Alya

Trials of life: find out why we call them "animals".

At first glance, the Alya appear to be little more than unusually large insects, not really out of the ordinary among the many alien species encountered by Transformers throughout the universe. Their forelimbs are tipped by large, sharp, probing claws, which have the ability to spin 360 degrees like a drill. Alya are apparently sentient, capable of understanding spoken language; this may also have something to do with their ability to tap into the minds of other sentient species. However, the most remarkable thing about them is their unique nesting and feeding method.

From within their own bodies, Alya can extrude and weave silky strands of organic circuitry. They can build upon these webs to an astounding degree; the weavings of the Alya are responsible for maintaining the entire living sentient planet Torkulon, and may even in fact have created it. Prey items are trapped in these webs, at which time the Alya immobilize them, interface with their minds, and psychically consume their intelligence.

The Alya share Torkulon with another species, the ape-like Torkuli, who order them around. Together, they maintain the planet as an intergalactic mental hospital. Nothing more is known of the relationship between these species.

Fiction

The Transformers cartoon

When more standard therapies had failed to cure Galvatron's madness, the Torkuli judged him ready for "Maximal Intervention": having the Alya devour his diseased central processing circuits and absorb them into the vast, planet-scaled datastream of Torkulon. This treatment had never failed to release patients from the pain and stress of mental illness by wholly deleting their minds and personalities. However, neither the Alya nor Torkulon were able to cope with just HOW nuts Galvatron was. The psychic feedback was literally enough to drive Torkulon itself mad, making the planet basically fall apart. After both those environmental calamities and then the vengeful attacks of Galvatron and his followers, the Alya were last seen lying legs-up, looking for all the world like dead bugs. Webworld

Kre-O online manga

Shortly after Galvatron's creation, he went on a rampage and blasted an Alya. Enter the New Emperor of Destruction!? Stop Galvatron's Rampage!

Notes

Foreign names

• Japanese: Alya (アリア Aria)