You pick up the soft lump of flesh, squeeze it gently between fingertips. It pulsates with each beat of its fragile heart. The small invertebrate squirms in your palm, a tiny bundle of gelatinous flesh, fiberless limbs twitch at your touch as you examine. Slug-like, gross, yet feebly cute? The moist tissue blob throbs in your fingers, glistens. Turning over the squirmy fleshbud in your hand, you marvel at its simplicity yet stubborn life, gooey, helpless, yet alive.

"Don't hurt me!" it squeaks.