Pilots' Coterie

The Pilots' Coterie was a posthuman collective that was part of the Blood Coteries (PROSE: The Book of the War) and was based in Civitas Solis. Members of the Coterie had sacs of flesh on their necks and stomachs. Their heads were either human-like with empty eye sockets or flea-like with "pestilent grey sacs of feelers and bulges and clustered eyes". (PROSE: Newtons Sleep)

The Coterie was the only known source of praxis in the Spiral Politic; (PROSE: The Book of the War, Weapons Grade Snake Oil) the material was distilled under strict security to assist in the deep fugue calculations of space-time events, though, in its tasteless gelatinous form, the Pilots needed to ingest at least ten times their own body weight before the praxis had any effects. (PROSE: The Book of the War)

The Blood Coteries courted the Pilots to captain the Bababadalgharaghtakamminarronnkonnbronntonnerronntuonnthunntrovarrhounawnskawntoohoohoordenenthurnuk-class planet-killer warships. Though time travel research was forbidden by Siloportem, the Pilots existed in a permanent grey zone. (PROSE: The Book of the War)

Three Pilots in Civitas Solis, including Erasmus, manifested themselves in 17th century England to investigate changes to their history caused by the babel's interference with Jeova Sanctus Unus' timeline. They agreed to give Nate Silver a powerful tool in exchange for a sample of his biodata after death. (PROSE: Newtons Sleep)

Pilots circled Terra Primagenia on the day of Cernunnos' unveiling. Avus briefly became one of these Pilots during a praxis trip of his own. (PROSE: Cobweb and Ivory)

Behind the scenes

 * The Pilots' Coterie and its dependence on praxis closely parallel the s and their dependence on in the  franchise.