Vistrum
The Vistrum is a semi-psionic, emotion-sensitive field that exists exclusively among the Valorik species—most notably the Valorèin, but also detectable by Zekarin, High Valorèin, Old Valorèin, and Neo Valorèin. While not a divine gift nor tethered to Universal Law, it is a biologically inherited trait that functions like a resonant empathic link between individuals. Its strength fluctuates with proximity and emotional intimacy, allowing individuals to faintly feel the sensations, sentiments, and psychic disturbances of others in their vicinity.
The Shemèin, though genetically related to other Valorik forms, are completely deaf to the Vistrum and all other psionic fields, rendering them a spiritual anomaly and often a source of tragic alienation in Valorik culture.
Overview
The Vistrum operates as a faint, ever-present emotional network across the collective minds of the Valorik peoples. Though not a form of telepathy in the traditional sense, it is a subtle current of shared sensation and affective resonance that enhances cooperation, kinship, and peacekeeping within Valorik communities. It is strongest among lifemates or bonded individuals, whose connection can momentarily radiate across the environment with euphoric clarity during union.
By contrast, when a bonded partner dies, the surviving individual emanates profound despair, often becoming what is known as a wound in the Vistrum. These individuals are regarded with spiritual reverence and sorrow, especially if they remain within Yedistren—where the Vistrum's energies are most potently concentrated.
Functionality
The Vistrum’s sensitivity is influenced by the following factors:
- Distance: The field weakens with physical distance, limiting its practical range to localized sensation-sharing.
- Emotional State: Intense emotions such as love, terror, or agony can “spike” across the Vistrum, creating resonant waves that others nearby may perceive.
- Shared Bonds: Lifemates or psionically attuned groups exhibit heightened resonance, often capable of intuitive non-verbal coordination.
- Condition of the Soul: Individuals in advanced stages of The Curse cannot feel the Vistrum at all, severed from their species' collective empathy.
Cultural Significance
Though not the result of divine engineering, the Vistrum holds quasi-sacred value in Valorik cultures. It reinforces their natural aversion to violence against their own kind and subtly guides their social dynamics through sensation.
- Bonding Events: When two Valorèin are soul-bound or mated, the Vistrum between them becomes temporarily radiant. Observers within the area often feel euphoria and harmony.
- Mourning Rituals: Valorèin who have lost bonded partners emit sorrow through the Vistrum so viscerally that their pain becomes part of the local spiritual atmosphere.
- Training Discipline: Members of the Shiekuu Brotherhood learn to suppress their Vistrum signature, allowing for stealth-based combat training and mental resilience. Notably, suppression does not cause them harm.
Deviations and Exceptions
- Shemèin: Shemèin lack all psionic receptors and cannot perceive, interpret, or influence the Vistrum.
- The Curse (Valorèin): In its advanced stages, this affliction robs individuals of Vistrum perception, leaving them in states of extreme psychological isolation and existential dread.
- Shiekuu Brotherhood: Members temporarily suppress their connection to train in hostile awareness and mental control. These individuals typically retain full functionality upon re-connection.
Interactions with Other Species
While non-Valorik species cannot perceive or access the Vistrum, some highly sensitive telepaths have described its presence as a "static hum" in areas densely populated by Valorèin. Attempted intrusion into the Vistrum by non-Valorik species psionics is considered either impossible or ethically repugnant by most telepathic disciplines.
Terminology
- Wound in the Vistrum: A title given to surviving lifemates who remain active after the death of their bonded partner. Often deeply respected and pitied.
- Vistrum Spasm: Rare event where high concentrations of emotional trauma among a group ripple violently across nearby Valorik, causing nausea or sensory dissonance.