Day 23's prompt was Celestial!

It is well known that there are societies of strange and unearthly creatures living in the deepest most isolated parts of the ocean. Venturing from their abyssal cities only rarely, most of our knowledge of them comes from fish people who of course have far more chances to interact with them. Evidence discovered by a recent expedition to the antaractic suggests that these creatures may have been the first intelligent species to evolve (Or, perhaps, -arrive-) on this planet.

Their biology is truly astonishing. Possessing both plant and animal features, they are capable of surviving extremes of both temperature and pressure, and despite all of their current settlements existing underwater, they can just as easily survive on land, and even possess the power of flight. It is currently unknown what caused their exodus from the planet's surface.

This one was found off the coast of New England by an anthropologist researching the culture of the local fish people, and kindly consented to be photographed.

(Generally in pictures these are depicted as having one mouth with five petal-like jaws, but the original description gives them five feeding orifices so I felt like that might be a little more interesting.)