Themis

The Themis are an insectoid hive race, one of the three primary intelligences that form the core of the Ithacan Star League. Individually the Themis are short lived, resilient beings that value cooperation and social support. They are genderless, with each individual capable of laying fertile eggs, although often Themis seek a mate for social reasons, they do not need one to reproduce.  

Datanet Entry on Themis

TANTALUS DATANET // ISL // NODE 878:101 // ACCESS GENERAL LEVEL

  The Themis are an insectoid hive race, one of the three primary intelligences that form the core of the Ithacan Star League. Individually the Themis are short lived, resilient beings that value cooperation and social support. They are genderless, with each individual capable of laying fertile eggs, although often Themis seek a mate for social reasons, they do not need one to reproduce.   Generally the Themis are known as genial, easy to get on with and extremely hard working - although they are considered to be fairly unintelligent. They can learn most skills and perform most tasks very well, with a high degree of dedication and care - however it's very unusual to see a Themis in a high ranking position, or in a role that requires any degree of independent thought or creative problem solving.   There has never been a Themis on the Assembly Council, or gaining a high rank in any governmental role or the Navy.   Themis are a common site all over Ithacan space, and they are mostly welcomed into any community or station. Themis have a natural desire to work closely with community members for the betterment of society, and this can be extremely beneficial, especially for smaller communities.   The Themis are notable for considering medical care to be of little importance. They don't usually seek treatment for disease or sickness, and only for injury if it's essential for them to keep functioning for the good of the group. For this reason there is little solid information about Themis biology in the data archives other than the most necessary data.   Science has recorded at least 76 Themis sub-racial types, known as clades. Biologists have noted that it's unlikely any non-Themis could tell the difference between any of them without significant study. Often clades have different carapace colours, eye size, antenna form, etc. Some clades are slightly larger, some are capable of eating a far more diverse diet, some are more independent, some are more intelligent, the list goes on.   The Themis themselves care little about their own biology, history or species divergence, they tend to live very much in the present and don't dwell on the past, and only consider the future enough to work towards common goals. “Things are as they are” is a common Themis saying.   Themis can communicate in both Human and Seleene languages, although their own language is harder for non-Themis to reproduce. Amongst themselves spoken words only make up around 12% of language, the rest is primarily pheromonal with some gestural syntax - for this reason most Themis learn the common language of the area and are comfortable to communicate with others in this way.  

Rumours:

TANTALUS DATANET // ISL // NODE 191:4867 // ACCESS PUBLIC ADDITIONS

USER WARNING: THE FOLLOWING ARE USER ADDED DEFINITIONS AND HAVE NOT BEEN CHECKED FOR ACCURACY -- WARNING: ACCURACY UNCERTAIN -- WARNING: SPECULATION -- WARNING: UNCREDITED DATA SOURCES CITED.

Some that are close to Themis have reported that they aren't even as individual as most people think. Apparently it's common for Themis to 'swap places', they show up for each-other's work shifts, even go so far as to be interchangeable in friend groups. Most non-Themis don’t even realise they aren’t working with or talking with the same Themis as the day before.   It's been noted that different Themis clades don't mingle, even when several clades are living and working in the same area apparently they don't even communicate with each other except when absolutely necessary. Some researchers speculate that the pheromonal signals that Themis use as primary communication may simply ‘smell wrong’ to a Themis of another clade.   Officially Humans make up an estimated 52% of the Ithacan population, with Seleene making up 29% and Themis 15%. The other 4% are various very low population non-humans. However, independent studies (widely refuted) suggest that Themis make up a massive 76% of the population, Humans 14% and Seleene 8%. This discrepancy is allegedly due to the fact that Themis live in extremely dense communities and only a few representatives file official census data.   Themis lay eggs to reproduce, and they do this without the support of medical facilities. They are rumoured to eat their own dead, so the only Themis deaths on record are those that occur as a result of crime or accident on the job. The total population of Themis is therefore likely to be much larger than officially noted.   It’s well known that Themis are short-lived, apparently around 6-8 standard years is the average lifespan. However there are stories of some humans and Seleene being friends with a particular Themis, or several, that seem to be far older. While remaining unconfirmed many people suspect that Themis teach offspring to take their place entirely, the same skills, same friends, same job, for generation after generation. Themis questioned about this seem confused by the question itself and will often be able to tell anecdotes and stories from much more than 8 years ago as if they were there in person, this lends weight to the idea that Themis elders teach offspring stories and events as well as basic facts and skills.