Q. Would it be out of the question for a Being to ‘groom’ a future Master when their master declines due to old age or disease, or is it more whomever was handy?
A. In the event of an unplanned-for death, a Being might gravitate towards someone they were already familiar with (as Reseda did with Timothy), but they wouldn’t deliberately plan it beforehand.
What does happen is that existing Masters will plan for and groom their successors. That’s essentially what Jany’s grandmother did for Jany, and it’s probably what the Tiger’s previous Master would have done if Walker hadn’t volunteered herself as ready for the job, no guidance necessary.
Q. Kara Lynn had standing orders from when she was serving Jany’s grandmother, but how strict are those orders? Could a Master order (and have the order fulfilled) a Being to never get a new Master, even after the existing Master’s death?
A. Kara Lynn followed her previous Master’s orders because Jany renewed them (saying “Just keep doing all the things to help my family that you were doing before” without getting all the details). A Being whose Master just died might still go through the motions of following some old orders out of habit…but they’re going to be drawn to finding a new Master no matter what.
Q. Is that “name” issue for Beings linked to the fact that they do not, and cannot have an identity, or that they cannot have a permanent identity?
A. Yes! If a Being had a permanent, settled identity, and a name to go with it, they would be able to say “My name is ___” just fine.
“If a Being had a permanent, settled identity…” That would seem to imply that it’s theoretically possible. Or am I reading too much into your answer?
Yes, it is theoretically possible. (Which doesn’t necessarily mean it’s humanly possible.)
If a Being had a permanent, settled identity, and a name to go with it…
Huh, does that mean they could use their animal identity as a name? With multiple languages you could even find a name that sounds halfway normal, for example, My name is Cat, my name is neko, my name is Kassi.
Afraid not. The limits are based on underlying meaning, so you can’t get around them with clever phrasing. A Being can say things like “I am the Cat,” but it’s just a characteristic like “I am a blonde” or “I am tall”, not an individual identity.
Ummm……the answer to the last question in this Q&A strip sortof implies that the Beings are a type of proto-entity. They don’t just exist on a differing plane of existence from us, but that what they are even on that plane is to a fair extent uncertain. Almost makes a person wonder if you’d use them as the origins of the Djinn in your setting.