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<DIV style="font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A title=jerry_friedman@yahoo.com
href="mailto:jerry_friedman@yahoo.com">Jerry Friedman</A> </DIV></DIV></DIV>
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<DIV><BR><BR>> No matter how or whether Typhon sent his thoughts to far
places, we know</DIV>
<DIV>> he's telepathic. He makes Severian see through his eyes,
and he casts a </DIV>
<DIV>> spell to try to get Severian to swear loyalty to him. Severian
compares<BR>> this spell to Decuman's, greatly in Typhon's favor.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I don’t read too much into this. Typhon is a powerful and charismatic
individual; I wouldn’t be surprised if in the _BotNS_ universe such individuals
typically have some sort of telepathic power. Like Jeff, I don’t
think it’s important whether he uses telepathy or some kind of
techno-magic.<BR><BR><BR>> Do we know Mucor's talent is genetic? Maybe
it's the result of an implant or </DIV>
<DIV>> brain surgery or magic performed on her embryo. Or are you using
"genetic" </DIV>
<DIV>> as a shorthand for some broader idea?</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Of course Dr. Crane cannot know the details, but I think we should heed his
observation that Mucor’s parents (her genetic parents, that is) met in a petri
dish. [I imagine the same applies to Silk.] Presumably the embryos
were then genetically or otherwise engineered. We know Mucor’s brain
developed in an abnormal fashion, and after brain surgery her powers were
suppressed for a time but eventually came back. So I imagine the
telepathic powers must inhere in brain tissue, and probably exist to some extent
in everyone.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><BR>> It seems to me Typhon's psionic talents are quite possible for
humans in Briah, considering Mucor and<BR>> Decuman. We have no idea
what enhancement and special training Typhon might have.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I never saw him as primarily a telepath, but indeed perhaps telepathy was a
greater part of his powers than I had thought. But I think his chief
powers were charisma, leadership, and military strategy. [That’s why I
think a lot of Pas is coming out in SilkHorn as he wanders Blue on his way back
to his (Silk’s) island.]</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>- Gerry Quinn</DIV>
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