“Not quite. Have you ever heard of a rat king?” When the newcomers shook their heads, Marat continued, “Sometimes when rats are forced to live in too small a space, their tails become entangled, and those tangles become knots. The rats who find they have become entwined with their brothers and sisters are presented then with a choice: They can learn to think, coordinate, and work as one, or they can die as one. That is a rat king.”
