#epitak

Been thinking a lot about this crew of dorks the past month and working on a 'first' story, where Max met the crew in the usual unconventional-but-conventionally-human-way. Since Chocolate and Bluffing are still getting notes (Who are you people?!?!?! (and I'm glad you're enjoying it :3c)) I figured I'd share my own notes about the crew:

Max Species: Human Age: Early 30s Pronouns: They/Them Position: Navigator Appearance: Androgynous human of short stature Fun Facts: They were not officially assigned to the Theobromine (story coming soon!)

Taurvin Species: Scrofa Age: 350 Pronouns: He/Him Position: Captain Appearance: Towering (10 foot tall) bipedal boar made of lava and molten rock Fun Fact: When calm, Taurvin's skin appears to be obsidian plates formed together. When angry, the lava that is his blood begins to glow, making him look like a volcano on the edge of bursting, and smoke will emerge from his nostrils. He has been known to smoke out a whole pub when losing trivia night. His right arm is a prosthetic, that closely mimics his own skin, so not many notice it, even among his crew.

Gorvan Species: Stakad Age: 201 (Just achieved legal drinking age for his species) Pronouns: He/Him Position: First Mate Appearance: Fluffy bipedal with four arms, two horns, a long prehensile tufted tail, and a perpetual expression of confusion Fun Fact: Is the second-most compassionate on board (after Elaana) and makes a point of ensuring all the crew members are comfortable and have what they need.

Elaana Species: Lepida Age: 20 Pronouns: She/her Position: Medical Appearance: Bipedal insectoid with moth wings, antenna, and large, compound eyes Fun Fact: Lepida cry pollen, which sets off allergies among other crew members at times; thus, she rarely cries outside of her quarters, wanting to spare her friends the distress (and runny facial orifices). Low-key crushing on Lenzoill.

Epitak Species: Corvi (distant relative of Zads, from the same planet) Age: 1248 Pronouns: Ze/Zim Position: Engineer Appearance: Bipedal crow with a crest of feathers on zeir head that give away zeir emotions; wings sprout along zeir arms Fun Fact: Has several hidden stashes of shiny objects aboard the ship, ranging from tinfoil left over from cooking to jewels he, er, 'liberated' from unappreciative shop keepers.

Dhaca Species: Snallygaster Age: 42 (He has not read the Hitchhikers Guide, and does not understand Max when they quote it at him) Pronouns: He/They Position: Biologist & Chemist Appearance: Three-foot tall reptilian with a single, large eye, multiple tongues, leather wings with claws, two arms, and no legs Fun Fact: He cannot fly with his wings, though they can give him a boost when jumping, and the claws on the end work as an extra pair of hands when he is experimenting. He has blown himself up more than once, luckily his scaly skin serves as pretty good blast protection. He has an entire crate of back-up glasses that regularly has to be restocked.

Lenzoill Species: Bubalus Age: 22 Pronouns: She/Her Position: Head of Security Appearance: Bipedal water buffalo with horns and a long, whip-like tail Fun Fact: Is a complete badass with training in multiple melee combat styles, ranged weapons, and melee weapons. Her favorite is an energy sword (that max compares to a lightsaber, though its more comparable to a broadsword made of energy), but in a pinch her sharpened horns can be used when charging. Is less competent with emotions, not due to any meathead trope but because her race is not as socially advanced as others and still holds prejudice views against non-traditional relationships. Being gay, she keeps her emotions to herself in order to protect her families reputation. (She'll figure it out eventually, no worries.) High-key crushing on Elaana but doesn't know how to act on it.

Qhals Species: Acinonyx Age: 19 Pronouns: He/Him Position: Linguist Appearance: Feline centaur with short fur, spots, and the cutest little floofy ears that give away his emotions (as the youngest crew member he gets teased relentlessly) Fun Fact: Qhals is comparable to a cheetah for several reasons - his spots, his ability to get along with a wide variety of species (aka there's no such thing as strangers, just friends he hasn't met yet), and his ability to mimic most vocal languages, and understand almost all of them! He is a true polyglot, and even without his translator implant can usually pick up on the gist of foreign languages through universal constants, body language, and charades. (Max asked him about something called 'autism' once, but apparently Acinonyx often have special interests that vary and becoming hyper fixated on something isn't unusual. Max squinted and asked about something called 'trains', which Qhals admitted to not being familiar with, though he did start info-dumping on a trolley-like system common in his home planets capital. This, for some reason, set Max giggling.)

Ir'ith Species: Zad (distant relatives of Corvi, from the same planet) Age: Nobody knows - old, though. Pronouns: He/Him/Not Late For Dinner Position: Quartermaster/Cook Appearance: Bipedal raven with a wings attached to the back, separate from the arms, forward-facing knees, and feather crests alongside his head that serve as ears Fun Fact: Nobody remembers him being assigned - he just showed up one day and took over as quartermaster and ship cook. Taurvin and Gorvan know his papers are forged, but he's the only one onboard who can cook, and he hasn't been threatening/dangerous, so they've let him be. Unlike Epitak, who can only glide, Ir'ith can fly.

Extra Facts:

Except for the human and snallygaster, all species names have Latin roots. (Google Snallygaster if you haven't, they're incredible. Top 10 cryptid.)

Scientifically, cheetahs are not in the same family as other big cats! They are in the family Felidae, the same as housecats, because they can't roar, and can purr. They can also chirp, chitter, and trill. Qhals can do all of this, plus hiss and growl when he's annoyed. He can yell, but unlike other feline-esque species, he can't roar.

Acinonyx are also very touchy species - they do cuddle piles, greet others with cheek-rubs, and will wrap their tail around friends/family/partners/etc. absent mindedly. This extends to other species as well, and it is not uncommon to find Qhals wrapped around somebody in the common areas while they do work/nap/watch the space equivalent of YouTube/etc.

The other feline species on the Qhals planet of Dae (which are heavily reminiscent of human feline species because a human is writing this) range in size from the large, striped Gris who excel in gladiatorial sports to the tiny, spotted Ailurus who are renowned trackers, hunters, and trappers (and who will stab you if you make fun of their height). Unlike the Corvi and Zad, there is no hierarchy between the species and subspecies, but instead a dependency on everyone to do what is needed to help society flourish. That's not to say racist, speciest pricks don't exist, but when everyone has knives for claws, they tend to keep it on the downlow in public.

Traditionally, on their planet, Zad are subservient to Corvi, due to size and power difference. While Epitak is larger than Ir'ith, the latter has never once deferred to the former, and in fact seems to take great joy in denying Epitak any form of traditional respect.

Few Bubalus leave their planet - while they are content to trade, they are a very insular species and prefer to stay home. The countries of their world are divided into different communities with different dialects, traditions, etc. The one Lenzoill was from had set traditional gender roles and ideals for what a young female who can bear children should do. Infertile females are often shunned and sent to relatives in other communities who are more open minded.

In this story/setting, Humans are very much a 'recent' species (less than 200 years of integration), and thus there are still many rumors and such about them. They are not often seen in the far reaches of space (making Max an anomaly for many), and are known as a violent, bloodthirsty species who are willing to do whatever they must for survival/riches/clout. Very much a space orc ideal of them, which Max is 10000% willing to use to their advantage when their friends/crew are in trouble. (There's no way that will ever backfire. Nope. Never.)

There is this awful art piece of them, which I plan on redrawing eventually now that I have a better idea of how I want them to work. Not anytime soon - Summer Reading Program is in full swing and I barely have time to blink, let alone draw - but hopefully within the next few months. I'm also working on an 'origin story' of how Max joined the crew, and their reactions to it, and have a stockpile of ideas to work on in the future when I have a chance.

I'm so happy this story keeps getting attention, and that so many people like it! The EC Theobromine is definitely going to have more adventures. : D