Brainstar

It's been a while since I posted some exobiology work, huh? Well here is something I've been working on for quite a while. This beautiful little being is called the Brainstar (Astrocorpus sapien).

It has a radially symmetrical body plan, which means its body can be divided equally into five parts, unlike us (we can only be split into two equal parts). As you can plainly see it, like most animals on its homeworld, is descended from a starfish like organism. It is amphibious, and like most amphibians it undergoes cutaneous respiration; i.e, it' "breathes" through its skin. Like Earthly skin-breathers it has lots of blood vessels in its skin and must keep it moist in order for those blood vessels to absorb oxygen. In order to do that it has developed pores that release a kind of mucus that evaporates slowly and also helps retain heat, as they are cold blooded (they're big, slimy, and squishy!). The mucus also functions in excretion, as wastes are released from the body in the form of ammonia, which is absorbed by the mucus and evaporates with it.

As you can see their mouth is located on their underside (just like a starfish) and is also radially symmetrical. Within their oral cavity they have what was originally mistaken to be a sticky proboscis but is now recognized as an organ similar to a radula in mollusks (it's a big tongue covered in fine spikes). They use this radula not only to pull food into their mouth but also to manipulate their environment, as it can be anywhere from four to six meters in length and is as strong as any human arm.

When they are startled, in immediate danger, or sleeping they curl up into a ball and retract their precious eyestalks into their head. Vision is their main sense and unlike a starfish when they lose a body part it cannot grow back. Losing just one eyestalk can ruin their sense of balance, depth, and even cause fatal psychological trauma (imagine you were able to see 360 degrees around you and suddenly you lost about one fifth of your field of vision; you'd be shocked too). The eyestalks also function in hearing; the stalk is covered in small, fine whiskers that detect vibrations in the air and converts them into electrical signals, which it sends down to the brain. The brain can then analyze the signals and discern whether it was caused by the movement of the body or some external force (though this causes problems in a windy environment). They have no olfactory organs but instead have chemoreceptive cells on their radula that give the chemical composition of the air and whatever it is holding (snakes do the same thing, which is why their flick their tongues in and out so much).

Their brains, like their bodies, are radially symmetrical and are incredibly powerful. Though they are lacking in terms of creativity and imagination, the Brainstars have incredible natural abilities in fields involving logic, particularly chemistry (due to their reliance on vision and chemoreceptivity). However because of this they also are more susceptible to pain and changes in temperature or air pressure (imagine being so sensitive you can feel the dust particles on a particularly strong breeze, it's like that).

The most interesting aspect of their biology is the presence of chromatophores in their skin that allows them not only to change their overall color but also form shapes and patterns on their bodies. They utilized this in a form of audio-visual communication.

Though there is only general data on their biology, much is known about their culture. They hold science and technological advancement above all else and practice some form of knowledge worship that humans aren't fully capable of understanding. Because their body plan severely limits the ability of a single individual to manipulate the environment efficiently, they formed very close societies lead by the most intelligent individual. This leader, called a Guru by humans, is chosen via a ritual similar to a debate in human society. The community will host a large feast and the competitors will be asked a series of questions, with each correct answer giving him a point and each incorrect answer subtracting a point. They will do this two at a time until only one is left, and the remaining competitor will engage in a debate with the Guru. In cases where the Guru dies, however, a temporary leader will be democratically elected (as they will naturally choose the one among them they believe to be the most intelligent). In certain communities the competitors will not only engage in debate but one-on-one armed combat as well, as in some societies it is believed that a leader must not only be intelligent but strong as well. But for the most part Brainstars are pacifists, preferring to solve problems through diplomacy rather than war (though there are times, both in their distant and recent past in which they had to engage in warfare).

The lack of an endothermic body plan means that the Brainstar has a high metabolism and must consume nearly 10 000 calories a day. Obviously this means that they are omnivores, and they eat anywhere from five to seven large meals a day (depending on which particular subculture they are native to). Their food is also usually heavily spiced not only for flavor but for the extra calories and nutrients that the spices they make provide. In fact their spices are very popular ingredients in many new/revised human recipes (though we can't eat their actual food due to differences in cellular structure that make it poisonous to us).

The beginnings of Brainstar civilization begin not with farming as human civilization did, but with communal Pond-Gardens. The Brainstars were originally nomadic, traveling from water source to water source as the seasons changed and they either froze or evaporated. They would gather around ponds, lakes, and rivers and build a village or camp around it (depending on how long they could stay before the seasons changed). This caused strife amongst early tribes and villages as they competed over better sources of water (which their society holds as sacred, the only truly spiritual aspect of their entire civilization). Eventually irrigation was discovered and societies moved away from traveling between large ponds and small lakes to making permanent settlements along the banks of rivers and large freshwater lakes. With the ability to move water away from the river settlements could be built larger and in a more organized fashion, giving birth to cities. Around the same time as the birth of cities it was discovered that irrigation could be used to more efficiently grow food in more organized farms, and the sudden boom in population and food surplus gave birth to city-states and nations.

From there the history of the Brainstars, like that of most sophonts, parallels that of human civilization; competition for resources between cities created nations and empires, and drove the advancement of society and science until they began exploring and colonizing space. Today the Brainstars are known for their "Missions of Knowledge" in which they establish universities and libraries on less advanced worlds and help them peacefully advance in the fields of science. They are also known for being the largest consumer of resources in the known galaxy, importing nearly 169 septillion (that's about 169 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000, to put it in perspective) Earth dollars worth of goods every EST year.* They can afford such large amounts of resources because they are the only species known to have discovered the secret of vacuum energy, which they then store in gigantic batteries and sell to the rest of the galaxy.

They are on good terms with humanity and consider us not only allies but a sister species, calling us "Our Innovative Brothers," referring to the human ability to adapt almost any technology to any situation. Though we are not as intelligent as them, they have decided that given our creative and innovative nature, we might as well be.

*Earth Standard Time, as in an Earth year, month, day, week, etc.