25 Eleasis 1482

Here in the Ceremorphosis Division of the Nourisher Creed, we are the first point of contact for every illithid born in Oryndoll. This means it is our responsibility to screen each cohort of newborns for any trace of physical or mental abnormalities within the first three days of life and, unfortunately, to cull any with defects severe enough to cause unnecessary suffering or prevent their full participation in society.

In recent years, the euthanasia criteria have been relaxed slightly, and I have been tasked with providing a review of the updated criteria for employees of Ceremorphosis Unit 3. Note the revisions in the cases of illness, partialism, and incomplete ceremorphosis. Personally, I consider these changes to be a small but crucial step forward in terms of inclusivity.

Newborn Illithid Euthanasia Criteria:

Abnormal number of tentacles

Exception: six tentacles for an ulitharid

Missing or nonfunctional limb(s)

Blindness or deafness

Absence of psionic ability

Partial/Incomplete ceremorphosis

This criterion has recently been adjusted to include only cases of intermediate anatomy, in which the newborn resembles neither a typical illithid nor its original host

Early illness or failure to thrive

Revised criteria: Unit members are instructed to use their personal judgment here. Is there a high likelihood of recovery, or is illness due to an innate developmental defect? Does caring for the newborn require a significant investment of time or department resources?

Non-sentience or very low intelligence

"Low intelligence" is defined as below that of a typical humanoid child on early screening measures

Exception: Gnome squidlings

Severe partialism

Any partialism that can be identified by our Unit within days of birth is automatically considered to be a severe case. See "A Note on Partialism," below:

A Note on Partialism:

Partialism is a condition in which an illithid retains parts of its form donor's memory, personality, or mannerisms. Many cases of partialism are minor and, in my rather unpopular opinion, harmless. These subtle cases often involve minor quirks or physical tics reminiscent of the host such as tapping the fingers or sitting a certain way, and the illithid in question is often not even conscious of them. This type of partialism often goes unnoticed for years, and does not fall under the euthanasia criteria. Such cases are usually subject to exile or psychic surgery, and any illithids with a documented history of partialism are not allowed to join the Elder Brain upon death.

In the past, any sign of partialism in an underage illithid was grounds for euthanasia. More recently, only those cases of childhood partialism severe enough to be identified during the first year of life are an automatic cause for culling, whereas milder partialism identified in older novices is dealt with on a case-by-case basis. Despite my lenient stance on this topic, I will admit that severe cases of partialism including significant host memory or personality retention may constitute a potential threat to our colony. These cases can often be identified and dealt with early, within the first day of a newborn illithid's awakening.

One early sign of partialism is the lack of a unique name. The typical newborn illithid feels an instinctive urge to name itself in order to distinguish its own mind from all the psychic noise around it. These names often initially take the form of a simple idea or sensation, and are later elaborated upon and translated into Qualith in the typical written form. However, an illithid with significant retention of the host's memories or personality may name itself something very similar to the original host or retain the host's name entirely. Other signs of partialism include distress or dissatisfaction with one's physical form, unusual levels of sophistication in speech or comprehension within minutes of birth, and refusal to eat for reasons unrelated to physical ability.

If partialism is suspected, it can often be discovered by a deep investigation of the mind of the newborn in question, since newly-transformed illithids are unlikely to have any barriers or mental defenses in place to prevent this. The boundary between public and private thoughts is often blurred in young illithids, and the content of the thoughts tends to be simpler and more reliant on images and sensory impressions than that of an older novice or an adult. Additionally, a true newborn should have no significant memories.

Ceremorphosis Unit 3 employees are advised to report any suspected cases of partialism to myself (Videxthrod, the Unit Manager) rather than escalating to Assistant Creedmaster Qrr'Dekvin, who oversees the entire Ceremorphosis Division. Qrr'Dekvin has recently taken on additional responsibilities in light of the Nourisher Creedmaster's impending retirement, and does not need to be bothered with such trivial matters.

Author's Note: I do not endorse any of the views expressed in this chapter or this fic in general, illithids are an evil-aligned race in D&D for a reason...