Alien Species
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The Genus is a micro-biological organism known for its ability to quickly evolve from microscopic cells into new and increasingly complex forms, forming elaborate ecosystems and generating new species within a matter of hours or days whereas any other lifeform might take years or even centuries to achieve the same amount of change.

Biology[]

These lifeforms have a bio-chemistry based around nitrogen rather than carbon, and have a much faster metabolism than Earth-born creatures, as they are able to evolve into new species within a matter of hours or days, rather than millennia. They also have ten different fundamental bases in their DNA, whilst Earth organisms have only four. Exposure to high temperatures, such as explosions or fire, cause the super-cells that makes up these aliens to go into self-destructive overdrive, essentially hitting the fast forward button in terms of evolutionary change. Independent lifeforms merge to become one large super-organism, capable of propagating in much the same way as their microscopic predecessors; each one splitting into two after a certain period of time.

The origin of these creatures is unknown, though it can be assumed that their lifecycle is somewhat parasitic; worlds that become infested with these creatures are eventually destroyed by their rapid evolutionary cycle, sending new colonies of cells out into the universe to repeat the cycle on a new world.

The Genus first arrived on Earth as blue-colored unicellular lifeforms locked inside of a porous meteorite, and soon started to evolve into multicellular lifeforms, spawning an entire ecosystem within the crater where the meteorite first landed, which included species analogous to lichens, worms and insects.

All Genus lifeforms reproduce asexually, that is to say without a mate, which is interesting given that this form of reproduction is often believed to be associated with slow, rather than fast, evolution. After a few days, some vertebrate analogues escape the crater and begin evolving into several reptilianoid, and later mammalianoid forms, which then threaten to take over Earth's entire ecosystem in no more than a few months. The only thing hampering their progress is that they cannot survive for more than a handful of hours outside of the alien ecosystem native to the crater, being incapable of breathing without a balanced mixture of oxygen and nitrogen gasses. Eventually however, some Genus species do evolve the ability to breathe in an oxygen rich environment and become far more dangerous. Based on projections made by Dr. Reed's team, it was estimated that the alien ecosystem, if left unchecked, would overwhelm the United States in little more than two months.

In an attempt to wipe out the aliens before they could spread any further, the USA military decided to carpet-bomb the impact site, hoping to wipe out the alien ecosystem and destroy the infestation. They were unaware, however, of the creatures' intense biological response to such explosions, and instead of killing the aliens, the explosion results in the smaller lifeforms growing uncontrollably and fusing together as their cells going into self-destructive overdrive in effort to combat the threat, the entire ecosystem coming together to form a gigantic, amoeboid super-organism.

Thankfully, a weakness of the aliens' biology is discovered: selenium, which is in the same position relative to nitrogen as arsenic is to carbon, making it an incredibly potent poison when used against them. Using large quantities of selenium deluded from common household shampoo, a small team managed to sufficiently dose the alien and destroy the infestation.

Species[]

Image Creature Description
Evolution (1)
Unicellular Super-Cells
Unicellular amoeboid organism with a distinguished blue coloration, possibly caused by its nitrogen-based nature. These are the cells originally found within the meteor, bleeding from the rock as a transparent bluish goo. Where they came from and how they ended up on the meteor are subjects worthy of intense speculation.
Evolution (2)
Multicellular Alien Microorganisms
Multicellular lifeforms evolved from the original single-celled beings within a few hours. These cells are the progenitors of every alien creature within the crater.
Evolution (3)
Alien Fungi
Small, yellowish fungoid organisms that soon started to colonize the crater where the meteor fell after it was sealed off. These fungoids secrete a dense nitrogen-rich mist which allows them and other lifeforms with the same biology to survive in Earth's oxygen-rich atmosphere.
Evolution (4)
Alien Flatworms
Small flatworm-like creatures that live in great numbers within the mist generated by the fungoids. They reproduce by binary fission, one splitting down the middle to become two.
Evolution (5)
Alien Amphibian
A rat-sized amphibious creature that would evolve from the flatworms and manage to escape the cave system, invading a nearby pool, presumably adapting to thrive in waters saturated with chlorine.
Evolution (6)
Alien Rainforest Organisms
Inside the crater,, after a few days, a rainforest-like environment begins to emerge. Protected by a dense atmosphere of balanced nitrogen and oxygen that they themselves help to produce, these organisms thrive like no other.
Evolution (7)
Blue Alien Crustacean
A small alien crustacean-scavenger that crawls along the rainforest floor, eating from creatures killed by larger predators.
Evolution (9)
Black Alien Crustacean
Another type of crustacean-scavenger found hunting on the rainforest floor.
Evolution (10)
Rainforest Predator
A medium-sized creature which feeds on the aforementioned crustaceans in the rainforest.
Evolution (8)
Symmetrical Alien Creature
An oddly symmetrical lifeform, about the size of a dog, with six pairs of long, jointed legs which move in synchrony. It has heads on both ends of its body, flicking out its tongues in search of food.
Evolution (11)
Insect-Like Alien
A small insectoid parasite very similar to the earthly mosquito. Its pointed proboscis is sharp enough to cut through environment-sealed fabric and pierce through skin. This creature appears to have a lifecycle based around burrowing into larger organisms and either becoming dependent upon them for sustenance or using them for reproductive purposes.
Evolution (12)
Aquatic Reptilian Alien
In a nearby lake, the amphibious creatures evolve into a species of aggressive dog-sized aquatic reptilians similar to crocodiles which ambush their prey before dragging them into the water to consume at their leisure. If they remain out of water for too long they soon die, choking to death due to the high concentration of oxygen in the atmosphere.
Evolution (13)
Green Frog-Like Alien
Another type of amphibian that would make an attempt at colonizing land beyond the crater before ultimately failing and dying of suffocation. Despite its timid and harmless appearance, it hides a Xenomorph-style inner mouth armed with sharp teeth and a small pair of eyes.
Evolution (14)
Alien Dragon
A winged reptilian very reminiscent of the mythical dragon in appearance. Many of these creatures were found dead in the Arizona the desert before the discovery of a newborn with a mutation that allowed it to breathe oxygen and nitrogen. After invading a shopping mall the beast was shot dead.
Evolution (15)
Alien Ape
A blue humanoid creature finally evolves in the rainforest, similar to early man in appearance. It shows signs of both great intelligence and extreme aggression, managing to operate the elevator leading down into the crater and attacking people in the military base set up around it. It is very likely that this was the species that would take over had the aliens managed to colonize Earth.
Cavern tentacles
Alien Fleshy Mass
A rapidly-growing fleshy mass with expanding tendrils formed by the growth of alien microbes upon exposure to extreme heat. The amount of exposure to heat greatly influences the size of the mass. A simple petri dish of the microbes lit by a match caused exponential growth that spread over a table, wall and window, while the evolving mass in the cave rapidly mutated into larger sentient tendrils. It should be noted that continuous exposure causes the organisms to develop further into a giant amoeba.
Evolution (16)
Giant Amoeboid Meta-Organism
A huge amoeboid creature created by the napalm explosives at the meteor site. The extreme heat caused the already fast-evolving alien ecosystem to grow almost instantly into a monstrous creature, consuming all other aliens in the process. It should be noted that this final form bears a resemblance to the aliens' original unicellular forms.

Appearances[]

  • Evolution (2001)
  • Alienators: Evolution Continues (2001-2002)
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