Sulesi

The Stuff of Nightmares

A sneak peek at ElementalShrike's secret project

When I first saw her, I had no idea that she'd been stung. She had been sitting next to her tent, and simply complained about a little... dizziness. Suddenly, she started screaming. Just screaming bloody murder at the top of her lungs. Her eyes blued, and I knew then and there to shoot her would be mercy. And that was what I did.

— Amlare, testifying for herself

The Sulesi (lit. "soul-sucker") bug is said to be one of the deadliest insects in the world. It is said that once it was a peaceful race, but that at some point the gods cursed them. They were all turned into little insects, about the size of one's thumb, which had to rely on sucking the souls of the passerby unfortunate enough to cross them.

Action Method

When it bites someone, the bug injects a local anesthetic and a toxin into the body of the host. The toxin puts the human being in a state of severe pain, as well as causing muscle contractions at random, thereby causing the human to spasm and scream loudly. Despite this, it does not kill quickly, and often the unlucky soul must spend hours in pain before death.
A sign that death is near is the reddening of the eyes. Generally, the toxin builds up in the eye of the person, causing the eye to turn blue. In its late stages though, the toxin is at such a concentration that it causes immense internal hemorrhaging, hence the reddening of the eye. However, usually before this stage the person is put out of their misery by someone who discovers them.

Sulesi in Culture

If you see a beetle, shoot it. I don't care how much force you use, make sure it's dead.

— Expedition commander

Being such a small beetle, the sulesi generally hunts other small arthropods and reptiles of the desert. Usually, it only bites humans in self-defense. Nevertheless, the horrible death a bite gives has made the beetle stuff of legend. Currently, in the Ligae Sotetia, the bug stands in for the Devil herself.

Scientific Name

Miles severus

Origin/Ancestry

Endless Steppe

Lifespan

4 to 5 years

Conservation Status

Pest: to be exterminated

Average Weight

5.5 to 7.5 grams

Soul-Sucker Range

This bug, while fearsome, is rarely found, due to the fact that the bug in its larval stage needs to acquire certain bacteria that produce the lethal venom in its salivary glands. It is said that this bacteria only occurs on one species of plant in the Endless Steppe.

Add that to the fact that the adult bug only lives in the dunes of the Masiuri Desert over two hundred kilometers away, and the truth is that very few bugs make it to reproductive age after being born.