I call them spirits because they act like them. Elemental beings. They aren't people, and I would be hard pressed to even say they are truly alive. They seem, based on what I know, to function more or less as embodiments of their element.

Basically they aren't people, they're entities. One is a cloud, for God's sake.

I don't like to say it, but CERES is at least the choice that understands human needs.