L O S T
- Name: Moolkirook
- Designation: Semi-Sentient
- Homeworld: Aurum
- Language: N.A
- Average height of adults: 0.5m
- Skin color: Earth Brown, Translucent Blue and Red
- Hair color: N.A
- Breathes: Type I
- Strengths:
- The Moolkirook have a hard outershell which defends against any possible dangers they might face within the body of water they reside within, such as disturbed rocks which fall or predatory attacks. They are also capable, in extreme conditions, of exposing a line of sharp spines across the length of their shell which are laced with a mild, natural venom that can paralyse smaller predators. If a large sentient found the venom in their system it would induce brief bouts of sickness. When they hatch a Moolkirook is translucent blue in colour, able to hide well within water.
- Weaknesses:
- Picture the dodo or the panda; the Moolkirook are evolutionarily behind other species', and lack any real survival instincts. When they have produced a small amount of eggs they begin to swell up and expand dangerously under the pressure of the water until their bodies explode. Many of the Moolkirook eggs remain unfertilized after they have been laid as a result of this, as the species as a whole are hermaphrodites and the rapid rate at which they expand and explode is too swift to carry it out. When they reach an age capable of breeding their translucent state changes and they instead find themselves sporting a shiny red shell which easily attracts the attention of predators and lasts until they lay their eggs. Moolkirook are seen as a delicacy upon Aurum by its settlers, meaning they are highly sought after for food by sentients and non-sentients alike. They are ill adapted to fighting off sentients. Likewise their venom tipped spines are often extracted to be concentrated into a harsher poison by the continental natives.
- Distinctions: Moolkirook are crustaceans which inhabit the fresh-water beds upon Aurum. They go through three stages of colouring throughout their lifespan: to begin with they are a translucent blue, until they reach maturity; at this point their outershell hardens and becomes vivid red, a sign that they are close to laying their eggs. Only once this latter process is complete do they reach their final colouring, which is a murky, earthly brown. When in this final state their bodies begin to swell up and expand rapidly until several rows of venom-laced spines retract from their shell. Within the hour their bodies will then explode; this process is not violent unless they are being held. At which point the individual holding them will find their hand to be slightly shredded yet no permanent damage is done. Moolkirook are hermaphrodites, yet full conception doesn't happen inside their eggs. Instead they require fertilization to happen after they have buried the eggs, which can prove counter-productive for a species who are known for exploding not too long after laying said eggs.
- Average Lifespan: Between 9 months and a year.
- Races: N.A
- Diet: Algae
- Communication: Body Language and Clicking of the Frontal Pincers.
- Culture: As semi-sentients there is no major culture which the Moolkirook follow, however with that said there are some oddities in their behaviour which mark them as semi instead of non-sentient. While not outwardly known or really observable the Moolkirook have one major thought process, one belief so to speak, which surprisingly has nothing to do with pro-creation or the betterment of their species. If anything it is counter productive. The species as a whole believe that they ought to die naturally, through the swelling and eventual explosive nature of their bodies. As such in their latter moments, when they become fattened and perfect sources of food their spines retract themselves to ward off against lesser predators, in order to achieve their true state of death, that which was intended for them. In truth this is little more than an old, out of date, defence mechanism from before larger predators, such as cultured sentients, arrived upon the planet. Aside from this the Moolkirook are noted to be isolationist creatures who prefer to fertilize their own eggs and are very rarely seen to have reproductive mates.
- Technology level: N.A
- General behavior: Moolkirook are isolated creatures who prefer to remain away from the rest of their species and in truth the other species' which inhabit their continent. They are self-fertilizing hermaphrodites, yet frequently they fail to procreate even with themselves due to the swift nature of their lifespan post-laying of their eggs. They communicate through a variety of clicks and gestures when required, and are noted to go through random moments of varied walking patterns; for instance several have been noted to suddenly start moving backwards, or even sideways, though usually this is when they are ready to lay their eggs. They have little response to predators attempting to attack them prior to laying their eggs, however afterwards their hidden spines retract to try and keep them at bay, owing to a strong belief in 'dying naturally', as opposed to dying as part of the food chain.
- History: Moolkirook were once some of the strongest non-sentient beings within the fresh-water beds of Aurum, having had venom-laced pincers as well as full control over the retraction of their venom-laced spines. While they have never eaten anything aside from algae they were fierce and territorial, and their procreation methods were very effective. Overtime, however, when it became an inbuilt reflex for the other sea-faring creatures to remain away from them, they lost the necessity of these features, and slowly became more placid. The spines on their backs would only reveal themselves when they were nearing death, and eventually they became conscious of this fact, believing it their duty to die pure through the natural rate of expansion their bodies underwent which ended in their death. With this semi-sentient state, however, came another problem; the Moolkirook's reproductive abilities began to dwindle as their bodies rapidly expanded following the laying of their eggs, the rate at which this was happening substantial compared to their ancestors. As such many eggs were left unfertilized in the sandy basin of their waters.
- When sentient beings arrived upon the planet the Moolkirook were no match for their capable hunting techniques, and found themselves fished out of the water even before they had begun to swell. However, the more patient amongst the sentients noted how they would swell up, and thus yield a more bountiful harvest, if you first allowed them to procreate and left them for a little while. Yet the society was torn into those that preferred the crustacean prior to or post reproduction. Those who opted for the latter found that if they left it too long their job became dangerous, having to make precautions to avoid the venom-laced spines and the explosive deaths of the creatures. While the venom left them only nauseous and the exploded shell merely tore into their hands - neither effects taking too long to heal - it left only a select few who would be willing to wait to harvest them. As such, while both types were a delicacy, to have a Moolkirook post-reproduction was highly sought after, and to many even a right of passage.
- Notable Player-Characters: None.
- Intent: To create a species' to be the main source of food for the settlers upon Aurum.
I'm just trying to lore-ify Aurum properly 
