Biology

Omdua are modular or colonial organisms. Their bodies are not one animal, but are instead made up of “zooids” – a series of multicellular organisms which act seamlessly as an individual Omdua’s organs and limbs, with one nervous system and one mind shared between them.

Omdua development is radically different to that of singular species. Their juveniles are unaggregated zooid colonies, visible to the naked eye as a cloud of gel – the source of diplomatic misunderstandings in ages past, when outsiders have been invited to meet Omdua young only to be presented with what appears to be a microbial culture (in, admittedly, a well-appointed and decorated) container or “spawn-cradle”. Adult Omdua are formed when these proto-colonies agglomerate, a process which is as long and intensive as it is shrouded in mystery. The Omdua use assistive technology to compensate for the absence of spawning reefs on planets other than their homeworld, where most Omdua emerge “wild-formed” and ready to join adult society.

When Omdua die (be it from age, illness, or injury), they literally go to pieces as their component zooids disaggregate. While most of the organisms die, zooids responsible for feeding or digestion may survive and go on to form new juvenile colonies – just like the specialised reproductive zooids formed and released by Omdua parents during their lifespans. This means an Omdua may consist of parts of their ancestors, reintegrated into a new spawning colony – and this, in turn, makes determining their exact lifespans very difficult.

Omdua are generally coy on the matter of death, preferring to present disaggregation as a change of state analogous to a metamorphosis. Each newly spawned Omdua presents as a new individual, but may retain memories or instincts formed from ancestral zooids – research is ongoing as to how much information may be retained. An Omdua typically disaggregates naturally from old age after 300 years, numbering them among the longest-lived of all Alliance species.

Omdua bodies are capable of advanced changes and reconfigurations throughout their lives, driven by their needs and the response of their zooids to their environment. On their homeworld alone, they are capable of flight in the buoyant vapour seas in which they evolved; they are landlocked on any planet with a thinner atmosphere, (which is most planets).

The Omdua are noted for their ability – and tendency – to approximate or mimic the shapes of other creatures that they live with, which means they take on a bipedal form among species with similar proportions. All Omdua possess a “crest” in all forms, which works as a multiple-purpose “core” for all vital functions (plus some ornamental ones). Crests vary in length from short sculptural grooves to elongated tendrils, and may be composed of a single zooid or several.

There are two notable Omdua sub-species, both distinguished by unique properties of their crests or zooids.

• Onaay Omdua possess crests that extend to or cover the face, or the entirety of the head when they take bipedal form. This gives them a distinctly non-human appearance, and is theorised to be a vestigial throwback to a rigid shell or “headplate” originally evolved for defensive and/or display purposes.
• Luum Omdua have specialised light-emitting zooids called “luum” (loo-oom) as part of their bodies, giving off all kinds of light. The function of this varies, but culturally many Omdua enjoy using this as self expression or for communication.