Player Species: Aquila

A proud race of Terrans created from birds-of-prey such as eagles, falcons, and owls, the Aquila were designed by Canid scientists in the earliest years of the Larentia Kingdom's inter-stellar expansion to compensate for the various genetically-engineered species Earth had at it's disposal. The Aquila were bred to be the pilots and gunners of the Larentia Star Navy, channeling the predatory hunters mentally adapted to advanced three-dimensional movement they were created from. Lacking any of their own, starships became their wings, the endless black of space becoming their sky.

Aquila are proud, often arrogant people who value independence and freedom. They generally take little interest in other cultures (often to the extreme of xenophobia), and are obstinate to a fault, sticking to their opinions and actions with excessive stubbornness. They are fast to jump at an opportunity the moment it presents itself, and become impatient with situations that take more than a few simple actions to resolve. Aquila physicians are uncommon (surgeons even rarer), as most see any medical treatment beyond a nano-pack injection to be 'tedious'. Genders are somewhat ambiguous among Aquila, although females are usually larger than males, so vocal inflection and clothing are often the only denotations of sex.

Aquila have two major races; the Eagles (eagles, hawks, falcons) who are renowned for their innate optical tracking, which gives them an edge when aiming ranged weapons, and the Owls who prefer subtly in all things (even to the point of overriding general Aquila impatience for the sake of remaining unheard, unseen, and unknown). After their creation, Aquila quickly became a dominant minority in the otherwise Canid-centered Larentia Kingdom, and eventually settled several low-gravity worlds throughout the Kingdom as well as the rest of Terran space. However, a very large percentage of Aquila populations live permanently in space, either on stations or in nomadic convoys (sometimes alongside the Corvid, acting as guards to their more passive cousins). Many of the fastest Terran starship designs have been created with Aquila sensibilities in mind, either by the Corvid or by the Aquila themselves, and many such hull designs continue to serve the modern Larentia Republic to this day.

When it comes to three-dimensional movement, no Terran species can match the Aquila for grace and precision. Not only does it make them an undeniable force in ship combat, but Aquila are notorious for intentionally disabling artificial gravity on a vessel before boarding it, allowing their sky-born instincts to take over. The Aquila's special ability "Sky Hunters" allows them to attack and defensively maneuver simultaneously in ship combat, as well as giving them the edge in 'micro-gravity' personal combat.