Amnion (Gap Cycle)

Amnion (Gap Cycle)

The Amnion (singular, Amnioni) are a fictional alien species in Stephen R. Donaldson's The Gap Cycle. They are shown to be the only alien race humanity has made contact with and play a major role in the series from Forbidden Knowledge onwards.

Amnion are fundamentally different from any Earth creature - particularly humankind - in their mental and emotional structure. Physically they are humanoid: the Amnioni with whom first contact is made is described in Forbidden Knowledge as "a humanoid sea-anemone with too many arms." Amnioni are however severely different from each other in physical appearance, with differing numbers of limbs, eyes, and other organs, as well as varying vastly in size and shape. This physical individuality contrasts with their mental identicality - their mentality can be likened to that of an insect hive. They are analogous to the Borg in the Star Trek universe, both in their collective intelligence (or "mind union") and in their aim to conquer through assimilation (turning humans into members of their own species).

Despite their fundamental opposition and Cold War-type conflict with humanity, they are not portrayed as the main antagonists in The Gap Cycle. Rather they serve as a driving force for the conflict between the human characters.