There were once hundreds of people, known as Observers, who were said to have a closer connection with the gods. They could be identified by a gemstone embedded in their skin. Observers were initially honored, but over time people became suspicious of them. They seemed to be immortal, or at least have lifespans much longer than normal. They would sometimes hear voices, or speak to people who were not there. Sometimes they would stop and kneel in place for hours, then wake up with no memory of what they had been doing. Observers tended to be found when and where important or terrible events (wars, plagues, disasters) occurred. People began to call them carrion-lovers, and hunted them down. As far as anyone knows, the last observers were killed around the time the Godsriver broke.