Deep into the Infinite Stair

[Anastasia]

They are not. Every door is unadorned here.

Jessica looks around, "What is this place, sister? It seems the same and yet not."

[Ebiris]

Alicia recasts sensual blessing. "We're on the stair that isn't the stair?" she wonders, sensing around for any further life.

Bindsight/tremorsense 3 miles to see if we're alone here or not.

[Anastasia]

Ah, you see. In the spaces between you can sense them - little clusters of ant-like creatures. Ant-humanoid hybrids perhaps, the size of dwarves. They float in midair without moving, clusters of 4 to 20 of them or so all about, unseen but sensed with your blindsight. They lie still, utterly unmoving and unreactive.

"Another side to the Stair? But why?" Jessica asks.

[Ebiris]

Any knowledge to identify what those things are? She'll cast see invis so she can see detail beyond just the blindsight perception.

[Anastasia]

They are like nothing you've ever heard of or seen.

They are grey-bluish and like a hybrid of a humanoid and an ant. Ant like features while having a humanoid body, as well as antennae on their forehead. There are distinct males and females, with the appropriate equipment there for procreation. Women are ever so slightly smaller, but it's negligible. None have a single weapon, armor, clothing or bit of equipment.

[Ebiris]

"There are insectoid humanoids everywhere here," Alicia tells Jessica. "I've never seen or heard of their like, they all seem to be asleep in clusters floating between the stairs. Every one naked as a newborn."

[Anastasia]

"Let me go see," Jessica says, "What a strange thing. Wait, between the stairs, like the lillend can?"

[Ebiris]

"They're not moving though, they're perfectly static," Alicia says, gesturing for Jessica to follow as she flies up to the nearest group of them and renders them visible.

Alter reality-ed invisibility purge.

[Anastasia]

It is a group of ten. They are unmoving and utterly still. Jessica examines one, gently shakes it. Nothing.

"Are they even alive? They don't breathe, but that means nothing with spirits," Jessica muses.

[Ebiris]

"Let me examine them..." Alicia says, spending a minute running through several detection methods.

Arcane sight to see what magic on them (take 10 for 64 on relevant spellcrafts), detect evil, detect good, detect law, detect chaos, and finally detect thoughts (presence of thoughts, intelligence scores, then DC 27 will for her to read surface thoughts if any).

[Anastasia]

No magic. No evil. No good. No law. No chaos. No thoughts. Nothing. Soulless husks, nothing more than bodies without a spirit. Nothing more than meat.

[Ebiris]

"They're mindless. Soulless even," Alicia says at last as all her divinations come up blank.

Are they alive? Can I perceive heartbeats or breathing or anything with blindsight?

[Anastasia]

They are living but not alive, there are no processes, yet no sign of rot or decay.

"It's as if...they were made but never awoken?" Jessica ventures as she studies another.

[Ebiris]

"Yes. It's like a clone spell," Alicia nods, looking over them for individual differences beyond the male/female split.

[Anastasia]

There are there. Some are a little taller or shorter, thin or muscular, prettier or plainer. Such normal things are all there.