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Desbadeens

(This design is derived from one of my own original species and I will recycle some elements back into that species. Do not use without my permission.)

Mentioned indirectly like twice in Animorphs. All that we really know about them in cannon is that there’s at least one species of wildlife native to their planet that looks like an andalite, they have figure 8 shaped freighter ships, they’re neutral in the yeerk Empire vs andalite war, and they helped a few hork-bajir escape from the yeerks.

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So desbadeens are superficially similar to horses. They tend to be blue and dislike comparisons to andalites b/c andalites are shitheels. Their primary natural weapons are their whiplike tails, hooves, and spurs. Their horn is a psychic organ that produces their telekinesis. ‘Long horn’ desbadeens have much stronger psychic powers than the average desbadeen. They are herbivores who also consume dairy and eggs.

The chitin on their legs sheds twice a year. In some cultures they ritually cut their foals’ mane tentacles so that they grow in branched for aesthetic reasons. The tentacles can regrow if lost but their tail will not.

Desbadeens have both a psychological and physical need to run for at least a certain amount of hours a day. Running also clears their ears (on their leg joints) and prevents wax buildup that can cause debilitating ear aches. Their figure 8 shaped tankers have a track way for the crew to run on while smaller ships only have tredmills.

Desbadeens are historically nomadic on their homeworld, Desbas. Villages moved with the herds and cities were constructed in waves of herds settling briefly, building some, and then moving on and leaving notes behind for the next herd. Herds are matriarchal, and males are only born if the mother has a period of starvation (or willing fasting) during pregnancy. In times of extreme stress, despadeens skip pregnancy and lay clusters of hardy damage resistant eggs of alternating sexes capable of staying dormant for several years. Desbadeens wear their heard affiliations on their flanks and/or rumps either as insignia on clothing, shaved into their fur, or branded with hot irons depending on the culture of their herd.

Desbadeens are on paper neutral in the Yeerk Empire vs andalite war. They do not view either side as anyone to root for, they are however allies of the hork-bajir who they find to be polite and friendly people and supply them with ships and resources. They are trading partners with the nahara and respect their speed and stamina even if to the desbadeen perspective the nahara are horror terrors that closely resemble some of their native predators. Alien friends adopted into their herds are allowed to wear the herd insignia of their adoptive heard in as close to the approximate proper place as possible (hips/rump for hork-bajir, shoulders for nahara, shoulders/rump for humans).