[She sighed.] The world was broken. None of the inhabitants were natives, except for the spirits. Those who were born there tended to go crazy and... no one ever died. Or - people died, but every time they did, they would come back, but something would be missing. Whether it was their sense of taste or their memories of a friend or the use of their legs or... their sense of right and wrong. I went on a mission once... [she is not looking at him now, her bowl of ice cream is sitting on her lap, and she's staring straight ahead, not seeing anything] ...to a ward of people who'd died so many times that they were little more than vegetables, or completely insane. And there was no rest, no peace for them, nothing that could be done. It was the most horrible thing I've ever seen.

[And she has Seen Some Shit.

Katara swallows after a moment, glances at him, and then continues.] So the inhabitants who'd been there for a long time were split into two factions: The Malnosso, who were trying to master the planet's natural 'shifts' to find the right... frequency, I guess is the best way of putting it, so they could go home themselves, or fix the world. And then there were the Cultists, who'd given up on ever finding home, and believed that the only way to end the cycle was to embrace True Death. True Death involved vicious, horrible torture before the "sacrifice" could be complete. [A muscle in her cheek pulses as she clenches her jaw.] Unfortunately, they did not see fit to volunteer themselves for this process. They were too intent on dragging everyone else with them first.

[A deep breath, turning to Ben with a small, forced smile.] And then there was the rest of us, the ones being kept in the enclosures.