The "Ancients"

The "Ancients" are an extinct race of mysterious genetic scientists that once lived on Pantheon before The Shade wiped most of them out. They created most of the races in the Maskotia videogame series, and created Maskotia itself.

Appearance
At first glas, the Ancients appear to be insectoid. However, closer examination reveals that their exoskeleton-like plates are made of tough, conjoined segments of hair-like material, similar to the baleen of a whale. Their bodies are a desaturated golden-brownish color, but their "fur" has traces of slight sliver and black markings. Their luminous eyes vary from green, to yellow, to aqua, the latter being common in females.

The Ancients are a very clear example of sexual dimorphism; while the males of the species are generally six-limbed with powerful lower jaws, the females generally stand upright, have only four limbs, and their jaws are less apparent from the outside. When they open their mouths, however, their individual jawbones unfold to reveal a mouth full of teeth and two sharp fangs. The males have no teeth (save for the fangs), instead having a sharp upper "beak" with their bottom jaw capable of separating into two mandibles. This feature is only apparent after the males have reached maturity. There is almost no visible difference between male and female children.

Genetic Engineering
The Ancients are known for their excessive use of genetic engineering and transfection of DNA. No Ancient looks exactly the same as another, and they frequently and freely change their appearance via genetic modification.

Using the DNA of humans, themselves, and many other earth creatures, they created the main races encountered in the series.

Creation of ADMIN
Billions of year ago, the Ancients discovered The Null, and the horrible fate that the universe was doomed to eventually succumb to. They quickly decided that in order to preserve life, they would build their own "personal universe", and strategically place wormholes throughout the universe to introduce life when the time was right. They created a massive supercomputer with an AI that matched their own intelligence, and named it ADMIN. They then worked on a separate project for the formation of land. Hasaaj was born, his name meaning "carver of continents". The Ancients had been watching Earth since humans first appeared. They were fascinated by humans, and were upset when they saw that Earth had been destroyed by them. Because of this, they decided to use the remnants of Earth to build their personal universe. Earth's ruins would one day become Maskotia.

The Apparition
During the creation of ADMIN, a few close friends worked on the project. When the overseers told the workers what the project was about, one particular individual, named Enigma, found the idea repulsive. He believed that the course of the universe's lifespan should not be interfered with, and that creating this "personal universe" would ruin the chance for new life to develop. The Ancients, worried about losing everything they had worked for, paid no attention to him.

Enigma became furious with his people; they had always watched over the younger races, helped everyone, and never caused trouble. And now, they could potentially destroy the universe. He took on a new persona and gathered supporters. Finally, he developed a program that would "fix everything". One day, when he was out giving a speech to his supporters, people who were against him murdered his family. Overcome with greif, Enigma broke the chamber containing the program he made, and The Shade was born. It rampaged into the streets of Pantheon, killing all who opposed him, and transforming his folowers into mutants beyond recognition. Enigma, still feeling nothing could be done to stop his internal hatred and sorrow, injected himself with the program. He became the first known form of the Apparition; evil, powerful, and almighty, but still sane. Suddenly one day, the Apparition vanished...

Shortly afterward, the Apparition reappeared, with a hole in its chest, and fire raging everywhere within its body. It was no longer sane. It destroyed everything in its path, and eventually made it into the facilty where ADMIN was being stored, almost near completion. Finally, Enigma's old friends encountered him for the first time in months. Enigma was unable to reason, and proceeded to attack them. In the end, The Apparition was subdued long enough for Enigma's friends to activate a feature on ADMIN. The Apparition was absorbed into ADMIN's core, and ADMIN was safely launched on his way toward Earth to create Maskotia.

Notable "Ancients"

 * The Ionites- the high council of the Ancients that monitored the empire long ago. They were the most highly advanced Ancients.


 * Skrii- A female Ancient in her teenage years. While she was a scientist and good friends with Enigma, she enjoyed exploring and hunting.


 * Enigma- A male Ancient in his early adult/late teen years. He was a worker in the lab creation ADMIN until he heard of his purpose, and then began to oppose the production.