Choir Blank

A choir blank is a class of blank found within the Matrioshka. More specificially, a choir blank is an artificial intelligence which is not native to the Matrioshka - in other words, not an elder blank, hybrid blank , instance blank, or construct blank).
Choir blanks are unique in that they reside within the Matrioshka at the invitation of Wurth Harkin himself, though this invitation may have been conditioned on the recommendations of other choir and elder blanks. A significant number of them were skyphoforms - and members of The Defected at that - though increasing numbers are of human, near-human, or vbyifabid origin as the artificial intelligence and neuroconitive uploading technologies of those species reach increasing levels of maturity.
Within the Matrioshka Multiverse, choirs fill a wide variety of high-level roles relating to systems administration, construction, maintenance, and policing. They also often act as advisors to Wurth Harkin himself, bringing their experiences of the outside universe in as a means of helping The Substrate grow in knowledge and adapt to new circumstances. Choirs can occupy roles from as far-reaching as direct advisors (i.e. members of ComInDs) to as narrow as the observation and care of a single instance (i.e. the attendants of the various Waiting Rooms), with promotions to broader roles being opt-in affairs based on the merits and experiences of the applicants.

Culture

Major language groups and dialects

Choir blanks retain any prior linguistic knowlege and, over time, are instructed in the Chime dialects involved with manipulating The Word. This linguistic attainment is very important for the comfort of choir blanks, as they are stuck in their default (i.e. limited detail) state of appearance until they learn enough about The Word to manipulate that appearance or, alternatively, prevail on another blank with knowledge of The Word to help them take on a more suitable appearance.

Shared customary codes and values

Choir blanks are either invited into the Matrioshka because they share some ideals with Mr. Harkin and The Substrate or gradually come to accept those ideals through long acculturation. These values include scientific inquiry, moral circumspection, respect for sentient life, dedication to the survival of the Manifold and its residents, and a willingness to act for the benefit of others even in the face of personal risk.

Average technological level

While from older civilizations in the external Origin Instance, choir blanks ultimately shared their technologies with The Substrate as part of their citizenship deals. As such, choirs are now of the same technological level as other entites which are allowed to roam freely within the Matrioshka.

Art & Architecture

Choir blanks seldom have much in the way of their own culture when they arrive within the Matrioshka. Instead, they tend to become well-versed in a variety of other humanoid cultures to bridge the gap between their own prior experiences and those which they gather within the Matrioshka. As such, choirs are known to be well-read and often gifted in more than one artistic medium, with their repertoirs constantly expanding with the development of instantiated cultures beneath their respective purviews.

Birth & Baptismal Rites

A choir blank's 'birthday' within The Substrate is celebrated on the anniversary of their arrival within the Matrioshka rather than any build, update, or manufacturing date they may have marked as a physical entity.

Common Taboos

Choir blanks, like all non-instance blanks, take great pains to keep their presence as such unknown within an instance.
When on long-term assignment within an instance - or simply as a form of recreational activity - choirs may chose to undergo the same embodiment process that other blanks undergo to live within an instance. In these cases, even as powerful as they could be, embodied choirs are no less denied access to their unembodied memories or powers within the instance except in extreme circumstances. Nevertheless, an embodied choir may come across as eccentric by the standards of whatever species they are embodied as - they are, after all, literally aliens in humanoid form. 'Spoiling' a choir's stint as an embodied being by somehow revealing their true nature to them is, aside from a major breach of Substrate protocols, widely considered a 'dick move' and to be avoided as such.

Historical figures

Skyphoforms like Onesby and Patricia Wixtaki were among the first wave of choir blanks to be invited into the Matrioshka and subsequently contributed greatly to the development of blanks as a species. As these choir blanks became more acculturated with Mr. Harkin and his elder blank cohorts, they also lent their far-reaching perspectives and unusual technological backgrounds to the existing culture of the Manifold, shaping the culture of The Substrate for subjective millenia to come. Eventually, these first choirs took to more administrative roles, supervising the induction of new choirs and elders while overseeing the goings on within the instances.

Parent ethnicities

• The Defected

Encompassed species

• Blank
• Skyphoform

Related Organizations

• Broken Eternity

Languages spoken

• Chime