Seer

The Anutmari, or Seers, were a race of highly intelligent humanoid beings that inhabited Sri Lanka (as well as several other areas on the fringes of India) in the before-common era; they were clairvoyant, and were gifted with Aftersight, the superhuman ability to see future events before they took place. They were the earliest progenitors of modern superheroes.

Biology and appearance
The Seers were sleek, but also stout and powerful in body structure. Not unlike modern Canids, they possessed fine, pale grey skin and were built for athletics and agility. Their hands were extremely dextrous, with apposable thumbs and strong, lengthy, razor-sharp fingernails, nearly identical to those of Canids. These were incredibly useful in scaling trees and other large organic structures. Their feet were also highly dextrous, and were capable of gripping and holding objects like an ape would - this was another crucial element in climbing. They had tails, approxmately 6-7 inches thick and usually 10-15 feet long, with two thin, cetacean-like fins at the end.

Their facial features were distinctive: Seers commonly had a canine-like skull structure with a long, slender jaw. The nose existed in the form of two small slits at the end of their defined snouts, with the mouth (which was usually small) just below it. They had large almond-shaped eyes positioned somewhat apart from each other, and two very large V-shaped ears which protruded from the rear top of their heads and always pointed backwards. Seers commonly decorated their ears with jewelery, tattoos and other aesthetic alterations as mementos or as part of tradition. Their hair was waxy, smooth, usually medium-length and black or brown (although blonde also occurred rarely.) It was typical for Seers to style their hair in an evenly-curtained, straight fashion, although many styles, including dreadlocks, braids and waves were cultivated and decorated with beads, elastic bands, laces, chains, rings, loops, clips, gems and flora.

Society and culture
Seers were astonishingly ahead of their time. They communicated using full, worded sentences just as humans and Canids currently do, and they spoke in a complex language, called Eurnai, that was very reminiscent of modern-day Sanskrit. They lived in communities governed by a sort of 'hierarchy'; this is composed of multiple social groups, all with individual responsibilities:

The Circle
The Circle is a group of elder Seers whom act as a council and make decisions regarding the future of the populace and the education and upbringing of younglings. In addition to being the primary seat of government, many Seers struggling in their lives or duties or having inner conflict will consult with the Circle, and many more younglings simply go to the Circle to receive their wisdom.

The Aegis
The Aegis are essentially the militia of the Seer society. They are chosen as younglings to be trained in (and to live only for) combat and warfare, and are responsible for repelling attacks by outside forces, feral creatures or otherwise hostile entities, and the safeguarding of all Seers. Members of the Aegis are highly respected among the general Seer populace, and many incapable or underprivileged Seers dream of becoming part of the Aegis for their entire lives. Before a Seer becomes a member of the Aegis, they must first survive the Squall.

The Veil
The Veil are the most critical part of Seer culture - an underground collective of scholars, philosophers and practitioners of other key professions, they are of the absolute highest education and utmost logic and wisdom. There are three basic categories of Seer that make up the Veil: Heeders, whom are tasked with scanning their surroundings for traitors, treasonists and other renegades who would go against the elders' teachings and attempt to poison others with their heresy, and inform the elders so that these Seers can be dealt with; Curators, whose duty is the safekeeping of Seer traditions and conservation of cultural practices and beliefs; and a Sensetaker, a Seer with the ability to control the body and physical actions of anyone who looks directly into their eyes. The Veil is kept entirely obscured from the public, and although they walk among other Seers, members of the Veil are never known or revealed. When members of the Veil grow old, they are placed in the Circle.

Religion and economy
The Seers were a largely non-religious/atheistic people - they did not conform to any general worship of gods, and they did not pray. Their all-in-all aspect of life was that it is never to be taken for granted, not that it should be rushed in pursuit of a glorious afterlife, and that one should live in constant fear of judgment by a higher being or believe they are being held in contempt by one. They found value in self-impowerment and inner peace.

Seers' economic system was comparable to socialism, and was based on a currency known as gallyks, which were hand-made from a composite copper-like material. They were round-shaped, resembling Spanish dollars, and carried the insignia of the Seer society - a shield containing a hollow sphere, surrounded by a partly-invisible fabric cowl. This was used to symbolize the Circle, the Aegis and the Veil, the three fundamental elements of Seer culture.

Mental types
There are two base types of Seers: the less-commonly-occurring Astute Seers, whom, by geneaology or simply luck or chance, were born with a natural ability called Aftersight, that gave them short, episodic revelations of the future; and Absent Seers, whom did not have this ability and formed the majority of the population. Astutes were seen as being of far more value than Seers whom were not clairvoyant, although Absents took up nearly 65% of the amount of living Seers. Astutes were highly privileged and treasured as their births happened far less regularly than Absents, and it was often prayed upon for a newborn Seer to be an Astute - many families were devastated and considered themselves ashamed to bear their child once they discovered it was an Absent. It was not unusual for Astutes to regard Absents as lesser, or even look down upon them. It is unknown why, despite the fact that not all Seers were able to see the future, they were collectively referred to as Seers: this is likely because it was a far more simple term than labeling them all by Astutes or Absents.