The Encased

The Encased is the name given to a space-faring race of humanoids in the Outer Core of the Rasalum Galaxy. Their chosen name is the En'cosa, but are referred to as the Encased by other races due to their preference for wearing their enclosed spacesuits when interacting with aliens. They are primarily found in the Silent Sector where they have a tier V interstellar civilisation.

Etymology and Definition
The Encased as a unified race identify themselves as En'cosa, which translates to The Enemies of [the] Cosa, which they adopted during their first contact with the galactic community. The term Encased however is accepted as a common reference to the race as a whole.

In the language of the Encased they generally refer to themselves as some variation of the word people or sometimes Sa'vida meaning The Children of [the] Vida, though that is rarely expressed in front of aliens.

Evolution and Interference
The Encased evolved on the garden world of Ran, where the majority of the flora and fauna present on the world had adapted to a rapidly changing environment. The Encased had reached the early stages of tribal communities and animal domestication when an alien race, the Vida, discovered them and set up a research station on the tidally locked world of Sahran that followed the larger Ran around the sun. The original purpose of the station was observation but changed over the years during the escalation of the Vida-Cosa War in that region of space, changing to a genetic research lab that altered the Encased in preparation to make them into front line soldiers in the war.

The purpose of the station changed once again as the war drew to a close, with the Vida losing territory to the Cosa the decision was made to convert the station into a bunker to store cyrogenically frozen citizens and scientists. The vessels transporting them however never reached Sahran due to their interception by a Cosa fleet which destroyed all but one of them. The remaining few thousand were sealed away beneath Sahran hoping to rebuild their civilisation in the future.

Post-Interference
Meanwhile, on Ran, the Encased's genetic manipulation and conditioning of natives through constructions of religious dogma had left them desiring the annihilation of an unknown enemy. Expansion of the brain and vocalisation methods also created a rapid advancement in technology and medicine. The myth that the answer to the questions of their faith and sub-conscious were long believed to be held on Sahran further pushed their technological development to rocketry and space travel.

First Contact
Just over one thousand years after the remaining Vida sealed themselves inside the Sahran, Encased explorers released them from their stasis chambers. These Vida however had suffered unforeseen effects from extended stasis and many suffered from debilitating conditions, most died in the years after or returned to stasis. Reverse engineering the interstellar engines from the vessels the Encased developed the ability to travel to other star systems and made contact with other members of the galactic community. The most pressing questions these first explorers had when they encountered new races were the current borders of the Cosa and any information regarding them.

After the last of the remaining Vida had either died or returned to stasis, the Encased suffered from a crisis of faith and self-identity threatening a civil war. Eventually consensus was reached, that before they could truly begin to make their own choices regarding the future of their race they had to be rid of the innate need to destroy the Cosa. The decision was made to go to war with the Cosa as soon as possible.

The Encased-Cosa War
By this time the Cosa race was in decline and had retreated from being a major player in the affairs of the local community. For most of the Cosa population the war between their ancestors and the Vida was an obscure historical event that had little bearing on their lives, regardless after five years of preparation, the Encased systematically invaded every major settlement of the Cosa. Originally seen by the other local powers as a very one sided fight, for the much older empire had the benefit of generations of technological advantage whilst the Encased were using technology from a thousand years previously, the Cosa were not prepared for the relentless assaults and advanced tactics employed by the Encased. After over a year of war, where the entire of the Encased's civilisation was mobilised, the Encased primary fleet drew upon the Cosa home-world and annihilated all settlements from orbit.

Post-War Goals
The Encased then began their own projects of colonisation in their local area avoiding former Cosa settlements, leaving them for others to claim. Their relationship in their local sector of the galaxy has left them as pariahs to many who saw the war as unprovoked.

Homeworld
The Encased homeworld of Ran is abundant in lifeforms that have adapted to live in its ever changing environment and the Encased are no exception. Settlements on Ran were originally centred around the edges of the large jungles that were harvested for food and materials but during the conflict with the Cosa the construction of underground cities became prevalent.

Population
Their population is around fifteen billion spread across four worlds and various orbitals.

Body Type
The Encased follow the standard humanoid model of a male and a female reproductive relationship, symmetrical bodies, a torso, a head, two arms and two legs. The average Encased, both male and female, stands around 6' 10".

Adaptions
The Encased have since adapted much of the Vida's genetic alteration technology to make themselves further adapted to living in space, most will receive some kind of treatment to make themselves better suited to an environment.

Psychology
The Encased are militaristic and isolationist as a species but individually are as diverse as any other. Following the war with the Cosa many Encased have begun to explore beyond their space hoping to learn more about the other races of the galaxy.

The war with the Cosa was the biggest traumas to happen to the Encased and many still grapple with the actions of their race years later.

Culture
Following a generation of war the Encased of Ran where unified under military war council that survived to lead its people in its war against the Cosa and in its colonisation of different worlds. The Encased civilisation is considered to be in a constant state of war and every citizen forms part of a race wide militia.

Further Readings

 * Vida-Cosa War
 * Encased-Cosa War
 * The Vida
 * The Cosa
 * Ran
 * Sahran