Starhaven is home to a myriad of beings, ranging from the cute and cuddly to the fierce and hideous, all trying to work together in a society like none that has ever existed.  Sentient wolves work side by side with arrogant Sidhe, and huge tarantulas buy groceries from rat-men in the market.

It isn't easy to build a culture out of such widely disparate peoples, but it's worth trying.  Even considering the occasional tension between the agencies themselves, we are learning to work past our differences and concentrate on what's really important.

For, no matter what our differences are, we all stand under the same threat from outside.

The Cen do not give up.

Ever.

And neither shall we.

Archivist Jesus Ironclaw

April 18th, 2212 ECE (Earth Common Era)

Abyssians--born in the depths of Hades's labs, this race of onyx-skinned subterranean dwelling winged humanoids are intelligent, clever, magically active, and as strong as any immortal.

Ant-Soldiers--disciplined, intelligent, and far stronger than a human being, these Cen creations represent the relatively small percentage of such creatures who switched loyalty from their creators to the interworld agencies.

Avians--flightless, intelligent, tool-using creatures descended from sentient dinosaurs that resemble an assortment of terrestrial birds.  Relatively rare compared to hybrids, procyons, and the few other known sentient races.

Boros--A splinter race of elves, the result of roughly ten percent of all breeding attempts by elven parents.  Some inexplicable genetic mishap engenders these perpetually childlike beings that are quickly becoming a race of their own.  Blessed with prehensile hair, child-like stature and appearance, and a more or less universal disrespect for rules, the boros are quickly turning out to be the kind of surprise no one wanted.

Elves--The result of Loki's attempt to save the race of Faerie by creating hybrids using the genes of the last known Sidhe, Carth, and merging them with human DNA.

Jekkari--Primitive hunter-aliens, the Jekkari are half-civilized savages known for flying around in cobbled together spaceships.  No one faults the courage of the Jekkari, but their judgment is certainly questionable.

Hybrids--a combination of human and animal created in Cen laboratories, the hybrids usually represent the best of both bloodlines.  They have the strength, speed, and stamina of their animal forebears and the innate intelligence of their human antecedents.  One might encounter sapient versions of the wolf, coyote, fox, lion, tiger, bobcat, lynx, grizzly, weasel, wolverine, rat, and many more...

Immortals--Originally the remnants of an ancient culture destroyed by the Cen who fled to Earth Prime as refugees, but more recently a growing population of people who have proved to serve the agencies well and have since earned the respect and admiration of their fellows.  Granted immortality by ArchAngel and the Immortal High Court as a reward and to aid in the defense of Starhaven during the vampire attacks led by Jason Keening.

Goblins--squat, aggressive little creatures with untold mutations, goblins are terrible at following orders and have a tendency to go off on odd little tangents.  Definitely not prime agency material.

Grays--Though powerfully psychic, this race of small, big-headed, gray-skinned aliens don't make good field agents.  They are unaccustomed to full Earth gravity and are physically weak and incapable of standing up to the stresses of field work.

Lycanthropes--Shapeshifters, not tied to the phases of any moon, but driven to change form by emotional need or, once they've grown more accustomed to their affliction, by a simple act of will.  Their bones and musculature are so dense that they're immune to most attacks and heal whatever wounds they suffer with astounding quickness.

Metahumans--Carrying the bloodlines of the superheroes from Earth's past, created by Loki's viruses, metahumans generally possess one major talent such as strength, speed, energy channeling, psychic activity, or a variety of other special gifts.

Parahumans--permanently enhanced by Loki's para-virus, these human variants are faster, stronger, and often smarter than the average human.  The largest number of humans recruited by the agencies are paras.  Not only are they faster and stronger, but they heal quicker, and age much slower than their unaffected forbearers.

Procyons--intelligent, tool-using mammals ascended from terrestrial raccoons on some of the more distant variant Earths.

Sentient Spiders--Powerful warriors, the various spider variants are independent and creative.  They make excellent agents, despite the prejudice of many of their fellow operatives.

Valkyries--Immortal servants created by the bio-engineers of Cen Empire, some of whom have gained independence and are now acting on their own.  Their purposes are still obscure and all agents are warned to tread carefully around any valkyrie.

Vampires--infected by the most unique of metaviruses, every cell of a vampire's body is cooperative with every other cell.  They are, in fact, a colony organism controlled by the human brain.  Like the lycanthropes, they can only be harmed by direct damage to the brainstem or brain itself.  Unlike the lycanthropes, which are born of a mutation of the nosferatu metavirus, they are also highly susceptible to damage from sunlight or similar UV radiation.

Mage Occupations and Specialties:

Mage-Engineer--One who studies both magic and mechanical, civil, and/or computer engineering and combines the two disciplines to create unique artifacts and items to enhance the average agent's chances of survival.  Mage-Engineers often act as worldgate technicians and are called in to diagnose and repair any problems with Earth Prime's great mageships.

Mage-Physician--Nearly any mage can use their skills to repair minor damage to bones and soft tissue, but it takes a specialist, a mage-physician, to go any farther.  To strengthen muscle, extend life, and alter the very chemistry of another creature's body are all within the purview of a skilled mage-physician.  Considered one of the most respected of all occupations on Starhaven and throughout the Confederation of Human Worlds, the mage-physician is a singular character indeed.

Mage-Smith--While it's not impossible that someone who is not a mage could work high crystal, it is much, much more difficult.  And working with magewood is absolutely out of the question.  Power calls to power, and crystal that has been shaped by someone who can wield magic is almost always more powerful than crystal that has not.

Mage-Warrior--The most common sort of agency mage, highly skilled not in engineering, or medicine, but defense and offense.  A mage-warrior might know how to do some quick and dirty repairs on a battlefield to get a companion to safety, or might be able to get a damaged vehicle up and running just long enough to get away, but his or her specialty is opposing the enemy with force of arms and magecraft.

Mage-Pilot--Considered one of the most prestigious posts to which a mage can aspire in the Confederation of Human worlds, a mage-pilot lives in partnership with one of the great mageships until his or her death.  Mage-pilots are usually trained as mage-warriors, with the added benefit of being able to use their mageship's greatly expanded powers to enhance their own, but are also often semi-skilled in the arts of the engineer as well.