Zoat, the Infernal People (Zz - oat)

WIP for the On the Shoulders of Giants Community Challenge.
This article may look like crap and obviously not look complete, but this is as best as I could get in the last few hours of the competition while running on very little sleep.
Eventually, this will be edited...

At the beginning of the Zoat Era (ZE), the first two infernals came together to begin populating their species and creating a home within the Void. The zoat began their community by creating a new culture, starting the future influence of the vampiric culture, which eventually split into three factions.
The zoats were first discovered by Bavara, the Moon, shortly after banishing Vavheia, the Dark and Vikeyr, the Black Hole, far from one another. Quickly, the zoats had to flee deep into the Void to escape the dangerous wrath of the celestials. From there, the zoats began building their civilization and erecting a culture devoted to their birth creators.

First Borns

by Amelia Nite (Artbreeder)

Lucifer, the Light

Species: Infernal Vampire
Age: Unknown

Lucifer is the first infernal to be born and the sole creator of the zoats. Alongside their twin sister, Morgana, they found a way to walk among the mortals by "possessing" a dying mortal and becoming one of the first vampires in the universe. Lucifer has five children with Morgana, one being Vladimir Tepes, who went searching for them after their disappearance in the 1360s EoL. Currently, they have yet to be found.

by Amelia Nite (Artbreeder)

Morgana, the Reckoning

Species: Infernal Vampire
Age: Unknown

Morgana was born the second infernal and the younger twin to Lucifer, their lover. When they became vampires, Morgana started building the Minuianto Imperiuo and ruled with Lucifer beside them. They had five children together, one being Vladimir Tepes. After Lucifer was captured, Morgana was beside themself with grief, letting their eldest child, Azazel, take the throne while the search for Lucifer went underway.

Government & Laws

Theocracy

As the fundamental structures of their civilization were formed, the zoats elected a leader — or Commander — and thus, Ardia was chosen to lead the people and establish a set of laws and whatever else was needed to run a group of people. With influence weighing heavily upon Ardia's shoulders, the civilization began to crumble, so the commander gathered their most religious subjects and delegated authority to them.This new group was permitted to use religious ideology to determine the laws and customs of the civilization, leaving little to no distinction between scriptural laws and legal codes.

Political Ideals

The zoat believe they should get the right to voice their opinions to the Fates, regardless of what the other celestials think. With Commander Ardia leading the zoat, there is room for people to come forward and seek council.

Religion and Spirituality

All zoat worship Vavheia and Vikeyr, seeing them as the reason they exist in the first place. Some zoat give thanks to the Fates for bringing Vavheia and Vikeyr into being while also believing that Bavara, the Moon, is manipulating them.

Legacy

Over time, the first two born of the zoats came together and sought a way to walk among mortals, actively talking to them and showing them that infernals were not evil. This brought forth the creation of vampires, who chose to start their own culture based upon certain ideologies of the zoats. The zoats' belief in Vavheia's innocence pushed the vampires to create the Church of Darkness. While the vampiric communities grew and their styles changed multiple times over the centuries, they never turned away from believing in Vavheia and damning the other celestials for betraying them and casting their lineage as monsters without giving them a chance.
Throughout time, other cultures have accepted the ways of the zoats, sometimes being remarked on as Satanic worshippers. In many cultures on Earth, blood witches, warlocks, and witches are among the people who get called evil and are told their are going to Hell for studying or practicing any form of dark religion. Humans who worship the devil are said to be the worst of their kind.

Table of Contents

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Quick Facts

Descendant Ethnicities:

Itudean
Minuiantoan
Tong-ilian

Encompassed Species:

Infernal

Leader:

Ardia

Leader Rank:

Commander

Related Organizations:

Church of Darkness

Capital:

The Void

Languages Spoken:

Common
Infernal Tongue

Related Timeline:

History of the Zoat

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Naming Traditions

Feminine Names:

Frizi
Kuikas

Masculine Names:

Aven
Grult

Unisex Names:

Azel
Laen

Family Names:

The Zoat do not use surnames.

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Other Notes

Beauty Ideals:

Even as the zoats are nonbinary, they sometimes have feminine or masculine looks to their appearance. Neither type affect the mating process throughout the species. In other words, beauty is the least important aspect of the zoats.

Gender Ideals:

All zoats are considered nonbinary and do not need gender. When they possess another sentient being, they are not defined by their host's gender and still use "they/them" or "ze/zem" pronouns.

Relationship Ideals:

Zoats do not see relationships as a need to mate and grow their population, though it is encouraged to reproduce. Instead, they focus on building companionships with family, friends, significant others, and others of their culture.

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