Were you aware that the creature we know as the octopus actually possesses alien DNA, as in extraterrestrial? It’s almost as if these aquatic entities were transported here, from some unknown spot in the vast universe, and deposited in tact within Earth’s oceans.
Given that it’s Halloween, and alien DNA in all living things including humans is the focus of my Other Worldly novels, it’s a perfectly frightful time to talk about a certain (supposedly) mythological Scandinavian sea creature—or perhaps it’s merely a giant squid mistaken for a monster—known as the kraken.
A very haughty-scary kraken made his spectacular debut in this year’s novel, Altogether Alien.
There’s also that vile kraken-lady lunatic who’s been in the news a bit lately—nauseatingly so, as usual. She’s all too human, and some of her equally slimy lawyer ilk have also been featured in Altogether Alien. As alien rights advocate Rowan Layne would say, they give reptiles (and cheese) a bad name.
There are some differences between an octopus and a squid. Octopuses have round bodies and eight sucker-covered limbs. Squids have a more triangular shape with ten limbs consisting of eight arms and two tentacles. Both range in size, but the largest squids are far larger than the biggest octopuses (more on this momentarily). Based upon these statistics, the kraken in my novel is more like an octopus.
But there’s a reason the giant squid is what might have been historically dubbed the mighty scary kraken on the high Nordic seas of lore. Because a giant squid can grow up to a terrifying 400 feet in length and weigh 600 pounds. They also possess the largest eyes of any known species. Downright creepy.
One other difference is octopuses are solitary animals, except during mating periods of course, while squids can live independently or in schools. I’d say my Other Worldly kraken is also more like an antisocial octopus.
As for octopuses that truly do occupy our planet’s waters, I recently watched a show about them, jotting down a few cool details that are fascinatingly similar to some aquatic creatures introduced in Altogether Alien. Because an octopus can manipulate its body into different shapes to imitate other animals.
Like the selkies of Celtic lore, which are seals who shed their skins to morph into humans. Kind of makes you wonder how many mythological creatures are in fact derived from actual living beings on Earth.
That being said, there are octopus that would easily qualify as supernatural per the human definition of the concept, given the capabilities of these tentacled creatures.
One particular skill involves RNA, as in ribonucleic acid. It’s a polymeric molecule essential for most biological functions. RNA transfers information from DNA into proteins. Astoundingly, an octopus has the ability to alter its RNA to edit its own genetic code.
An octopus also has a whopping three hearts and nine brains. What are the odds that they’re smarter than humans? Like more than a few aliens in my Other Worldly novels.
Here’s the scary thing. The deepest part of our oceans are seven miles down, but aquatic life exists at these extreme depths. There’s also a vast area of our oceans that humans do not have the capability to explore safely.
Hence, there are likely many aquatic species we have yet to discover that could resemble a kraken or any other creature featured in Altogether Alien.
After all, there are stories all over the world, including sightings off the California coast, of USOs, as in Unidentifiable Submersible Objects. The aquatic version of UFOs. Right up my otherworldly alley.
The mighty and mottled-in-color kraken’s wrath may strike again in Aliens Watch, seventh novel of the Other Worldly series coming sometime next year. You never know what’s lurking in the lakes of Minnesota waiting to surge from the water and say boo!
Happy Halloween!