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"Pulex sapiens"  
 CLASS: ARTHROPOID BIOLOGY: Created by the hybridization of human and flea, this small but speedy Arthropoid feeds exclusively on blood, employing its many hooks and barbs to anchor itself in the flesh of its prey and slurping as much fluid as it can through its tooth-lined mouthparts. Its wildly variable "helmet" is particularly difficult for prey to dislodge, though the monster can shed this anchoring appendage to make a quicker escape. Anticoagulants and histamine compounds in its bite cause the resulting wound to bleed freely for an extended period of time, while the area of the bite swells painfully and itches maddeningly. Like other sanguivorous arthropoids, its bite may also transfer pathogens and toxins from one host to the next. The Heartsucker's forelimbs are packed with specialized muscles that can densely tighten, lock into position and instantaneously release with enough force to launch the monster hundreds of feet through the air, its laterally flattened body spinning as it leaps to maximize its distance. BEHAVIOR: A Heartsucker is a clever and curious Arthropoid driven to explore every inch of its surroundings. Most comfortable in tightly enclosed spaces, it slinks its flattened body through narrow crevices to hide itself within walls or under large objects. It is also at home in dense, dry foliage, such as patches of rustgrass, reminiscent of swimming through host fur. A Heartsucker may also retain an instinctive interest in the natural host species of its insect base, but it typically translates into a nurturing rather than predatory instinct, i.e. a specimen with C. canis ancestry may feel a strong affection towards dogs, while a C. felis feels unusually protective towards cats. The blood of these host animals tends to taste overwhelmingly sweet to the monster, to the point of unpleasantness. Despite being smaller than most other monsters, Heartsucker have a tendency to feel shy about how "big" they are. APPLIANCE: In addition to its incredible leaping ability, a Heartsucker can use the same muscular mechanism to inflict a devastating punch or jab with its clawed hands, throw small objects with lethal velocity or slam its barbed body into an adversary at close range. Its anticoagulant saliva can also allow the small creature to bring down much larger monsters as they steadily bleed out through strategically placed bite wounds. SPRINGING LEAP: the Heartsucker's forelimbs can tighten and release to hurl the monster great distances. SPRINGING JAB: the same system that enables the monster's leap gives it a deadly jabbing attack. BUG BITE: the bite of the Heartsucker gushes blood rapidly, while the surrounding flesh becomes swollen and agitated. Victims may also suffer illness, poisoning or even allergic reactions to compounds collected from previous prey.   DESIGN DESCRIPTION: this monster has a body like a giant flea, football-shaped and covered in overlapping plates almost like an immature pinecone. The edge of each plate is fringed with sharp, dark spines. At the tapered rear end of this body are two thin, shrunken legs ending in delicate, clawed hands, coincidentally similar to the legs of a bat. At the top of the body is the head, but there several variations of the artwork to demonstrate different helmet-like growths. The true appearance of the head, without a helmet, is like a rounded ball with two short, pinkish, ear-like antennae that pop out from crescent-shaped sockets. We are seeing the head from the side, and can see one large, circular eye mostly covered over by thin, clear blue skin, like an eyeball during embryonic development. The bottom of the lump opens in a crescent slit, giving it a gloomy or tired expression. We see bright white sclera through this opening, but no pupil. The front of the face is mostly an open, triangular pink orifice. Sprouting from the top of this orifice are two fleshy, segmented antennae that curve downward. Below these are a large, pink upper jaw, split down the middle into two halves, each with a dense row of sharp, straight teeth. There is no lower jaw. The different "helmet" designs are formed of transparent, orange chitin. Eye can be seen dimly through the smooth, domed top of each helmet, the antennae ears poke all the way out through openings in the helmets and the mouth parts visibly dangle out from under them. One helmet is very short, closely hugging the face, with comblike rows of long, thin barbs that fringe the creature's mouth. The back of this helmet has another barbed comb, and another combed/barbed layer of chitin flaring out from under the first. This helmet design looks the most like a real flea. Another design has longer, thicker barbs on the sides and back, while the front tapers into a very long, thin, hooked proboscis almost like the beak of a hummingbird. Another helmet design is somewhat like an elongated animal skull, with extremely large barbs that continue around its edge to give the appearance of big, hooked teeth on a bony snout. A final helmet design is the strangest; it has a flat, circular disk of the same orange chitin, encircled all the way around with large dark spines, attached to the forehead and shadowing the rest of the helmet/head like a hat that has partially slid down the wearer's face. This odd design was inspired by a real species of flea, but in the real flea, the purpose of the spiny "hat" is not known. Just below the head are the creatures arms, which are large enough for it double as its legs. The upper arms flare into a pair of very broad, flat shields rimmed with sharp black spines. At the end of each shield, the rest of the long and bony arm first bends backward on a knobbly joint, then forward again, then ends in a huge hand with thin, long, skeletal looking fingers. It stands on the curled knuckles of just one hand, while the other is slightly raised off the ground. More spines and barbs line these arms along their entire length, and there's a cluster of small spines at every knuckle of the hands. Contents copyright Jonathan Wojcik
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