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hezzabeth · 5 months

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There was someone singing in the greenhouse, someone with a pitch-perfect deep voice. Revati closed her eyes, pressing her ear against the glass door.

In a field where the paper daisies grow,

Underneath the sun's harsh glow,

I wander through, light and free.

Paper daisies, pink and white,

Your petals so bright.

I sing to you as the world beyond burns.

The smoke coils in the sky far above,

But your petals still dance around me.

Don’t be afraid; soon the rains will come.

Everything lost will grow again.

Paper daisies, pink and white,

Your petals so bright.

I sing to you as the world beyond burns.

The stars begin to rise,

My hands scooping your seeds.

Soon you will take flight

Towards the soft moonlight.

There was an old, prop piano in the abandoned Holly Bush Tavern. The only person who could play it properly was Mr. Gupta. During holiday festivals, he would coax melodies out of the sticky keys while Mrs. Gupta sang in a nasal voice. This was different. The singer’s voice filled Revati in a place she didn’t know was empty. The singing stopped abruptly as Revati’s weight caused the door to creak. Of course, the door creaked. The greenhouse was a wobbling claptrap box made out of welded-together old windows. Miss Grassroots, a tourist who had been dead for almost six years, had built it. Inside lay the heart of Baker Street. The heart had begun as a rose garden. Nanni was the one who began picking up the fallen red petals, drying them, and turning them into tea.

Revati only had vague memories of the first day of the invasion. Mrs. Grasston and Dusk had invaded the kitchens and gift shops. Together they managed to pool together seeds and cuttings in order to grow a small food supply. There was a wall of tomato vines, grown from several seeds found in old slices left in the bin. There were the garden beds where the potatoes and carrots grew. In fact, the potatoes were what kept Baker Street from starving to death. Next to one of the largest windows, the herb and weed boxes grew. Revati’s father was the one who ripped open gourmet tea bags in their home, discovering dried seeds inside. Bridgadeiro Bun was sitting under the lemon tree. “You’re a pretty good singer,” Revati said gruffly. “I was just trying to cheer up Deshia; she’s been feeling a bit depressed lately,” Bridgadeiro said, patting the tree's trunk. “Who’s Deshia?” Revati asked, faintly confused. “The lemon tree, of course! She said nobody's chatted with her for years,” Bridgadeiro said. Suddenly, the tree shook its branches, causing a fresh lemon to fall into Bridgadeiro’s lap. “Thank you for the gift, sweetheart,” Bridgadeiro said, patting the tree again. Revati stared at the lemon tree, not quite sure what to think. Could a tree really be depressed? It would explain why the lemons were so withered and small.

“All Buns speak plant; it's the same gene that causes our pink hair," he said. Revati glanced around, her eyes briefly falling on the giant pumpkin vine near the door.

"Are the plants talking right now?" Revati asked curiously.

"Most of them fell asleep hours ago. When they were awake, they just kept jabbering on about a golden lady," Bridgadeiro remarked.

"So, the lemon tree is depressed? I could get Aurora to come in here and read to her," Revati conceded.

"It's more than that. She misses the lady who planted her; she doesn't understand why she vanished and never came back," Bridgadeiro remarked. Revati found her hands stroking the book of fairy tales nervously.

"If she's talking about Mrs. Grassroots, she died," Revati replied flatly. Six years ago. Six years ago, there were over a hundred tourists living on Baker Street. Nanni, who had spent years living with mother, insisted on moving into an abandoned hat shop near the edge of the park.

The day the tornado hit was the same day Nanni decided to tell Revati all about her family history.

"I always carry the death stone in my handbag, along with everything else I'd ever need in an invasion," Nanni pointed out. Technically that was true; Nanni's giant handbag was filled with almost anything.

Outside, Revati could hear her father trying to roll down metal shutters. There was the sudden horrible roar, and Nanni's wall exploded in a cloud of rubble.

"A lot of people died," Revati finished, her voice trailing off. First came the tornado that caused a gap in the mirror walls. Then the trickle of automatic vegetable cleaners who decided to exploit the crack. Finally, the battle on Mansfield Park between the cleaners and a group of tourists.

"The lady that planted this tree was actually a member of the Lost Princess rebel army; she convinced a bunch of tourists to fight with her," Revati remarked, shaking her head. Then she firmly opened the book of fairy tales.

"It looks like some people survived," Bridgadeiro replied.

"I don't want to talk about it; I just want to read! Here, you can read with me; you might like this story," Revati replied.

Once long ago, in a lost village near the foot of Mount Raya, there lived a special little girl. She was known for her kindness and her deep love for nature. Everyone in the village called her Naisha. Naisha had a special gift; she could talk to plants. The villagers often saw her whispering to the flowers; they adored her magical gift.

One day, Naisha learned about a legendary tree called the Kalpavriksha. The old ladies in the village whispered that it had the ability to grant any wish. Drought, fearsome and terrible, had swept through the land. Flowers withered, no longer able to whisper. Trees forgot their songs. Naisha decided she must seek out the tree and wish for one thing alone: rain.

"Wake up," a voice screeched, and Revati's eyes snapped open, the book of fairy tales tumbling onto the ground. Aurora was standing above her, the bright morning sunlight making her hair glow.

"Morning," Revati yawned and then jumped when she realized Bridgadeiro was asleep next to her.

Bridgadeiro slowly awoke, smacking his lips together.

"Juniper said you were in here; she never mentioned the boy," Aurora remarked coldly as Revati slowly stood up.

"Anna made him sleep in here; I must have passed out while reading," Revati said.

It was then that Revati realized Aurora was holding a tray filled with fresh strawberries.

"Hmph," Aurora said, shooting Bridgadeiro a suspicious look as he also stood up, patting the tree trunk.

"Let me guess, Queen Victoria sent these with an apology?" Revati asked.

"Yes, and a request to fill her vodka order," Aurora said, placing the tray on the ground.

"If she was really sorry, she'd give us a strawberry plant," Revati pointed out.

"Oh, you don't need one of those! You have the fruit," Bridgadeiro remarked.

"You can't just shove a strawberry in the ground and hope for the best; it rots," Revati replied. Bridgadeiro merely leaned down, examining the strawberries. After a few moments of careful examination, he picked up the biggest, brightest berry.

"You can; you just need the right formula," he said. He vaguely walked towards one of the empty garden beds that was going to be turned into an onion patch. Carefully, he dug a small hole and placed the strawberry inside before covering it in earth. Then, he reached into his massive jumpsuit pocket and this time pulled out a small vial of portable perfume.

"One pump should do it," Bridgadeiro remarked before pumping a cloud of perfume onto the soil. The earth began to twitch and vibrate, and Revati gasped as greenery sprouted from the soil. The plants quivered and then twisted as white flowers bloomed. The petals then shriveled and fell off as the center of the flowers grew into green berries. A few seconds later, the berries blossomed into a deep red.

"They shouldn't be doing that! Strawberries take two weeks to grow," Aurora gasped.

"I suppose they would in the wild, but I just gave them a pump of my Gene Grow fusion serum!" Bridgadeiro said, leaning down to examine the strawberries.

"They should produce fruit every day, but only if you talk to them nicely," Bridgadeiro added as he picked a strawberry and handed it to Revati.

Revati sniffed it suspiciously before taking a tiny bite. It tasted just like a strawberry.

"Does that stuff work on all plants?" Revati asked curiously.

"It tends to go a bit haywire when you spray it on legumes; you end up with giant beans that have no nutrients," Bridgadeiro said.

"I saved your life; think it's only fair you spray all the plants in here," Revati said firmly.

"It would be better if I planted their seeds outside and created new crops; otherwise, the rapidly growing plants could burst outside the walls," Bridgadeiro replied. Revati nodded crisply.

"I'll be sending someone to check on your efforts later today; I'll be far too busy working," Revati replied with as much dignity as she could muster in a sleep shirt before marching out of the greenhouse. The book of fairy tales lay abandoned on the ground.

Revati carefully changed into her work uniform. When she was a child, her wardrobe consisted of souvenir t-shirts from the gift shop fashioned into dresses. Now that she was almost an adult, Revati had to get creative.

Most of the gift shop sweatshirts had been swiped long ago. Instead, Revati put on the top half of the cafe's old uniform. It consisted of a magenta and purple striped waistcoat with a navy blue blouse covered in tiny clocks. The bottom half should have been a matching bustle skirt. Revati switched it with the men's purple trousers. Revati then carefully redid her braid and applied some more soot lipstick. Aurora, still wearing the same clothes from yesterday, was waiting for her in the kitchen.

"You're wearing your second best outfit," Aurora remarked.

"I suppose I am," Revati replied as she grabbed her coat.

"I thought you said you were done with romance after that whole mess with Little Hardi last summer," Aurora said, and Revati stopped walking.

"I am!" she protested, and Aurora pressed her thin lips into a disapproving frown.

"You were sleeping with him."

"God forbid I fall asleep next to another human being," Revati said as she marched through the cafe past Nanni, who was sewing something.

"You kept him! You gave him a job," Aurora added knowingly.

"I didn't keep him! He's not a feral child; he can leave whenever he wants," Revati snapped as they stepped outside, and she put on her sunglasses. Olde Landon was always at its worst in the morning. Like all major tourist attractions and cities, Old Landon had an atmospheric blanket high above the park's surface. It meant that nobody in the park froze to death at night, but it also meant the morning light was far too bright.

"Is that Little Hardi and Queen Victoria standing next to the fountain?" Revati sighed wearily.

"They both arrived at sunrise; I told them you were busy, so your mother made them breakfast," Aurora remarked.

"Sunrise; of course, they sacrificed sleep so they could get here first," Revati remarked, marching towards the two other leaders. Queen Victoria was wearing one of the park's costumes, a stained white lace wedding dress. Little Hardi, on the other hand, was wearing a deep blue doublet with a ruff collar and matching tights.

"Little Hardi, is your brother still unconscious?" Revati greeted him.

"We took a vote last night, and he played Macduff," Little Hardi replied.

Revati, who knew fully well what that meant, had to stop herself from flinching.

"You killed him? That's a little harsh," Revati pointed out.

"It was for the best; we need a strong leader during a time of invasion," Little Hardi remarked practically.

"Time of invasion? Isn't that a little dramatic?" Revati had to ask.

"There must be another crack in the wall; thank Jane, it's probably not too big! You two would be far too young to remember the vegetable cleaner invasion," remarked Queen Victoria.

"I was twelve," Revati said dryly.

"I was fourteen; the tornado destroyed the Hamlet's haunted castle ride, and the appliances killed the actor playing Ophelia," Little Hardi pointed out.

"You're both still tiny children as far as I'm concerned; I can't believe this is who I have to work with," Queen Victoria replied, and Revati brushed past her with annoyance, heading to the dress shop across the street.

The shelves of the dress shop had long ago been stripped bare. All that remained were the three Penny Farthing Bicycles that had been part of the shop's window display. Revati wheeled her Penny Farthing outside only to see Queen Victoria having a heated discussion with Aurora.

"What do you mean she's going to ride to the wall by herself? All representatives from all towns should go!" Queen Victoria was screeching, slapping Aurora's shoulder with her fan.

Revati parked her bicycle and marched towards Queen Victoria, grabbing her hand.

"Slap my assistant again, and I'll break your fingers; you know I can do it," Revati growled.

Little Hardi, who was now sitting by the fountain, laughed.

"I was just speaking the truth! We have a treaty; during times of crisis, we unify," Queen Victoria said, her voice tight and a little frightened.

"I don't see Lady Morganna here," Revati pointed out, referring to the ruler of Medieval faire.

"You know perfectly well Medieval faire cut us all off after the tornado hit! They probably all died off years ago," Queen Victoria snapped back. Queen Victoria was right. Medieval faire was located in the center of a massive fake castle complete with a drawbridge. After the invasion, Lady Morganna had yanked up the bridge and refused to speak to anyone. Anna and Nanni had tried to visit several times with baskets of dried lemons. They were horrified when someone from above threw the contents of their toilets onto the streets.

"My new friend said he saw naked people in the wilderness dancing around a murdered television! Sounds like Lady Morganna to me," Revati merely replied, pointing to Bridgadeiro. Bridgadeiro, who was in the middle of taking several pumpkins out of the greenhouse, waved.

"Could be a coincidence; regardless, you are not going to the wall! We need to have a proper group committee meeting first! Then a vote," Queen Victoria's.

Revati just rolled her eyes and released Queen Victoria's hand, causing her to stumble and fall onto the floor. Revati then reached into her jacket, pulling out her stun gun, shoving it into the queen's stomach. The Queen made a faint whimpering sound as her eyes rolled backward, and she collapsed again. Revati then aimed the gun at Little Hardi, who held his hands up, protesting.

"I'm not going to stop you! I came here to propose marriage," Little Hardi insisted.

"Marriage? To me?" Revati asked dubiously.

"All kings need a consort, and I'm not interested in Big Hardi's husband," Little Hardi said, slowly getting down on one knee.

Revati stared at him and shook her head.

"I'm seventeen," Revati pointed out.

"Well, the wedding wouldn't be for another couple of years," Little Hardi replied.

"I thought we agreed to keep our relationship professional after the handkerchief incident," Revati pointed out, and Little Hardi held a hand to his heart.

"I told you dozens of times I had nothing to do with my brother's plot," Little Hardi insisted.

"He accused me of cheating on you using an old prop handkerchief as evidence, and you believed him despite it being the exact same plot of the play Othello," Revati pointed out. The entire incident occurred over a year ago and ended with Revati kidnapped and tied up on the stage in a white fluffy nightgown.

"I'm a very insecure person," Little Hardi pleaded. Dating while trapped in a fun park during the apocalypse was difficult. Before the feral children came along, Revati was the youngest person on Baker Street. All the teenagers in Whistleton were raised to be incredibly prissy. Most of them refused to do anything more than dance or hold hands. Little Hardi had been a fun, age-appropriate choice. Little Hardi was happy to do far more than hold hands.

"No," Revati said firmly.

"No? Really?" he asked, sounding faintly surprised.

"First of all, your legal system involves killing criminals on stage in the middle of plays, which is horrifying," Revati pointed out, and Little Hardi shrugged.

"Secondly, I'm not an idiot! You just want to marry me so you can take over our greenhouse," Revati pointed out, and Little Hardi gasped as if looking deeply insulted.

"That's not true! If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I have seen roses damasked, red and white, but no such roses see I in her cheeks," Little Hardi pleaded as Revati climbed onto the penny farthing.

#nanowrimo #nanowrimo2023 #science fiction #speculative fiction #speculative worldbuilding #futurism #sci-fi #creative writing #scifi story #science fiction novel

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simon-roy · 16 days

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A collection of panels devoted to the true hero of Refugium - BETTY THE GOAT.

One of the animals commonly brought to colony worlds by human settlers is the working or "super" goat - a sort of all-purpose farm beast, genetically modified for the purpose. The Super Goat's souped up digestive tract makes it capable of thriving off of sparse, varied, (and occasionally extraterrestrial) forage, and its large, robust build makes it well suited to draft labour (at the logging camps featured in "refugium", the goats serve as "line horses" - carrying cables out to felled trees, which are then dragged by said cables using "steam donkeys" - portable steam engines on skids.)

(In the page below, you can spot a "steam donkey" resting above the woodpile, there on the landing)

But these gigantic goats aren't just built for work - they are tremendously productive milk producers, and their rapid growth rate makes them excellent meat animals, as well. Without the Super Goat, life on the planet Altamira would be a lot less liveable. So give a moment to think about the humble yet intergalactic goats of the Euhumanist league. Spare a moment...

FOR BETTY!

Also, a little reminder, the campaign for the book Betty stars in, "REFUGIUM", goes live this coming tuesday - consider signing up here:

#simon roy #comics #griz grobus #habitat #scifi #kickstarter #sciencefiction #goats #super goat #speculative biology #speculative zoology #specbio #speculative fiction #speculative worldbuilding

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theantiazdarcho · 5 months

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I absolutely adore VikasRao’s project “Draconology” on DeviantArt.

Some of the greatest speculative evolution fantasy designs out there.

He goes in depth of the dragons anatomy and evolution

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suppotato123 · 7 months

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So, I’ve noticed that when we design an alien species that’s supposed to be sapient we tend to make them look like us, and I don’t mean in the typical “why in the world does this people on an entirely different planet of a completely different species with its own unique evolutionary history have a very primate/human-like body plan???” Kind of way. I’ve noticed that even when we make sapient species that look nothing like us and have a completely different body plan, we still give them the same or similar facial expressions and body language to ourselves. I find this really interesting because facial expressions are not across the board for all species (or all humans for that matter). Take, for example, the smile, a common friendly greeting among humans that communicates happiness, contentment, humor, and a lack of hostility, etc. However, for most animals, bearing teeth is a sign of unease or even open hostility. Its a threat that, “I have teeth and I’m willing to use them to protect myself!” Or take cats who, to the human eye, look relatively apathetic or sometimes even slightly annoyed when they are actually completely content. As I mentioned before, even human expression is more complicated than a set of particular facial expressions that only communicate one type of emotion.

Take a good look at this picture. What Emotion is this woman feeling?

Did you say pain? Loss? Anger?

If you did you’d be incorrect.

This is a picture of Sofia Kenin after winning a point in the first round of a Women’s singles match.

With the full context, it’s clear that she’s feeling elation, or excitement.

This is in no way meant to criticize artists for making their characters with distinctly human expressions. I understand that, especially in visual media, these sorts of expressions are really important to communicating the character’s inner world with the audience. I just find it super fascinating, and I think that it says something about us as a species that we look for and insert bits of ourselves in everything around us. So, yeah. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.

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errantsquam · 9 months

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decidueye's anatomy has been bugging me so i decided to overanalyze it

disclaimer: this is in no way a 100% foolproof design

#pokemon #decidueye #rowlet #speculative biology #speculative worldbuilding #bird anatomy #wing anatomy #alola #pokemon sun and moon

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saliinthia · 10 months

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Salii’Qi expressions

Salii’Qi expressions are similar to our own, but utilize the ear flaps, ear tendrils, eye stalks, pedipalps, and fur position to express emotion. Puffed up fur usually will show up with any strong emotional reaction, especially aggression or surprise. Forward facing ear flaps and eye stalks typically show curiosity, intrigue, or happiness. what isn’t shown here is body language. Body language is not as expressive as our own, save for the forearms. Body language shows in the posterior antennae, limb position, and fur position. antennae usually move with eye stalks in expressing emotions, and limb position like in humans can show how engaged an individual is with a conversation or activity.

#salii’qi #saliinthia #spec evo #speculative worldbuilding #speculative evolution #speculative biology #alien #xenobiology #sophont #worldbuilding

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doomyte · 3 months

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First submission for The Great Thriving!

#The Great Thriving #paleoart #paleo #paleomedia #paleontology #speculative biology #speculative evolution #speculative zoology #speculative worldbuilding

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troythecatfish · 5 months

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youtube

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jfs-worldbuilding-and-art · 18 days

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Island Toponomy

Ring: Bifröst

'Reef' Islands

'Reef' Islands are islands totally or mostly covered by "Reefaceous" or Reef-building plants, who here in Bifröst are Bromeliads.

These plants tend to be the foundation for other plants, gathering substrate for later species such as grasses, trees, etc. But also literal footing for animals not only moving from island to island but as in roosts or places to hide in. Thus they are called reefaceous/reef-builders, due to their ability to house in an ecosystem on their own within their roots.

Not all (in fact only a few) islands are completely reefaceous in nature as these kinds of plants tend to come later in the ecological succession of islands, competing fiercely with the wind-dispersed vines.

Individual Species Description

Batroost Creparophora insulobnubens (Crevice-Bearing Island-Coverer)

This plant is the type genus for not only its family but for Reef-building plants from Bifröst in general.

This plant starts out as a small, vividly colored, sweet fruit that is then consumed by animals such as bats, monkeys, goats and humans. Then carried within their stomachs to other islands where the small, hardy seeds contained within the droppings will hopefully get a strong footing to start growing many branches during its life. That is, in between the roots of other plants, including other Batroosts.

The plant itself starts to grow faster than trees but slower than the quick-growing vines, but fast enough to get a good grip on the surface of the island. Then, growing slowly over the years they spread across the island with their 'cracked' roots, collecting detritus and doing their namesake -serving as the roosts for bats.

Bats are definitely the most notorious of the daily users of this plant, using the roots to hang themselves upside down while covered by the many vines that grow over, and among the roots of the Batroost.

This is the case for the Golden Fox (Pteropus vulgaris Meaning "Common Foot Wing") which is a large, frugivorous bat from the same genus as the Flying Foxes from Earth, hence the "fox" in their name. The Golden Fox is a common (though not the only) dweller and user of these plants as roost. They not only benefits from the plant but the Batroosts also benefits from the bats, not only from the aforementioned nutrients found in their droppings (guano) but also to spread the seeds of the plant, as the fruit is a favorite meal of the bat.

However they are not the only animals to use this bromeliad, in fact many animals live their whole lives -or at least part of it- among the twisting crevices of the plant.

The Striped Island Frog (Vermigyrinus spp meaning "Worm Tadpole") is such an animal that lives part of its life among the roots of the Batroost. Although the adults live close by, hunting for insects and small vertebrates among the vines and trees, the larvae have a very specific niche. They don't necessarily need water to survive because they live in the concentrations of guano and decaying matter that accumulates in the crevices of the roots, a niche that is somewhat lacking in Aerrhea for one reason: There are no worms in this world. For whatever reason there are not annelids in Aerrhea (or at least in Bifröst) to live in and eat the humus of the shallow soil of islands, thus these frogs took this golden opportunity and exploited it. The Crevice micro-ecosystem is a well protected one and not explored by many as it is covered by thousands of vines, blocking the view of large predators and also their passage, offering a calm existence in these "pockets of nutrients" as far as "calm" can go in a constantly moving habitat. Which is also another pro for such a lifestyle as this is both a relatively competition-free ecosystem with many nutrients to consume.

The long tadpole can live for two weeks on their personal "terrariums" before metamorphosing into adults, climbing out of the roots' area and never returning again, at least that is the case for the males as the females after copulation (this species has internal fertilization) return to the crevices to lay 1-3 eggs -depending on the size of the crack and available detritus-, each on a different crevice to avoid competition among the larva and then leave them on their own until they grow into frogs and the cycle repeats again.

An example of an animal that lives its "whole" life among the nooks and crannies of the dark, understory is the Hitchhiking Frog (Viatoribus spp meaning "Passenger") who gets its name from its habits early in life. This tiny little frog also has internal fertilization, but instead of laying eggs they give birth to developed froglets whose voyage starts not long after being brought into this world. The mother frog, who lives by the crevices eating small invertebrates such as ants, climb upon roosting bats and give birth to their small versions of themselves, who using two opposing fingers grab onto the fur of their hosts and wait until they set flight again. This strategy is used due to the small size and vulnerability of these frogs, who use the larger bats as means of dispersing into other islands, giving a higher genetic diversity to these small ingenuous frogs.

#aerrhea #my art #worldbuilding #art #illustration #spec bio #speculative biology #spec evo #speculative evolution #speculative zoology #fantasy #speculative ecology #speculative worldbuilding #speculative botany

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theplastictree · 7 months

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Doodles of an alien species I've been working on, I'm calling them Struk's for now! They are amphibious creatures who live on a mainly water planet

#speculative zoology #speculative worldbuilding #speculative biology #alien #art #doodle #species #design #creature design #amphibious #amphibian

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juicyolpickle · 2 months

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If Wompers from my project (Land Of Borease) where selectively bred like todays dog breeds.

#xenobiology #alien species #spec bio #spec evo #speculative biology #speculative evolution #speculative ecology #speculative fiction #artists on tumblr #speculative worldbuilding #land of borease

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hezzabeth · 5 months

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"For the last time, that poem isn't romantic! It's insulting," Revati yelled over her shoulder as she began to pedal.

The layout of Olde Landon had been deliberately designed to keep tourists inside for as long as possible. There was only one way to access the front gates, and that involved defeating the Queen of Hearts' hedge maze. When the park was still open, tourists would be forced to spend at least an hour in the maze, stumbling upon tiny toy shops and food stands around every corner. The same thing occurred when they left, resulting in a very rich park and bankrupt guests. Now the maze was overgrown and easy enough to navigate.

Revati pedaled past the cart that once sold her heart-shaped sunglasses. Then she turned left, almost crashing into the wall of roses. The wall of roses stared back at her, their red blooms heavy and suspicious. Thanks to Bridgadeiro, she knew they were probably secretly insulting her.

The next turn consisted of an old stardust popcorn stand. Revati skidded to a stop and inspected the inside tray, where a few ancient kernels lay. Carefully, she picked up several of them and placed them in her jacket pocket. As far as she could tell, the kernels were seeds. Someone was shifting around the corner, causing the branches to shake.

"Aurora, is that you? Did you go ahead of me?" Revati yelled.

"While conferring in the labyrinth where false preachers reeked of death, the monster began to growl," a voice called from around the corner. An unfamiliar, flat female voice. Raiders. Raiders were, of course, an occupational hazard in any post-apocalyptic settlement. Normally, they never made it further than the broken glass pit at the park's gates. Sometimes Dityaa would bring one in, insisting they were "lovely," which always led to awkward dinners.

Revati slowly walked around the maze corner. There was a screeching metallic sound, and the weapon fell from Revati's hand. An android was slumped over on the ground. Once it would have been golden, but now it was rusty and covered in mud. Someone had ripped its legs off, leaving nothing but wires and tubes spitting bright blue fluid. Instead of a torso, there was a black empty hole with a concave door swinging on its bent hinges.

"And in the forgotten twists, footsteps quicken, hearts beat, and teeth are bared," the android chirped, its voice still distorted and far away. The android's face was a beautiful mask. Still-carved eyes. Unmoving sweet lips.

Revati powered up her solar gun and slowly walked forward, aiming it at the android. The android's metal eyes scraped in their sockets, turning towards her.

“Is that you? My darling Perdita?” The android’s voice whispered, the lips unmoving. The whispering voice had a posh lilt to its accent. Revati refused to answer. It was best to never engage with AI.

“Perdita, I clawed my way in! They know about you; the spider knows,” the android whispered before collapsing completely.

Revati slowly walked forward, still holding her weapon. With one foot, she kicked the android. It didn’t move. Its power had definitely died.

“Spider? Is that some sort of gang?” Revati whispered to herself. Gangs were always given stupid names.

“The spider is us; the spider is legion,” a flat robotic voice called out, and Revati spun around.

Queen Victoria was standing behind her, scorch marks all over her dress. A faint blue glow was erupting from beneath the skin of Queen Victoria’s chest.

#comic #magic #nanowrimo #nanowrimo2023 #science fiction #creative writing #occ #speculative worldbuilding #speculative fiction #scifi #yafiction #scifi comedy #life on mars

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