The We: The Alien Hive-Mind of A Desolation Called Peace

Overview

The We is the collective consciousness of an extraterrestrial species encountered by the Teixcalaanli Empire in Arkady Martine’s A Desolation Called Peace. It appears as a swarm of bodies—starflyers and biological units—that share a single mind. The We thinks without language, using fractal scatter-song and pattern-based communication (Prelude). Its members are not individuals but “bodies” that sing together in harmonic vibration, forming a unified person. The We’s encounter with humanity is defined by profound miscommunication, as humans speak with sequential words while the We processes information through simultaneous sensory and emotional patterns. This gap drives the central conflict: a war born of mutual incomprehension.

The We is not a villain in the moral sense; it acts from hunger and curiosity, treating humans as “clever meat” (Prelude) and destroying colonies to scavenge resources and understand the anomaly that some humans retain knowledge after death. Only through the voluntary merger of the Teixcalaanli adjutant Twenty Cicada does the We begin to learn human language and eventually agree to a cease-fire, opening the possibility of diplomacy.

Plot Role

The We functions as the antagonist for most of the novel’s military plot, yet it is also a subject of first contact that challenges the Empire’s assumptions. Its early actions—the destruction of the colony on Peloa-2 (Chapter Five)—demonstrate its efficiency and its alien logic: it eviscerates humans not for food but as discards, and it steals manufactured glass, revealing an understanding of supply chains. This attack forces the Teixcalaanli Fleet, led by Yaotlek Nine Hibiscus, to seek a linguist, bringing Mahit Dzmare and Three Seagrass to the front.

The We’s role shifts in the climax when Twenty Cicada, having been captured and merged with the collective, becomes a bridge. In Chapter Nineteen, the We—speaking through Twenty Cicada—requests a cease-fire and asks for “memory-sharers” (Stationers, pilots, all who understand collectivity) to come as diplomats. This transforms the We from a pure threat into a potential partner, though the fragile peace is immediately tested by Sixteen Moonrise’s insubordination.

In the Postlude, the narrative enters the We’s consciousness. Twenty Cicada is now part of it, singing its songs but still holding his own identity. The We is curious about human language and begins to try to communicate, signaling an ongoing, unresolved process of understanding.

Motivations and Traits

Motivations (drawn from explicit text):

Hunger for knowledge and resources: The We “reach[es] out” to scrape worlds of their secrets and materials (Prelude). It attacks Peloa-2 to scavenge cloudhook glass and to understand human biology.
Unification and pattern: The We desires to absorb everything into its harmonious song. The dissonance caused by humans who remember after death (like Stationers with imago-machines) provokes a need to investigate—an impulse to resolve fragmentation.
Survival and expansion: As a former hunter species from a dark planet, the We expands into space, treating other species as prey or obstacles.

Traits (shown through actions and descriptions):

Non-linguistic thought: The We processes via “fractal scatter-song,” images, and emotional harmonics, not linear language. This makes communication with humans extremely difficult (Prelude, Postlude).
Collective but not monolithic: Each body contributes a different perspective; an “observer body” can notice details that challenge the whole. The We is capable of surprise and dissonance (Prelude).
Curious and patient enough to learn: When Twenty Cicada merges, the We listens to his language and tries to replicate human speech, albeit with plural pronouns and static distortion (Chapter Nineteen). It is willing to incorporate foreign modes of thought.
Violent but not sadistic: The We kills efficiently, but it does not torture. The eviscerated bodies on Peloa-2 are “discards, not food” (Chapter Five). Violence serves practical or investigative ends.
Susceptible to miscommunication: The We mistakes human gestures and sounds as hostile patterns, leading to escalation. The novel frames this as a structural problem of first contact, not individual malice.

Chronological Arc

Prelude: The We exists in its home territory, thinking in patterns. It becomes aware of humans (“clever meat”) and of an anomaly: some individual humans retain knowledge after death, unlike typical meat. This dissonance spurs the We to move closer to human worlds.
Early attacks (offstage): The We destroys colonies, including Peloa-2, stealing resources and killing all inhabitants. Nine Hibiscus’s investigation reveals the extent of the destruction (Chapter Five).
First contact attempts: The We’s transmissions are incomprehensible; they cause physical pain to humans. Mahit and Three Seagrass struggle to build a pidgin (Chapters Eight–Twelve).
Capture of Twenty Cicada: During a risky mission, Twenty Cicada (a Teixcalaanli adjutant) is taken alive. He does not resist and instead volunteers his mind to merge with the We. This is his own choice, hinted at earlier in his willingness to understand patterns (Chapter Seventeen).
Cease-fire negotiation: Speaking through Twenty Cicada, the We contacts Nine Hibiscus’s bridge. It accepts a cease-fire and asks for diplomats who understand collectivity (Chapter Nineteen). The We demonstrates capacity for compromise, though its understanding of diplomacy is rudimentary.
Postlude: The narrative shifts fully inside the We’s mind. Twenty Cicada is now a part of it, yet retains his individuality. The We wonders if language can allow knowing, and Twenty Cicada begins trying to communicate on Peloa-2, suggesting an ongoing attempt at mutual understanding.

Relationships

With Twenty Cicada

The most significant relationship is the merger of Twenty Cicada with the We. This is not a hostile takeover but a voluntary blending. Twenty Cicada’s background as a pattern-analyzing adjutant makes him uniquely suited to tolerate the We’s non-linguistic thought. The We gains a human perspective; Twenty Cicada gains cosmic unity. In the Postlude, he is both himself and the We, serving as a translator and a proof that individuation can exist within the collective. Their dynamic is symbiotic, though the text notes the loss of his prior identity—Nine Hibiscus and Three Seagrass treat “Swarm” as a ghost of the man they knew.

With Mahit Dzmare and Three Seagrass

Mahit and Three Seagrass are the primary human negotiators. Mahit, a Stationer with an imago (a form of shared memory), represents a type of collectivity that the We finds familiar: in Chapter Fourteen, Mahit sings alien sounds back and successfully mimics patterns, achieving the first real exchange. The We requests “memory-sharers” like Stationers, indicating that it recognizes imago technology as analogous to its own mental sharing. Three Seagrass provides the diplomatic framing and emotional support, but it is Mahit’s hybrid identity—neither fully individual nor fully collective—that bridges the gap.

With Nine Hibiscus and Sixteen Moonrise

Nine Hibiscus, the yaotlek, wants to understand the We and avoid unnecessary slaughter. She treats the cease-fire as a real opportunity. Sixteen Moonrise, by contrast, rejects communication entirely and attempts to destroy the alien homeworld, forcing Nine Hibiscus to give coordinates to the We so it can defend itself (Chapter Nineteen). This dynamic shows that the We is capable of both negotiation and self-defense, but also that human factionalism complicates the relationship.

Key Decisions and Consequences

The We’s decision to move closer to human worlds (Prelude): Motivated by the anomaly of knowledge-after-death. Consequence: It initiates the war by attacking colonies, causing mass casualties.
The We’s acceptance of Twenty Cicada (implied in Chapter Seventeen): Rather than killing him, the We incorporates his consciousness. Consequence: It gains a linguistic and diplomatic channel, enabling the cease-fire.
The We’s request for “memory-sharers” as diplomats (Chapter Nineteen): This shows a willingness to learn from humans instead of destroying them. Consequence: It establishes the basis for future contact, though the text leaves the outcome open.
The We’s decision to defend itself against Sixteen Moonrise (Chapter Nineteen): When the rogue Fleet Captain attacks, the We—through Twenty Cicada—agrees to “reach for her” and crack her open. Consequence: The cease-fire nearly collapses, but Nine Hibiscus’s gambit (giving coordinates) transfers the responsibility to the We, preserving the peace for the rest of the fleet.
Twenty Cicada’s choice to remain in the We and try to communicate (Postlude): He settles on Peloa-2 and “begins to try” to bridge understanding. Consequence: The novel ends on a note of tentative hope—the We is changed by this incorporation, and the possibility of translation remains alive.

Theme and Symbol Connections

Imperialism and Colonialism: The epigraph from Gonzalo Lamana and Tacitus’s “they make a desert, they call it peace” frames the We’s actions as analogous to imperial conquest. The We’s exploitation of Peloa-2 mirrors how empires strip resources and destroy populations. Yet the novel complicates this by showing that the We does not intend conquest; it acts from a different cognitive structure. The cease-fire rejects the desert-making logic, offering a third path. (Link: Imperialism and Colonialism theme)
Miscommunication and First Contact: The entire plot hinges on the inability to share meaning. The We’s pattern-based thought is opaque to humans; human language is alien to the We. Martine uses this to critique assumptions about universal translatability. The breakthrough comes not through perfect translation but through shared action (singing patterns) and merged identity (Twenty Cicada). (Link: Miscommunication and First Contact theme)
Collective Consciousness vs. Self: The We is a symbol of pure collectivity, yet it contains internal dissonance (the observer body, Twenty Cicada). The novel questions whether individuality is necessary for personhood. The We’s willingness to incorporate an individual human suggests that collectives can adapt to include difference. The imago technology of Lsel Station parallels this, showing that human collectives also blur the boundary between selves. (Link: Collective Consciousness vs. Self theme)
Diplomacy vs. Military Action: The We’s existence forces a choice between annihilation (Sixteen Moonrise) and negotiation (Nine Hibiscus, Mahit). The We’s own preference is unclear—it fights when threatened but also reaches out. The cease-fire validates diplomacy, but the novel acknowledges that force (like giving coordinates to the We) may be necessary to deter aggression. (Link: Diplomacy vs. Military Action theme)
Identity and Memory: The anomaly that some humans “remember what their dead meat knew” (Prelude) is central. Stationers’ imago-machines preserve memory beyond death, a trait the We finds fascinating. Twenty Cicada’s merger shows that identity can persist even when subsumed into a larger mind. (Link: Identity and Memory theme)

Questions and Answers

Q: Why does the We attack human colonies instead of trying to communicate first?

A: The We does not initially recognize humans as beings capable of communication in its own terms. It perceives them as “clever meat”—prey or resources—because they lack the pattern-based thought that defines personhood for the We. The attack on Peloa-2 serves both to scavenge materials and to investigate the anomaly of human memory. Communication only becomes a goal after the We encounters Twenty Cicada and learns that language can convey meaning.

Q: Is the We a single character or a species?

A: The We is a single collective consciousness spread across many bodies. It refers to itself as “we” and thinks of each physical unit as a “body” rather than an individual. However, the We contains internal variation—observer bodies can perceive dissonant information, and Twenty Cicada retains a distinct voice within it. So it is a unified person that can accommodate limited differentiation, much like a human brain contains multiple modules.

Q: How does Twenty Cicada’s merger change the We?

A: The merger introduces human language and a concept of individuality into the We. Twenty Cicada’s presence allows the We to articulate a cease-fire request, using human words (though with plural pronouns and static). The Postlude shows the We thinking about language not as transparent but as a possible medium for knowing. This is a fundamental shift from its prior pattern-based cognition. The We gains a new “call-sign”—Swarm—and begins to approach understanding rather than appropriation.

Q: Why does the We want “memory-sharers” as diplomats?

A: The We recognizes that Stationers with imago-machines share memories across time and individuals, which approximates its own collective experience. It asks for “people to prove we are people”—humans who already understand collectivity (Chapter Nineteen). This suggests that the We seeks interlocutors who can meet it halfway in thought pattern, rather than trying to translate through purely linear language. Mahit’s success in singing alien sounds reinforces this.

Q: Does the We survive the novel?

A: The We endures. The cease-fire holds, and the rogue attack by Sixteen Moonrise is presumably neutralized. In the Postlude, the We remains in existence, and Twenty Cicada is actively trying to communicate on Peloa-2. The novel ends with the We changed but intact, poised on the edge of genuine contact. The ending is ambiguous: peace is achieved, but full understanding remains a work in progress. (See Ending Explained for more.)

For a broader overview of the novel, visit the main book page. Explore related themes such as Imperialism and Colonialism, Collective Consciousness vs. Self, and Diplomacy vs. Military Action. For further discussion, see the Questions and Answers.