mtjester:

eye-of-orion:

mtjester:

Hey, this is a really neat HC! So like, really going in on the bug angle, with the fuchsia blooded trolls playing the role of queens, each making their own hive? That makes a lot of sense. And we know there can be multiple mothergrubs because of Kanaya’s lusus…I like this theory!

So, in this case, mutants are the result of the Condesce refusing to allow other “queens” to exist and create other hives, which causes inbreeding…and you’re suggesting that both weaker and more powerful psionics are also a side effect? I would love to hear more about it!! 

@mtjester​  Yeah, a lot depends on how you interpret their reproductive strategies, but my current favorite borrows heavily from aphids and crickets :) The hc:

• The primary reproductive strategy for a troll hive is a large egglayer known as the mothergrub. Unlike other trolls, mothergrubs never outgrow their original larval state. Instead of pupating, they continue to feed and grow until they are little more than a massively overdeveloped set of egg-laying equipment. Once fully mature, a mothergrub is capable of pumping out thousands of eggs per day, but requires constant attendance from subservient workers to stay clean, fed, and supplied with genetic material.
  
• Oh hey speaking of ‘slurry’!  Like many insect egglayers, mothergrubs can accept genetic material from multiple partners. However, in the early days of troll evolution, this meant the most genetically successful workers were the ones that stuck closest to the brood caverns. A key adaptation that allowed their species to spread out and specialize was slurry storage. By evolving enzymes that rendered ‘genetic material’ shelf-stable (and internal ducts that could store contributions until needed) the mothergrub is able to lay eggs fertilized by many sources. 
• …Which brings us to the dreaded buckets*. While most worker-troll phenotypes do not lay eggs, they all produce ‘slurry’ that carries their genetic code. Worker trolls can mate directly with a mothergrub - or with each other. A worker’s ‘nook’ is an opening that connects to a series of internal material storage sacs - a smaller version of the equipment a mothergrub has. When two or more workers mate, slurry ejected from a bulge is drawn into these storage sacs via the nook and subjected to the stabilizing enzymes. In addition, a worker’s enzymes kill off any malformed gametes or genetic material that is too close to the host’s own. The worker will then retain this shelf-stable “purified” slurry until they can return to the mothergrub…or in modern society, expel it into a bucket and ship it to the brood caverns. This process offered the following evolutionary benefits: 1) workers could mate with partners from other hives and bring in new genes 2) workers could range farther from the mothergrub without suffering a reproductive penalty.
• So what about fuchsias? As with many eusocial species, back in the early days trolls were probably organized around serving their main egglayers. However, with the advent of psychic abilities, a new phenotype stepped up and took charge. The comparatively rare fuchsia-blooded trolls started asserting dominance over other workers owing to an aptitude for developing psychic skills (while maintaining a resistance to being controlled themselves**). These new, more mobile leaders also tended to clash with each other***. In sweeps past, this would often lead to large hives splitting into rival colonies and spreading out. 
• Which is where the mutants come in…  Once trolls evolved enough sentience to form societies, culture began to impact reproduction. In particular, on Alternia, the Condesce formed a regime that disallowed any hives other than her own. Whenever a new fuchsia rival was hatched, she would allow them to mature only as long as they remained subservient - once they became old enough to seem like a threat to her authority, she culled them. This meant, however, that all trolls were now constantly breeding back to the same lineage of mothergrubs. And while there are certainly a broad pool of trolls contributing slurry, they all share at least part of their genetic code with those same mothergrubs. This meant that over the sweeps, as recessive genes and mutations naturally cropped up, there was a higher likelihood that would be preserved. 
• Which brings us to Sollux, Vriska, etc?? Not quite. The other contributing factor - besides inbreeding - is that Alternian culture almost certainly selected for psychic abilities. When your FTL travel is powered by living psionic batteries, it’s in your best interest to breed as many of those puppies as you can. Additionally, trolls with strong psychic abilities (and defenses) are more likely to survive long enough to contribute material in the first place. So you can get some really strong psychics (like Sollux) from this mechanism, and some really weak psychics (like Xefros) from shitty inbreeding.
• There’s a whole lot of additional tl;dr about how some worker trolls could actually lay eggs, but that’s a topic for another midnight lol

* In this hc, sexual intercourse itself isn’t necessarily taboo – ‘pailing’ refers to the act of inducing oneself to expel stored material into a bucket. This act is usually private and considered very naughty (although there are lots of kinky videos where quadmates help each other).

** Based on Condy’s stated ability to learn the powers of all the other castes.

*** Based on Meenah’s urge to both cuddle Fef and stab her lol

This level of worldbuilding headcanon gives me LIFE.