Chapter Text
REFERENCES
Note about impostors: As revealed in the two part finale, Prelude, the true name for the impostor species is Phiri (fee-ree). Their home planet is known as Chenis (cheh-niss).
Their eyes are a bit bigger than those of humans, and the pupils work in a similar way to a cat’s. They don’t have noticeable noses, but there’s a bump in their face where the nose would be if viewed from the side. Generally, they look similar to humans in stature, with varying heights, hair, ears (but they’re small and pointy), and so on. They just have tentacles and a few features different enough to make them more alien, and it varies by the individual.
Some have webbed fingers/toes, some have short vestigial tails, some have small horns. Some are bioluminescent, too. (Most of these particular individuals have splashes of glow-in-the-dark freckles on various parts of their bodies, but shoulders and face are most common.) There’s also the giant mouths on their torsos, but we all know about those. And, of course, they’re shapeshifters, so they can hide any of this at will.
Impostors are a very colorful species. Their codenames (ex: Purple, Lime, etc) are based on their appearances in their true forms. For example, a codename Blue impostor would have blue eyes, blue hair, and a blue tint to their skin. Shades tend to vary, even on a particular person (ex: dark blue hair and light blue eyes). Tentacle color matches hair color. Hair tends to shine a little in the right light, like precious gemstones.
Newborn impostors are generally gray in coloration, and their "true colors," so to speak, show up as they age. They begin to show signs of their adult colors as young as 2 years, but they typically start around 5 years. This tends to start in their eyes before spreading out. By the time they reach 10 years, their adult colors have taken over. Interestingly enough, impostors who show their colors early are more likely to reach their Prime early.
"Prime" is essentially second puberty, and the time at which impostors begin to seek bond-mates. This typically occurs around 24-25 years of age, but some may reach this as early as 20. Bond-mates are usually chosen for compatible personalities, and some individuals may have more than one. This is actually fairly common and widely accepted. Bond-mates may be chosen from any sentient species, and impostors are capable of breeding with non-impostor species due to their shapeshifting abilities.
Impostors are a hermaphroditic ovoviviparous species, meaning they have both "male" and "female" reproductive organs, and that they carry fertilized eggs* within their bodies until the eggs are ready to hatch. Shortly before laying the eggs, the impostor will begin nesting. Once the eggs are out, they typically hatch within 24-48 hours. There are usually 2-4 eggs in a standard clutch, and 1-2 in an atypical one.
*Oddly enough, if an impostor breeds with a species that gives live birth, and the impostor is the one carrying the infant, it will still be born via egg. These pairings count as atypical, and therefore only 1-2 "live" eggs will come out. The "live" egg is more fragile than a typical impostor egg, lacking a gelatinous shell. What counts as the "shell" is an extremely thin membrane that exists solely so the egg doesn't go splat upon exiting. The membrane quickly begins to dissolve when exposed to air. "Live" eggs typically hatch within one hour of leaving the parent.
All in all, adult impostors are colorful and pretty and if they existed on Earth, despite their sentience, they would probably be hunted for sport so certain humans could have unique trophies.
Anyway, on to the actual characters!
IMPOSTORS
+Purple: Andar (ahn-darr)
- Name comes from bolinus brandaris, the purple dye murex, a type of sea snail that secretes a substance used as purple dye
-Currently aromantic and asexual, though when they hit their prime, they’ll be demiromantic and demisexual
-As suggested in chapter 7, their prime is coming a bit early.
-Their name can also be pronounced as ann-darr, if you use those midwestern A’s (like my Michigan ass does).
-5’3”
-22 years old
-Non-binary (they)
-Medical assistant
-"Married"/Bonded to Cyan/Jude
+Lime: Ustyl (oo-steel)
-His name comes from papustyla pulcherrima, the emerald green tree snail
-Currently aromantic and asexual, though when he hits his prime, he’ll be panromantic and bisexual
-Has bioluminescent freckles
-6’2”
-18 years old
-Male
-Engineer
+Pink: Onat (oh-naht)
-Name comes from hymenopus coronatus, the orchid mantis
-Panromantic and demisexual
-5’6”
-25 years old
-Female
-Comms, computers
-Was married/bonded to Brown/Oron
-Kind of dating Black/Amelia and Red/Ash
HUMANS
+White: Johanna
-Heteroromantic and heterosexual
-Widowed
-5’5”
-48 years old
-Female
-Navigation, therapist
+Blue: Adam
-Biromantic and bisexual
-5’11”
-36 years old
-Male
-Captain
+Green: Ludvik
-Biromantic and asexual
-6’4”
-39 years old
-Male
-Medic
+Yellow: Erin
-Panromantic and heterosexual
-Physically pretty strong
-4’6”
-25 years old
-Female
-Engineer
-Currently dating Orange/Matthew
-Childhood best friends with Red/Ash
+Orange: Matthew (Matt/Mattie)
-Biromantic and bisexual
-Lanky
-5’9”
-29 years old
-Male
-Weapons
-Currently dating Yellow/Erin
+Black: Amelia
-Homoromantic and homosexual
-5’6”
-24 years old
-Female
-Weapons
-Kind of dating Red/Ash and Pink/Onat
+Red: Ash
-Demiromantic and heterosexual (likes women)
-5’4”
-25 years old
-Non-binary (they)
-Security
-Childhood best friends with Yellow/Erin
-Kind of dating Black/Amelia and Pink/Onat
+Cyan: Jude
-Demiromantic and asexual (as demi/ace myself, I had to include this somewhere.)
-5’7”
-23 years old
-Non-binary (they)
-Comms
-"Married"/Bonded to Purple/Andar
+Leaf: Cass
-Aromantic and pansexual
-5'9"
-27 years old
-Non-binary (they)
-Security
-Green suit
+Violet: Melody
-Aromantic and asexual
-5'3"
-20 years old
-Female
-Navigation
-Purple suit
+Mint: Skylar
-Biromantic and bisexual (but prefers cuddling over sex or romance)
-6'00"
-24 years old
-Male
-Engineer, smuggler
-Cyan suit
BONUS
+Brown: Oron (oh-rohn)
-Name comes from hymenopus coronatus, the orchid mantis, males of which are brown (thought it would match Pink’s name nicely)
-Demiromantic and demisexual
-5’8”
-26 years old
-Non-binary (they)
-Shields
-Dead
-Was married/bonded to Pink/Onat
+Lime (human): Julia
-Panromantic and pansexual
-5’4”
-21 years old
-Female
-Medic
-Dead
+Helena Plumm
-Partner preferences unknown
-5'6"/5'9" with heels
-34 years old
-Female
-General, MIRA higher-up
-All around badass, don't cross her