#yellow and black flat millipede

[thedisablednaturalist]

Not me picking up a guy who secretes cyanide oops

I put my hand near him and allowed him to crawl on his own so he didn't get spooked and use his poison attack

Very pretty, but do not pick these guys up without gloves!!!

Apheloria virginiensis

Yellow and black flat millipede

#bugs #bugblr #millipede #yellow and black flat millipede #i would never survive in an area with actually dangerous wildlife #id be like ooo froggy and die #its not super bad but itll cause irritation and you definitely dont want to get it in your eyes

[missmycelia]

The beautiful Kentucky flat millipede. This colorful species secretes a cyanide ooze as an extremely effective defense against predators.

#millipedes #arthropods #bugs #pretty bugs #nature #macro #insects #flat millipede #yellow and black

[kariachi]

Okay, it’s Odaiba Day, if there is any day I am going to get a partner line together for Chosen Devin AUs it is today damnit...

So, the Aberamon line, kinda sorta. An Aberamon line.

~~

Erynmon

Stage: Baby/Baby I

Type: Seed

Attribute: Data

Description: A small brown orbular digimon with three large, round violet, petal-like wings coming from it’s top, the wings droop down, hiding much of the center from view and dragging on the ground, can use wings to float and twirl in the air and on breezes, has two large solid yellow eyes

Attacks: Sepal Swat (bats at opponents with it’s wings)

Hegrekmon

Stage: In-Training/Baby II

Type: Fairy

Attribute:Data

Description: A small, ovular, white creature that appears to be formed from smooth, shiny stone, with a jagged crater-esque mouth, two large pastel-blue eyes, and three small round feet

Attacks: Dizzy Dance (disorients enemies by circling them at high speeds)

Aberamon (Sun)

Stage: Rookie/Child

Type: Holy Beast

Attribute: Vaccine

Description: A mid-sized creature with a flat, almost square body, upper portions covered in what appears to be long, flowing, light brown ‘Pele’s hair’, skin is a very pale yellow, possesses four thick spider-like legs, one at each corner, ending in one large claw each, head is large, round, and attached directly to the body between the front-most pair of legs, possesses four large eyes- right pair green and left pair violet, mouth is large on the head and full of sharp teeth, two small black horns rest on the top of the head

Attacks: Shard Shell (tackles opponent with full force)

Dididirumon (Sun)

Stage: Champion/Adult

Type: Holy Beast

Attribute: Vaccine

Description: A large creature reminiscent of a flat-backed millipede, possesses no legs, segments all extend into solid fin-like forms, back and fins dark brown, head and underbelly very pale yellow, no antennae but does possess a pair of black antlers with two tines, mouthless head with four angular eyes- right pair green and left pair violet, segments edged in electrum, ‘swims’ through water and air does not touch ground under normal circumstances

Attacks: Solar Tribute (generates ball of fire between antlers and fires at opponents), Coils (entangles and squeezes opponent)

Oppoimon

Stage: Ultimate/Perfect

Type: Mythical Dragon

Attribute: Vaccine

Description: A massive, flat creature reminiscent of annelids with a lizard-like head, a dozen pairs of dark grey metallic claws line the sides of the body, possesses two large forelimbs similar to those of a mantis in the same color as the claws, tail ends in an screw of the same, head has a metallic dark grey skull helmet, mouth has two rows of sharp teeth, four angular yellow eyes, jagged ochor-red stripe under each eye, down each forelimb, and on either side of the ‘spine’ down the back, primary color is a shiny grey-green, typically terrestrial

Attacks: Striking Ambush (strikes out at enemies with forelimbs), Pressure Quake (causes the ground to shake violently and geysers to erupt under the enemy)

Rumalmon (Moon)

Stage: Mega/Ultimate

Type: God Dragon

Attribute: Vaccine

Description: A large Osmosian-shaped creature with a dark grey-green hide, forelimbs are massive in comparison to the body ending in heavy, skeletal hands half the size of the torso, skeletal tail is twice as long proportionally as an Osmosian tail, possesses four large pairs of eyes- four violet running down the belly and four green running down the back, head is eyeless, canine teeth are doubled as compared to an Osmosian, skeletal portions are bright yellow-orange, possesses seven four-tined electrum antlers, one electrum chain is wrapped around the base of each antler and wraps loosely around the body and limbs, can locomote quadrupedally, bipedally, and through floating

Attacks: Holy Sabre (stabs and/or slashes as enemies with claws), Calling (releases blinding light from eyes that radiates through area, damages ‘unholy’ opponents), Nightburst (unleashes a barrage of energy blasts onto opponents)

#fakemon #fun fact: most osmosian empire holy digis come in two variants- sun & moon #and have heterochromia #due to the elevation of such things in savar #the powers are generally changed (fire vs energy | darkness vs light | etc) #just as the colors are though #so a bit different from having like a black variant or something #was oppomon inspired by a critter from my babo'verse? why yes yes it was #for the second year in a row i make a fakemon for odaiba day

[reksink]

Bug delivery~

Ebony jewelwing damselfly, a tiny fly (maybe complex Condylostylus sipho), and a yellow-and-black flat millipede

BUG DELIVERY 💚💚💚

Officially tagging this ask series Bug Delivery now, thank you Flame, it's perfect

Oh my goodness these guys are so pretty!! My favorite of the bunch has to be the flat back, I have a big soft spot for millipedes. Not to mention that it's pattern is just oh so pretty

As for our flying companions, they're masters of colors in their own right OMGA. The damselfly is living up to it's name ten-fold 💚

I always loved the 'rainbow-like' qualities of bugs, but the way flies always has a flare to I can't quite describe

Also I meant to mention this before but I'm STILL 'embarrassed' that I mixed out that millipede from last time, hehe. Embarrassed in quotes because it was an honest mistake, I could only make out 1 leg per trunk. Oh the woes of not zoning in hehe

#bug #bug cw #Bug Delivery #flame-shadow #ask #Oh the darlings beasts now I cherish you #Also thanks for giving me the names of these guys!! #Now I know what names to research hehe

[sceneshepherd]

Hello, my name is Ghost. I am 20 yrs old & my prns are he/it/ey.

My DNI, nonhuman identities & about me are after the cut.

☆○◦˚⭒IDENTITIES🐺

⛦wolf sometimes a large black timber wolf covered mostly in gray fur, mainly a red wolf. ⛦wolfdog wolf mixed with alaskan malamute & GSD. black fur. ⛦dog usually a black GSD, sometimes a black belgian tervuren, sometimes a black & white alaskan malamute with one pale blue eye, sometimes an anatolian shepherd. i am a stray dog that lives in the woods. ⛦green iguana ⛦invertebrates fruit beetle, yellow flat-backed millipede, hermit crab, ghost crab ⛦werewolf usually all black fur, sometimes gray. ⛦vampire ⛦night elf

⋮⤳my main blog is @stapleworm where i follow and interact with people <3 i have a pinned post there as well! https://stapleworm.carrd.co/ kinlist

⋮⤳i have autism and ADHD and i am a witch. i am a spiritual & psychological therian & otherkin. i try to keep this page sfw but do be warned i dont always check my sources or the pages i reblog from, and i do apologize for the inconvenience, but keep that in mind. this blog is almost 'therapeutic' for me and i dont care if i get any followers, so yeah lol.

⋮⤳DNI: NSFW, d//d//l//g, terfs, transphobes, lgbtphobes, racists, anti-blm, bluelivesmatter, conservative, centrist, democrats, pro-life, christian, misogynists, anti-feminists, cishet men, n*zis, anti-semitics, classists, anti-therian, cringe culture, anti-kin, anti-mogai, anti-neopronouns, gatekeepers, elitists, anti-harm reduction, etc, anything shitty. dont fucking talk to me at all if u agree w any of these things in any capacity.

⋮⤳DONT TALK TO ME IF YOU ARE UNDER 17. I AM NOT COMFORTABLE WITH THIS. further, if you post heavy politics regularly i probably won't be following you, as i try to limit my exposure to it (it is a huge energy drainer and makes me really depressed!!)

⋮⤳and finally, IF U POST NSFW DONT INTERACT WITH ME. I DONT WANT TO BE EXPOSED TO THAT SHIT UNWILLINGLY, SERIOUSLY.

Here is my canid/werewolf server!!

#mine

[onenicebugperday]

@loyle-trash​ submitted: Sister moved to North Carolina and met some inch-eresting friends!

And a Leopard Slug!

Dang, North Carolina seems to be packed with awesome pals. Looks like an American giant millipede (a fav!!), prooobably a yellow-and-black flat millipede, Apheloria tigana? There are a few species that have similar coloring, but that’s the most common. And the leopard slug!!! What a lovely large friend with an excellent outfit and A+ eye stalks. Thanks for sharing such nice long friends!

#animals #bugs #myriapods #millipede #slug #submission #gastropods #american giant millipede #yellow and black flat millipede #leopard slug #flat backed millipede

[thesingingbullfrog]

Yellow-and-black Flat Millipede (Apheloria tigana)

#millipede #yellow and black #flat millipede #apheloria tigana #photographers on tumblr

[typhlonectes]

is that millipede Anoplodesmus saussurii you reblogged in north america at all? that looks a lot like a millipede i saw in north california

Excellent that you should ask that. It looks very similar to a millipede that is native to the Eastern U.S., the yellow and black flat millipede, Apheloria tigana.

Photograph by Matt Reinbold | Wiki CC

https://bugguide.net/node/view/60549

https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/yellow-spotted-millipede

and if you live in the PNW of the U.S. or BC in Canada, there's the Yellow-spotted Millipede, Harpaphe haydeniana.

https://bugguide.net/node/view/15008

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harpaphe_haydeniana

#millipede #myriapod

[moodycarcass]

Special little guy found on the premises

Yellow and black flat millipede

#mort.txt #photos #bugs #i love these guys i saw a massive one a week or so ago crawling on the welcome mat but didn't have my phone

[ds-ts-smut-fics]

Cave Boys [Chapter One]

Edit: Please tell me if the ‘read more’ isn’t working because this is the third time I tried adding it in and on our blog, it shows, but when I see it on my dash it isn’t there. I’m really sorry if it’s still not working. 

Synopsis: While exploring, Logan finds an unknown cave. He’s too curious for his own good and wanders inside, only to be kidnapped by monsters and taken to their civilization as a prize to be sold to the highest bidder. 

Genre: Logan-centric whump with a happy ending for all, NSFW, romantic intrulogical, parental loceit, parental logicality, romantic moceit, background romantic prinxiety 

Trigger warnings (for the entire fic): Angst and whump, blood, gore, kidnapping, monsters, human in a cage, human in a collar, human on a leash, I think maybe technically body horror?, implied unsympathetic Janus, implied unsympathetic Virgil (neither of them is unsympathetic they’re both just assholes lol), human slavery, human being treated as property, human up for sale, threats, eventual non-con, lots of bullying, poverty

Trigger warnings (for this chapter): Traps, ankle injuries, knives that go unused, suicidal speech, talk of a person ‘fading’ (very briefly and it doesn’t happen), arguing and insults, implied poverty 

Word count: 6171 

Written by: Claire and Virgil

Edited by: Virgil

A/N: Hi, I played Janus and if you ask me where his personality comes from, I have no answer ~Mod Virgil 

When Logan was upset, he explored the forest by his house. 

The woods spread over hundreds of miles. They were covered in towering pines, ground in thick moss and large boulders. There were plenty of places of interest marked out and documented— Hot springs, caves, clearings, ponds. 

Logan had visited all of them. 

It got to the point where he merely wandered, focusing on landmarks instead of the people who upset him, who had once again let him down. After all, he had to be able to find his way home. A few times he got lost in the forest for longer than desired. 

He was several hours into his hike, in a direction he had never been before, when he came across an undocumented cave. He checked every centimetre of his map- The one he updated every night -but no one knew of its existence. 

Humming, he flicked on his light, circling the area just in case, and making a note of the find in his journal before stepping in carefully, eyes wide with wonder. “Stupendous…." 

The entrance of the cave was made of high ceilings and jagged walls covered in moss. The gurgling of running water from somewhere to his left echoed through the room, and straight across, through a narrow crack in the wall, was something… Glowing. Glittering, even, shining with purple, pink, yellow, and blue. 

Gasping softly, he crept carefully towards the crack, a small shiver running down his spine. "Were I more superstitious, I would say this is a fairy ring or some nonsense… how does it shimmer like that though!” Reaching out, he slipped some gloves on to touch the nearest one, the darkest blue he’d ever seen. 

It was… So warm. Warm and beautiful. What was this rock- No, crystal? If he got some of it back home, he could test it… He’d have to get through the crack to harvest some of it. 

Leaning out a little further, he grunted. The moment he stumbled out of the crack, metal slid against metal, and as bars flipped upward to lock him in a claustrophobic cage, pain exploded in his ankle as something clamped around it. Cheers sounded nearby. 

A terrified yelp spilled from his lips as he pushed and pulled at the metal. What’s going on?!

Thick, hairy hands curl around the bars of the cage, the metal screeching along the stone floor as Logan was hauled into the darkness. 

“That’s four for me,” the voice closest to him grunts, “and none for you. Have you noticed that? I have.” 

His hands flew to his ears. He quickly lost track of where he was, darkness and the long strides of whoever, or whatever, now had him, making it impossible. The screaming pain in his ankle had hardly subsided by the time the moving finally stopped. The only direction Logan was certain he went in was down. He started to realize why this place wasn’t marked on the map. 

“Do him like the other humans, there should be an open spot close to the city,” the same voice ordered. “I’ll go update the books.” 

His heart sunk. He flinched back as a long arm reached for him. The monster tugged at him even as he kicked with his unbound leg, fumbling in his pockets for his knife and swiping. “Get the hell away! Let me go!!”

The thing laughed gleefully as its slim form easily avoided his slashes. “You know,” it clamped down on Logan’s injured ankle, pain forming black spots in his vision, “those stupid crystal things were the best thing we’ve ever done for our jobs. Made things so much easier.” 

Logan snarled, certain that if he could just get one hit in, it would be fine. Maybe he’d even wake up, bed sheets wrapped around his ankles instead of this millipede nightmare.

“If you don’t stop struggling,” it sang, “you’ll never be able to use that ankle again.” It squeezed tighter, digging the metal further into his flesh, Logan’s vision turning white.

He screamed and fell limp. 

The thing dragged him forward by his ankle and slapped something against his neck. It crumpled and curled around like a collar, but the material was some type of metal Logan didn’t recognize. It almost… Harnessed heat. The longer it stuck to his skin, the more it burned, like holding your hand too close to fire without touching it. 

It clipped a chain on the collar and dragged Logan across the dirt floor. Logan will never forget the things he saw as it led him further into the cave system. 

It brought him down to an area with square holes cut in the walls, light seeping into the makeshift hallway. What could only be described as monsters peeked through the windows, watching Logan with expressions he couldn’t recognize. There was occasional hissing, chirping, incoherent English mumbling… But not a human in sight. 

Slumped in the larger pen, he tried to put together what had happened for a long time after the creature left, he finally had looked down to see the bloody mess his ankle was, and the trap attached to it. It throbbed with his panicked heartbeat ever since he had given up getting it off. 

“You’re such a bitch, you know that?”

An androgynous voice, sounding almost-human, echoed down the hall as two pairs of footsteps headed for his cage. Were they human? Were they going to save him? 

Shifting to his feet, Logan carefully hopped back a little. A soft whine left his lips as he imagined the horror to come. 

“What?! I’m a bitch?!” A louder tone answered, an almost trill to the end echoing off the cavern walls. “You!” The voice sputtered, as if trying and failing to defend itself. “You’re not even looking at me, fang boy!”

“I don’t have to look at you to know you’re a moron. You’ve tripped over more rocks than me, and I’m fucking blind.” 

Two figures came into Logan’s vision. One of them was biped, and looked vaguely humanoid, but a long snout protruded from its face and in place of nails, long, black talons curled. They were sharp enough to slit Logan’s throat. The thing’s eyes, for what tiny slits they were, had no colour. 

Gesturing with a broad swipe, the second figure proclaimed loudly, “So, I wanted to be fashionable and pretty for the new arrivals, Count Woe-laff! So sue me!" 

“Count… Who?”

Logan gingerly hopped out of range of the claws and the cloak the louder one wore. It floated and fluttered, as if it sat on a tide. Eyes lifting to meet Logan’s, the loud one found a rock and went down hard. He squeezed out a pained breath. 

The badger thing slapped a paw to its face, right above his snout. “God, you are such a moron.” It knelt down and wrapped a paw around the other’s wrist, and for a moment Logan thought those talons were going to draw blood, but the thing helped its counterpart up and patted its back roughly. 

Huffing, it dusted off, just now noticing Logan. "So, I missed a safety measure or three. Did you see-? Oh! There’s a human!" 

A deep rumble fell from the badger boy’s throat, presumably a laugh. “No, I don’t see. But do you know how I know anyway? Because I listen when we’re given orders.” 

The two of them stopped in front of Logan’s cage. The badger held large, flat pieces of stone and ran a single talon along it. The nail wormed its way between all the grooves and indentations, face clenched in concentration. 

“Logan?” It tried. “Did I say that right? You’re listed as male, is that correct?” 

Mouth opening a few times, Logan managed after a few moments, "I… Yes? How do you know that?! I haven't… There weren’t any questions asked!”

“Everything I have here is first impressions, things our superiors could tell from sight. My name is Virgil, and the idiot back there is Roman. He uses he/him, I use they/them. What do you use?” They cocked their head towards Roman and mumbled, “Did I ask that correctly?” 

Roman snorted softly. “I’m not an idiot, V!" 

"Yes, a bit stiff and formal, but basically correct. I prefer he/him pronouns and my name is Logan. Why am I here? Can either of you get this device off of my leg?!” He balanced, using a part of the cage furthest from the two beings, uncertainty clouding his mind.

“You were unlucky,” Virgil answered, and then the rest of Logan’s words caught up with them. They snapped something in a language Logan didn’t understand, in the same implication of one spitting out a chain of curses, and asked, “Damnit, Roman, did they leave that fucking thing on again?”

“Looks like it. They pushed it in, too! Even when they struggle, that’s just mean!” Lilting sounds left his lips in much the same implied tone. “We have to get closer to get it off.”

“I’ll do it. Just make sure he doesn’t escape.” Virgil gave Roman the tablets and pulled a set of keys from one of their many pockets. They spoke as they unlocked the door. “Roman and I are assigned to guard you when you’re on good behaviour. If you act out too much, we can’t help, and you won’t like where you end up.” They knelt in front of Logan and pat the ground. “Put your ankle right here. You’re going to have to trust us, and accept the situation.” 

Slowly pushing off the wall, Logan carefully slid to where Virgil indicated, voice soft and stubbornly resigned. “Do I have a choice? I don’t know where ‘here’ is or how to get home, even if I thought that I could walk or climb to get there.”

“You’re smarter than most humans they catch.” Virgil slipped a talon into a slot on the device, a thin tongue poking between their lips. They plunged the talon deeper, and the device popped off, ripping off some of Logan’s skin with it. 

“FUCK! That hurts!” He groaned. He tugged his foot close and rocked, pressing at the bleeding parts of his foot. He glared. “What good does being smart do me? I’m still here.” 

“I’m sorry.” They sounded genuine. “I didn’t want to warn you, it would have just freaked you out.” Virgil stood and left the cage, closing and locking the door behind them. They took the tablets back from Roman. “We don’t have a lot of human food. Do you have… Uh, fuck, what did that girl call it? Come on, Roman, speak up, you know way more about humans than I do.” 

Roman jumped a little. “Which girl, the one that had those little bars in her bag or the one that said she couldn’t eat nuts?”

“The one who couldn’t eat nuts. She said it’d kill her. We weren’t aware humans weren’t able to eat all human foods. That’s so fucking weird… You guys are fucking weird, you know that?” 

“Those are called allergies. Sensitivity in differing degrees to parts of our environment. I don’t have an allergy to anything. That I’ve encountered so far at least?”

A horrible grating sound sliced through the air as Virgil noted that down with their talon. “And how old are you? We’ve tried guessing age before but another thing humans are fucking weird with, you guys don’t look the same ever.” 

Covering his ears, Logan gritted his teeth. “Twenty- I’m twenty years old.”

Virgil noted that down as well and, to Logan’s immense relief, pocketing the tablets. “Okay. So what’s gonna happen is I’m gonna grab you some food while Princey here watches you, then-”

“VIRGIL! ROMAN!” An impatient voice echoed through the corridor, rapidly coming closer. “I’M HERE TO MEET THE NEW HUMAN!” 

“Get lost, Janus,” Virgil growled. “The human’s not open for meet and greets yet!”

Logan hissed softly, pushing back against the wall. No more new things… 

At first glance, the rapidly approaching creature looked human. It almost startled hope in Logan, until it came into the light. 

It was not human. 

Its skin was ghostly pale in the spaces it wasn’t covered in shimmering green scales. Its eyes were slit like a snake’s, its fangs poking out between its lips. It had similar talons to Virgil’s, but a fraction of the length and looked almost manicured. 

A dazzling grin slid across its face as its eyes landed on Logan. “Oh, hello darling.” It frowned, gaze dropping to his ankle. “Oh, dear, did these two do that to you?” 

Virgil shoved the thing. “You can’t keep doing this every fucking time a human arrives. Just because you meet them first doesn’t mean anyone can guarantee you a lower price.” 

“P-Price?!” Logan trembled. “You mean I’m to be sold… Like property?!” His vision swam. He curled up tight around his injured limb, rocking slowly as he panicked. “Maybe I should just fucking run… Hope I find a damn cliff or something’s claw…”

All three of them jumped in visible panic, jumping over each other to discourage him. 

“-horrible, horrible idea-”

“-please, darling, you’ll only get hurt-”

“-you won’t make it far enough and the punishment will make you regret trying-”

The snake thing wrapped a hand around one of the bars. “I know it looks bleak now, but if you trust me, convince the others that I would be the best buyer… You’ll be happy they took you in the first place.”

Logan laughed with a snort. “Why the fuck would I want something like that?!”

“You’re going to confuse him,” Virgil growled. “Don’t make him think he has any say. Just go and wait for his display day, okay?” 

“You’ll look fabulous! And certainly end up with a better owner than snake lips there!” Roman blocked the view with his body, winking.

“I can make you happy!” It insisted. “Please, don’t listen to them! My name is Janus. What’s yours? Let me get to know you, darling.” 

“Happy?! Go suck an egg and choke.” Turning, Logan tugged at his ankle, turning to Virgil. “Is there any medical treatment? Water? Clean cloth?”

“Yes, I’ll bring you water with your dinner. Roman, did you-”

“Sorry to interrupt,” Janus did not seem sorry, “but I’m not familiar with that human expression? Was that- Was-”

“You were rejected,” Virgil said flatly. “When are you going to accept that no one wants you?” 

“I don’t trust any of you and I don’t like this one bit,” Logan muttered softly. 

Janus hesitated, then spun on his heels and left. 

Virgil sighed. “Roman, did you remember the gauze?”

Producing a roll from a bag on his hip, Roman nodded. "Of course!”

Virgil took it and unlocked the cage again. “I’ll go grab your food after I get this wrapped up, okay? Did they hurt you anywhere else?” They sat and patted the same spot on the floor. 

Slowly stretching out again, Logan thought. “The collar-thing felt like it was burning… But I don’t think so?” Looking at his hands, he hummed. 

“Bruises on his hands at least,” Roman piped up, “probably all over from those damn cages.”

Virgil wrapped Logan’s ankle and held out their paws, palms up. “Give me your hands.” 

Carefully, Logan held them out, palm down. “What is the purpose of taking humans? What use are we to you?”

“It’s different for each buyer.” Virgil’s dark skin was surprisingly soft as their fingers rubbed along Logan’s palms. “The simple answer is that there’s a huge market for it. There are rumours that people buy humans because they want to take out their anger at being locked down here while you all are free up there, but I think that’s bullshit. We could go up there if we wanted, we just don’t. I think the people who think that are cowards.”

Logan snorted. “Everything I’ve seen here is like a cross between a fantasy tale and a nightmare… Things most people don’t believe even exist! There’s no way there’s a lock or force keeping you here! That’s just not logical!" 

“Exactly.” Virgil grinned, squeezing Logan’s hands. “You walked right in, didn’t you? What’s stopping the ones desiring to walk right out?” 

"Well… I was exploring, curious. I rather fell in? It was a doorway, though!” He blushed, thinking back. “Seems it was a trap, though, from what they said.”

“Yeah,” Virgil mumbled as they rose to their feet. “It’s those crystals. Humans go crazy for them. The severity depends on the person, but it just makes you want to know… Everything about them. And you’ll put that priority over any others.” Virgil slipped out of the cage, then shut and locked the doors. “Humans are so stupid,” they sighed, and left to get Logan’s food. 

Logan curled in on himself. Did I upset them? “Oh…" 

Roman hummed softly and slipped into place at the door. "Should we get you more coverings? Are you too cold?" 

Pausing, Logan shook his head. Virgil came back a while later with a tray of what looked close to oatmeal, and a few bottles of water. They slid it through a gap in the bars, towards the bottom. 

“You should try to sleep after you eat.” They shoved a thick roll of cloth through as well. “Tomorrow’s going to be a big day. You’re going to meet one of our superiors, and she’ll be preparing you for your display day. Please, please obey us, and obey her. If you misbehave, Roman and I will not be able to help you.” 

"I… Okay, I’ll do my best. Thank you for the advice. What- What exactly is a display day?" 

“One of our superiors will take you to the city, along with some other humans, and, well, put you on display. People come by to meet you and look at you, and bids will start.” 

"Oh… Has anyone ever… Gone home?”

Virgil hesitated, expression darkening. “You mean… Left the cave?” 

“Yes. Is there a chance that I will ever see the surface again?” He raised his head to watch the expression of this strangely compassionate being. “Will I ever see my home again… Or am I here until I die?”

“Don’t ask questions like that,” Virgil hissed. “That’s exactly the kind of thing that will land you in a place you don’t want to be in. I’m sorry, I’m sure it must be hard to accept, but this is your best option now.”

“Oh…"  His head dipped, resting on his knees. "That tells me what I need to know, I guess.”

“It’ll be okay,” Virgil promised. “If you’re smart, you can find yourself a good owner who’ll make you happy.” They looked over their shoulder. “Roman, will you set up our tent? I’m taking second watch tonight.” 

Roman rolled his eyes. “Been setting it up as you two gossips talked, guess you really are blind, batboy!”

Virgil looked at them incredulously. “Do you think I’m exaggerating when I say I’m blind?”

Logan couldn’t help but laugh softly, a hand muffling the sound as Roman teased in that other language, causing Virgil to swipe at him.

Virgil finally just rolled their eyes. “Goodnight, Roman. Don’t be stupid, wake me up for my shift, okay?”

He huffed softly. “Fine… Sleep well, emo nightmare!”

“Goodnight, Logan. Let Roman know if you need something.” Virgil ducked into the tent and zipped it up behind them. 

Logan spent most of the night struggling to sleep. The blanket Virgil gave him barely softened the hard stone floor, and every time he fell asleep for a few minutes, he jerked awake, body insisting he was in danger. Eventually, he settled for leaning against the back wall of the enclosure and mentally reciting the constellations to try and remain calm. At some point he must have passed out, because he jerked awake when the door opened, an unfamiliar voice speaking with the two guards from earlier.

“How has he been behaving?” The feminine voice asked. 

“Perfectly,” Virgil said dryly. “Just went right to bed last night, didn’t even think about escaping.”

“Hmm. That’s perfect. Have you noticed anything strange about him, anything to take note of?”

Roman chuckled. “He seems quite intelligent, if a bit scared. The first crew beat him up a bit and I’m not sure if he’s having issues from that first handling?”

“Hmm,” she sounded indifferent, “I’ll check when we get him to the tailor. We’ll definitely have to market his intelligence, most humans are so dumb.” 

Slowly pushing up, Logan hummed softly as dread crept into his stomach. Watching her body language for clues, he steeled himself for whatever she might do to ‘display’ him. 

She talked with the two a little longer. She looked remarkably similar to Virgil. 

She unlocked the cage door and beckoned Logan forward. “Are you awake? Come here, please.”

“I am.” Standing, he slowly approached, watching those long claws carefully. “Am I allowed to speak, ma'am?”

Her barely-there eyes widened a bit. “Wow, you guys weren’t kidding. He is smart. Yes, Logan, you can speak, but keep it to a minimum. I presume Virgil and Roman told you where you’ll go when you misbehave, and I feel it’s important to tell you that our rules and their rules will not be the same.”

“What are those rules, ma'am? I would prefer to avoid punishment if possible.” Gulping as she approached, he fought not to run.

She gracefully slid her talons under his collar and brought him closer, clipping on a chain. She gently tugged, like beckoning a dog, and stepped out of the cage. 

“The obvious ones,” she told him as they walked through the dark corridors, Roman and Virgil flanking them, “like don’t try to escape, don’t be rude, don’t attack anyone. Any others, you have permission to break once, since you won’t know, then any time after that you’ll be assigned new guards.”

He nodded. If he were to break any rules, it would certainly be fighting back or being rude. “Yes, ma'am. Thank you, ma'am.”

“You’re very welcome, Logan. You’re very polite.” 

She took them down a route Logan didn’t recognize, and seemingly all at once, the cave walls turned into carved out homes, the narrow hall opened up into a huge cavern bustling with noise, and he was surrounded in life. It was a complete city, underground, and crawling with monsters. “Roman, please visit the office and update the books while Virgil and I bring him to the tailor.”

Smiling wide, Roman saluted. He took the tablets from Virgil before turning with a flourish. “Certainly! I’ll meet back up with you there!" 

Virgil’s boss led him through the city. Despite her lack of vision, she never ran into anyone or anything. She brought them to a tiny little building made of jagged rock, some of the door crumbling as she pulled it open. 

“Go in, now.” 

Stumbling slightly, Logan ducked inside. His eyes slowly adjusted to the lowered light. He could barely make out a small shop with piles of fabrics, some chains and restraints on the walls. "H-Hello?" 

Scratching sounded as a figure rounded the mounds, low syllabant voice purring as wings and claws came into view. "Greetings, human… Hand over the chain, Sylvia? I need to see all of him easily, you know!”

A griffin. 

Sylvia chuckled and passed it over. “He’s very intelligent, so we’ll need an outfit to highlight that, Rose, make sure everyone who sees him knows.”

Rose’s paw looped the chain over a stand as she drew him in closer. “So I see… His eyes are watching everything. Maybe if we highlight them….” Grabbing some materials, she draped them to check the shade. She sketched concepts with soft mutters. “Scholar… Robes?”

Sylvia hummed appreciatively and found a seat. Virgil stood guard by the door. “Yes, I’m sure that’ll work,” Sylvia said. 

“Of course, darling, I AM the best!” Moving Logan with firm but gentle paws, she measured and worked on creating a heavy-looking robe with colours that complimented his features. It made him look wise, and yet hampered movement so he wasn’t tempted to run. Showing him off when she finished, she motioned for Logan to turn. “I would add some makeup for those eyes if you really want him to sell at mark up, sweetie!”

“I’ll mention that to the stylist tomorrow. I trust you’ve done a wonderful job, if there’s anything the boss has to say I’ll bring him back before closing hours.” 

She stood and pulled a few gems out of the bag at her hip. One of them was an amethyst, but Logan didn’t recognize the rest. She held them out in Rose’s general direction. 

Taking the stones, Rose purred and traded them for Logan’s chain. “A pleasure as always!”

“Virgil, come take this.” She held out the chain, and Virgil felt around until they found her wrist, and felt their way to the end of the chain. “Wait outside for Roman, then get him back to his cage and make him something to eat. I’m going to make sure the work on his display cage is going smoothly.” 

“Sure.” They gestured for Logan to follow, taking it on faith that Logan saw and tugging him out the door. 

Logan stumbled as he adjusted to the change in leading style. “Virgil?”

Sylvia passed them outside and disappeared into the crowd of people. Virgil leaned against the wall of the tailor. “What’s up?”

“Just a question. Am I to wear this outfit only for presentation, or is this to be my new daily attire?” Logan touched the navy fabric, careful not to mess it up. 

“We’re just fitting you for your display day. After we get the boss’ approval, you’ll change back into your original clothes and we’ll keep that safe until everything’s ready. Why?”

“Oh… They are much warmer than what I currently have. The space I was in, it’s colder than I’m used to?" 

Virgil stepped forward and clumsily rubbed one of their paws over the side of Logan’s face. “Hm. You’re right, I don’t think humans’ skin is supposed to be this cold. I’ll grab you a hoodie when I get your breakfast. Jesus, do you see Princey anywhere? He’s so fucking distractable.”

Shivering, Logan leaned into the touch. "Mmm…" 

Roman scoffed softly, coming up behind Virgil. "Petting him without me, V? You’re bonding nicely!”

They dropped their paw with a sigh. “He’s cold. You should carry him back. Body heat should be able to warm him up just as well as fabric.” 

“Oh!” Stepping in, Roman scooped Logan up after a quick consideration on how to position him. “Okay! He’s so light… Are they supposed to be this small?”

Virgil shrugged as they made their way back. “I don’t know. Like I said, humans almost never look the same. Feel below his chest, can you feel his ribs through his skin?”

Logan squeaked as Roman poked at him. “I am not underweight!”

“Just let Roman check,” Virgil sighed. “We need to make sure we’re feeding you correctly.”

Blushing a bright red, Logan nodded and tried to relax. 

Roman hummed softly. “Not easily… Skinny but like just not a lot of natural padding? He is super cold though… Shivering.”

“Yeah, like I said, you gotta warm him up. Use friction.” 

Chuckling, Roman cuddled Logan close, hands sliding under his clothes to rub gently. “Got it, V!”

They brought him back to his holding cage, Virgil holding out his old clothes. “Go ahead and get changed, I need those.”

Turning for modesty even though he knew it was useless, Logan nodded. He held out the robes to Roman. “Here… Might I request something warm for food? It helps.”

“Of course. We have some soups that are safe for humans. I’ll be right back.” 

Roman grinned and settled Logan in his lap, stroking gently. “Soooo… Do you want to talk while V’s doing the boring stuff?”

He blushed and cuddled into Roman’s chest. “Sure?” 

“Awesome!” Petting Logan’s hair, he bounced a little. “So, what do you do for fun? Do you live alone? 20 is above the age of leaving your parent’s territory, right?”

“It varies from person to person. It’s not an abnormal time to be on your own.” He shrugged a little. Somehow, thinking of his old life seemed… Bleeker. “I read a lot. Um, I did a lot of exploring, obviously. I liked finding things I didn’t know about and taking it home to run some tests, see if there’s anything interesting. And, uh, yeah. I lived alone.” 

“Oh! So humans’ life patterns vary? There’s no set time to leave your first home, find a mate?” Roman’s eyes were wide, fascinated. 

Logan nodded slowly. “Yeah… I mean, you can do whatever you want, really. Do you… Have a ‘set time’ to find a mate?” 

He blushed. “Kind of? My species has a limit on how long you have to search. We have a token that we’re to give to our mates after courtship… and if you don’t, we kind of… fade?" 

Logan frowned deeply. “That’s horrible. What if you don’t want a partner?”

 Roman’s head tipped in confusion. "Who wouldn’t want a life partner? The world is lonely sometimes!”

“Well, plenty of people upstairs.” Logan turned to face Roman, wrapping his legs around him. He was slowly warming up, but not quick enough for his liking. “I mean… Well, are we talking about ‘life partners’ or ‘mates?’” 

“Oh! You separate the sexual pairs from the companionship ones?” Roman chuckled. “That makes more sense now!”

He nodded, hesitantly resting his head on Roman’s shoulder. “Yeah. Some people only want one or the other, or neither. I mean, most everyone wants someone to be with for their lives, but… More separated. It’s hard to explain. People can just do whatever they want with their own relationships.”

Roman hummed, sliding off his outer covering layer to hold Logan closer, fingers playing with his hair. “It’s complicated. We do have some help, though? Our tokens can act as a guide, giving a nudge if we’re blind to our feelings!" 

“Hmm… That’s really-”

“VIRGIL? ROMAN? ARE YOU BACK YET?” 

Wincing, Roman groaned and tucked Logan against him. "Son of a sea cow! GO AWAY!”

Janus appeared in the light, looking flustered. “Oh- Logan! You’re out of your cage!” He smiled shakily. “How did you sleep? Oh- Are you cold?” He started to shrug off his jacket. 

Logan snickered softly. He patted Roman’s hair as he hissed at Janus and bared his fangs. 

“I am,” Logan said, “I slept some… Roman is taking care of me, but, thank you?" 

“Oh, I don’t mind!” Janus messily grabbed some gems out of one of the pockets and stuffed them in his pants’ pocket, then held out the jacket. The inside was covered in patches of various fabrics, some of those patches with patches of their own. “I was hoping you’d be more up to talk today? Are you busy?”

Deciding it to be rude to refuse the gift, Logan slid into the jacket carefully. It wasn’t very comfortable— Scratchy, the material stiff. "Well… Um, I don’t think I’m allowed to before presentation day? I don’t want trouble.”

“Janus.” An irritated voice echoed through the tunnel, and Virgil came into view. “Why are you back?” 

“I’m trying to talk to Logan.” Frustration bit into his voice, Janus’ hands curling into fists. “Is that a problem?”

“Yes,” Virgil snapped. “He doesn’t want you. You can bid on him tomorrow like everyone else.”

“Thank you for your interest, Janus… But perhaps some other time?” Logan set his head on Roman’s shoulder, confused by the odd snake creature’s persistence.

One of Janus’ fangs poked into his lip. “Of course. I wouldn’t want to bother you. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Virgil set the tray of food down and came over to Logan with a thick hoodie. They felt over Logan’s shoulders and frowned in confusion, then anger. 

“Take that off,” they snapped. 

Blushing, Logan quickly obeyed. “Sorry… It seemed rude to refuse?”

Virgil tossed the jacket on the floor, one of their talons catching and ripping another hole. “When Sylvia said you couldn’t be rude, that certainly does not apply to him. Don’t trust him. Don’t take anything he gives you.” Virgil wrapped the hoodie around Logan’s shoulders and patted him softly. “Let’s get back in your cage, okay?”

Janus picked up his jacket silently, and left. 

“Oh… why?" 

“He doesn’t deserve to be around humans. You don’t know how things work down here, so you wouldn’t understand, but trust us. He should not be around humans.” Virgil held out his food tray once Logan was in the cage. 

Taking the tray, Logan leaned against the bars, wishing for Roman’s warmth again but sipping the soup happily. "Do you have any other advice?" 

“You’ve been doing fine,” Virgil promised. “Just get some rest for your display day.” 

"Are most humans bought after just one display day?” His forehead pinched at the thought of being uprooted again. 

“No. There are usually four, and you’ll be waiting at least a month. How long exactly depends. Bids are open for at least a month, and depending on the popularity of the subject- You -the date might be extended to try and raise a higher price.”

“O-Oh… and I’ll be kept here, or a different place between displays?” I wish I had my notebooks, my things… I dropped all that outside the hole when I fell in.

“It depends on your behaviour. If you behave, you’ll be kept with us until you’re bought. If you break a rule, though, you’ll immediately be switched guards until you’re either bought or the superiors are convinced you won’t act out again.”

Shaking his head, Logan nibbled his bottom lip. “I meant is there a way to earn perhaps… Warmer space, things to distract myself with? I am used to activity, knowledge-seeking.”

Virgil frowned. “I’m sorry. No, that’ll have to wait. You can ask your owner when you’re bought.” 

His shoulders slumped. “Oh… This will be a very long month then.” I’m to be bored and confused and scared, lovely.

Virgil headed back to Roman. 

Blushing a little, Roman pulled out a small package and handed it to Virgil. “Oh, before I forget, I saw this new tea at the vendors! It’s supposed to be super calming and it smells really good!" 

Virgil pressed the bag to their snout, sniffing it curiously. “Mm! Spicy! Thanks, Ro!” They jumped to their feet. “I’m gonna go make some, do you want any?” 

Preening a little, Roman made a little chirp of happiness. "Sure!”

Logan arched an eyebrow. Is… Is Roman courting Virgil?!

Virgil squeezed his hand and rushed away. Logan arched an eyebrow. “So… You did say gifts were instrumental to the courtship process, did you not?”

Blushing bright red, Roman turned to Logan. “Yeah… Doesn’t have to be expensive, just thought out!”

Logan finished his soup and hugged his knees. “How many gifts have you given them? Do they understand what you’re doing?”

Roman hummed softly as he thought. “There was the material for a new hoodie, some repair on their clothes… The tea, a few meals. I don’t know if they do, but I hope so! They’re so sure that nobody would want them, silly Clawsian!" 

“How long do you have until your, um, deadline?” 

Looking down, Roman tugged at his cloak gently. "Six lunar cycles…" 

Logan’s eyes blew wide. “What-? That’s- Tell them! You have to tell them!” 

Roman blush deepened. "Well, I don’t want to make them become my mate out of a sense of duty, to somehow save me? They’re so honourable…. Kind.”

“That’s-”

“That’s the dumbest thing I ever heard.” 

Two mugs clanked against the stone and Virgil charged forward. They felt up Roman’s arms, his shoulders, neck, finally cupping his face, then tilted his head to kiss him hard. 

Melting into the strong hands, Roman moaned, kissing back with equal passion as he revelled in the caring touches. “Virgil~”

Logan laughed. “I would agree… They seem quite amenable!”

Virgil slid their talons into Roman’s hair. After a moment or two, he pulled away, voice ragged. “If you ever put yourself in danger for me, ever again, I will break up with you so fucking fast, Princey-”

Face bright red, Roman nodded quickly and chased the touch. “O- Okay! I promise to tell you if I’m ever in danger again!" 

Virgil poked his nose. “Good.” 

They grabbed their mugs of tea and settled against Roman’s side. Virgil’s smelled approximately ten times spicier than Roman’s. 

Nuzzling lightly, Roman smiled. "Does that mean we’re together then, you accept me as your mate?!”

“Depends on how good this tea is.” Virgil took in a long sip, eyes fluttering shut. “Yes, I accept.”

Laughing, Roman snuggled in and sipped his own. Virgil finished the mug and rested their head on Roman’s shoulder, falling asleep for a nap while Roman took watch.

The sub of this duo, Virgil, does commissions! Earn yourself 300 words for each coffee and the knowledge that you’re helping me pay the bills and start my own business 

You can read my writing specifically here

#logan sanders #roman sanders #virgil sanders #janus sanders #prinxiety #sympathetic deceit #sympathetic janus #not safe for sanders #ds writes #cave boys #logan #virgil #roman #janus

[a-dinosaur-a-day]

Numida meleagris

By Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0 

Etymology: From Numidia

First Described By: Linnaeus, 1764

Classification: Dinosauromorpha, Dinosauriformes, Dracohors, Dinosauria, Saurischia, Eusaurischia, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoromorpha, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostaylia, Ornithothoraces, Euornithes, Ornithuromorpha, Ornithurae, Neornithes, Neognathae, Galloanserae, Pangalliformes, Galliformes, Phasiani, Numididae

Status: Extant, Least Concern

Time and Place: Numida has been known since about 2.6 million years ago, in the Piacenzian of the Pliocene of the Neogene, through today 

The Helmeted Guineafowl is known from across sub-Saharan Africa 

Physical Description: The Helmeted Guineafowl is an exceptionally distinctive bird, with a very round, large body, and a small but visually appealing head. They range from 53 to 63 centimeters in length, with the females slightly smaller than the males in terms of size, but otherwise identical in color. Their bodies are dark brown to black, with distinctive rows of white spots across all parts of it; they have long grey legs, with large flat feet. They have tiny heads with different colors, depending on the subspecies - the West African population has a white head, with a red wattle under the chin; the Saharan population has a blue head with a red patch on the top of the head; Reichenow’s population has red patches on the top and the bottom but also a blue head; and similar patterns can be seen on the Tufted population. All of these birds have an orange to brown crest on the top of the head, leading to its common name of Helmeted. The young start out brown and yellow striped, with a little brown patch on the top of the head; they begin to turn into a dull dark brown as teenagers, before transitioning into adult plumage. 

By Roland Hunziker, CC BY-SA 2.0 

Diet: The Helmeted Guineafowl is a true omnivore, feeding on a variety of seeds, tubers, bulbs, roots, berries, flowers, insects, snails, ticks, worms, and millipedes. Though they eat more plants than animals, it seems that is mainly due to relative abundance.

Behavior: The Helmeted Guineafowl is an extremely social bird, forming flocks of about 25 birds that spend all their time together - foraging and nesting; sometimes these flocks can even grow up to 100 individuals. They don’t fly often, but rather run about from place to place. They forage on the ground, scratching with their feet to dig up available food. These flocks are extremely complex, with the highest ranking males fighting to organize the flock’s daily activities, and the two highest ranking males will work together to fight off intruders into the habitat. Breeding females usually associated mainly with the high ranking males, especially the highest; leaving lower ranking males to lead the flock during this time when the higher ranking males help with rearing the chicks. 

By Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0 

These birds begin breeding right after it rains or during the rainy season, which varies across its range. They are monogamous for the mating season only; these pairs are not maintained after the year is up. Early on in the season, even, the males will try to mate with multiple females. The nests are scrapes in the ground, made by the females and lined with grass and feathers - usually these scrapes are made in areas with long grass and hidden under brush. Six to twelve eggs are laid on successive days; sometimes more than one female will lay in a single nest, leading to up to fifty eggs. These eggs are usually yellowish to pale brown, with dark specking. The eggs are incubated by the females for about a month; the male then takes over in brooding the chicks the first two weeks after hatching. They can then fly poorly at two weeks; they fully fledge at a month; and they reach adult size after thirty weeks. The females are sexually mature at around that time. The family groups rejoin the larger flock when the chicks are about one to three months of age. Most of the chicks die, especially in cold weather. 

By Snowmanradio, CC BY-SA 2.0 

The Helmeted Guineafowl makes loud, cackling calls with a variety of intensities, including at roosts; they contact each other with more metallic clanking and far-carrying cheer-ing. The females will make nasal “ka-bak” calls that can increase in pitch to call to males. They don’t migrate, but rather, stay within one territory for their whole lives within their flocks. They do move to find sources of drinking water, as well as roosting sites.

Ecosystem: The Helmeted Guineafowl can be found all over the place, from the edges of forests, to the savanna, to thorn scrub, to steppe, to subdesert, to woodlands. They are especially common in the savanna. They are generally limited by the availability of drinking water and suitable nesting sites in trees and bushes. They are found occasionally in human-cultivated areas, even suburbs. They are usually found below 3000 meters high in elevation, and can be found in very large numbers around watering holes. 

By Bernard DuPont, CC BY-SA 2.0 

Other: The Helmeted Guineafowl is not, on the whole, threatened; there may be up to a million of these birds all over Africa. That being said, plenty of populations are more threatened than others, especially due to hunting and egg collecting. At least a few populations are more threatened than others. They have also been introduced to the Americas, specifically to aid in controlling Lyme Disease due to their propensity for feeding on ticks. These birds are often domesticated by people and served for their meat and eggs.

~ By Meig Dickson

Sources under the Cut 

Jobling, J. A. 2010. The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. Christopher Helm Publishing, A&C Black Publishers Ltd, London.

Martínez, I. & Kirwan, G.M. (2019). Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

#Numida #Numida meleagris #Dinosaur #Helmeted Guineafowl #Fowl #Galliform #Guineafowl #Dinosaurs #Bird #Birds #Birblr #Palaeoblr #Factfile #Quaternary #Neogene #Africa #Omnivore #Galloanseran #Terrestrial Tuesday #paleontology #prehistory #prehistoric life #biology #a dinosaur a day #a-dinosaur-a-day #dinosaur of the day #dinosaur-of-the-day #science #nature

[spacegate]

I didn't know millipedes could be any color other than black or a really dark brown

It depends on the species! You’ll find that there’s many many beautiful ones out there!

This here is Apheloria tigana, the Yellow-and-black Flat Millipede!

Trigoniulus macropygus, the Flameleg Millipede!

Anadenobolus monilicornis, the Bumblebee Millipede!

Aulacobolus rubropunctatus, the Vietnamese Rainbow Millipede!

Trigoniulus corallinus, the Scarlet Millipede!

And of course, the species I care for, Chicobolus spinigerus, The Florida Ivory Millipede!

Of course, this is only a small sample of species ;D

Some of these species are a little harder to find, like the Flame legs and the Rainbow Millipede. Flame legs especially since they sell out super fast! The bright colors are a warning to predators, as millipedes usually tend to be toxic to eat and can secrete a toxic irritant to drive away nosy animals! 

#bugs #insects #millipedes #i love them #my fav insect species #Anonymous #bug stuff

[meltingalphabet]

Planet X

Our solar system is a disc.

Remember those plastic 3D diagrams of our solar system from elementary school? The then-9 planets connected by thin metal wires to the large yellow sun in the middle? Well… Yeah. That’s what it looks like… in a way.

Our planet and several others orbit around our sun in this disc shape, but while the disk is mostly flat its edges lift upwards like a paper plate. A team from Caltech claims that this is evidence of a massive planet at the edge of our system, Planet X. The reason we can’t see Planet X is it’s just too far away for our modern telescopes to register. The light from our sun has to travel all the way past Neptune, past the Kuiper Belt, bounce off of Planet X and come all the way back, the light fading exponentially with every stage of its journey.

At least that’s what they hypothesize.

But I know the truth. Planet X doesn’t want us to see them.

The dreams started a year ago. I would fall asleep only to immediately wake up somewhere else. Initially I thought of it as an alien zoo, like the one described in Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five. That first night is still vivid in my mind.

I awoke in a small white room, bare except for a large spherical object. It was as large as a boulder but with a flat top. Its sides were white and smooth just like the walls.

As I stood, I realized I was standing in water. I looked around and saw that I was in a shallow pool lined with small black stones which were cool and smooth to the touch. Before me was a wall made of glass. I stepped to it, pressing my face against it as I looked out towards a lush nightscape. Despite the darkness, the campus around me was illuminated by green and purple vegetation that glowed in the dim light. Large blooms the size of my entire body, ranging in colors from dull pink to bright yellow, loomed over my room like jungle trees, the bioluminescent lights within them shining like tiny stars in the night. Twisted vines extended from the organic roof to the ground, which was made up of a coarse reddish dirt.

I immediately noticed that my room was not unique. Across from me rose a wall of similar squares filled with beings of all shapes and sizes, many of which my mind couldn’t even fathom.

In one room was a perfect triangle of pure white light. I was surprised to find that it wasn’t too bright or hot to look at it, and I stared at the light for several minutes mezmorized. Soon my head began to buzz like a combination headache and brain freeze while holding a running jack hammer. It felt as if there was a needle drilling into my skull through my eye. I ripped my gaze from the creature and the sensation vanished. I avoided looking at that room from that point forward.

The room above the one directly across from me held a being like our werewolf. It was bipedal and shaped like a human man, but covered in a dense coarse fur, a mix of black and silver. Its hands ended in long claws with black webbing between bones shaped like fingers. It’s teeth were large and sharp like a wolves, yet instead of proportional dog ears it’s ears were huge and conical. The beast also lacked any eyes from what I could tell. I assumed it was able to read space from echolocation like a bat, yet I never actually saw it move. It simply sat on the floor of its cage and looked out the window it didn’t seem to see.

Above the werewolf-bat was a giant millipede. It looked and moved exactly like an earth millipede but was thicker than a grown man and longer than a limousine. The room was too small for it to stretch out so it coiled on top of itself, it’s many legs twitching in sync so they moved like an ocean wave.

The most interesting room appeared to be completely empty. Yet, if you looked at it from your peripheral, the air in the room began to wave like heat rising from black tarmac. I felt a warmness when I looked into this room. A subtle bliss, as if you were drunk but it wasn’t anything like being drunk. It was a wave of warmth through your body that made your skin prickle with satisfaction at an unknown, unrecognized touch.

Across from me was an alien much like a human woman. Her body was that of our world: two legs, two arms, two breasts, two eyes, a nose in the center of her face, and hair on the top of her head. From a distance, I would’ve thought she was human but I was close enough to see the subtle differences. The skin of her stomach was interrupted by five small circles which I realized were belly buttons. Or at least, that’s what they looked like. Her eyes were an unnatural yellow that looked more like gold foil than an eye color. The long brown hair that hung over her shoulders swayed as if in a breeze, yet if her room was as identical to mine as it seemed, there wouldn’t be any air to move it. She caught my gaze and smiled, nodding in my direction.

I woke up in a cold sweat. My arms shook with the effort of lifting myself from my bed. It was several hours before I needed to get up for work, but I knew I wouldn’t be getting back to sleep. I took a shower, the hot water drumming into my skin, renewing the circulation of my blood and revitalizing my muscles which felt atrophied.

Work was the usual boring humdrum. I couldn’t focus, the dream from the night before echoing in my mind. Ever since I left the warmth of my shower my skin felt cold and clammy. My boss even commented on my sweater.

“You know it’s June, right George?” She chuckled.

I smiled good naturedly as I struggled to control my shivering.

That night, I dreamt of the zoo again. The woman smiled at me. I waved to her. She looked confused at first before returning the gesture which appeared awkward and unnatural to her. I smiled.

This repeated for months. Every night I would dream of waking in the zoo. It felt so real, so tangible. I could feel the material of the walls, similar to plastic but spongier. With every dream the woman and I would communicate more. First through simple gestures, like waving and nodding, then progressing to more complicated thoughts.

Her hands hovered over her eyes before she brought them down quickly. She was sad.

I touched the glass between us, then pointed at her and then to myself. I wanted to meet her.

She touched the glass, then knocked on it, then shook her head. We would never meet.

I made the gesture for sad and she nodded.

I pointed to myself and then to her, and then to my heart. I hugged myself. Friend.

She hugged herself in return.

The zoo was a strange place, neither bad nor good. I never saw any spectators or even anyone who seemed in charge of the zoo. We were never fed or taken care of. We just were.

The woman and I grew closer with every dream. It was as if she were real. The bond I felt with her was so deep, it couldn’t all be a figment of my imagination.

We couldn’t tell each other names, so I referred to her as Remi. She reminded me of my brother Derek, who had a stuffed lion named Remi. Derek is my favorite person in all the world. At least, he was. He passed away a few years ago. He had been born deaf and mute and I think he would’ve liked Remi.

Every time I woke in the zoo I would go to the window and every time Remi would greet me by signing sad before hugging herself. She was sad, but my friendship helped.

I asked Remi how long she had been there.

A long time, she said. She gestured to the sky and brought her hands from her eyes downward. She missed home.

I gestured to the sky and pointed to myself, closing my eyes as if I were asleep, and pointed back to the sky. I go home in my sleep.

Remi repeated my gestures and then aggressively shook her head.

I brought my hand to my chin, our sign for a question. I didn’t understand.

Remi repeated the gestures, pointed to herself, and then shook her head.

I pointed to her, then to the sky, made the motion for sleep, and then shook my head.

She nodded. She used to go home in her sleep.

I brought my hand to my chin. What happened?

Remi opened her mouth in a scream, her face twisted in anger. I heard nothing, the sound trapped within her walls. Suddenly she turned wild, jumping and stomping, her hair spinning around her head as if in a hurricane. Her body twisted as if boneless, a slug being pulled at either end by her pain. Finally, she stopped and looked at me, her hair calming enough to rest mostly still by her face, now streaked with tears. She pointed to the white sphere in her room and then to the sky. I followed her finger, my heart pounding in my chest. Fear gripped at me tightly. I had never seen Remi look or act like this. She was no longer sad, she was angry.

Turning away from me, she walked to the white sphere in her room and touched the surface. She looked up expectantly. I walked to the matching object in my room and placed my hand on it. Nothing happened. I looked up and she rose her hand in the air to make a circular gesture. Using my fingertip, I made a circle on the flat surface.

I jumped with surprise as the top of the object lit up with a blue light. It was a computer screen. In the middle was a circle as small as a marble that I recognized as earth from a great distance.

Remi pointed to the sky. Looking up through the alien canopy I could see a faint yellow star, closer than any other star yet still barely larger than a pinprick.

She pointed to me. The sun. Our sun.

I jolted upright, my bedroom unfamiliar around me in the twilight.

The next night I opened my eyes to the now familiar ceiling. I went to sit but I was unable to move. Struggling, I realized with immediate panic that I was restrained. I looked as far to the right as possible, straining my eyes to see something, anything. My head was being held in place but I was able to make out the black stones beneath me which glowed like the bioluminescent plants outside. I looked back up and screamed as my vision was filled by a new alien creature hovering inches above my face.

It’s skin looked like a seal’s, soft and wet. The head that hung over me was featureless except for hundreds of glowing black shapes, identical to the stones I laid on. Around it’s head was a thick mane of what looked like a mix of seaweed and fur. One of the appendages around its neck stretched towards me and I futilely tried to squirm from its reach. As it’s flesh touched mine white hot heat sizzled against my skin. It felt like I was being branded by the sun. My screams were no longer able to produce any sound, the only escape for my fear and pain abruptly cut off.

More heat began to crawl from its touch like veins reaching across my skin. As the sensation hit my chest I felt it inch towards my heart, which convulsed erratically under the heat’s weight. My throat begun to burn as it rose inside of me, filling my entire being. It was as if I were being squeezed from the inside out.

And then I woke up, my bed once again soaked. My stomach ached from the pain of my dream and I lightly brushed my fingers over the area. A pained hiss escaped through my clenched teeth and I tentatively lifted my shirt. Beneath my ribs was a large circular burn the puckered and oozed. My breath caught in my chest, a sensation I hadn’t felt since I fell off my bike as a child, my back slamming into the hard concrete. I gasped like a fish as my throat struggled to claim the air my lungs needed. My face was wet with tears.

I called out of work that day. And the next. Every night I woke to that, that thing. Every night it touched me in a different spot and every night I was filled with a different pain. Sometimes it was the burning of the first night. Sometimes it forced its way through me like ice, slow and solid, the freezing pain seizing in my muscles, my heart straining to beat. Once it was sharp and stabbing, as if my flowing blood had turned into hundreds of needles.

Every morning I woke, my body bruised and battered. I was cut, burnt, bloodied, and torn. My veins grew dark beneath my skin like black trails etched into the fabric of my being.

I tried to go to the doctor but they dismissed me as a junkie. The frequent calls out of the office lost me my job. Eviction notices started to pile up inside my door. But none of that matters.

Last night was the first night in weeks I awoke unrestrained. Crying with relief, I stood, my legs shaking beneath me. The first thing I noticed was that, for the first time, it was day. I blinked, my eyes unused to the light as I looked to Remi who stood with her hand against the glass. A gesture I was happy to reciprocate.

The forest around me glowed in the radiance of the light. As my eyes began to adjust, I was overwhelmed by the surprisingly bright and vibrant colors of the forest around me. I beamed at Remi. It was beautiful, but Remi’s face was drawn tight in concern. She pointed to me, then to herself, then to the stone pool behind her. She shook violently, her face clenched as if in pain. They had tortured her too.

I brought my hand to my chin. Why?

She pointed up.

There in the sky a fire burned. Not like a sun, but a much smaller and closer glowing sphere of heat. A stream of fire stretched like a tail from the ball as it flew over us, a caricature of a comet. It wasn’t day, instead the world was illuminated by a massive rocket more than fifty times the size of any I had seen on TV.

I looked back at Remi who pointed to herself, then to me. Sad. She pointed to the screen beside me. I stepped to it and made the circular motion to turn it on. The small marble earth appeared, as it always did. I tilted my head. Something was off. I leaned closer to get a better look. In the foreground of the screen there was nothing but blackness where usually there was a cluster of stars. A part of space was empty where it shouldn’t be.

I looked to Remi. Sad.

I pointed to the screen and brought my hand to my chin. What is it?

Remi pointed to the rocket, then to my screen, and then back to the sky. They were coming.

Stepping back from the screen in shock, I shook my head. No.

Yes. Sad.

No.

Yes. Sleep. Home. Sad.

No.

I brought my hands together and pulled them apart as far as I could. Far. Too far. Earth was too far.

Remi closed her eyes as if in sleep, then opened them, closed them, opened them, faster and faster. Time. She closed her eyes one final time, keeping them closed before slowly opening them and looking at me. Time passing. She pointed to the pool behind her, then to me.

I looked back to the sky. The rocket, a giant ball of fire and metal, hung heavy above the atmosphere. I shook my head and looked back to Remi. Far, I gestured again. Even with their advanced technology it would take Planet X more than a millenia to travel to earth.

She pointed to the pool and then to me and repeated the gesture for time passing. I shook my head and brought my hand to my chin. I don’t understand.

Remi pointed to the ground, the zoo, then to herself, then to the sky, to the screen in my room, and then to the pool. Time passing. Here. Remi. The pool. Time passing. Earth. Here. Remi. Time passing. Earth. The pool. She pointed to the screen. Information. She pointed to me. Information. Time passing. Earth. Me. The pool. Information.

Time passing. It would take millenia for the aliens to reach earth. Time passing. The pool I always woke up in. Time passing. My head spun.

She pointed to herself and her screen, then to the sky. Remi. Remi’s home. Time passing. And then she screamed, her mouth stretching as it had only one time before when I had asked why she was sad. She stopped and looked at me.

I shook my head, stepping backwards. No. No. No no no no.

Remi pointed at me and then brought her hands to her eyes. Sad.

My stomach dropped and my mind buzzed. I looked up at the rocket which appeared to hover above us, then back to the screen which showed the same rocket approaching earth.

I wasn’t being brought across space. I was being brought across time as well.

I looked to Remi who nodded. Why?

Remi pointed to the screen. Information. They wanted to know what we’d be like when they got there.

I fell to my knees. No. It couldn’t be. I looked up. Remi was waving.

Sad. Goodbye.

I woke up.

#nosleep shorthorror scarystories horrorscifi shortscifi planetx

[onenicebugperday]

@bakageta submitted: I saw this friend before I left for work in central SC!

Not to be dramatic but I love this millipede more than I love a good number of my own family members. This absolutely stunning pal looks like a red-sided flat millipede, Sigmoria latior! They are also sometimes black and yellow. :)

#animals #bugs #submission #myriapods #flat backed millipede #flatback millipede #red sided flat millipede

[onenicebugperday]

some nice lads that were chillin in the forest! i think the milipede is a harpaphe haydeniana?

Oooooh fantastic pals! Squishy slug, long flat friend. It certainly could be Harpaphe haydeniana, but there are a few other species that look very similar that I wouldn’t rule out. Black with yellow edges is a super common coloring in flat-backed millipedes. What I can say for sure though is that I love both of these bugs :)

#animals #bugs #submission #myriapods #flat backed millipede #slug #banana slug #gastropods #mollusks

[onenicebugperday]

(Hi im sorry if this was already in the inbox but this is my fourth time trying to submit and i got an error last time and i just rlly want to show off these millipedes 🥺)

Ive been doing a lot of yardwork lately, and ive met some beautiful friends! Most are too scared bc i accidentally disturbed their home, but one millipede let me get a few photos, plus a very pretty woodlouse!

I only got it once so no worries! Wowowow look at this beautiful flat babe. The legs!!! So many. Like at least 7 dang. Can’t ID the millipede without a location because there are a bunch of species that have the same black and yellow pattern but the woodlouse looks like a common shiny woodlouse! They are extremely cute. Thank you for sharing!

#animals #bugs #submission #myriapods #isopod #woodlouse #common shiny woodlouse #millipede #flat backed millipede