Achamatl

The achamatl are distantly related to the mak'ti. They live in warm coastal waters. They are seven feet long from head to abdomen. Like the Mak'ti, they have six legs. Two pairs are exclusively for locomotion and the front pair which is used primarily for manipulation and secondarily for locomotion. They are dark red with electric blue vertical stripes running the length of their bodies. Their heads have two pairs of long antennae, large, bright red compound eyes and three sets of mandibles. One set is for eating, one for communication and the third for fine manipulation. Their front legs have large, sharp pincers with forms and functions determined by their function in the colony.

Also like the mak'ti, achamatl live underground. Their colonies are extensive underground labyrinths of tunnels and chambers, created by workers tunneling with their large, scoop-like pincers. As they move through the tunnel they create, their abdomens exude a white mucus that reacts with the seawater to calcify the sides of the tunnel with a strength similar to oyster shells. Another worker, a attendant, follows the digger, spreading the mucus over the entire surface of the tunnel. Once created, these complexes last for centuries, only damaged through the occasional undersea earthquake.

Achamatl communicate with one another through a series of clicks and rasps made with their secondary speaking mandibles, emphasized with body language. While within their aquatic colonies where live approximately three to four hundred achamatl, these sounds reverberate. To an outsider, this sounds like nothing but a deafening cacophony, but this web of communication forms a super-consciousness that is the true leader of the colony. This colony spirit is obeyed without question by the achamatl. It orders life within the colonies and sends out workers and soldiers to forage, hunt and defend the hive territory. Though individual achamatl are sapient, they are not very intelligent. Their intelligent behavior increases with proximity to the colony spirit at the same rate their individuality decreases. Achamatl within the hive are little more than appendages of the colony spirit.

The achamatl are ancient enemies of the ulan and frequently raid Ulan communes. Achamatl prize ulan flesh as a delicacy, especially the flesh of an Ama and her eggs, although only ama of newly formed communes ever usually succumb to these raids and most @ulan are taken when away from their communes. Achamatl also raid small coastal dwellings of land races. Aside from victims, achamatl take anything they perceive as having value or usefulness. Achamatl raid and hunt mainly at night, when their tremorsense and infrasense gives them the advantage. Their usual attack strategy is to rush in as a group to overwhelm their foes. They will retreat in the face of overpowering opposition. They have no use for coins or other precious metal, discarding them. Achamatl colony spirits have the ability to communicate with the spirits of other colonies and achamatl are known to share and trade between hives and also exchange workers and soldiers. This inter-colony cooperation differentiates them from the mak'ti colony spirits, which are highly antagonistic.

Achamatl breed in accordance with the desires of the colony spirit. Workers breed with workers and soldiers breed with soldiers. Occasionally, some achamatl, usually workers, are born with the aptitude to perform magic. These individuals are greatly prized by the colony spirit and taught with the retained, accumulated knowledge of past practitioners to use their abilities. They are usually kept near the colony and are well treated and guarded.