The Muryans are an ancient race of beings who came into existence shortly after the birth of Noran’s world (the Empire of Dal-Rhiatah). They first lived in the planet-wide, sentient forest named Panko – before Homo sapiens began – and they had a symbiotic relationship with the plants and trees, and later on, with the animals. The first Muryan blossomed into life from the rotting of the dead leaves as they fell to the ground during the first autumn. This Muryan reached into the end of a mouldering log and brought forth her husband, and all Muryans since then have been descended from them.
They were incredibly tiny at first, like ants crossed with pixies, and they broke down decaying and dead matter (including dead animals) so that the souls of the dead could pass to the next world and the physical materials could be reused in the cycle of the forest. They communicated telepathically with Panko, and Panko sieved esoteric information, from dead stars in the Great Nothing, through its leaves, which meant that the Muryans were a wise and spiritual people.
After the monkeys fell from the trees and began walking as Homo sapiens, the Muryans evolved into much larger beings who could converse with the dead vocally – influenced by the beliefs of the humans – and able to speak with and help human souls to travel to the afterlife. They became psychopomps.
Unfortunately, as more modern times developed, the Muryans split into different tribes and factions. They lost their telepathic oneness, and with the use of speech they fell into misunderstandings and arguments about the right way of living and which gods were the right ones to worship, and soon there were even bigger, uglier conflicts about the colours of their skin. Over time, half the Muryans grew orange-red skins instead of the usual dark brown or black, and these new, orange Muryans were far more angry and warlike. They would invade the territories of the brown Muryans and destroy their homes, killing them, robbing them, and enslaving any surviving adults they deemed “useful”. These atrocities are currently taking place amongst the Muryans in the time in which “A Dark Heritage: The Nighthunter” is set.
Shortly before they reach the Hiraeth mountains, Logan, Noran, the Professor, and Cailte meet an orphaned Muryan named Trabas. He was almost killed in the river of lava running from Mount Wanslo across Karak, when a tribe of stranger Muryans had finished wiping out his own tribe. The strange Muryans threw him into the lava and left him to either drown or burn to nothing. Thankfully, Trabas was old enough to have developed a tougher carapace than he would have had as a larva / baby, and that protected him as he swam to the other shore. Then, the tribe of wandering magi called the Plentyn-Aderyn found him and adopted him.
By this point, the Muryans have lost the ability to communicate with souls or travel between the worlds of the Living and the Dead, though they remember their heritage and lost abilities with fondness and nostalgia. However, so does everyone else, and this makes them prone to being victims of prejudice and stereotyping. A lot of people – humans, especially – assume that they can still talk to the Dead (or even bring them back) and that they are just hiding that power to live quieter lives.
(Incidentally, the word “Muryan” is a Cornish name for “ant.” I do like nicking words from other languages.)
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