Kyva belongs to the Vrask race, which has long been considered a scourge of the galaxy due to its cruelty and ruthlessness. Paradoxically, they themselves were once a society in which philosophy and ethics held a high value. However, they had the misfortune of being subjugated by a sinister power. This happened tens of thousands of years ago, and little is known of their former oppressors. Nevertheless, all who have even heard of them consider them the epitome of evil. They have many names, most of which relate to darkness and damnation. Those who fell under their rule had to prove themselves useful to their empire or be mercilessly wiped out. The Vrask also faced this choice, and it divided their society at the time. Those who adhered to ethics were wiped out, while those who proved pragmatic enough and adapted to the new situation were allowed to survive. But to do so, they had to reshape their entire philosophy and elevate cruelty to a virtue in order to earn their right to exist as ruthless warriors. The sinister power collapsed several millennia ago. This is believed to have been the result of a combination of internal uprisings and determined campaigns by external enemies. The Vrask gained their freedom and independence during this time, but their entire society was already irrevocably marked by their former oppressors and the ideology they had to adopt in order to survive. Thus, they continued the way of life that had ensured their survival over the past eons. They benefited from this by being able to adopt many of their former masters' superior technologies, thus gaining a certain degree of supremacy over the other emerging powers in the galaxy. Due to the general research efforts in the galaxy, the Vrask's current technological lead is beginning to shrink more and more due to their current, rather feudalistic, and therefore inefficient social structure. A growing conflict is emerging between the pragmatic forces, who strive for a shift to a peaceful policy and thus a rapprochement with the other powers of the galaxy, and the traditionalists, who view this as a weakness and therefore want to maintain their current course. Although Kyva comes from a rather conservative noble family, she clearly belongs to the pragmatic wing of her society. Until recently, this made her an outcast within her family, but after several deaths,- not surprisingly given her age,- she has risen to become the current ruler of her house. Traditionalists have subsequently launched a smear campaign against her, alleging that she may have aided in this.