Color Model Turnaround and Size Comparison Sheet for the Intraterrestrials
The Intraterrestrials are a race of creatures dwelling at the center of the Earth in the story Howard tells in "To Smell and Back."
Description[]
Most Intraterrestrials are mint-green, with a crab-like four-legged abdomen, and a humanoid two-armed thorax, an extendable neck, and a blunt, nose-less head, with large yellow eyes; they are clad in a white and fuchsia body suit with a similar, almost luchador-type mask.
The Intraterrestrials seem highly scientifically advanced, being possessed of vehicles with huge drills able to penetrate to the Earth’s surface, ray-guns capable of turning living creatures to stone, an extensive network of underground tunnels, and machines able to suck the heroism out of others and implant it into their chosen champion.
They are ruled by Queen Gabnidine, who, like the queen of a colony of insects, shows distinct dimorphism from the rest of the Intraterrestrials, being pea-green in color, having a long nose, and possessing white eyes with yellow pupils. Queen Gabnidine seems to be the only female of the species.
According to Queen Gabnidine, the Intraterrestrials have been under attack for years by "the evil mantle-dwellers." They were defended by "Mag-man" until his "herothalamus" stopped producing "bravezymes," and conceive the plan of kidnapping the Ninja, draining his heroism, and transferring it into Mag-man.
They are ultimately defeated in their plans (as Queen Gabnidine says) by "Howard and the Ninja" — "but mostly Howard."
Trivia[]
- The Intraterrestrials do not actually exist in-universe, but are made up entirely by Howard himself for an English assignment from Mr. Bannister.
- The Intraterrestrials go out of their way to turn Doug to stone. This is one of several indications that they exist only in a story made up by Howard.
- Despite the fact that they kidnap the Ninja, since Queen Gabnidine refers to their enemies, the mantle-dwellers, as "evil," it would seem that the Intraterrestrials do not regard themselves as villains.
- This also would seem to demonstrate that the Intraterrestrials themselves do not live in the Earth's mantle, though this is likely pushing the scientific rigor of Howard's story too hard.
- It is uncertain exactly what species "Mag-Man" is, since he does not resemble the other Intraterrestrials, or why he in particular should have been defending them against the mantle-dwellers. He may be another captured human hero like the Ninja, or possibly some form of human/Intraterrestrial hybrid, or simply a creation of the Intraterrestrials in vaguely human shape. (It's doubtful that Howard had bothered to work up a plausible back-story for him anyway.)
- Even the Intraterrestrials themselves are confused by Queen Gabnidine's weird habit of saying, "Riiiight?"