... Pel seems to dislike most people as a whole, regardless of their species, so much that being asked to lead any group of them, in a non-wartime situation, would have to be at least a little bit like a literal Hell for her.



Pel's cultural issues are at the heart of her behaviour. She's been raised in a society which allows no weakness, and she was sufficiently good at being a Pigeonwarrior that she got to be one of seven chosen to represent her race in the Transworlds Challenge.

> > The Transworlds Challenge events shattered her life. They made her effectively a widow, a blasphemer, a traitor, and an outcast. That some of these things are results of her society's inflexible standards only emphasises how much her culture has shaped her. > > Even her actions after becoming a zhongha-ka have been driven by her culture, albeit now her rebellion against it. > > That's why I wanted to rub Pel's nose in a big heap of Thonnagar and see how she'd handle it.