#stargazerims

[stargazer-sims]

Aliens & Science Babies - Info Post

THIS IS PART OF A WORK OF FICTION

Feel free to use any part of this (or all of it) for your own stories, if you want. I'm happy to share.

For ease of reference, this post will be linked in my pinned post.

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We all have our headcanons, right? In the "multiverse" of my imagination, I've done a lot of worldbuilding and made up a handful of alien races for various stories over the years, most notably the Erisans from my Two Worlds universe (in which there are actually six inhabited worlds including Earth and Eris, but who's counting anyway?) But, this post is supposed to be about my lore for "Sims universe" aliens, so... here we go.

I feel like my current stories are only tangentially connected to the Sims universe (meaning it would be super easy for them to be entirely independent of The Sims with only a few very minor changes), but nevertheless, when Get To Work came out, the idea of a new ready-made alien race was irresistible to me. Fortunately, the pre-established lore was fairly vague, so I basically went to town with it for my own stories. Keeping the name of the planet Sixam was convenient, because then I didn't have to come up with something else.

Aliens

in my alien lore, people from Sixam prefer to be known as Sixamish (at least when speaking English) and consider being referred to as aliens to be offensive. Their language is also called Sixamish. It's the same language across the whole planet, but it has various dialects. Most Sixamish people can understand most of the dialects.

Sixamish people are completely bald and do not have head or facial hair, eyebrows or body hair. They do have eyelashes, which are usually translucent, white or pale blue. Skin colours range from blue that is nearly white, through to deep blue and light purple. Purple is the least common skin colour, and pale blue is the most common. They have pointed ears and sharp canine teeth. The sclerae of their eyes is dark grey, with iris colours ranging from silver-grey to black to platinum or gold. Females are generally larger than males, with polychromatic males typically being the smallest.

All Sixamish people are bisexual by default. They usually bond in pairs, but trios and quads are not uncommon.

They recognize a sex binary (male and female) but gender as a social construct isn’t a concept they really understand. Their society has sex-specific and caste-specific roles, but things like clothing, fragrances, tools & appliances, toys, games, sports, careers, education, and access to public spaces are sex (and gender) nonspecific. They will not refer to things like “girls’ toys” or “men’s clothes” because that isn’t a thing for them. For example, clothes are just clothes, regardless of the style. In fact, their language has no equivalents for woman, man, girl and boy; it only has male and female, referring directly to biological sex rather than some concept of gender.

—— These next two paragraphs may be TMI for some people —— Both males and females are capable of becoming pregnant and impregnating others. Both sexes have an internal reproductive organ known as the "gestational organ" (equivalent to the human uterus & ovaries) and both have sets of external genitalia that include the "pollination organ" and "birth opening". Both sexes are capable of producing milk to feed their babies, but females have more developed breasts and are capable of producing more. Males, by contrast, will produce a small amount of milk on their own, but rely on females to produce a sufficient supply to feed a baby. The males secrete a pheromone that triggers milk production in females regardless of whether the female is pregnant/has recently given birth or not. The pheromone requires prolonged exposure, which usually means only the male's female partner will produce milk. Two males who reproduce together usually have to feed their child with formula because only the pregnant male will produce milk.

Males and females are also distinguished biologically by the size and shape of their external genitalia. The pollination organ in females is a long, thin organ, and its natural relaxed position is retracted into the body. It extrudes when the female is sexually aroused, although some females are able to extrude it at will. The male polination organ is shorter and wider, and males can retract or extrude it at wlll (most males find it more comfortable to keep it tucked in). the female birth opening is bigger than the male birth opening, but both will become larger during pregnancy, and will dilate during labour. —— ********** ——

Another important physical feature of Sixamish people is that they have spots on their face, back and chest. Spot colour plays an important role in Sixamish society and functions almost like a caste system. The most common type of spots are known as monochromatic, where all the spots on a person's body are the same colour or varying tones of a single colour. People with this spot configuration belong to the class of average citizens who can engage in any type of education or work they want to do, regardless of biological sex. People who are polychromatic have different statuses in society, depending on their biological sex.

Polychromatic spots are ones that are more than one colour.

Common Polychromia - like the name implies, this is the most common form of polychromia. In this variety, the spots are pink, purple, teal, blue and green on a single individual. All five colours can be present, but even a combination of two of these colours is enough to classify it as common polychromia

Floral Polychromia - This one is any shade of pink in addition to purple

Cool Polychromia - This is one of the rarer types. It's the presence of blue, turquoise, teal and green (cool tones), or at least two of those colours in combination

Warm Polychromia - this is the second-rarest type, and it's the presence of spots that are pink, coral, orange, gold and yellow, or at least two of these. Most people with warm polychromia have all five colours present. Warm polychromia is part of a set of genetic mutations that also includes delays in development and delays in physical maturity. Many people with this condition experience congenital disabilities or health problems such as deafness and autoimmune conditions. Most have some level of cognitive delay or learning disability.

Atypical Polychromia - a combination of two or more spot colours that don't fit into the categories above. This is the rarest type.

Sixam is a matriarchal system, which means the females are the dominant members of society. They occupy the majority of important positions in government, law, finance & commerce, science and technology. While monochromatic males have plenty of freedom to do what they want, monochromatic females still enjoy more privilege. However, even monochromatic females aren't as elevated as polychromatic females.

Polychromatic males, by contrast, have an unusual status. In terms of societal power, they have virtually none. They're generally not educated beyond basic education (think Grade 9 or so in Earth terms) and in general aren't required to work. Many polychromatic males have mild to moderate intellectual deficits or delays. They're often married at a young age, in marriages arranged by their mothers, and the mothers often collect a "bonding gift" of money or other resources from the chosen wife's family.

Polychromatic males are considered the most beautiful, particularly if they're small and delicate. Powerful females will pay a lot to arrange a marriage with a poly male, especially if he has one of the more rare spot variations. Generally speaking, he'll be treated like (stereotypical) royalty by his new wife, sometimes even with household staff specifically hired to wait on him. He won't have to be involved in any major decision-making if he doesn't want to be, he'll get to pursue any hobby or interest he likes, and his wife will typically spoil him and provide him with whatever he wants. His biggest responsibility will be to give birth to children and be the primary caregiver for them.

There are many people who disagree with the way polychromatic males are treated and think it's a "gilded cage" phenomenon. The idea of bonding gifts and arranged marriages are divisive topics in Sixamish society.

Miscellaneous

Sixam discovered faster-than-light space travel over 150 years ago. They have been aware of Earth for some time, and have been visiting it since the early 1960s. Sixamish people began living secretly on Earth in the late sixties.

They are exceptionally gifted at learning languages, and many Sixamish people learn Earth languages as well as the languages of other sentient races they're aware of.

They're also gifted at singing in particular and music in general.

Sixamish people have the ability to camouflage themselves. They can blend in with their surrounding environment to seem "invisible" or they can mimic other bipedal species, such as Earth people. Camouflage is a learned skill, and most don't master it until adolescence.

Sixamish people are natural empaths. They can't read minds, but they can both receive and project emotions. Babies and young children project involuntarily, which helps parents understand their needs. By the age of two or three, children begin to learn from older family members how not to project involuntarily, but they retain the ability to project deliberately, into adulthood.

They also have an aura, which is visible when they feel strong emotions. It has different colours depending on the emotion/the hormone driving the emotion.

Males take on more responsibility for bearing and raising children than females do.

The average Sixamish lifespan is 120 "Earth years". Males can safely have children well into their 50s, and are physically capable of having children into their late 60s. Females can safely have children into their late 40s but typically experience the Earth equivalent of menopause in their mid to late 50s.

Twin pregnancies are common among Sixamish people; however, triplets and quads are extremely rare, and there are no recorded instances of multiple births with more than four babies.

They're genetically compatible with Earth people, and having hybrid offspring is possible.

Many Sixamish people can't swim

Sixamish people are omnivores

They prefer warmer climates

They have highly advanced medical technology, particularly in the area of reproductive technology and fertility

"Science Babies"

When I first started thinking about this and doing my worldbuilding, the game hadn't given us the term "science babies" yet. I absolutely love that term, though. It's a neat, concise way of referring to the whole process, so of course I adopted it, because... why not?

In my lore, during the late 1970s/early 80s men started randomly disappearing, particularly from towns in the desert (Oasis Springs, Strangerville). They would be gone for several hours up to a day or two, and then would be returned to the spot where they disappeared. They would be disoriented and confused, but otherwise unharmed. At first, these multiple accounts of alien abduction weren't taken seriously, but soon the men were no longer coming back with no discernible harm done. In fact, doctors quickly discovered that the men had been impregnated with alien fetuses.

Human science scrambled to understand how this happened and how to deal with it, and government officials did as much as they could to suppress the information so as not to cause a mass panic. But, of course the stories got out and many people believed them.

What was really going on was that Sixamish doctors and scientists, who had been living secretly on Earth for well over a decade at that point, had observed that many human couples were unable to have biological children together, either because one of the partners was infertile or unable to conceive or because it was a same-sex couple who literally could not conceive naturally. Sixamish people were already experts in reproductive science and had perfected many scientific techniques that were fully authorized and in use on their own world. They wanted to be able to help Earth people, and began to conduct experiments with human reproduction.

Government officials launched a massive investigation to find out what was going on, and they uncovered the existence of the Sixamish people who'd been living on Earth. That was the official first contact, regardless of the fact that the real first contact had happened years ago.

After the Earth equivalent of "take us to your leader", government negotiators were able to meet with Sixamish officials and scientists for an explanation of what was going on. In a remarkable display of common sense and non-reactivity, negotiations began and eventually an agreement was reached between Earth and Sixam. The Sixamish scientists would be allowed to continue their experiments, but they would have to do it openly and it would have to be monitored by the appropriate Earth government agencies. It would also have to be approved by Earth officials before it could be offered as a medical service to the public at large.

The Sixamish people established the original Nookstone Clinic for Reproductive Science in Oasis Springs in the mid-80s.

Fast-forward to the mid-90s. The Sixamish reproductive procedures are approved, and Nookstone clinics are popping up all over the world. They don't have a huge uptake at first, but by the late 2000s, they've gained traction and are generally accepted by a large percentage of the population and are often a first choice for people who wouldn't naturally be able to have a biological child together.

Other services that Nookstone provides for prospective parents and parents-to-be are information sessions, peer support groups, counselling, and parenting classes. Most parents take advantage of some or all of these services during the process.

There is still a faction of political and social opposition to The Process, as it has become known, with people decrying it as unethical, immoral, strange and "against nature". Protests crop up from time to time, and political candidates will sometimes make it an election platform topic, but on the whole there is far more acceptance than opposition and the Sixamish clinics aren't in any danger of going away any time soon.

"The Process"

The process is similar to cloning, in that prepared DNA is placed inside a human egg cell with the nucleus removed. In this case, two sets of donor DNA from the parents are collected, prepared and combined before being placed into the egg cell and then implanted into the host or "gestational carrier".

The process always begins with a complete physical examination and psychological evaluation of the parents, as well as genetic testing for compatibility and suitability for the procedure. A Sixamish doctor (or one of the handful of human doctors trained in the process) will examine the results and meet in person with the parents for prior to doing anything else. This is an opportunity for the doctor to explain the process in greater detail and for the parents to address any questions or concerns.

The next step is DNA collection from both parents. After this, the DNA is combined and prepared. Four to six embryos are usually prepared, in case the first implantation doesn't work or in case the parents want to have further children later.

The next step will be either the implantation procedure or placing the embryo into a specialized container. There are three ways gestation of the baby can take place:

One of the parents, regardless of biological sex, can be the gestational carrier (i.e. the person who is pregnant)

The parents can choose a surrogate to carry their child. In this case, the surrogate will have to undergo the same physical, psychological and genetic testing as the biological parents

They can choose extracorporeal gestation, where the baby is grown in an artificial womb rather than in a living body

female biological parent or surrogate as carrier - This is the most straightforward and the least expensive. If the gestational carrier is a biological female, the prepared embryo is implanted directly into the uterus, and the pregnancy proceeds normally, just like a naturally-conceived or IVF pregnancy. The gestation period is the typical 37-40 weeks, and labour and delivery are also the same as a naturally-achieved pregnancy, with either natural birth or C-section, depending on circumstances. For female carriers, only one embryo is typically implanted and the rate of rejection is less than 10 percent.

male biological parent or surrogate as carrier - This option is far more complex and therefore more expensive. It also has more risks associated with it than with the female carrier option. In the case of male carriers, the embryos are encased in a bio-engineered membrane that grows with the fetus during gestation and essenially fulfills the functions of uterus and placenta. The membrane is designed to attach to the abdominal wall, and the male carrier will essentially be "pregnant" for 37-40 weeks.

Because the bio-engineered membrane isn't a muscle and biological males don't have the physical capacity to give birth naturally, birth is done surgically. This means a male patient won't experience labour. From week 36 onward, male carriers are monitored closely to track the development of the baby, and surgery is performed when the doctor determines the baby is developed enough for birth.

Biological males also naturally lack the hormones to sustain a pregnancy, so during the process, they have to receive hormone injections on a weekly basis. These hormones can cause most of the same symptoms a biological female could experience naturally during pregnancy; fatigue, muscle aches, nausea/morning sickness, acne, mood swings, food cravings, weight gain, etc.

In male carriers, the rate of rejection is still less than 10% but it is higher in males than in females. Two embryos are implanted in males, and in the majority of cases, at least one will implant successfully. If both are successful, the parents may choose to keep both or to terminate one.

The implantation procedure in males is done by injecting the embryos in their bio-engineered membranes into the patient's abdomen with a needle and surgical tubing. The patient receives a local anesthetic, so he doesn't feel any pain or discomfort during the procedure. Also, because what is essentially a foreign body is being introduced into his body, he's given medication to suppress his immune response, to limit the possibility of rejection.

During the implantation period, male carriers often experience flu-like symptoms and mild pain around the injection site. This usually resolves by itself with no medical intervention needed.

Approximately 10 days after the implantation procedure, the patient will have his first ultrasound scan, blood test and urine test to confirm that implantation was successful.

Biological sex of the baby can be determined by a scan around 20 weeks, just like it can in a female patient's pregnancy. Scans and checkups are scheduled throughout the pregnancy the same as they would be for a female patient.

Male patients are subject to the same risks as female patients, such as high blood pressure or gestational diabetes. Additionally, because the bio-engineered membrane isn't a normal part of the body, there is a risk in the later stages of pregnancy of the membrane tearing or detaching from the abdominal wall due to the weight of the baby. This is rare, but enough of a risk that it always gets explained to patients from the beginning. If this happens, it's extremely painful for the carrier and life-threatening for both him and the baby. It's a genuine emergency, and the baby has to be delivered immediately. If doctors think this is likely to happen to a particular patient, they may put him on strict bed rest until the baby is fully developed, or they may admit him to the hospital for close observation.

Extarcorporeal Gestation - This third option is the newest to be approved and has only been in use since 2010. It's the least-chosen option, because most parents really want the experience of having their own baby (or supporting their partner in having a baby), and also because it's the most expensive option with the lowest percentage of insurance coverage. However, just because it's the least-chosen option, that doesn't mean it's not a thriving program. Enough couples choose it for the Nookstone corporation to continue to develop and offer it as an option in three-quarters of their clinics worldwide.

This option starts in the same way as the other two, up to the point of implantation. Instead of implanting the embryo(s) into a living carrier, They're placed into the same type of bio-engineered membrane and then suspended in a specially-developed machine with an "artificial womb" tank and sophisticated monitoring equipment. The tank is maintained at the same temperature as the inside of a human body. Nutrients and hormones are measured and administered to the growing baby, and wastes are eliminated through the machine's filtration system. The gestation period is still 37-40 weeks (38 weeks in the majority of instances).

This option has an exceptional success rate, with gestational failure at less than 5 percent.

Parents who choose this option are told immediately that they cannot choose the sex of their baby, nor can they choose specific physical characteristics or anything else. There is a common misconception that this method is a way to get "designer babies", but beyond the initial process of combining the DNA and encasing the embryo in the bio-engineered membrane, there is absolutely no "editing" of the fetus. Sixamish people consider this to be unethical, and even if it weren't against the law in many countries on Earth, they would refuse to do it.

There are no physical checkups for the parents in this option; however, parents are invited to come to the clinic at the same intervals as gestational carriers, to receive updates on the development of their baby. This includes scans of the developing fetus, as well as updates on baby's current size, weight and overall health. It also includes hearing a recording of the baby's heartbeat at 12 weeks and finding out the baby's biological sex at the 20-week mark, if they want to know the sex.

At the end of the gestation period, babies are "decanted" from the extracorporeal gestation machine. Parents are not allowed to be present for this, but will be able to wait in an adjoining room and will meet their new baby just minutes after their birth. Babies will usually be taken to hospital after this, to be thoroughly examined and then monitored for 24-48 hours, and to complete government paperwork such as birth registry documents/birth certificate and universal healthcare programs (in countries that have those). Then, the new parents can take their baby home.

As one might expect, extracorporeal gestation is the most controversial of all the already somewhat controversial options provided by the Sixamish doctors and scientists. This is the one that far more people find creepy or uncanny, even more than the idea of pregnant biological males. It was also the most difficult to get approved and the one that is the subject of the most protests and political wrangling. The social risk involved in choosing this option is another reason why it's the least often chosen.

But, for couples in which neither partner wants to or is able to carry the baby for whatever reason, and who would rather not involve a third party surrogate, this option is the proverbial godsend. It's been the pathway to creating happy families for people who might not otherwise have had the ability or opportunity.

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Feel free to ask me any questions!

I may add to this post from time to time, as there are more aspects fo Sixamish culture I'd like to think about and explore for my own story purposes.

[stargazer-sims]

Belle: What are you looking at? I know I'm famous, but it's like you've never seen a famous kid just be a normal kid before. I can eat my tofu dog on the swings if I want to. I mean, Félix would if he wanted to, and he says everyone should be allowed to do whatever they want as long as it's not hurting other people.