The organism designated as the "Vek-7 parasite" was discovered on the jungle moon of the
same name by Terkarakki settlers. At first treated like a disease and threat by the settlers, their situation has since become more complicated since the discovery of sentient individuals. Now, due to their unique circumstances, their place in society is a topic of debate.
Biology
Anatomy
The Vek-7 Parasite is a parasitic organism that enters its host as an egg via infected water sources. Upon hatching, this parasite will locate the neural center of the organism and grow around it: encoding the organism's neural pathways into itself so that it might mimic the organism's behavior and live among its kin. It grows in a shape similar to that of a flower, with a jelly-like substance in the center surrounding what used to be the organism's head and feeler-like tendrils sprouting from the center of the 'petals'. While the specific mechanisms of their anatomy isn't common knowledge, it's understood that the petal-like structures are covered in sensory organs and the tendrils are used in feeding. The central jelly structure is held together with internal fibers similar to that of an egg, and typically contains remnants of the bones or other undigestable parts of its host. This grizzly interior is usually hidden and protected by the petals when in peril. The Vek parasite borrows the biology of its host for most of it's functions aside from eating and perception.
Appearance
The Vek-7 parasites are most often compared to the shape of a flower. As a whole, an individual taken over by a Vek-7 will look the same as a normal member of their species from the neck down. Above that point sits the main biological body of the parasite. While some root-like veins may be visible below this point, nearly all of the apparent parasite sits around the head of its infected host. The Vek-7 has a gelatinous central body typically red in color that surrounds the head area and 6 sensory petals surrounding it. From between the central head and the petals, tendrils that aid in feeding can extend and retract out bast the length of the head. The petals are dark and the tendrils are pale with tints of blues and yellows. Small eye-like orbs sit at the center line of the petals and aid the parasite in seeing and smelling its environment.
Behavior
In its native habitat, the parasite is not picky about what creature picks it up and will replace members of any species available to it. Because of this adaptability, the parasite can make use of almost any organism it comes across. The mental capacity, tendencies, and instincts of the individual are influenced heavily by what organism the parasite takes over. On it's home planet, the parasite would take over relatively simple animals and match their simple intelligence in order to live among them. A Vek-7 that takes over a small prey animal would be more cautious and jumpy than one that takes over a large, calm predator. This becomes a very important note when it comes to the introduction of sentient species into their population.
Parasites that have taken over the body of a sentient creature have the ability to develop similar capacities for reasoning, sentience, and understanding. Whether the parasite is truly sentient, or just able to mimic the thought patterns of their host is a topic of heavy debate. While a parasitized individual is considered to be lost after infection, the Vek-7 has the uncanny ability to recall some memories from their host. This is probably a mechanism by which the parasite is able to understand how to act among it's host's species, but some hold on to hope that some element of the host is still in there somewhere. Regardless, all Vek-7 individuals, even those who have taken over sentient minds, have a compulsion and desire to live among their host's kind.
Culture
First Pilgrimage
All Vek-7 parasites, regardless if they are in an animal or sentient host, will perform an instinctual pilgrimage in its early years. When it has grown enough to have control over its body, the parasite will travel and seek out the nearest group of the species it has taken over and observe them. Regardless if the group accepts the new individual or not, this period is spent learning what it can about the species it has become a part of. This period lasts for a few months before the parasite becomes confident in its ability to act properly, at which point it will seek to join a group officially. On it home planet, the parasites are generally accepted into the herds of most parasitized animals, but among sentient species the reaction is far less accepting.
Copy-Cats
Vek-7 parasites will mirror and adapt to the species and culture they are born into. Even personal quirks of their hosts may be passed down if they are strong enough personality traits. While specific memories are not typically kept, fundamental beliefs and core memories can be preserved in the memory of the parasite. Because of this, the parasites will act as a strange copy-cat of the ting they have taken over until it has had enough time to learn and refine itself into a more accurate representation. Young Vek-7s are typically uncanny and strange in their behavior, while older ones act far more naturally.
History
Colonization of Vek-7
The jungle moon of Vek-7 was a rich, life bearing moon devoid of sentient civilization until the ever-expanding krakki empire made efforts to settle on it. A small colony ship from a greater krakki faction was the first to settle on the moon, and had a great start due to its bountiful natural resources. It wasnt long, however, until the natural dangers of the moon would begin to plague their settlement. Unaware of the method of infection, several of the krakki colonists would fall victim to the then unknown Vek parasite. Frightened by the uncanny mockeries of their fallen comrades, the original colonists would attempt to wipe out any of the parasitic organisms they could find, fearful at their sudden prevalence in their population.
It was during this period of instability and fear that the
Karhakkhas' Queendom came to take over their settlement. Unable to fight on both fronts, the original settlers were captured by the queendom's forces and either sent away or kept as workers. The queendom took a more direct approach to the parasitic creatures and torched the jungle for miles around the original settlement, taking the time after the destruction to study the cause of the colony's infection. Able to fight them more effectively, the queendom has spent the time since attempting to remove this species from its home planet in the name of their own people (much to the distaste of other factions)
Becoming Sentient
During this period of ecological warfare and environmental destruction on their home planet, a startling discovery would be made among those original krakki that had left the planet at the command of their invaders. Some of their kind had been infected prior to leaving and stowed away on the ship to save themselves and follow their people. These parasitized individuals would be discovered when the ship docked at an alliance station. Instead of being killed on the spot, however, the crew was shocked to find the parasites were capable of communication and language: something absent among their native population on Vek-7.
These individuals were taken in by members of the allied station and given protection against the wishes of the krakki crew. Some were given to glycean scholars to protect and study, while others refused such captivity in favor of trying to live among those on the station. Regardless, the sudden development in their mental abilities created questions: should they be given the same rights as other sentient creatures? Or, was their intelligence simply an advanced game of mimicry and not to be trusted? Even now, opinions are highly divided as awareness of their existence spreads through the sector.
When attempting to travel among civilized people, the Vek will wear garb that covers their head in order to not look unsightly to those unfamiliar with them.
