Slaver Mantoids

The Slaver Mantoids are an intelligent, space-faring race of insectoid origin that are the primary antagonists in Ostragoth’s ongoing fic-in-progress Estrangsters.

History

Nothing of the Slaver Mantoid’s history is known at this point. From what has been seen of their vessels (see Spacecraft entry), it is safe to assume that they are a race that has acted to forcibly appropriate advanced technology for their own use, rather than create their own.

Characteristics

Physical

Slaver Mantoids resemble large insects. Their bodies have a greenish hue and average six to seven feet in height, with each Mantoid possessing distinct physical markings that distinguish it from others of its race. Their have large, protruding eyes that afford them a far greater field of vision than human beings. Slaver Mantoids are physically superior to baseline-normal humans, as they have been observed to move in a normal fashion with the speed of a jogging human (estimated top speeds of a Mantoid range to between 40-60 mph), and have perhaps proportional strength, as they have been seen to tear apart human bodies with ease. Their mandibles also possess great strength, as a Mantoid was observed biting the top of a human skull off with ease before consuming the human body. The Mantoids are not indestructible, and have been shown to be vulnerable to even moderate physical attacks, with attacks of high levels of physical or concussive force delivering instant death. (This may be one reason as to why the Slaver Mantoids have not attempted a direct invasion of Earth, as even the weapons humans have at present would allow them to mount an effective defense.)

Mental

Slaver Mantoids are possessed of psionic abilities, possibly as an evolutionary adaptation in response to their lack of a vocal apparatus that could correspond with their evolving intellect. At present, they have demonstrated two distinct abilities; the ability to form a telepathic line with humans (and possibly other creatures) in order to communicate, and the ability to mentally control other creatures. This mental control has varying levels of success upon humans, some of whom are resistant or even immune to this control. The Mantoids are currently engaged in a breeding program in order to breed the mental resistance train out of humans. (See Mantoid Breeding Program.) The Mantoids may also be capable of a low-level fore of broadcast empathy, as they can seem to project their current emotional state while using their mental control.

Social/psychological

The Slaver Mantoids seem to consider all other races they encounter as property or lesser animals with which they can do as they see fit, and seem to harbor no consideration for the self-determination or rights of other races. They have a pronounced interest in humans, as they see the human race as valuable animals; useful for work of various forms, as conscripted combat troops, and as a food source. (It is not known if humans are a primary source, but humans are a preferred choice when possible, with newborn infants especially valued as a priced delicacy.)

While the majority of Mantoids see humans (and other races) as cattle at best, some have a predilection to forcibly use human slaves as an extension of themselves to experience the sensation of sexuality. This may add to the theory that the Mantoids (like many creatures) are sexually active only for the purposes of reproduction, as most Mantoids and the slave races consider this behavior perverse, and such individuals are considered deviants to normal Mantoid society.

Mantoids prize newborn human infants for their flavor, and engage in ritual games of dominance for the right to consume them. These games can take place at any time once a human female begins to go into labor, and are fought only to the point of capitulation, as Mantoids do not believe in harming one another. The only time Mantoids will kill one of their own is to remove a ‘behavioral deviant’ from the community, to punish a Mantoid for the death of a female human (the Mantoids place supreme value upon the lives of breeder age females – women between the ages of 15 to 35) or of a human infant. Occasionally, in order to deny a victor the spoils of his honorable victory by killing either the newborn or the woman before she gives birth. This is considered (at present) the greatest crime a Mantoid can commit, and is punished in the slowest, most grotesque and dishonorable manner possible. The worst of all possible deaths is for the Mantoid to be bound, placed in an open and then set upon by all the human slaves, who are free to do whatever they see fit.

Consumables

The primary diet of the Mantoids (aside from human beings) is unknown, but could not possibly consist of only human beings, as then their raids would have been of such a magnitude that their existence would have become public knowledge. They do maintain massive agricultural areas aboard The Habitat, and are known to enjoy the taste of many Terran-stock fruits, vegetables, and flowers. (Several versions of pollen, as well as honey, are used by the Mantoids as forms of narcotic substances. Freshly extracted honey has been shown to have the same narcotic effects on Mantoids as highly-potent forms of marijuana do on humans, and ‘royal jelly’ - when its creation is manipulated from bee colonies through a series of aerosol-based hormonal therapies – possesses the same physical and psychological effects as cocaine.) There are several areas within the ag-fields where illicit substances such as marijuana are grown for select humans and Mantoids (who are susceptible to the drug’s effects in liquid form or when mixed with honey), and where several small bee colonies are kept. These illegal stashes are tended to by only the most loyal and trusted human workers (outside of The Watched), and are rewarded with better food, the opportunity to read confiscated materials, and are protected from unwanted sexual advances.

Technology

As mentioned before, the Slaver Mantoids do not seem to possess the ability to conceive and/or construct advanced technology, preferring to capture and commandeer the technologies of other races. However, the technology that they have is quite advanced, far beyond the level of modern-day Earth technologies known to the general public.

Medical

The Mantoids have mastered the art and science of human medicine, having the ability to genetically alter human physiological makeup and the psionic potentials inherent within the species, as well as effectively cure the majority of most human ailments and conditions. The Mantoids have the ability to synthesize a solution very similar to Delmitrium-157, which not only purges the human body of all impurities but also (if used to excess) acts as a narcotic with an extremely high potential for addiction. (The Mantoids make this drug freely available for all humans, as doing so has several advantages.

Humans who become addicted to the drug ‘purge’ themselves of even decades of contamination, and become as flavorful as newborns to Mantoids. After continued heavy use, their body puts off a strong scent that, to Mantoids, is very intoxicating and indicative of that human’s flavor, and will be eaten after he is bred one last time to a female worker, once she is known to have conceived.
Mantoids have a ‘scale of taste’ concerning humans (much like the USDA scale for grading meat and eggs). In addition, most humans have an unpleasant scent, and so the solution is also used as a very effective cleaning solution which is used everywhere humans and Mantoids have any contact.
Non-breeder females who drink the solution when pregnant purify their child’s form, making it as flavorful and desirable as a child born to breeders. (They do not develop an addiction because the solution is absorbed (by unknown means) directly through the placenta and into the child, where it concentrates and ‘seasons’ the child’s form.)
Non-breeder females can also drink the solution to cleanse themselves of any possible STD or any other disease, which would interfere with childbirth. Unlike men, women can consume the solution for a far longer period without running the risk of addiction, and can tell when they are approaching the point of addiction because they will experience a very heavy menstrual flow outside of their normal cycle.

The Mantoids also possess a nanotech-level gene therapy that can cure humans of injuries, diseases and innate physical conditions such as heart damage, diabetes, asthma, burns, major cuts, and so forth. Dubbed ‘Bio-Spackle’ by the humans, it is used as either a thickened fluid with the consistency of a milkshake, or as a thick white organic paste. Bio-Spackle contains self-sustaining nanites that activate upon contact with the patient’s wounds and repair the wounds, as well as any secondary damage caused by the wounds. (When consumed, the nanites are absorbed into the blood system, act upon the compromised systems in the body, analyze the correct physical status and then replicate the appropriate amount of nanites to either repair the body or act as a secondary ‘booster’ system that takes over the functions of the affected areas, and in either case, restores the person to a nominal stage of health.) In either form, Bio-Spackle must be applied carefully (infectious diseases protocols are best for its use), as the substance will begin to react with the first person it comes into physical contact with and be useless for anyone else.

Mantoid Breeding Program

Weapons

The only weapon seen so far in Mantoid use is a device informally named the ‘barbell device’. The Barbell is a heavy, handheld weapon in the shape of a barbell, with a baseball-shaped glove on one end (the globe contains elements inside that are reminiscent of a plasma globe) and a opening on the opposite end that contains a tri-bladed spike about nine inches long. The device can be used for hand-to-hand combat, as it is reinforced and can be used to strike others for blunt damage, or stab them with the spike (designed to make victims bleed out faster). The Barbell can also fire searing pulses of white-hot plasma from the globe end that can cause immediate death to humans up to fifty yards away. The Barbell’s energy-projection ability seems to be controlled mentally by the user to determine the direction and intensity of the pulse.

Spacecraft

There has been only one spacecraft seen to date; these are small, conoidal craft piloted by the Grays and used for abducting humans. These craft are two-seaters, with small areas where abducted humans are subdued and held for transport to a larger vessel. These ships also have energy weapons capable of stunning humans or of facilitating a state of deep sleep (for ease or removal, as well as ‘tractor beams’, which can manipulate matter to create holes in walls and draw human captives into the vessel.