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The Sanitized Pseudo-Hivemind

Originally created with military tactic in mind, the sanitized pseudo-hivemind is a hivemind-like psychological phenomena instilled in every sanitized, from the point of sanitization, onwards.
The hivemind (as it is usually referred to) is not a true hivemind, as it lacks full telepathy and has a radius of effectiveness. Instead, it can convey emotion, suggestions, sometimes small strings of sentences or words, and in rare cases create psychological hallucinations.
I will describe the experience of things in the hivemind as "thoughts", "noise", and "sound", but know these are all inaccurate. The experience is completely indescribable, and thoughts and sound are the two closest things it can be compared to.

The hivemind is extremely poorly understood, even by Kamabo's psychologists and other medical professionals. The mechanism by which it functions is unknown, though a dominant theory is that it involves the outward projection of brainwaves, which are received and interpretted in a way akin to dolphins and their echolocation, minus the need for an extra organ dedicated purely to such.
Sanitized utilize the hivemind at all times, whether they like it or not. Giving credence to the brainwave theory, in EEGs, this is seen as sanitized having prominent theta wave activity, more so than the normal cephaling. When the hivemind is actively utilized, EEGs show a sharp increase in beta waves.

Most of the hivemind is not used actively, rather, the subconscious controls what is conveyed. Thoughts and feeling in the active mind can be forwarded via the hivemind, however normally only in subtle ways, "auras", and small pieces of thought and suggestion.
However, certain sanitized who are more "in-tune" with the hivemind can manipulate it to their will, though this is rare and usually considered a mutation by Kamabo medical documents.

The most well-known example of the hivemind in action are Kamabo's Military divisions. They are the hivemind at its purest, original form.
Soldiers use the hivemind to coordinate their actions as to act in unision, to overwhelm the enemy. In combat, they use the hivemind to convey strategy and keep in touch with the status of their peers.

The hivemind, however, is utilized in many more ways.

Pockets

First, I need to describe hivemind "pockets", as I may use terminology relating to them often.
The hivemind has a radius- the range varies on how separated one is from the hivemind. That is to say, Awake sanitized often experience a partial loss of the hivemind when they Awaken, disconnecting them somewhat and reducing their radius and limiting what they can convey through it.
Pockets form when a large number of sanitized are in a general area, creating a large, sometimes rather loud area of hivemind activity.

There are two distinct hivemind pockets.
The origin, centralized in Kamabo Co. and the Deepsea, is the largest pocket and the loudest. It "echoes" through the rail systems into Inkopolis, and can be faintly heard from there.
The Inkopolis pocket is a pocket formed largely of escaped sanitized, or "Surface sanitized"/"Surface sanis". It centralizes around downtown Northern Inkopolis, northeast of Deca Tower, in residential buildings where many sanitized have found homes. This area is the closest to the entrance of Inkopolis Underground, where many escapees emerge from, so naturally a community formed in the general area. This pocket is significantly quieter than the main one, largely due to Awakening reducing one's connection to the hivemind.

A shift in how the hivemind is used is notable in the Inkopolis pocket. Here, it is still used as a survival tactic, but rather more so to alert the general community of danger, and to convey when someone needs assistance or is unwell. Many sanitized in this pocket are unable to actively convey things through the hivemind, so their subconscious largely does the work.
The main pocket can be heard out here, however it is quiet and mostly incoherent at this distance.

The Hivemind at Work

I discussed how soldiers often utilize the hivemind, but there are plenty more examples of unique ways the hivemind is utilized.

Test subjects, particularly those captive in the bowels of the Medical and Sanitization Departments, have a knack for using the hivemind. They are described as "loud", often to the point that those more sensitive to the hivemind will find them unbearable and try to get as far away as possible from the noise.
Employees are often jaded to the sound and work around it.

Employees of Kamabo Co. utilize the hivemind very flexibly. It may be to coordinate, to express emotion, to give orders, to deceive, to scold or praise, anything.

As mentioned previously, Surface sanitized typically utilize the hivemind more for its expression of emotion. The hivemind is a unique tool of communication, and thus has engrained itself into sanitized culture. Nowhere is this more evident than the Inkopolis pocket.

Partially sanitized may have some connection to the hivemind. Usually if their sanitization reached the brain, they will have links to the hivemind. They may not know that what they are experiencing is the hivemind, and it can be a rather distressing affair, as it is in some Awake sanitized. What partially sanitized individuals can do within the hivemind varies.

Consequences

The drawback to the hivemind is often extreme.

The overwhelming power of the hivemind is enough to flare up severe mental health issues. Most pinpoint the source to the test subjects in Kamabo's lower levels, whose cries and despair in the hivemind violently rattle the minds of some who hear it.

The hivemind also comes with the drawback of making one doubt reality. Derealization, depersonalization, and dissociation are extremely common in sanitized, and the hivemind is often more of a hindrance than a help, as the realities and experiences of others are forced into your head. This can also create delusions, and in times of extreme stress, sanitized may begin a sharp spiral into delusion and unreality.
The hivemind is not solely at fault for these issues. Part of this, of course, is due to Kamabo's propaganda campaign, which pushes unreality and doubt onto the minds of its subjects in order to manipulate them.

As I described before, sanitized particularly in-tune with the hivemind often become distressed and overwhelmed for various reasons when nearby "louder" areas. This intense sensitivity has driven many of its sufferers far away from any pocket. Several have sought shelter in the Splatlands, and there a small pocket of its own is growing, though it is practically silent in its current form.

Some sensitive to the hivemind and non-sanitized who had mild to severe consistent exposure to sanitized gel otherwise report a bizarre phenomena centralized to the Deepsea Metro, however.
The voices and thoughts of dead subjects overwhelm certain areas of the Metro, particularly the testing tracks and even more around thangs and other remnants of Tartar's blender. This phenomena is extremely distressing, manifesting as warping cries and screams.

The Hivemind and Sanitized Culture

The culture of sanitized depends heavily on the hivemind, as it is a communication tool. Alongside body language and sound, it plays a key role in how sanitized communicate with one another.

Though stereotypically lurking, loner types, sanitized actually seek out socialization by nature. However, due to stigma and difficulty expressing themselves to non-sanitized, they specifically seek out fellow sanitized. The hivemind in this way acts as a radar or homing beacon, alerting sanitized to when another is around.

This need for socialization is seen in the sanitized of Kamabo as well, and is notably why squadrons form close bonds and often stick together, and why Sanitizers and Hunters are seen in pairs or trios rather than alone. Usually, the act of being alone or distant from a group means serious business or trouble.

The way the sanitized hivemind affects the culture of sanitized is similar to that of the jellyfish hivemind. A true hivemind, various jellyfish species and hydrozoans evolved this trait during the very early Mollusc Era, due to being colony-based animals. Jellyfish and the hydrozoans of the Deepsea have generally vague attitudes and come across as hard to read, yet communicate flawlessly between themselves. They seek out each other to form blooms, and are generally unbothered by the actions of other life around them. Their need for socialization is part of why they've meshed so well into cephaling society, and why the second most dominant species in the world is the crystal jellyfish.
Awake sanitized, like jellyfish, will seek out social groups without sanitized when no other sanitized are around, or when sanitized who are around are unpleasant to them. This does result in poor communications and often being treated as an outcast, not aided by stigma surrounding sanitized, but it will partially fulfill this need.

Like the jellyfish, sanitized gather into small groups and those on the Surface feel much safer when in larger communities of sanitized. This has caused a "web" to form of interconnected sanitized around Inkopolis and beyond.
Neurodivergence in sanitized can also strictly not be ignored here, and it's part of why the hivemind is akin to that of the jellyfish's.
With little emotion to express, use of the hivemind becomes crucial.

Sanitized (notably those on the Surface) are known to form "sani piles" or just "piles", likely as a survival instinct, in which they'll literally pile on top of each other in a huddle. It's been shown that sanitized often seek out physical contact to express emotions and satisfy emotional support needs, and this behavior no doubt creates an important level of support. This behavior is less common in Kamabo Co., though still occurs, albeit groups are typically smaller.

WIP