Shadow Crystal

This article is about the object. For the Nictus enemy, see Shadow Crystal.

Overview

A Shadow Crystal is a Lieutenant or Elite Boss-class Object associated with the Nictus. Shadow Crystals appear during the Kheldian-only arcs from Shadowstar and Sunstorm, during the Imperious Task Force, during Sister Valeria's story arc Glory and Dark Tidings, and during repeatable missions from Marcus Valerius and Alexandra Sideris.

Shadow Crystals enable the Nictus to travel across great distances instantaneously. An ordinary Shadow Crystal can transport Nictus anywhere on a specific planet, while a fully grown Shadow Cyst enables faster-than-light travel at any distance. Fully grown Cysts appear in the final missions from Shadowstar, Sunstorm, and Sister Valeria and are Archvillain-class Objects.

The first Shadow Crystal created by the Nictus was the First Cyst.

Description (Shadow Crystal)

These unearthly crystals grow from a Shadow Seed, a hardened physical form created when one or more dying Nictus fuse and solidify themselves in the presence of rare earth minerals. Shadow Crystals project a field that allows Nictus to survive for extended periods without a host even on a planet's surface. The Crystals also act like wormholes, allowing Nictus to travel instantly from one crystal to another on a planet, and if allowed to swell in size to become a Cyst, can even cross interstellar distances. If allowed to grow in the right conditions, a Shadow Cyst can flood a world with Nictus.

Description (Shadow Cyst)

A Cyst Crystal is a worst-case-scenario in the nefarious Nictus' plots against humanity. They've already perfected light-speed travel at the cost of their mortal forms, but with the concept of a Cyst at their disposal, the process could link dozens, possibly hundreds of endpoints - only now at faster-than-light speeds.