Amaranth (Cosmoria)
More actions
The death of infinity was not a particularly spectacular event. The series of events leading up to it, the Ultimate End, were, but the aftermath was surely anticlimactic. It represented the sole purpose of Ambrosia and, after it was achieved, the actors in the deterministic play that was Ambrosia were left to their own devices. The story was finished, the universe had no reason to continue to exist. The dilapidation set in quickly, the various omnipotent powers that kept Ambrosia in check began grinding to a halt. Even seconds after the Ultimate End was achieved, Ambrosia was already dying.
Perhaps it was painless for the uncountably many souls that called Ambrosia home. Most of it was surely destroyed within the blink of an eye. Certain pockets could have persisted, and may still persist even after Ambrosia has faded away. The only way to have survived the end of Ambrosia was with the force of Amaranth, the only lasting legacy of Ambrosia. This infinite concept was etched into what it meant to exist, thus making it impossible to destroy. In truth, so was its creator, Imagindarium, an even more potent force of creation that transcends even infinity. However, Imagindarium's story was finished, leaving Amaranth alone in the void it left behind.
Like a director abandoning a set of actors, props, and a stage after a play, the universe still technically existed. The story was over, closing the reality it represented, but there was a more base reality that continued on. The medium on which the story was told, usually referred to as the "Stage," was not empty. Imagindarium left behind nearly a vast amount of potential. There was no energy in this system, but there was potential for change to take place.
Over the eons, Amaranth idly stood by. As the first true particle, The Monad, came into existence, it created an entire universe in its solitary dance on the stage. Playing the role of every particle at the same time, The Monad caused Cosmoria to leap into existence. With an entire new universe to interface with, familiar concepts like space and time caused Amaranth to finally begin interfering once more.
Creation
In the first few moments of Cosmoria's existence, Amaranth split into Evil and Good. Perhaps it was imitating the quantum field that was Cosmoria, or perhaps it was breaking down without Imagindarium to guide it. Either way, these two forces would have a lasting impact on Cosmoria. Good and evil, while not objective in Cosmoria, are better described as the names for Amaranth's two fundamental halves. Evil and Good would remain separate and mostly inert for nearly the rest of Cosmoria's history.
As the fire of Cosmoria's creation settled down, the Ambrosian Remnants precipitated out of the primordial plasma of Cosmoria. The Remnants ranged in size from specs of dust to an entire planet and in form from amorphous blobs to ancient weapons. These remnants exhibited exotic properties that would normally be impossible in Cosmoria. They evenly spread themselves throughout most of Cosmoria long before life began.
Discovery
A theory that included Amaranth was a holy grail for scientists in Cosmoria. For millennia, a theory of everything that included the quantum, gravity, and the Noosphere, had been the standard view. It was the most successful theory of all time, launching technological development forward everywhere it was discovered. Accurately predicting the behavior of particles a quadrillion times to one, it was truly a theory of everything. Much to the dismay of philosophers, it swallowed the field of metaphysics, converting it into a science with definitive answers and testable hypotheses.
When scientists began exploring the few exceptions, they noticed a common trend. The stray particle that defied their theories, for only nanoseconds at a time, had only null properties. For example, metaphors such as "spin" and "color" are often used for quantum particles to describe their utterly alien behavior. When the particles got out of line, these properties were measured to be null.
As the quantum physicists petitioned governments to build ever-larger particle colliders, serious advancement in the field slowed to a halt. As they looked closer, it only confirmed their existing theory. No matter how high the energies involved were, these so-called "Null Behavior Particles" behaved the same.
As conventional physicists were stumped, an emerging field would prove most useful in explaining these phenomena. The field of Anomalistics was seen as an unserious discipline beset by pseudoscience, unfalsifiable claims, and ludicrous explanations. In the Providence Union, then the center of scientific advancement, Anomalists could hardly find the funding to conduct planetary-scale quantum research. Within the Triumvirate Civilization, however, the theocratic government was looking for any esoteric reason to justify their faith. The Triumvirate showered the field with large amounts of funding, even going so far as to have primitive species under their control research it as well. Anomalists from the Providence Union were welcomed with open arms and emigrated to the Triumvirate in large numbers to pursue their research or, more often, become tremendously rich while doing little.
As the centuries went on, Anomalists from across the Triumvirate rediscovered the Ambrosian Remnants. When studied, they proved to be made up almost entirely of Null Behavior Particles. Due to their relevance in Aeternalism, these once legendary artifacts caused the particles to be renamed to "Amaranth-Touched Particles."
Throughout the history of the Triumvirate, it gathered most of the Ambrosian Remnants in Cosmoria, only for its collapse to scatter them once more. Collectors, religious fanatics, and governments bought up many of them.
The Great Amaranth Heist
The Remnants would change hands dozens of times in history, but, by 85,000 CE, they would end up firmly within the coffers of the nation of Sedrua. The Aeternalist state considered them to be holy objects that were to be protected at all costs. While there were other holders of remnants, such as the Cabal of Amaranth Truth and the Occult Galaxy Project, Sedrua possessed the vast majority.
During the War of the Ancients, Sedrua moved all of its Remnants to the Lux Aeterna. There, they would be protected by Father Zaphenim. He spent much of his time studying them, but his focus usually returned to two of the most interesting artifacts—the Amaranth Knight and the Antiwraith. The former, an indestructible living suit of armor, and the latter, a violently boiling mass of liquid, had legends told about them since before the Common Era. They represented both the good and evil portions of Amaranth respectively. While a small contingent of archeologists had been looking for them for millennia, they were located in Zaphenim's Mansion since he found them at the turn of the Common Era. This building, located in the center of Cosmoria and shrouded by the clouds of the Lux Aeterna, was inaccessible for most.
The War of the Ancients, however, motivated soldiers from the Dominion of Astraeus to find a way to break into the mansion. It is well-known that Magi are the only individuals capable of entering the Lux Aeterna. Thus, the Dominion sent its most potent magi, lead by empress Jezebel Drusus. During a protracted battle between Jezebel and Father Zaphenim, soldiers from the Dominion were able to secure the Amaranth Knight but failed to extract the Antiwraith. The soldiers fled with most of the other remnants.
The Amaranth Knight would go on to kill Jezebel as she attempted to fully eliminate the limited democracy in the Dominion of Astraeus. Her crusade to secure power for the aristocracy, called Jezebel's War, largely ended with her death.
Aylathiya's Ignominy
The Antiwraith played a great role in the coup attempt known as Aylathiya's Ignominy. After Zaphenim was forced to surrender, he spent nearly all of his time plotting against the newly-created Greater Martial Consilium. He often paced through the now-empty halls of his mansion, waiting for the best opportunity to strike. He spent the most amount of time with an ampule that contained the Antiwraith. Being the manifestation of all of the objective evil that Amaranth contained, Zaphenim became slowly influenced by its whispers of power.
Under its influence, Zaphenim began planning a coup. Mother Ohko, his subordinate, took power within the Consilium, but refused to surrender her position to him. Zaphenim recklessly attacked the Consilium, resulting in a great battle. During the coup, The Administrator seized the Antiwraith for itself. Unlike Zaphenim, who never had the courage to release it, The Administrator directly contacted the Antiwraith after it was freed from Zaphenim's mansion. Within seconds of escaping, it disappeared. As The Administrator recovered from the attack, thanks to the Antiwraith's power, it began its plan to harness Amaranth.
Penultimate End
By 110,000 CE, the remnants of Sedrua had largely disappeared. Their capital, Amarent, had become the base of operations for the Occult Galaxy Project, which had subsumed the Cabal of Amaranth Truth some centuries prior. The unified organization had become devoted to researching Amaranth in all of its forms. Nearly every nation in Aylathiya contributed to the organization's coffers and, in return, they would receive the fruits of their labor. Unbeknownst to Aylathiya's leaders, the group had been diverting a great deal of funds towards a once obscure project that sought to trigger an Amaranth Contravene. This phenomenon was infinity in action, Amaranth acting upon reality.
Since the Amaranth Contravene could grant any wish, it was greatly desirable. In 110,364 CE, by a slim margin, the Project voted to allow the Antiwraith to come into contact with the Amaranth Knight. The experiment resulted in the two entities beginning a great battle. As the embodiments of Amaranth's two halves, their reunification released a great amount of energy; energy that was sealed away as Cosmoria formed. The result was enough gamma radiation to sterilize over half of Cosmoria. In the aftermath, surviving governments began warring over the remains.
The leader of the Occult Galaxy Project revealed the Project's aim, to unlock the ability to manipulate The Monad via Thaumaturgy. This was the ability to create and destroy universes. The prospect was tempting for anyone with the resources to pursue it; the race for omnipotence had begun. Azurade joined in, hellbent on using the power of Amaranth to preserve Cosmoria forever. Many governments had to choose between securing the power for themselves, which was still unconfirmed, or spending on their militaries to mitigate instability. Those that made the wrong choice were quickly conquered by their neighbors.
The Administrator would be the first to unlock understanding of Amaranth. It became clear that to trigger an Amaranth Contravene, one would need to fully immerse oneself in Amaranth. Esoteric Thaumaturgy is based on alignment between the mind and a certain concept. To use Esoteric Thaumaturgy using Amaranth was the key to directly interacting with it. The Administrator, only having experience with the Antiwraith, became fully aligned with Amaranth's dark half. After merging with abject evil, The Administrator began using its new-found abilities to annihilate all competition.
Imperator Uriel quickly filled the space left by the burning civilizations, using the power vacuum to seize dozens of stars. This ruler united worlds that had never been under the same banner before, only to drain them of resources in resisting the Administrator's tireless onslaught. When the High Warlock began attacking the Administrator, who was now too evil even for the galaxy-eater to tolerate, the Neural Amalgam entered the fray. The unlikely alliance had the goal of unifying all of Cosmoria in the fight against The Administrator. Uriel ventured light years into the void to conquer the forgotten colonies of old, the High Warlock attempted to consume the nebula-like Administrator, and the Neural Amalgam supplied resisting armies.
By 120,300 CE, Uriel had slain the last Aberration in Azurullya that defied his rule. He fulfilled the prophecy of Martial Civil Religion, that all would bow and all Overlords humbled. While the religion was inaccurate about the final obstacle, and a great number of other things, it was correct that Mars would wage war against an omnipotent power. Mars fused with Uriel as it had with all of the rulers in history. The climactic final confrontation mirrored the origin of Mars standing alone in front of the same enemy. However, it was with the help of their allies that Mars was finally able to enact vengeance on The Administrator.
Azurade decided to follow The Administrator's example, absorbing Amaranth into herself. Without the blessing of anyone else in Cosmoria, she masted Esoteric Thaumaturgy for both of Amaranth's halves. She triggered the final Amaranth Contravene, causing Amaranth to become one with her. The ability to manipulate The Monad, however, was beyond Amaranth's potential. While she was able to join The Monad in its dance, control over the particle was impossible. It was a disturbance in the stage, the stage created by Imagindarium and beyond Amaranth's influence. Cosmoria's lifespan was absolute. The Monad reached its 6-billion year time limit; the various particles of the Monad began annihilating with one another. Cosmoria simply faded away.
The aspects of Azurade that were made up of The Monad were ripped away, resulting in the creation of Amaranth-Azurade. She helped to usher in the new era known as Galvyria.