Ko

The ko (pronounced /koʊ/), or konen (pronounced /ˈkoʊnɪn/), is the weakest kind of nen, a category of small, gelatinous kake. Ko appear like translucent lumps of quivering jelly, shaped roughly like truncated cones. They appear in a variety of different colors, and in fact a particular ko may change color under certain circumstances. The color of a ko is not purely cosmetic; kos have slight enhancements to some of their abilities based on their color as well. Furthermore, a ko's color may effect the type of kake it will later appreciate into.

The obverse power granted by a captured ko involves rapid healing, even to the extent of regrowing severed parts. The obverse kake generally appear slightly translucent, and perhaps subtly tinted with the ko's color.

Anatomy

Ko share the gelatinous, diffusion-based structure and functionality of most nen, most of their bodily functions taken by free chemicals that are propagated through their otherwise mostly homogeneous forms. Special chemicals come into play when the ko must defend itself—or if it decides for whatever reason to go on the offensive. While a typical ko is unable to exert enough force with its pseudopods to damage foes by bludgeoning, ko can secrete certain toxins that damage other organisms on contact. The most commonly used and most notorious is a substance called kodok that in minor doses causes skin irritation but on prolonged or repeated exposure can cause paralysis, tissue damage, and eventually death. Ko are also capable of producing other contact toxins, however, and if a foe proves resistant to kodok the konen may use some other substance in its arsenal. As with other nen, smaller prey may also be crushed within an internal cavity or between pseudopods.

While all nen are able to heal faster than most other kake due to their undifferentiated and easily repaired forms, this ability is especially heightened in the ko. Ko can quickly mend virtually any wound, and even a ko split almost in two can quickly restore its wholeness. Given sufficient time, a ko can regrow completely from any small part that remains. A ko split completely in two can grow a whole new individual from each part—though in addition to this method of reproduction through fragmentation, ko can also reproduce sexually by the same means as most other nen.

Behavior

Konen are capable of ingesting almost any material, but typically gain little nourishment from inorganic materials, and left on their own will generally only eat flesh and vegetable matter. Wild ko are largely scavengers, feeding on the remains of corpses they find with their acute olfactory senses, or perhaps on living animals sufficiently slow-moving or immobilized for the ko to be able to attack them and kill them with little effort. If such food is in short supply, they may resort to grazing on plants. Under normal circumstances, ko will rarely go out of their way to hunt down mobile prey, but this doesn't mean they aren't dangerous; sleeping or injured humans may be at risk from ko predation, and a scared or startled ko may attack in self-defense. Furthermore, for some reason in times of turmoil, when other dangers abound, ko become more aggressive, prone to attack travelers with little or no provocation.

While by no means noetic, ko are more intelligent than their amorphous nature may lead one to expect, their intelligence perhaps roughly comparable to that of a mouse (though their very different "nervous systems" and thought patterns make any such comparison problematic). Ko are capable of being trained, even without capturing them in spirit coins first; though incapable of recognizing spoken commands, they can be conditioned to respond to other stimuli, and to defend their trainers.

Color change

Ko are found in various colors, and while a newly formed ko is of the same color as its parent, a ko may change its color under certain circumstances. Known colors that can be assumed by ko include:

• Black: A reaction to exposure to vacuum. Black ko can exert a suction to help them adhere to objects and surfaces, and to draw fluids out of apertures.
• Brown: A reaction to the ingestion of large amounts of certain minerals, the exact amount depending on the mineral. Brown ko can harden their substance more than other types of ko, making them more resistant to damage and enabling them to cause more damage by pummeling with pseudopods.
• Blue: A reaction to prolonged exposure to water, either from immersion or from precipitation. The change takes about an hour of complete submersion;
• Gray: A reaction to having consumed a large amount of metal. Gray ko are capable of forming sharp edges on their bodies and pseudopods, sufficient to slice the flesh of enemies.
• Green: A reaction to having consumed a large amount of plant matter. (The exact amount necessary depends on the type of plant consumed.) Green kos emit small amounts of a weak irritating toxin.
• Purple: A reaction to exposure to acid. Purple ko ooze an acid of their own with which they can burn those they touch.
• Red: A reaction to high temperatures, specifically a temperature of more than about thirty-nine degrees Celsius for more than two hours. (Higher temperatures may cause the color change in less time; extremely high temperatures may cause a ko to turn red in a matter of minutes.) Red kos are always a few degrees warmer than their surroundings, and can slightly burn opponents on contact.
• White: A reaction to low temperatures, specifically a temperature of less than about negative fifty degrees Celsius for more than two hours. (Lower temperatures may cause the color change in less time; extremely high temperatures may cause a ko to turn white in a matter of minutes.) White kos are always a few degrees cooler than their surroundings, and can slightly damage opponents on contact through their cold.
• Yellow: A reaction to repeated exposure to electricity. Yellow kos maintain a slight electrical charge, which they can discharge at close range.

Overall, green is the most common color for wild ko, but other colors may be more common in certain environments—white ko in frigid polar regions, for instance,

Appreciation

A germinal breed of kake, ko do not appreciate from other breeds. They do, however, appreciate into other breeds. Nothing special is required for the appreciation of the ko, save that it's acquired sufficient keki. The ko appreciates into another variety of nen, usually an il, increasing somewhat in size and gaining additional special characteristics. Which type of ilnen the ko becomes, however, depends on its color at the time; each known color a ko can take on corresponds to a different kind of ilnen it will appreciate into while so colored.

Under special circumstances, a ko may appreciate into a type of nen other than an il. A certain rare spice, for instance, causes ko to turn into kobunen, and a ko that appreciates while compressed to a flat shape will become a bendei.