Riley looked up from the note with a sigh.
There was a knock.
She put the letter in one of her pockets and went to open her door. "Captain Jalet." She nodded to one of the high-up Selpids in the Forgotten Wing Company. "I'm glad you're here. I have some questions."
"More questions about Selphid biology?" His face was unnaturally stiff.
Riley narrowed her eyes. She could see the real Jalet inside the corpse of the Lizardfolk he was wearing. It was decent padding, but he still produced heat - and the corpse didn't. Right now, he was glowing several degrees hotter than normal.
He also twitched inside when she'd spoken, despite his face remaining passive.
"What are you hiding?"
"Me? What would I be hiding?" His voice was half an octave higher.
"You've disconnected yourself from your face's nerves. So you're having trouble controlling the vocal cords. You're also doing the equivalent of sweating under your collar."
"Selphids don't-"
"Don't sweat, I know. But you're fidgeting and your body is warmer than normal." He froze at her words. "You're nervous. Why?"
"I, er, uhm..." His shoulders slumped and Jalet's head hung down as he spread his body back into its normal position. "I may have... kidnapped Pinky?"
"What?" She glared at him. "What do you mean that you 'kidnapped' her? Is she in danger? Is she dead?"
"N-No!" He held up his hands defensively. "We wouldn't hurt her!"
"Mm-hm." Riley crossed her arms. "Then what is this about?" She could think of a dozen reasons off the top of her head for what the Selphids might want from her - from making them better bodies to providing them with the tools they'd need to conquer the world. It might be arrogant, but she was fairly sure that the cause of... whatever this was, was rooted in her talents.
"I can't tell you."
"Can't? Or won't?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Pinky came to my squadron and demanded to be taken to our leaders. She was quite insistent. We thought it was a joke, but she was serious. She wouldn't leave. She threatened to reveal our plans about you."
"What plans?"
"I don't know." He twisted nervously inside his body. "We send reports back home, and so we, of course, told them about what you've been doing for us... but as far as I know, there weren't any 'plans'. Except maybe..."
"Maybe?"
"I don't know. All I know is that it's important. You're important. We don't want to antagonize you, but we are in desperate need of your help!"
"Desperate? It sounds like you do know something."
"I only know what the... Selphid leaders told me."
"Oh? And what does this have to do with Pinky?"
"All I did was send her to see them, like she asked. And yes. I trust them." He straighted his back and looked her in the eye. "We try hard to avoid the sins of our ancestors. The-" He paused. "Our leaders know that. If they say you are vital to the survival of our race, then I believe them. If they say they mean you no harm, I believe that too."
"And Pinky?" She glared at him. "Where does kidnapping my friend come into all of this?"
"It was all her idea." Jalet looked worried. "She was the one who called it a 'kidnapping'! She insisted on going! She was the one who kept using that word. She even brought her own blindfold!" He shrugged. "WHY would we blindfold her?"
Riley ran a hand down her face. That did sound like something Pinky might do. "Then what's with her note?"
"Note?" The parasite in the corpse looked away. "I don't know about a note."
"Then let's go speak with Niers or someone else-"
"No!" Jalet shook his head. "We can't! This has to be secret! If anyone found out about our problem, or thought that we abducted you... Many people would die." He held up his hands again. "That's not a threat or a promise, it's just the most likely outcome."
Riley tapped her foot as she thought. "Why you? Why did you come to speak with me?"
"I volunteered." Jalet nodded. "I thought I had the best chance of convincing you."
"And if you hadn't volunteered?"
"..." He looked away again.
"Well?"
"I couldn't say for sure, but... we wouldn't have taken her away regardless of what she said except." He paused. "Except our leaders sent us an order to do just that.
"But you can guess, can't you?"
His shoulders slumped and Jalet seemed to deflate. "Yes. This is vitally important. If I hadn't volunteered then we probably would've gotten new orders."
"About whether to try and take me by force?"
He nodded. "I would've refused that, but there are other Selphids that our leaders would send. I don't want this to come to blows between them and us."
Riley grumbled. An attack on her she could handle. It would be a lot easier if they'd just picked a lane and either went after her and her friend with force, or if their leaders been upfront and honest from the start.
She wondered how much Pinky was to blame for all of this. Judging from the reaction she'd apparently provoked, it wasn't a hundred percent. It was more like she'd... what? Tried to go off alone to help Riley on her own accord? With friends like her...
"Let's say I believe you, what do we do next?"
Three days ago...
(Report.) Continuum commanded. It was the first of its kind. The leader of the Minds.
(The Fraerling has arrived.) Dictum, the third Mind broadcast its thoughts first. (We will start cataloging its thoughts. It knows much about the Human female 'Bit'.)
(I object.) Contradiction voiced dissent. (We cannot breach the wall.)
(We are not. We are reading its thoughts, not altering them.)
(It is acceptable.)
(I think it's still wrong. We have taken a sapient being hostage.)
(We have not. The Fraerling volunteered.)
(I find that suspicious. You say she volunteered of her own free will?)
(We have no objections to you speaking with it, Contradiction. The Fraerling approached us first.)
(Us?)
(Dictum means 'us' as 'Selphids.) The thought wasn't in so much words, but rather a transmission of understanding.
The details of the encounter from the Selphids' point of view flowed across the connection. Thoughts voluntarily given to them from their people who'd been observing the powerful 'Earther'. The red-clad Fraerling approaching them, accusing them, and then asking to be brought to their leaders.
It was an untenable situation, and so Continuum had allowed it. The Fraerling obviously knew not what it was requesting, but if she was left under the nose of the Titan, then he would quickly discover everything. Continuum knew not to underestimate Niers Astoragon.
The Titan obviously also knew of the otherworlders. He also knew of how valuable Bit was. This did not surprise Continuum. It had been put in charge of investigating the Earthers, and it knew a lot. They were spread out all over Balerous and the other continents. Humans, the lot of them. Strange clothing and mannerisms.
It was difficult to separate the rumor from the truth. The only Earthers it knew of for certain were the group to the south, and now the guest of the Forgotten Wing.
(This is not an ideal situation. Outsiders, especial otherworlders, should not be made aware of us.)
(We had no choice, and this is more important than a few visitors from another world.)
Continuum sent its doubt across the link. (It is the most important world event. It will likely lead to a new age. How can something be more important?)
(We have accounts of the Bit Human.) Memories flooded from Dictum to the other Minds. Selphids who went into the otherworlder's room and watched as she repaired their host bodies with speed and skill beyond anything recorded. The memories also had her asking the Selphids about themselves and speaking about healing techniques that were beyond what Continuum could understand.
Continuum was the leader of the Selphids of the gathering Citadel. It was the First Mind, but it wasn't as specialized as Dictum was. The Third Mind was composed of [Healers], [Scholars], [Historians], and other great thinkers. It had been assembled for a singular express purpose, and its knowledge about healing and biology was unmatched.
(Some of these thoughts are from non-Selphids!) Contradiction's dismay was broadcast along with its words. (It is wrong to do so, and I will have no part.)
(When did you become so touchy? Reading minds is a valuable information gathering method.) Humor poured off of Inconsolable. (How else could we even communicate?)
As large masses of Selphids, the Minds couldn't rely on a host body's senses. Their personal sense organs were far weaker than most other races, except for their mental powers. Together, the hive mind's telepathy and telekinesis were far more than the sum of their parts.
(I think it is invasive. This is not a conversation. These are memories taken unknowingly.)
(We have done so in the past.) Egress grumbled. (It is the way of things.) The oldest Mind hesitated. (It does upset the other races. Even if it is not against the rules, it might hamper our efforts.) It also refused the offered memories.
Continuum, along with the other three Minds apart from Contradiction and Egress watched the memories taken from the Fraerling. It had to know what events had led up to this situation, and what better way to do so than from the perspective of the instigator?
A week ago...
Pinky eyed the dead Lizardfolk and Humans that came and went from Bit's room. As much fun as it was to be with her own people again, especially since they were treating her with respect... kinda, she still needed to keep an eye on Bit.
The fact was, she needed protecting.
Her poor, deluded friend - who kept on insisting she had no levels, was clearly of interest to a lot of people. Bit was acting paranoid, with looking around corners and spraying venom in the air, and locking her room, and sniffing the air, and lots of other things that only someone who knew her would recognize as odd.
Probably.
Humans were an odd race. So similar to Fraerlings in appearance, except for their size.
Bit had relaxed her stringent safeguards these last few weeks, but Pinky knew that was the time to be the most paranoid! Er. Vigilant. Yes, 'vigilant' was a much better word for what she was doing than 'paranoid'.
Her mother had told her horror stories about the other races. She might've been overbearing, but she was a seasoned Tallguard who knew what she was talking about.
She'd told Pinky about the Mind Wars. Or whatever it had been called when the Fraerlings had needed to save the rest of the Tallfolk from the Selphids. It was a common enough story. Some group of Tallfolk gathered others of their kind to them and then tried to take over the world or something.
She was pretty sure she'd even warned Bit about that specifically at one time or another.
The point was, until Bit found her brother, it was Pinky's duty to look out for her - and Selphids couldn't be trusted! They were just waiting for their chance to eat juicy brains.
That was why Fraerling were their natural counter - because their brains were too small! And that, er, that made...
"Hey, Lars, why is it that Fraerlings beat the Selphids? Because our brains were too small to eat? Or because our brains were too small to read?"
Her ghost friend let out a sigh. "It's because we're too small for regular Selphids to inhabit. The mind-reading thing only applies to their Minds."
"Of course it only applies to their minds!" She rolled her eyes. "What else are they going to read our minds with? Their spleens?"
Heh. Good one Pinky. Spleen was a funny and foolish word.
"We had lessons about this, Took Pinky. The Minds are what the Selphid leaders are called. They're like, this, uh..." He spread his arms. "This huge Selphid that grew too much to fit inside a normal Tallfolk. So they had to get War Walker and Half Giant bodies, but then they outgrew those."
"Really?"
"Probably." Lars shrugged. "I don't remember the details, only that the Selphid Minds don't have bodies, and are big, and being big helps them."
"How?"
He dramatically rolled his eyes. "Think about it. Fraerlings are amazing, right? But even our magic can't compete with Tallfolk because we're so small. It's the same thing with Selphids. They look like Tallfolk in their corpses, but in reality they're about our size. So their, like, mind powers grow with them the same way that Tallfolk magic is more impressive 'cause they're big."
"We should spy on them. No, wait... YOU should spy on them!" Pinky knew it was a good idea because it didn't feel foolish at all. Her other plans for tailing the Selphids and figuring out what they were up to all had various degrees of foolishness to them, but sending Lars was, dare she say it? Smart.
He was a ghost after all. He could find things out that even the greatest [Rogue] in the world couldn't! Or the greatest [Rouge].
"What? No. This is a stupid idea, Took Pinky."
"Do it!"
"No!"
"I'll fight you if you don't."
"What?"
"I'll fight you to the death!"
"I'm already dead-"
"Then you've already lost!"
Lars rolled his eyes. "Fine. I'll go spy on them for you."
Dictum frowned, as much as a hive-mind of Selphids could frown.
It was clear from her memories that Pinky didn't understand what was going on.
(This does explain the situation.) Continuum thought for the benefit of those not in the direct link with the Fraerling's memories. (It does seem like a good idea to have brought the Fraerling here. Ghosts are not an expected occurrence.)
(Ghosts?) Contradiction queried.
(It is how she found out about our interest.) Dictum said triumphantly. (Something that would've remained a mystery if we had not examined her.)
(Indeed. It explains the account from our agents, but not why the Fraerling decided to come to us instead of warn her people or the Human.)
(It's probably not important.)
"Yeah, it's weird."
"How so?" Pinky asked Lars.
"Well, you're right that they're up to something, but I'm not sure what." The pair of them hid in the bushes outside of where the [Soldiers] from the Forgotten Wing Company were camped. There was a small village nearby that basically sprung up as a suburb of Elvallian. A place where the troops could go and relax, and that their families could live.
Lars couldn't get too far away from Pinky, so while he was the perfect spy, she needed to be relatively close for him to go poking around.
"What did you see?"
"That's one of the strange things. I saw more than I heard."
"Now you're just being cryptic for the fun of it."
"Fine, runt, want to know what I heard?" Lars crossed his arms. "I HEARD the Selphids reporting on Bit. Like, a real military report. Quoting what she said. Going into details about how she repaired their bodies. That sort of thing. Then, once all the [Soldiers] were done, they left, and guess what I heard then?"
Pinky rolled her eyes. Two could play at this game. "A frog."
"What? No."
"The unending screams of a thousand grasshoppers dying at the same time."
"Wha-"
"An Elephant trumpeting!"
"..."
"The Titan giving a lecture!"
"..."
"A fart."
Lars pinched the bridge of his nose, which was a completely symbolic gesture 'cause he was a ghost and couldn't get a headache.
"No. No. And No. What I heard was nothing."
"Nothing?" She'd have never guessed that. "I'd have never guessed that."
"Exactly! Though you should've guessed that I heard them talking to each other about what they'd just learned." He grumbled.
"Well, they have spells to prevent eavesdropping."
"Yes, and they were using those, but I was inside the radius." Lars shook his head. "No. They didn't say a word, but they LOOKED like they were talking."
"Huh? So their mouths were moving but no sound was coming out? I think there's an [Entertainer] class that does that, but, like, the opposite."
"No. I mean they were reacting. Shaking their heads. Furrowing their brows. Smiling. Nodding. That sort of thing. All of the back and forth of a conversation, just without words."
"Oh." That meant... "Oh! I get it! They were speaking with their minds!"
"Exactly."
"Huh. My mom said that the big Selphids could do that. I didn't know regular ones could as well."
"I bet most of them can't." Lars sat down - in a loose sense, since he didn't really touch the ground. "Those guys were probably elites or something."
"That makes sense." Pinky stroked her chin. "Which means it's dangerous to let them get around Bit."
"Dangerous?"
"Bit knows a lot of things. Too much for her human brain to hold all of her thoughts together. I bet that's why she keeps on forgetting that she has a class, because it's not important to her compared to... enzymes?" Whatever. Or... it could mean that Bit had a Blood Class, just like she her third cousin, once removed, used to have.
It was a good thing that Pinky had regular, normal classes. There was no reason for anyone to ever doubt that.
"And one of them reading her thoughts could learn her secrets?"
"Eh? Maybe? It's not like she's shy about telling people. Honestly, I'm surprised that the Titan hasn't gotten her any [Apprentices] yet. But, if that's what she's willing to openly discuss, she must have some doozy of a secret or two that only she knew.
In fact... 'Bit' wasn't even her real name. Just like 'Pinky' was something that Pinky had come up with to help avoid... stuff. Her real name was unimportant, nobody needed to know it.
"So you're going to tell the Titan about this." Lars narrowed his eyes. "You are going to tell the Titan, aren't you, Took Pinky?"
"No." Pinky smiled. "I have a better thought."
"Define 'better'." Lars said suspiciously.
(Why did you approach our agents and demand to see 'the big Selphids'?) Contradiction examined the Fraerling. Even with all of his bodies, Contradiction still didn't have as good of senses as a non-Selphid. He could read in a lot more chemicals in the air, given his greater mass, and his [Telepathy] let him observe the world in ways that were difficult to relay to others.
He didn't have eyes, so he couldn't 'see' Pinky. His understanding was she wore a lot of red, but Contradiction had refused to even listen to the thoughts of the Selphids that had seen her.
That was his role, to stand apart. To watch from the outside.
Besides, it was better in his opinion to hear people put their own thoughts to words. He found that gave a different sort of insight that reading minds lacked.
"You don't know?" Pinky asked.
(No. I do not. I think the other Minds have come to their own conclusions, but I would like to hear your reasoning from your own lips.)
"Heh." Pinky laughed. "You're not foolish. That's refreshing."
(Is it?)
"Yeah." He sensed her sitting down and leaning against one of the walls. "Even smart people can be fools. In fact, I've found that the smartest people make the biggest fools."
Contradiction felt amused at her nonchalance. (That's a fascinating insight.)
"Well, yeah. People who are smart know they're smart in the thing that they're smart in." A convoluted statement, but Contradiction followed her intent. "Then they see the world from that viewpoint. They also know they're 'smart'. So when they encounter something they don't know, they look at it from the way they see everything, and so they still think they're smart."
(You are saying that you have a reason for coming here?)
"Yep."
(Is that reason your ghostly friend?)
Pinky tilted her head. "I never said anything about that."
(No, but the other Minds are reading your thoughts. I felt that you should be told about that.)
Pinky smirked. "Oh? Are they?"
(Yes, but this doesn't seem distressing to you.)
"They can't read a ghost's thoughts, can they?"
(No. I do not think so. It is still debated what a 'ghost' is.) Contradiction knew that there was a Mind in a different citadel who's task was investigating spirits. Continuum had dismissed his suggestion to contact them for assistance. (I do not think my fellow Minds believe you have a ghost.)
"Then how would you explain it?"
(Memories are imprecise things. There are great swaths that are simply... blank. Details that your mind glosses over.)
"I thought you hadn't read my memories?"
(I have not. I have second hand knowledge of them from what the other Minds have observed, and I also have my past experience with reading minds.)
"So... you think I'm lying with my own memories somehow?" Pinky smiled.
(...I am not sure.) Contradiction stopped to consider that possibility. (People lie all the time, especially to themselves. I will tell you something that few non-Selphids know: there are ways to modify a person's memories.)
"That sounds evil."
(I agree. There are good uses for such Skills. [Thought Healers] can help people forget things that have scarred them-)
"I'm aware." The humor in Pinky's voice was gone. "But forgetting isn't something you can always do."
(Oh?)
She sighed. "Since you actually asked, I'll tell you something. My mom tried to get me to see a [Thought Healer] once. It was after my dad died."
(I'm sorry. That must have been painful.)
"It was." She nodded. "The [Thought Healer] said he had a Skill that could isolate the memory. To make it seem... distant. I didn't want that." Contradiction could feel the emotions rolling off of the Fraerling. Sadness. Loss. Anger. "I didn't WANT to forget my dad." She clutched her hand to her chest. "It was MY pain. MY memories. Good or bad, they were MINE!"
(I think I understand.)
"No. You don't." She glared at him. "The only one who did was Lars, because he was going through the exact same thing. His dad died in the same..." She trailed off. "I'm sorry, I think I'd like to be alone for a while."
(Of course.) Contradiction switched his thoughts to just the Selphid [Honor Guards]. (Please escort Miss Pinky back to her room. She's free to come visit me whenever she wants to.) He then refocused on her. (I am sorry to hear about your loss. I didn't mean to touch on such a sensitive subject.)
"It's... It's fine." She sighed as she clamored onto her guard's hand. "I brought it up."
Contradiction watched her go and his separate parts began to converse amongst himself.
(Pinky had brought it up.)
(Those emotions were real though.)
(Emotions can be faked.)
(Not like that. Not without a class.)
(What are her classes?)
([Rouge Fool], [Soul Survivor], [Fallower], and [Practical Prankster].)
(Are those... puns?)
(Yes, I believe so.)
(I would think that [Soul Survivor] would lend credence to 'Lars' being a ghost.)
(Continuum and Dictum disagree. They are of the opinion that he is a figment of a broken mind.)
(They think her memories are compromised?)
(Yes.)
(Then what is to be gained from violating her privacy?)
(Pinky does know things. That is beyond question.)
(It seems illogical to take some of what she says at face value while disregarding other things as figments of her imagination.)
(Since when am I logical?)
(Ha!)
(I've got me there!)
(Continuum and Dictum see what they want to see. If Pinky IS talking to a ghost, they would be required to send her away. This would go against their tasks, so they will not draw that conclusion - at least not yet.)
(She was avoiding answering some things.)
(That's good.)
(Is it?)
(I think so.)
(I think it's the natural way conversations happen.)
(When I speak with the other Minds, I am open.)
(The other Minds are not.)
(True. At times.)
(Pinky does seem nonchalant about her privacy being compromised.)
(Except when her father's death was brought up.)
(Yes. Aside from that, she's remarkably unconcerned about Dictum reading her memories.)
(I agree. That is strange for a non-Selphid.)
(For a non-Telepath Selphid, I mean.)
(Yes. I am correct. I meant that most who convey with words enjoy their masks.)
(That is not a limitation of those with words. I have thoughts I don't share with the others.)
(True. I only share all of my thoughts with myself.)
(I am thinking in circles. I need to concentrate.)
(On what?)
(On what I should do.)
(Should I oppose the other Minds on this?)
(Should I contact the other enclaves?)
(I'm not sure.)
(It would be an easier decision if Pinky was in distress. I have seen the memories of the Selphids she spoke to. She was quite... insistent that she be brought here.)
(I cannot fault them for doing so.)
(I think it would've been better for them to get a consensus from all of us instead of just Continuum before agreeing to bring her here.)
(Continuum is blinded by his task. Continuum and Dictum both want Bit for their own reasons. It is hard to pass up an opportunity for advancing one's purpose.)
(True.)
(True.)
(Very true.)
(If Pinky wants to be here, and the other Minds want her here, what's the problem?)
(The initial problem, of them reading her memories without her permission has been addressed.)
(She did not give permission.)
(She also did not react with dismay or surprise when we informed her of what was happening.)
(Indeed. No confusion. In fact, if I were to categorize her response it would've been... pleased?)
(She is hiding something.)
(I agree.)
(As do I.)
(But what? If she had a [Telepath] class, or even one that's a derivative of [Thought Healer], then I could envision her having a plan.)
(To what ends? Even if she could hide her thoughts, what could she accomplish?)
(Finding the citadel's location?)
(She does not know. Her escorts were not so incompetent to reveal that to her during their trip here.)
(Is it possible she has a tracking Skill?)
(No. Her Skills were cataloged as well. She has none that would let her hide her thoughts nor discern her location.)
(There is the ghost.)
(If there is a ghost, there would be a Skill for it. That is the main argument against its existence that Continuum and Dictum are using.)
(There are Skills that are hidden.)
(True. They are rare, and there are also classes that are not revealed by Skills. Some not even to their owners.)
(I think she has a Blood Class?)
(That's a possibility I shouldn't ignore.)
(It would help to explain her eccentricities.)
(I should not make assumptions. Many people of many races are outside what we would consider 'normal'.)
(True.)
(Should we ask for a more thorough identification Skill to be used?)
(That would mean contacting another enclave.)
(I doubt Continuum would agree to that.)
(I could reach out on my own.)
(That would spread disharmony.)
(The others would become dismayed.)
(If it was for the sake of Pinky, then I would do so. This is nothing more than me grasping at straws.)
(Agreed.)
(It would, however, explain her ghost.)
(Yes. One way or another.)
(I think I have two conclusions.)
(Yes, as do I.)
(Either Pinky has a hidden Skill, most likely from [Soul Survivor], that lets her interact with a ghost.)
(Or she has a Blood class that makes her believe she is seeing a ghost.)
(That is tricky.)
(Is there a threat to her, or to us?)
(If she does have a ghost, then there is a threat to the enclave. It would be an external presence here that I could not sense.)
(Neither I, nor the other Minds.)
(Distressing, but not overly so.)
(I concur.)
(The enclave is a secret, but it is also known.)
(As are most secrets.)
(It is not an problem as long as nothing untoward is happening.)
(I still have my concerns with Continuum and Dictum.)
(They read her mind so casually, but I don't think they would break the wall.)
(No Mind would.)
(The result would be disastrous.)
(Then, what of the other option?)
(If Pinky has a Blood Class?)
(It would explain much.)
(I can see why Continuum believes that is the case, if not the cause.)
(I do not follow myself.)
(Continuum thinks the ghost is a figment. A figment would be explained by a Blood Class.)
(Not all mentally unbalanced individuals have Blood Classes.)
(True.)
(I would even say that most do not.)
(Mental imbalance does not imply a Blood Class.)
(A Blood Class does not imply mental imbalance, but it is common.)
(True.)
(So, the question is: is a Blood Class dangerous?)
(Yes.)
(Potentially.)
(Very.)
(It is in their nature to corrupt.)
(Corruption can spread.)
(I was wise not to read Pinky's thoughts directly.)
(I was lucky. Not wise.)
(I chose not to out of principle, not wisdom.)
(Good principles are their own wisdom.)
(What do I do next?)
(I need to explain what I've discovered to the other Minds.)
(Not discovered.)
(What I've theorized.)
(True.)
(Continuum and Dictum will dismiss my concerns. They are blinded by the possibilities that Bit, and therefore Pinky represent.)
(Egress will listen. They have not read Pinky's memories. They are devoid of a purpose that would color their perspective.)
(I cannot guess how Inconsolable and Sympathy will react.)
(This might be me overreacting.)
(Or I might be underreacting.)
(It is difficult to know which.)
(I should speak with Pinky more.)
(Agreed.)
(As long as I do not read her thoughts or memories.)
(Agreed.)
(I should get a [Guard] to translate for me, so I don't even send my thoughts to her.)
(No. I should use [Telekinesis] to vibrate the air to speak.)
(I hate that.)
(It is a chore, but a necessary one.)
(Agreed. It is cumbersome and less private, but I think it is warranted.)
Bios:
Continuum - The First Mind of the Gathering Citadel, and the leader. It has taken on the task of researching Earth and the otherworlders who have arrived recently.
Contradiction - The Second Mind of the Gathering Citadel who's main focus is on arts and innovation. Two-thirds of the Selphids it accepts into itself are those that had left Baleros. It does this in order to gain an outside perspective as to how other races see Selphids. It tries to be more individualistic than the other hive minds with using "I" instead of "We".
Dictum - The Third Mind of the Gathering Citadel. Dictum was created with the express intent of researching the Wasting disease. It took in tens of thousands of Selphids who had encountered the Wasting or seen its effects and tried to stop it. It sees non-Selphids as inferior and treats them as such.
Inconsolable - The Fourth Mind of the Gathering Citadel who focuses on warfare.
Sympathy - The Fifth Mind of the Gathering Citadel. Sympathy studies the natural world and Alchemy.
Egress - The Sixth Mind of the Gathering Citadel, and the oldest Mind despite being the lowest ranked. Used to be the leader of the Gathering Citadel, but stepped aside and shifted its purpose when it got too old. Egress is set in its ways and is currently providing blacksmithing for armor until it gets a new purpose and a new name. The monotonous work has made Egress more and more grumpy over the years.