#the tuatha dé danann is from metal slug 3D for those who don't know

[thesilliestrovingalive]

Updated: September 15, 2024

Reworked Species #2: Tuatha Dé Danann

Overview

Unfortunately, little information has been preserved about the history, culture, behaviours, and capabilities of the Tuatha Dé Danann. However, it’s known that they thrived during the Hadean Eon, a time marked by the emergence of life, and possessed technology far superior to that of modern humanity. They formerly inhabited Jupiter, but relocated to Earth upon discovering its superior potential for sustaining life. This society of demigods was renowned for their impressive naval prowess and vast knowledge, reflecting their diverse talents and interests.

The Tuatha Dé Danann created intricate hieroglyphic drawings on portable pieces of green jasper, red garnet or obsidian, highlighting them with fool's gold or mercury. These drawings depicted ancient deities, such as the Avatar of Evil, and are often referred to as the Rosetta Stones.

The Tuatha Dé Danann are believed to possess an infinite amount of knowledge, encompassing even forbidden lore, but this intellectual capacity diminishes with each successive generation of descendants. As their DNA is diluted, their heirs retain only a hint of the Tuatha Dé Danann's extraordinary cognitive abilities, allowing them to hold more knowledge than the average human but not to the same extent as their ancestors. Notably, the Tuatha Dé Danann lived long enough to intermarry with fully evolved humans, sparking controversy among the older generations. The older generations viewed such unions as a taint on their genetic lineage, regarding themselves as a superior species whose physical and mental purity was paramount.

They can effortlessly distinguish between their own kind, including those who possess Tuatha Dé Danann DNA, and beings from other species through a peculiar tingling sensation of familiarity. Legend has it that they occasionally or frequently glimpse a pair of glowing red eyes watching them from darkened corners or shadowy places. They interpret this as a guardian carefully observing and assessing their moral actions. However, their descendants often find this unsettling with some believing they are being haunted by a restless spirit, while others suspect they are merely hallucinating. Sometimes, they're drawn into certain places, enticed by an aura of curiosity, a commanding presence or the echoing whispers of safety and growth.

They're immune to debilitating illnesses and were once prolific wielders of powerful magic, controlling the weather, elements, and earth's fertility. With this magic, they could shapeshift themselves and objects into animals and people, become invisible by hiding in a mist, and bring doom upon those who committed heinous acts against the divine and the law. However, descendants of the Tuatha Dé Danann have lost the ability to wield this magic as modern society has forgotten the secrets of harnessing and maintaining such an arcane force.

Beliefs

Although their specific beliefs and values are not well-documented, they are largely centred around animism, enlightenment, salvation, and cultural preservation. They held key values such as honour, courage, mastery of survival skills, overall health, compassion, creativity, and wisdom. Moreover, they believed it was their responsibility to aid in the physical and technological evolution of all life forms and reset the timeline when destruction seemed imminent. Some believe in the transformative power of human emotions and physical capabilities.

They held immense respect for the deities, preparing exquisite festivals, large feasts, worship ceremonies, and moral laws inspired by their unique principles. They hold a profound belief in the sacredness of the land, recognizing a collective responsibility to protect it from desecration and preserve its integrity. As stewards of the natural world, they strive to maintain harmony among the five elements: earth, air, fire, water, and quintessence. Embracing the cyclical nature of life, they accept and respect the phases of birth, growth, decay, and rebirth, working to maintain the delicate balance of the natural order.

Appearance

It's commonly believed that the Tuatha Dé Danann bore a striking resemblance to humans, but with distinct physical differences. They were remarkably tall, with males standing at an impressive 9’ 4” (284.48 cm) and females reaching approximately 8’ 10” (269.24 cm). Their physiques were characterised by lean builds, prominent muscles, and a proportionate amount of body fat. Their hair reportedly came in varying shades of black and blonde, while their eyes ranged in hues of blue and cyan. They have a pale complexion, but most experience a dulling of their skin hue as they grow older with age.

Warriors often adorned themselves with vibrant markings: they bleached the skin of their faces, torsos, arms, and lower legs with woad, giving them a bluish appearance. They also used Murex snail dye to create swirling patterns or claw-like marks on their faces, chests, and arms, which appeared purple. Additionally, they dyed their hair with madder red dye, and if they had longer hair, they braided it.

Tuatha Dé Danann rulers are always born with distinctive physical characteristics, including either python-like legs, a wolf’s head, a winding, serpentine fish tail or the lower half of a horse.

The exact nature of their attire is unknown, but it’s believed to have been crafted from luxurious materials such as silks, satins, linens, and animal pelts. Their jewellery was adorned with gemstones, precious metals, and ornate pieces made from animal teeth and bones. Notably, their armour was forged from a mysterious material known as adamant, a semi-magnetic rock infused with hardened steel, renowned for its exceptional strength and durability, surpassing even that of diamond.

Known Locations

Atlantis is said to be buried deep within the centre of the Atlantic Ocean. According to legend, the fabled civilization of the Hadean Eon was lost to the depths after its ruler succumbed to hubris and attempted to conquer humanity or prematurely reboot life itself with the aid of the Alator. The city's architecture is characterised by a series of concentric islands, separated by expansive moats and linked by a winding canal that culminates in a central hub: a towering structure featuring labyrinthine hallways, prismatic stone, and an altar adorned with ancient deity caricatures.

Some believe that Atlantis houses ancient technology infused with psionic energy and holds the knowledge of the deities. A few also speculate that it will rise up from the Atlantic Ocean during a rare and ominous blood moon event, rumoured to last for seven days, potentially initiating the apocalypse.

Ultima Thule is a remote tundra island located northwest of the Orkney Islands, frequently visited by whale and orca families. The island experiences the extreme phenomena of polar night and midnight sun. It features a waterfall that remains unfrozen, rocky cliffs embedded with shimmering crystals, snow-capped mountains, and a dormant volcano believed to have been used for ancient human sacrifices. Despite its fertile soil and abundant fields, capable of supporting crops and fruits, Ultima Thule is uninhabited. Regrettably, the island has been exploited as a dumping site for trash, discarded vehicles, and defunct machinery, leading to its notorious moniker, Scrap Island. It secretly harbours the remains of a deceased extraterrestrial deity and antediluvian, faulty technology of the Tuatha Dé Danann.

It's believed that Ultima Thule was once a multifaceted hub, featuring large greenhouses for agriculture, mines for fossil fuels, precious metals, and gemstones, and sanctuaries that housed libraries, lavish bathhouses, and comfy homes for the elderly. Additionally, the area hosted various winter sports to test physical strength and agility, survival skills, instinctive reflexes, and mental strategies.

Technology

Little is known about their technological capabilities, but it’s believed that they were the result of a fusion of advanced mechanics, cutting-edge bioengineering, and mystical wizardry. Some of their technology is said to be capable of creating devastating weapons unparalleled on Earth, generating new land masses and life forms (including clones), and even tearing rifts in the space-time continuum.

They’ve developed monolithic computer modules capable of storing vast amounts of knowledge, a simulated torture chamber, and generating serpentine wires that can interface with humans and international computer systems. These modules are concealed in Ultima Thule and the temple of a South Pacific archipelago that’s under the control of the P.F. Squad.

The Ajirabian Teardrop was once in their possession before ending up in the Ajirabian Ruins, and it's believed to hold the power to summon the dead and damned for use in warfare and forced labour. Additionally, it can serve as an energy source for advanced weapons, emitting fiery, electrical laser beams capable of decimating up to 200 men. It is believed that the Volt Electric Barrier employed by the Rebel Army, the enigmatic white masks donned by Ptolemaic cultists, Mummy Generators, Warp Tubes, and the Electric Door in the Oro Sol Ruins warehouse were all originally artifacts of the Tuatha Dé Danann.

Atlantis contains the Alator, a 200-million-year-old information-gathering device, and the Lugus Lieu, a biomechanical tower giant that serves as the Alator's core. The Alator is employed to accelerate the evolution of cultures and life forms, but it inevitably self-destructs when accessed by an individual of Tuatha Dé Danann lineage, resetting the timeline and perpetuating an eternal cycle of repetition. Lugus Lieu solely obeys the commands of the Tuatha Dé Danann and their descendants as they possess the sentience to recognize the inherent wrongness of harming their own creators. They’re composed of adamant, featuring a radiant blue-grey finish, and possess ever-shifting flesh that shimmers with a luminous quality beneath the light of the sun and moon.

Lugus Lieu contains the Alator within a non-Euclidean dimension in its chest, accessible only by allowing it to absorb individuals into its luminous flesh. This non-Euclidean dimension features a majestic Greco-Roman and Mesoamerican ziggurat, its structure twisting and curving like a Möbius strip, crafted from gold-speckled ruby zoisite that seems to shift and change colour as one observes it. The structure appears to be simultaneously convex and concave as if it's being pulled in multiple directions at once. It serves as the nexus point of a mind-bending, geometric expanse with a wild sandstorm that has particles that flow like liquid. Iridescent, bioluminescent tendrils burst forth from the ground, only to retract and reappear elsewhere, while harmless blue flames morph into impossible shapes and patterns that would be unthinkable in our reality. The entrance to the ziggurat is guarded by an oxidised brass double gate of impossible geometry, comprising intersecting circles that appear to be both tangent and overlapping, yet never actually touching.

Beyond the gate lies a labyrinth of rectangular mirrors, each functioning as a portal to other realities, dimensions, and planes of existence. These mirrors reveal a stunning cosmic panorama, showcasing a multitude of stars, comets, asteroids, meteoroids, meteors, meteor showers, natural satellites, planets, dwarf planets, and galaxies, swirling together in an infinite dance. However, the mirrors also display impossible geometries, such as Klein bottles, Möbius strips, and Calabi-Yau manifolds. Above, the sky is shrouded in a foggy black haze, which seems to be composed of tiny, swirling vortexes that defy the laws of thermodynamics. Beneath, the durable floor is a vibrant, multicoloured pyrope, featuring hues of blood red, pink, purple, and green, which appear to shift and change depending on the angle of observation.

They were in possession of data discs attached to copper-hued adamant vambraces, comprising three sections that are adorned with an encircling, shaky line pattern and outlined with gold accents to demarcate each section. The data discs themselves are rimmed with pearlescent adamant and centred with a floating rhomboid piece of green jasper. These devices are capable of generating an impenetrable shield, manifesting as yellow-orange and saffron octagonal waves, for defensive purposes. Additionally, they can emit purplish-white laser projectiles for long-range offence. The true purpose of these data discs is to preserve the DNA structures of each successive generation of life and document their unique cultures.

Before relocating to Earth, they created the 49 ft (1493.52 cm) biomechanical, humanoid extraterrestrials known as the Monoeyes. It is believed that they created these beings to symbolise their Jovian heritage and express their desire for a new species to thrive on their home planet. As Jupiter is the Monoeyes' birthplace and they had inhabited the planet for thousands of years, they are sometimes referred to as the Jovians. They’ll never harm a member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, unless that individual possesses malicious intent. There are only six Monoeyes known to exist: Ogmios, an apricot-hued one with greyish-pink blushing; Gobannus, a yellowish-green one with malachite-hued blushing; Brigantia, a pearlescent purple one with golden blushing; Manannán, a bluish-purple one with light cyan blushing; Nodens, an albino one with crimson blushing; and Fomoire, a melanistic one with silver-grey blushing.

The Monoeyes can readily identify individuals descended from the Tuatha Dé Danann by analysing their DNA and tracing their family lineage through a psychic connection that grants them access to neural pathways and blood vessels. They possess unparalleled knowledge, which they only share with individuals they deem worthy. The six Monoeyes possess unique domains of expertise: Ogmios knows everything about persuasion, eloquence, mental strength, and control; Gobannus knows everything about smithing and hospitality; Brigantia knows everything about wisdom, youth, the four seasons, poetry, protection, and domesticated animals; Manannán knows everything about the sea and warfare; Nodens knows everything about the weather, dreams, healing, and survival; and Fomoire knows everything about all destructive forces of nature. Their extensive knowledge has created a mental link, giving them the power to influence and manipulate their area of expertise at will.

The Monoeyes serve as enigmatic guardians of the mysterious artifact known as Danu, which doubles as their spaceship. Encased in a protective layer of a meteorite that emits lethal radiation, Danu can transform individuals into mindless zombies if they venture too close. Upon landing on a solid surface, the ship anchors itself using glowing, tentacle-like greenish-white roots. It can summon monoliths adorned with ancient, alien runes, generating ice caves, and exerting mind control over individuals with Tuatha Dé Danann DNA. The Monoeyes are capable of teleportation, levitation, bodily reconfiguration, making illusory copies of themselves, optic blasts, telekinesis, pyrokinesis, and psychological communication. Although they have fallen into the hands of the Rebel Army and Martians, the Monoeyes primarily act independently. The radiated meteorite has been exploited by the Amadeus Syndicate to develop Big John and engineer a zombie virus.