Octovera

The Octovera is a parasitic animal-fungus hybrid.

Appearance

The Octovera appears as a set of eight pale green tentacles with dark green protrusions in adulthood before finding a host. When they find a host, they turn dark red with small black protrusions, similar to the Clathrus Archeri fungus.

Lifecycle

Egg

The Octovera begin as an oval-shaped semi-opaque egg, usually laid in a hollow tree. The eggs are made of a soft but tough and leathery material. The eggs are usually laid mid-Autumn, and hatch in mid-Spring.

Juvenile

The Octovera young sustain on water, moss and leaves until they grow to full size. They are born with four tentacles which they use to slowly move around, which split into eight as they approach adulthood. Octovera tend to move as a widespread collective, so one typically indicates another within a few meters.

Adulthood

When the Octovera's tentacles split into four, they become more sensitive to light during nighttime, and often surround camps. Unwary travellers with uncovered heads will wake up to find several Octovera attatched to the back of their skull. The record for the number of Octovera on a single person's head is 13. The host will then proceed to lose their hair as the blood flow is taken by the Octovera. If the Octovera nears death and has not found a host, it will find carcasses and drain blood from it.

Plant

When the Octovera nears death, the dark protrusions begin to grow spores. As the host travels, the spores are spread. However, the spores can only grow in moist areas such as forests and caves.

Interactions With Humans

Despite their parasitic nature, Octovera are semi-symbiotic, excreting an aloe-vera like substance that has an insect repellant effect. Some travellers that choose to have an Octovera can easily hide them in a hood.