| Psychics and Mutants In the Jewel Cluster there are Billions of people scattered over 8 worlds, plus transhumans living among them. As a result of the sheer numbers, and the more mystical nature of this setting, some humans are born with special abilities. They are rare, but it does happen. The most common of these are psychics, people born with psychic abilities such as telepathy or psychometry (object reading), which normally manifest themselves when the people are fairly young. Also known, but even rarer, are "mutants", who have even stranger and often more powerful abilities which cover too wide a range to describe. When such people are born they are normally given special education in how to control their abilities and encouraged to use them for the betterment of others and society, but they are not forced to do anything but obey the law. Reactions to these people, if their nature is known publically, are generally neutral, with some prejudice against them and some who almost worship their "specialness", considering them gifted by the goddesses. In any case, their existance is a record of public record, and a few have obtained high profile celebrity status. |