The
Iskaulit (translated as "Duchess" in Folkspeak) is a merchant-class vessel built and originally manned by an unknown insectoid race. Roughly ten times the size of a standard Drift Fleet vessel, the
Iskaulit was made to accommodate a high number of passengers, shops and supplies. This was presumably for the purpose of long term travel and trade with other planets.
The Original Crew
The original crew of the
Iskaulit all seemed to belong to the same insectoid species. First contact has not been made with this race, so information regarding their culture is limited. However the existence of the
Iskaulit indicates the species is space-capable and engages in interstellar commerce.
Biologically, this race stands an average of 3 feet tall (.91m) on six legs. They are covered with a fierce-orange exoskeleton that serves as tough natural armor, and notably are capable of emitting a minor disruption field that renders supernatural powers less effective. When three individuals pack themselves together and generate this shield, it can be used to survive in the vacuum of space as a make-shift method of space travel. Their body structure allows them to be capable of jumping much higher than an average human. The primary natural offensive skill seems to be their strong mandibles. Their blood is blue, and they lack a specific heart organ- instead relying on system of internal pumps throughout their bodies to maintain circulation. There is no brain organ, but they have a highly complex neural system.
Culinary wise, due to high levels of toxic heavy metals in their bodies, they are poisonous for humanoids to digest.
Why could eat this face anyway?
The Tragedy of the Iskaulit
In June 2015, the Drift Fleet received a distress signal from the
Iskaulit. Attempts to hail the ship was met with silence, but scanners detected many lifeforms still aboard the vessel. When the ship was boarded to investigate the distress signal, the fleet members were attacked by the insectoid race in a mindless fashion. Any attempts to communicate with the insectoid race failed, and many assumed that these creatures had killed the original crew of the vessel.
However, it was eventually discovered that the very same insectoid creatures attacking the fleet members
were the original crew. The fleet found evidence of a type of fungi in the ship's air filters as well as attached to the original crew's nervous system. This fungi had eroded and hijacked the crew's nervous systems, making them the mindless drones that the fleet had encountered. Any attempts to cure the crew proved futile, as the fungi had eroded their internal organs far to survive any cleansing attempts.
In the end, the Drift Fleet passengers decided to purge the
Iskaulit of the original crew, laying them to rest and clearing the ship of the fungi using fire and the vacuum of space. A memorial was given to the fallen crew, and the ship itself was taken into the Fleet's custody, though there is still discussion as to what the ultimate fate for the
Iskaulit shall be.