BREAKING NEWS – NEW ALIEN SPECIES DISCOVERED? – BREAKING NEWS
As leaked documents show, researchers in an undisclosed space sector appear to have encountered two solar systems colonized by a previously unknown alien species.
The species is described as a modular, biomechanical life form with a crystalline base, appearing in various, often insect-like forms. These forms can seemingly change at any time, starting at the molecular level, and adapt to the respective circumstances. There are indications that the species is assimilating new materials or technologies; mechanical and electronic components have also been seen.
The documents do not reveal to what extent the species possesses consciousness.
Most of the planets and moons seemingly colonized by the species in the two systems are coated in a modular crystalline layer, which appears to be produced, excreted and worked on by the species. This has been observed on bodies in both systems that have not yet been completely coated. The consequences of this coating for the bodies and any life on them are unknown.
This behavior at least suggests invasive behavior on the part of the species. Whether it is also an expansive species remains open, since the distance between the two systems is unknown, which could indicate a possible crossing in normal space or hyperspace capability, on the other hand.
EDIT: Replaced the AI thing with my hand-drafted "art-work"... 🤣🤣🤣
EDIT2 Background considerations:
Crystals, such as Quartz or similar, do have very interesting physical and chemical abilities, not to be found in any other materials on Earth. Some of them react with their environment, mostly on an electro-magnetic level.
Imagine a kind of crystal on a far planet, which is able to somehow intelligently "read" the atomic/molecular structure of anything that touches it, learn biologies, techniques and technologies, assimilate and reproduce them, create new structures like bio-mechanical machines or bodies, including the new molecules. This is done by try-and-error, resulting in several mutations until the one working is found. Additionally, all these bodies can disband, change form and re-arrange according to requirements on a molecular level, e. g. a group of 'tanks', 'cranes' or 'bugs' can transform into a 'space-ship'.
Like every life-form its primary task is reproduction, which is supported by expansion and invasion, and is fired by raw materials mined from invaded bodies. For this reason they cover the respective body with a crystalline layer and carve out the body under this skin. When the body is depleted completely, the remaining sphere is dismantled and used elsewhere.
Whether they have individual or swarm intelligence remains to be seen, however any newly acquired knowledge is shared immediately amongst the whole life-form. If, for example, one structure would be destroyed by a laser, they would learn how to counter this laser with the right frequency and get immune to this kind of damage.
It probably all started somehow when a piece of human or even alien technology or parts of a space-ship crashed on the crystals' home-world and touched them. They assimilated this and use it to fulfill their main task.
They don't seem to have gotten in touch with carbon based life so far, but no-one can say what would happen if - for example - a fly touches them... 😉
