VORTEX LIFE FORM

Planet of Origin: Vortex, the third planet orbiting the star Cassandra in the head of the constellation Pegasus.

The Vortex are able to adapt quickly to new environments, evolving into new forms and/or hybridating with local creatures in order to create new lifeforms and are capable of bioengineering to some extent, as well. The Vortex life forms come in several different shapes. All appear to be at least partially, if not mostly or completely, aquatic.

• Larva – Vortex larvae are clear, and shaped like a slightly squashed teardrop; at the large end of the "drop" are two tentacles that look like a chain of bubbles.
• Drones are green or blue in color and have heads shaped like ridged, bladed peanuts, along with thin bodies.
• Soldiers appear similar in shape to dolphins, but are black and very skeletal in appearance, in addition to looking more machine than anima, with exaggerated skull-like head, or ridged, bladed head similar to the standard Vortex drones. These were bioengineered on Earth to withstand high water pressures; they will explode if they get too close to the surface.
• Queen – The Vortex Queen is the mother of all Vortex life forms, and the most intelligent among them. She looks like an extremely large, disembodied Vortex Drone head. Her tongue is prehensile and has claspers at the end that can pull unlucky prey into her insides.
• Jellyfish – Bioengineered jellyfish that behave much like Earht’s jellyfish, they are brown with black spots and they possess one single tentacle at the base of their bodies. They are poisonous even for the Vortex themselves.
• Amoebas – Bioengineered Blob-like creatures capable of travelling through water and air alike. Being airborne seems to weaken them. They are very sensitive to sonars.

The Vortex are a technologically advanced species, They come to harvest from the Earth's oceans every 500 of Earth's years, when the planets are in alignment, because they have lost their own ability to make food. The Vortex hives are mechanical, with cannon-like structures that shoot what may be organic "bullets" for defense in addition to very strong currents of water hostile to non-Vortex life. The hives are mostly underwater, though some parts situated above the surface have been seen; whether this was intentional or a result of falling water levels is unknown. The Vortex know how to produce electricity, and they are known to possess a powerful weapon capable of destroying entire cities located on other planets. According to some legends, Atlantis was destroyed by this weapon.

Sources: Ecco the Dolphin Ecco the Dolphin, Ecco: The Tides of Time, videogames, created by Ed Annunziata, Based on Wikipedia Entry.