Cogent- Variant 763
“Yes I can taste your thoughts and lick your synapses.”

Just because an Ebb user can pull the necessary intel doesn't mean one should grow dependent upon them. Much like the Serene this stormer seems yet another jab by Karma to further fill in niches usually taken up by Dark Lament. The Cogent is built to be as disturbing as it is effective. Their tall, almost gaunt forms have an unhealthy greyish blue corpse-like parlor. It can gather a massive proliferation of sensory data. Monitoring a subject's heart rate by sound. The large, oval black eyes stare unceasingly, thanks to a set of transparent nictitating membranes, through a wider range of spectrum than a human. From between a set of mandibles hang a tangle of sensory tentacle nerves. Their head is flanked by large ribbed, bat-like ears, while their noses appear as little more than two slits, the nasal cavity extends a large way up the head allowing for a wide range of smell and chemical analysis.

The Cogent merges the enhanced central nervous system and 'booster' secondary brain of the Spite as well as memory digestion of the Grit. By placing the various neural fronds of their mouth around a person's cranium and controlling the flow of electrochemical signals of their nervous system they are able to tune into the system of another person. While this is done by electrical transmission the actual charges involved in these signals are miniscule. A Cogent could not shock or electrocute someone with their mouth tentacles and the signal disperses so quickly after only a few inches that touch is ideal if not necessary. While the Cogent can insert signals this is most easily done to instil strong emotional signals such as fear. Coupled with their ability to receive signals they are quite useful in gleaning information from particularly tight lipped individuals. The mandibles on either side feature a set of hollow fangs that can inject a derivative of Honesty into a subject.

The large fan like hands of a Cogent are covered in a similar network of advanced sensory organs as the Serene. Though in their case it is used primarily in the gathering of accurate forensic data from a crime scene rather than assess a patient's physical well-being. They also feature retractable claws well suited for surgical procedures such as precision cutting, stripping, sharp angle cuts and other scalpel like techniques in order to further render compliance.

A set of secondary breathing holes in the chest cavity allows for vocalization as the malformed jaw structure of the 763 does not allow for normal verbal communication. Instead the Cogent's voice resonates from its chest.

Much like the 760, the Cogent appears to suffer from the delusion of a second personality. Of course this could be attributed easily to receiving random input or simply be a result of the constant interplay between the primary and secondary brains. Despite this they are gifted with one of the most comprehensive and analytical personality matrix to date, with a vast understanding of various species psychology.

The unusual structure of their head and hands however make properly equipping them difficult, though they are not intended for use in a hostile environment with firing lines to worry about.

“They can rip and flay your mind! Damn squid heads muscling in on our turf!”
-Spear, Brain Waster

“Perhaps we've gone a little too far this time. I don't think they'll go over any better than Grits would.”
-Anonymous Karma Employee

NB's note:  And now I've really done it. I've put Mind Flayers into SLA. Well not quite, but you can definitely draw the parallel. It was a fun concept.

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