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History of Kiith Kaalel
Kaalel is an old Kharakian kiith, descended from the nomads of the Walking Dunes region. The Kaalel were poor travelers for centuries, eking out a meager existence as they moved constantly from place to place, always seeking water for their herds. Eventually their fortunes improved, however; some time in the second century they formed an alliance with Kiith Sjet. The Kaalel were permitted to graze their herds on a few superior feeding grounds then owned by the Sjet'sa, in return for a tribute of tanned yearling hides, which were the best possible surface for writing at the time.

This arrangement proved to be mutually profitable for many years, until the Kaalel, emboldened by their good relations with the untouchable Keepers of Time, requested a more permanent alliance. In the year 313, they asked the Sjet'sa for the privilege of becoming his vassals. Kiith Sjet, in recognition of many decades of harmony between the two kiithid, accepted the Kaalel into the first circle of initiation, and began training the Kaaleli children in the ways of Sjet. It was understood that Kaalel must serve as initiates of Sjet for three generations before they would be permitted to take the kiith name and serve in the third tier, as counselors and calendar keepers.

The eager and resourceful Kaalel were good students, and their first-generation initiates soon learned a great deal about reading, writing and higher mathematics. When their training was completed, the Sjet'sa assigned them to the holdings of over a hundred far-flung kiithid, giving them work as scribes and messengers. These Kaaleli scribes and runners were known as members of Kiith Sjet, however; and within a few years the kiith'sid of Kharak had begun to ask for them by name.

Kaaleli scribes, unlike their more educated fellows in Kiith Sjet, did not try to give their employers learned advice, nor attempt to guide their decisions openly. A Kaaleli scribe simply wrote down what he or she was told, without missing, or paraphrasing, or altering a single word. Similarly, a Kaaleli messenger did not consider his or her personal welfare before obeying the employer's wishes. If a message had to be delivered between warring kiithid, the Kaaleli would find some way to penetrate enemy lines. Long distances and dangerous terrain would not stop them; the Kaaleli would go without question even into holdings that suffered from terrible plagues, if they were so commanded. The former herders were so determined not to fail their kiith'sa, and lose their chance to become true Sjetti, that they would accept any risk.

The influence of the Kaalel grew in the second generation, when the Sjet began giving Kaaleli youngsters a more refined education. The future Kaalel'sa, Liir Kaalel, was one of the students of Kaalel's second tier; when he was not studying philosophy, history or politics, young Liir spent his days in the council chamber of his mother. Throughout his childhood, he saw many powerful men and women come to Jun Kaalel'sa, seeking the services of her people. Bound by her agreement with the Sjet, she always sent them away.

When his mother died in 337, Liir was raised to the chair of the Kaalel'sa. Immediately he began moving to consolidate his kiith; he called a gathering in the Walking Dunes, and discussed his plans. Sworn to secrecy, the Kaaleli returned to their duties in various parts of the northern hemisphere, but Liir began to meet with several of Karak's most powerful kiithid. The goal of these discussions was not immediately apparent; kiith'sid who visited Liir always went later to the Sjet'sa, to ask some minor boon, and it was generally assumed at first that Liir had given the same answer that his mother once made. Within two years, however, Liir's intentions were clear; Kiith Kaalel moved from their long-held homes in Sjet territory to a variety of new holdings all over Kharak.

The break with Sjet was a bitter one, but there was no bloodshed. The Sjet turned their Kaaleli pupils out of their homes, but it was too late to take away the knowledge and influence that Kiith Kaalel had gained while under their direction. To avoid open conflict and a bad reputation, Liir Kaalel confined his people to the roles they had been traditionally allowed in the first tier of Sjet initiation, contracting their services only as scribes and messengers. He would not send out his people to serve as tutors, councilors or doctors to other kiithid, despite the fact that some of his own generation had achieved mastery of the second tier, and would have been qualified for these professions. He left the majority of the traditional roles of the Sjet for the elder kiith to fill, concentrating on those jobs which his people could do better than any other.

Liir Kaalel'sa guided his people for nearly fifty years. Under his direction, the Kaalel became a genuine force in Kharakian society. Kaaleli scribes copied and recopied many thousands of documents and texts, greatly expanding the general knowledge of those Kushan fortunate enough to be literate. More importantly, the Kaalel refined their methods of delivering messages over time. From 348-360, they established chains of communication across Kharak with the use of colored smoke and signal drums, which made their good graces nearly indispensable to most of the planet's military leaders. To protect the privacy of certain communiqu�s, they also developed many methods of encryption.

Over time, Kiith Kaalel evolved into a powerful family, a small but influential clan of information specialists. They produced many gifted historians and writers, maintaining universal literacy within their kiith, but they also delved deeper into politics and intelligence work. By the year 563, Kaaleli were more often employed as spies, assassins and torturers than as messengers or scribes; they were as likely to extract valuable information as they were to transmit it. Although most Kharakians mistrusted them, their talents were too valuable to be dismissed, especially during the Heresy Wars, when accurate and swift information could be the difference between life and death to generals in the field.

During the Daiamid Movement, Kiith Kaalel were among the first to see which way the wind was blowing, and they quickly bent knee to the Naabal. During the Intervention, it was Kiith Kaalel that carried the word of the coming Naabal armies from place to place, recommending immediate surrender to any who would listen; to this day, Naabal scholars maintain that the efforts of Kaalel saved Kharak a great deal of unnecessary bloodshed. For two generations thereafter, the Kaalel gave up their own names to study at the feet of the larger kiith, devoting themselves en masse to transcribing as much of the Naabal's knowledge as possible. When they emerged from their years of service in the year 857, the Kaalel took up their names again, and brought with them the plans of a new invention: the printing press.

Thereafter, Kaalel's influence exploded. Publishing became a more lucrative profession than anyone could have dreamed, as more and more Kharakians learned to read and write. Kiith Kaalel closed the ancient breach with Kiith Sjet in 902, when they agreed to publish the famous Sjetti Holder's Almanac, which was for over 200 years the most-read and valuable book in any kiith dwelling. The first Kaaleli newspaper was distributed in Tiir in the year 913; when the first public radio broadcasts were made in 998, the most popular commentator of the time was Ran Kaalel. They invested in television stations and low orbital satellites; even in the Mothership herself, the majority of sensors and comm arrays owed some small debt to the efforts of Kiith Kaalel. As most of us know, the bulk of the Fleet Intelligence corps during Exodus was recruited from this family's ranks.

Thanks to their specialized knowledge of communication technologies, encryption and linguistics, Kiith Kaalel had a disproportionate number of crew members and Sleepers onboard the Mothership. Nearly half of their Kiith survived the Burning of Kharak, some 50,000 men and women! In accordance with their large numbers, the Kaalel now wield tremendous influence in Hiigaran politics. The former officers of Fleet Intelligence are one of six kiithid responsible for manning our planetary navies, and although they don't have the specialized fighting skills of the Sobani, they make up in numbers what they lack in training. In the past decade, the Kaalel have established themselves as a powerful warrior kiith in their own right.

What the future holds for Kiith Kaalel is anyone's guess. Regardless of what comes, however, they will almost certainly be the first to grasp its implications, and they are likely to turn any situation to their advantage; this has always been their way.