Physical Description

Neanderthal are bipedal forward hinge kneed mammals evolved from simians.  Skin coloration varies by region from light to dark brown.  Their bodies are covered with a layer of fine hair that thickens and accumulates atop the head, the lower extremities, groin region, and on the chest and faces of the males.  Terran females are typically distinguished by having smaller frames then the males and a pair of breasts on the chest.  

A Thal’s head is distinguished by having a pair of eyes mounted midway up the face under a mid-sized brow ridge.  Extending down from the brow ridge between the eyes is a single nose that extends roughly triangularly out from the face with a pair of nostrils running side by side through it from the base.  The bottom of the head is distinguished as having a single axis downward opening hinged jaw with limited lateral movement.  The mouth has two U shaped rows of teeth, one mounted on the jaw and the other to the roof of the mouth.  A pair of mid-sized elliptical ears are mounted to either side of the head and typically match the nose for vertical position.  

Terrans have five digits on their feet and hands.  The digits on Terran feet are short with limited grasping ability, and in length are barely a tenth the length of their feet.  The hand digits however are approximately half to the same length as their palms and are comprised of four primary fingers and a single opposable thumb mounted to the side of the hand at the base of the palm.

Genitals on the males are external, while females house their reproductive organs internally.  Terran females typically have twelve fertile cycles a year and flush unfertilized eggs within two weeks of ovarian release.
Compared to their Terran cousins, Thal are slightly shorter and stockier with thicker bones and musculature and far more pronounced brow and cheek bones.  Thal and Terrans are capable of interbreeding, however chances or birth defects in natural births are higher than average.

History 

While the Sirians do not qualify as an Elder Race, they are one of the older developed races.  The Sirian do not speak much of their original homeworld though some records do indicate that it was rendered uninhabitable due to pollution and warfare.  The Sirians set out into space where they established an interstellar empire and eventually established a new capital world in the Sirius system on the second planet of that binary system known as Bolldu. From Bolldu, the Sirians continued to expand, conquering several primitive races to use as slave labor.
During one of their many expediations the Sirans discovered the world of Earth where they kidnapped the local Neanderthal as a slave race, leaving the Cro-Magnon to develop and evolve.  The Sirians would continue to visit Earth over the centuries, typically via one of their slave races, the Nommos, before they all but wiped them out after numerous betrayals.

As the Sirians had yet to develop hyperspace travel, and their slipstream drives were primitive, journeys to and from their central worlds could take years if not decades, especially in the larger slave ships, which were converted colony ships.

Over the intervening millenia, the Sirian Empire continued to expand throughout the Consign Spur of the Milky Way and brought their slowly evolving slave races with them.  As the Neanderthal evolved they grew smarter and while not fully educated in how their master’s technology worked, were taught how to operate and do minor repairs.  The Sirian Empire however was plagued by internal conflicts and conflicts with more advanced races they came into contact with.  However, without hyperspace travel these conflicts were largely regarded as cold wars.  The Thal however began to conspire with one another against their masters, all of which culminated in Confed Annura 586 (Earth Year: 2165) when the Thal’s final plans came to fruition. 
The final Sirian civil war resulted in the devestation of the majority of their colony worlds with bio-weapons that decimated their population.  The Thal then rose up and took control of the devastated empire and began to seek out their original homeworld, unfortunately they were limited to slipstream speeds as the Sirians scuttled their hyperspace shield and navigation equipment during the fall.

Following the fall of their Empire, the Sirians found themselves as the new slave race to the Thal.  With their numbers forced to be limited the Sirians have never been able to rise back up against their former slaves, however, their ancient dealings with the Pharad have helped to garner them higher ranking slave positions throughout Federation space.

Culture

Thal culture is fiercely independent, yet they are the biggest proponent of the keeping and maintaining of slave races within the Galactic Federation.  While well integrated with their cousin race, for the most part, significant issues still arise due to the lack of knowledge of most of their history.

Major Religions/Philosophies

No Major Religions, as the Thal see all religions as falsehoods perpetrated by their ancient masters and other alien races.

The Thal have adopted many Terran philosophies as all cultural development under the Sirians were quashed.

Population

25 Billion as of last GF Census

Notables

Thal make excellent soldiers and can be found in equal number to their Terran cousins on the battlefield, though rarely in mixed units.  Thal ship design is still largely influenced bu that of their old master’s, largely featuring saucer shaped hulls and using anti-matter colliders for energy generation.

Psionicism-  Psionics are rare amongst the Thal, but slightly more common in the hybrids, yet still well below the numbers found in their Terran cousins.  The reasons behind this are unclear, though it has proven at point of contention as the Thal still do not fully trust their cousin race.

Sub-Species

NNo official subspecies exist, however many view Terran-Thal hybrids as a separate species or race.