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Deviation Actions
Description
The hognose thrax is a native of the planet Ilion, notable for its use in a experiment to test the effects of venom from the devil's archer, another native life form. It is a semi-arboreal plant eater not unlike squirrels: it can scamper up and down trees with its fourteen clawed feet and cache food to be located later with the help of an olfactory fringe lining the base of its double snout. Dextrous mouthparts enable it to capture and manipulate all sorts of food items. Because a large part of its diet consists of animal-like mobile fruits of red plants (see: [link] ), its classification as an herbivore is debatable.
See where it lies on the tree of life: [link]
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Specimen 14-1 - Recovered from the survivor’s arm: Tethered thorn of the devil’s archer, 38 cm in length. Extensive tissue damage at site. Fleshy portion contains two fluid chambers with tubes connected to the hollow thorn. Report from the crew’s biologist suggests a digestive purpose. Extract from the chambers was contaminated with human blood but saved regardless.
Sample 14-1a: When injected into a fan thrax, the substance paralyzed the creature immediately and liquefied it within the hour.
Specimen 14-2 - Recovered from the victim’s clothing: Broken thorn with two fluid-filled sacs and 17 cm of tether. No tissue damage at site.
Samples 14-2a and 14-2b: 2.5 mL and 1 mL extract from the large and small chambers respectively. Currently stored in separate containers; may react when mixed. Chemical analysis pending return of crew.
Specimen 14-3 - Recovered from the victim’s chest: Untethered thorn, 14 cm in length. Minimal tissue damage at site. Report suggests a reproductive purpose. Contains one fluid-filled chamber and multiple eggs.
Sample 14-3a: When injected into a hognose thrax, the creature was not paralyzed or digested but did display altered behavior. Venom likely contains a neurotoxin.
from: [link]
Guinea Pigs (excerpt)
Bringing live animals into the tent is a violation of protocol. On paper, this one entered the wash-down room on its own accord, ostensibly through the pipes. The rat-sized thoracostome was unexpectedly swift on its stubby legs. Alex had to pin it down while I administered 2 cc of the venom solution. At a 1:5 dilution, I wasn’t expecting much to happen, but the effects were dramatic.
The first thing we noticed was an immediate behavioral shift. The creature no longer feared the three aliens surrounding it. Instead, our guinea pig went into a raw panic that ended in a mad clamber for the trees. The closest approximation of a tree trunk was the legs of one of its captors, rooted to the floor, afraid to budge. Erin made no attempt to remove the animal until it buried its double snout in her sling.
“Hey, hey, you’re scared, I know. But that hurts.” She picked it up by the hind feet and set it down on the floor, but it climbed right back up.
“Any theories, Alex?”
“I don’t think it’s scared. I think it’s attracted to something…a smell. An irresistible odor.”
“A taste for blood?”
“Our blood? Not likely. This sample came from a quill that had no cable attachment to the archer that launched it. It would be useless for hunting because the target would just run away. Unless...unless it ran to another tree. Then it could pollinate other archers.”
That mystery solved, we released the animal and began the next test on the second creature to conveniently wander into our dome. This one wasn’t so lucky. The fan thrax convulsed, retracted its eyestalks, and unfurled its dorsal sail before collapsing in my hand. A jet-black blister formed at the site of injection and spread outward until the skin grew too thin to hold the fluid inside. I could feel a pulse and it wasn’t my own.
Alex was entranced. Erin went pale. I looked around for something else to rest my eyes on, but the only feature within my line of sight was a man-sized tool chest lying near the soap drum. The tools were currently scattered across the tables in the other room. We needed the box for something else.
“Just kill the damn thing already.”
I wasn’t inclined to argue. The body had lost its original pink color in favor of a tar black, but it continued to twitch nonetheless. I dropped it on the floor without ceremony and euthanized it in the only way I could think of at the time, by grinding it into the floor with my boot. I should have worn gloves for this. The seepage that had pooled in the palm of my hand was beginning to burn. My hands felt slimy even after wiping them on my pants.
“Alex, fetch me some mild acid, will you?” I followed him into the living area, careful not to touch the walls of the tunnel connecting the two bubbles. It wasn’t easy. This place gets smaller every day, I thought.
“Will ethanol work? That’s all I’ve got in my tool kit. I left the rest in the forest.”
“No. Forget it, I’ll just rinse it off.”
It was Erin who found what I needed to neutralize the base – powdered orange juice. The can was almost empty, but it did the job.
“I hope you’re not thirsty,” she said. “all we’ve got left is water from the tap. Stuff tastes like PVC.”
“Are you sure?” I turned to see Alex rummaging through the kitchen, which was nothing more than a stack of food crates and a hot plate for boiling water. Nobody thought to bring cups, so we’ve been using mason jars as mugs. A few of these sat unwashed by the sink. “There’s some tea in here. Cardamom and black.”
“Only one person drinks that. He rationed the stuff like it’s the apocalypse. And for what? It’s the end of the world for him and all he left behind was his goddamned tea.”
I didn’t know what to say.
“We’re flying out the day after tomorrow and we’re short one pilot, and half a co-pilot too. I can’t fly this thing one-handed. How does a crash course in piloting sound to you? Because that’s the only way we’re getting out of here.”
I wanted to say “just like giving you a crash course in brain surgery,” but she looked about ready to break. Perhaps crash course wasn’t the best choice of words. I pictured myself drunkenly steering the shuttle right into the lake.
Maybe some of that tea will do me good, but I’ll pass on the ethanol.
- Dr. Luo Ping
______________________________________________________
EDIT 12/1/12: Since I finished the "guinea pigs" passage today, I thought I might as well post the whole thing.
More on fan thrax: [link]
More on devil's archer:
[link]
[link]
[link]
Read the whole story here: [link]
Ballpoint pen
See where it lies on the tree of life: [link]
_________________________________________________
Specimen 14-1 - Recovered from the survivor’s arm: Tethered thorn of the devil’s archer, 38 cm in length. Extensive tissue damage at site. Fleshy portion contains two fluid chambers with tubes connected to the hollow thorn. Report from the crew’s biologist suggests a digestive purpose. Extract from the chambers was contaminated with human blood but saved regardless.
Sample 14-1a: When injected into a fan thrax, the substance paralyzed the creature immediately and liquefied it within the hour.
Specimen 14-2 - Recovered from the victim’s clothing: Broken thorn with two fluid-filled sacs and 17 cm of tether. No tissue damage at site.
Samples 14-2a and 14-2b: 2.5 mL and 1 mL extract from the large and small chambers respectively. Currently stored in separate containers; may react when mixed. Chemical analysis pending return of crew.
Specimen 14-3 - Recovered from the victim’s chest: Untethered thorn, 14 cm in length. Minimal tissue damage at site. Report suggests a reproductive purpose. Contains one fluid-filled chamber and multiple eggs.
Sample 14-3a: When injected into a hognose thrax, the creature was not paralyzed or digested but did display altered behavior. Venom likely contains a neurotoxin.
from: [link]
Guinea Pigs (excerpt)
Bringing live animals into the tent is a violation of protocol. On paper, this one entered the wash-down room on its own accord, ostensibly through the pipes. The rat-sized thoracostome was unexpectedly swift on its stubby legs. Alex had to pin it down while I administered 2 cc of the venom solution. At a 1:5 dilution, I wasn’t expecting much to happen, but the effects were dramatic.
The first thing we noticed was an immediate behavioral shift. The creature no longer feared the three aliens surrounding it. Instead, our guinea pig went into a raw panic that ended in a mad clamber for the trees. The closest approximation of a tree trunk was the legs of one of its captors, rooted to the floor, afraid to budge. Erin made no attempt to remove the animal until it buried its double snout in her sling.
“Hey, hey, you’re scared, I know. But that hurts.” She picked it up by the hind feet and set it down on the floor, but it climbed right back up.
“Any theories, Alex?”
“I don’t think it’s scared. I think it’s attracted to something…a smell. An irresistible odor.”
“A taste for blood?”
“Our blood? Not likely. This sample came from a quill that had no cable attachment to the archer that launched it. It would be useless for hunting because the target would just run away. Unless...unless it ran to another tree. Then it could pollinate other archers.”
That mystery solved, we released the animal and began the next test on the second creature to conveniently wander into our dome. This one wasn’t so lucky. The fan thrax convulsed, retracted its eyestalks, and unfurled its dorsal sail before collapsing in my hand. A jet-black blister formed at the site of injection and spread outward until the skin grew too thin to hold the fluid inside. I could feel a pulse and it wasn’t my own.
Alex was entranced. Erin went pale. I looked around for something else to rest my eyes on, but the only feature within my line of sight was a man-sized tool chest lying near the soap drum. The tools were currently scattered across the tables in the other room. We needed the box for something else.
“Just kill the damn thing already.”
I wasn’t inclined to argue. The body had lost its original pink color in favor of a tar black, but it continued to twitch nonetheless. I dropped it on the floor without ceremony and euthanized it in the only way I could think of at the time, by grinding it into the floor with my boot. I should have worn gloves for this. The seepage that had pooled in the palm of my hand was beginning to burn. My hands felt slimy even after wiping them on my pants.
“Alex, fetch me some mild acid, will you?” I followed him into the living area, careful not to touch the walls of the tunnel connecting the two bubbles. It wasn’t easy. This place gets smaller every day, I thought.
“Will ethanol work? That’s all I’ve got in my tool kit. I left the rest in the forest.”
“No. Forget it, I’ll just rinse it off.”
It was Erin who found what I needed to neutralize the base – powdered orange juice. The can was almost empty, but it did the job.
“I hope you’re not thirsty,” she said. “all we’ve got left is water from the tap. Stuff tastes like PVC.”
“Are you sure?” I turned to see Alex rummaging through the kitchen, which was nothing more than a stack of food crates and a hot plate for boiling water. Nobody thought to bring cups, so we’ve been using mason jars as mugs. A few of these sat unwashed by the sink. “There’s some tea in here. Cardamom and black.”
“Only one person drinks that. He rationed the stuff like it’s the apocalypse. And for what? It’s the end of the world for him and all he left behind was his goddamned tea.”
I didn’t know what to say.
“We’re flying out the day after tomorrow and we’re short one pilot, and half a co-pilot too. I can’t fly this thing one-handed. How does a crash course in piloting sound to you? Because that’s the only way we’re getting out of here.”
I wanted to say “just like giving you a crash course in brain surgery,” but she looked about ready to break. Perhaps crash course wasn’t the best choice of words. I pictured myself drunkenly steering the shuttle right into the lake.
Maybe some of that tea will do me good, but I’ll pass on the ethanol.
- Dr. Luo Ping
______________________________________________________
EDIT 12/1/12: Since I finished the "guinea pigs" passage today, I thought I might as well post the whole thing.
More on fan thrax: [link]
More on devil's archer:
[link]
[link]
[link]
Read the whole story here: [link]
Ballpoint pen
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Comments1
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for a minute, I forgot which end was the forward end. (a similar-looking marine creature that's jet-propelled?)
nice to be able to put faces to the organisms in the accounts. bravo on the artwork.
nice to be able to put faces to the organisms in the accounts. bravo on the artwork.