The Pods

Name: The Pods

AKA: Anything else

Location: Deep Space

Novel: Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Author: Jack Finney




Natural History:
Probably one of the oldest lifeforms in the galaxy, the Pods have perfected survival. As their planet began to die, slowly, over immeasurable time, they too evolved, slowly over immeasurable time. As the planet died, they escaped, fleeing to whatever planet they drifted upon, taking the form of the inhabitants and eventually taking over as the dominant life.

They look like seed pods, but on a giant scale. They grow like normal plants do with those already taken over serving as care takers for the fields of pods that are produced to replace the indigenous population. Those care givers place the pods into towns, hidden places, trunks, and in closets for the non-taken over to be replaced.

The Author and myself were able to see this transformation. The pod is placed in close proximity to the target. Over a short span of time, maybe a night, the pod begins to burst at the sides, a white foamy substance emerges, and the pod bursts open. There is a semi-formed white, blank, life-form inside, slowly developing and taking on the characteristics of the target. Eventually it becomes identical to the target and steals the life force and memories, becoming anything organic. The original is left a lifeless husk and is turned to empty grey matter.

The only difference between the pods and the original: emotion. The replicas cannot emote or share emotion, only the pretense of it, a simulation of emoiton Also, a collective knowledge of where the pods came from, their history, and their purpose. A collective knowledge of everything the pods were and have become. Mars and the moon used to have life, but no longer thanks to the pods. The transformation is painless and generally occurs while the target is asleep. Needless to say, The Author and I did not sleep while around this dangerous parasites. It seems plant-life has evolved to be the predator and us, the prey.

"The pods arrived, drifting onto our planet as they have onto others, and they performed, and are now performing their simple and natural function - which is to survive on this planet. And they do so by exercising their evolved ability to adapt and take over and duplicate cell for cell, the life this planet is suited for."

Uroon

Name: Uroon

AKA: Frontrunner Uroon

Location: Seen over Malibu Pier, California

Novel: Jed the Dead

Author: Alan Dean Foster

Natural History:
Uroon is a member of the species Culakhan and maintains the title of Frontrunner.

The Culakhan were quadrapedal extra-terrestrials. They had barrel-like bodies that were supported by four surprisingly gracile yet strong legs, the front pair of which were longer than the rear. The legs supported what appeared to be an almost 300 pound body. They were no taller than an average human female.

Atop a two foot flexible neck was a flattened skull with two stalked eyes set well out on the sides, like the sideview mirrors on a car. A flap of pinkish, flexible skin formed a forward-facing crest that ran between the stalks. The crests could be streaked with black or grey. Uroon had bright pink eyes. Their mouths were filled with two rows of grinding teeth,and they spoke in what sounded like a frustrated bulldog's barking.

Even more surprising than the neck was the single rope-like, flexible tail. Slightly longer than the body, it split at the end into half a dozen flexible, super-strong hairs. The tail-hairs had a great range and delicacy of touch, and were used like hands.

The Culakhan came to Earth in search of Jed, who was in their minds a criminal. The Culakan are famous, or perhaps infamous, for their strict adherence to their Codes of Conduct.

"What does it matter to you, human? We are the Culakhan and we have our reasons. You will comply. Without wishing to appear impolite, I must point out that you can be made to comply. But we have no quarrel with you. We do not harass simple animals."
- Frontrunner Uroon

Morlock

Name: Morlock

AKA: Thing

Location: Earth - 802,701 A.D.

Novel: The Time Machine

Author: H.G. Wells





Natural History:
The Morlocks are a race of ape-like, nocturnal creatures that inhabit tunnels in the earth full of machinery.

These small creatures, perhaps four feet high, are dull white, with strange large greyish-red eyes and chinless faces. They have flaxen hair on their heads and down their backs. They can move on all fours very quickly and can nimbly climb like a spider down the large shafts that lead to their underground lair.

Thought to have evolved underground, the Morlocks' eyes are abnormally large and sensitive, just as are the pupils of the abysmal fishes, and they reflected light in the same way. In their tunnels, the smell of freshly-shed blood permeated the air - and it was found they are carnivorous!

Perhaps at one time the Morlocks fed on small beasts, such as rats, but as they grew scarce they moved on to larger and more readily available prey - the Eloi, the child-like surface dwellers. The Morlocks used them as cattle! What was once a single race, now evolved into two - with one now consuming the other!

For some reason, the Morlocks were very interested in the Time Machine and stole it. For what purposes, we do not know.

"I struck another light, and waved it in their dazzled faces. You can scarce imagine how nauseatingly inhuman they looked—those pale, chinless faces and great, lidless, pinkish-grey eyes!—as they stared in their blindness and bewilderment." 
-The Time Traveller

Future

Abyss Creature

Name: Abyss Creature

AKA: Unknown

Location: Abyssal Plain

Short Story: In the Abyss

Author: H.G. Wells





Natural History:
The Abyss creatures are strange vertebrated humanoids that live at the bottom of the ocean.

They have dark purple heads that are dimly suggestive of a chameleon's, but with a much higher forehead and such a braincase as no reptile has ever before displayed. The vertical pitch of the face gives them the most extraordinary resemblance to a human being.

Two large and protruding eyes project from sockets in chameleon fashion, and they have a broad reptilian mouth with horny lips beneath their small nostrils. Two large operculum replace the ears and filamentous gills branch out from behind them.

The Abyss Creatures are bipeds with an almost globular body poised on two frog-like legs and a long thick tail. It's forelimbs grotesquely caricatured the human hand, much like a frog's do. The color of the creatures is variegated; it's head, hands, and legs were purple; but its skin,which hangs loosely upon them, is a phosphorescent grey. In their hands they sometimes carry a long shaft of bone tipped with copper.

In the deep, the creatures live in a large city with a wall made of human skulls, water-logged wood, and twisted wire-rope surrounding it. The city seems to glow like drowned moonshine due to phosphorescent bones that were used to create many of the roofless structures.

"At last this unknown creature of the abyss blinked its eyes open, and, shading them with its disengaged hand, opened its mouth and gave vent to a shouting noise, articulate almost as speech might be, that penetrated even the steel case and the padded jacket of the sphere."

Abyss

Jed

Name: Jed

AKA: The Enlightment

Location: Cloudcroft, New Mexico

Novel: Jed the Dead

Author: Alan Dean Foster




 
Natural History:
Jed is a dead alien that was found in a cave near a public picnic area.

Jed had a triangle-shaped body with three arms and three legs and was no taller than three feet. His face had a keel going down the front that extended along his spine. One of his three eyes fit into a depression in the keel. His eyes were small, like a child's. What appeared to be his mouth had two silvery cockscomb like appendages on either side. Each arm had three digits and each foot had three toes that were almost like a hoof.

Jed (as he was named by the human Ross Ed Hager who found him) was of the species Shakaleeshva. Unfortunately, the little alien had crashed on Earth during his escape from his planet and ended up stranded. The suit he wore slowly shut down non-vital systems one by one, until only his memories and thoughts remained. Ross picked up the alien while on his way to San Diego, California. The two became an unlikely duo.

To the Shakaleeshva, Jed was known as the "Enlightment" due to his prolific abilities as a writer. Being a writer, however, does have its drawbacks. Such as having a price put on your head for controversial material.

 "I was not designated the Enlightenment because of paucity of imagination. Even deceased, I like to think I'm a little smarter and cleverer than the majority of the living." -Jed