House of the Mind

The training methods used in the House of the Mind are notoriously harsh, and many students do not survive the process. Life in the academy puts incredible stress on the minds, bodies, and spirits of students, pushing them to their limits.

By Tectuktitlay’s command, Draj’s noble families send their sons and daughters to the House of the Mind for training. Many fear that they will never see their children again, so dreadful is the reputation of the academy. Some look for ways to avoid this fate, hiring agents to smuggle their children out of the city or arranging for apprenticeships in distant client villages loyal to Draj. Most of the talented young apprentices to be found in client villages are noble children who escaped training at the House of the Mind, making them tempting targets for raiders looking for a ransom.

All students of the House of the Mind live on the grounds during their training, even those whose families have estates within Draj. This arrangement gives the instructors ongoing access to the students and allows Tectuktitlay to keep a close eye on those he is arming with mastery of the Way. Students consider the academy to be almost a prison; anyone caught sneaking out is severely punished. Some noble youths studying at the House of the Mind pay handsome sums to have contraband smuggled in—or themselves smuggled out, even for a brief time.

Some instruction at the House of the Mind follows traditional methods of example and study, but much of the training regimen focuses on head-tohead competition. Under Tectuktitlay’s direction, the masters of the school pit student against student in contests of psionic might, a dangerous practice that results in frequent injuries and deaths. These intense confrontations sometimes spill out over the walls of the House of the Mind, at times when two particularly powerful students are pitted against each other. On such occasions, Moon Priests have been forced to intervene to prevent further damage to the city.

Punishment for failure in the House of the Mind is extremely brutal. For the fortunate, it consists of mere physical abuse (and, if Tectuktitlay is the instructor, a quick death), but other methods are mentally torturing, trapping the student in a prison of his or her own nightmares to be tormented by psionic constructs. Sometimes the instructors are careless, and the student never emerges from this nightmare state; only another group of masters can delve into the psychic dungeon to rescue the imprisoned mind.

The House of the Mind’s physical structure resembles that of a fortress. Set close by the walled compound at the heart of Draj known as Two Moon City, the academy is well protected by Tectuktitlay’s most loyal servants. Getting inside is as difficult as infiltrating Two Moon City, and only the most skilled thieves and adventurers would risk such a task. The squat building has guards posted at all entrances, few of them carrying physical weapons—a fact that reinforces the threat posed by the psionic masters of the House of the Mind.

Half of the building consists mainly of student dormitories. Up to twenty students are assigned to a single unadorned room filled with bunk beds stacked four high. On the opposite side of the courtyard at the center of the academy are the masters’ quarters. Ixtabai has his own small house on the grounds as well.

Most instruction takes place in one of five training chambers. In the Chamber of Pyrokinesis, students learn and practice the ability to manipulate fire with their minds. The Chamber of Clairsentience is where students learn to extend the mind’s eye to perceive far-off places. In the Chamber of Telepathy, students practice touching the minds of others while warding themselves against psionic attack. The Chamber of Psychometabolism trains students to use their minds to manipulate and transform their bodies. In the Chamber of Psychoportation, students practice moving objects both small and large with the power of the Way.