In the recorded history of Drion RR5, no one had ever witnessed the mating habits of aukrus. This was important for two reasons. One, no one had even seen aukru offspring, so they were a complete biological mystery and no one knew how they developed. Two, they were one of only a few organisms on the planet that was almost completely unknown, and finding information on them would make anyone a legend.
For this reason, Temerrot landed his little cruiser on the planet's surface and—with the help of some less than detailed migratory charts—followed the Interru flock across the continent. He drove a small bike over the rocky terrain, stopping only to fill up on fuel and sleep every few nights. At times he did catch glimpses of his elusive quarry, following the same pathways he was as they all converged to the same spot. There were times when the map fell short and he was stuck trying to follow the ray-like creatures flitting through the trees.
He ran out of fuel after three Terran weeks of chasing his goal. Exhausted and scraped up from speeding through the forests and stone plains, he groaned and kicked his bike as it miserably stuttered to a halt.
"Stupid fortieth-century bikes," he growled. "Worst fuel intake in history and of course I'm not allowed to get anything-" a chirp cut him off. He paused. The chirp continued, a short, high-pitched warble. He knew that sound, and he knew it came from the mouth of an aukru.
Temerrot snatched his bag off the back of the bike and followed the noise. As he pushed through the undergrowth, the sounds grew louder. Suddenly, it seemed like there were millions all chirping around him. At the first flash of purple-blue, he ducked down and hid.
All at once, the trees and ground were covered in aukrus that swarmed over each other. They looked a good bit like rays, swimming through the thick atmosphere as they began to clump up. He pulled out his tablet and set it to record. Already the display was beautiful. Purple aukrus lit up along their spines, the lines of their back turning green in a brilliant show of bioluminescence. He took a few pictures at the same time. The noise was near-cacophonous but he ignored it over the sound of his heart pounding.
The sight was amazing and he watched the creatures pick mates one to five at a time. Blue, shimmery aukrus were pursued by their chosen mates as they took to the trees and began to mate. When the branches were full, others settled for the ground. Not three meters in front of him was a trio that had been too late to get into the trees. He could see clearly what captured specimens failed to produce.
The blue aukru rolled onto its back, fins spreading over the ground as it presented a small, shiny hole to its mates. They bickered and nipped at each other until one seemingly came out victorious and set about mating with its target. From its own body came not one, but three appendages. Two bulbous lengths lined with bumps and ending in a sharp taper and a third, smaller tendril that felt at the presented hole before one of the aukru's lengths plunged in. It seemed a quick affair as it writhed a few times before stilling. The other purple aukru chittered and started knocking into its partner until it pulled out, still dripping, and another length took its place inside of their mate.
It was incredible. Such a short process compared to other species he had observed, and once it was done, the blue one took off and left its partners on the ground. He noticed now that it was happening with the other couplings.
Once bred, the blue aukru would take off and leave their purple counterparts still wanting more. Some had taken to mounting their partners, however uselessly, others choosing to simply leave once their business had been concluded. So enamored was he by how it all worked, Temerrot failed to notice two aukru approaching him from the side. It was only once they started chirping at him that he looked away from the spectacle in surprise.
He looked down at himself, wondering if they had smelled something on him, then realized he was wearing a very similar bright blue to the aukru they had both been abandoned by. He grimaced.