Skrell History

The Skrell trace their origins to the humid, warm world of Qerr’Balak, a planet filled with numerous swamps, marshes and other similar wetlands, and a fair amount of densely forested jungles filled with beautiful and dangerous examples of alien fauna and flora. However, nothing in Qerr’Balak can truly capture the beauty and potential of the planet’s biosphere like the Skrell.

As one of the oldest known civilizations In the galaxy, rivaling only the Ascent, Skrell have a rich history and culture which predates that of Humans, Unathi and Tajara. Skrell tend to be very protective of their technological secrets, and while their own curiosity tends to make them interested in influencing other civilizations, they are very leery about outside interference into their own business.

Here is a global timeline of their history. The dates have been adapted to the human calendar for more clarity.

• 30,000 BCE - The first traces of skrellian civilization along with the founding of the first city in Qerr’balak are recorded. The first records of the existence of castes follow soon after.
• 1,500 BCE - The Skrellian industrial revolution begins with the invention of the first assembly line.
• 1,400 BCE - The first aeroplane is invented.
• 1,200 BCE - The first Skrell is brought into orbit above Qerrbalak.
• 1,082 BCE - Skrellkind rejoices as the first successful launch of a Space Shuttle lands Astronaut Q'ikkori Xallic on Qerrbalak's second moon, Qixim.
• 800 BCE - The first Skrellian colony is established on Qixim.
• 100 BCE - The first Skrellian Psi-Fueled Faster-Than-Light drive is finally functional after decades of testing and development. The Skrell expand outwards.
• 400 CE - The Kali’r War begins, followed by a rapid intensification of the skrell’s military infrastructure and recon efforts.
• 1,000 CE - The old Skrellian borders are taken, and further combat is deemed non-viable. This marks the end of the Kali’r war.
• 1,960 CE - The ring-world of Qerr’Kal’ol is finished and christened as the new capital and administrative hub of the Skrellian space in an empire-wide celebration. The Skrell begin to explode outwards - this is the beginning of what is largely considered the Skrellian golden age, as they truly embrace the mien of Empire.
• 2,080 CE - The Age of Expansion comes to a gradual close, the Empire sprawling much further across the arm than ever before. Additionally, a new thorn grows on the Skrellian civilization as the Epsilon Directorate establishes itself away from the core territories.
• 2,400 CE - Ue-Katish pirates steadily grow in power as more border worlds are established. With less of a solid grip over their territory, and as the Ue-Katish population expands on these worlds due to difficulty in avoiding cross-caste matches, the freebooters offer an enticing economic option for the typically second-class citizens.
• 2,521 CE - The Skrell first encounter Humanity. First contact is made between a large exploration convoy and a human reconnaissance fleet, and whilst tense the contact is ultimately amicable. Skrellkind receives the news of another advanced species with apprehension, after their first experiences with the Ascent.
• 2,565 CE - The modern day. Skrellian technological advancement has greatly stagnated over the last few centuries.  Regardless, the Skrell are commonly considered one of the most powerful civilizations in the galaxy and one would be hard-pressed to find reason to cross them.

Origins

As the colonisation of space starts around 100 BCE, Qerr’balak reaches a Golden Age, as most of the production of goods is transferred to the colonies, while it itself becomes a centre of administration and bureaucracy. A heavy, partially romanticised emphasis on colonizing new systems and worlds is seen all across skrellian civilization, as they continue to focus on internal growth and expansion for the following years, giving some of today’s most well-recognized skrellian companies ample chance and time to grow. Some of them still thrive to this day:

Significant Organisations
Organisation	Description
Krri'gli Corp.	Originally building aeroplanes, the Krri'gli Corporation became one of the most powerful skrellian corporations when it expanded into space habitat and vessel construction and started building ships and stations for most of Qerr'balak's City-States. Controlling the process from concept design to construction, they have a reputation of manufacturing the safest infrastructure Skrellkind can provide in terms of space colonisation.
Gloa'Morr Corp.	Founded in the aftermath of the War of the Qerr-Skria, Qorr'moa Inc. quickly established itself as the biggest food manufacturer of the planet. While its manufacturing sector is still growing to this day, it has recently opened to new opportunities, most notably in the field of genetic engineering to widen its range of products.
Qorr'moa Inc.	Initially a branch of Qorr'moa Inc. specialized in pharmaceuticals, Gloa'Morr was made an independent entity by a royal decree of the city of Mo'glar two centuries ago. It now provides most of Qerr'Kal’ol's health centres with medicine, along with several other colonies within the core of Skrell space.
Qerr’Kimikruuv Technologies	Founded shortly after the Skrellian industrial age, Qerr’Kimikruuv is  now one of the oldest suppliers of military equipment to city-states and SDTFs alike. Qerr’Kimikruuv has pioneered the development of pulse-based technology as well as magnetically accelerated projectiles, and is often credited with their wide adoption across skrellian space defence forces.
Kale’Kale Manufactures	Named after its home system, Kale’Kale Manufactures is one of the few corporations who are currently pioneering psionic-based technology such as weaponry fitted with psionic micro-transmitter relays and psionic interfaces for a number of different applications, in spite of the enormous bureaucratic burdens faced. Even then, Kale’Kale continues to grow and sponsor SDTFs with their cutting-edge psionic-channeling equipment.
Ki’Maqrerr Inc	One of the best-known attire suppliers in skrellian space, Ki’Maqrerr specializes in traditional, expensive and handcrafted garments from headtail bands to more complex clothing attires for those who can afford it. It is not uncommon to see Qerr-Katish or other members of a star system’s committee sporting such outfits as a show of good taste, especially during important occasions.

Fauna

The wildlife of Qerr'balak is similar to what one would see in an earth jungle or swamp, the main difference being that Qerrbalak has a good portion of its wildlife composed of reptile-like species, while the other portion of the population is taken up by strange, amphibious creatures that thrived within the swamps of Qerr'balak. Although such specimens were mostly annihilated during the destruction of Qerr’balak’s biosphere, many of them have been successfully reintroduced in the habitable ring-world sections of Qerr’Vallis with the use of cloning technology and DNA samples.

Significant Fauna
Fauna	Description
Mektal	These are large, bovine sized creatures that are similar in many ways to Komodo Dragons on Earth, They are fast, efficient hunters that kill through biting and clawing, if the overall physical damage they inflict on you doesn't kill you the toxins they release through their bites will. They often hunt smaller animals and their territory includes both swamp and jungle areas of Qerr'balak.
Neaera	These creatures can be essentially described as an odd mix of Salamander, Frog and Monkey, they often travel about the swamps via the trees and they hunt the larger insects of the swamps as well as much of the native flora. While they are practically tame and meek in the presence of Skrell, they seem to fear humans greatly and flee if they see one.
Kerr'k	A large, fish-like creature which travels in the swamps of Qerr’balak, they are considered very dangerous and often attack any creature which is smaller than it (which includes most of the planet's fauna, it is safest to travel in known Kerr'k territory in a large vehicle). The creature is in truth, not a true fish but an amphibian, which is shaped similarly to a snake. It often eats its prey whole and digests everything, including the bones.
Th'oom	These creatures are large reptiles that travel in packs, they are often used by the Skrell as cattle, carrying loads and providing fertilizer for crops. Although Skrell have never cooked one themselves due to their bodies being unable to digest meat. They naturally come from the jungles of Qerr'balak, but due to their usefulness they are seen across the entirety of Skrell space, having been imported to many colony worlds early in Skrell history.

Flora

The Flora of Qerr'balak is vast and in human eyes, strange. The swamps themselves are coloured an odd, dark blue caused by moss that grows in the areas, whereas the trees of Qerr'balak are more akin to extremely large bushes then actual trees, as they have no bark on them and the insides are green, some humans have mistakenly said that they are large vines. The jungle itself lends to that as parts of it are densely populated by large patches of thorny plants that grow into each other giving the appearance of vines. Such examples of flora are now widely available on the habitable sections of the Qerr’Vallis ring-world, mimicking the original environment of Qerr’balak flawlessly.

Significant Flora
Flora	Description
Krro'a	A parasitic mushroom, the Krro'a grows on most of the species of small bushes found on Qorr'gloa. Feeding on the host, it spreads as a thin, white web over its surface and stays on it until it dies, after which the flexible but tough tissue withers and disperses around the dead plant to find new hosts. While the Skrell use it in many culinary ways, it is highly toxic for humans.
Th'oom'al	What initially started as a mild mycosis on the Th'oom of Qerr'balak ended up being the culinary event of the 18th century for Skrell. Growing between the scales of the oldest reptiles, the Skrell discovered that, while being neither harmful nor painful to the animals, the Th'oom'al was actually a very nutritious and tasteful mushroom the Kanin-Katish were quickly able to harvest in large quantities, leading the newly found organism to become a major ingredient in many skrellian dishes. While having no tangible effect on Skrell, the various psychotropic substances inside the mushroom were found to be dangerous to other species.
Qokk'loa	One would be too quick in describing the Qokk'loa as simple moss : While it bears some resemblance to the earth species in its first stage of life, this blue plant solidifies after a few months, taking the aspect and texture of bark, forming large patches over the southern forests of Xi'Krri'oal. The Skrell quickly discovered that, during this second stage, the Qokk'loa contained large amounts of what could be compared to green sap. Once exposed to air, it is only a matter of hours before the sap solidifies into a smooth, fragile structure. The solidified sap is now consumed as a snack throughout the Skrellian territories. Lethal to humans, the Skrell still feel the mind numbing, relaxing effects of the sap for a few hours after consumption. Qokk'loa is often distilled and refined further to make what is known as Qokk'hrona, known to humanity as skrellian wine, it is the Skrell equivalent of alcohol, with similar effects to Earth alcohol, though the effects only last for approximately six hours, depending on the amount consumed. Overdosing can result in a coma and, sometimes, death and is mainly enjoyed by Skrell at significant events, celebrations and funerals.
Ximi'koa	These slander red stalks reminiscent of Earthworms grow in the waters of Qorr'gloa's swamps. While having close to no nutritional value, their sweet taste makes them a common condiment in traditional skrellian dishes. It is safe for consumption for non-Skrell.
Go'moa	Possibly among the most familiar-looking species for humans, the Go'moa is a small, orange mushroom growing in large fields on the plains of Xi'krri'oal. Not only one of the main ingredients of mainstream skrellian food, it is also a curious spectacle for the newly arrived tourist, as the spores of the plant, slightly bio-luminescent, give an eerie glow to Qerr'balak's fields at night.
Kol'mo	The Kol'mo is among the largest species of mushrooms found on Qerr'balak. Growing in random shapes, capable of growing up to three metres in height and six metres in width, it is a favourite among the Talum-Katish for it allows them to craft the beautiful (and edible) sculptures some of the most skillful skrellian culinarians are famous for. It also varies wildly in colour and can range from a dark blue to an orange-red depending on its growing conditions.
Mi'krrixi	A small bush native of Qorr'gla, the Mi'krrixi produces small, round purple fruit with a skin similar to lemons, used in skrellian dishes since the time of tribes. It is advised to squeeze the fruit before consumption, as the amount of hallucinogenic substances it contains can be potentially dangerous, even for Skrell. Human consumption is not advised, though possible in small amounts, the consumption of which leaves a human on a psychoactive trip for days.
O'krri	A mushroom that grows as a thin yellow layer over small ponds, the bitter taste of the O'krri has made it a reliable ingredient for skrellian recipes for centuries. While not strictly dangerous for humans, it is known to make them dizzy, sometimes to the point of somnolence.

The Kali’r War

It was only a matter of time before the Skrell encountered other sentient life, especially given their somewhat aggressive expansion into new star systems. Unfortunately, this first encounter was not particularly pleasant and would forever scar the skrellian society and the way that they see and interact with alien lifeforms.

With the many improvements in faster-than-light travel, colonizing promising systems in deep space for the purposes of habitation, industry or science was starting to become a promising envoy and an industry in itself. At this point, with an already extensive territory, many skrell were starting to believe that other forms of sentient life did not indeed exist. They had found many different species of flora and fauna on planets that were able to sustain life, but truly sentient, intelligent lifeforms? Such a thing had not been observed yet, or, at least, not until a few years after the discovery of Kali’ruuk.

Kali’ruuk was a relatively unknown, binary star system composed of an orange dwarf orbiting a yellow giant. Relatively far away from the main ‘blob’ of skrellian territories, and never truly colonized, Kali’ruuk still housed tens of thousands of skrell in semi-permanent orbital residencies in order to carry out mineral refining and extraction operations on the system’s pristine, metal-rich asteroid rings. In the following years, Kali’ruuk would quickly become a relatively major provider of raw materials and a particularly lucrative system for many skrellian companies interested in turning a profit from such a rich system.

Unfortunately, the Skrell were not the only ones who were aware of the system’s rich mineral reserves, and an otherwise unremarkable day quickly took a turn for the worse. A few hours into the morning of the ‘Qerr’Vallis Standard Time’, a gargantuan fleet of automatic strip-mining drones of unknown origin inadvertently attacked most of the system’s installations, causing a great loss of life on the many orbital structures in the system. A chaotic fighting ensued as the mostly-civilian security forces in the system just barely managed to overpower the automated vessels, destroying a majority of them while the rest of the automated ships retreated with unmatched speed. Upon closer examination, it was revealed that such ships were much, much different and fairly more advanced than the standard skrellian designs, which quickly catched the interest of the ruling Qerr-Qerria. Fearing new incursions, city states close to Kali’ruuk opted to invest money in the creation of a new Qarr-Morr’kon, called Kali’mak.

Some of the surviving automated vessels were recovered for further examination while the Kali’ruuk system was evacuated to prevent further loss of life, and a month later, a hastily thrown-together fleet of Kali’Mak warships made their way to Kali’ruuk, securing the system further and building orbital defence installations. A few days later, a small fleet of mantid warships approached Kali’ruuk, and established their first formal contact, having cracked the basics of the Skrellian language. The somewhat upset Skrell demanded an apology and repatriation for the lost lives, but the Ascent were not accommodating, and after a few hours of fruitless diplomacy, insult-exchanging and threats of increasing hostility, both fleets commenced hostile actions against each other. The Skrell win, but with heavy losses, partially due to the unusually advanced technologies utilized during the battle by the much smaller Ascent fleet.

Further mantid fleets are sent to the system, but the use of superior cohesion and strategies allows the Skrell to lure out and destroy the mantid fleets in a series of calculated ambushes, taking advantage of their static defence assets in the star system, but unsure of the size or total strength of their adversary, and with mounting casualties, the Kali’Mak regroups with other nearby SDTFs and launches a counter-offensive. Backed by the full force of their empire's entire military force in the region, they manage to slowly, painfully drive the hive back from it's outer systems and dense orbital infrastructure, until they are engaged in open battle in orbit above the hive's primary. During the indiscriminate bombardment, incomplete mantle-terraforming equipment on the surface inadvertently activates, causing the hive's upper crust to rapidly decay into it's now open mantle. Nearly all on-surface lifeforms, including the Gyne are lost. With heavy losses but otherwise with a victory in their hands, Qarr-Morr’kon commanders and ship captains celebrate a hard-fought but swift victory with their crews by the end of the year.

As the remaining ships begin to maneuver to leave the system, a number of large, advanced mantid fleets appear in the system. The automated defense infrastructure of the hive also re-activates, dealing crippling blows to the exposed Skrellian fleets. The Ascent vessels move with cold precision, with the assistance of the reactivated defenses and a widespread ECM attack against the mobility systems of the Skrellian vessels. Although most vessels manage to escape, heavy damage is suffered universally, and many others are destroyed or completely disabled.

Further fleets of diverse SDTFs make their way to secure their own territory against the Ascent incursions, and although this ultimately proves to be effective, they are slowly pushed back to the inner skrellian worlds due to the advanced technology in use by their adversaries and by their sheer number. In the following years, a further centralization of the Skrellian society is noticed, with many Raskinta taking positions of management as the seemingly endless war continues to rage with stalemates and minor victories on either side. However, the Ascent slowly start developing more and more aggressive strategies to use against the Skrellian defenses, managing to further push them back until Qerr’Vallis is taken in 560 CE after many centuries of bloody, chaotic fighting. At one point, the Raskinta population had diminished so much from the frequent losses that Kanin, Malish and even Talum-Katish were sometimes tasked with the duties of their Raskinta brethren, often with relatively poor performance. By the end of 575CE, the situation was so severe that even Ue-Katish were entrusted and allowed to fight for the critically under-manned Qarr-Morr’kon, with multiple failed skirmishes to retake their home system. As most SDTFs were ground into dust, orbital facilities deep inside the remaining portion of the skrellian territory worked tirelessly to develop and provide new ship hulls based on the technology of captured Mantid vessels in the years following.

Suddenly, in 784 CE, there is a shift, and the Ascent begin to pull away, slipping back through devastated systems before disappearing into the destroyed hive's territory. The Skrell tentatively re-secure their territory, while slowly ramping-up their military complexes once more, succeeding in securing Qerr’Vallis from the Ascent automated orbital defenses no sooner than 800 CE. To their horror, the system has been decimated. Qerr'balak's surface has been effectively stripped away with targeted kinetic bombardments, rendering it not too dissimilar to the ruined hive. Furthermore, a network of atmospheric nanites continuously processes it's remaining gaseous layer into increasingly exotic and lethal concoctions, preventing even cursory rehabilitation. The other colonized planets in the system are not quite so thoroughly salted, but their surfaces are pretty much dusted via bombardment. For all intents and purposes, Qerr'Vallis has been totally destroyed. With two more centuries of technological progress and fierce fighting against a smaller presence of Mantid ships, Qarr-Morr’kon fleets undertake the grueling task of slowly re-conquering their lost systems and planets against automated ascent defenses. Aided by new, improved ship designs, the Skrellian territory is restored to its former glory at around 1000 CE, when the system of Kali’ruuk is recaptured, although stripped of most mineral reserves and rendered useless for any economical efforts.

Further hesitance to press on into the much better defended Mantid homeworlds end up in an informal cease-fire as the Skrell start to secure their borders once again, with the establishment of vast defense systems and anchorages on Kali’ruuk and nearby systems, and the continuous improvements of the Qarr-Morr’kon fleets. At this stage, skirmishes from both parties are still frequent, but on a much smaller scale than before, and it is not long until both parties lose interest in continued fighting, although defense operations remain at an all-time high.

In the aftermath of this long, destructive war, the Skrell start the gargantuan task of aiding the affected colonies and rebuilding their infrastructure, taking approximately 500 years to fully recover from the fatal blows dealt to them, allowing the Raskinta population to return to normal amounts as the SDTF fleets are continuously modernized and equipped to deal with Ascent threats. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, Qerr’Balak and most of the planets in Qerr’Vallis are still beyond saving even with modern techniques. The biggest priority of the Qerr-Qerria in the following years is making sure that such atrocities against the skrellkind will never happen again, while also focusing on rebuilding what was lost. Gilkrol-Qarr would remain the capital and administrative hub of the now Skrellian territory until its shift to Qerr’Kal’ol, in early 1960 CE after the construction of the massive ring-world.

The Epsilon Directorate

The “Epsilon Directorate” has been a well-known organization for the Skrell since its founding in the system of Gi’krall-Xix, shortly after the end of the ‘Age of Expansion’.

Although the back-breaking bureaucratic processes of research in the Oligarchy are often named as the prime reason for the Directorate’s existence, it was but one of the reasons that drove a small portion of Malish-Katish to split-off from the Oligarchy.

In the view of the Directorate’s founders, scientific progress within the Skrellian civilization was stagnant due to the extensive bureaucratic processes and safety procedures associated with the development of new technology, along with the petty morals that hindered the progress of their species. The Malish that were part of the Directorate placed technological progress and technological refinement above everything else, much to the discontentment of the Qerr-Qerria.

After its initial founding, and after much negotiation with the ruling Qerr-Qerria in Qerr-Vallis, relations between the empire and this newfound faction quickly took a turn for the worse due to their complete disregard to tradition and procedure- Something unacceptable in the eyes of the conservative Qerr-Katish. Although an incursion to the system of Gi’krall-Xix was indeed considered, it was quickly discarded in favor of a more peaceful solution: An empire-wide embargo to this newfound colony, in order to undermine their efforts and to force a favorable resolution to be reached.

However, a favorable resolution ended up never being available to the Qerr-Qerria. Although a large amount of Skrell abandoned the directorate to return to the comfort of their civilization as soon as those heavy-handed measures dropped, those who remained turned to the Ue-Katish for assistance, promising their kind an egalitarian life where they would not be shunned due to their lack of a caste, while also receiving assistance of the Ue-Katish Pirate flotillas. This allowed the Epsilon Directorate to become a largely self-sufficient faction, and a welcoming haven to the Ue-Katish who were viewed with distrust elsewhere, thanks to the far more progressive Malish who were in charge.

By the time news of Humanity had reached the Directorate, the quality of life of the orbital installations in Gi’krall-Xix had improved significantly, along with their manufacturing capabilities which allowed some very few nearby systems to be explored and colonized despite an ever-present deficit of materials, technology and experienced Skrell to employ. With humanity, however, the Directorate saw an opportunity to grow even further, signing trade agreements with their newest neighbours and eventually fulfilling their own need of experienced workhand, ship hulls and materials through their newest xeno friends.

Today, the Epsilon Directorate is widely regarded as one of the most multicultural conglomerates of systems in the Galaxy. Much of the research conducted inside the Directorate’s labs are classified, and all sorts of rumors exist, often regarding psionic experiments, although no concrete evidence exists of anything.. Although they are still viewed with mistrust by the Qarr-Qerria, they are indeed an irrefutable proof of the success of their own ideals which contrast so deeply to those of the Empire. With a technological level that is dwarfed by that of the Oligarchy and only slightly higher than humanity’s, and with a population and economy which is dwarfed by both, the Directorate has indeed proven to be a capable and growing faction that may one day rise well above their neighbors.