LAND CUCUMBER - TIMELINE #7233230

(Timeline Tuesday #72)

Land Cucumbers (not to be confused with the natural cucumber vegetables of our timeline), are a species of invertebrate that range between ten to sixteen inches in length at maturity. Their bodies are rounded oblong tubes, with a single large footpad across the bottom that functions in a way similar to that of a slug or snail. The skin of a Land Cucumber is covered in bumps and its entire form is a hue of deep emerald green. All of this leads to the head of the creature, which consists of a wriggling bloom of tendrils that spout from around a small mouth.

Land Cucumber’s typically spend their time with their bodies buried under soil, their heads being the only thing that extends into the world above. This serves as a defense to any predators who might want to make a meal of the Land Cucumber. The ground protects this creature’s delicate invertebrate body, while the writhing head offers up a special protection of its own.

The many tendrils that protrude around a Land Cucumber’s mouth are equipped with a stinging, paralytic poison. Larger creatures who encounter these tendrils will immediately be met with immense, long-lasting pain, followed by days of numbness. Smaller creatures could easily die from this venom, then be consumed by the Land Cucumber.

Humans are one of the only natural predators who can easily bypass a Land Cucumber’s defenses and pull them out of the ground. Because of this, these creatures are often harvested in gardens, along with various vegetables. As the name might suggest, the taste of Land Cucumbers is similar to that of a cucumber, although they are much saltier and feature a chewy consistency, rather than crunchy. Land Cucumbers are often planted in garden boxes with high walls to keep them inside, where the creature cannot easily escape until it’s ready to be harvested.