End of TML Nightly
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