"Wisdom can be found in many places, but you must always begin at home."
- Ah-Tazza's Leaf
The Beginning
Zeet-ish`Tchizik is an ancient religion of the Yam`rii, predating most of their verbal and written histories. Before the arrival of off-worlders to Huk, the Zeet-ish`Tchizik was the most common form of religion among the Yam`rii tribes. Aside from the occasional tribal wars over territory, the Yam`rii population was fairly peaceful- only consuming what was needed and respecting the balance of the natural order.
Foreigners
As other races began exploring Huk, the tribes became conflicted on how to deal with the outside threat. Those following Zeet-ish`Tchizik saw them as tricksters and hostiles, while the other religions chose to embrace them for their own knowledge. To the Zeet-ish`Tchizik, the outsiders brought disease and corruption, an obvious attempt to sway them from their beliefs. The tribes that followed Zeet-ish`Tchizik banded together to fight the aggressors, and became nomadic to avoid the superior weaponry of their opponents.
Racial Divide
After the arrival of the outsiders, the Zeet-ish`Tchizik declared the Yam`rii that followed the religion of the foreigners as heretics and traitors to their own race. Learning the customs of the invaders was considered a blasphemy to the Zeet-ish`Tchizik , and they began turning their sights to not only the invaders, but those that followed them as well.
The Zeet-ish`Tchizik became known as primitive fanatics among the rest of the population of Huk, who now outnumbered the Zeet-ish`Tchizik by a large margin. The expansion of civilization on Huk forced the Zeet-ish`Tchizik to begin attacking outposts and other tribes for supplies, as their natural resources were becoming more scarce.
The Zeet-ish`Tchizik became known as primitive fanatics among the rest of the population of Huk, who now outnumbered the Zeet-ish`Tchizik by a large margin. The expansion of civilization on Huk forced the Zeet-ish`Tchizik to begin attacking outposts and other tribes for supplies, as their natural resources were becoming more scarce.
Technology
As the heretical Yam`rii began integrating with the outsiders, they gained knowledge of superior technology and other races. The new knowledge created a rift among the Zeet-ish`Tchizik, whose practices and ideals were becoming less popular among the Yam`rii population. The religion lost many tribes to the knowledge of new worlds and races, citing the Zeet-ish`Tchizik religion was flawed and based on lack of information. With only a few tribes remaining loyal to the Zeet-ish`Tchizik, they secluded themselves to the Huk wilderness to protect themselves from the corruption of the populace.
The Huk War
Once the heretics gained the ability to traverse the sky, for a reason unknown to the Zeet-ish`Tchizik, they began waging war with the Kaleesh. While the majority of the war was fought on Kalee, the Zeet-ish`Tchizik were unintentionally engaged in a war with a hostile species. During the course of the war, several small Kaleesh raiding parties were destroyed by the Zeet-ish`Tchizik, who thought the invaders were trying to destroy their religion. The hapless Kaleesh were easy prey for the Zeet-ish`Tchizik, who never returned to the territory after several humiliating losses.
While the war did make the Zeet-ish`Tchizik more fervent about their beliefs, it also made them realize that there were many outside threats to defend from. In order to learn more, they created a small group of devotees to integrate with the populace. The sect collected information from "civilized" Yam`rii, in exchange for the knowledge of local creatures, hunting techniques, and organic remedies.
The return of the Kaleesh near the end of the war marked a period known as "The Great Loss". A large majority of the tribes following Zeet-ish`Tchizik were destroyed, with only a few tribes remaining loyal to the beliefs. The extinction of the religion loomed on the horizon.
While the war did make the Zeet-ish`Tchizik more fervent about their beliefs, it also made them realize that there were many outside threats to defend from. In order to learn more, they created a small group of devotees to integrate with the populace. The sect collected information from "civilized" Yam`rii, in exchange for the knowledge of local creatures, hunting techniques, and organic remedies.
The return of the Kaleesh near the end of the war marked a period known as "The Great Loss". A large majority of the tribes following Zeet-ish`Tchizik were destroyed, with only a few tribes remaining loyal to the beliefs. The extinction of the religion loomed on the horizon.