Tsiktral (aka The Hive, aka The Clicker) is a highly-intelligent plant-like planet scale entity belonging to the hive species. It is among the oldest living inhabitants of planet Euphrosyne. The ultimate goal of Tsiktral is to reproduce and spread its seeds across the galaxy. That goal is hardcoded in its brain. Every decision that Tsiktral makes is judged by it in relation to that goal.
It is primarily a planetary-scale subterranean network of thick roots. However, it does possess above-ground parts used for photosynthesis, although it derives the vast majority of its energy from underground geothermal heat.
history
quiet era
Tsiktral appeared on Euphrosyne during around the 15th century. Its parent hive (which is unknown) used the anomaly FTL Travel travel to spawn Tsiktral’s original seed right on top of the surface of Euphrosyne. The atmosphere at the time was full of CO2 very hot and uninhabitable so Tsiktral who was still in its larval stage immediately dug underground to reach the aquifer. There Tsiktral used the energy and resources stored in itself to spread its roots throughout the aquifer. Eventually it grew back to the surface and started using photosynthesis to create energy for itself.
Over almost thousand years it was able to grow to cover about 30% of the planet’s surface, rebuild the atmosphere on Euphrosyne completely making it livable and colder and create an ozone layer. It was ready to produce new seeds and even sent out a couple to other planets. However, in year 2315 something happened.
war with HMC
Due to the system that Tsiktral inhabited being part of a star system that was under Protectorate imperial jurisdiction the companies from Protectorate were free to mine it. Hephaestus Mining Corporation (HMC) had bought Euphrosyne and landed a fully autonomous machine colonization fleet led by highly intelligent AI on the planet. Initially Tsiktral decided to ignore them hoping to live peacefully parallel to the new inhabitants. However that soon turned out to be a mistake. HMC was there because of Tsiktral.
The important thing about Tsiktral is that its roots are highly regarded valuable resource across the Milky Way galaxy. They are referred to as neurons. The roots are Tsiktral’s powerful planetary brain but what they also do is connect to and control the anomaly. Once connected to their own neurons they can be used by any intelligent independent biological being to abuse the anomaly as well.
HMC landed on Euphrosyne primarily to mine the neurons. Soon war broke out. HMC robots attempted to mine one of the roots and in response Tsiktral deployed its weapons - insect-like spawns, which are creatures of various functions that the hive can grow in cocoons and then let them roam the planet. However the war turned out to be catastrophic for Tsiktral. HMC was well prepared. The Protectorate had dealt with hives on many other planets and they knew exactly what weapons to use to annihilate it. Due to being made out of organic matter and living on a relatively dry planet the hive was vulnerable to fire and chemicals and the spawns could be dealt with using simply bullets and explosives.
aftermath
Over just few years HMC robots had burned down every single surface growth of Tsiktral creating large gray deserts of ashes and dead coal hive trunks. Now HMC was able to start its big operation on the planet - extraction of neurons. But even though it may seem like it - the Tsiktral was not dead yet. It was just in hiding - underground. Its roots were disconnected by HMC explosives and it was starving from lack of sunlight but still alive and living on aquifer water and whatever resources were remaining underground. Waiting for the right time to strike.
Many years passed and meanwhile HMC started to establish their first permanent human settlement, RS-0, on the planet. They also established multiple large landfill type waste sectors on the planet. Tsiktral was able to establish some small surface outposts within the waste sectors without HMC detecting however living in waste sectors provided its own difficulty as they were inhabited by alien creatures from other planets originating from the waste and also human undesirables and exiles from RS-1. Initially Tsiktral established alliances with some of the humans in the Sludge which was the largest waste sector but eventually conflicts arose and created a secret war isolated within the waste sector between Tsiktral and the human exiles. The war didn’t go far either way and was more of a standoff as neither side had desire to annihilate itself or attract attention from the warden machines.
the RS-0 incident
Unbeknownst to HMC, they had built their new settlement directly on top of a major Tsiktral neuron vein. In the year 2393, this resulted in a catastrophic host disease outbreak that decimated the sector. Tsiktral was able to utilize a new weapon: the mosquito. Since the planet was inhabited by many biological creatures, it could now use these insect-like spawns to infect humans, animals, and other creatures on the planet and turn them into its hosts - mindless subservient slaves of the hive. Hosts sometimes simply get used as food by hive spawns, other times they experience horrifying mutations and get turned into soldiers or workers for the hive. For more details, see the main RS-0 article.
bombing
In The Great War between Protectorate and Vanguard empires in 2480 the planet was severely bombed by Vanguard ships using nuclear bombs. That destroyed 95% of the industry, ruined the atmosphere and created massive apocalypse level crisis all over the planet. Euphrosyne will never be the same now. During this period, Tsiktral actually partially caused the massive rupture that created the deadly fugue and debris orbit that surrounds the planet. It wanted to isolate and then eventually remove the hostile inhabitants to finally live in peace.
post bombing
As the toxic atmosphere was no issue for Tsiktral and its spawns it was now its time to strike. Tsiktral was able to modify its spawns to adjust to the planet and started slowly regrowing itself in multiple areas of the planet with eventual reproduction in mind.
However over the years Tsiktral faced many problems with its expansion plan. In WS-4 (Sludge) it was slowed down by remaining exiles and new emerging Sludge Clans. In the deserts its spawns were often too slow to catch up with the motorized machines or Nomads before getting gunned down. It was however able to take over caves and some of the mines that got previously used to mine its roots. But in the mines there were other threats - both remaining HMC machines and the isolated remnants of the Vanguard forces.
communication
Tsiktral possesses the most advanced and robust communication infrastructure on the entire planet. Rather than relying on easily severable cables or static-filled radios like humans, the hive uses its massive, subterranean neural root network to transfer unfathomable amounts of data across the continent at lightning speed.
now
By now at the turn of 27th century Tsiktral still hasn’t established enough to be able to create seeds. Furthermore, Tsiktral actually cannot physically launch its seeds off the planet for the exact same reason nobody else can leave the planet: the massive orbital debris and fugue field is stopping that operation entirely.
The hive is at war with almost all human and machine factions on Euphrosyne. It does have some small human allies though. Tsiktral judges every human separately. It is able to store and remember detailed information down to the appearance, DNA, voice and scent about every single human it’s spawns encounter in its massive memory and some individual humans who are loyal and have done good towards it Tsiktral rewards but it never lets them step foot in what it considers hive lands. The largest human ally of Tsiktral is the Bijou Clan who worship Tsiktral like it’s their god. Tsiktral often sends its spawns to aid them in wars and Bijou clan will often send volunteers and sometimes captives who become infected with host disease in a ritualized ceremony as a tribute back.
spawns
Tsiktral produces a wide variety of biological, insect-like weapons and workers known simply as spawns.
These creatures are grown in cocoons on the hive’s stems. Once deployed, they disconnect from the hive mind and execute pre-planned directives. While Tsiktral relies on them for defense, expansion, and communication, the spawns themselves cannot operate the anomaly. In combat, spawns are exceptionally fast but some like lions lack endurance. Because of this limitation, Tsiktral thrives in dense environments like the jungles of the Sludge, where spawns can easily sneak up and execute lethal ambushes before their targets can react.
For a detailed breakdown of their biology, hierarchy, and various castes, see the main spawns article.
fugue gift
Sometimes but extremely rarely Tsiktral will reward its most loyal biological intelligent followers by granting them what is known as fugue gift. Tsiktral will create a special spawn - fugue spider with a large stinger. The spawn will pierce the body of the target with its stinger and as a result the target becomes infected with the fugue gift. The spawn immediately dies - its only function fulfilled. Then over a few days to a few weeks the victim will experience extreme pain and suffering often dying or developing odd mutations. If they manage to survive after this period is over then neuron-like growths will appear under the target’s skin connected to its brain which will allow them to wield and exploit anomaly powers. People like that are known as the Gifted and most of them are found within Bijou Clan.
foreign politics
Tsiktral has neutral to hostile relationships with most factions except for Bijou Clan who worship it. The biggest enemies of Tsiktral are:
- HMC
- New Gorod - constantly fighting the spawns throughout the Sludge for territory control
- Federation - locked in a constant war against Tsiktral in the Sludge, utilizing scanners, drone patrols, outposts, and flamethrowers to defend their trade routes against spawn ambushes
- Blue Palm - hostile to Tsiktral’s ally Bijou clan
- Vanguard Exclave - keeps extensively mining the neuron roots for profit
- Commonwealth of Accra - also mines the roots constantly and sells them
- Fugue Cult - buys, scavenges and uses the neurons
relevant locations
- The Old Core - a massive blown out and burnt out hole in the ground where Tsiktral’s old hive core used to be. Also possibly the location where Tsiktral’s larva first landed on Euphrosyne in 15th century. HMC blew it up during the war with Tsiktral and now just a hole remains. It’s unclear what’s in there now. Note that Tsiktral’s brain is heavily decentralized; the core that was destroyed was essentially just a massive cluster of neurons and part of its surface stem and growth, not a singular central brain.
- Tsiktral Core - the new central hub and largest cluster of Tsiktral’s decentralized brain. Exact location is unknown but its probably deep underground somewhere in the aquifer.
- The Sludge - One of the biggest surface growths of Tsiktral is located here
other
- The word “Tsiktral” originated from how the entity refers to itself when speaking English through its diplomats.
- Tsiktral can itself manipulate the anomaly and use it for its own good, but its spawns cannot.
- Despite its cold and calculating nature and lack of empathy, Tsiktral can feel some kind of emotions. For example, Tsiktral loves modifying and designing its own spawns. However, it irrationally despises robot and human technology and will usually destroy it if it has the chance instead of using it for its own good. This is partially due to the nature of the hive species, and partially due to deep trauma from being burnt to a crisp by HMC flamethrowers. It will, however, tolerate its human allies using such technology.
- Tsiktral itself cannot speak, as it simply doesn’t have an organ to do so. It can only communicate with its own spawns while they are still in their cocoons, or via the connector tissue when the connector organs touch between Tsiktral’s stem and the spawn.
- Tsiktral may reward its followers and allies with expensive mined minerals from underground, such as diamonds. Or they may use these minerals as payment to purchase captives or offer bribes.
- Many humans call Tsiktral “the Clicker” or “the Great Clicker” in casual conversation or as an insult.