Jundari

This race of winged humanoids prefers to live up in the highest mountains in great colonies called aeries. It is from here they hunt with the thunderhawks and soar with the Great Eagles. While their wings are feathered like the eagles, the rest of their body resembles thin humans. Their skin is a pale white, nearly translucent, and their eyes are deep brown or hazel. They have mouths in place of beaks and feet instead of talons.

When a jundari female begins to near her mating time males will begin to gather around her. They will compete in tests of strength, skill, and endurance — from this flock the female will choose a single male for the mating. Once the mating is over, the male will play no further role in the child’s upbringing — his role being replaced by older males and females of the aerie.

Most females will give live birth to a single child, twins or more being extremely rare, once every 3 years. During this time her wings become mottled and the colors start blending with the territory where she is raising her young. Once the child is strong enough to fly alone they are presented to the rest of the aerie. They will cast off their childhood name and give themselves their adult name. Physical

Most jundari stand around 5½ feet tall with very thin human builds. They are a long-lived race, with a life span of slightly more than 200 years. Eye color is generally dark, but hazel can be found in some cases. Their hair color always favors the predominate color of their wings.

Their feathered wings extend outward from their back just below their shoulders. There is a second set of muscles and bones strictly for flying; however this still requires a great deal muscle from the shoulders. This leaves them with very little strength left in their arms while in flight, but the strength in their legs still affords them some grasping.

Males have brightly-colored wings decorated with exotic patterns, which serves as both a warning and symbol of their strength. Females have lighter coloration and show only the soft hint of a pattern. During mating the female's pattern will become very brightly colored, outshining even the boldest males. Reactions

Jundari, like their cousins the kindred, suffered at the hands of the marauding humans after the end of the Golden Age. The destruction of their most holy city at the hands of Riza, the Dark Emperor, keeps many wary of all non-jundari. If this wasn’t enough reason to despise the humans, many of the early settlers hunted them for sport or trophies.

Their ancestors were forced out of the homelands given to them by Aesir “True Wind” they fled into the cold and barren mountains of the north. They have listened to her promises that all that was once theirs shall be theirs again, and most are willing to wait patiently. Those that no longer believe her whispers have traveled into the outworld — never to return.

Some jundari, chosen by Aesir, travel among the humans gathering knowledge, bartering for goods, or simply watching. These have become known as the “lost children,” as any jundari knows that anyone that drinks or eats the food of the outworld can never return to the aerie. Still, those that remain know everything is as the wind wishes.

Never the most numerous species on Miranda, Jundari now teeter on the edge of extinction. This race's eyries are situated high in the mountains where there are few predators that can challenge them. They have large feather colored wings often decorated in complex patterens, the males are brightly colored while the females are muted (only getting brightly colored during mating season. Their faces have many of the features found in the great cats: flat nose, almond eyes, whiskers, pointed ears; although they are not covered in fur. They also have a tufted tail that extends nearly to the floor when they are standing upright. This leads many people to assume they are only flying cats, but they have more in common with the great birds than the great cats.

Jundari are not the longest living race and a female will typically enter a mating season only once every 5-7 years; giving birth to 1 or 2 children each successful coupling. In times past their oral history speaks of females entering the mating season every 2-4 years and successfully giving birth to 2-3 children. This is not much of a difference, but when taken over several generations it has led to the decline of the jundari.