CELLQUEST: RIP in Piece [DEAD due to inactive host]

[poiz]

> New species are Always good.

[ForTheWeasel]

A, then B. I don't think our starbud is urgently dry, but those funny things sure are urgently shiny.

[darkdramon]

Anvestigation time

[Sam B]

Act:

As interesting as those floating orbs of light might be, the freedom of movement provided by all that water is much more appealing at this particular moment. With your counterpart trailing behind, you rush ahead and enter the subterranean pool with a splash, quickly refilling your specialized water-storing organ while also getting a better at look at the kinds of things living in this area. Other than the two varieties of Gulppy swimming around, you can sense a much larger fish of some currently unknown species lurking near the bottom of the water, as well as a large amount of moss thriving in and around the outer edges of the underground lake.

Also of note are several strange organic masses that you can't identify, all of which are clinging to the aforementioned moss like a bunch of weird, sticky tumors. Their shape and size are vaguely reminiscent of reptilian eggs, but where a shell should be the mysterious lumps seem to be composed of some meshlike substance that you've never seen before. Maybe a new kind of plant? Whatever they are, these things are all over the place, and both the fish and light-beasts floating above seem to be completely ignoring them. Weird.

You have 50 DNA Pt(s)

What do you do?

A) Examine those glowing things already.
B) Hunt down some Gulppies for sustenance.
C) Descend and get a better look at that large fish.
D) Investigate the plants/eggs(?) more thoroughly.
E) Other: ___________________

Stats:

Homeworld: Aros.
Name: Eletus.
Traits: Chordate, Craniate, Diurnal, Symbiotic.
Appearance/Physiology: Dull greyish-brown color with bright underside similar to Starbuds in color; Scaly snake-like body with thick, fleshy fins near the front, pair of fin-shaped keratin blades on back; long tail with barbs and caudal fin at the tip; slightly enlarged head with four dark red eyes and a pair of flat frog-like ears on either side, and a circular mouth with tiny teeth; Glowing flower on underside.
Environment: Northern wetlands.
Behavior: Somewhat cautious if unprovoked, very curious; will actively infect young with Starbuds; travels in pairs.
Symbiosis: Starbud Flower [M]
Diet: Omnivorous, can eat both meat and mineral matter. (No preference.)
Belly: 40%
Size: 10; Average length of 14-16 cm.
SNS: 15; Slightly blurry light-based vision fourfold (colorless); Can detect low-frequency sounds; Able to sense chemicals from a distance; Basic sense of smell.
MOB: 10.5; You crawl at a somewhat slow pace on land, and can swim well; Very flexible.
INT: 12; Sentient; Capable of basic social interaction with your own kind.
ATK: 7.5; You have a strong mouth with teeth, sharp barbs on your tail and dangerous Dorsal-Blades on your back.
DEF: 8.5; You have durable scales, a Starbud, and a pair of Dorsal-Blades, deterring many predators.
HP: 61/61

Abilities:

--Active--
-Seed Cannon: Produce and launch parasitic seeds from your Starbud at will. (-1 DNA Pt per use.)
-Disgorge: Vomit some of the contents of your belly with mild force. Effectiveness increases with a larger Belly %. (Divides current Belly by half)
-Charge: A short burst of speed in any direction, can be used offensively. (-30% Belly)
-Suction: Pull small objects into your mouth from a short distance or affix yourself to larger surfaces. (-10% Belly when used on non-food objects)

--Passive--
-Bloom Brood: Starbuds are inseparable from your species, and you start each generation infected by one.
-Cephalize: Evolve sensory organs at reduced cost on your "head".
-Geophagy: Gain extra DNA from soil and similar materials.
-Regen: Recover HP at a constant rate. Belly drops faster than normal when more than a third of your HP is gone.

[ninjamaster1991]

[S]: DeCend.

You're in your element in the water; you can run away faster.

[sonic3535]

Glowy things - they're Awesome.

[Kíeros]

> Cool new fish time.

[poiz]

E=A+C

[ForTheWeasel]

A. That shit's glowing, guys.

[Professor Science]

A. We should probably eat soon, but it can wait a little longer. Its not like the Gulppies are particularly hard to catch.

[ForTheWeasel]

We could always eat the glowing things, accomplishing both at once. Our experience with gems says shiny equals tasty, right? Om.

[Reecer6]

>Abstain yourself with gulppies, then detect the plant things
(imagine a bolded B and D)

[Wessolf27]

Let's go with A only, don't want to confuse ourselves by examining everything.

[cryptidWrangler]

Don't actually touch them... launch a starbud at them.

[Knight_of_Hide]

B

Eat the gulpies, eat the fish!

[Sam B]

Act:

You give in to curiosity again and poke your head out of the water with the intent of studying those shiny creatures floating overhead. From directly below you have a pretty decent view of them, and you can make out several details that may have gone unnoticed if you tried to identify them from afar. Small jointed legs and thin, scaly wings protrude from the many brightly-lit bodies above. Even a simple beast like you can recognize these as traits belonging to the arthropod class of beings, though you certainly lack the intelligence to articulate or even understand such terms. These particular arthropods are insects, and they are called Limotofae.

The Limotofae are one of the few species of insect on this planet that doesn't grow to be very big; even the largest of them would barely rival the smallest Eletus. They are vaguely similar to Sap Flies in appearance, featuring a pair of delicate wings, long antennae and bulging compound eyes not unlike their larger cousins, but their most striking feature is by far their bioluminescence, which is produced all over their tiny bodies by several specialized organs that emit light constantly. Being the fragile, timid things that they are, an adult Limotof does not eat, but in their larval stage they feed exclusively on what little plant matter they can find in their subterranean habitats.

Now that you've spent several minutes gazing in awe at them, these little light-bugs seem much less interesting than they did earlier. After all, neither bioluminescence nor insects are new concepts to your kind, and while such small creatures do seem very vulnerable and tasty you're pretty sure they are far too high to eat - a fact that is especially frustrating now that your insatiable hunger has reared its ugly (metaphorical) head. As your thoughts drift to food, you can find only two sane options in your immediate surroundings: One would be the bite-sized fish swimming nearby, and the other is the gravelly floor of the underground lake. Of course, you are in no way limited by the bounds of sanity, and there are other things to eat all around you...

You have 50 DNA Pt(s)

What do you do?

A) Conserve your strength and settle for gravel.
B) Hunt a few Gulppies with what energy you have left.
C) Ignore your dietary needs and taste the strange plant/egg-like growths?
D) Attack the large unknown fish and try to eat that instead?!
E) Other: ___________________

Stats:

Homeworld: Aros.
Name: Eletus.
Traits: Chordate, Craniate, Diurnal, Symbiotic.
Appearance/Physiology: Dull greyish-brown color with bright underside similar to Starbuds in color; Scaly snake-like body with thick, fleshy fins near the front, pair of fin-shaped keratin blades on back; long tail with barbs and caudal fin at the tip; slightly enlarged head with four dark red eyes and a pair of flat frog-like ears on either side, and a circular mouth with tiny teeth; Glowing flower on underside.
Environment: Northern wetlands.
Behavior: Somewhat cautious if unprovoked, very curious; will actively infect young with Starbuds; travels in pairs.
Symbiosis: Starbud Flower [M]
Diet: Omnivorous, can eat both meat and mineral matter. (No preference.)
Belly: 20%
Size: 10; Average length of 14-16 cm.
SNS: 15; Slightly blurry light-based vision fourfold (colorless); Can detect low-frequency sounds; Able to sense chemicals from a distance; Basic sense of smell.
MOB: 10.5; You crawl at a somewhat slow pace on land, and can swim well; Very flexible.
INT: 12; Sentient; Capable of basic social interaction with your own kind.
ATK: 7.5; You have a strong mouth with teeth, sharp barbs on your tail and dangerous Dorsal-Blades on your back.
DEF: 8.5; You have durable scales, a Starbud, and a pair of Dorsal-Blades, deterring many predators.
HP: 61/61

Abilities:

--Active--
-Seed Cannon: Produce and launch parasitic seeds from your Starbud at will. (-1 DNA Pt per use.)
-Disgorge: Vomit some of the contents of your belly with mild force. Effectiveness increases with a larger Belly %. (Divides current Belly by half)
-Charge: A short burst of speed in any direction, can be used offensively. (-30% Belly)
-Suction: Pull small objects into your mouth from a short distance or affix yourself to larger surfaces. (-10% Belly when used on non-food objects)

--Passive--
-Bloom Brood: Starbuds are inseparable from your species, and you start each generation infected by one.
-Cephalize: Evolve sensory organs at reduced cost on your "head".
-Geophagy: Gain extra DNA from soil and similar materials.
-Regen: Recover HP at a constant rate. Belly drops faster than normal when more than a third of your HP is gone.

[Kíeros]

> At one time, weren't we geovorous?

[Aleisha]

E: Eat a bit of gravel to stave off the edge, then be reckless and slice open a plant/egg thing to see if it's full of tasty goodness!

[poiz]

E: Spontaneously evolve the metabolism fix.

[Professor Science]

A+B=E, have a bit of both. That way, if you fail to catch some Gulppies for whatever reason, you'll still be able to eat some gravel.

[Aabcehmu]

I'll got with Prod. Science's E, eat some gravel, but save room for a gulppie. If you can't, I guess we can go ahead and overeat, since we don't seem in particular danger, as long as we don't piss off any of the particularly large creatures in our vicinity.

[ForTheWeasel]

E, same deal. Eat both. Weird, do we not see the larvae of those bugs anywhere? Sometimes grubs and whatnot can be as big or bigger as adults... and they're much more squishy and vulnerable besides.

[Knight_of_Hide]

AB = E

Yeah, lets make the most of being somewhat omnivorous by eating lots of different stuff!

[cryptidWrangler]

ABE sounds good to me too.

[Wessolf27]

A+B=E, have a bit of both. That way, if you fail to catch some Gulppies for whatever reason, you'll still be able to eat some gravel.

This would be for the best.