OoC Notice: The following thread is Eria's research of the Tentacultist Parasite. This was made to give a general understanding of how they worked for people wanting to join as well as anyone who wish to interact with them. It's been organized into sections so it will be easier to pull up reference. The posts will be edited often as the RP delves deeper. Thank you. All credit goes to Lyro for answering my questions. Feel free to ask questions. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- First Observations Positioning herself in front of a table with various pieces of lab equipment, Eria reached over to a brightly lit console behind her, pressing the button labeled "Record." "After my ever so generous guest left behind these samples, I will now begin extraction of several said samples and place them in isolated 3x2 containers, with the excess going into another." Lifting a set of straightened tongs from her mat of tools, she reached into a large glass beaker filled with several insect-like parasites squirming in an almost tar colored ooze. She lifted the held parasite up for closer inspection before isolating it. "The parasite seems to resemble that of an earwig, approximately 6 cm in length. Light brown- one, two, three... a pair of 6 legs. Protruding fangs, exterior is sturdy yet surprisingly flexible. No eyes are visible." She placed the specimen in its container and repeated the process three more times. She then proceeded to empty the rest of the beaker into a fifth container, taking extra caution not to get any of the ooze on her new gloves. A minute of silence passes by as Eria stands and observes how the parasites react. Placing her arms on the table to support her weight, she leans in toward one of the containers. "Subjects one through four show signs of confusion, simply running directly into the..." her voice trails off as she switches her gaze toward the mass of parasites in the fifth container. She reached over and moved the box housing the squirming ball of goop to the other side of the table, watching as the lone parasites shift their movement accordingly. "Correction; they seem to be attempting to reunite with the larger mass, showing apparent signs of the hive-mind mentioned by my guest. I will now move on to the experimenting phase." Experiment 001: Temperature Eria places plastic pads under two of the isolated parasites, with cords running down the table. "First, I will be increasing the temperature using specialized heating pads. Both will be increased in sets of five degrees Fahrenheit until noticeable change is observed. I will now begin." Using a small black remote, she began progressively increasing the heat, pausing for brief moments after each new setting. "75... No change. 80... No change. 85... No change. 90... No change.. 95... No change. 100... Slightly increased movement. 105... Slightly increased movement. 110... Their movement is quite frantic. Signs of discomfort are visible." She lowered the the temperature back to 70 and placed the remote down. "Forty-three Celsius." Turning her attention to the other two parasites, she picked them up and placed them within glass-doored refrigerators. "I will now repeat the process with cold. 65... No change. 60... No change. 55... No change. 50... Movement slowing. 45... Movement slowing." This continued for several more settings before anything changed drastically in behavior. "-10... Subjects have come to a complete stop. They seem to have entered state of hibernation. Negative Twenty-three Celsius." Experiment 002: Acid "I will be checking the parasite's resilience to acids to get an overall estimate of their endurance to chemicals. I'll be using hydrofluoric since that's all I seem to have on hand at the moment..." Taking a pipet and dipping it into an Erlenmeyer flask, Eria extracted the acid and gently dripped it onto the first parasite. Almost immediately the acid was dissolved, leaving no sign of injuring the parasite. "The gooey substance that covers the parasites seems to have counteracted the acid, leaving no effect... I'll have to examine this at a later date when I have more lab supplies. I will now test the strength of the saliv- er, substance by continuing to expose the parasite to hydrofluoric acid." She repeated the process at least a dozen times before the parasite finally showed signs of panic, attempting to distance itself from the pipet over unifying with its fellow parasites. After several minutes of not being doused with acid, the parasite continued on with its usual behavior. "It seems immediate danger temporarily breaks the hive-mind, taking priority in its own safety over other parasites. I will now move onto my final test for now." Experiment 003: Frequency "Moving onto the final phase, I will be testing the parasite's hearing range. Since whether or not they are capable of hearing in the first place is in question, I will increase the frequency until noticeable changes occur." Turning around and plugging several connectors into audio jacks, Eria grabbed her remote once more. "Right. Starting from 10 kHz... No change. 20 kHz... No change." The testing continued without abnormalities until she approached the range of 230 kHz. "No ch- wait. The parasite's movement seems to be getting more restricted. 240 kHz... The parasites have come to a sudden halt. 250 kHz..." As soon as she flipped the switch, the parasites broke out into a frenzy, scattering away from each other. After a few seconds they curled up, staying paralyzed throughout the entire duration. Eria herself felt an unnerving feeling in her head, most likely the remnants of the initial infection reacting. She shut off the sound and after a moment of extreme confusion, the parasites very slowly went back to their former stations and Eria's uneasy sensation dissipated. "Well this will be a problem..."
