Shinzoka

Shinzoka (singular: Shinzoka) are a race of humanoid creatures inhabiting the subcontinent of Munjang-Îue alongside their southern neighbors in Krippa. Their most notable traits are their affinity for fire and associated elemental magic, as well as their inherent ability to transform into dragons. This shapeshifting ability of theirs has earned them the nickname of "dragons", despite there being full-fledged (and non-transforming) dragons living on Mencu. Like the other shapeshifting races of Mencu, Shinzoka are considered a Vartiz race.

They live primarily in the northern half of Munjang-Îue, in a nation formerly known as Krawvill. However, in 4678 A182, the nation of Krawvill was conquered and absorbed into the Krippan Empire by Imperial soldiers from the south as a retaliation for the Shinzoka's interloping in what later became known as the Three Factions War.

Origins
The Shinzoka descended from the Vartiz, a wild but proud race of people who took great pride in their different shapeshifting abilities. While none of them had power to the extent of the Jalenga, each of them possessed an inherent affinity for one of the six Mencuan Elements and an associated range of creatures into which they could transform at will. Gradually, the Vartiz divided into different clans based on elemental affinity, and those closely associated with the element fire were the first Shinzoka. Not by chance, they were also the ones that could transform into dragons and other similar creatures.

181st Age (Jalenga Wars)
Over the many different ages, the Shinzoka remained in decent contact with their fellow Serenza, particularly the other five Vartiz races. Because of the power they were capable of unleashing with the full-fledged might of a transformed dragon, they were a little more standoffish than the other societies. To counter this, groups such as the Kagero-Kiza were formed to serve as a mixture of scouts and ambassadors, and to remind the other races and countries that the Shinzoka still wished to interact with them. This method of interaction was maintained for centuries, up until Jalenga King Ajun and Queen Zivia started the conflict later known as the Great Jalenga War.

While most of the 181st Age was lived out peacefully, the Jalenga war became an obvious highlight of the age. The Shinzoka were some of the most heavily affected by the Jalenga War, and while they and the other races reigned victorious and defeated the Jalenga, the Shinzoka were decimated. What remained of their population retreated to the recesses of Krawvill to rebuild, and became gradually more isolationist as they struggled to retain and preserve their old traditions and customs. The Jalenga later tried to make amends, but before the reparation efforts were able to be completed, the entire species vanished, also marking the end of the Age.

182nd Age (Post-Jalenga)
Long after the Jalenga had disappeared from Mencu, the Shinzoka remained isolationist and rather distant towards outsiders. Even Zaderei born among their ranks were still sent southward into Krippa, where enmity towards Krawvill formed after those affected with Zaderism were essentially exiled for something beyond their control. Currently, very few Shinzoka venture out of Krawvill, and those that do are most often Kagero-Kiza agents or occasionally unwanted people such as exiles or the occasional criminal that escapes the chopping block.

Because of the gender disparity among the Shinzoka, the Kagero-Kiza are entirely women, and so most people on "The Mainland" only ever see female Shinzoka. This has given birth to several wild rumors such as suggesting that all Shinzoka look and behave like Kagero-Kiza agents, or even some that boldly suggest all Shinzoka are female. While the people and society are slowly recovering, a great deal of damage was done by the Jalenga, and recovery efforts in terms of repopulation are expected to take several generations to fully repair.

The Shinzoka as a species were also dealt another devastating blow as of The Rebirth of Krippa, due to the attacks of the 79th Krippan Empire, which involved a great deal of slaughter and chaos among the region. The predominantly male Shinzoka Grandmaster Council was crippled by the Krippans, while a hired assassin named Eka-Katara picked off many of the stragglers. This, coupled with a devastating plague that struck the already ravished provinces of Ozukutai and Kofuku-Shu, has actually jeopardized the future of Shinzoka as a pure-blooded species, and threatened the future and existence of male Shinzoka due to the gender disparity.

Language
Apart from the near-universally known Common Language, Shinzoka primarily speak Shinzé, their local language. This language stemmed from a dialect of Archaic Vartiz, which developed into its own language over the years as the Vartiz clans split into the six Vartiz races seen today. This language is also kept alive due to old traditions and is sometimes used in incantations for spells or other magical rituals. The Archaic Vartiz language's survival into the 182nd Age is primarily due to the efforts of traditionalist Shinzoka and their scholars.

Religion
Shinzoka revere the Titans (formally known as the Vartiz Pantheon), with the two Shinzoka goddesses, Gini and Kiya, serving as their patron deities. The wills of these goddesses is rarely in conflict with any of the other members of the Vartiz Pantheon, and so it is fully possible to be a devout worshipper of all 12 Titans in theory. Despite the similarities, there are differences from deity to deity, particularly surrounding holidays, rites, or methods of worship. Coincidentally, none of the different holidays of any sect coincide or conflict with others, hence the compatibility.

Biology
Shinzoka possess the same humanoid biology that all races of Mencu possess, and are sexually compatible with nearly all of them as a result. Like most other races, unions between them and the Talaki or the Wakuda have not been attempted.

Physical Appearance
In their untransformed form, Shinzoka look as humanoid as anyone else, although they tend to stand taller than many of the other races. Normal adult heights for males vary between 5'11" and 6'8", and normal female adult heights usually range between 5'7" and 6'4". Many of them possess robust, athletic bodies, with skin tones range from pale white to shades of brown and red. Hair colors range from red to brown and black, while eyes are usually shades of gold, orange, red, or brown. While both genders often wear their hair long, women usually have slightly longer hair than men, although also stand shorter than them.

Lifespan, Age, & Population
Shinzoka, like the dragons they were inspired by millennia ago, can live to be well past 100 and often 200 years on average. Some of the oldest Grandmasters live past 300 years, and accounts exist of some Kagero-Kiza veterans surviving into their early 400s. As with most races on Mencu, women tend to live slightly longer than men, although among Shinzoka this gap is very small.

While young Shinzoka start the transition between child and adult around the age of 14 and 'mature' around 25, they are not considered full-fledged adults until around the age of 35 years, a custom they share with many of the Vartiz cultures (it is also for this reason that the Kagero-Kiza organization does not accept recruits below this age). From there, adulthood turns into decades of very slow aging, and thus Shinzoka enjoy the prime of their life from age 35 to around age 100. From there, "middle age" lingers into the late 160s, and most Shinzoka that live beyond that are considered elders of varying degrees.

One of the larger mysteries to outsiders is the large gender disparity that exists between men and women. Female Shinzoka are much more common than males, which leads to a large gender imbalance on Krawvill or anywhere else where the Shinzoka call home. Rather than a complaint that female Shinzoka are too common, the race is small enough population-wise that a more appropriate statement would be about the rarity of male Shinzoka.

Transformations
The sizes and colors of dragons Shinzoka are able to change into varies by the user, although larger and more powerful dragons require much more time and training. Like the other Vartiz, Shinzoka do not have "black and white" transformative abilities, and instead can stop at three different 'stages' depending on how much they wish to transform at any given time. Despite the term 'stage', transforming does not require going through all three stages to reach full-fledged dragon form, but are rather amounts of transformation ("how much do they want to transform?") instead. The drawbacks of transforming are that it consumes a lot of energy due to the larger and more powerful form, which in turn accelerates hunger and fatigue. As such, this is one of the primary reason many Shinzoka remain in humanoid form a great deal of the time.

Stages 0 & 1
Shinzoka in humanoid form are occasionally (usually in scientific terms) referred to as "stage 0 transformations". In this form, they appear the same as any other humanoid on Mencu apart from telltale tones or colors in their skin, hair, eyes, etc. In Stage 1, they'll often develop claws or fangs, occasionally also sprouting wings or horns as well. In some cases, their skin color will begin to change and develop a toughness to it akin to dragon scales. Stage 1 is the most common transformation for many Shinzoka, as it helps augment their strength without requiring too much additional skill and energy.

Stage 2
Stage 2 transformations look much more like the middle ground between a humanoid and a dragon, with scaly skin, thicker limbs, and a more reptilian head shape. These individuals often also sport wings, tails, and sharper claws. This intermediate form allows some flight and extra mobility, but uses more power and energy than Stage 1, and as such is less commonly used, albeit still more common than full-fledged transformation. Some Shinzoka transform into dragon-esque forms of a smaller statue to help negate this problem, with some, such as Zenj Rakna, who transform into rather small dragons to aid in efficiency.

Stage 3
Shinzoka that transform into a Stage 3 dragon look no different from native dragons, and unless one recognizes the color scheme of the individual transforming, it is extremely difficult to tell the difference between an actual dragon and a transformed Shinzoka. because of the great power that is often associated with this form, it is rare to see fully-transformed Shinzoka. Conversely, a fully-transformed Shinzoka Grandmaster is an awe-inspiring sight to see--and a terrifying enemy to go up against.

Variants
While almost every race has some form of diversity within their numbers, the Shinzoka are notorious for having the 2nd fewest variations within their people, only behind the Arakos, with only two major varieties existing in significant numbers, and with only females affected by Zaderism.

Native Shinzoka
Native Shinzoka are the reclusive portion of the population that remains rooted in Krawvill. Native Shinzoka are the only ones that include males of the population, but despite this, they have less variety than their female counterparts. Mixed-race Shinzoka are rare in Krawvill, and most of them are the offspring of wayward Kagero-Kiza agents who turn away from Krawvill and never look back.

Kagero-Shinzoka
Kagero-Kiza agents, referred to as Kagero-Shinzoka (although also colloquially referred to as "Kagero/s" or "Shin-Kiza"), are the most commonly seen Shinzoka, and the primary Shinzoka that intermingle with the other races. Due to the stringent requirements of the organization regarding who is eligible to join, Kagero-Shinzoka stand between 5'9" and 6'0", and weigh between 135 and 160 lbs. They are known for their long, dark, shoulder-length hair and their ornate red and gold uniforms. Since these are the only Shinzoka that visit The Mainland, they are the image of Shinzoka that most people outside of Krippa envision when they hear the term.

Zaderic Shinzoka
Shinzoka exile all Zaderei to Krippa, and conversely, do not send Kagero-Kiza agents there, which in turn has painted Krippan ideas and visions of Shinzoka accordingly. Zaderic Shinzoka have the same variations of appearance as Native Shinzoka females, barring the obvious physical traits of Zaderism. Despite being pariahs to their own people, the Krippans welcome them fairly openly, which has given Shinzoka the mindset that they are Zaderei first, and Shinzoka second. Essentially, Zaderic Shinzoka look like regular Shinzoka except with luminescent red eyes and a dark red Keiza on one side of their face.

Roles in the Series
Shinzoka have taken many major and minor roles throughout the series, with major players such as Zurok Takamatzu having a hand in all 10 books, while other times the generally reclusive society hardly shows their face at all.

The Crown of Zivia
The Shinzoka are conspicuously all but absent in The Crown of Zivia apart from Zurok Takamatzu and Zenj Rakna, the former of which appears in all 10 books, and the latter of which is an anomaly among Shinzoka due to her size, actions, and general behaviour. The Kagero-Kiza are also absent, although are mentioned a few times in passing by Zenj, and occasionally are seen briefly in passing.

The Crusade of Zulera
No male Shinzoka appear in The Crusade of Zulera, although a large number of Kagero-Kiza are shown, playing a role of secondary antagonists throughout the book. Misaha Zhirano appears as another named character, while Zurok and Zenj both make returns in this volume as well, occupying similar roles to the ones they had in the prequels. While Zarbozen Zamzara changes his appearance to resemble the regality displayed by the Shinzoka Grandmasters, he is actually just a very powerful Renkida sorcerer.

The Shadows of Shinzoka
The main protagonist (and titular character) of The Shadows of Shinzoka is a Shinzoka, and the story focuses heavily on the antics of this Asami Wekera as well as her machinations and deeds done in the shadows of a society that has rejected her. Male Shinzoka also appear for the first time, with two Lakamaté of Fire who make their appearances, as well as the mother and father of Zurok Takamatzu.

The Rebirth of Krippa
Asami returns as a secondary hero, while the Shinzoka society takes a major role in the story as primary antagonists to the failing Republic of Krippa. Kagero-Kiza agents abound in this volume, as do female Zaderic Shinzoka.

The Seer of Koldia
At least two of the Lakamaté of Fire return, as do Zurok, Asami, and Misaha.