#cothica

Actually I was inspired to create a fanfic which was inspired by ‘Transcending Perim’ By: ChaoticCommander. So my idea is that Tom, Kaz, Sarah, and Peyton end up having their coded selves dying at the exact moment they were trying to leave, connecting them to their earth selves, and this happens at the exact moment a powerful surge of energy appears from the Cothica which the main 4 we’re trying to see in person and got caught in the blast. This then merged their coded self with their earth self and after being affected by the energy of the Cothica, transformed them into members of their tribe. A side effect is that it wiped the memory of everyone who knew them previously except those in chaotic. However, the creatures they knew beforehand would know something was missing. Felt that someone was missing but couldn’t figure out who. (And I’m debating if it was Klay’s fault their coded selves died). If they know someone really well though or spend a lot of time with them after being transformed, the creature they knew can regain their memories. This would also be really early in the series so they might not know Maxxor and Chaor as well or maybe they do but just don’t have much opportunities to meet and it’s painful for them to see their friends and not have them know who they are. I’m also debating what would happen to their earth selves, if they would just die, be in a coma, or disappear and be forgotten. And so they only have each other to rely on at the moment since they weren’t really close to others in Chaotic (and I believe that while Peyton might be friendly, he only really hangs out with the main 4) and a strange music in the back of their heads which kinda guides them and acts like a sentient entity only they can hear. It’s always there too, no matter what they do but only they can hear it. Because the Cothica saved them for a reason, knowing the M’arillians would invade soon. (None of this will make sense unless you watch the show). So yeah, that was my fanfic idea that I will probably never write but it compelled me to make fanart for it. Or maybe I needed to make fanart and then created an entire story behind it? Not really sure which came first.

This is Sarah AKA Seraphim (they either choose a new name or someone scans them and they see that their names have changed. A blessing from the Cothica.)

Tribe: Danian

This was actually inspired by this amazing art by HosekiDragon on devianart. It’s actually what inspired me to make art of all the main 4 as creatures. I would see art of them and have a basic idea of what they might look like but no matter what I saw, Sarah just never looked right until I saw this one picture and HosekiDragon’s Saraphim was so beautiful that I had to make my own version of it. The name is also what inspired me to make creature names of all the main 4 that include their actual names. The art also inspired Kaz’s design a little with the hair and tail but otherwise, that’s mostly what I imagined him as.

For Sarah, I imagine her as kind of a combination between a spider and a bee. She’s pretty similar in personality in being very headstrong and taking command but also deeply caring for her friends. As a female Danian, and being considered very beautiful, the Danians that see her basically treat her as royalty. (I have a headcannon that Danian parasites only work on males since the only females we see are the queen and princess and apparently, Larrina is an Overworlder, not a Danian.) so the Danains treat her as something almost holy which Sarah would love normally…if it didn’t have the side effect of them attacking Kaz, Tom, and Peyton for getting too close. Which makes Sarah annoyed. (She lost her home, her family (even if they didn’t get along) and she was NOT about to loose her boys too). Wamma is the only exception and even he doesn’t know why he doesn’t treat Sarah as something holy or why he doesn’t see the others as a threat to her. But he does have a strong urge to protect her.

Sarah is capable of flight, spinning this super strong silk from spinnerets in her wrists (which is what the main 4 made their clothes out of. Sarah being the exception because her exoskeleton already acts as both clothing and armor. Which is lucky because when they transformed, that did not include clothing.) and Sarah is very good at making tunnels, climbing or moving quickly in her new form. She is used to a Danian’s body from the dromes so it was pretty easy for her to adjust. It was just uncomfortable at night to find a good sleeping position.

Peyton AKA Peytonic

Tribe: Mipedian

Peyton’s form was both easy and hard. I definitely had the most fun on it though. I saw this fanart once where he was an ankylosaur and I’ve had that in my mind ever since. I just thought it was fitting. But at the same time, I felt his snout could be a bit longer like all Mipedians. So I did that but made it kinda square. I just felt that fit Peyton more. I also adjusted his coloring to be a bit more greenish like his clothes. I did take the robe idea from HosekiDragon’s art though. I thought it was cool. Then I looked for other lizard creatures and found one with the stripes and I was just in love so I added those. He kinda resembles an iguana and I kinda like that look. Or maybe that’s just me who sees it. Overall, I just love how he turned out.

Peyton was probbaly the most affected by the transition to Perim as creatures. Peyton spent most of his time In Perim and Chaotic though because lots of people in the real world thought he was weird. He made friends with the creatures who didn’t mind his weirdness and the players only cared about how well he did in the dromes. This made Peyton a lot more outgoing and friendly. So it hurt that his Mipedian friends have no idea who he was and that the chaotic players don’t seem to care that he hasn’t played in a while. Being in Perim wasn’t the problem, it was being there and not being able to talk to his friends that hurt him. While with the other main 4, he’s still his outgoing and friendly self. Practically loving his new body. But he avoids cities and other creatures because Peyton just can’t bear seeing them and having his friends have no idea who he is.

If they do run into creatures, he kinda closes himself off and lets the others do the talking. If he’s forced to speak, he tries to act like his normal self and pretend nothing’s wrong. Although his smile is strained if it’s someone he knew. He’s fine if it’s a creature he’s never met before.

As for his new form, Peyton is probbaly the most well adjusted to actually living in Perim. He spent most of his time there anyways. And he is loving his invisibility. He is also their expert on anything edible because Peyton, being Peyton, decided that a good use for the beta dromes is to taste everything in every location he’s been to that looks slightly edible. If it’s poisonous, then he can’t die in the dromes anyways. So Peyton tells them what is safe to eat and even knows some cool recipes. He also does some hunting with the others (they try very hard to pretend it’s just like a drome battle. It takes a while before Kaz or Tom can go through with a kill though. Even if they need it and it’s just animals). Peyton also doesn’t struggle to adjusting to his new form. He’s battled as Mipedians, exercised as them, played as them, slept as them. He’s explored every location and everything they could do so he’s right at home.

His abilities consist of normal Mipedian abilities. Strong scales like armor, claws, strong jaws, invisibility. Keen senses. And Peyton is a bit stronger than the normal Mipedian. He’s kinda the muscle in the main 4. He also does not act like a normal Mipedian warrior. Much more laid back and go with the flow. Which works for him in battle, especially with being unexpected. His body is too big and spiky for normal clothes so he just wears a robe. It allows much more maneuverability without getting torn. Peyton also has these extra hard scales down his back. He likes to curl up into a ball and roll into opponents. He finds it fun. His enemies? Not so much.

Kaz AKA Kazmodeus

Tribe: Underworlder

Every version of Kaz I have ever seen has him with orange skin. And I agree, it looks good. But I never liked the combination of orange hair with orange skin. So it never really clicked for me. I was never really attached to his art. Then I saw how HosekiDragon used black hair and I just loved that. But when I saw it trailing down his back, I imagined that it kind of looked like fire so I thought, what if Kaz actually had fire hair? But I didn’t think having just normal fire hair would be very practical so what if, it was normal hair that could become fire? I already imagined Kaz with a tail and wings so with orange skin, he kinda looks like Takinom. (And while that might have interesting consequences if Takinom feels like she knows him but can’t quite remember, I will store that plot bunny deep in the recesses of my mind). I also never really liked Kaz with horns. I get why they were added as usually it’s a reference to looking like Chaor but they just never clicked for me. On the other hand, I was determined to give Kaz his hair streak thingies. And then I had an idea. I gave Kaz a crest on his forehead that resembles the yellow hair streaks. I bet if you just glance over the drawing, you might mistake it as the hair streaks. But this way, it’s not affected by the fire hair. And I just think it looks cool. I made his clothes more practical with having an open back for his wings. And I made them a similar color to his normal clothes. Also, I regret to inform you, I took away his glasses. It took forever to find his actual eye color but yes, it is brown. I just feel like the Cothica would cure Kaz of bad eyesight if it changed his entire body.

Kaz’s form is pretty similar to Takinom so he adjusts pretty fast to having wings (except at night where he faces the same problem as Sarah). He loves flying and definitely makes use of it. Often getting an aerial view of their surroundings. The only thing Kaz struggles with, is his hair. It lights on fire. And that would be fine if it only did so when he wanted it too (which he can do). But it also lights on fire based on his emotions. If he’s angry, excited, scared. Any high emotion and his hair lights up. Which is bad when they are in a place like a forest. Kaz is pretty creative so he’s the one who actually makes their clothes using Sarah’s silk. Or even making traps around their campsites. For a while, they just keep moving since most places belong to the territory of one tribe and as they each look like they are from a different tribe, the others aren’t safe there. They refuse to split up and go to their separate tribes. They don’t want to loose the only normal thing they have left. They don’t want to see friends who will have no idea who they are (if they even let them into the cities. Being unknown creatures). And they definitely don’t want to risk fighting eachother. So they stick together and they keep moving.

Kaz is the designated campfire. If they need to cook meet, or boil water, or even forge something (Peyton took a shop class so when they find metal, he can forge them into tools, belts, clothing, or even armor if they want) they just walk over to Kaz and hold it over his tail. Despite his grumbles, Kaz doesn’t actually mind since he knows this is the safest option and doesn’t leave evidence of a campfire for other creatures to find. Or make smoke. He’s very useful on cold nights. Sometimes he’s also the designated flashlight.

Kaz misses his mom so much. But she’s the only one he actually misses. All his friends are in Perim with him. Everyone at school thinks he’s a freak. And Underworld players aren’t really popular in chaotic. And he isn’t popular with other Underworld players because of his friendship with Tom, Sarah, and Peyton. He does miss H’earring though (eventually H’earring gets his memory back and helps Kaz but the first time they met, it was like getting punched in the gut for Kaz knowing his friend didn’t know who he was and is why the others don’t want to risk meeting their creature friends for fear of the same thing happening.) The music from the Cothica helps sooth his nerves.

Kaz’s abilities consist of flight, fire attacks, being fire proof (he discovered this when he fell in lava and it was like a warm bath. Still scary though), spikes on his tail for harder hits, and being very maneuverable.

Tom AKA Tomahawk

Tribe: Overworlder

Tom’s name was the hardest out of everything. The others were pretty easy. I immediately named Kaz Kazmodeus as a play on a demon’s name. Peytonic was Peyton’s game ID and it just fit. Saraphim was a name on a different art but I loved it so much I had to use it. But Tom….Tom….do you have any idea how few names start with Tom in it? Or at least not the ones I want. I literally looked up every word that has Tom in it and most had it somewhere in the middle (Like Atomic) and while it was surprising to see how many names actually had Tom, every other character started with their name so I need to have one start with Tom. So I read through a…lot of words. (I was very tempted to call him Tomcat but instead, I shall have Kaz call him that to tease him). Eventually found Tomahawk which is basically a small axe or weapon used by Native Americans and I thought that fit perfectly. A weapon is strong, durable, and I just think it fits Tom’s personality. Especially since it’s a native American weapon and fits Tom’s current image.

Before anyone says anything. Yes, this is inspired by the Navi tribe from Avatar. No, I do not regret this decision. I know that everyone always draws Tom as being the same species as Maxxor, with green skin. And while I think that’s cool, I once saw this art of Tom with blue skin and elf like ears and have never been able to see him as anything other than a blue tiger ever since. I blame the fact that Intress is close friends with Maxxor. And the fact that most Overworlders are some type of animal. But Anyways, YES! AVATAR! I saw Tom with blue skin and saw him as a tiger and had to put them together. While there are many similarities between Tom and the Navi, there are some differences too. For example, Tom is covered in a thin layer of fur just like a normal tiger. It’s not just skin. (Kaz thinks he is a very fluffy kitty). His front is kinda pale blue, almost white, both on his chest and face. Kinda like Intress. His ears are like the Navi in which they are more elf like but can swivel around like cat ears. He also has retractable claws on his hands and feet. So while his paws can feel extremely soft without nails, he can call upon them for hunting, climbing, or any other reason. His feet are also more catlike. His tail is also prehensile and can be used to grab things. He often uses it for climbing by holding onto other branches. And yes, he can hang from his tail if he really wanted.

As for his hair. I was inspired by the Navi’s Queue (no idea if I spelled that right). The nerve cord thing on the back of their head. It has two functions. It’s prehensile, and it can channel electricity like an electrical whip. Basically, for Tom, it’s like a second tail. Only, a tail with a mind of it’s own. It grabs onto anything and everything within reach whether Tom wants it to or not. While his body is very similar to Intress, he’s never turned into a creature with a prehensile nerve cord in the back of his head while he was in the dromes. He doesn’t even know of a creature that has one. So while controlling one extra limb is easy as he has had acess to intress’s muscle memory, the nerve chord is a different story. It can grab things and Tom might not notice until he has to pry it out of the cord at the end of the day (or scold Kaz who likes to hold objects in front of the chord knowing it will grab them and then seeing how long before Tom notices) or it will grab objects like tree branches still attached to the trees and Tom will get yanked back when he tries to walk forward. Eventually he realizes that relaxing the limb releases things and once he gets the hang of it, starts being able to climb super fast and can eventually hold on with just the chord and tail while his hands are doing something else. Like drawing a bow and arrow. (But it will be a while before that happens).

The hardest thing about the nerve chord, is the hair. It’s like a horse’s tail (which Kaz mocks is like a literal ponytail.) Tom basically has his normal short hair, and then he has hair growing along the cord. If it remains still, it just looks like a ponytail, but because it’s constantly grabbing stuff whether on accident or even once Tom gets control of it, the hair gets tangled in everything. The problem though is that the hair is insanely tough. If something has to give, the branch/stone it’s attached to or the hair, the object always gives first so Tom always has to physically untangle stuff instead of cutting it out. They tried to cut the hair and it’s like wire. Super soft but unbreakable wire. They managed to cut it once after using some powers and the part that exposed the chord hurt so much. It’s like when you have a cavity exposed to the elements. Basically, the nerve chord is sensitive because of it’s ability to channel electricity. The hair acts as both a conductor to channel the lighting through it (again, like wire) and also protection. It’s soft against the actual nerve chord but acts like a barrier against whatever the nerve chord touches and just the elements in general. It’s basically like armor (if someone were to cut it with a knife, the knife is more likely to break or be damaged. They know, they tried it when they first started trying to cut Tom’s hair). So since they can’t cut it, (both from difficulty and because it is needed protection) Kaz has an idea from an old Disney movie called Tangled and they just braid his hair instead. That way, the hair doesn’t get caught in stuff.

Sarah becomes obsessed with this. She can’t do her own hair because it’s hard to reach with all her armor. Kaz’s hair is too short (even if it wasn’t, all decorations would just burn up when he got excited), and Peyton doesn’t have hair. So she basically uses Tom as a glorified Barbie doll by decorating his hair with all kinds of beads, feathers, and braids. Tom just kinda lets it happens for 2 reasons. One, because it makes her feel better and they need all the stress relief they can get, and Two, because you can’t really say no to Sarah when she makes her mind up about something.

Tom is kinda similar to Kaz when it comes to being in Perim. His parents are hardly ever home but he still cares about them and misses them. On the other hand, all his real friends are right there with him. However, he can’t face Maxxor. He might run into Bodal who doesn’t know him and that would be hard enough. (It would be fun if later, Bodal hates not knowing something so investigates why this creature felt familiar and recovers his memories when Tom wasn’t there). But Tom cannot face Maxxor. However, he does spend time with other Overworld creatures and even creatures of other tribes. So they gain back their memories of Tom back pretty quickly (whether or not he’s there for it is the question). Especially since he doesn’t avoid them like Peyton does his friends. I think Smildon might be next. Anyways, Tom is struggling but he tries to put on a brave face for the others. As for his abilities, he basically can do anything Intress can do. He’s very stealthy, agile, has strong senses (although his sense of smell sometimes backfires on him). And he also is very fast and can use electric attacks. Kinda like a lightning tiger. Many people mistake his braid for hair and get a nasty shock if they try to grab it or have Tom’s hands pinned and think that’s the end. He is incredibly good at battles. He was one of the best chaotic players and Intress was someone he played almost as much as Maxxor. Tangeth Toborn too and he was also very catlike. So Tom could take on multiple opponents at once and still win (like he did against Codemaster Hotek).