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Galactic Guide: [[Kayfa System]]

So states one of the main tenets of the [[Li’Tova]], a moral and spiritual belief system popular among the Xi’An which guides its adherents’ view of the universe. In no place is that more apparent than the Kayfa System, which is wholly dedicated to the Li’Tova thanks to the existence of one astronomically special planet, [[Tovaroh]].

Kayfa’s role as the focus of [[Xi’An]] spirituality was unknown by [[Human]]s during the cold war. After Humanity learned of the system’s existence in 2617, rumors swirled that Kayfa was the main staging ground for invasion or even the location of the Xi’An homeworld. The true nature of the system was so guarded that for two hundred years, all Humanity knew about Kayfa was that any UEE ship found in the system would be immediately attacked — a message made abundantly clear to the [[UEE]] by way of the two [[Navy]] pilots who found the system.

In 2617, UEEN Lieutenants [[Ahmad Harar]] and [[Carl Dyson]] discovered a gravitational anomaly while patrolling the [[Horus System]]. Harar and Dyson should have contacted their commander and reported the coordinates so a military pathfinder could be deployed, but, they later explained, doing so would have thwarted their chance at history. Without a word to anyone, they entered the jump point and became the first Humans to visit the Kayfa System. The decision to keep their excursion a secret was foolish but, in retrospect, might have averted an all-out interspecies war.

Unbeknownst to Harar and Dyson, their arrival in Kayfa triggered long range sensors that mobilized a nearby Xi’An squadron. Meanwhile, Harar and Dyson’s return trip was delayed because Dyson’s ship sustained damage from navigating the uncharted jump. While Dyson was running a diagnostic check to see if his ship was still jump-capable, an EMP blast neutralized both spacecraft. The Xi’An squadron swarmed and captured Harar and Dyson. For years, official UEE documents listed the two as on “medical leave” during this period. The full truth, however, was exposed after the [[Historical Truth Act]] of 2941.

Declassified UEE military records list Harar and Dyson as missing in action for three days. The two claim to have been held on a large Xi’An military vessel where they were interrogated while their ships were studied and stripped of weapons. After three anxious days, the Xi’An began to believe the pilots’ story that the rest of the UEE military didn’t know about the jump. The two were returned to their ships, escorted to the jump point, and given the message that any further UEE vessels would be attacked on sight.

It was only after the fall of the [[Messer Era|Messers]] and the normalizing of relations between the two species, that the Xi’An revealed the secrets of Kayfa. Imperator [[Erin Toi|Toi]]’s first official visit to the [[Xi’An Empire]] occurred in the Kayfa System. [[Emperor Kray]] led her on a personal tour of Tovaroh and clipped a branch of a Centennial Bloom plant for her to take home.

Emperor Kray also elucidated a core doctrine of Li’Tova; that one small action can affect the entire universe. Harar and Dyson were shown leniency because the Xi’An knew the UEE would eventually rediscover the jump. The Xi’An wanted to avoid a similar situation, and another chance at aggression, when the UEE came through the jump for the second time. So it was with great thought that the Xi’An determined the right action was compassion because it provided the clearest path to peace.

In a surprise move during the summit, Emperor Kray amended Xi’An law to permit the Kayfa System to remain open to all Human visitors in the hopes that it would promote interest in Xi’An culture, customs and, ultimately, long-lasting peace between the two species.

Kayfa’s first world is a terrestrial planet with an atmosphere composed mainly of carbon compounds. From orbit, the atmosphere is a sooty swirl of black, brown and red hues. Some UEE scientists theorize that the prevalence of carbon throughout the planet and the corresponding atmospheric pressure could have given the planet a diamond substratum. Such theories remain unproven as the Xi’An government strictly forbids mining in the system.

Kayfa II is the religious heart of the Xi’An Empire, thanks to its unusual astronomical properties. One day on the planet lasts 100 Xi’An years, which roughly equates to 128 Standard Earth Years.