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Senkhrast, The Lurker (Bio-Cup 2012 Round Two, vs Kyle Peckham) . Deep in the jungle's heart lies a creature whose entire existence is devoted to murder... . Name: Senkhrast
Gender: Female
Race/Species: Kanthrix
Occupation: Brood Mother
Title(s): The Watcher, The Lurker, The Kin-Taker
Prevailing Element: Earth
Alignment: Neutral
Affiliation: Teridax
Natural Tool(s): Antennae, Mandibles, Claws, Stinger, Grasping Hands, Wingblades
Status: Alive
MOC Status: Disassembled
Contest: The 2012 Bio-Cup
Round: Two
Opponent: Kyle Peckham
Opponent's Entry: The Gredasoto
Theme: #11, Horrifying Rahi
The Kanthrix are a species of rahi created by Makuta Vamprah, long after the Brotherhood of Makuta became evil. These rahi were created using viruses, antidermis and protodermis with the sole purpose of hunting and killing matoran. They posess a lethal intelligence and can construct elaborate traps. Even worse, they can mimic the sound of a matoran's voice, calling for help, as a lure.
When Spherus Magna reformed, the kanthrix migrated out of the Mata-Nui robot into the vast, shadowy jungles of Bota Magna, where they only became more dangerous. Foolhardy locals that attacked them learned not to do so by jumping on their backs - as would normally work - as many of them were sliced apart by their wing-blades.
Any beings foolish enough to venture across the forest floor without a guide quickly find themselved upside down or caged, being eaten alive. The kanthrix like to eat a the legs of their prey first so they can listen to their screams for longer.
Female kanthrix are larger than males, but the kanthrix known to locals as Senkhrast is undoubtedly the largest. Many horrifying tales feature her in the climax, and not one of the tales is without a grain of truth in its telling.
Senkhrast is a brood mother, who dominates the forest with the assistance of several dominated females. She builds traps only for her own pleasure, as matoran and agori are usually brought to her, paralysed but alive and aware, by her daughters.
She is not truly in charge of the kanthrix, however. Teridax is, through one of the most vile and virulent creations the makuta ever devised - the Harro.
By overriding Senkhrast's nervous system, the Harro fungus forces her to act according to the will of Teridax. The fact that he is long dead does not seem to chime into the Harro's thoughts. The fungus grants her extreme longevity and makes her even more of a force to be reckoned with.
What's more, those who encounter her or her daughters and survive will slowly be taken over by its spores. Its influence causes other beings to murder their kin, destroy homes - and there is nothing else that can be done than to burn those infected until the Harro's spores are destroyed.
Most prey have somewhat better luck than that.
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The idea behind Senkhrast was to combine the worst that the animal kingdom had to offer. As a biologist, I don't find many creatures scary that many others do, but parasites are universally revolting, and the Cordyceps is just plain scary. I've put a video at the end about them, but watch at your own discretion! The marbled black/white barraki piece was PERFECT for the infection, as the barbs on it were all white and fungal looking already, and the white-black contrast works well, I think.
Looking at Senkhrast herself, brood mothers tend to be creepier than normal. Some inspiration came from The Hatchery by Alex Fojtik. The barbed, black look, iridescent empty blue eyes, and eggs in the abdomen (using a Midak blaster! Was a pain to fit that in there at an angle!) were all inspired by his insectoid queen. The structure of Senkhrast relates more to a mantis, albeit with unsettlingly human features such as a more upright posture, hands, and lower legs mimicing a human skeleton. The face head is centred around this head/skull design used by Chronos in the first round. It certainly was creepy looking.
And here, proof that Senkhrast is below the 35cm dimensions limit of the contest. Just.
And, obligatory shot with other Bio-cup entries. I'm gonna need to use the BIG studio if I want to fit another one in here - and I truly hope I do! Kyle is one tough cookie though. Good luck!
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