ArcNebula Codex : Star Mollusc Adult

Star Mollusc (Adult)

CONFIDENTIAL APPRAISAL BY THE FEDERATION COUNCIL ON THE STATE OF THE STAR MOLLUSC POPULATION IN SECTORS LOCAL TO XXXXXXXXXXX[REDACTED].

**NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION OUTSIDE OF THE FEDERATION GENERAL COUNCIL**

The (Adult) image provided in this file is an extrapolation of the known physical features of larvae that have almost reached the adult stage in farm conditions. Their actual physical form may differ in their natural environment, but it is estimated that difference is only slight. To date a live Star Mollusc adult has not been successfully recovered from it's native environment, and all of the four missions (that The Council is aware of) to investigate and attempt contact with these creatures have ended in disaster.

Star Molluscs exist in an unusual legal grey area. They are generally accepted to fit the requirements of a protected species as they are considered by most races to be both sentient as well as highly social creatures which are able to communicate both amongst themselves and apparently also off planet. Unfortunately the larvae of the Star Mollusc are excluded from this protection through a series of loopholes and mistakes in the "Universal Environmental Charter", which is constructed in such a way now so as to allow the continued existence of an industry which farms these creatures to the edge of extinction. Part of the problem is that when Star Mollusc larvae were first discovered it was not realised that they were the larval form of the adult creature. Because of this they were classified as a separate lower order species. To date this mistake has not been corrected despite numerous applications to The Council by concerned environmentalists and alien-anthropologists.

There is clearly an undercurrent within The Council (which is seemingly being driven by corporate lobbyists) to resist change; and this undercurrent serves simply to allow arms and medical industries to continue to use the Star Mollusc larvae as a readily available raw product to produce high quality, cheap munitions and planet seeder pods. The latter being essential to more and more species as planet populations grow and viable new "Home Worlds" need to be created. Products such as The Bot Bomb would not be feasible without this "exemption" of the Star Mollusc from generally accepted treaty practices.. Obviously the job of the lobbyists is made easier because the creature at first does not appear to fit the norms of what we consider high-order sentient life and has no voice on any council.

Serious declines in Star Mollusc populations in local sectors close to XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX[REDACTED] have caused a flourishing inter-sector trade, with rapidly rising prices and dwindling stocks. This rapid trafficking of "merchandise" across multiple sectors is now unregulated and unchecked to such a degree that it makes earlier competition between unregulated traders "in-sector" look like a tiny issue by comparison. The situation will only deteriorate as more and more sectors realise that they are starting to utterly destroy their Star Mollusc populations too.

Urgent action is required by The Council to bring this trade back within reasonable bounds, and to ultimately bring some legislation to fruition which will protect the species as a whole, both locally, and in more distant regions of space. Research also needs to be funded into alternate raw products that can be sourced to produce the unique products which Star Mollusc larvae are currently exclusively used for.

If action is not taken at The Council level, with all member races as signatories to a binding agreement, it is feared that the small sector based skirmishes between traders and pirates over "Star Mollusc Territories" that have already broken out will later spill over into inter sector warfare between corporations and ultimately cultures.

**NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION OUTSIDE OF THE FEDERATION GENERAL COUNCIL**