Kinoko

Kinoko is a yellow kuparkuke from the planet Fungaia, and a space adventurer.

It’s very unusual to see a kuparkuke in space, but, following his chance abduction at the hands of a gang of poachers, Kinoko has defied all the odds. Far from being afraid of this strange new world he’s found himself in, he’s loving it, and he’s making the most of all the new opportunities that have opened up to him!

Kinoko is a free spirit who hates boundaries and restrictions and who never likes to settle in one place for too long. As a kuparkuke he grew up not even knowing there were other worlds beyond Fungaia, but now that he knows this he just wants to explore all of it. Together with his starsprite companions, who seem mysteriously drawn to him, Kinoko now travels the galaxy, searching for answers about the lost legends of Galaxy, and pursued by the sinister and shady Order of the Event Horizon.

Physical appearance

Kinoko is a yellow kuparkuke, easily recognisable amongst the villagers of Enoki because of his extraordinarily large ears. He’s shorter than average for an adult kuparkuke, but his ears more than make up for this. The insides of his ears are white, and the tips are a darker tone of yellow-orange. He has large, space-blue eyes and a round pink nose. He has messy yellow hair on the top of his head, and his cheeks are bright and pink. His tail is adorned with a white, diamond-shaped tip and a singular stripe around the tip’s edge.

On Fungaia, he wore traditional kuparkuke garments including red gloves and red/brown boots. As a forager, when travelling outside the Enoki Village he would also wear a pointy red travelling hat along with a cloak of green leaves. If he was travelling after dark, he would often also carry a glowing mushroom lamp to light his way.

In outer space, he has traded his traditional kuparkuke outfit for something a bit more modern and stylish. He now wears a simpler outfit comprised of dark blue gloves, dark blue boots with golden stars on the soles, and a matching, dark blue scarf adorned on either end with two more large, golden stars.

Personality

As a yellow kuparkuke, Kinoko is optimistic and carefree. He’s happy-go-lucky, always living for the present, rarely dwelling on the past or fretting about the future. He doesn’t concern himself with material things like money or possessions. All he really wants in life is to surround himself with good company, experience everything, and have himself some fun.

Though going into outer space wasn’t ever something he planned on (he didn’t know it existed, for one thing!), Kinoko’s now very happily living the adventurer’s life. Back on Fungaia, the teasing he received for his ears made him self-conscious. Despite having plenty of friends, he never really felt like he belonged with his tribe, and his life with them was miserable for it. Even despite his close bond with the then-chief, Astraeus, he felt like an outsider and an alien. Thus, when he got the chance to go back home, he rejected it.

In outer space, even though he misses his friends, Kinoko is happier than he ever was on Fungaia. Ironically, he no longer feels like an alien, because when nobody belongs, everybody belongs. He really enjoys travelling between worlds and he has a lot of fun in space. He’s always eager to try out every new experience he can, whether it’s taking part in some dangerous new activity, tasting new foods and drinks, meeting new species, or visiting new planets entirely.

Kinoko’s impulsiveness and his curious, inquisitive nature get him into a lot of trouble, but he’s generally always been pretty good at getting back out of it too. Of course, trouble in space is quite different to trouble in the Enoki Village, and he isn’t in space long before he begins making himself some very powerful enemies indeed.

Skills and abilities

Thanks to Kinoko’s overlarge ears – seemingly the result of a rare genetic mutation – he possesses the ability to fly, something no other kuparkuke can do. Whilst he cannot fly in outer space, due to void’s lack of breathable air, this ability does make it much easier for him to get around and reach high places. On Fungaia, he was quite ashamed of this ability until Astraeus encouraged him to see it as a gift. When he finally did learn to embrace it, he found himself able to reach places and things that were otherwise unreachable.

Besides flying, Kinoko’s ears help him in several other ways. His hearing is five times stronger than that of an average kuparkuke, meaning he can hear tiny sounds most others would miss, like the sound of leaves crunching and twigs snapping in the distance. He has an easier time tracking animals and staying alert for incoming danger. On top of all this, his ears are also long and large enough to wrap around himself when it’s cold. All in all, they’re a great tool for his survival!

Whilst he cannot use his ears to fly in space, his ‘star ship’ (a small, star-shaped spacecraft built just for him, roomy enough for himself and a single large companion, or as many smaller ones as he can squeeze in) enables him to do just that. After acquiring the star ship he takes to piloting quite quickly. In fact, Kinoko’s quick to learn new technology in general, helped by the fact he is so excited about every new thing he comes across, and so eager to know how to use them.

Equipment and possessions

As a kuparkuke, Kinoko’s not the materialistic sort, and generally-speaking possessions mean very little to him.

With that said, he dearly adores his beloved star ship. Custom-built to his exact specifications, the star ship is equipped with all the tools and functions he needs to do all the things he loves most. Its onboard computer assists him in navigating space and finding interesting new waypoints. A built-in scanning system can detect any recorded living species and tell him everything he needs to know about them. It transforms into a car for terrestrial travel, and it’s roomy enough for a companion. Best of all, it’s star-shaped and it shoots rainbow jets of fuel from its thrusters, enabling Kinoko to cruise around space in style!

Space is a dangerous place, so Kinoko goes nowhere without his trusty ‘shooting star’ ray gun. If you’re travelling the galaxy pursued by assassins, bounty hunters, and Event Horizon cultists like he is, you’d be foolish not to be armed for self-defence. This small ray gun of his isn’t the most powerful weapon, but it’s saved Kinoko’s life often. It shoots bursts of concentrated solar energy, the strength of which Kinoko can fine-tune on the fly. Usually a quick blinding shot will suffice, but it’s certainly capable of more.

Back on Fungaia, Kinoko still has a mushroom house waiting for him, should he ever choose to return. Except for small things like their clothes and accessories, the kuparkukes of the Enoki tribe don’t really own things in the same way that we do. Instead, their mushroom homes are considered gifts from Fungaia which are kept under the stewardship of the tribe. They cannot be owned, and they have no monetary value. They are assigned freely to kuparkukes, so that everyone has warm shelter and a roof over their head.