The Sooni, more than any other race, have a talent for manipulation. Whether or not this is a positive or negative trait is about how they use it. The Sooni do not see manipulation as an inherently negative thing; it is a tool, one which (on average) the Sooni are very adept at using.
Individualism isn't as valued among the Sooni as it is among other races (Humanity especially). Because of this, there is a cultural bias towards uniformity among the Sooni. This cultural uniformity has given them a sense of common purpose that has made them incredibly dangerous as a group. They respond to threats as a people, with every member of the race doing their part to work towards their common goal.
The Sooni are a modified version of humanity, created by The Overseers (or, in the Sooni's language, "Àrdain" (AHR-dain)). They have spent the last five hundred years infiltrating humanity and sowing seeds of discord among the races. They want nothing more than to prove themselves worthy of the return of their Gods.
One hundred and thirty thousand years ago, The Overseers discovered humanity. They found that our race, much like their own, had an innate ability to use Focus. [Humanity's][humanity's] abilities were raw, untrained, and overlapping. They saw humanity as chaotic and young, but full of promise. After observing us for a few generations, they selected the strongest focus users from our population and abducted them. They experimented, tweaking our genetic code and creating a subspecies. They called this race "sooni", or "young ones".
Interestingly, the word "sooni" in the Overseers' language means "young ones", but in NorAellian, it means "gifted". Ths similarity most likely isn't coincidental; it could be that the Sooni or Overseers have had some contact with the NorAellians in their past.
The Overseers treated the Sooni as children. They gave them their own world (in the Triangulum Galaxy), and encouraged the creation of their own culture, while helpfully providing technological assistance and education. The Sooni were given access to space travel, but were only allowed to establish a small set of colonies. Any attempts to explore beyond the border of space they were allotted resulted in the complete disappearance of the ship and its crew. While The Overseers would never state what happened, or why the ship disappeared, it became understood (correctly or incorrectly) that this was the punishment for disobeying The Overseers' will.
Every world that the Sooni colonized was completely barren, without any native fauna or flora. Earth fauna and flora were imported by The Overseers, and the ecology of each planet was carefully cultivated. Each world was crafted almost as a work of art; they all had their own unique beauty. The Sooni were grateful for these worlds, viewing each as a unique gift to be cherished. They were diligent in their preservation of each world, secretly hoping for praise. (The Overseers never gave any.)
The Sooni soon came to worship The Overseers as gods. They prayed to them, took everything they said as an edict, and viewed them as all knowing. At first, The Overseers used this influence to guide the Sooni, but after several thousand years, the Sooni were stifling themselves. Worship was discouraged, but it was nearly impossible to stop. The Sooni interpreted The Overseers' wishes as signs of their unworthiness, or an admonition to be more humble.
One day, The Overseers withdrew from the Sooni. All contact was ended abruptly, and the Sooni were left to fend for themselves. There was a great social upheaval and infighting as different clans blamed each other for The Overseers' disappearance. Once actual fighting broke out, it was brief but devastating. Entire cities were burned to the ground, as millions died. Two leaders emerged, one fanatical in their worship of The Overseers, believing their withdrawal to be because of the Sooni's sins. The other, a more moderate warrior from an unknown tribe, believed that The Overseers were more guides than gods, and the withdrawal was a sign the wanted the Sooni to forge their own path. In an effort to stem the bloodshed, both leaders agreed to meet for a single definitive battle. Whomever won would have been chosen as correct by The Overseers. Days before the battle a great Sooni visionary with the gift of future sight predicted that the descendants of winner of the battle would save the Sooni in their hour of greatest need, and usher in the return of The Overseers.
The day of the battle arrived and the two warriors met in an open field. They stood there for minutes, each reaching out with their Focus, trying to overpower the other. Finally, they came to a single, devastating blow. Right as the two were running towards each other to attack, the child of the moderate leader ran into the arena for some reason even she couldn't explain. The two foes struck and annihilated each other. The only things that remained were a several hundred foot crater, and the small child. However, she was changed; her hair was a bright fiery red-orange and her eyes were a glowing orange where they had previously been blue. Because the offspring of one of the leaders has survived, she was declared the victor, and heralded as the Chosen of The Overseers.
The 'chosen' girl quickly proved her abilities far surpassed either of the previous leaders. Before she was even technically considered an adult, she had eclipsed even the greeted Focus masters of the Sooni. The firstborn daughter of each of her descendants have always been marked by incredibly Focus abilities and the same hair/eye color. While all her descendent have been incredibly powerful, it seems the firstborn daughters are even more gifted.
It did not take long for even the most zealous of Sooni to agree to a cease in hostilities. (This created the first of the Sooni's Great Laws, "A Sooni must never intentionally harm or kill their own kind." This would later be canonized in The Heresy Doctrine.)
It was only a few years after The Withdrawal when The Grey attacked one of the Sooni's border colonies. The Grey had engaged all species they'd come across in war, eliminating most, and they descended on the Sooni without mercy. Unprepared, it was only because of the Sooni's Focus training that they were able to keep from being completely eradicated in the initial attacks.
The war between The Grey and the Sooni lasted just over a decade, with the Sooni colonies being the primary battleground. Their ecology, fragile as it was, ended up being completely destroyed in the first few months. The Grey drove the Sooni back to their home world, but were stopped by the Sooni offering a conditional surrender. The offered to pledge themselves to The Grey, offering to be used as infiltrators, special soldiers and tacticians. The condition they asked for, however, was for their final world to be left untouched, and for The Grey not to leave a presence on this one world. They explained that they considered it a holy world, and for anyone but one of their own to set foot on it would be considered a defilement.
The Grey found the idea of a clearly defeated enemy offering a conditional surrender to be intriguing, and the hubris of their request amused The Grey. The Sooni had proven themselves capable, and The Grey were fascinated by their "magicks" (aka Focus). So, they accepted, believing they could always conquer the Sooni later, if they proved untrustworthy.
The next several centuries found the Sooni gaining a reputation as one of the most feared tools of The Grey. In true Sooni fashion, they embraced and encouraged this view, all the while increasing their influence and power among their captors. It took them three thousand years, but they eventually turned on their captors, reversing their enslavement without a single engagement. A few choice assassinations and slow indoctrination and The Grey were ready to serve the Sooni with the fervor that could only come from a race of zealots.
Over the next millennia, the Sooni expanded through their galaxy, using subterfuge and manipulation to enslave or conquer every race they came across. Many of them were more technologically advanced, but the Sooni were the only race of Focus users, and that was the only advantage they needed. their abilities were unknown and unexpected. They used honor and deception as separate but equally useful tools, priding themselves on rarely being spiteful, and always being in control. It took millennia, but they forged an empire out of the races they conquered. The Sooni Council was formed, a governing body of the most influential of their race. They bent their will towards a single goal: the continued search for evidence of where their Gods had gone.
The Sooni over the millennia had continued their worship of The Overseers. For a small sect of them, it bordered on all consuming. These religious Zealots gained power and control over The Grey, appealing to their nihilistic nature. Due to their influence among The Grey, the zealots gained influence in the Council. Guided by their fanatical worship, the Sooni scoured their galaxy, looking for evidence of their lost Gods. Failing to find any, they started looking at neighboring galaxy for evidence. In this search, they managed to rediscover humanity.
The Sooni were both fascinated and disappointed with their ancestors. They had many beliefs about humanity, and struggled to reconcile them with the actual truth. Many Sooni (particularly the Zealots) wanted to destroy humanity; after all, hadn't The Overseers created them for a reason? And wasn't that reason to improve upon a flawed design? Others wanted to train humanity, help them find their way through the chaos of their untapped potential. This divide furthered the rift between the zealots and the non-zealots.
Those against the destruction of humanity pointed out that while The Overseers had created the Sooni, a "perfected" version of humanity, they had left humanity untouched, going so far as to move the Sooni to another galaxy entirely. Clearly, they did not want Humanity harmed. The debate grew so intense that the two leaders of the opposing sides came to blows, breaking the Sooni's first Great Law. Hundreds were injured, and both leaders were killed. This lead the Sooni to the creation of the "Heresy Doctrine". It set forth an agreed upon 'plan' of The Overseers for the Sooni, and established what could be considered Heresy, and what could not. It was written by both sides as a compromise. One of it's core tenets stated that "any act done by The Overseers could not be undone by the Sooni". This meant the sparing of humanity could not be undone. However, the zealots were careful to ensure it did not preclude anything else. Over time it became simply known simply as 'The Doctrine', it has become the guiding set of laws and rules of the Sooni. All Sooni are expected to obey it, and failure to do so means death.
The Sooni engaged the other races near humanity, influencing them so that they could never pose a threat. They were kept at war with each other, with several races outright annihilating each other before humanity had even left their planet. Over tens of thousands of years, the Sooni waited, and watched, keeping humanity safe, and refusing to influence them. While the zealots still hated humanity's existence, their influence had suffered greatly in the creation of The Doctrine. They bided their time, content with keeping humanity relatively isolated.
That all changed after First Contact with the NorAellians. There was no way, in The Council's eyes to prevent contact with the NorAellians without influencing them. It was seen as unfortunate, but unavoidable that humanity would encounter another race.
After the formation of The League and The Terrans, and the war resulting from Second Contact, the Zealots felt this was the opening they needed; without the Council's knowledge, they started influencing both major human governments. After decades of war between both sides, the zealots managed to convince the Council intervention was required. Zealots are allowed to control the manner and pace at which the influence is to happen.
The Archigos Experiment landed a small group of humans at the edge of Sooni space. Their ship crash landed on one of the original colony worlds, with the crew either dead or dying. Alastair McKenzie, Captain of the experimental vessel, was rescued by a group of Sooni still living on the planet. Through an interrogation by the Council. He was found to have a great deal of Focus potential. This sent the Council into an uproar, and they spent several months debating what to do with these humans. During that time, Nyana, the leader of the people on the colony began secretly training McKenzie, despite it going against the Council. While training, the two developed a relationship, something that flew against one of the core tenets of the Sooni. At the same time, she helped McKenzie repair (and more importantly, arm) his crashed ship. As they spent time together, he learned that this group of Sooni were living on this colony world to protest the Council's decision not to rebuild their original colonies, instead leaving them the semi-barren wastes the Grey had turned them into.
Eventually the Council declared both the arrival of the humans and the medical attention given to them heresy, and the world, once a holy place, had to be purged, along with everyone on the surface. This was the first time The Doctrine's highest punishment has been invoked, and it's application stirred up even more support for the heretics. McKenzie, having been preparing for the worst, helped the heretics to escape to the Archigos. Despite the Sooni sending ships, McKenzie managed to get the ship off the planet's surface and escape. In doing so he destroyed one of their ships, marking the first time in millennia a Sooni had been involved directly in the killing of another Sooni.
The ship and its crew of Sooni and Humans spent the next year running and hiding from the Sooni, before managing to repair its experimental drive and return to League Space. During this time, the Sooni onboard declared themselves The Heretics, and vowed to stop the Council's plans to invade humanity. They believed that The Doctrine was wrong, and that attempting to understand the minds of their Gods was missing the entire point of the Sooni's creation.
Upon returning to League Space, The Heretics helped establish the Corona Noir Ki Institute, and started a program to bring human technology up to a point where it could conceivably repel a Sooni lead invasion. Under the guise of an independent research organization they started selling their technology at low prices, without any mechanisms to prevent reverse engineering. Competitors quickly arose, but CNK continued their poor business practices as if they hadn't noticed. Quickly, both The League and The Terrans started funding them, in exchange for exclusive access to their research. (Neither side was aware that the other had made the same deal, and CNK kept it that way.) As part of the deal, CNK was no longer allowed to sell their breakthroughs. Instead, (and without the knowledge of either government) they spread their breakthroughs across multiple products, hiding them in plain sight.
This new race is biologically very similar to Homo Sapiens, but has much stronger, innate Focus abilities. Most of the physiological differences are to brain structure, the nervous system, and the chemical composition of various neurotransmitters. A Sooni without training has reflexes a thousand times that of a standard human and can fully process sensory input nearly as fast. Several unique neuron structures use localized quantum tunneling effects to bring their nerve conduction velocity to 30 - 40% the speed of light.
In addition to increased reflexes, Sooni have longer lifespans than humans. Without Focus, a Sooni can live to be between 200 and 270 years old. They are not suspectable to most genetic diseases, or age-related afflictions. They are still able to get bacterial or viral invections like a normal human, and diseases like cancer are more rare, but still can occur.
The Overseers bred the Sooni specifically for their Focus abilities. Because of this, all Sooni are inherently able to use Focus, though not necessarily well. It still takes training for a Sooni to be able to use any disciplines, however, all Sooni are able to do basic things, like improving their reflexes, healing wounds faster, and in general just living longer.
All Sooni are trained from birth to use Focus. This training starts with the ability to harness their willpower. They are each given a carved stone (often from a loved one) and told to increase its temperature using nothing but their will. They continue practicing this until they can raise the temperature quickly enough that the stone shatters. They are then told to collect the fragments and to not return to their training until they have managed to will the stone whole again. Those who are able to achieve this are allowed to continue their training. Those who never have will often be given the moniker 'shattered stones' or simply 'shattered'. Many Sooni who give up on mastering Focus have the pieces of their broken stone made into jewelry or simply keep them in a place of honor.
All Sooni are born with an inherent ability to use Focus and through training all Sooni are able to perform basic Focus. However, most Sooni are never able to reassemble the stone. These Sooni still have the intuitive, baked-in Focus abilities common to all Sooni, but they are unremarkable. This is considered "normal" and "average" for a Sooni. Not every one is a Focus master.
From an early age, Sooni are encouraged to train with as many weapons from whatever race or time period they desire. Most opt for bladed weapons of some kind, while others invent their own weapons and learn to perfect them. Not only does this give them excellent mastery over broad categories of weapons in general, it helps them find what will become their signature weapon.
Once they have picked not just the type of weapon, but the specific weapon they wish to have for the rest of their lives, they spend the next several decades training with it, honing their skills with it, and learning to use it as an extension of themselves. Eventually, once they feel they have grown with their chosen weapon as much as they can, they begin a special ceremony where the pour as much will into their weapon as they can, destroying it.
Once the weapon is destroyed, all training for that Sooni is stopped. The remains of the weapon are held by a trusted friend. The trainee is no longer allowed to resume until after they have been able to manifest the weapon. Both the manifested weapon and the fragments of it's original self must be present for the test to be considered passed. From now on, that Sooni can manifest that weapon whenever they wish and it's abilities far exceed it's prior mundane existence.
The similarity to the stone trial is not unintentional. The stones are a lesser form of practice for forming a Velyki weapon. Some Sooni can manifest their weapons in hours or days. Some take years or decades. Others never manage it. They are often referred to as 'bladeless'.
Those who are able to pass their first test are then pushed until they find their limits. They are trained in the disciplines they have aptitude for, and are encouraged to continue their training for their entire lives. Once a Sooni reaches a certain level of Focus mastery, they are picked by an older Sooni, generally with similar disciplines. If a Sooni is not picked for mentorship, they can petition the Council, but that is viewed, however incorrectly, as an admittance that they are less skilled and of lower potential.
Once a trainee feels ready, they can challenge their mentor. The rules of the challenge are decided by the mentor, but the trainee can challenge their mentor as often as they wish. Once they defeat their mentor, they are considered a "Master" and are allowed to chose their own trainees. Masters are considered some of the most honored of all Sooni, deference frequently given to them in most situations. While not a requirement, most of the members of the Council are Masters.
Sooni society is, in general, class based. Those who have continued their Focus training are seen as above those who have not. Those who have become Masters are seen as above them, and the Council is seen as above all. Other races are viewed as 'lesser'; to Zealots they are creatures not worthy of The Overseers' attentions, to the less religious they are simply seen as pitiable, for not knowing their Gods.
Generally, in day to day life, one's class rarely comes into play. Bigotry and racism are frequent, but not ubiquitous. Each city in each colony is allowed to govern themselves, as long as no laws are seen as heretical by the Council, then they are allowed to stand and be enforced.
The Council is the ruling body of the Sooni, and they are viewed as the final authority in all matters. They are not elected, but instead pick their own members. Popularity and notoriety often play a role, but in the end it's up to the Council to govern itself.
(See Sooni Council for more information.)
Because the Sooni are an old and vastly spread apart race, there are thousands of individual cultures that have formed among their people.
Guidance: That's far too many for me to create, I'll just make the ones I need; they're not likely to be relevant in the first novel anyway.
Family is very important to most Sooni. Lineage is something one can be proud of; the ability to trace your ancestry back to one of the first Sooni created is highly desirable, and often can raise your social standing, depending on which Lineage you are a part of. However, due to Sooni lifespans, this ignores the fact that most living Sooni are actually related to all of the founding members of their race. The Overseers did not create many of their initial subjects, instead they elected to make them much more resilient to inbreeding.
It should be noted that the concept of 'incest' is different for the Sooni. Because inbreeding doesn't have the same biological connotations incest is less about blood relation, and much more about context and emotional impropriety. For example, two siblings raised together entering into a sexual relationship is viewed as incestuous, while siblings who were raised apart and meet later in life would not be. This distinction is important, as depending on lifestyle, it can be difficult to keep track of one's children, let alone grandchildren.
This underscores the truth about Sooni families. With rare exception, family is more about status than about support. If you are an unknown, unskilled Sooni, it is perfectly acceptable for you to have children with a willing partner, raise them (or not, depending on your inclinations) and then to move on once they're able to take care of themselves. For most Sooni, "family" isn't as important as "Family".
One of the most strict beliefs held by nearly all Sooni is the fact that interbreeding with other species (in particular Humans) is considered Heresy of the highest order. Any child that resulted from such a union would be considered an abomination, and it would be the duty of all Sooni to hunt down and destroy the abomination.
To the Zealots, however, any Human able to use Focus is considered an abomination, to be hunted down and destroyed.
The Sooni are, at the end of the day, the villians. Specifically, the Zealots. They set everything in motion and are the catalyst to introducing humanity to the nature of the universe.
More than that, however, they're a villain that can't be defeated. At least, not in the first book. They have a vast, galaxy-wide empire. There simply is no way to defeat them directly. Even if every Sooni in our galaxy were killed, there's still trillions of them. So while they are the "villains", they're more the backdrop upon which our defeatable villains can stand against. They are here to provide context, but not to be a problem to over come.