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Soan is a prince in the House of Autumn, one of the four courts of the insect realm. His servant, a hobling named Whisper, betrays his 'eccentric' tastes. The insect nobility is mute to human ears; not as nuanced as insect-to-insect chemical communication, they possess a telepathy that can be heard by all--though the language takes years of difficult training for human beings become fluent. Soan lost his "Voice", a human counterpart that serves as an avatar for an insect in human affairs. In absence of a suitable human replacement, he sent forth for Whisper--a strange choice, by insect standards. Never before had a hobling been selected as the voice for an Amphiesmenid, but this would not be the first nor the last time both Whisper and Soan would cause waves against the status quo.

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A short history:

Long ago, Amphiesmenid nobility were the kings of their domain, as quantitatively intelligent as any computer, and possessing an extremely sophisticated sense of communication that allowed them to govern the subordinate castes with a subtlety (and iron grip) unrivaled by any sentience.

However, they were not alone in their kingdom; they shared their world with sapients who built their own colonies. Though not as advanced as their insect counterparts, they strove to carve out their own niche--using hand and stone where the Courts of All Seasons sculpted with genetic drives and behavioral imprinting.

Unfortunately, peaceful coexistence lapsed into desperate conflict in the face of dwindling natural resources. Both townships and hives collapsed in the face of bitter conflict, and chaos reigned. The subordinate insect castes were all but destroyed, and even humans were on the brink of extinction.

To survive, the remnants banded together to rebuild their world, swearing to never allow such a thing to happen again. A utopia was born, where the enormous, predictive intellect of insects and human labor worked together to create a society of plenty that all shared in. In the face of extinction, the price of some obedience was small for humankind to pay. In turn, even with the great biological wonders of perfumed grub chemical stills and marching columns of construction stags no more, the insect nobility would not die of loneliness.

Bridging the gap between insect and mammalian communication are "voices". Voices are human beings fluent in insect telepathy, their minds permanently linked to that of their insect partner (done with the help of a little biological tinkering). Voices help insect nobility manage human affairs, especially given how secluded insect queens and princes become at maturity: once metamorphosed, they are rarely seen, conducting themselves from only the most remote chambers of their majestic Towers. Insect courts are invisible, conducted on by courier and wind.

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