Akatsukistan by Mutant Mafioso

Space-faring, intelligent squid?

I have been watching sci-fi series when I was in grade school and I have observed that each sci-fi series has their own intelligent advanced race of cephalopodic aliens. Now I am asking here, Why Cephalopods? why are they depicted as one of the most advanced species in some scifi series? One, turns out that cephalopods are some of the most intelligent animals around. Second, these authors of scifi have read H.P. Lovecraft's books. Which featured the original cephalopodic aliens called the Cthulhu (even the name sounds like a squid dish). I think that the Cthulhu maybe the basis of all these cephalopodic aliens. Thirdly, that because of their unusual shape and physiology, that science fiction writers are assuming that cephalopods are more suitable for taking up a role of an alien because of this.

I have made a list and described some of these cephalopodic races here. They are listed from most advanced to least advanced:

1. Thirdspace Anti-life aliens, the Yonji-Sinhindrea

side views of the Thirdspace Capital Ships

These are the most powerful cephalopodic aliens in the scifi genre. As a result of pride and adulation, they were let in by the Vorlons, another advanced cephalopodic race who, in their pride, built a gate into what they believed was the Guf or the source of all life. They are exteremely telepathic to the point that thet can control others without notice. Their ideology is close to a dangerous blend of Nazism and Playing God "all life that is not our own, are inferior and should be exterminated" they say.

I think that the place they thrived in, Thirdspace maybe the anti-universe filled with the theorized anti-matter and anti-energy. No wonder they were described as anti-life. Their physiology is somewhat similar to the octopus except they have no suckers, from what I observed in the movie. It has been speculated by fans of the show that the Thirdspace Aliens are really The Hand, a race that was imprisoned in a dimension a billion years ago by another unidentified race. Maybe the Vorlons stumbled upon that dimension approximately a million years ago when they opened the gate. This theory on that the Thirdspace Aliens and The Hand are one an the same is flawed becaused the Hand has only one virtue, and that is "that they reward loyalty". Why would the Thirdspace Aliens rely on races not of their own?

Their technology, more advanced than the First Ones, races older than humans in the B5 Universe. They are basically ultratech that their Capital Ships are purely gravitic. I like these kinds of ships. Simple, yet very advanced. Some say that they are bioships. Possibly yes but I doubt it, why, because the look more like they were carved out of stone. Thirdspace Fighters are weird, maybe irregular because it blends biotech with hardware. Basically they are more like ugly flowers than ships and it is this unusuality that some have come to the conclusion that these Fighters are ancient/outdated ones the Vorlons used. It is composed of the 'hardware sepal' that makes up the back portion and three straight 'organic petal' shaped hulls that make up the front. It has three separate 'anthers' that act as weapons partly enclosed in the petals. These fighters are nearly indesructible but four direct and near shots from a White Star can destroy it.

2. The Vorlons


Little is known of the Vorlon homeworld other than its name, which is also Vorlon. The atmosphere inside Ambassador Kosh's quarters is unbreathable to humans. The human telepath Lyta Alexander was modified by the Vorlons, however, and was able to breathe the Vorlon atmosphere. Still, it is not sure if the Vorlons need this atmosphere, or any at all for that matter; it has been suggested on the show that the Vorlons keep this air mix just to keep out too many visitors.

Only two humans are known to have ever gone into Vorlon space and returned. One is Lyta Alexander, Babylon 5's first commercial telepath. After being touched by the Vorlons, she travelled to the borders of Vorlon Space to find them again. She was picked up and taken to the Vorlon homeworld, from which she returned as the assistant to both of the Kosh Ambassadors (the second called himself Kosh, though his true name was Ulkesh). A small part of Lyta's experience on the Vorlon homeworld is revealed, along with the secret that the Vorlons had been manipulating many different races to produce telepaths that could be used in the war against the Shadows.

Vorlons are shrouded in mystique and can be puzzling, literally!. A conversation with a Vorlon is rare and if it happens, there is really not much to say. If Vorlons do actively engage in conversation, they mostly speak in riddles and parables. They are sometimes filled with pride, being the superior race. Vorlons can influence dreams too, which they take on a figure of authority or a father figure to the ones dreaming.

When in the company of aliens, Vorlons wear encounter suits to conceal their physical form. The stated reason for the use of encounter suits – that they provide the specific environmental conditions their users need – is a front. The race is capable of functioning in an oxygen/nitrogen atmosphere for a time; even a vacuum seems to produce no ill effects. The true purpose of the suits is to protect the Vorlons from being viewed.

It is only under very exceptional circumstances that a Vorlon abandons its suit and shows itself. When a Vorlon appears outside its encounter suit, observers will usually perceive it as a being of pure light. Many, if not all, of the younger races associate a white-clad, winged figure as a benevolent, supernatural guardian. For example, a human might see an angelic form such as the Archangel Michael or any other angelic being from any of the Abrahamic religions (whether or not it would manifest in the form of other Earth deities, i.e. Hindu gods, is unknown), a Drazi might perceive a being known as Droshalla, a Narn would see a G'Lan, a Minbari the being named Valerian, and so forth. This perception is due to Vorlon genetic manipulation of younger species, according to their enemies the Shadows. Apparently this process is draining, as Kosh required time to recover after being seen by so many beings. The Vorlons' true form was seen only three time in the series: The first time was when Amassador Kosh saved Sheridan's life, after Sheridan jumped into free fall inside Babylon 5; to avoid being killed by a bomb planted on the rail transportation system. The second sighting was on Babylon 4 as the Minbari came to investigate the station. Two Vorlons were seen out of their suits and appeard in "angelic" form. The third sighting took place, when the second Vorlon ambassador to Babylon 5 is forcibly ejected from the station. In this form, the Vorlons are still insubstantial beings of light; however they appear to be cephalopods equipped with two rows of tentacles. It is disputed if there is any physical substance left in a Vorlon whatsoever and it is also very unlikely that this is the form to which they originally evolved millions of years ago. Whether the change to such powerful beings was a natural one resulting from reaching a certain level of mental or physical advancement or if it was helped along by technological means is unknown.

Their ideology is mostly Law and Order, espousing this as important virtues along with the values of respect and cooperation.

They supposedly are/were heavy methane, sulfur, and carbon dioxide breathers, however, being outside of the encounter suit in a nitrogen/oxygen environment does them little or no harm. Apparent nutrient circulation is carried out by "blue cells". Vorlons are susceptible to the poison Florazine (a rare poison only found in the Damocles Sector), however, it may be that just some vital part of their encounter suits is susceptible to this poison, the Vorlons themselves being primarily energy beings.

Among themselves, they seem to communicate telepathically, or use some form of communications built into their suits. This is implied when Kosh Naranek and Ulkesh Naranek are together in the TV movie, 'In the Beginning' and the novel 'To Dream in the City of Sorrows' where both look at each other pointedly during pauses in conversation.

3. Farpoint Aliens

4. Cthulhu

Cthulhu is a giant fictional creature, one of the Great Old Ones in H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos. It is often cited for the extreme descriptions given of its appearance, size, and the abject terror that it invokes. Cthulhu is often referred to in science fiction and fantasy circles as a tongue-in-cheek shorthand for extreme horror or evil.

Cthulhu has also been spelled as Tulu, Clulu, Clooloo, Cighulu, Cathulu, Kutulu, Q’thulu, Ktulu, Kthulhut, Kulhu, Thu Thu, and in many other ways. It is often preceded by the epithet Great, Dead, or Dread.

Lovecraft transcribed the pronunciation of Cthulhu as "Khlûl'hloo" (IPA: /xlʊl.hluː/). S. T. Joshi points out, however, that Lovecraft gave several differing pronunciations on different occasions. According to Lovecraft, this is merely the closest that the human vocal apparatus can come to reproducing the syllables of an alien language. Long after Lovecraft's death, the pronunciation kə-THOO-loo (IPA: /kəˈθuːluː/) became common, and the game Call of Cthulhu endorsed it.

Cthulhu first appeared in the short story "The Call of Cthulhu" (1928)—though it makes minor appearances in a few other Lovecraft works. August Derleth, a correspondent of Lovecraft's, used the creature's name to identify the system of lore employed by Lovecraft and his literary successors, the Cthulhu Mythos.