Gu-Gu
Basic Information
Anatomy
These ambush predator have no eyes and ten antennae on their head that are used to sense their environment. Their body is covered by a slimy substance that helps the gu-gu worm move. The worms can send electrical impulses through this slimy mucus causing it to jellify and harden around the worm like a protective shell. The worm has mandibles that split in four distinct directions and are normally retracted inside the body. It is these mandibles that are responsible for striking and and stunning prey. Most are capable of splitting their victim in half. The gu-gu worm typical ranges from deep purples to black, with the mucus giving them a metallic luster. The largest known specimen on record by the Founders grew to 19.31-feet in length. Despite their great size, the worms are extremely slim, with their bodies being only around 6-inches wide.
Genetics and Reproduction
Like most polychaete, the gu-gu worm is a sexually reproducing organism that lacks external reproductive organs. During spawning, female polychaetes produce a pheromone that attracts males and causes them to release sperm; this in turn triggers the female to release eggs into the water, where fertilization occurs. Most offspring survive into adulthood thanks to the protection of the colony.
Growth Rate & Stages
Worm Stage
Once a gu-gu worm has been born, its main goal is to find a colony if it wasn't born inside of one. This is because the gu-gu worms need certain pheromones to regulate their bodies for long periods of time. Without reaching a colony, a single gu-gu worm will only be able to live for about 30 minutes, but once inside a colony the worms are believed to be able to live for 3-5 years.Colony Stage
Once enough gu-gu worms have collected they begin to release pheromones that begin to change the structure of the worms brains. Once completed the worms that spend a day around the pheromones become one with the central mind, creating a hive colony of worms who all think, feel, and respond as one. At this stage the worms are capable of extraordinary feats like joining to create large structures of gu-gu worms capable of toppling walls with their sheer mass. As the colony grows it begins to shed and split, creating two equally large colonies who are independent of each other, but because they share the same pheromone structure, these colonies that split still decide to stick close to each other, during a process known as brood-bonding.Global Stage
Once a colony has split and separated enough times, it will eventually cause a snowball reaction that results in the gu-gu worms taking over an entire planet. At this stage colonies are unidentifiable from each other and release a new pheromones that once again changes the brain structure of every worm on the planet, even those not of the gu-gu species. These new worms all serve the colony and will sometimes even undergo evolutions changing into gu-gu worms. At this stage the planet and its ecosystem have completely collapsed. Every cave system pulses with the worms as they begin to develop ultra-intelligence and eventually figure out FTL travel on a planetoid scale.Space Stage
Once the worms have figured out FTL travel, either by their own experiments or through absorbing all technology on the planet already, they turn the shell of the planet into a ship capable of spreading the gu-gu worms throughout the cosmos. The worms have no concept of how dominating they are, and as a result have no remorse when exterminating entire planets to fuel their own survival instincts.Dietary Needs and Habits
The gu-gu worm can eat and digest anything, up to and including technology. They sense through their antinnae for prey, then seizes it with its mouth, and drags it back into the colony. While being considred a carnivore, they are infact omnivores, being able to eat rocks, metal, bone, and can also eat decomposing material. If advanced technology is consumed, like a databank, then the gu-gu colony gains the information stored therein.
Additional Information
Uses, Products & Exploitation
The gu-gu worms were elevated by the Foundres once they realized they could digest and process technology without distroying its properties. After thousands of years of forced evolution the gu-gu are now even capable of intigrating colonies with technology, housing the colony in mobile weapon platforms capable of bombarding planets and ships from orbit.
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Scientific Name
Polychaete
Origin/Ancestry
Forced Natural-Evolution
Lifespan
Varies
Average Weight
50-65 lbs (individual), 3-6 tons (colony stage)
Average Length
10-15-feet long, 2-5-inches wide
Geographic Distribution
Related Organizations
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