#Angaran Biology

[angaranexpansionproject]

Hello, it's me again! Do you have any Shelesh words/vocabulary for a beach day? Also, I'd love to learn more Shelesh idioms. Bylasem'vy tev eddor! ♥️

Okay here we go! I didn't have much specific to the beach so a few are new words, but I did have a lot of general weather/environment words. I've bolded particularly beachy ones.

aavoh- n, adj - wind, windy

daal- n, adj - land, earth, a natural surface beneath your feet

daar, daara- n, adj - Literally, rock or rock foundation, a village or small outpost between a city and a settlement in size. Plural form is daara.

gemiil- n - friut, fleshy reproductive housing of seeds

gemma- n - flower, colorful pollinator

haavol- n, adj - sky, air, airy

honndra- n, adj - sunlight, starlight, sunny

ibrawe- n, adj - rain, raining

ifflirrwe- n, adj - mist, fog, misty, clouded near the ground

imasaf- n - a shell, particularly one with a coiled spiral

jiik- n - heat, high temperatures

katas- n, adj - valley

kashiil- n - mountains, tall high peaks

kawari- n - an edible green, underwater algae/plant similar to terran seaweeds

novil- n, adj - hot, heat, warmth

novise- n, adj - fire, something that is burning

pivoa- n - nighttime, night, the dark part of the cycle

pivol- n, adj - cold, coldness

pivrawe - n, adj - sleet, sleeting

rofrawe- n, adj - snow, snowing

rofsov- n, adj - a ship for flying, a spaceship or airship (plane)

skrit- n - sand, ground up particles

terswabe- n, adj - edge of the water, shoreline

wabe- n, adj - water, fluid

wavosov- n, adj - a ship for swimming/diving, a boat

wavalo- n - gills or similar structures for breathing in water

wavooan- n, adj - fish, swimmer; generally used for any swimming organism

wavoor; wavoo, wavoot, wavoom- v - swimming

And of course, a few more fun idioms, some of which I've shared before or are from canon! I don't tend to actively make new idioms, I tend to stumble into them when something gets complicated or there's a phrase from the game that suits it. Below the cut because it's getting long.

an'do -"hide!" command or phrase commonly used by both angaran fighters and children

Ansala venjyuri' - unknown, used by Yeda when thanking Ryder.

aremiy lomahun - fate, chance, odd luck, Murphy's law; a casual sentiment about miscellaneous unpredicable fate 'as chance would have it'

Arosh enav - unknown, used by Jaal when greeting the wounded Yeda.

baddsof - rest well; the equivalent of telling someone goodnight

dos ashaan - noble fear, the fear that is considered positive as it keeps you safe.

gara ille rivo - someone excited, enthusiastic. A fan.

gosan yav daar - Being Stubborn as a Stone

govataan - welcome center

inalaara - the virtue of knowing one's course; or a good name for the brink of the unknown.

Kapisholaon - "The Disappeared" or the lost; angaran term for those people kidnapped by the Kett

keshirask nari - Exaltation, the process by which the Kett transform their captives

lom ashaan - chaotic fear, that makes you behave stupidly or recklessly; panic

neru kichari - sexual climax; orgasm

paavoa - welcome, a common angaran greeting;

paba rojav - "shields are down/broken"; the adjective is a combination of paaver and ibrar often used by angaran fighters to indicate that a shield has collapsed.

raba garessen - Roughly, sanctuary trips.

sejoh sheaddol - give peace to me, forgive me

Shelesh - to barter for the moon; name of the angaran language that serves as a lingua franca

skkut - a general expletive, used in contexts similar to fuck and shit

skkutja nera - exclamation, roughly “fucking stars!”

torravar - a back and forth, uncertain or risky process where progress is frequently made and lost; often implies that much caution or care is needed

vehshaanan - someone pleased with their own shit.

yal - "Hold on!" amalgation of yav and yehal; an exclamation often used by angaran fighters when calling out to fallen or struggling companions

yevoll - it's good, brings joy, it carries a joyful smile; an equivalent for you're welcome or de nada

[myrddinderwydd]

Tagged by @faerieavalon again! Here's a few sentences from the bioelectricity chapter in working on in the AEP - the narrative part anyway.

“Doctor T’Perro?” SAM’s cordial, disembodied voice sounded from a terminal in the medical bay. 

“Yes, SAM?” Lexi continued reading the datapad in her hand, slowly pacing the length of the room with a measured stride.

“I am becoming concerned about Pathfinder Ryder and Jaal ama Darav.” SAM paused deliberately, causing Lexi to glance up at the terminal. 

“What is the cause of your concern, SAM?” Lexi asked calmly, steps slowing to a halt. She wondered how much SAM truly understood about the relationships organic beings formed with one another, particularly romantic ones. 

Tagging @dafan7711 @dispatchwithlove @natsora @dragonifyoudare @rpgwarrior4824 @jawsandbones @musically-magic @meridok

[angaranexpansionproject]

untao - n - an intimate bioelectric kiss, pressing the taon area of the jinesh together

ushey - n - a kiss, pressing your mouths together

The chest is a sensitive erogenous zone for angara, especially the knobby ends of the jinesh and the recessed area in between. Since the taon (bioelectricity generating organ) is located in this area too, bioelectric signals are felt very intensely. Taosovos (sharing emotions via bioelectricity) with your hand on someone else's chest is very intimate symbolically and physically.  

[myrddinderwydd]

WIP Wednesday-ish

Hey @faerieavalon remember that reproduction chapter I've been working on forever for the Angaran Expansion Project? With the adorable speckled eggs and communal mothering? Yeah, still working! Added this section tonight, among others. Thanks beta!! ❤️

Eggs are generated approximately every 7 Havarl days, with an additional egg added each week. After the 4th ovulation cycle, the oldest egg is reabsorbed into the angara’s body if they remain unfertilized. The following week the second egg is absorbed, and the pattern continues until all oogomji are absorbed. In total the cycle is 8 Havarl weeks long, with 1 week where they are carrying 4 viable unfertilized eggs.

Tagging @natsora @dafan7711 @fireheartedkaratepup @dr-ladybird @drferox @musically-magic to share a few sentences from your current WIP.

[fadburger]

Some info about Angaran biology, in particular their bioelectric abilities. 

[choccy-zefirka]

The Song Is Born

After the Tempest, in a noiseless flash of stinging blue, makes its lurch forward, leaving the kett flagship far behind, Jaal exhales loudly. As if bursting through deep, dark, lead-heavy water.

His eyes turn to Ryder.

She likes dressing, and even tinting her space suit, in saturated colours — a rich magenta, and purple, and blue. He believes that in human culture such combinations symbolize a proclamation of the love one feels towards various genders, though he might have to ask for clarification.

Some humans seem to find Ryder’s outfits annoying: too much of a vivid splash amid the white uniforms of the Initiative. But never before has it been more soothing for him to rest his gaze on her vibrant jacket and scarf.

‘Ry…’ he clears his throat after the first syllable, and then takes another breath. Another dive.

Into different waters than the ones he just emerged from. Clear waters. Exhilarating.

He calls her by her first name.

It sounds hoarse, unpracticed, when it rolls off his tongue. But he feels something stir within his heart when he says it out loud.

Something rather like… the first notes of a song.

'Yasmine.’

She looks up, a pair of black eyes shimmering with shards of starlight.

Once, what seems like centuries ago, she asked him a question about Angaran biology... And he, still wary of the prying strangers from the Milky Way, shrugged it off with a deflective remark,

'I don’t know. How do your eyeballs work?’

Her face lit up; her lips parted in an enormous human smile; and she bombarded him with facts about light entering the pupil. Not knowing her back then, not caring enough to puzzle out her expression, he snapped at her,

'You used my sarcasm as an excuse to show off. Pitiful.'

And that was when the light faded, and she cast her gaze down, shielding her eyes with the protective little whiskers — lashes — that he has since found himself so mesmerized by, so many times.

'I was not showing off,’ she said quietly. 'I really do find it fascinating. Studying how our worlds work — how our bodies work — and sharing what I find.'

'My words hurt you, didn’t they?’ he asked. 'I appreciate you letting me know that, and I will take better care next time.'

And so he has.

Back in the present, in the shadow of the Salarian ark, he calls out to her, the echo of her name still tingling through him.

'I would like to hold you.'

She appears startled. He knows that now. He has learned.

It’s easy to read in the upward motion of the two fuzzy arches of tiny hairs on her face — just above her eye sockets. The ones that make the human countenance so expressive.

But the initial surprise soon gives way to understanding. She is the first to extend her arms in a wordless welcome. He wraps himself around her, holding her close to his chest. Soft. Warm. Alive.

Mechanically, his fingers travel to the nape of her neck, and find the mark left by the Archon’s syringe

That is when the dark waters close in around him again. Blocking out all light, dragging him to the bottom. Making his chest cave in, under the weight of a thousand atmospheres.

And again, she understands.

'You thought he was going to Exalt me, didn’t you?’ she whispers.

Her face is buried in the folds of his rofjinn, and with her hands are pressed into his spine. Supporting him, just as he feels gravity giving out under his feet. Holding him steady, just as the dark waters are about to carry him away.

'Yes,’ he admits, letting words and sobs alike escape freely.

'Those moments... when I was tethered in place, unable to help you, were like a waking nightmare. I was certain that I would witness another transformation… And then… When you were spared… SAM stopped your heart.'

She makes the smallest of whimpers: the static electricity charge that has been building up within him must have stung at her.

And yet, she does not unlock her embrace, and her warmth is the only thing that keeps him from hurtling into the dark. From drowning in memories of her body on the ship’s floor: a spot of pink and purple and dark-blue against the black and muddy green, growing blurred and then clear again with each of his blinks. Lips pressed tight, eyelashes unmoving, while her AI’s robotic voice reported yet another unsuccessful attempt to resuscitate her.

'Being an angara means always being prepared for loss. Always waiting for the kett to take away more and more of those you care about. You — you have encouraged us to believe that it does not have to be this way. And then… you almost became our next loss. My next loss.'

'I am sorry you had to see this,’ she looks up at him, her round brown face swimming in and out of focus again, and attempts a bitter sort of laugh.

Her hand — small fingers, all separate, nails painted the same hues as her jacket — travels up to gently rest on the side of his face

This simple touch drains the dark. As though his mind were a planet she was bringing back to life.

'I am definitely not a fan of having my friends watch me die. Just ask Liam and Cora.'

Hearing her refer to him as her friend — a friend on the same level as her fellow humans, who have been beside her since the very beginning of their adventures! — adds another joyful note to the song in his heart.

But that is not enough. Not nearly.

He is certain of it now. After nearly losing her, and holding her, he is certain.

He needs more.

'Yasmine, I wanted to ask — ’ he begins, new, louder notes swelling in his chest.

She tilts her head in sudden encouragement, and the song rings ever more, filling his heart to the brim… Only to be silenced by the sudden orange flash of her omni-tool.

'Oh…’ the outline of the two fuzzy arches changes to indicate concentration.

'I think Tann wants to talk to me on the vid comm. I… I hate running off like this. I want to pick this up later. Maybe when we go see your mom on Havarl?’

'I… I would like that,’ he mutters.

She rushes off upstairs — but not before waving at him, with that enormous human smile cast over her shoulder.

And the song begins anew.

[pathofcomets]

soldier, keep on marching on (11)

fandom: mass effect andromeda (AO3)

pairing: jaal/ryder

summary: Sara Ryder will replay that moment before she died for the first time many times afterwards.

playlist: spotify

Havarl is wet and rainy, and she thinks she might prefer Veold’s killer snowstorm, than the way the humidity feels, with the added armour. To be fair, Jaal has warned them, and she has opted for a thinner one, made heavy anyway during the five minutes’ trek from the ship to the angaran base. Every single bit of clothing item on her is sticking to her skin, uncomfortably so, and she’s sure she is in the process of chaffing in several places where her skin has no business hurting like this. The humidity in the air makes it almost annoyingly difficult to breathe, her hair sticking to her head, her forehead shiny with sweat.

Liam seems to find some kind of happiness in her misery, even as he doesn’t look any better. He just seems more pleased at still seeing a planet at least half functional. Of course, that is until they encounter their first dinosaur.

“They’re not… dinosaurs.” Jaal frowns, and the word, coming out of his mouth, sounds harsher, the consonants more pronounced, and Sara scrunches her nose to stop herself from calling it cute, though she can’t quite stop the faint smile, which in turn deepens Jaal’s frown.

“Yeah, you see those tiny arms? That’s a damned T-Rex right there,” Liam says, and his arms bend at the elbow, imitating the shape of the creature. When Jaal’s face remains clearly unimpressed, he sighs, letting his hands drop around his body. “I will show you some vids and then you’ll get it!”

***

Peebee insists to be taken for all the Remnant missions. Since Havarl is still a slightly functional planet, one of the monoliths still working, her enthusiasm grows as soon as she steps onto the planet. It is the first place, besides the healed Aya, where she has seen plants. Sure, plants that would prove poisonous if ingested (or touched, direct contact on the skin, SAM helpfully provides), and fauna ten times bigger than the thing they’re usually used with, but it’s still an ecosystem when nowhere else has it yet.

They save the scientists, and Jaal sees, for the first time, the true powers of the human Pathfinder. The old ruins bend to her wishes, her hands glowing much like how the biotics powers do – even when he knows she has none of that; this a skill entirely hers. He is not a scholar of biology, and the little SAM tried to explain, about his connection with Ryder’s DNA, the constant link between the two, made so little sense. Stuck by the horror and intimacy of such unity, he has decided to not comprehend, rather than think of Sara as anything but a mere human. It would be unfair towards a person who has shown him so much undeterred friendship, even when it turned out detrimental to her purpose.

Because if she was truly, something more AI than human, she would not have erred, would not have taken the choice less preferable.

He watches her, munching on a wrapped snack, her taste too fragile to fit the Havarl food that the grateful scientists are feeding them, even if she tries the drink – out of being gracious. Her nose wrinkling is the only sign that her taste buds don’t agree with the flavour, even if to him, it’s sweet and floral. He tries to keep his smile in check, the vibrations and bioelectricity, because in the midst of his people, his amusement and pleasure would be so easily read, so easily understood. He can only imagine what jumps through non-existent scenarios his people would build. And his mother, his family – they’re only several miles away.

He watches her, even when Vetra approaches her, nudging her shoulder so she can rise to attention. They’re listening in to a conversation between two angara, the description of a ship and some other aliens. He can notice the moment she makes the connection, because her eyes turn towards the turian, both hopeful and mournful.

“That description sounds like me,” Vetra says, her subvocals leaking into the words, none wise enough to make out the inflections.

Sara jumps to her feet, slapping Liam’s back. She throws one look towards Jaal, the tiniest smile of reassurance as she exists the room. SAM is the one that fills him in on the full picture: he made out some of the things, from reports and conversations on the Tempest – but both have been filtered. Like this, the voice in his ear tells him outright that no other alien Ark has made it to the Nexus, besides the human one. Which means, somewhere in the wide space of the Andromeda galaxy, everyone hopes they’ll find their kin again. Because the other scenario, that they didn’t make it, that they are all dead, is too cruel to comprehend; an end before having a start.

When they return, Vetra kicks against a crate, hard enough that the sound is loud in the air, but neither the metal bends, nor does she sketches any pain. She’s angry, because while somewhat successful, it is still not enough. They found just a tiny piece, saved just several turians, and thousands others are adrift in the dark emptiness of the universe. When Vetra repeats the action, Sara closes her eyes, trying not to wince, trying not to take it a personal failure.

***

It’s still raining. The Pathfinder stands in the mud, trying to ignore the way it seeps around her boots, and she looks up at the immense Remnant structure keeping Havarl together. At the top of it, she will find the key to making things better. She has to believe that, because it will be otherwise a very uncomfortable and painful climb. Peebee snorts, patting her shoulder, and walks up the straight surface towards the first level, feet glued to the plank, using her biotics.

“Show off,” Sara mutters, and she has to use the jet pack to reach the asari.

Jaal shakes his head, and follows.

It takes Sara Ryder three days of being constantly wet, shivering under the incessant beating of the rain, to sneeze for the first time. Jaal’s eyes go wide, immediately searching her body, and he cannot stop staring at her, even when she catches him.

“What?” she asks, sniffing, rubbing the tip of her nose with her palm, her skin itching.

“What was that?”

They continue to stare at each other, both equally as confused with each other, meaning seemingly lost somewhere in the conversation. Peebee bumps her hip against Ryder’s, making her stumble on her feet, as she does a dramatic rendition of her sneeze, loud and not at all how Sara sounds.

“A sneeze,” she adds helpfully, though she throws the Pathfinder a disgusted look when Ryder repeats the sound again, wiping her palms of invisible germs against Sara’s suit.

“What does it mean?” Jaal asks, transfixed.

Sara returns the gesture, bumping into Peebee on her way to get to the next level of this damned skyscraper.

“Nothing,” she mumbles, and the asari rolls her eyes, shrugging her shoulders and following Sara; Jaal’s curiosity is still not satisfied, but he can notice from the closed slump of Ryder’s shoulders that it is not something that she wants discussed.

By the time they reach the top of Mithrava, Ryder is running the beginning of a fever. The religious stories of the angara swim in her mind, mixing settings and myths, and when she accidentally misses a small step, forcing her to either tumble into Jaal’s shoulder or fall directly to the ground, she swears – a word so sharp, more of a yelp, that Jaal’s translator doesn’t pick up –  and prepares herself for the impact. The hurt however does not come, and when she opens her eyes, she can only see Jaal’s blue, shining ones.

“You have such beautiful eyes,” she mumbles, and the fingers around her shoulder and waist tighten for a fraction of a second.

“You’ve gone mad,” he says, harsher than he intended, but worried at the glossed look on her face, at the way her skin seems to be burning up.

“The Pathfinder is sick,” SAM provides helpfully.

Sara turns her face, pressing it against her shoulder, most of her expression now hidden.

“Traitor,” she sighs, and she succumbs to Jaal’s help, as he tries to bring her back to her own feet.

Jaal’s fingers push the hair from her face, resting for a second more against her forehead, looking at her, trying to make out what the signs of sickness are, what to look for in the future.

Her body is trembling with shivers, and with a defeated sigh, she allows all three of them a short return to the ship. The sneeze that seems to have accompanied her through their explorations so far has turned into an incessant cough, sounding worse and worse the longer she stands in the rain. Jaal has never realized how long the walk aboard the Tempest is.

“Are you a baby?” Lexi chides, making Sara strip in the middle of the hallway, no more than a second in the same wet clothes. The human blushes and stutters, but the doctor remains passive and unfazed, and it is a losing battle from the start.

One by one, each piece of her armour falls to the ground with a loud noise. From the first one, Liam has made himself scarce, Peebee made herself more comfortable. When the last one hits the floor, she turns to Lexi.

“Good enough?”

Lexi just frowns. “No. The clothes too.”

The human blushes and stutters, but the doctor remains passive and unfazed, and this is a losing battle yet again. Jaal knows, instinctually, that he should have followed Liam a long time ago, but when Sara tugs at the hem of her shirt and drags it over her head, it is too late for his sanity. Suddenly, with just that one movement, the vast expanse of her skin is visible; not just her arms, which would have been at least a familiar sight, but her back as well, her stomach. Spots of colour are sprawled across her shoulders and back, darker one still at random points, forming swirling patterns across her torso – and he tries to understand the roundness of her chest, kept together by the delicate band of material. When her body is ran through by the force of another coughing fit, her voice unlike anything he has heard, he rips his eyes away from her, guilty to have found himself star struck at the sight of her, when she is so weak and fragile.

She bends, unsticking the tights from her legs with some difficulty, and Jaal can only hear the rustling of her clothes, the wet sound as they drop to the floor – his eyes trying to remain respectfully glued to the ceiling. Peebee whistles.

“Good,” Lexi hums, finally pleased at last. “Shower now. As hot as you can handle.”

Sara sighs, relieved, and her footsteps are hurried, to please her tyrannical doctor. Peebee gathers her clothes, since she has learnt how to do the laundry recently anyway, and disappears towards the Pathfinder quarters. At last, safe, Jaal opens his eyes. Where Sara has been standing, there’s just a puddle gathered on the floor.

Lexi is staring at him.

“I… I didn’t realize bodies can do that,” he says, and he can remember the way her forehead has burnt against his fingers, even through the material of his gloves.

“Humans,” she says, though the word is filled with fondness. “So fragile. More stubborn the more fragile they are.”

***

“Only idiots catch a cold in summer,” Sara mumbles, upset, but she downs the honey-textured medicine that Lexi forces down her throat.

“There are no seasons in space. Which makes you a double idiot, Ryder.”

Fair enough. There’s no way she can say she was not an idiot, not after she pulled such an act. When the doctor told her that, had she just noticed earlier, taken a medicine from that first day, she would have never gotten to this point, well, that was the moment when she realized how stupid she truly is. But it seems so absolutely ironic, that she can survive death, but it is a cold which stops her from continuing her work.

“Ryder,” Lexi presses, her voice sounding threatening. “You will sleep. Your body needs the rest to fight off the sickness.”

She huffs and puffs, making an entire show out of cocooning herself in the blankets she dragged around with her to the medbay, her body still feeling colder than normal. Lexi shoos her out of the lab, standing in the doorframe to make sure the Pathfinder truly goes directly to her room. As much as she would like to do anything else, the moment she hits the bed, Sara succumbs to the tiredness that has settled in her bones for days.

***

She wakes with a dry throat, her hair sticking to her neck with sweat, body half gone numb from an uncomfortable position. But at least she can breathe through both her nostrils, and there’s no more disgusting residue at the back of her throat, her sickness broken in. She blinks awake, and then slowly, as everything around her becomes firmer, she realizes why she woke up, the hard knocking at her door.

She screams an assent, though her voice breaks and the person on the other side laughs at her for it.

“Good morning, Sleeping Ugly,” Drack says, as he steps into her room.

“You mean Sleeping Beauty?” she asks, as she tries to get to a sitting position in her bed.

“Nah, I got it right the first time,” he says, as he plops a tray in her lap.

The smell makes her dizzy for a second, a memory so strong attached to it that she is rendered speechless at first. Drack has… made her soup. She didn’t even know they had ingredients for this on the Tempest, but she is so grateful she could dry. It feels like an eternity since anyone has taken care of her when she’s been sick and suffering – not in the military style, patching her up and sending her on her merry way, but in the way of family, adding meaning to every gesture, doing it without awaiting anything but her good health in return.

She blinks, picking up her spoon, giving it a taste. It’s so good; her head whips up to Drack, who only laughs, pleased, at her expression. She feels like Christmas came early – wait, do they even celebrate Christmas in this side of the universe? Nevermind.

She takes another sip, and the krogan gets ready to leave her.

“I expect you eat it all.”

She nods, sighing happily at the warmth and taste of the soup. Then, after the delight washes away, she realizes what he said.

“Wait! Did you just call me ugly?”

But Drack just laughs again, exiting the room.

“Drack!”

***

When she wakes again, she can feel the strength back in her bones, but she is still slow to stir awake, warm under her blankets, spoiled by the lack of urgency in SAM’s voice. Which reminds her…

“SAM, how long have I been awake?”

“Good morning, Ryder. Since aboard the Tempest or Drack’s visit?” SAM’s helpful voice greets her immediately.

“First one,” she mumbles in a pillow, rolling around until only the cold open air meets her toes, allowing herself to slide down to the floor; the room is just slightly spinning around her.

“Seventeen hours.”

“Fuck. And how many unread messages do I have?” she asks, already bracing for the answer.

“A hundred and two.”

“Double fuck.”

She swears she can hear SAM’s amused chuckle haunting her, as she’s hurryingly getting dressed. When she presses her palm against the door panel, sliding in-between the space before it’s fully open, she does not expect to be welcome by the sight of Jaal, sleeping with his arms crossed across his chest in the corner of the hallway, right next to her room.

She blinks, even rubs her eyes, just to make sure this is not some kind of residue of her fever. But he seems real enough, and she approaches him carefully. Her touch against his shoulder is feather light, and yet Jaal’s eyes immediately open. In a fraction of a second, her feet disappear from under her body, her knees giving out, and the wind gets knocked out of her chest as her back hits the floor. There’s only time for a surprised yelp, before she has to blink away her confusion, finding Jaal straddling her body, pining her arms above her head.

His breathe is heaving, him as surprised by her presence as she is surprised by this situation, their chests brushing, so close that she can notice the faintest purple freckles alongside Jaal’s cheeks.

“Ryder,” he lets it out in one syllable, his hands immediately shooting up in the rain, as he is still blinking away his sleep, the world rearranging around him.

“Jaal,” she says, but the amusement is obvious in her tone, and when he starts shuffling, wanting to get on his feet, her fingers just barely graze his knee and his entire body seems to go in override, stilling entirely above her.

His eyes, like a feline ready to pounce upon its prey, land on her.

“Are you alright?” he asks instead, and she just nods – the question breezy and polite enough, loaded by the position they are in, by the position she found him in, waiting at her door to see her healthy.

“I thought…” she starts, and has to lick her lips to get the rest of her words out, “you’d go after the reincarnated angara.”

She is not even sure that is real, but chasing fairy tales and myths is not the most impossible thing she’s done so far. The question seems to sober him up though, and Jaal gets on his feet, apologies in every line of his expression, as he offers his hand to hers.

“Esmus said it could wait,” and now, able to look at her fully, he checks her up, slowly, from her toes to her head; he finds her red in the face already.

He steps closer, entering her personal space, his hand resting against her forehead – and he is pleased, humming his assent, when he finds it a normal temperature, and not the burning sensation that haunted him all these hours.

She shakes her head, shaking him away as well.

“I really am fine. A cold is nothing, we recover fast.”

“You were burning up.”

“That meant my body was doing its job of killing the illness.”

He narrows his eyes at her, unsure if he wants to believe her or not.

“I don’t know how to trust you anymore; you seem to deny yourself the basics of wellness.”

She shrugs, “I drink coffee.”

Her attempt at a joke goes poorly, because Jaal’s face twists, as if he’s just tasted something sour. She cringes, a gesture that he catches, and he immediately schools his expression in something more neutral.

“I’m glad to see you’ve recovered, at least.”

And with that, he turns on his feet, storming out of her room.

[angaranexpansionproject]

A lovely image and sentiment! The concept of taosovos is canon, and I've expanded in the words around love that we see in-game. The word taosovos specifically comes from the story Language Barriers by Rievu, and I've also incorporated headcanons that several people have about visible colors appearing from interactions between biotics and bioelectricity.

taosar; taosa, taosat, taosam - v - to love; love/loves, loved, will love

taosara - n, adj - love, strong affection

taoshay - n, adj - loved one

taosovos - n, adj - sharing of emotions using bioelectricity

Taosovos: Angara express their emotions using a low level bioelectric field that other angara can feel this if they're very close or touching. They feel it pulse through/along their skin, and different frequencies and patterns indicate different emotions. When it interacts with biotics it can be powerful and violent, though. They're so similar that I can't see them not interacting!

taosovos - expressing emotions using the bioeletric field while touching each other. This can be a massive experience for both.

Inspired by @myrddinderwydd I drew this shiny shimmering picture where Saraan shows his affection to Samuel in the taosovos.

For more such beautiful words (and a better explanation) visit Myrd’s Blog!!

[heavenlyeros]

you know how much I love glowy colourful things so of course I had to make the jardaan just like that. below the cut a long ramble on my headcanons about them

ko-fi || commissions

While thinking about who the jardaan could've possibly been I came up with the idea that they had some form of elemental powers, on a very small scale, much like the bioelectricity they gave the angara. Whether some of that was naturally there or they genetically gifted themselves is a wholly different can of worms. But yes.

I think they decided to terraform the whole cluster because they could. Their society had gotten to a point where they had the knowledge and resources to do it, and I think amongst the many differences of their many cultures they did share the trait of being deeply attuned to life. They might have been inspired by these elemental powers and wanted to apply them on an inconceivably massive scale - by altering planets to support life similar to their own.

Obviously, they must've gotten to a point where they simply didn't know what to do with so much habitable space. There's a few small remnant sites on the surface of most planets, but otherwise little sign of anyone living on them. Why would they go through all that trouble to just live underground? The vaults are humongous, and it did make me wonder if perhaps the jardaan cannot live in sunlight - perhaps a fault of their own bioengineering they're yet to fix, perhaps by nature. But instead of altering planets to accommodate themselves, they wanted to create life that could fully enjoy light - the plants, the animals, finally the angara.

Meridian where the jardaan might actually have lived is artificially lit, no? So perhaps it is starlight/sunlight which the angara need and love that the jardaan cannot live in. They would've made the centre of their vault network a habitable place for themselves.

So yes, I think they started out with just terraforming worlds and observing the simplest organisms that came to be on their own over a long period of time, and worked from that to create their own flora and eventually fauna that thrives in the sun. They got the chance to properly study organisms that, because of the whole sunlight thing, were very different to themselves (and quite possibly most other life from their homeworld?). And after that? They wanted to go bigger. They had learned how to facilitate and create life. It was time to make it sapient.

Their shape is inspired by that one statue in the game, which Avela mentions to look very strange and different to the angara. Whether that's the artist's touch, an earlier angaran model (either in game development or in angaran bioengineering), or an actual jardaan, I just really liked the idea of them being pointier and larger. They have the connected fingers they gave the angara and the fins and the crests, but everything is sharper, and they are tall and wide. Basically the angara are small, soft, colourful versions of the jardaan. If they were going to create life they would create it differently, but going by my headcanon that the angara were their first sapient creation I imagine they wouldn't have strayed too far from what they knew works. I also think by that point the jardaan would've managed to pretty much perfect their own DNA, so it wasn't a case of simply creating a genetically flawless version of their species - simply one that could live under very different conditions. They wanted to make a new people and give them the opportunity of their own life while still allowing them to fit into jardaan society without many special adjustments that would come with different biology, sans the sunlight part, for which they'd have lamps.

The jardaan are naturally bioluminescent, so the markings are not painted on. They started out as random splotches and freckles and stripes but were eventually just genetically engineered into various decorative patterns over many generations. I'm yet to decide if the colour is genetic or if it changes depending on mood (maybe it doesn't change but certain colours are associated with certain traits, and they put that into the design of the remnant bots, like green being serene and red being protective). Perhaps, even, the bioluminescent particles are under a first layer of translucent skin and the patterns can change. Vague memories of these might've inspired the face paint/tattoos we see some angara wear.

As a people so deeply attuned to everything living, they decided to go for the same visual feel to the architecture meant to bring whole worlds to life. Amongst their powers it was the bioelectricity they used to operate all of this machinery, so that's what they gave the angara to begin with. I think the angara were still very much a work in progress, centuries after the first truly living beings.

I'm fairly sure scanning the structures on Habitat 7 at the start of the game mentions they are only 300-400 years old, meaning the jardaan kept building the network for further expansion up until the scourge hit.

I really enjoy the theory of the jardaan having made the angara to be soldiers (I do like myself some delightful darkness and the irony of their situation when we meet them, long after the jardaan left). But for my main headcanon, I think they made them to be their equals, and they were cherished creations. The angara got to experience and live things the jardaan could not, and share all that with them. Perhaps the jardaan did not even want to change themselves and living underground went far beyond just biology. But in any case, most of all the jardaan simply loved being able to breathe life into worlds, and found the creation and nurturing of the angara very fulfilling.

With the jardaan preferring to dwell underground or in dark space it'd also make sense why we don't stumble upon any signs of life from them, though they're probably actively hiding as well. I do wonder if the jardaan were created themselves (which could play into the shortcomings of their own biology that they hadn't yet overcome) and also whether it was other jardaan (opposed to the angara, perhaps also somehow involved with the kett?) or even their own creators who made the scourge, rather than a random adversary. What happened to this enemy anyway? Sure the jardaan are hiding, but we don't meet anyone hunting them? Perhaps because they stopped doing what was bothering this enemy to begin with - working on the angara.

I believe the angara were well aware of the jardaan at the beginning, and interacted a lot, as the jardaan originally intended. Maybe in an attempt to see where life goes on its own that was reduced to a select few from each angaran group as the centuries went on (political drama?), but there would've still been plenty of angara familiar with the jardaan before the scourge. After that, the jardaan didn't run off and hide just to protect themselves - they did it to keep the angara safe, too. Perhaps without interference by a greater power the enemy would leave them alone.

Tl;dr the jardaan are big and bioluminescent, they have little elemental powers that inspired them to terraform, they cannot live in sunlight so they created creatures who can enjoy it, and they love the angara very much

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

Next up: clothing them, and also Sjefa somehow stumbles upon a small covenant of jardaan and many awed cuddle piles ensue.

[angaranexpansionproject]

How do Angara hear? Do they have hearing like humans, or do they hear vibrations...? I'm not sure how hearing works without external ear canals.

--Awesome question Anon, it sent me down a happy research rabbit hole and discussions with @gryphonrampant and @vocifersaurus. 

Angara hear well both in air and underwater. The curves of the jinesh (the folds of flesh around their head and neck) function similar to our outer ear by collecting sound, especially in air. Oil filled organs within their jinesh focus and transmit the sound waves to the otolith bones, which vibrate. 

Humans and other mammals have otoliths as well as the larger bones of the ear, but so do fishes - and they’re often quite big in large fish that hear well. Cetaceans have an auditory structure called the melon that is also filled with lipids (oils), and the air-filled swim bladder of a fish is also used to amplify hearing, which form the basis of the science behind this idea. In both cases, the difference in density between the organ and the surrounding environment increase the animal’s sensitivity to what amplitude and frequency of sound waves can be detected by their auditory system.

Many sensory organs are found within the large, curved jinesh of an angara. This includes the taon for generating bioelectricity, which is located within and beneath the two knobby protrusions that end the jinesh on an angara’s chest. The jollon is the primary auditory organ, filled with adipose tissue composed of low-density triglycerides and wax compounds. It is located in the largest curve of the jinesh, along each side of the head. The inner core of the jollon has a higher wax content than the outer parts and conducts sound slower. This gradient refracts sound and focuses it like a lens. Because this organ is both denser than air and less dense than water, the differential functions in both environments. 

Angaran hearing is good - better than humans and asari, especially underwater - but with lower sensitivity than turian or elcor hearing. One reason why is the amplification of sound by the combined jollon and the folds of the jinesh, which function to collect sound waves similarly to the outer ear, or pinna, of humans and many other animals. The uppermost folds which touch the top of the head are the most important, and most directly connected to the jollon. Damage to this tissue, such as the deep scar carried by Jaal ama Darav, compromises the angara’s hearing on that side. (This last idea is directly from the awesome @gryphonrampant)

jollon - n - hearing, the ability to detect sounds; the oil-filled auditory organ in the upper part of an angara's jinesh 

jollor, jollo, jollot, jollom - v - to hear, to listen

jedd - n - sound

jedder - v - to make a sound

ohmiyn - n - voice

ohmje - n - music

ohmjeddoor - v - to make music

ohmodd - n - a thing that was said, a quote

ohmor; ohmo, ohmot, ohmom - v - to speak, to say, to talk

wavalo - n - gills or similar structures for breathing in water; lit. swimming breath

wavooan - n, adj - fish, swimmer; generally used for any swimming organism

ialhatal - n - lungs lung, breathing sphere; angara have a singular lung that is spherical in addition to the gills in the jinesh; lit. breath globe/sphere

ialo - n, adj - breath or breathing; derived from the sounds we make to speak - like the word "ohm"

taon - n - the organ within the jinesh of an angara which generates bioelectricity

[myrddinderwydd]

Last line memes...of slightly nsfw-ness

You only think it is odd because you know it’s your own seed, Jaal scolded themself mildly, biting down firmly on the packet. It burst, coating their tongue in a sweet gel that tasted faintly of kawari.

Yes @faerieavalon​ totally still writing about Jaal’s special shower time ;-) Haven’t had a lot of time this week so far, but added 263 words to Vinas Honvfiri tonight. Tiredly tagging @dafan7711 ​ and @barbex and @mordinette and @musically-magic this time.

[gryphonrampant]

Hi! I took a look in your Vesav series on Archive of Our Own, my username is Jaal_Ama_Darav. And you have a chapter with insight into Angara biology. As someone who is building upon and loves the Angara too, can I use some of the stuff you came up with? Will give credit! :) And will read through your fics and comment too sometime! Looks like an incredible and extremely well thought out story!

Hi there! Thanks for all the wonderful comments. Yes, feel free to borrow and build on my angaran biology ideas. I look forward to seeing what you do with them.

[commanderbrosca]

bloomfish replied to your post “there some things i like about the angara but i don’t love them as...”

i just can't really swallow their ~mystical and benevolent beings~ stuff like the plot about reincarnation on havarl was ridiculous. i think its just different than the previous alien races who were all pretty realistic and unique

yeah all i’ve learned about them is that they’re vaguely spiritual and openly emotional and family is super important to them, which is cool and all but those aren’t exactly unique values. they just aren’t very interesting to me.. i miss quarians 

[angaranexpansionproject]

This is the other big part of my Angaran Expansion Project - biology headcanons inspired by the adorable tiny baby angara by @lonicera-caprifolium

new idea! do Angarans give little teddy space-bears to their babies? do groups of siblings born together have communal soft toys or does Jaal still have his own tiny, beat-up space-blankie?

Oh!! I think they do have communal toys, but every child has a favorite that they might end up keeping (Jaal definitely still has his…). ❤

But the toys start off bigger than the babies, so they can grow into them.

((They didn’t show us much wildlife to choose from, so this one’s an adhi–))

[kenshi-vakarian7]

Leather & Lace ‘19 - Fic 7 of 14

Event hosted by @alyssalenko @vorchagirl and @starsandskies

—

“Touch”

Prompt - Soft Touching

Growing up shy and timid back in the Milky Way, Pathfinder Aleera Ryder found the most comfort indulging in her passions, mainly biology and geology.  If not for certain circumstances in her life, including the pressure to follow in her father’s footsteps, she likely would’ve been a scientist by now.

Her father's AI research also happened.  The illegality of it destroyed any chance she and her twin brother had of a good future.  Soon after, Andromeda happened.  With it came the hope of, despite her uncertainty, a second chance at having a future for herself.  Then she woke up after more than six-hundred years in cryo and... nothing went as planned, and suddenly she was the Pathfinder following her father's demise.

To say that she was scared to death would be an understatement.

As time went on, Aleera did the best she could in her role, knowing that the Initiative depended on her.  What truly helped her face her fears were those who rallied behind her, mainly her crew on the Tempest.  She never thought she would find such supportive people in her life.

She also never thought she would find love with an alien from this very galaxy.

It was strange... when Aleera first met Jaal Ama Darav, she was afraid of him.  The Tempest had all but came flying into Aya in flames and soon surrounded by the angara, a species they hadn't met until that day.

Somehow, she got into his good graces.  Somehow, she proved herself enough to be worth Jaal's time.  By the time they rescued The Moshae, won the hearts of many angarans, and returned to Aya, Aleera found that she cared for Jaal a great deal.

And to her surprise, he felt the same for her.

When he send her his first love letter – when he first called her 'Darling One,' Aleera was over the moon!  No one had ever made her feel this wonderful and special before and, of course, she couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the night because that beautiful message was all she thought about.

Much time passed and since then, their love for each other grew deeper.  One day, Jaal took Aleera to his favorite place on Aya, a beautiful paradise they had all to themselves; the warm sun high in the sky, a crystal clear waterfall adding to the lake next to the sandy white beach, clean air, various plant life that added a beautiful array of colors as far as her eyes could see.

Aleera would've stayed here forever if she could.

They made love here, hidden behind the waterfall amongst the rocks and mossy grass.  It was Aleera's first time and, aside from the minor pain that was expected, it was wonderful... perfect.  And Jaal... he was so good to her, so kind and patient. Every kiss from his lips and every touch from his hands made her feel like a goddess.

Every time he held her close, she felt safe and protected in his strong arms.

Every time he kissed her lips, she felt alive.

Every time he caressed her skin, she felt wanted.

Every time he did all three of these things at once, she felt loved.  So, so loved...

She never, ever wanted to him to stop touching her.

Later, after their lovemaking, they simply embraced each other and relaxed where they laid, the only sound for miles was the splashing waterfall nearby.  In her mind, Aleera never realized that her first time would be like this; in a beautiful place, her heart filled with bliss, and in the arms of the sweetest and most caring lover in two galaxies.

She was a very, very lucky lady.

“How are you, darling one?” Jaal asked her after some silence.  As he spoke, he reached out to cup her cheek with his hand.

She felt the joyful tears sting her eyes at the soft touch, but Aleera smiled past them.  “I'm happy, Jaal.  I'm so, so happy.”

[avaquet]

Discussion: Angaran Plausibility

Warning!! Long rant ahead! And Spoilers!!

Yes I know it’s just a game and such, but I love to think about the “what ifs”

I think the angara are perfectly plausible in all their biology, even in a completely different galaxy. 

Here’s why: 

Alright, so the main issue i see a lot of people bring up is that they look too similar to humans to really be plausible. Like their nose and eye shape or the fact that they have lips, or that they walk on two legs and have bones for five fingers on each hand and five toes on each foot. Yes, well, those are very basic things to have my dudes.

I can only compare to Earth because we have no other comparison to look off of.

It all comes down to a few things: survivabilty, energy to usage ratio, functionality, reproduction, and aging. And angara and krogan pretty  much top all of that. We will get to that in a moment- but for now, let’s look at Earth:

Earth has many various climates. Arid, wet, freezing, hot, barren, thick, etc. Animals that live in the desert can’t live in Antarctica. Now I am only going to refer to surface species and evolution because the angara are also surface species, and the ocean is a very different place on any planet. (and if you look at the hanar, they had to be uplifted by the Protheans, and they basically have to rely on technology for pretty much everything out of water, so they are at a severe biological disadvantage anyways.)

Now think of any surface animal on Earth. Did you think of a creature with four legs, hair, two eyes, a nose above the mouth, and two ears? Pretty basic, right? Head on top of a neck on top of the body lead by four ligaments. Almost every surface species on Earth has that structure. Because it’s a biological advantage.

Now look at a snake and a human, pretty different, right? Sure, except that they have a head that has a mouth with a heat sensor above that mouth and two eyes above that nose. Yeah, I’m being a little petty here because people pick out these types of things with angara all the time, and I’m like, why? In a universe full of infinite possibilities, the first alien species we ever come across could look exactly like a human.

Point is, we have a lot of things in common with different species from across the world in a very different climate. All due to evolution and striving for a biological advantage.

Now back to the angara: they were created by the Jaardan, a race that obviously is extremely intelligent, so they would want their creation to have as much as a natural advantage as possible. Let’s begin.

The green, purple, and blue skin colors of the angara: Ever look at Aya, Havarl, hell even Voeld? Notice the plants? Blues, greens, and purples? The angara have an advantage with camouflage in their own homes.

The eyes: Most eye shapes are “like humans” anyways (really no matter what the species). They have a 180 vision like most other species do. Their eyes are bigger, and they have vertical pupils. Which helps with being able to see in the dark, aka advantage.

The nose: Male angaran noses differ from females slightly. They actually resemble a turian’s nose. The fact is, angaran noses are small, and mostly slits. They breathe just fine through them without too much getting into their body. (Jaal snores, yes I know. But that could be a more personal issue than all angara snore, cause that would be a huge disadvantage). And it works because, they don’t sneeze, which I’m highly jealous of.

The mouth: Lips, teeth, a tongue, are all advantages. To eating, speech, and keeping more things from entering the body. Ever been to a dentist and had your mouth pried open? Okay, now eat and talk like that. That’s probably how turians and vorcha feel. If you ever look closely at a turian’s mouth, you’d know it doesn’t actually have a full closure. Also, turians have sharp teeth, which means that they can’t chew (along with the fact that they don’t have lips, which would also make drinking a chore), which also means that digestion takes forever. Aka turians would use more energy to eat, the energy to usage ratio is unbalanced. Not saying that turians aren’t plausible, because they are. Humans have more biological disadvantages than turians do yet we still exist.

Body structure: The jowls of an angara seem to protect the neck, which is important. And yet, they have full flexibility, which is good. In fact, the angara have a lot of flexibility, and their muscles appear more dense which means that they can have more strength packed in along with the flexibility. The two legs means that they only need two ligaments to make them move, instead of more, which is a good energy to usage ratio. The extra joint would allow more flexibility and better balance, but would require more energy usage, cause now you’ve got more tendons and muscles to deal with. Arms are pretty self explanatory. (also notice on earth how most animals only have four ligaments? Two wings and two legs, two arms and two legs, or four legs. Energy to usage ratio.) Five bones for five fingers but really only three fingers (same with toes) imagine how easier swimming would be? Since water seems to be everywhere on their homeworlds. Two opposable thumbs and two opposable toes, aka extra grip and flexibility. And where that opposable toe is on their feet would help majorly with balance, like the big toe on a human. Skin seems pretty thick as well, which is good for insulation in colder climates. Their chest area, aka the spot everyone says is ugly, actually would have a huge advantage to protecting the heart and lungs. They’re essentially over-sized collarbones.

Bioelectricity: This uses up a major amount of energy, but can pack a punch in defense. And angara don’t go around blasting people away 24/7 so they’re fine. They do use it for social cues, though, and emotional aspects. But that usage is mostly just small amounts. This can be debatable whether it’s a full disadvantage or not.

Speaking of energy usage, angara rely on three major sources for energy: sun, food, and sleeping. Which means that’s probably fueling the bioelectricity the most. But seeing as the angara can control it, they could probably stay up a couple of nights in a row, aka more work done and advancement, especially if they can pace themselves, though they would be extremely tired by the end of it all.

You could probably pick out major disadvantages to everything that I’ve said, well that’s just the other side of the coin to literally everything. And the way the angara live, it seems those advantages are very useful and worth the disadvantages.

We also have to remember that the angara were created, they didn’t really have evolution like we did. So, they have a huge head start, and the Jaardan did a damn good job with their biology, both in a scientific sense and a more personal sense.

Another thing I see people sometimes complain about is that the male and female angara differences aren’t that huge. Neither are the differences between most species in existence, or turians, or krogan, or salarians, or any of the other mass effect races anyways. 

Side note: I’ve noticed that the female angara jowls are smaller than the males, and the males have the ridged back of the head area where the females don’t, I just find that interesting!

All in all, imma defend the angara until the day I die. I believe they are plausible in every aspect and BioWare did a damn good job creatively and functionally creating the angara. The only similarities that I see them having with humans are those that most species everywhere we look have in common with us as well. Angara are aliens to us and we are alien to angara.

Even though they aren’t from Earth, we all have to remember, they have to be able to survive to reproduce, survive growing up, and have enough energy to do so. And they do. Kudos to them.