The Hzeel

Whenever Galactic idealists speak of the brotherhood of sentient life and the vision of a future when all species live together in harmony, someone eventually mentions the Hzeel. That makes the idealists change the subject in a hurry.

Hzeel Biology

Hzeel (the term is both singular and plural) are small humanoids with bluish-grey skin and large red eyes. Average stature is about 1.2 meters, with a few giants as tall as 1.5 meters. Despite their size they can be quite strong and are remarkably quick. Their skeletons tend to put out numerous small spurs and nodules, giving many of them a gnarled appearance.

Hzeel are warm-blooded, but not mammals. They lay eggs in clutches of two to four, feeding their infants regurgitated food. They have a relatively short lifespan; few Hzeel live past 60 standard years. They do heal rapidly from injury, and can even regenerate lost limbs.

Zeel, The Hzeel Homeworld

Once an Earthlike world slightly smaller than Earth itself, Zeel today is a scarred ruin of its former self. Devastated by the Perseids, Zeel is little more than a ball of rock incapable of supporting most forms of life. Hzeel still live in the Zeel system in orbital habitats or domed surface colonies.

Hzeel Society And Culture

Ancestral Hzeel were scavengers on the home planet, living off the kills of powerful predators. The modern Hzeel continue that way of life in technological society. The most honest Hzeel live as salvagers and scrap dealers, recovering derelict spacecraft and abandoned colonies. The definition of "derelict" or "abandoned" can get stretched pretty far, with some Hzeel assuming anything not in use is free for the taking. Other Hzeel don't even bother with the pretense, becoming outright pirates and thieves.

In their defense, the Hzeel are a homeless species. A little over 600 years ago, they had a small but thriving empire and were poised for even greater things. The chief obstacle to Hzeel dreams of conquest was the nascent Perseid Empire, located to spinward of Hzeel space. Hoping to outflank the Perseids, the Hzeel pushed aggressively coreward. They soon encountered a planet, Earth, which seemed perfect as a staging base from which to launch further assaults on Perseid space. All they had to do was conquer it - and it possessed what the Terran Empire would call ATRI 7 technology. What happened next is not entirely clear, due to the fragmentary nature of Human records and the downfall of the Hzeel. According to the most reliable Hzeel reports, their attempted invasion of Earth was thwarted by the efforts of dozens or hundreds of super powerful (possibly psionic) Humans, some armed with technology not only more advanced than ATRI 7, but also far better than the Hzeel ATRI 9 technology of the time. These Humans utterly destroyed the Hzeel invasion fleet, crippling the Hzeel military, and according to some accounts even conducted a few raids against Zeel itself.

The Humans apparently left the Hzeel to lick their wounds. But a few months later the Perseids, recognizing opportunity when they saw it, swept in to obliterate the remnants of the Hzeel fleet. Although not able to extend their empire into Hzeel space itself, the Perseids killed billions of Hzeel, completely disrupted their society, and freed all of the client species in the Hzeel Empire. The result was the end of the Hzeel as a galactic power and the virtual extinction of their culture. Today, six centuries later, only about 20 million Hzeel live in space stations and domed colonies in or near the old Zeel system. An equal number are scattered through Perseid, Mon'dabi and Terran space, and small enclaves of Hzeel exist as far off as Ackalian and Velarian territory. They have no overall government; the wealthiest member, known simply as "the Boss," usually rules most Hzeel communities.

Technology is one of the Hzeel strong points. They had a respectable ATRI 9 when they tried to conquer Earth, and eagerly adopt new technologies, even if they are not fully perfected or entirely safe. Their dispersed existence makes it hard for Hzeel to do much research, but their few scientists make up for their lack of resources with enthusiasm, daring, and a disregard for both safety and ethics. Hzeel are also skilled at adapting alien tech to their own use; their ships and stations often incorporate bits from a dozen other civilizations. Hzeel have aggressively excavated (or rather, looted) Mandaarian ruins in search of relic tech. Today most Hzeel remain ATRI 9, but those encountered in higher-tech civilizations use whatever equipment is the local standard.