Crystal Cerite

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Crystal Cerite is a naturally occurring, semi-biological structure resembling a collection of polyhedral crystals in a wide array of bright colours. It is particularly remarkable for its ability to grow and develop under certain conditions much like a plant, expanding from a “seed” state to form lawns and even jungles of crystal.

Centurion 7 identified Crystal Cerite forming in the cracks and folds of cooling lava fields on the planet Harthoe, in the Serpentis Spiral Arm. The Centurion initially speculated that the crystals were a product of the heat and pressure of volcanic activity, but further analysis revealed that the Cerite was actually rapidly hardening excrement produced by swarms of near-microscopic insects, which fed on certain minerals found in lava flows.

Observations by both the Centurion and the Aglostarros University Museum’s zoologists strongly suggest that these insects, known as Ceritians, instinctively mould the Cerite deposits into geometric shapes to emulate the appearance of the volcanic rock on which they feed. This may serve as a form of camouflage against predators such as the Magmic Batfinch, though it is difficult to gauge how effective the disguise is.

At the time of Project Centennial, the cause of the wide diversity in Crystal Cerite’s vivid colouration has yet to be accounted for, with some theories highlighting the influence of light from Harthoe’s local star, and others suggesting that the species of Ceritian or its diet may have an effect. This imprecise understanding means that some colours of Cerite, such as violet and magenta, are far more valuable to jewellers and collectors than others.

Specialised miners harvest Crystal Cerite by patrolling the surface of Harthoe. Crystal mining is known to be dangerous due to Harthoe’s harsh environment, and Cerite typically fetches a high price on the galactic markets as a result. Miners Allard and Zell were responsible for discovering the Compass Rose Cerite, a particularly large, intricate and colourful specimen of Cerite formed where a rocky outcropping had split a lava flow, allowing Ceritians the perfect environment in which to create a large-scale Cerite deposit.

After the Compass Rose Cerite was sold at auction for over ⍺200 million, representatives of the buyer approached Curator Endelle Stroth of the Aglostarros University Museum, asking her to remove all references to Crystal Cerite or the Compass Rose from the archives of Project Centennial. The Curator rejected this demand, and reassured patrons that the Museum’s small collection of Crystal Cerite specimens would remain on display.

Though the Compass Rose Cerite was widely considered to be the most remarkable specimen of Crystal Cerite ever recovered, the Compass Rose’s buyer, Baroness Dorn Oramande, feared that another, even more beautiful formation might soon be found, rendering the Compass Rose worthless in her eyes. This motivated her to use the Montreau Conservatory as proxy once again to request that the Aglostarros University Museum expunge all references to Crystal Cerite from its Project Centennial exhibition, a request which the Museum denied.

When the ViCorp orbital rig *Lodestone*, the headquarters of the company’s Crystal Cerite mining operation, activated its AIM Drive and impacted the surface of Harthoe at faster-than-light speed, the planet itself was destroyed, eliminating the only known source of Crystal Cerite in the galaxy. As the mineral could not be replicated synthetically, the newfound scarcity dramatically drove up the value of Cerite already in circulation. Rumours abounded that the disaster was engineered by jealous collectors of antiquities such as Baroness Oramande, who sought to ensure the exclusivity of their specimens.