[Cosmosdex] The Universal Encyclopedia

[Cosmosdex]

Eciton
     

Swarmlands

Eciton
“I was alone. We didn't even know about the asteroids until it was too late to steer away from them. Swarms of insects would blot out the godsblessed sun. And the buzzing... the fucking buzzing... I still hear it in my nightmares. VuV” — E-29638, on their late swarm's fateful discovery of Eciton.

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Dominant Residents: None
Other Residents: Frilliz, Itzel, Oblein

Fauna: Non-sentient swarming insects
Weather: Sandstorms, very hot. Frequent meteor showers.

Danger Level: High
Purpose: None for certain, believed to be the homeworld of the bivouac, though some Singer cults have set up here.

Original Creator: suffershack


Physical Description

Eciton is a very large, flat planet, almost entirely covered by desert. What isn't desert is sparse savannah, only populated by low shrubs and tough grasses.

But, above that, and the planet's most notable feature, are the five asteroid belts that ring around the planet. These meteors rain down upon the planet's surface periodically, and are what has caused Eciton's current desolate state.

Strangely, though several recorded meteor strikes happen every year, the belts surrounding Eciton never seem to thin out even slightly. This has led to the asteroids surrounding Eciton being listed as anomalous. It is highly illegal to take any material from any meteor strike or asteroid on Eciton.

History

Once, a very long time ago, Eciton was the jewel of it's solar system; large, temperate, covered in large, fertile grasslands and forests with rolling hills and mountains, inhabited by a highly intelligent species of peaceful, bug-like aliens. These aliens lived in giant, underground communes, and relied on each other to survive. Every day, they thanked their god for gifting them their friends and family, and for the lovely lands they lived under.

One day, their god answered them.

He plucked a mountain from the planet, exposing their largest city. They gasped, having never seen their god up close, and fell to their knees, shouting their thanks to the sky. The god laughed. "If you think that's cool, watch what I can do!" The god threw the mountain into the air, and caught it on his nose. The aliens clapped and cheered for him. "Now watch this!" The god tore open another mountainside. But he was not paying as much attention this time, and the town not as sturdy. Whole tunnels collapsed, burying hundreds of innocents inside. But the god did not notice; he was too busy focusing on his games. He began to toss both of the mountains at the same time, juggling them.

"What do you think of this?" Over and over, the god plucked more mountains from the earth. Over and over, the cities inside were destroyed. The aliens quivered at their god's grand performance; hundreds of mountains were now flying through the air, each one juggled by a different dolphin. Finally, they cried out, "Please, stop! You're killing them, stop it!"

The god stopped, holding each crumbled peak still. He glared down at his worshipers. "I visit you one time," he hissed. "Your great god visits you one time, in person, and performs for you, and this is the thanks he gets?" The aliens attempted to apologize, but he would not listen. "No, I get it. I understand. If you really hate my gifts so much then, well, I guess you don't get to enjoy them."

The Singer tossed the many mountains into the sky, where they hung forever, to rain down upon those who had spurned his show. The bug aliens scattered into small tribes, fighting over the destroyed remains of the planet, as bit by bit, they abandoned their sentience, becoming like animals, darting around the lands and attacking anyone not in their swarm.

Or so the story goes.

Note: This story was pieced together from conversations and interviews with a notail by the name of E-29638. E-29638 is noted by their N-classes to be currently unstable and prone to long almost nonsensical stories about this planet. As such the details of their account should be taken with a grain of salt.

Locations

Iruka Crater: According to old lore about the planet, this crater was once the site of Iruka Mountain, the largest city of Eciton's now-extinct alien population, and supposedly the first place attacked by the Singer. Once a year, on the same day, large swarms of insects will travel en masse to this place, where they will constantly fight for the entire day, before returning to their normal territories. As of now, scientists are unable to explain the phenomenon.

Rupu: The planet's last remaining ocean. Huge schools of fish swim in the ocean, but it's waters are so salty that anything caught here must be heavily washed and cooked to be even remotely edible.

Harpoon's Landing: A small city surrounding a large, ornate temple to the Singer. The people living there have Obmilistic views, and believe their home to be a ho-hum place of peace and solitude. Every day follows a strict, weekly schedule, repeating over and over every week. Those with healthy hate for the gods are highly advised not to land in this city, as the people of Harpoon's Landing are known for trying to convince those who disrespect their views to stay in their town, and "see the other side of things".

Those who oblige them in this offer are rarely seen again.

Special

Birds of a Feather: All of the fauna on this planet are gregarious, and 90% of them are insectoid in nature. If two groups of creatures from different swarms meet, they will fight until one side either flees or is entirely wiped out, endlessly squabbling and battling over whatever is left of their home.

Trivia

• The first recorded, semi-successful journey to Eciton was undertaken by a small swarm of E-classes. The ship crashed into one of the asteroids, falling to the planet's surface, leaving only one survivor. This notail was rescued after a few months alone on the planet, and was shortly after admitted to an N-class church.

• If one lands in Iruka Crater, it is advised they do not take anything from the area, and do not read any of the tablets lying around. Many of them are in terrible condition, and illegible. If one finds a tablet that is legible it is best they destroy it immediately, and then leave. The less one reads, the less one will want to stay.

• When asked whether or not Eciton is where they came from, many bivouac will simply not answer. The ones that do merely say;

"The General told us that we had a war to win. We don't know which side we're on."

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