Hello all! Ric here with a Star Trek bestiary, this time looking at strange extra-galactic,
possibly extra-dimensional being, that we only encountered twice in the shows, but see
two examples of, the Nacene. The Nacene are very powerful beings that can dwell in a subspace
layer called Exosia. They are both non-corporeal and physical beings, so it seems that they
can simply convert themselves between the two states at will. I would like to make a
cultural index on them, as they are intelligent beings of a very high technological and evolutionary
level, but we just don’t know enough. The two examples we meet are the Caretaker
and Suspiria and both are classified as sporocystian lifeforms. A Sporocyst is a creature that
incorporates an unrelated species into its life cycle in order to reproduce, often parasitic
in nature. It can also refer to the reproductive structure of Ascosphaera fungi suggesting
a possible origin for these creatures. It would be a bit of a retcon to be sure,
but the link is there to tie the Nacene to the subspace layer that contains the mycelial
web. Either way, it describes the creatures as possibly parasitic in nature, which ties
in to the goal of the first encountered, the Caretaker, as he was attempting to locate
a being that was compatible for him to reproduce. Often these experiments were fatal to the
target and he ultimately failed in his goal. Although this was a desperate measure as the
Caretaker considered himself the last of his people, with responsibilities to complete
still. He did describe the Nacene as existing beyond
the Milky Way and that his race considered themselves explorers. Just how technologically
advanced they were is not clear, as they utilised both obvious tech, like their arrays, but
also are host to incredible telepathic, telekinetic and psionic abilities. The first encounter
with their abilities we see is the displacement wave that stranded the Voyager (and many others)
in the Delta Quadrant. This was a ripple in spacetime that could transport matter across
the 75,000 lightyear distance in seconds, albeit not gently. This could have been the
method of travel employed most often by his species and likely included the manipulation
of subspace to create such effects. Their chosen energy source was a Tetryon Reactor,
which we only see once more in use with subspace graviton catapults which could fire a ship
into Null Space, another alternate realm. Suspiria also dwelt within Exosia a subspace
realm and could transition to it at will. So this, combined with their choice of Tetryon
based technology paints the picture of a species that is comfortable delving through multiple
layers of existence. Exosia was a place of pure energy and thought, where existence was
very different from the matter of the regular universe, so the variations in environments
they could tolerate were extreme, even covering differing laws of physics.
Other technology that they displayed included advanced holographic tech, a wide array of
medicinal equipment and the ability to scan through entire data systems in minutes. Despite
this, their arrays, despite being incredibly advanced, were not that well defended and
easily destroyed by Federation technology. In terms of powers that seemed native to their
form, they were shown to be shapeshifters of some extent, existing as physical and non-corporeal
at whim. Their standard form seemed to be similar to a cell-like structure of translucent
matter within a membrane, and while the caretaker was pretty much a ringed blob, Suspiria had
tendrils around the outside. When one died, it left behind a dried out husk, about the
size of a fist that sort of resembled coral. These remains however could still be used
to locate other Nacene as they began to trill and tremble in proximity to another of their
species. They were telepathic and could communicate even across layers of existence as Suspiria
did with her followers while she, herself, resided deep in subspace. Their mental abilities
were so precise that they could manipulate matter on an atomic level on a massive scale.
It is possible that all of their abilities are down to their technological level and
not the result of biological evolution, but like so much else, this is not known for sure.
However apocrypha does go on to say that they were entities actually from Exosia who made
it their mission to preserve the cosmic superstrings of the fabric of the universe, which they
did so with varying degrees of success. Although according to the Q continuum, this was a waste
of time as the fabric of these leftovers of creation would be completely fine and continue
to be without any oversight. In terms a vulnerabilities, as mentioned,
their technology was not indestructible or anything, and although a Nacene itself was
very powerful, it was not immortal and could even be poisoned by a specialised toxin when
corporeal. Alternatively, the Nacene can establish a telepathic bond with another telepathic
species to increase that creature’s power, but that bond can also be used to harm both
of the connected individuals. While the Caretaker perished Suspiria lives
on, overseeing her Ocampa enclave in the Delta Quadrant and could perhaps be met again. Although
initially antagonistic towards Voyager through a misunderstanding, she maintained that hostility
and eventually had to be forced to leave the vessel. She did so, and while deaths were
averted, it is likely that this particular Nacene will not approve of further Federation
contact. However the rest of her species may still be out there somewhere, and a dialogue
eventually established, if after all they are explorers at heart as the Caretaker insisted,
then there is common ground to be had. Thanks for watching this video on the Nacene.
If you wanted more on them, please consider checking out my video on subspace and theories
regarding that, or perhaps the Andromeda galaxy video for further food for thought on the
greater nature of the Trek universe. Thanks for watching and until the next one, I’ve
been Ric and I’ll see you later. Goodbye!