Bravaxians

Bravaxian Grunkle-fly

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The Bravaxian Grunkle-fly is a species native to Bravaxia (home-world of the Bravaxians).  Grunkle-flies are diurnal omnivores with three sexes (like Bravaxians, and most other animal species from Bravaxia).  Grunkle-flies are semi-buoyant in Bravaxia's thick atmosphere, and their main mode of locomotion is to fly on four paddle-shaped wings.  They have six eyes, and breathe through a series of small openings that run down the length of their bodies on both sides.  

Life Cycle

Grunkle-flies hatch from eggs laid by a female, and fertilized by both a left-male and right-male.  They mature over a period of about five weeks, and are about the size of a watermellon when fully grown.  They typically live as adults and reproduce for three Bravaxian years, occasionally living an additional year in old age.

Hunted for Food

Before the arrival of the Convergence on Bravaxia, the Bravaxians hunted Grunkle-flies for their diaphanous flesh, which has the odor and flavor of rotting fish.  Greys in the Convergence prize Grunkle-fly meat for this flavor (which Humans find repellent).  Along with Grabage-fruit, it was one of Bravaxia's major exports during the Convergence occupation.  Grunkle-fly meat is edible by Humans, though few actually enjoy it.  Bravaxians also use the sharp teeth of the Grunkle-fly as spearheads.

Bravaxian Garbage-fruit

Bravaxian garbage-fruit is a large melon, notable for its pungent odor (similar to rotting garbage).  The Melon's skin is bright red with white spots, the flesh is pure white, with small, black seeds.  The foul scent of the melon can be removed by steaming off the skin.

Garbage-fruit grows on short vines with square leaves that grow in the marshy quarters of the Wind-forests on Bravaxia.  The garbage-fruit vine has small, deep-red flowers.  When the Greys arrived on Bravaxia, garbage-fruit was a commonly gathered food. It turned out to be relatively easy to domesticate, and became a cornerstone crop of the agricultural economy.

Even when de-scented and carefully prepared, garbage-fruit is unpalatable to humans due to its bland flavor and soggy, pulpy texture.  The experience of eating it is said to be similar to eating wet cardboard.  Greys, and Bravaxians on the other hand thoroughly enjoy garbage-fruit, savoring its odor and texture. 

Growing garbage-fruit was one of the main occupations of Bravaxian slaves during the Convergence occupation of Bravaxia.  Even after the occupation ended during the third Convergence War, Garbage-fruit remained one of Bravaxia's chief exports.  For Bravaxians, garbage-fruit is a staple of their diet.  Among Greys, garbage-fruit is a sought-after delicacy.  On human worlds, its pulpy texture made it useful for the production of cheap paper, and its low price often made it a foodstuff of last resort for the desperately poor.