Editing Genius The Transgression/Chapter Four:Special Rules and Systems (section)

=== Being Beholden: ===

Beholden are interesting psychological studies. Though as intelligent, creative, and competent as they were before their change, beholden are incapable of engaging in high-level theoretical thinking. They lack metaphysical, philosophical, political, religious, ethical, or scientific thought-structures. (Or perhaps their conscious minds simply can't access them.) A beholden has no preference for political candidates or political parties. She does not subscribe to any religion, nor does she actively reject the tenets of any religion. She cannot formulate an argument for or against any ethical or political stance, such as vegetarianism or welfare. She may still cling to vestigial beliefs out of stubbornness, habit, or cultural identity, but she cannot really understand why she does.

The only exception to this behavior is when a beholden interacts with a genius. Then, the beholden takes on the philosophy and thinking mode of that genius. This ideological parroting is what makes a beholden so useful to the Inspired.

This condition affects beholden surprisingly little. They still retain an instinctive moral system (measured by Morality). Most beholden would feel disgusted and repulsed by cold-blooded murder, but when asked to justify this feeling, they would be unable. Beholden can still engage in planning and form practical models of the world around them: a clatch of beholden sent to kidnap a doctor can prepare, coordinate, and execute a plan as well as their Skills and Attributes would allow. But they would be unable, for example, to offer an ethical or philosophical justification for their actions.