The Hive Collective

## Hive Collective

**The Hive Collective** is a union of the various Xarai Hives within the Large Magellanic Cloud and the Small Magellanic Cloud, a region of interstellar gas and dust. The Hive Collective is a relatively young interstellar species, but they are most certainly a major player. Their civilization is based on a caste system, with different Xarai subspecies and slaves having different ranks. The Xarai of the Collective are one of the most industrious races known to the galaxy, due to the vast population of the Collective and their utter devotion to their Hive.

## Government and Castes

The Hive Collective is not a centralized goverment in a true sense. They are really more of a collective of various Hives, which are vast colonies of Xarai that can span entire planets. They are ruled by the various Hive Archons, the rulers of the invidiual hives, who communicate and organize their various warfleets and massive projects. The invididual Hives have total autonomy, but there are never civil wars or usually any disagreement between the Hive Archons. The Hive Archons are connected to something they simply refer as "The Collective", which is some form of shared Hive Mind, which functions as the 'decision maker' in affairs of the Hive. The Archons function as the sole authorities of the Hive, directing all operations and constructions. This is both a strength and a weakness of the Hive, as they are completely united and steered by the iron will of the Archon, but removing that Archon will cause the entire Hive to fall into purposeless anarchy. Even the great Xarai War Swarms will fall into dissaray should the Swarm Leader and his command ship fall in battle.

### Xarai Castes

#### Drones

Xarai Drones are the common caste in a Hive, forming most of the population of a Hive. They live, work, and die for their Hives, living out their lives in endless toil for the often exorbitant demands and quotas of the Hive Archons. However, the Drones are usualy content to remain within their caste, and develop little ambition for much else. They are not the most intelligent of castes, and their knowledge is limited to what they need to construct the vast fleets and Hives. The Drones have insect-like wings for flying throughout the Hive quickly, and are slightly smaller then an average human.

#### Warriors

Xarai Warriors are the fighters of the Hive, defending them from any invaders or threats. Instead of mouths like the Servitors, the Warriors possess large mandibles with serrated edges harder then steel, that can easily crush almost all armor. the average Xarai Warrior is slightly taller then the average human. They are not usually a danger alone, but Xarai warriors almost always converge upon threats in the thousands. They are also able to spray a corrosive acid from specialized glands in their mouth that can chew through armor and even the hull of a spaceship. Xarai Warriors posess a tough exoskeleton of what appears to be some form of metal, that enables them to survive in the vacuum of space, and fly in vast spacebourne fleets known simply as "War Swarms".

#### Harvesters

Xarai Harvesters collect resources for the Hive, and are one of the more common castes in a Hive. Harvester swarms can often overrun whole planets, stripping it bare of resources in a matter of days. Harvesters have more developed wings then Drones or Warriors, enabling them to fly very quickly throughout a planet. They can also, like all Xarai, survive in space for extended periods of time, enabling them to harvest the resources of asteroids and moons for the Hive. The resources Harvesters collect are used in the massive engineering projects, factories, and foundries of the Hive Collective

#### Servitors

Servitors are one of the most biolgically unique members of a Hive, leading some biologists to speculate that the Xarai and the Servitors are not simply highly specialized members of a species, but different species living in symbiosis. The Servitors appear more like beatles and roaches, and have a very important part to play in the Hive. The Servitors keep the Hives clean, collect eggs, and preform other menial tasks in the Hives.

#### Broodmothers

Xarai Broodmothers are the breeders of the Xarai Hives, producing the thousands of Servitors and Warriors needed for the function of a Hive. The Broodmothers lay eggs, which are laid in giant brood-caverns. The Broodmothers appear like giant worm-like creatures, which lay millions of eggs in their lifetime. Approximately every three Terran Months, a new brood of Xarai is born. Although the vast majority of eggs a Xarai lays will become Warriors, Drones, or Servitors, some will become Archons or other Broodmothers. These eggs are selected by Servitors and hatched separately from the rest.

Archons

Xarai Archons are the highest class of the Hive, functioning as the administrators and the bureaucracy of the Hive. It is their duty to make sure quotas are met, and that productivity is at it's highest. Archons appear more humanoid then Warriors or Servitors, and have little in the form of weaponry, but are the 'thinkers' of the Hive, and all have a connection to the Hive mind known as "The Collective", which allows for instantanous communications and organization. What one Archon halfway across the galaxy knows, all others know as well. The Archons plan out the building projects, as they have an almost intuitive knowledge of architecture.

## Society

The Society of the Hives is built on manufacture and industry. The various Hives will often 'lend out' their services to various governments and corporations such as the Directorate or the Rin, to manufacture war droids, as well as spaceships and many other things. The Hive always needs to be continually busy and expanding, or else the entire fabric of Xarai society will fall apart. The Warrior Caste is violent and barbaric, and take relish and pleasure in stripping an entire world of it's sentient population and slaying all sapients.

## Astrography

The main Hives are within the Large Magellanic Cloud and the Small Magellanic Cloud, a region of interstellar gas and dust. The many resources within these Clouds are harvested by the Hive Collective. The Large and Small Magellanic Clouds are a region of vigorous star activity and creation, with many hundreds of nebulae and supernovae, allowing rare and valuable resources to be used by the Hives. The Hive Collective also has a small foothold in a few other dwarf galaxies as well. The Large and Small Magellanic Clouds are connected to the Milky Way by the Magellanic Stream, a vital corridor of interstellar trade and activity that the Hives control.