Asathai

The Asathai are a race native to the planet Ilith in the Verion Cluster. They, along with the Dwerin and the Krath, are one of the three member races of the Union. The Asathai are known to be powerful telepaths, with the majority at the middle of the ESPER Scale. Some, however, develop powers beyond telepathic communication and mind reading, becoming capable of mind control, telekinesis, and other powers.

History
Asathai recorded history began around 1500 years ago. Not many noteworthy events occurred until around 300 years ago, when a large world war began. It ended with the decimation of much of Ilith's ecosystem, causing a nuclear winter. The Asathai united and soon developed space travel in an effort to escape their homeworld. They colonized the rest of their solar system, however their period of unity soon ended and the Interplanetary Wars erupted between the colonies. Far more violent than any war the Asathai had ever experienced, it resulted in the destruction of much of their advanced technology, setting them back several decades. Most colonies were destroyed, but a few managed to survive, becoming prosperous societies. Life on Ilith began to improve as the nuclear winter ended and the Asathai regained much of their technology. The Valarr colony became the most advanced, and regained space travel before the others. Most of the other colonies were far behind, with Ilith being the only credible opposition to the Valarr's conquest. United under one banner, the Asathai prospered for decades.

100 years ago, they began to explore beyond their solar system using spacecraft that travelled at reletavistic velocities, colonizing several planets in other systems. In one of these systems, they met the Dwerin, a race who would soon grow to become their closest allies. They encountered the Dwerin Nomad Fleet, and soon opened negotiations with them. The Dwerin traded them the secret of faster than light travel, and the Asathai began to further expand. Unfortunately, however, their expansion was halted when they faced a new, external threat. The Itana, a powerful and advanced race, saw the Asathai's expansion as a "desecration" of the uninhabited worlds of the galaxy, and began exterminating Asathai colonies on the fringes of their space. Asathai ships were not built for combat, and fell quickly. The Itana were also old enemies of the Dwerin, who sought to exterminate them for similar reasons. The two races formed an alliance to fight the Itana, but were losing to their superior technology and ships. In a desperate search for a safe haven, the Asathai sent several ships into the unknown regions of the galaxy, where they awoke something frightening. The Krath, an insectoid race of warriors, had carved out a small empire for themselves. The Asathai attempted to open diplomatic relations, but they were discovered by the Itana, who sent a large fleet to attack the Krath world. The planet was lightly defended, with only a small force of ships for defense. The Asathai gave their lives to help protect the Krath world, and the Krath saw the Asathai as worthy of their friendship.

The union of Dwerin, Asathai, and Krath managed to drive the Itana out of their space, but were still doomed to loose to them in the long run. A joint task force managed to capture an Itana frigate. They Dwerin reverse engineered its technology, and distributed it to the other members of the alliance. With their improved ships, the alliance defeated the Itana, scattering the last few remnants of their civilization. Victory came at a heavy price, however. The races lost many colonies, ships, resources, and people in the war, setting them back in expansion significantly. The Asathai were reduced to their homeworld, with most of their other colonies in their home system being destroyed in a massive Itana attack.

The races kept close diplomatic ties after the end of the war. 50 years ago, on the 20th anniversary of the war's beginning, the races unified under one government. They serve as the Union's diplomats, merchants, and scientists.

Physiology and Appearance
The Asathai are tall, reptillian-like creatures. Their average height is 6 feet, or 1.8 meters. Their bodies are covered in scales. Male Asathai have gray to black scales, and frills on the backs of their heads. The frills can be folded and unfolded, and are usually dark red. Female Asathai have lighter gray scales. All Asathai have patterns of black or gray on their scales. They have five fingers and toes, which end in short claws. They have two rows of sharp teeth and forked tongues. Their pupils are slits, and their common eye colors are yellow, orange, and red. They have no tails.

Asathai are fairly weak compared to the other races in the Union. The average Asathai is only about as strong as the average Terran, usually slightly less. They make up for their physical weakness by being powerful telepaths, and telepathically strong Asathai are often seen on the battlefield serving as support troops, using their power of mental suggestion to improve morale for their allies and to damage it for their enemies.