Ahk-krat-rahz(only a close representation that humans can pronounce) is from a long-lived and intelligent race of apex predators that has been a member state of the Valnaur Empire for a very long time. While most people tend to assume the Zkz'Karnis are insects due to their hexipedal, carapace covered bodies and mandibled faces, but are actually more a cross between a theropod and an amphibious crustacean, though using either of those words to describe one within earshot may get you killed. Despite their average size of ten feet, with a length of fifteen, and a mass that makes star travel somewhat obnoxious for them, they took to it like Frzi-zashs to liquid nourishment. Tool use is possible because of both
very fine motor skills with mandibles and a pair of dangling forelimbs located just beneath where the long neck meets the main body. The head is balanced out by a stubby tail, developed in evolution for that singular purpose. Their heads are generally covered in elaborate crests except for immediately after mating season, though the females tend to keep them on their entire lives. While their carapace makes them impossible to bring down for most of the other species on their homeworld, it turns out that larger calibre modern arms, and especially energy weapons, have little issue killing them. The first years after their conquering by the Empire were particularly difficult, as they do not have many hatchlings during any successful breeding.
Ahk's carapace is mottled with light and dark browns, reds, and greys. Scarring across her thick carapace from multiple sources she does not discuss shines like the inside of an abalone shell, from minerals deposits that cause its growth, and give her a grizzled appearance. Unusual for her species, there are no clan markings painted onto her sides or armoured legs, and she wears no crest at all, leaving the top of her head bare except for the ridged carapace plates there.
The Zkz'Karnis are a caste system society, mostly based on logic and merit. However, Ahk was unfortunate enough to be hatched to the lowest class on the planet, those that are sand-coloured. While originally because food was scare and their colouring made it difficult to hunt well in the jungles, the stigma has stuck with this particular caste so much that they are actually being bred out slowly, as it is rare that they find a mate with their normally green brethren.
Seeing no opportunity for a mate nor a good life on her homeworld, Ahk studied hard at university, in topics as diverse as engineering, art, sociology, and archaeology, once she found out that her university was one of the best for xenobiology, and offered a transfer program to other systems, she knew she had found her answer. Thirty years later, she is a very accomplished xenobiologist and surgeon, capable of performing life saving techniques and stopping virulent plagues in most of the known system. However, no hospital has so far been willing to hire a giant, flesh-eating insect for their medical programs, and she had to do her entire residencies by virtual reality interfaces. To pay for the extremely costly education, Ahk has had to rely on her other well-developed skillset, programming. She is capable of developing tools for several of the most universal languages, and has developed her own assistant AI for dealing with diagnoses and day-to-day problems encountered with communications. The species is not capable of naturally speaking Humanitas, and must rely on translators, something the Empire has used as an economic dampener on their growth by making them prohibitively expensive. Ahk has gotten around this by making her own.
But programming is not allowing her to catch up on her bills, and criminal activity is not in nature. The Empire would make her a grunt were she to try and join the military, as no other species seems to recognise that the Zkz'Karnis are actually smarter than the beasts they look like. So she has put out her name into the mercenary circles, hoping that some enterprising leader will take a chance on one of the more accomplished doctors in the sector. Others were swift to point her to the planet of Taenarum, and seeing no other option, she has added to her already considerable debt to make it there and set herself up in the tiniest possible rooms while awaiting with trepidation for someone to hire her despite her lack of combat experience.
Name Pronounciation: awk-CRAYT-raj tank-izj-RAJ
Actual physical dimensions for Ahk, for easy referenceHeight: 8'4", capable of lowering her head down to 6'10" to fit through human sized passages with difficulty.
Length: 13'
width: 9' 6", legs can squeeze in to fit corridors as small as 6'6" with difficulty.
Forelimbs have six digits with four joints each, that fold up into pockets on the carapace for protection.
Ends of legs are blunt, but capable of driving into wood for climbing purposes, though too heavy to climb very high. The two foremost legs are thicker to allow for burrowing.
The mouth is framed by four mandibles with a light carapace plating, capable of finger-like manipulation. Tipped with tooth-ish protrusions.
The head is very much like a Tyrannosaurus, though plated with carapace.
The species evolved on a high gravity planet, so low-grav environs tend to be extremely uncomfortable.
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Closest image I could find.
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