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Tropical Basket
259f33
I also did a bestiary entry for the parasites (it's older than the frag bettle entry). Since they're well and truly introduced, I will share it. Text wall incoming:
PARASITE
'Tentacles,' 'Crawlers,' 'Worms'
One of the most repellant aliens, the 'Parasite,' as it is usually referred to as, has the ability to enslave a man and turn him into a drooling, brain-dead thrall.
A parasite is usually presented as a tiny, grey, maggot-like larva. It can be easily ingested by a creature without it knowing. There is a long incubation period, during which the infected will not notice any symptoms. This can be as long as six months, but usually lasts for only two or three. During this time, the infected will actually 'give birth' to many more parasitic larvae. They will be passed with defecation, urination, or vomiting, and can even be spread by sexual interaction. The infected creature might become aware of its condition upon noticing the small larvae in their excretions. This is uncommon, and seeing the larvae in stool can easily be mistaken for a more common intestinal worm.
When the incubation period is over, the infected may begin to notice any combination of symptoms, such as chronic intestinal cramps, diarrhoea, and solid masses forming in the intestinal region. They may occasionally pass blood or a milky, pus-like fluid, while urinating. This might be confused for a bladder infection or kidney stones.
This will continue for a week or two, until the infected creature begins to notice frequent muscle spasms and cramps in any part of their body. Almost always, they will experience a chronic 'pins & needles' sensation, or minor twitching of muscles. They may experience partial or complete paralysis, lasting from minutes to hours. They may completely lose bowel control.
The reason for this is that the growing parasite is now attempting to commandeer the nervous system of its host. This is a gradual process, and can take months to complete. During this time, the infected will experience the aforementioned muscular symptoms, increasing in severity with time. Occasionally, the infected will die at this stage from seizure of the cardioid-respiratory system, but this is a rare occurrence.
If the parasite manages to successfully overtake the nervous system of its host, it will begin to move the body by itself; at first slowly, though eventually becoming more agile (never near as much as the host originally was, however). At this stage, the mind of the host is still very much intact, but it has no control over its body any more. The mind of the parasite is very simple, and runs on its own extremely basic instincts. This will cause it to mindlessly graze. It will attempt to eat anything, though it will slowly learn that not everything is edible. Many dead specimens have been found to have broken teeth, from trying to eat metal or other inedible debris. If an infested host is in the presence of living creatures, it will try to eat them. The parasites are somehow able to differentiate between infested and non-infested lifeforms; a way to identify 'friendlies.' If in the event of a host congregation, the parasites will migrate from place-to-place as a group.
With time, the parasite will grow considerably, often in contrast to its host, which will shrivel and become slower, as any food consumed by the host will nourish the parasite primarily. The host may begin to suffer necrosis on any part of its body. The advanced parasite will begin to burst through the abdomen of its host, in a horrific display of dangling, grey tentacles. Parts of the parasite's body will burrow around in the host, and often find their way out into the open air. If a tentacle obstructs the oesophagus of its host, it will choke on it. By this time, the host is well-and-truly brain-dead. The body is occupied and operated solely by the parasite.
If the parasite cannot feed, it will slowly die. A brave and desperate human may get nourishment by eating the flesh of an advanced parasite. This is risky, and anything that comes into contact with a parasite should be thoroughly heated or destroyed, in order to minimise the risk of bodily infestation.
There are immunisations in existence for the treatment of early parasite infestation, but these are primarily held by military and city forces. Therefore, most people who become infected by the parasite succumb to the condition.
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