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Unicon — Description
When you travel the world for years and explore exotic environments, you are bound to get a lot of questions whenever you talk to people. You say that you are a natural historian, explain what you do and people immediately take you as a kind of explorer. Then comes the questions. I could probably rattle off about a dozen or so questions that I have heard over a million times during my travels. Be it honest inquiries or quips that have long lost their humor, they have become quite weary to hear. Out of all of them, there has been one that I have always found quite strange. "Have you seen a unicorn?" I cannot for the life of me figure out why people ask me that so much. They always want to know if I have seen a unicorn, either in a serious or joking manner. Why? What is so crazy or absurd about a unicorn? It's a horse that has a horn. True, it is quite a pretty horse, and rather elusive, but it is by no means some impossible alien being that dwells where man cannot reach. To answer that question, yes. I have seen a unicorn, several in fact. This incredibly rare, somewhat mythical, species is not all that hard to find when you know where to look. It might be a bit easier to find them if stinking poachers didn't keep shooting them and cutting off their horns. That issue aside, I have indeed seen these creatures, but not for the reasons you think. While unicorns are fascinating in their own right, my time in their territory was focused more on the creatures that walk like them. I was there for the unicons.

When I write unicon, I mean it. It is not a typo or some error, I truly mean unicon. Despite the oddity of their name, unicons are totally real creatures, and quite bizarre ones at that. Their body shape is almost exactly like that of a unicorn's but everything else is radically different. While unicorns are mammalian creatures, unicons seem to be a bit more reptilian. Instead of ivory fur and flowing hair, they possess rough scales and sharp spines. Their appendages end in bladed hooves and spurs. Their tails are more like a rat's rather than a horses, and a nasty barb hides at the end of the whipping appendage. They lack the beautiful coiled horn of the unicorn and instead carry a nasty spur of bone that looks like a rotted tooth. While unicorns may be seen as symbols of purity and innocence, unicons are more like the filthy disease that floats in the scum of a putrid well.

Not only are their appearances radically different, but their behavior and ways are as well. Unicorns are strictly herbivorous, while unicons are violently carnivorous. That is not even an exaggeration, unicons are nasty little buggers when it comes to hunting and eating. They tear into food like vultures on a carcass, making an unnecessary mess out of the whole ordeal. As meat eaters, they have quite the supply of tools for downing prey. Crushing teeth, sharp spines and powerful hooves make for deadly weapons, but the real killer is their "horn." The "horn" of a unicon acts more like the fang of a viper, as it is hollow and capable of injecting venom into prey. This venom is extremely potent and kills within minutes. It seems to target the nerves, causing victims to be wracked by seizures and spasms before suffocating as their muscles shut down. As of now, there is no antidote for this powerful venom, probably since many do not wish to approach this creature, not intentionally anyway.

Some may look at this horrible beast and wonder how it is capable of taking down prey or causing havoc. Clearly everyone could see that it is some horrible abomination and that they should quickly vacate the premises. Why would any prey not detect something this vile and obvious? Well, the mechanics behind the answer are not fully known, but the short response is because unicons don't walk around looking like that. Instead, these creatures disguise themselves as unicorns, and use that species' reputation as a way to get prey to drop their guard. No one fully knows how these reptilian creatures are capable of mimicking the exact appearance of a mammal, as its disguise is too perfect to be organically based. How would you explain it suddenly being covered in pure white fur and bear an ivory mane? How could something like that put on a disguise that intricate within seconds? One moment, it looks like some warped dragon and then the next it is a pristine horned horse prancing through fields of tulips and daisies. No one knows what allows them to do this. Theories range from shapeshifting or extremely intricate camouflage to mass hypnosis or clouding of the mind. I am not one who knows much about magic, but I wouldn't be surprised if these creatures used some form of it to pull off this feat.

With this stunning ability to mimic the beautiful, naive unicorns, unicons primarily get their food through ambush tactics. Other woodland creatures are accustomed to unicorns and know they are no threat, so they often let them get close without any worry. Unicons prey on this trust, waltzing up to a happy deer and then viciously mauling it before it realizes it has been duped. This method also works extremely well on cultures that fantasize unicorns and view them as beautiful, magnificent creatures. A child or even a grown adult may spot the gorgeous horse and approach it in wonder and curiosity. The unicon will play the part, until it gets in stabbing range. I can't imagine how many awe-filled victims have fallen for this trap, thinking they are approaching a mythical creature before being horribly murdered. It might explain some myths that claim that unicorns kill those who are "unworthy" or "wicked of heart." Can't say it is ridiculous to assume when a majestic horse suddenly turns into a scaly monstrous creature and bites your throat out. Especially since they find that sort of thing endlessly amusing.

Bad enough that unicons are vicious beasts, but they are also intelligent. While they may not have the faculties of a human or dryad, they do have quite the brain in their skulls. Unicons can set up elaborate traps, or act to lure in prey. They seem to find amusement in tricking others and have quite a good time mauling prey. In fact, unicons enjoy hunting so much that they often change their method of execution each time they down prey. The first victim may be killed with venom, while the next will be trampled to death, followed by a third that will be shredded by their teeth. Unicons seem to enjoy these different ways of killing, and seem to grow bored with repetition. This cruelty is not functional on a simple level, which indicates some form of an intelligent mind. The wolves do not laugh about their kills, and the manticore does not "change things up" to keep itself amused. These are frivolous things that only higher minds care about, a cruelty that is beyond the simple realms of survival. This can be seen when unicons decide to prey on sapient creatures like humans. They love tricking them and acting like they are majestic innocent animals so that they can lure them into a deadly trap. Some stories tell of unicons that have gotten humans to ride their backs, only to have their rough scales shred the flesh from their legs. Others have told how unicons may allow themselves to be "captured" so that they can be taken back home and slaughter the entire family. Even those who poach unicorns have dealt with these creatures, who will act wounded in order for the shooters to come within killing range. When prey is cut down, the unicons usually let out a clattering cackle before tearing into their dead (or sometimes not dead) meal.

While unicons mimic unicorns for hunting purposes, that is not their only interactions with these creatures. It turns out that unicons use them for breeding, like some sort of parasite. Unicons are capable of mating with unicorns, but what is birthed will always be a unicon. They shall put on their disguises, breed, and then let their young be raised by the oblivious creatures. It seems that unicons are born with this mimicking power, making it so that their unicorn parent does not realize the monster they are raising. In time, the young will develop enough to run away from its foster parent and start up its cruel life of slaughtering and devouring. In some cases, unicons have even acted as brood parasites, swapping their young out with a unicorn's so that they could eat the foal and let the unwitting parent do the real work. It's an insidious method, but one that sadly seems to work quite well.

At the end of it all, natural historians and citizens alike are puzzled by the purpose or origin of the unicons. A species that relies solely on the existence of a quite rare species seems a bit odd to form naturally. How could unicons have a healthy population when they rely on an animal that does not have a large population itself? What would happen if unicons grew overpopulated and fully consumed their hosts? What would happen then? Would they drop the ruse or keep it up? Could we reach a time in the future where unicorns have perished without our knowing, their images only surviving in the very things that slaughtered them? How could such a system function? If these beings are not natural, then where did they come from? Are they magical experiments gone awry? Are they beings crossed over from another plane? Or could they be the response to the poaching and hunting that has devastated the unicorn species? Perhaps the supposedly magical horses have grown bitter and hateful of the masses that kill them, and have grown into horrid things that would prey upon our assumptions. Who knows! I sure don't!

Chlora Myron

Dryad Natural Historian

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Another color and update for a species of mine. The punny unicons!