Traditional symbol for the Atmosphere Talent.
- For a list of all known Talents (both inherited and artificial), see List of Talents.
"Talent" is the term given to paranormal ablities (well, "normal" for the Mnemosyne universe) that humans possess and inherit. They are genetic traits, and are passed down from generation to generation.
Artificial Talents have been created via gene splicing, and can be "installed" into an individual. If done at a young age, it will adapt to the host body and funciton like any other inherited Talent. An installed Talent cannot, however, be passed to offspring.
History and Culture
Talents are thought to come from the people of Aubre, who emigrated to Mundis' main continent. The Aubrans have no recorded emergence of Talents in their history; they have always been present. However, their unintentional immigration to Mundis introduced Talents to the Mundan population. As generations passed, the two cultures mixed, and eventually Talents became part of Mundan culture, as well.
It should be noted that it has been proven that Mundans - and all living things, for that matter (even plants and lesser animals) - have Talents. The issue is that the most populous modern cultures have shied away from Talents in favor of technology. There are societes who live happily with both, like the southern state of Luca Mé. In city-states like Urma, however, it is incredibly rare to find an individual who makes use of their Talent. Even then, those Talents are typically installed, not inherited.
In modern Aubre, their society still revolves around Talents. There is little genetic diversity on the floating isle, and thus many possess similar talents. For example, Ville de la Lune, (corrupted form: Vida La Lune) as the name implies, is populated entirely by individuals who possess the Luna Talent.
Mundis Societies and Talents
Obviously, the floating continent of Aubre is entirely based on Talent. Listed below are Mundan societies and their use of Talents in culture and society.
Urma This city-state rejects talents almost entirely. Sebastian Caine has pushed Urma towards modernization, and pushing out Traditional values was his first priority.
Aran The Arid State only recently began to lean towards technology more than Talent, due to economic pressure from Urma. On an individual basis, Talented folk are not rare, but the subject is becoming taboo.
The Godecca Some consider The Godecca the home of "Aubrans on Mundis." They are a heavily Talent-based society with diverse Talents present in their culture. They are most hostile with Urma for their push towards technology, and their diplomatic relationship with Aran is wavering for the same reason.
The Elms Inhabitants of The Elms are unique in that they do not make use of their Talents and they also shy away from technology. They are true Mundis natives who refused to mingle with the Aubrans.
South Mundis Much of South Mundis has a happy balance between technology and Talent. They aren't entirely modernized, and they aren't totally reliant on Talents, but simply keep on truckin' without a particular interest in either.
Luca Mé As mentioned, citizens of Luca Mé make full use of both their Talents and modern technology. (Their technology is vastly different from that of the northern hemisphere, however, as the two societies developed independently)
Symbols
Talents are identified with symbols. These symbols date back to Aubran days, when families who claimed one Talent as their own created a symbol to represent their family, and thus the Talent. These symbols have come to represent the Talents themselves, and are widely known by those in the Talent know-how.