From the journal of dr Henry P. Dright
Across my many travels in this universe, I have encountered many strange and wonderful creatures throughout the many worlds that litter the stars. Tonight I recall my journey to a small cold world named Phantasmagoria in the lower quarter of the PH-3 galaxy, and my encounter with a truly remarkable group of creatures.
4.1 Primary digestive chamber 4.2 Secondary digestive chamber 4.3 Tertiary digestive chamber
The unique biology of this genus separates it from many other similarly parasitic organisms I have encountered. Their outer membrane is thin and somewhat gelatinous, which allows even the smaller specimens to slip into orifices otherwise too small for them. This, combined with the curious compressive abilities of their musculature, makes them easily adapted for invasion of various different hosts.
Despite their endoparasitic lifestyle, they have a rather developed nervous system, which allows them a wide range of emotional responses and the ability to communicate with other beings. They also possess what appears to be a flexible notochord as well, which is another odd adaptation for such an organism.
Their digestive system is a fascinatingly complex bit of biological machinery with the function of breaking down and processing the neurological chemicals they absorb from their hosts. Separated into three distinct chambers connected by small tubes, each with a different function. The first dedicated to breaking down the chemicals and the latter two dedicated to converting the broken down molecules into energy and other compounds required to continue living.
These nodes, located in a small cavity on the front of the head, are coated in chemical receptors for the various compounds the parasite feeds on, once bound, the chemicals are drawn into the esophageal passageways and eventually into the digestive chambers to be processed.
These structures are primarily dedicated to gripping onto the base of the spine while feeding, as well as providing limited movement outside a host. The muscles in this part of the body are rather weak, so they are not particularly quick outside a host, and seem to prefer a more slithering motion as opposed to walking on these limbs
The Somnivora genus lives an exclusively parasitic lifestyle, only capable of living outside another organism when moving from host to host. Once a host has been found, the parasite will enter through a suitable orifice and make its way to the base of the central nervous system, usually at the top of the spine in humanoid creatures, and insert their chemical nodes through weak points in the skull and absorb the correct chemicals for sustenance, only leaving when the specific host becomes dangerous or expires. Typical symptoms of infection are a lack of benefits from sleep, varying in severity depending on how much the parasite consumes, a feeling of general exhaustion, a sensation of pain at the back of the skull, and a new voice in the host’s head, whether obvious or ambiguous.
An artistic portrayal of an incision displaying a somnivore attached to a person’s skull during a removal procedure.
The most curious thing about this group of parasites is their rather developed nervous system and large range of emotional responses. As opposed to many other parasitic organisms, which mostly have rudimentary nervous systems, if any, the somnivores posses a large brain and nerve web that travels throughout the body, giving this genus an incredible amount of behavioral diversity. This, combined with their direct connection to an organism’s central nervous system, gives them the ability to communicate directly with the host and even to control the host’s body while they are sleeping, allowing them to throw off suspicion towards their infection and to communicate with others while in control, although their diet also makes them susceptible to rapid changes in the neural environment, which is often used during removal to neutralize the parasite. Most of the specimens I interacted with were selfish and rather ruthless, displaying little care towards other creatures and seemed predominantly interested in maintaining their survival and concealment within a host, although some were more abrasive than others, and some were more willing to commit violence toward others while some preferred to simply be left alone. In some quite remarkable circumstances however, the host and the parasite were both aware of each other and actively benefitting one another through the host protecting the somnivore and the somnivore taking only the chemicals it requires and helping the host with certain tasks while asleep. When interacting with other somnivores, individuals tend to become aggressive and territorial, and remain as such until the other individual is gone, probably due to competition over hosts and their parasitic nature.
Their reproductive behavior is rather simple. All of the species I observed reproduce asexually through budding when conditions are right. This process starts when what seems to be a new segment in the parent individual before growing into a fully developed organism and separating off of the parent. The new parasite is then forced out of the host by the parent, presumably to avoid competition, and eventually finds a host of its own.
During my stay on that world I discovered at least three unique species within the Somnivora genus, there might have been more, but due to recent circumstances, returning to the planet for further research is impossible, and I doubt it will ever be possible again.
This species is easily distinguishable by its rather unique mouthparts, which rather then being in the form of receptor covered nodes, are a long, proboscis-like growth which allows it to absorb chemicals in a more concentrated form, but also risks damaging the host’s skull if it gets too greedy. This species is the smallest of the genus, usually reaching about 10 cm in length and 15 at maximum. They also seem to be a bit more lenient when it comes to other individuals in their hosts, with groups up to 10 individuals being a common occurrence.
All species of somnivore possess rudimentary eye spots to help them navigate outside a host, but this species seems to nearly lack them entirely. This, along with their much larger and stronger grips, suggests that they developed to stay inside a host form as long as possible. They are most easily distinguishable by the shape of their mouth, which forms a nearly perfect circle, and the lack of growths from their head.
The best way to distinguish these creatures from their relatives is by their more pointed mouth shape and two, fleshy, horn like growths which protrude from their head, the function of which is unknown. They are the largest species, capable of growing up to 50 cm in length, which can make them a bit of a pain, literally.
I was rather glad to have had the chance to encounter such creatures on a world like this, but upon my return trip, I found that the planet had been overtaken by that awful red smoke and those dreadful acolytes of the Prototype. Given their reliance on the functions of the nervous system and their sensitivity to its changes, that every somnivore on that world has died. Which is an incredible tragedy, given their remarkable biology, and while I have encountered several individuals of S. noxiarictus and S. dicornutus on other hosts during my travels, I have never found any individuals of S. defossolingua, which leads me to the conclusion that the species is entirely extinct.
(Au belongs to @onyxonline)