Changelings

Changelings are one of the most danguras creatures in the milky way.

## The infection

(this discribes the strain squirmers that infects humans) It starts when the squirmer finds a human. It waits an opening, so it can succesfully bite into the flesh. It ataches itself to the back, nape or back of the head. This is when it's strange abilaties kick in. The worm ingests some body cells, copying there dna and using it to negate organ regection. The parasite releases sertain hormones, tricking the body into fusing with it, conecting the blood and nervous system. The mind is also altered by the squirmer. The host instinctifly protects the worm and tries to cover it at all times. Sometimes the hormones cause dramatic metal changes, developing adhd, aspd or agresion problems. Attached to the anus, multible glands grow, which produce young squirmers. These larva are sent into the world, together with the other waste.

## changeling biology

The squirmer is still altering the genome, by releasing it's own dna-altering cells into the bone merrow, to alter the stemcells directly. from that moment, the host is a changeling (homo chaoticus). Squirmers have had millions of years to perfect the alteration of native animals, but humans have only been in the mix for 11 years. The gene editing is far from perfect. Changelings often have genetic deseases like werewolf syndrome, treeman syndrome or albinism. The changelings are selectivly breeding squirmers to lessen this effect.

But this is a small price to pay. Over time the changeling will develop helpfull mutations, based on dorment genes, like tailes, nightvision or digitigrade legs. over time the changeling lookes less and less human. The brain is never effected though. It is unknown why this is, but inteligence itself is never changed.

But the changelings really get there name from a different abillity. shapeshifting on the go. The human and squirmer brain are connected, letting them make choices together. This is seen as biological tool growing from the body. every thing from lockpicks to claws is at the changelings fingertips. The changes aren't instantaneous though. Hair growth takes 2 hours, Bone groth takes weeks and big changes to the morphology can take moths. But It is still an amazing and dangerous abillity. But it's not even the the top of there power.

Changelings have a small gland at the back of there throught. These organs take intact dna samples of the changelings most reasant meal. These samples are transported via the bloodstream to the squirmer, the center for genetic modification. THis is the reason for the battle for new tokyo zoo. the changelings might have been chased off, but only after they got what they where looking for. from that day on, there have been sittings changelings with pollarbear fur, shark teeth and sand-devil camouflage.

## Changeling culture

The following is a discription of a changeling nest which was selected for observation and studie. This paints a better picture then a discription. The nest was set up in an abandoned wine distillery in downtown New Tokyo, Mars. The building was dividend into a mess hall, bedroom, storage unit, chapel and Infirmary, in the residents own words.

The mess hall was originally a bar with multiple café style tables and chairs, part of the original distillery. There where not enough chaired for all the inhabitants, but this was clearly not a problem. The chairs where for the early bird that could sit on them, the latecomers and heavyweights sitting on the bar, floor or tables. The changelings used this room for eating 3 meals a day, of as much variety as possible, consisting of stolen fast food, gathered vegetation and pests, all eaten raw. Every member was given an fair share of food, based on mass, energy usage and growth rate.

The bedroom was the intire 1e floor, all the walls being knocked out. The floor was covered in soft material like pillows, sleeping bags and straw. The changelings slept in a chaotic mess, lying on top of another, wrapped around each other and not having any privacy. They spent most of there free time in this room, having interesting hobby's like trying to deepthroute squirmers, writing rape porn or torturing and dismembering racoons. Sex is not private in any way, often being watched by the hole colony.

In the storage unit the squirmers are kept in large vats. These vats doubled as toilets, the fecal mater being used as food. A multitude of tools where tossed all over the floor.

The infirmity was not for medical treatment, as the name implied. This room was used for infection, humans being strapped to the beds with belts, as the squirmer is attached. The people where kept in the infirmity until the transformation is finished.

The chapel took up the attic, lit by a combination of candles, flashlights and glow sticks. On one side, there where pulldown stairs and on the outer, a makeshift altar, a small coffee table with a radio on it, all painted white. Behind it was a large wall painting of a feminine changeling with short, black hair and slowly devolving into messy swirls. This is believed to be the Matron, a goddess like figure, often invoked by changelings. Anyone can come up where, but the oracle, a small changeling with bioluminescence, used the radio to converse with someone, presumably reserving instructions and relaying information.