The Cauhli

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The Cauhli are repitilian in nature, hailing from the far south. They are fearsome enemies, and their bite can be toxic. They are deadly enemies of the Moine Empire during the events of the Covenant Arc.

History of the Tetlaca Cauhli
The Cauhli have always been there in the dark jungles and withering deserts of the south. In ancient days they flourished into vast kingdoms, but the great floods and earthquakes put an end to those old civilizations. The Cauhli of modern times are a fractured remnant, living in various factions scattered as widly as possible to avoid one another.

The Tetlaca Cauhli are a highly religious empire found in the northwest corners of the southern jungles, on the edges of the desert and badlands. They grew strong in their isolation and began raiding their surroundings.

In the time of the Covenant Arc, the shaman of the Tetlaca have been gaining a great deal more power, and using it in their ongoing raids/war with the Moine.

Society of the Tetlaca Cauhli
The Tetlaca society is structured around a very rigid caste system. The peasants and slaves work the land terraces and floating fields to provide food for the army and the clergy. The army is a mass of warriors controlled by the shaman. The clergy are a regimented order of shaman and high priests serving their viper diety and its' mysterious new high priestess: the Mother of the Sharpened Mind.

Amongst the peasantry, the Tetlaca are actually quite peaceful. Though it is not encouraged by the clergy, the peasants do have craftsmen and traders in what amounts to a minor, and loosely tolerated black market.

Jewelry is especially important among the Cauhli for establishing caste. Copper headbands especially important as they are usually worn only by those with the favor of Timatzin, the Great Serpent.

The Cauhli are extremely picky eaters it is very common for them to be nearly pathological about keeping their homes and surroundings properly clean to their liking. A messy home is a horrible embarrassment and shame to a Cauhli.

Biology
Cauhli are slightly larger and significantly stronger than a Moline; they are fast over short distances, and for brief periods of time are ferocious creatures, but these bursts of movement are exhausting. By nature, the Cauhli are ambush predators.

They have glands in their jaws which secrete a set of proteins that can cause rapid swelling, bleeding, and even induce hypothermia in mammals.

Cauhli grow swiftly from hatching, and can be expected to reach full maturity in less than two years. Combined with the very large number of eggs their females lay at a time, this gives them significant numbers to throw at any given situation. In an ideal situation a Cauhli can live as long as fifty to sixty years, but privation and war keeps the average life expectancy significantly lower.

They do not naturally develop any magical gifts like the Moine and some Northmen.

Trivia

 * While it may be somewhat obvious, the Tetlaca Cauhli are loosely based on the Aztec and Maya civilizations. Obviously, the idea has been drastically changed to reflect the violently aggressive nature of the Cauhli as a species.
 * The Author has made amused comments about a possible spin-off story with a Cauhli protagonist. This may or may not be humor on his part.