Nihilego

Nihilego are a dreaded parasite, despite rarely ever being seen in the first place. Their existence alone is what makes the Ultra Deep Sea so dangerous and uninhabitable, and they’re generally regarded as an omen of death – even by the Skymother.

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Appearance

Nihilego are semi-translucent, and seem to be able to alter their translucency at will, up to being able to become completely transparent. If removed from liquid, their squishy bodies will quickly ‘harden’ into a glass-like substance, and they become prone to shattering.

They’ve been described as looking almost ‘humanlike’ in the way they move, and do possess a sort of ‘human’ silhouette. Due to their unknown origins and manifestation after the creation of humans, its sometimes theorized they may have been a ‘byproduct’ of the advent of humanforms in some way.

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Biology

The lifespan of nihilego, as well as how they reproduce, are both complete mysteries. Though, since the very recent establishment of a small research population outside of the Ultra Deep Sea, its been observed that they reproduce via a process similar to mitosis, and do not actually require food.

The most infamous aspect of nihilego is the neurotoxin it possesses, and its potency and properties. Once a nihilego latches onto a target’s head, the neurological function of the target is shut down within seconds, and the nihiltoxin allows the nihilego extended control over the target, almost like a puppet.

Though there has been one sole instance of the partial reversal of acute nihiltoxin poisoning that was enough to allow the target to continue living a relatively normal life, the procedure was intensive and the target in question was still left with multiple lifelong impairments.

When a nihilego has fully drained all the energy it can get from a target, the target is usually disintegrated due to the nihiltoxin. However, in seldom recorded cases, the nihilego may fully merge with its host, creating an incredibly hostile and dangerous fusion.

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Socialization

While nihilego themselves are parasites that function solely on self-preservation, they’ve certainly made their mark on the culture of many societies in Ultra Space. In almost every culture, they’re greatly feared, and seen as omens of dread, death, and the inevitable. Sometimes they function as simply boogeymen, while other more extreme microcultures believe that collapsing of the inverted sea will come eventually, leading to nihilego taking over. Still, because of their confinement to the Ultra Deep Sea, they’re seldom seem, if at all.

Since the recent establishment of a captive population, nihiltoxin that was originally intended to be used for bioweponry had found another use when diluted enough – as a ‘high profile’ street drug, particularly in the Underdeck of Ultra Station, due to its proximity to the laboratory containing the captive population. As a street drug, it’s known as nihiline, and has a powerful dissociative effect on the user. While it’s at its most powerful if directly injected, inhalation is also a common method of intake – though tends to run more risks.

Because of the prices some will be willing to pay for nihiline, particularly ‘non-captive’ nihiline, more have been drawn to the Ultra Deep Sea to attempt to capture nihilego in order to profit – though more often than not, this leads to the untimely demise of those willing to make the journey. It’s become such a problem in recent times, that ‘customs’ have been implemented around Ultra Station to vet outgoing travelers, to make sure they ‘aren’t walking into a death trap’.

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