"There are some things we were not meant to know, they say. But you wouldn't be down here if you took that seriously."
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"A great many citizens are walking circuitous paths. You follow them at a distance, unobserved, as they go through identical motions like automatons around a clock. Their gestures are not only sluggish, but they follow similar patterns, as though they were actors performing rehearsed parts."[1]
Cline is a kingdom of snails: a citadel built of shells,[2] situated beside a massive crater.[3]
"By way of explanation, the Shrouded Man faces away from you and lets the sheet around his body drop below his shoulders.
"A spiral shell protrudes from the base of his neck, like a snail mounted in a museum. It twists counter-clockwise, flat against his back. Unlike the one on the table, this shell looks glossy, more vibrant, alive. Everyone in Cline must have one – some larger than others. That would explain their stiff movements and hunched postures."[4]
Cline's inhabitants, though otherwise human, all have snail shells upon their backs.[5] These shells, which hinder their owners' movements and appear to make their behavior more snail-like,[6] are a manifestation of one's regrets.[7][8] They cannot be fully removed safely, as they grow from within a person's spine, and will eventually regrow from whatever is left.[9][10]
Even those who wish to leave Cline, and would consequently like their shells removed to the extent possible, are unwilling or unable to elaborate further upon their nature or origin.[11]
Spoken For - Literally
"Are you quite sure you want to know this?"
Beyond this point lie major spoilers for Fallen London, Sunless Sea, Sunless Skies, or Mask of the Rose. This may include endgame or major Fate-locked spoilers. Proceed at your own risk.
You can find out more about our spoiler policy here.
The snail shells of the people of Cline are grown from a parasite called the Traitor Tongue, known to be a weapon of the Presbyterate College of Mortality.[12] As the name might suggest, it replaces a person's tongue, causing them to divulge their secrets involuntarily.[13] If left unchecked, it will burrow into their body[12] and begin to grow their regrets into a shell.[14]
Presbyterate forces infect their captives with Traitor Tongues, if the captives have information the Prester wishes to know.[15] The gruesome process of removing an existing Traitor Tongue, leaving its victim unable to speak,[14] is a further punishment for defiance and blasphemy.[16][17]
Even after it has been removed and killed, a Shell of Regret can detect currents of melancholy floating in the zee.[18]
Scientific Inspirations
A cline is "a measurable gradient in a single characteristic (or biological trait) of a species across its geographical range." These variances within one species are usually due to noticeable environmental factors like temperature, rainfall, humidity, and the consequences of human settlement and industry. The term has definitions in a few other fields, and is also the name for a type of fish native to the Mediterranean, but these are probably unrelated. After all, since Fallen London players visit Cline as part of the Evolution storyline, it's only fair that the first island they visit is named after a scientific term related to evolution.
The behavior of the Traitor Tongue is comparable to that of the tongue-eating louse, although the snail shells are a unique twist. (Pun not intended, but welcomed and accepted.) The name says it all. Consider yourself fortunate that they only prey on fish.
↑Set zail, Fallen London"When you first arrived, the city's walls looked like indifferent limestone, piled in chunks like an earthwork. But as you pass through them a second time, you recognise the building material: calcified shells. Millions are heaped in a ring-shaped pile around the citadel, with the uppermost inexorably crushing the shells at the bottom into dust."
↑Enquire about the 'fresher specimen', Fallen London"A spiral shell protrudes from the base of his neck, like a snail mounted in a museum. It twists counter-clockwise, flat against his back. Unlike the one on the table, this shell looks glossy, more vibrant, alive. Everyone in Cline must have one – some larger than others. That would explain their stiff movements and hunched postures."
↑Covertly follow the locals, Fallen London"A great many citizens are walking circuitous paths. You follow them at a distance, unobserved, as they go through identical motions like automatons around a clock. Their gestures are not only sluggish, but they follow similar patterns, as though they were actors performing rehearsed parts."
↑Look for the fresh shell's attachment point, Fallen London"It is an accumulation of regret. The burden of making choices, every day. It grows with one's mistakes. [...] The law of the Presbyterate is clear: None shall live a thousand years. But some lives are heavier than others."
↑Look for the fresh shell's attachment point, Fallen London"Though the shell nestles tightly against the flesh on his back, it attaches only where the spiral starts: just above his ribcage, right below his neck. Surgical removal doesn't seem impossible, but it's hard to predict the long-term effects. Or the short-term effects, for that matter."
↑Take the knife and cut, Fallen London"In truth, the shell extrudes from somewhere deep between the vertebrae – it would be impossible to remove at the root without decapitating the patient. But you can cut the shell itself, carefully slicing away near the bone. "It will grow again [...] Already, I feel new regret. But it will take time. By then, I should be gone.""
↑ 12.012.1Be admitted into a deeper confidence, Fallen London"The Accommodating Footman places a large jar [...] on a table. There is something dead inside, with many teeth. If it weren't black and rancid, it would look like a bloated pink slug. "Some call them Traitor Tongues. They come from Cline. They are tools wielded by the College of Mortality. [...] And they burrow.""
↑The Traitor Tongue Speaks, Fallen London"Blood wells from the Youthful Naturalist's lips. His teeth are crimson. Inside his mouth, his new tongue is installing itself. Engulfing the old, consuming it down to the root, nibbling until its fangs are anchored. The Second Sacristan leans forward as the tongue begins to speak. It will betray the Naturalist's most secret thoughts."
↑ 14.014.1Administering the Prester's Justice, Fallen London"The Shrouded Captive would scream, but his tongue is slipping down his throat – pulled backward as you labour together with the Prester's agents. You hold open his skin where his shell would attach to his spine. They have hooked something inside, something that squirms. They pull it, slowly, from the incision, and his tongue continues to disappear. His tongue is no mere tongue. It is the squirming thing: the front end, as it were, if the Masked Corsairs have caught the back."
↑Administering the Prester's Justice, Fallen London"Crime. Punishment. Cause. Effect. The Shrouded Captive bows his head. He will not need his tongue. Not when the Prester has spoken for him. Not when this is the Prester's sentence."
