Kishether
Antumbra Spatiumelus
Public sentientologic record
Property of the Royal Atheneum of Hövnís, Eörpe
Status under dispute
The kishethers qualify as sentient lifeforms according to our criterias. But there are still some research institutes that dispute the observational evidence of kishethers reacting to outward stimulus, adapting to their surroundings, and making deliberate choices.Chigecsni
Iraeocaru Caligoserpatura VivumbratuAlso called Tourists & Observers The only kishether to be encountered outside of the cosmic sea are the chigecsni (voehn for 'ice breath'). They are made out of a plasma-like substance that absorbs light, and appear as featureless, motile shadows of roughly hominin shape. Although entirely passive, they are both curious and unafraid, and are known to approach and follow expedition teams that walk past a certain distance of the rifting site. There have been several attempts at communication but so far they've remained unresponsive. With a natural body temperature on par with liquid helium, at circa -270°C, exposure to the ambient air near chigecsni without proper protective gear can lead to rapid hypothermia. Direct contact will incur severe freeze burns.
Ninnithys
Cerritulurocaru Scintiltorqura VivamaculatuAlso called Ministroms & Faultworms A strange and enigmatic lifeform very rarely found erratically wriggling through the cosmic sea. To date, only five ninnithys have been encountered, three of which had volsyne guardians. Ninnithys appear as irregular strips of plasma and dust, connected together into a 'necklace' by magnetic semipoles. These nebualic strips constantly ripple and roil, producing scintillating colors of bright magenta, red, and yellow. Some have proposed that the ninnithys is a small, maybe larval, form of the Maelstrom. They exhibit enormous gravitational forces that tears apart anything drifting too close and release immense amounts of energy in the process. This has made them treasured pets of volsyne, who will deliberately hurl materia at them and then feed off of the released electromagnetic radiation. A volsyne that found a ninnithys to follow become uninterested in other sources of food, but will be extremely jealous and protective of their pet. Territorialism arise whenever two volsyne are in proximity of a ninnithys, and they will fight each other to the death for the exclusive ownership of one. In all observed cases, death happens when either of them are successfully pushed too close to the ninnithys in question and get caught in their gravity well. In one recorded case, both warring parties ended up becoming annihilated by the ninnithys they fought over.
Volsyne
Cerritulurocaru Volitura FurensululatuAlso called Howlers & Dustwraiths The most common kishether to be encountered in the cosmic sea, and can pose a significant threat to passing riftcraft. Volsyne are classified as plasmoforms composed of cosmic dust suspended in plasma, with a quasar-like center. At a distance, they would be difficult to distinguish from normal nebulas if not for their highly radiant core and abnormal movement patterns. They also emit high-frequency sounds while hunting, though those tend to be drowned out by the Signal and are hard to single out until they're in close proximity. They are macro-radiotroph predators that feed on electromagnetic radiation below the visible spectrum, and are especially drawn to low-wavelength gamma rays. Gamma rays can be detected by the volsyne from several parsecs away. To lessen the chance of being attacked, riftcrafts using their own reality cutters are advised to power down and shield their reactors before entering a rift. Otherwise a volsyne may lay in wait for them and attack the moment they are far enough away from the rift. Riftcrafts are still susceptible to drawing attention during the power-up and loading sequence to cut their way back to our reality. Radar equipment that can detect nearby volsyne presence exist but can be very expensive to get installed in some regions of the galaxy. Still, most riftcraft will have it, as attacks are difficult to defend against. Failure to evade an attacking volsyne often lead to becoming stranded with a severely compromised hull, and entirely drained of power. Despite the fact volsyne have a clear fear and aversion toward rifts, many that believe the rumon-bhatak exist also believe them to be misplaced volsyne.
These are so cool and interesting, great work!
Thank you <3