Axum · SUBNAUTICA 2 GUIDE

![Alien Face](Alien Face.png)

The Axum are a sapient alien species native to Proteus. Aquatic in nature, the Axum have built numerous underwater installations across the moon's seafloor. Their language is known to humans as Axum Radial A.

Description

The Axum have yet to make a proper appearance in the game, but the icon used in the PDA seems to suggest that the Axum possess two pairs of eyes and a pair of antennae. A databank entry acquired by scanning structures in the Tailings Village suggests that its occupants were significantly larger than humans.

In a black box left behind from Rauli Isotalo, he imagines the Tailing’s view of humans as “soft criminals”, suggesting the Axum possess a hard shell. In a later black box, Isotalo describes the Tailing as having "many limbs" and "complex mouthparts", and goes on to describe the sound of "the snap of their claws". They also possess great physical strength, based on Isotalo’s account that the titanium-shelled bacterial scanner was crushed when the Tailing took it from him. Udal Singh theorized that the Axum have the innate ability to sense electricity. The "Upper Generator Control room" features a button with a hand-shaped imprint. This implies that the Axum had hands similar to those of humans, which would also allow them to utilize human weaponry.

Additionally in the entry TUBA/SINGH - "NEW RECIPE", Temuliin Tobukha jokes about whether the Axum would taste good and likens them to shrimp.

Together this suggests that the Axum were a large, hard-shelled invertebrate species. They were likely related to Protean crustaceans, based upon their shared traits of electroreception seen in the Ringbearer Krill, and high intelligence seen in the Coral Crab.

History

The Axum civilization prior to its collapse was highly advanced, apparently capable of such technological feats as digital computing, and orbital spaceflight. The pioneer Udal Singh posited that the Axum’s technological advancement progressed in reverse order when compared to humans, with the discovery of electricity being very early in their history, and the discovery of fire being a much later advancement.

Approximately 1000 years ago, a group of Axum known as the Ardhiacs ("fire-users") built an Observatory in Karakorum to spy on the World Tree at Xanadu. However, after a currently mysterious event known as the "zero year", the Axum abandoned Karakorum for deeper waters. In the year "500 pi (Post Impact)" Axum Magi and Vepherds returned to the abandoned Karakorum and rebuilt the observatory to study the “Erratic Messenger”.

The Observatory, along with the hydroelectric Power Plant that powered it, would receive several renovations over the next several hundred years. 300 years ago, the Power Plant was adjusted to burn methane in order to power Xanadu. The Observatory continued to be maintained until around 200 years ago.

250 years ago, the Power Plant was sabotaged by an unknown Axum group, preventing access to the Observatory. Around the same time, an attempt to make contact with the Architects was made, including the construction of the Rosetta Stone to help the Architects translate their language and the recording of a message for them in the Observatory. The Architects, having long since been devastated by the Kharaa Bacterium, never came.

Eventually, Axum society collapsed completely. A group of Axum who went into stasis at the hibernation crypt of Xanadu became known as the Crypters, whilst those who persisted throughout the fall became known as Tailings. The Tailings lost much of the knowledge and technology of their forebears, with Udal Singh referring to the remaining Tailings as "the children of a bunch of office workers and day trippers forced to learn wilderness survival from scratch".

More than 28 years ago, the Cicada crashed into Proteus, and mankind soon made contact with the Tailings, who were fiercely protective of what remained of their civilization.

According to the ghost of Sophie "Butcher" Boucher at the Tadpole Pens, the Tailings were guarding the Karakorum Power Plant, preventing the Pioneers from ever reaching it. However, some Pioneers did manage to get near the building at some point, though how they did so remains unknown.

Today, the Tailings cannot be found. The Tailings Village at the Graveyard is in a state of disrepair, and their last known activity was recorded by the NoA node at the Research Outpost 10,000 hours (416 days) ago.

Individuals

Soteria - Soteria is referenced twice, with a quote on the Rosetta Stone being attributed to Soteria, and a logogram that explains the purpose of the Observatory being signed by Soteria.

Known Axum Groups

Ardhiacs - Known as "fire-users", the Ardhiacs are credited with the construction of the Axum Observatory
Crypters - A group of Axum who entered a form of stasis in Xanadu below the World Tree
Magi - Credited with later reconstruction of the Observatory alongside the Vepherds
Tailings - A group of Axum that remained active throughout the fall of their civilization who lost much of their knowledge
Vepherds - Unknown, credited with reconstruction of the Observatory alongside the Magi, probable association with Veps