Very well put. And honestly this is the best time to say that just using "The Truth" to talk to every NPC doesn't feel all that weird. It is a focus point I have been working to expand on through a supplement book in the works with the working title "Story Tellers of the Ninth World" which is going to help players and GMs work with culture, language, and bringing the "Bard" back to the table.

Here is a small bit of what I wrote and am working on.

Language –
A method of being able to communicate from one person to another.
Stories and words have meaning, and that is why it is important to realize that in Numenera that in the various cultures and peoples in the Ninth World can differ simply on what stories they have. Whether it is to teach a lesson,  share an exploit of an adventure, or even lie about the size of a Rubar. This section was created to expand on the Weird of the many ways people and creatures could communicated in the Ninth World.
It is part of human nature to share their experiences with others. We began by teaching our young by sharing our stories through word of mouth and pictures, or as it is formally known as Oral Tradition. Where a person or group may be responsible for recounting the tales their tribe can still remember. But to first do that we had to develop Language, a means on how to translate what the cave paintings meant and what exactly happened during the story. In the Ninth world it would not be unusual for a culture use a multitude of methods for communication besides the of written or spoken word. Consider that people in the Ninth world have access to powers beyonds the human body simply in the world around them. A tribe of people could communicate purely through thought, electronic impulses, or even in colors outside the spectrum of our conventional eyesight. For our own start, we developed writing with clay tablets and papyrus pulp, but in the Ninth world they have the fabrics of reality and powers beyond that of dark energy and the electromagnetic frequency. Also for consideration are the other intelligent creatures like the Visitiants, Abhumans, and Mutants who may still not be cultured enough to understand The Truth.