We are not like others.

Others are a single entity in a single body. But we are not. We do not know why this came to be. Perhaps the Dark, in Its great wisdom, understood that we are too much for a single body. That we would be able to fulfill our caste rank best if we were placed as one entity in two bodies.

We have always been this way. Since before we even hatched from the same egg, we have always been two halves of the same whole. There are differences, of course. We are two bodies, after all. One is the artist while the other is the architect. Each form has a different dominant appendage. Our voices differ slightly, though we may speak as one when we choose. Many say they can tell us apart, as though we are two separate entities, but we know we can fool them. It is not lying, though. They simply do not understand that we are the same entity.

We were born together. We molt together. And we will eventually Fade together. It is the way of things. 

We believe the Grand Master to be the only other that truly understands our situation. She is wise and helped us to realize that others cannot see us as one entity. It is she who advised us that each body needed a separate moniker, as the humans especially would not understand us to be a single being. Even our fellowship and our life partner do not fully understand. They believe their link is to one or the other and we as two tie the core together. But each is linked to the single being of us; the visual link merely attaches to whichever form is physically closer at the moment. 

We break the rules with our existence. But rules are meant to be broken, are they not? The existence of the Darkwalker proves this as well. He breaks many of the societal rules: his moniker does not conform to his chosen gender alignment, he sings more songs and with more voices than should be within his ability, he holds no fear for pain or violence, and he formed a fellowship among humans. Those are just the examples we can think of at this moment, and we are certain there are many more. We find a kinship with him, though we are still wary of his volatility. 

And we do like the company he keeps. His fellowship is well chosen. They are the balance he lacks. Were it not for his need, we would have brought Kellen into our own fellowship core. But we have seen the link Kellen holds with our Darkwalker, and we dare not deprive him of such vital stability. So we keep Kellen at the fringe of our fellowship. Many do, actually; he does not realize how many of the People would compete for the privilege of bringing Kellen into a core. We find it amusing.

We find many things amusing, in truth. It is a part of who we are. Mirthtamer is our caste rank, the song which we sing best. Humor is our way of teaching. And our way of discovering secrets. Through our pranks, we find truths that others may try to hide. And that is our true purpose: to bring that which is hidden into the light. We may revere the Dark, but there would be no shadow without that which casts light. Nothing remains hidden from us for long.

Take, for example, Kellen. It is we who discovered his caste rank of Darktouched, and we who began to circulate that name for him among the People. We see more than we speak of, and we saw where the Darkwalker had left his touch on accident. He is allowed to break that rule, as well; the one which forbids altering another against their will. Even we are not exempt from that one. But the role of the Darkwalker is to tread those forbidden paths so they may bring knowledge out of the Sacred Dark. And he performs this task well. 

We aid him as we are able. Through our pranks, we show others new paths. We allow new bonds to be forged. And we hold close the secrets revealed. Like the secret of the Darktouched and how he can understand our language. We know he did not want us to find it when we did. He asked us to keep the secret and we agreed, because we could see the prank in it. Kellen asked us to fool the entirety of the People. And we gladly aided. Because the knowledge it would bring was invaluable. 

We know the secret of the Grand Master, as well. The one she does not want to be spread about. If others knew, her mantle would pass. And that would hinder our purpose. So we hold it closer than any other. 

For we know that she has learned the ways of speaking false. 

She dislikes using this skill. To her, deceit is another way of denying the autonomy of another. Falsehood can bring danger. It can put another being at risk of pain or unexpected severance of a fellowship. Deceit is also a difficult skill when one can directly observe the emotional landscape of another. The consternation that is felt when a being is considering falsehood is clearly visible. And yet, we know she can. We have seen her do it. 

It appears to be tied to the mantle of Grand Master. Even the Darkwalker, who is destined to break all things, cannot truly speak false. So we surmise it is the mantle which allows this. 

Even we do not speak false. We have learned to hide our secrets well, lest they be revealed too soon and the prank spoiled. But if we do not speak, then we cannot speak false. A veil of mirth hides many truths. We learned as spawnlings to hide behind amusement. And others think nothing more of it! 

"Anzi! Renza!" We turn together from our musings at the greeting of the Darktouched. He comes up to us, a smile upon his heart. "Hey, guys! What are you up to today?" 

We smile. "Greetings, Kellen." Half of us reply, while the other half watches. "We are tasked with assisting in maintenance upon air systems."

"Hell yeah!" His enthusiasm is infectious, and we find ourselves offering back a facial gape. "That means you're with me today. Come on, let's get our shit together and get our asses into the ducts!"

We have gotten better at parsing the speech of the Darktouched. His jovial personage makes it easy. The lingo he uses stymied us at first, as he is wont to add expletives and group words into coarse combinations that we do not easily interpret. But we have become accustomed to his slovenly communications. Many humans are this way, we have discovered. Their words run together until meaning is lost. But the Darktouched conveys his landscape well, which aids us.

For example, we can see his enthusiasm at our news that we are assigned to air systems. We can extrapolate that he will be joining us with our maintenance duties based upon what we see. With one set of eyes, we read the flash imprint, while the other reads the composite. Thus do we get all sides of the landscape. Just one of many ways that our split bodies allow us to better perform our role. 

We follow the Darktouched, observing as he greets each individual we pass. He is a social creature, we have noticed. It is strange to us how much he enjoys touching others during his greetings. A pat upon the shoulder or a slap to their open hand is his usual custom, or an impact of knuckles with closed fist if the other is not as welcome to the touch. Sometimes, he will pause long enough for an embrace. He greets unknown humans by grasping their hand firmly. We surmise it is a show of strength, to compare grips and thus gauge which is a more dominant male. 

But he also acts with care for the autonomy of the body when he greets others of the People. His hands remain clearly in view and contained to himself. There are still touches, but only upon his own body. We have learned that he speaks with those touches, that it is how he conveys his affection, and when he is unable to touch others he uses himself as a canvas to express those emotions. So we pay attention to his hands, one of our bodies observing his gestures as the other converses.

Perhaps soon, we should consider allowing his touch upon ourself. We trust the Darktouched, as he is accepted into the periphery of our fellowship. And we know that he understands the principles of consent. He demonstrates it often and speaks of it to educate others. We have seen that he can respect autonomy and will not abuse such privilege. It shall be taken for consideration, we decide.