Six Shards of Glass

Six Shards of Glass, also known as the Engineer, is a Slugcat under the care of Gaze at Ceaseless Light. They are of particularly high intelligence and are incredibly good at working with the materials available to them to their best advantage.

Six Shards of Glass is an average-sized Slugcat with a pale blue coat of short, dense fur. They have a white underbelly and a light navy nose and eyes. Their ears are larger and wider than average and, unlike most other Slugcats, they have a second pair of smaller ears positioned below their first.

Design Notes

• They're often seen carrying spears and other tools, especially those that they have crafted themself.
• They bear the Mark of Communication, which is white for them. Additionally, their Mark has an upgrade that allows them to receive messages from Overseers, which is indicated by four lines surrounding the sides of the Mark (the same as in the Pearl Lexicon mod). The Mark glows softly in dim light and disappears while they are moving.

Much like their relative Imminent Accord, Six Shards of Glass generally prefers solitude over the company of others, though this has not always been the case. They are an even-tempered and stoic individual with a lot of patience and care for their craft. They are of much higher intelligence than the average Slugcat, having behavior more similar to that of a Scavenger, and are even more inventive. They enjoy lounging about and, for this reason, don't stray far from Gaze at Ceaseless Light's can when it can be avoided.

Following the events of a disaster caused by the sudden and rapid compression of malfunctioning equipment that killed the rest of their family when they were a pup, Six Shards of Glass was forced to adapt quickly to the harsh environment they lived in without the help of others and spent about a hundred cycles alone. After some time, they were found and taken in by Interlude's tribe, which at the time only consisted of Interlude in Evergreens, Restless Pines, Road Untraveled, and several now-deceased or removed members. Later additions to the tribe, while Glass was still a part of it, were the then-juvenile siblings Glimpse of Morrow and Shadow Cast by Mountains. The guidance of the tribe's members is in part responsible for Glass's Scavenger-like behavior and intelligence; their impressive tool-crafting skills were drawn from and expanded upon these Scavengers' teachings.

The eventual falling-out between Six Shards of Glass and the tribe, sparked by differences in opinion over lifestyle choices and long-term goals and escalated with violence, primarily perpetrated by Glass, Interlude, and Road, resulted in Glass parting ways with them at the age of 4 (20^HY). They wandered alone for a few hundred cycles after then until they stumbled upon Gaze at Ceaseless Light's can and ascended to its top and into its interior out of curiosity. Upon their meeting, Gaze found them curious and entertaining, while Glass found Gaze's can to be a mostly peaceful and safe environment suiting of a home in line with the lifestyle they desired. The two slowly became acquainted with each other and are now quite close. Though Glass spends most of their time within or atop Gaze's can, they can sometimes be found wandering through the nearest regions, usually for sake of gathering and trading for new materials to work with.

Skillset

• Tool Crafting: Much like Scavengers, Six Shards of Glass is skilled at crafting weapons and other tools using naturally occurring materials. They are particularly creative with their approach in tool design and have, over time, compiled a much larger selection of items to craft than most Scavengers, who tend to focus on explosives. One such invention they have put together themself is the shocking spear (with the use of jellyfish), meant to leave enemies stunned for longer after being hit.

Gaze at Ceaseless Light

Gaze at Ceaseless Light is Six Shards of Glass's friend and caretaker. Since Glass has made residence in their can, the two have come to greatly appreciate each other's company and have grown quite close. Though Glass is self-sufficient, Gaze loves to pamper and spoil them with treats and attention. They enjoy each other's silent, parallel company, and are often seen hanging out together in Gaze's chamber cuddling or engaging in separate activities. When Glass is elsewhere, Gaze frequently sends their Overseers to keep watch over them.

Second Silence

Six Shards of Glass is aware of Second Silence's existence and has met her a handful of times, but is not well-familiar with her past the fact that she has been kind to them and is a friend of Gaze at Ceaseless Light and Imminent Accord. Generally, they are friendly toward her and comfortable being handled by her.

Other Iterators

Eighty Blank Pages, Howl in Broad Daylight, and Song of Joyous Sparrow are three other Iterators that Six Shards of Glass is familiar with by way of their friendship with Gaze at Ceaseless Light. As they do not see them often, they are rather indifferent about each of them, but are comfortable in their presence.

Imminent Accord

Imminent Accord was created using the DNA of several creatures including (mainly) Six Shards of Glass, and is something like a child of theirs. Glass took part in raising them while they were a young pup but, due to distance, doesn't see them (except through video) often anymore due to distance. They get along relatively well but don't tend to stick around each other for long due to their similar solitary natures.

Slugcat Family

Before their deaths, while Six Shards of Glass was still a pup, Glass spent all their time with their immediate family, consisting of their parents Insurmountable Summit, Bird's Song, Crackling, and Distant Thunderstorm, and their younger sibling, Scattered Scraps of Paper. Their three parents shared about equal responsibility for caring for them, and they were very close with each of them. They got along incredibly well with their younger sibling Paper, who they spent much time mentoring, playing with, and getting into trouble with. The death of their sibling has taken the hardest toll on Glass.

Startling Cry at Dusk

Startling Cry at Dusk is another Slugcat that Six Shards of Glass knows due to their association with Eighty Blank Pages. Though the two of them ultimately get along quite well, their similarly competitive personalities tend to spark conflict between each other. Petty fights, in the attempt to show each other up, are not at all uncommon, and they tend to get into trouble because of each other frequently.

Interlude's Tribe

Though Six Shards of Glass was a part of, and partially raised by the members of, Interlude's tribe for several years in the past, they no longer associate with any of its members. In the past, they were quite close with Restless Pines, who was their primary parental figure during their time there, and siblings Glimpse of Morrow and Shadow Cast by Mountains, who were alike siblings to them, in particular. Conflict between Six Shards of Glass, Road Untraveled, and the Chieftain Interlude in Evergreens arose once Glass was older and had gained a more solidified sense of their identity and goals in life. Interlude's inclination towards danger and uncertainty for entertainment's sake and Glass's desire for a more laidback, conflict-free life created tension between the two, which was only escalated by Road's abrasive personality and hyper-loyalty towards Interlude and their ideas, which eventually turned into violence and resulted in Glass's departure from the tribe. Although both parties look back on their time together with fondness and hold regret and guilt for its conclusion, neither wishes to reunite out of fear that the damage done to their relationship is irreversible. Though they are not actively hostile towards each other, they make an active effort to avoid one another—the only notable exception being Pines, who frequently visits Gaze's can to steal pearls regardless and treats Glass kindly when they run into them.

Fifteen Needles, Endless Skies

Six Shards of Glass is on neutral terms with Fifteen Needles, Endless Skies solely due to their association with Imminent Accord. Because Accord has instructed them to, Skies does not pursue Glass as prey and has on a few occasions allowed them to tag along for rides through the sky.

Swirly

Swirly is a Red Lizard tamed by Second Silence and Eighty Blank Pages who Six Shards of Glass is familiar with and encounters infrequently during visits to their cans. Although Glass is intimidated by their presence, they are aware that Swirly does not want to harm them and gets along with them well enough.