SHOCKTOP - TIMELINE #3905914

(Timeline Tuesday #157)

Shocktops are a species of large, crawling insect from a nearby desert-based timeline, and are therefore drawn to the warm, arid portions of this reality. Shocktops are flat and disk-like, with bodies that range from two to six feet across, depending on the age of the creature. They move about on ten sharp legs, and have a cluster of seven blue eyes positioned at the front of their body. Shocktop bodies range in coloration, from a pale yellow to a deep crimson, but the most common variation is brick red. They have hard, thick shells, exoskeletal frames that can withstand the harsh rocky crags they often call home.

The top of this species is hollowed out, like a bowl, and held within is the large, strange organ that gives shocktops their name. Examination of deceased shocktops reveals a soft, spongey interior, but when the creature is alive their back appears to be filled with roiling, crackling electricity. This effect is especially spectacular when the species gathers across an open desert at night, creating a sea of glowing disks. The charge of shocktops has a distinct yellow hue.

When hunting prey, or even defending themselves from danger, shocktops can direct this electricity towards the target of their choosing, possessing a range of up to thirty yards. Small creatures are often killed immediately, while larger targets will find themselves either knocked unconscious, or warned away by a jolt of extreme pain.

It is believed shocktops create and harness this electricity through kinetic energy, somehow storing every movement they make and transforming it into a powerful, deadly force. Evidence of this comes in the observation that shocktops who are confined to small spaces, or otherwise have had their movement restricted, quickly lose their electrical charge.