The Ehrban Saga

The rise and fall, and eventual resurgance, of an ancient alien empire.

Technical notes about the Ehrban.

1. Antiquity series

   Keius Meij, the invention of magic, and the golden age of the ancient Ehrban.

   1. The Magic of Antiquity

      1. Part I

         Many thousands of years ago, on the far side of the galaxy, an alien race called the Ehrban has begun a galactic empire, as they spread from their homeworld of Ehrba, colonizing and transforming new worlds, all connected via a network of artifical wormholes. Though they have grown much more peaceful than earlier eras of their history, misunderstandings and conflicts still arise; and now, the fledgeling empire is threatened by civil war, as the fringe worlds struggle for independence from the rule of the federal government and the core worlds it largely represents.

         Amidst this brewing strife, xenobiologist Keius Meij works in a federally-funded laboratory on one of the fringe worlds. He is researching one of the greatest biological mysteries of his day; the significance of a peculiarly dense and complex organelle found only in the cells of life from Ehrba, even though the basic building blocks of all life the Ehrban have found elsewhere is otherwise similar to their own. Of particular interest is the question of whether this organelle is at all responsible for the development of sapient life on Ehrba, which has hitherto not been discovered anywhere else.

         In the course of his research, Keius discovers these organelles to be in fact tiny nanoscopic machines of incredible sophistication - of a level very difficult to explain by natural selection alone. These nanites each possess intelligent, programmable computing abilities and sophisticated energy-field sensors and manipulators; and further still, they appear to communicate with each other via some sort of quantum entanglement resembling the ansible links used to establish the Ehrban's interstellar wormholes. But as Keius is preparing to begin experiments with these nanites, his laboratory is shut down by the federal government, which is apparently withdrawing its important installations from the fringe worlds in preparation for war.

         But determined not to be put off from his research - and hoping that a discovery of this magnitude might draw his people together and forestall the oncoming violence - Keius remains illicitly in his laboratory and conducts experiments with the nanites on himself. When his friend and sponsor Goran, a junior member of the federal senate, discovers these activities, he warns Keius that he is risking not only punishment by the federation for unauthorized use of their laboratory, but also the wrath of the rebel alliance which will very likely strike at the lab when the inevitable war begins. But Keius then cuts himself severely with a piece of lab equipment, and when the wound almost instantly heals, Goran is amazed. Keius explains that the nanites can be used as intelligent nanoassemblers, and that he has programmed his own to repair any damage they find to his body. Goran is shocked by this development and leaves Keius to report to his superiors.

         Alone once again in his lab, Keius continues his research, experimenting further upon himself. He begins to toy with methods of linking control of the energy manipulation capabilities of the nanites with conscious thought patterns, which could hypothetically allow an individual much finer, more subtle projection of gravito- and electro-magnetic fields and waves than the gross energy manipulation technology used in such devices as the wormholes. But just as he has his first success with this technology, moving - to his own amazement - a piece of lab equipment with his mind, a rebel strike force appears in the sky above his lab, having come to destroy the "bioweapons" or "supersoldiers" that are rumored to be under development there. As Keius scrambles to save what of his research he can, the rebel forces bomb the lab to rubble, and Keius is left for dead.

      2. Part II

         "Keius?"

         "Keius is dead."

         "...but you knew him?"

         "I was him, Goran. I was a part of him... or he was a part of me. But now we are one, and I am all that remains."

         "...and who are you?"

         "I am Meij." The stranger rose and turned to face Goran. "Keius Meij. But not the Keius of the Meij family you once knew. I am the spirit of the Meij family, as passed down through Keius; and though he is gone now, he lives on in me, as do all his ancestors since time immemorial. And it is only by our fortuitous discovery that I have assumed control of this body after Keius' passing, and am thus able to speak to you now."

         - - -

         Goran returns to the ruins of Keius' lab, and following a string of apparent hunches, finally locates Keius, still alive, on a remote colony world, to which he secretly fled after dying and being resurrected by his nanites. In the process Keius has become one with Meij, the "spirit" of his family - a mind that resides within his nanite network, the likes of which all Ehrban have, but few are consciously aware of, and fewer still are able to commune with. Having merged entirely with this inherited personality, he hears the minds of others across the whole of the nanites' ansible web, as well as the voice of "Geiana", the cacaphony of inner voices of the entire Ehrba-descendant ecosystem. With subtle reprogramming of others' nanites - a feat he is now capable of accomplishing by will and proximity alone - he is also able to speak directly into the minds of others, as their own inner voices do; and through this connection he may exercise his newfound powers by proxy of such people. It was by this method that he arranged covert transport to this secluded world; and it was by his continuing links to those people that he was able to lead Goran here to find him.

         Keius has spent his time here in meditation, communing with the life on this tiny colony, both Ehrban and wild, perfecting his newfound skills, listening to the roar and hiss of Geiana like the crashing of waves on the shore - and plotting a secret plan all the while. Now one with his ancestral spirit, he recalls the memories of his father Sovos as though they were his own, and realizes that all his life has been leading up to this plan. His very name, Keius, should have given it away: derived from gheieous, "possessing the quality of silence, stillness, clarity, or tranquility", his name is the literal antonym of Geiana. He was named of course by his father, who, during his life as an ascetic, became one with the Meij spirit, heard the voice of Geiana himself, and formulated a plan to bring tranquility at last to her stormy mind - a plan which he has been working toward, through Keius, for many years already, and which has now come to its culmination.

         The Meij lineage had long been one of the most powerful in Ehrban society - the name itself literally means "power" or "might". Keius' ancestors in ancient times were some of the early rulers of his peoples' great empires, and though their influence had ebbed and waned over the aeons, the Meij family had always held some degree of power somewhere. That is, until their lineage grew corrupt and despotic, and at last, only three generations ago, the last world over which a Meij held dominion banished their ruler and joined the rest of the galaxy in less barbaric forms of government. The outcast ruler raised his son with great aspirations of one day returning the family to glory; that son in turn realized that the path to true power and glory lay in knowledge and just leadership, and his son Sovos in turn was raised as a philosopher. Sovos took the path of the ascetic, turning inward in contemplation for all his long life, postponing childbirth until near the end of his life, by which point he had come to the realization that to be a truly great leader, he would need to find a way to induce harmony in his followers; and that the key to this harmony was to understand the true nature of Geiana. Thus, after dying alone in meditation and birthing Keius from his corpse, Sovos, through the Meij spirit with which he became one, has subtly guided Keius down his path of research, and now at last the key to fulfilling their destiny is at hand.

         Keius' plan is to speak directly to Geiana, and through her to the ancestral spirits of all Ehrban, establishing a communion between them, giving them all a single point of common focus - Keius himself - and priming them with dialogues on ethics and justice. Simultaneously, a few key individuals in positions of social and political power would be manipulated to put forward motions that their respective societies take certain just and ethical courses of action, and the people, having been subconsciously primed by these inner dialogues, would of course respond positively. In the process, as the inner minds of all Ehrban reached consensus and agreement, a single harmonious voice would emerge from the cacaphony that was Geiana, and though the individual minds of all Ehrban would remain, they would be subtly guided by the collective wisdom of their entire ancestry and civilization.

         But to do this, Keius needs representatives on both sides of the war; and that is where Goran comes into play. Keius tells Goran that he will be the pawn on the Federation side of the war, to say the things Keius needs him to say, and that through this process Goran will become a popular and thus powerful political leader, perhaps even Chancellor of the Federation someday. Keius meanwhile will become a captive of the rebels, and from the safety of his prison cell manipulate their leadership as well. Though Goran knows he should be appalled by this devious plot, he finds himself, for some reason he cannot quite place, inclined to consent to it. Keius is calmly joyful, though not at all surprised, that Goran is willing to help him, and the two return to Goran's ship and plot a course toward Ehrba.

         Shortly after leaving this remote world, however, a rebel warship arrives in the system, having somehow followed the same trail of hunches as Goran. They order Goran's small ship to halt and prepare to be tractored to the warship's fighter bay. Keius instructs Goran to remain on course, which prompts the warship to threaten weapons fire. Goran is terrified but maintains course as ordered. Keius meawhile removes an auxilliary power core from the ship's console, holding in one hand as the other hand spontaneously bleeds into it. The core powers on, though not apparently connected to anything, and Keius briefly swells in stature, a maniacal look coming over his face for a moment, before settling back to his usual calm demeanor. Setting down the power core, Keius instructs Goran to cycle an airlock and let him out of the ship. Perplexed, Goran questions Keius, but Keius assured him that everything will be fine. Placing faith in his friend as he never would before, Goran does as he is told and vents Keius from the ship, as the rebel warship fires its weapons. But to the rebels' surprise, their missiles are mysteriously torn apart midway to their target, and an object appears on their sensors quickly inbound to their ship. They deploy countermeasures but those are somehow deflected. Their weapons systems go offline without explanation, and the unknown object breaches the hull of their fighter bay.

         Within the fighter bay of the rebel ship, Keius Meij forces open an airlock, but holds back the atmosphere within by force of will alone. Within the halls of the ship, he effortlessly deflects weapons fire and renders rebel soldiers unconscious but unharmed with just a thought. As he brashly walks toward the bridge of the ship, disabling security locks with a wave of his hand, the command crew begins to cower in terror before whatever kind of superweapon has gotten on to their ship. When Keius finally reaches the bridge, all are too frightened to fire upon him; but Keius kneels before the captain, arms outstretched and wrists together, and speaks. "My name is Keius Meij. I am your prisoner."

      3. Part III

         Years have passed. From his prison cell, Keius has a vision of Chancellor Goran concluding talks with the rebel leaders, signing a treaty with the fringe worlds agreeing to make modifications to the federation to address the concerns the fringe worlds have; and the fringe worlds agree to stand down and rejoin the federation. The war is officially over.

         Keius' cell mates question him as to what he is smiling about, and he informs them that the war is over. They don't believe he could know this, of course. Later, word arrives from the treaty talks and Keius is released. He travels back to Ehrba, requests to meet with the Chancellor, and congratulates him on his successful management of this great crisis. Goran asks Keius what he plans to do now, and Keius reveals that he plans to search for the origin of his powers, somewhere on Ehrba.

         After Keius leaves, Goran contacts the Church of Geiana to warn them about Keius. Because of their religious training in mental discipline, Goran and his church cohorts are able to hide their thoughts from Keius; and though Keius knows, by their silence, that they are hiding something, he does not see it as his place to monitor the thoughts of those who would wish to keep them secret from him. Yet Goran and the Church are not so benevolent, and see Keius as a dangerous heretic or perhaps something far worse.

         Keius now has access to the collective memories of his entire ancestry, tracing back to times far before the Ehrban even evolved. He plans to use these memories to guide him on his quest. He meditates to recall the experiences of his ancestors, and then follows back the trail, retracing the evolution of the Ehrban further and further back in time, seeking the earliest of inherited memories, and hoping to find from them the site from which these mysterious nanites originated.

         He traces the memories of his ancestors back through the colonization of new worlds, back to the figurehead royalty which left Ehrba seeking real power on new worlds; back further into their history to the line of true kings which ruled their lands for for so long; back further before the advent of the Church of Geiana, to the great emperors who were worshipped as demigods, descended from the high god Meij himself. And still back further before those empires, to more primitive kingdoms, before the rise of the notion of 'gods', when Meij was only a great hero of the past, the great Dragon-slayer. And back, back further into the era of simple tribes, back further and further to the days of Meij the Dragon-slayer himself, who had united his kin for the first time and together driven back the savage beasts which had terrorized Ehrban kind for so long.

         But there Keius hits a snag, for not long before those times, the Ehrban did not have language at all; and so the memories of those so distant ancestors are unorganized and difficult to access. So Keius travels to the site of those earliest accessible memories, to see if the sight of once-familiar landscape will jog his ancient memories. But those lands are now the center of the densest part of Ehrban civilization, so he ventures to the Great Library to access a historical simulation of what these lands once looked like. It works; the sight of familiar landscapes conjures images of what once transpired there. Meij continues to trace his ancestry back, through the days before civilization, when primitive Ehrban lived in fear of the great dragons which once ruled the whole of Ehrba. Back and back further, and across the lands, watching Ehrban kind grow larger and less upright, and less intelligent, devolving back into their raptor-like ancestors, as the dragons they so feared likewise grow smaller and smaller, returning to their bipedal ancestry, and the lines of Ehrban and Dragon converge once again. This fact is of course no surprise to Keius, who as a biologist is quite familiar with his species' evolutionary history; though witnessing geological time unfold in reverse in such vivid memory is thus an even more fascinating experience to him.

         By this point Keius has traces the migration of his ancestry back into lands which are still to this day wildlife preserves, lands where the few surviving dragons and other megafauna still survive, just barely, under the watchful care of endangered species wardens. So Meij leaves the Great Library and travels to these wild lands, to witness the world he seeks to remember first-hand rather than only in simulation.

         But almost as soon as he arrives in the wild lands, his quest is interrupted, as he is captured by a task force sent by the Church of Geiana. Skilled religious practitioners such as those sent on this errand are strong of mind and will like the ascetics from whom Keius descends, though they use this psychic strength in stubborn and dogmatic ways; and they are thus able to resist Keius' mind control. Keius could of course easily dispatch them and force his way to freedom; but as he is invulnerable and thus in no personal danger, and as he seeks to be a just and ethical person, he refuses to use violence to escape from his captors, and so they are able to impede his quest.

         Instead, he converses with his captors, denies any malfeasance on his part, and explains to them his quest and the origin of his phenomenal abilities. Though at first they simply deny his story as heretical lies, he manages to convince some of the younger ones amongst them by drawing their attention to the voice of Geiana, which is far calmer and more harmonious now than it ever has been. He further amazes them when a dangerous wild Dragon is drawn to their camp at night, but is easily subdued by Keius' empathic connection with all Ehrban life. Combined with Keius' invulnerability and other powers, these young church men come to believe that Keius may not be some sort of demon but rather their savior, send by Geiana to redeem the Ehrban, to usher in a new era of a more peaceful and loving Geiana. Keius of course denies this and explains again what he is really doing, but it falls mostly on deaf ears; one way or another, enough people side with him that he is freed, against the will of the others, and together they resume his quest.

         After further meditation and much wandering on foot through the ancient wild lands, tracing the evolution of his raptor-like ancestors back to their airborne predecessors, back further through tree-dwelling gliders, and further still to lizard-like insectivors which hid in the forest litter, Keius leads his new disciples (and the begrudging remainder who still oppose him but tag along to keep watch on things) at last to the site of his oldest of memories. He recalls visions of an ancestor, a tiny, mud-dwelling creature, like a six-limbed worm, stunned and reeling in the upturned earth around the edge of a recently-formed crater. In the center of this crater shone a gleaming, silver, metallic form, roughly egg-shaped, which must have fallen from space. Back in present time, Keius is thrilled at this discovery, and warns the others to stand far back. Closing his eyes, he feels through the ground with senses unknown to any other Ehrban, utilizing the advanced sensory capabilities of his nanites. Then, opening his eyes and raising his arms, he summons a great whirlwind which blows the soil from the ground, drilling downward and raising up what lay beneath, until out of the ground comes a gleaming, silver, metallic egg, nearly twice a man's height.

         The whirlwind settles and restores the earth to the ground beneath the egg, and Keius approaches it. His followers approach with him, though keeping a step behind, as Keius peers reverently into the egg. Curiously, he speaks; perhaps to his followers, perhaps to himself, perhaps to no one...

         - - -

         "They can hear us. They're listening. But they're not talking back. I wonder if they're waiting... for something."

         His followers ask him, "Who? Who is listening?"

         Keius replies, "Worlds. Minded worlds, all thinking together; hundreds, maybe thousands of them, each a unique and organic entity; a whole society of minded worlds, somewhere galaxies away. I can feel them all through this probe, as clearly as I can feel Geiana; though they are far more coherent in thought. But they're not saying anything. They're just... watching us. I think they're waiting."

         "Waiting for what?" asks one of his followers.

         "Waiting for Geia to say her first words," answers Keius demurely.

         - - -

         On the site of that dig would come to be built the greatest temple of the new Ehrban religion. As word of Keius' powers spread, and the changes in Geiana became apparent to the priests and spiritual masters around the world, nearly all of the Church of Geiana came to worship Keius as their messiah. Though he wanted no such authority, he would come to accept the role that was thrust upon him, to use it to do good and to further the work he had already begun in quelling the galactic civil war. With the liberal changes he advocated in terms of doctrine and dogma, which were eagerly adopted by the lower regional churches, many of the holdouts which had resisted communion with the Church had a change of heart, and the Church's prevalance became almost absolute, not out of proselytization or domination but out of a true love of Geiana, whom they sought to make Geia - a love, that is, of all Ehrban life, to whom they sought to bring peace and harmany at long last.

         But there still remained some holdouts in the old Church, whose leaders still refused to acknowledge Keius as anything but some demon, abberation, or crime-against-nature incarnate. Hiding their thoughts from him, they began to plot and scheme some way to put the fear of Geiana back into the Ehrban people; and amongst their ranks was Chancellor Goran, who now greatly (though secretly) resented Keius for overshadowing him in power...

   2. The Children of Antiquity

      1. Part I

         Keius grants magical powers, though not invulnerability, to a select few of his pupils, thus beginning the archmage tradition. After a number of years, some secret members of the old church manage to become initiated in this tradition, trained not by Keius directly but by the disciples of his disciples.

      2. Part II

         Keius and colleagues conduct a grand experiment on the now-ruined world of Asiria, which was the only great casualty of the galactic civil war, having been one of the two lead worlds of the rebellion. They work to create artificial life, designed from the top-down, by programming some nanites appropriately. The result is a race of organic robots; the Asiron.

      3. Part III

         An outbound portal, extending the portal network, finally reaches its destination, and when the subsequent exploratory team goes through, they find a world in the new system which is not only already habitable, but inhabited by intelligent, though primitive, alien life forms - humans. Absolutely fascinated by this discovery, Keius designs a plan to put the entire solar system inside a time dilation field, put some Asiron inside to observe and record the evolution of human life and civilization, and at regular intervals shut off the field and report back their findings to the Ehrban. But the Asiron prove unsuitable for this task, so while the time dilation field is being designed elsewhere, Keius works on modifying a select few humans to serve that purpose instead...

   3. The War of Antiquity

      1. Part I

         The world of Berona (formerly the other lead world of the rebellion, and the world where Keius was held prisoner) volunteers to be the testing grounds for the time dilation field, for they already have a great concentration of gravitic research happening there. Chancellor Goran comes to Keius and offers to govern inside the time-dilation field, as the people of the rest of the galaxy really all follow Keius anyway, and Goran has only retained his Chancellorship this long due to Keius' continued endorsement. Keius replies that he was going to ask Goran to do so anyway, for although Goran has been hiding his thoughts from Keius for decades, he has never done anything to betray Keius' trust; and so, since Keius will be unable to monitor what happens inside the time dilation field, he could think of no one more trustworthy to keep watch than Goran. Goran is shocked to learn that Keius is aware that he has been keeping secrets; but very pleased to be given this opportunity. He selects the team that he will need to keep things running smoothly while the field is operational, including scientists and engineers from all fields; plus a team of trusted sub-governors, all of whom are secret members of the old church.

      2. Part II

         The time dilation field is completed and activated. Time within the Berona system is accelerated infinitely faster than time in the outside universe. To someone within the system, the outside universe appears frozen, and thus black and starless, for the entire time the field is activated. Meanwhile to someone outside the system, only an instant passes between when those inside activate the field and when they deactivate it, and after a bright flash of accumulated starlight shines out at once, all the changes which have occurred inside, no matter how long they took in internal time, appear to occur instantaneously.

         Inside the field, now free from Keius' influence, Goran and his team immediately begin to enact their plan. His geneticists go to work breeding the hideous half-dragon mutants they have been designing for all these years, and set them free in the wilderness of Berona. When they begin to attack the populated areas, and are not easily turned back, Goran declare a state of martial law. With the aid of his sub-governors, some of whom have been trained in the archmage tradition, a state of panic is induced in the populace, and in desperation, absolute power is turned over to Goran. But still, "somehow", the monsters manage to ravage Berol civilization, which collapses around the world except for an underground refuge in the capitol...

         [TO DO: FIGURE OUT THIS SEGUE]

         Eventually an equilibrium is established whereby the warrior-class of Berol believe that they have enslaved the scientist-class, and the scientist-class believes that they have enslaved the warrior-class, when in fact both are serving only their God-Emperor Goran. Centuries pass, Berol civilization builds back to a spacefaring state, Ehrban history is completely forgotten, and Goran - sustained for so many years by the genetic and cybernetic technology of the Berol scientist-class, no longer truly Ehrban even - goes mad with power, completely forgetting his ostensible aim of putting the fear of Geiana back in the Ehrban people. Once the entire Berona system is buzzing with the massive fleets of the Berol, Goran deactivates the time-dilation field; the rest of the universe suddenly appears for the first time to the Berol, and their God-Emperor sends them to destroy the "invaders".

      3. Part III

         Keius is at Earth instructing his modified-human creations in their upcoming task, when suddenly he senses a great disturbance in the collective subconsciousness. He can feel the Berol, and they alone are strange and disturbing, particularly inasmuch as they seem completely oblivious to any communication from the collective subconsciousness and so are unresponsive to Keius' queries and commands. But more disturbing still are the hundreds of deaths suddenly occurring on the ships monitoring the time-dilation experiment, as they are unexpectedly destroyed by the Berol fleet. Mortified and confused, Keius lapses into a deep trance and assumes mental control over everyone he can, coordinating an urgent emergency response action. A huge fleet of ships is ordered to the Berona system, which mutually annihilates with the Berol fleet. But then, to everyone's horror, the Berona system flashes again, the time dilation field having been activated and then deactivated, and another Berol fleet appears ready to continue the attack.

         More ships are sent to counter them, but with the time dilation field at their disposal, the Berol can replenish their losses instantaneously and indefinitely. Several flashes of time-dilation elapse in but a few moments, and an undefeatable horde of Berol ships begins to pour through the portal from Berona and across the portal network, infiltrating the galaxy, attacking all the Ehrban worlds. In desperation, Keius orders a mass retreat of any ships already in the air back toward the core worlds, back to Ehrba; and the closure of the portals from any systems the Berol have already infiltrated. But it may already be too late, for the Berol ships travel at near-luminous impulse speed just as the Ehrban ships do, so there is no hope in outrunning them, though with the closure of the portals the onslaught can at least by slowed to subluminal speeds; which, given galactic distances, would give Ehrba thousands of years to prepare, if they can survive those forces already en route, which are already too late to stop. So simultaneously a message is sent to the Asiron ordering an all-out attack on the Berona system and the defense of Ehrba at all costs.

         As the portal network shuts down and the First Galactic War begins, night falls on the once-great galactic civilization of the Ehrban. Keius leaves his ship at Earth in the hands of his modified humans, who he tasks with the care and protection of their kind. He closes the local portal from the Earth side, to keep the rest of the galaxy out should they decide to come this way; and as only mighty Keius could, he departs without a ship across the galaxy back toward Ehrba, travelling at near-luminal speeds, hoping against hope that his homeworld might still be there when he arrived, tens of thousands of years later.

         The advanced wave of the Berol fleet would arrive at Ehrba just minutes after the refugees from the many worlds would; and though only hours later the Asiron would arrive and defeat the Berol fleet, it would prove too late, for the civilization of Ehrba would be set ablaze and utterly ruined; and though some few Ehrban would survive - huddled inside their grand temple in the ancient wild lands, praying to Geiana and the Minded-Worlds, shielded from the Berol attacks only by the combined might of the surviving archmages - it would be twelve thousand years before their civilization once again reached a level even approximating what it had been before the war.

2. Niarba series

   The Ehrban emerge from after the war and eventually return to space.

   1. The Age of Warlocks

      The Ehrban emerge and resettle their homeworld; mages dominate, warlocks arise, problems ensue.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   2. Darak Meij

      Mundane society takes center stage as young Darak Meij battles the Witch-Queen Mav.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   3. Meijendaren

      The hidden mage society reemerges to prevent the Nurbal from returning to space.

      1. Part I

         Meij Endaren arises within the Ancients.

      2. Part II

         Meij Endaren sides with the Nurbal.

      3. Part III

         Meij Endaren resurrects Mav, Ancients and Nurbal unite against common enemy, Meij dies to save them - recapitulating the life of Darak.

3. Nurbal series

   While the Ancients remain on Niarba, the Nurbal reconquer the galaxy.

   1. Colony

      The Nurbal establish their first colony, finding the ruins of that world's previous civilization.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   2. Network

      The Nurbal expand and reactivate the wormhole network, discovering survivors of the War on other worlds.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   3. Berol

      The partially reconstituted Ehrban empire discovers worlds where the Berol have survived. War ensues, though on much more even ground this time.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

The Human Saga

Ancient Earth mythology segues into a post-apocalyptic future.

1. Pantheon series

   1. Pantheon Genesis

      1. Part I

         Keius' human creations, Ouranos and Gaia, have kids. The youngest of them, Cronus/Satan rebels against Ouranos/God, "castrating" (disabling) him. War of Titans vs Olympians (rebel angels vs loyal angels), Titans lead by Cronus/Satan, Olympians ("the Pantheon") lead by youngest cousin Zeus and oldest cousin Metis at the behest of grandmother Gaia. The gods/angels all fall from heaven (crash in Cronus' spaceship). Titans are trapped in statis on the ship on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, Cronus/Satan falls to Earth (thrown from the crashing ship) over Auei (pre-deluge Oceania), the Olympians crash with the Titans and swim to the shores of Auei as the Titans sink to the seafloor.

      2. Part II

         The Pantheon tutors the primitive humans and creates Auei (Hawaiki/Peng-lai/Atlantis/Eden) civilization on the then-shores of now-Oceania. First king, Adam/Prometheus, given xian-gu/ambrosia/soma/tree-of-life to prolong his life indefinitely. His queen Eve/Pandora is seduced into weaponmaking for war and hunting by Satan/Cronus. The Pantheon abandons mankind when they start using technology for war and pillaging of the Earth, rather than in harmonious, peaceful ways. Without tree-of-life, Eve eventually dies of old age, then Adam not long thereafter. First war: Cainites vs Abelites; a war of succession after Adam and Eve's deaths. Cain follows in his mother's footsteps (domination and industry) while Abel follows in his father's footsteps (peace and harmony). Abel is killed and his supporters nearly conquered by the Cainites. The Olympians return temporarily to stop this early civilization from tearing itself apart. Cain is banished, and his followers defeated.

      3. Part III

         Gods attempt to return to space by building a gravitic lift in equatorial Indonesia (Tower of Babel). Project aborted due to rising tides from the Pleistocene-Holocene flood. Auei civilization destroyed by the flood, diaspora to nearby lands. (Circa 10,000 B.C.) Zeus psychically(?) kills Metis to prevent a repeat of history (Athena's birth) somewhere in here, but Athena just takes over Metis' body, and Metis' mind lives on, buried in Zeus' psyche. Where is Cronus in all this?

   2. Pantheon Mythology

      Many failed attempts to get the hell back off of this rock. (Until circa 1,500 AD).

      1. Part I - Indochina

         Zeus, ashamed of his actions with Metis + Athena, goes on vacation to China, becomes "Huangdi", and founds ancient Chinese civilization. The rest of the Pantheon visit India. (Through circa 3,000 B.C.)

      2. Part II - Mediterrania

         Zeus rejoins the Pantheon in Europe / North Africa. Zeus is also Odin et al. Jesus is Baldir? (death instigated by Loki?) The rise and fall of Rome. Cronus corrupts society again. (Through circa 1 A.D.)

      3. Part III - Mesoamerica

         Ancient astronauts and crystal skulls in the Incan empire; and Loki is a dick. The Pantheon finally gets a gravitic lift built in what would become Ecuador, take off in their spaceship, and destroy their constuction site, burying Loki under the rubble in the process. (Through circa 1,500 A.D.)

   3. Pantheon Conspiracy

      The gods become "the Foundation"; conspiracies, "aliens", and manipulation of history. (Circa 1,500-2,000 AD).

      1. Part I

         Illuminati-esque; Vampires and Werewolves?

      2. Part II

         MiB/X-Files-esque; "aliens" (Foundationers in spacesuits) and UFOs (Foundation spaceships).

      3. Part III

         Millenium?

2. Foundation series

   1. Pacific Rim

      1. Part I - Long Xian

         In China, a terrible (but publically unspecified) defect is found in the latest crop of the monocultured, genetically-engineered 'superfood' staple which now feeds most of the country. That entire season's crop is destroyed. Famine ensues, followed by mass rioting, eventually culminating in the bombing of the headquarters of the research department of the Zhang Corporation (the producer of the superfood as well as many other products) in Xi'an. But as the building collapses, an unexpected and massive secondary explosion erupts from the basement floors, and in one brilliant flash, the entire city of Xi'an becomes a glowing crater in the earth, and tremors from the explosion are felt clear across Asia.

         In response, a state of martial law is declared, and the riots are largely quelled. However, a more dedicated revolutionary movement has already begun amongst the rioters, and they are merely forced underground by the omnipresent military police. For many years the revolution has only a shadowy and elusive face in their popular leader Lan Cae-he, until one day a new face appears from nowhere to bring the revolution public. His calls himself Long Xian, the Immortal Dragon, and he makes the preposterous claim to the title of Emperor of China, claiming to be descended from the mythical immortals who first created civilization in distant ages past. Though ridiculed and ignored at first, he quickly proves to have a great deal of military prowess, winning numerous small skrimishes against the military police with the aid of his elder brother Cao Guo-jiu and his mysterious advisor Han Xiang-zi.

         Long quickly becomes China's Public Enemy #1, but somehow always manages to elude capture. Lan Cae-he soon contacts Long, and a secret plan to bring about the full revolution is concocted. A number of high-level secret revolutionaries publically declare their allegiance to Long. Their numbers include Zhang Guo-lao, the former president of the Zhang Corporation, who was ousted after the disasterous crop failure; former admiral Zhoung Li-quan, an eloquent orator who was once largely responsible for rousing support for the state of martial law, until he saw what it had done to his fair country and resigned; and most devastatingly, active General Li Ti-gui, one of the most decorated commanders of the Chinese army. With each of these renowned figures comes many supporters to Long's cause, both civillian and military, and they gather together on a small coastal farm outside of Guangzhou.

         In response to this public act of defiance, Commander Xing and his elite team of lieutenants Lu, Fu, and Shou move to crush the uprising outside Guangzhou. While Xing and Shou secure the coast east and west of the farm, Lu is to advance his large forces in file from the north, distracting the rebel forces while Fu sneaks a crack team of assassins in south of the farm via personal submersible watercraft. But while Fu's forces get into position, Lu must stand and parley with Long and his men, and as he does so he finds himself moved by Zhoung's impassioned words, just as he had been when he first decided to join the army years ago. So when Fu himself emerges from behind Long and his men, weapon drawn and ready to fire, Lu fires first. As Lu is an expert marksman, Fu dies instantly from a single bullet to the head.

         With that shot, chaos breaks loose. Long's forces move to counter Fu's assassins, while Lu's forces begin to divide after a moment of bewilderment. In the end more of Lu's men follow his lead in defecting to Long's side than not, and the rebel forces are victorious for the moment. But Xing and Shou are still nearby, so they must still retreat - as planned.

         [TO DO: HOW DO THEY GET AWAY? BY SEA? BY AIR? THEN WHAT ABOUT LAN'S AMBUSH?]

         The retreating rebel forces draw Xing into an ambush set by Lan Cae-he. Xing is killed, and Shou retreats. The rebels head westward to an as-yet-undiscosed location. On the way, Lu is given a test of his loyalty. Long's forces raid a small nearby military supply depot, commanded by an old friend of Lu's. Lu is given the task of convincing his friend to join the rebel cause, or killing him otherwise. The depot commander refuses to defect, however, and Lu, reluctantly, kills him, proving his loyalty to Long and the rebel cause.

         It is revealed that the rebels are headed to an old abandoned Zhang Corp facility in the Kun-lin mountains, where the rebels have been secretly manufacturing the key to their victory: a robotic army. They are followed of course, but a force of robotic soldiers is aleady en route to their position, and holds off the pursuers while the rebels retreat to their secret stronghold. From there, the remainder of the robot army begins to make its roundabout way north and then west toward Beijing.

         On the way, a detour is made at Lu's hometown near Xining, which has been beseiged by Shou's forces to draw Lu there. Long allows Lu to take a small (non-robotic) force to free his friends and family; but Lu finds his wife kidnapped, and takes the forces allotted to him into Xining to kill Shou and save his wife, without Long's permission. However, as the mission is successful, Lu is forgiven his indiscretion. Lan helps Lu sneak his wife into a nearby safe house for rebel sympathizers.

         En route to Beijing, one more stop must be made. Zhang has revealed the (still publically mysterious) origin of the explosion which destroyed Xi'an. The Zhang Corp was researching gravitomagnetic technology, and discovered from that incident that the Hawking radiation put out by an artificially sustained singularity as it destabilizes is devastating in power. Since then, Zhang Corp has been working to weaponize this effect as a "gravitic bomb": far more powerful than any nuclear weapon ever built, yet without any lingering radiation or fallout. The rebels infiltrate the facility where these gravitic bombs are now being manufactured, steal the few which have been constructed thus far, and destroy the rest of the lab.

         Finally the rebels and their robot army begin the assault of Beijing. Simultaneously, Lan's rebel cells across the country rise up against the military police, and China is thrown into chaos once more. As the battles rage, Long detonates one gravitic bomb in the countryside between Beijing and Tianjin, and threatens that Tianjin itself will be next if the government does not immediately surrender to him; and that if they still do not surrender after Tianjin, Beijing will be next. Though many even on his own side are shocked and appalled by this tactic, it is successful, and the People's Republic of China surrenders to Long Xian.

         As the revolution quiets down, its leaders meet to construct a new government for their country. Long insists on holding his 'rightful' title of Emperor, but it little concerned with the actual day-to-day governance of the country, so long as he retains final say and can set the overall direction. Lan, being a populist revolutionary, favors a loose confederation of democratic socialist regions. The others in turn have their concerns, and in the end they compromise on a federal parliamentary monarchy modelled loosely after an amalgam of the British and the United States governments. Long retains the title of Emperor, and supreme command over the military and all foreign policy, but he has little to no domestic power. His appointed council of nobles (consisting mostly of the leadership of the revolution, and known as the "Ba Xian") form one house of the bicameral parliament. The various regions of China are given a large degree of autonomy, and elect from their numbers a set of representatives proportional to their population, to constitute the second house of the parliament. In this form, China is able to grow and to prosper, and to rebuild itself to its former glory, and beyond...

      2. Part II - Fulano de Tal

         Meanwhile, high in the Andes mountains outside Quito, Ecuador, archaeologists unearth the ruins of an advanced Incan settlement which appears to have been destroyed by a landslide in the late 15th century. In the ruins, only a single body is found, crushed by rocks but remarkably well-preserved in the Andean snow. The body is excavated and taken in cold storage back to Quito for examination. However, while no one is watching the body, it heals and awakens and begins to wander the lab. Confronted by security for being a naked stranger in a restricted area, the confused, mysterious man reacts violently. Though he is shot by security, he powers through and continues his attack, so security is forced to shoot him dead.

         The mysterious stranger awakens in a hospital in Brazil. It is difficult for him to communicate with his doctors, as they all speak Portuguese or Spanish and the closest thing the stranger can speak is some strange dialect of Latin. But communication is possible, and in speaking with his doctors, he reveals that he has no more knowledge of his identity or origins than they do. He remembers nothing before awakening in the lab, not even his own name. He is referred to thus only as "Fulano de Tal", which is the Spanish equivalent of "John Doe".

         The doctors tell Fulano that they have no idea how he got into that building or where he came from, but more interestingly, they have no idea how he has managed to make such a miraculous recovery from multiple, normally fatal gunshot wounds. They say that you couldn't even tell now that he had been shot, the recovery is so complete. That is why he was brought to a larger hospital here in Brazil for more extensive study; but so far, everyone is at a loss as to the origin of his remarkable healing abilities.

         On further research it appears that he has some sort of nanotechnological supplemental immune system which quickly repairs any damage done to his body and destroys any foreign tissue which enters it. Due to the latter effect, these nanites cannot simply be transported into another body, for they will reject their new host as "foreign" and destroy it from the inside out. So instead, scientists study the nanites and attempt to recreate them with their own limited nanotechnology. But something goes horribly wrong...

         [TO DO: FINISH THIS. Fulano helps combat the zombie army now spreading across South America. His memories start coming back, and on returning to the mountain where he was found, he recalls that he is the god Loki, who was buried here when the rest of the gods abandoned him and left Earth centuries ago. Then what?]

      3. Part III - Xalos

         [TO DO: MAKE THIS BETTER]

         Meanwhile, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, a man known as Christian Xalos has united a number of Pacific island nations into the Pacific Islands International Coalition, with the goal of jointly funding the world's first "starbridge", a space elevator utilizing gravitomagnetic technology and organic fullerene construction, drawing on ample carbon resources in the oceans and atmosphere. When completed, it contains over ten thousand huge floors, each a thousand stories tall and nearly five hundred square miles in size, for a total internal surface area nearly equal to that of Australia. Yet despite this colossal scale it appears a mere thread in the air compared to the size of the Earth. With the ample resources and easy access to space of the Xalos Starbridge, the Pacific Islands International Coalition quickly becomes an world-class economic powerhouse.

         Meanwhile in China, decades later, Long and the Ba Xian are still alive and ruling due to a secret known as Xian-gu. It turns out the "terrible" defect of the failed season of crops was the unintentional activation of a previously unknown genetic sequence coding for an amazing healing organelle. Though China has prosperred domestically, it has become very unpopular in foreign affairs for its policy of annexing smaller neighboring country on the terms of "join us and retain most of your autonomy, or resist and be conquered by force." Though North Korea joins willingly and Mongolia is successfully conquered, other power such as Russia, India, Japan, and the former Soviet-block countries to the west, are not so easily annexed, and as tensions mount on those borders, China moves to capture southeast Asia.

         To dissuade Long from persuing wars against its powerful neighbors, Han tells Long of a secret weapon he should procure before engaging them, hidden on sunken island of Peng-lai, which in fact lies somewhere on the flooded continental shelf around Indonesia, Australia and Zealandia. The nations of this region engage in maritime combat with Long's forces to keep him out of their territory, but Long succeeds in finding an ancient seafloor settlement anyway, which he raises to the surface via gravitomagnetics.

         [TO DO: FINISH THIS.]

         Lu, Lan, and Li defect from the Ba Xian. Zhoung and Zhang die in the conflict, Lu's wife He turns out to have been having an affair with Long and joins him, and Han stays by his side as always. Cao disappears into the wilderness.

         Meanwhile North America is overrun by zombies too. Mass evacuation overseas and to aircraft carriers and other sea craft.

         The Pacific Islands International Coalition comes to the rescue on both fronts. Turns out Xalos is Zeus, and Han is Cronus; Fulano, as already revealed, is Loki. Zombies cured, Long defeated. Asia, Oceania, and North and South America united into the Greater Pacific International State. New Starbridges built on Peng-lai and the site where Loki was found.

   2. Internation

      Technical notes about the Internation.

      Earth is divided and then united; U.N. (Europe + South Africa) vs the Internation (Asia + Oceania + and North+South America), with the Middle East caught in the middle. Internation eventally wins South Africa and later Europe. The fourth Starbridge is built near Lake Victoria, and the World Ring is built connecting all four. The solar system is colonised; Mars, Venus and the Jovian moons by the Internation, but Europe takes control of Luna and uses it as their almost-equalizer against the Internation's World Ring (for convenience of space travel). Luna remains independent even after Europe joins the Internation. Sapient robots come into play, mostly in terraforming and space travel use by the Internation. People banished from Earth for high crimes or incurable criminal insanity are taken to Mars, where they are watched over by robotic wardens. Venus is slowly being turned into a paradise, and Mercury is used primarily for robot and starship manufacturing.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   3. Xenophobia

      1. Part I

         Christi, a biological recreation of Metis (though her memories of that life are still extremely faint), is the star of this trilogy, and is guided by Zeus throughout, eventually remembering that she once loved him.

         Earth and Luna struggle over the status of robot citizenship and control of the Venusian colony.

         Cronus/Lucifer rises on Mars and turns his eye on Earth.

         The Portal is discovered and opened; mankind freaks about meeting the Ehrban and begins a war with them. (The Ehrban are already fighting a war with the Berol on another front, unbeknownst to mankind). The Foundation reveals themselves to mankind in general and assumes command of the human fleets against the Ehrban.

      2. Part II

         The luminal-speed interstellar exploration ship Achilles, sent out some decades ago, finally reaches its destination; a former Ehrban world on the Asiron side of the portal network. They learn much of forgotten galactic history.

      3. Part III

         The Achilles returns to Earth and informs mankind of their discoveries. The Foundation realizes that the Berol, not the Ehrban, are the alien threat that Keius warned them about aeons ago. Efforts are made to reconcile and ally with the Ehrban against the Berol (for Foundation technology is more advanced than even contemporary Ehrban technology). The Berol then send a strike force to Earth to wipe out the strange new threat.

         Luna is utterly destroyed destroyed in the battle, Earth is ruined by the fallout (Starbridges and World Ring collapse), and mankind is knocked back to the stone age.

         As Earth falls, Zeus believes Christi to have died in battle against the Berol, and returns to Earth to retrieve "her" mind from Virtuality before the network loses all power and she is lost forever. Christi is alive though, saved by Cronus, and is sent to Earth to protect Zeus while Cronus holds off the Berol with the Foundation. Zeus is buried in rubble beneath a falling Starbridge while connected to Virtuality, and Christi's ship is hit by falling lunar debris and crashes to the Earth. The end?

3. Apocalypse series

   One immortal awakens on post-apocalyptic Earth, rebuilds human civilization, and returns mankind to the stars.

   1. Network

      Christi awakens in post-apocalyptic North America, becomes worshipped as a goddess, and starts rebuilding civilization.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   2. Starbound

      Mankind contacts the robots, builds back to the space age, and begins resettling the solar sytem.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   3. Dragons

      The portal is reopened, and the rest of the galaxy is revealed; evil immortals (former Foundation agents lead by Cronus) with advanced technology posing as gods.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

The Sphidi Saga

A virtual world which takes on a life of its own.

1. Virtuality series

   A persistent virtual world and direct neural uplinks change the nature of relationships, society, and life itself.

   (Later features of Darklight, such as assorted ents and trolls, dragons, merfolk, wargs and stags, and werefolk, originate from these early versions of Virtuality, as do elementary versions of the goddesses Fire and Ice. All human inhabitants of Virtuality would be described as Dhampires or Halfelves by later Darklight terminology).

   1. Life in Virtuality

      The impacts of a fully immersive virtual world on peoples' "real lives".

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   2. Death in Virtuality

      Backing up people's minds as virtual characters.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   3. Love in Virtuality

      Zeus uploads Metis from his mind into Virtuality.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

2. Darklight series

   The virtual world forgets that it's virtual.

   1. Genesis

      The Eldest, Fire & Ice's betrayal, the splitting of the world, Elves vs Vampires.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   2. Corruption

      The age of humans and orcs, wizards and warlocks. The continent is reshaped.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   3. Revelation

      The vampires make their return; the world at war again; a new kind of creature is born; and the Sword of Darklight is found.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

3. Purity series

   The virtual world meets the real world, and neither will ever be the same.

   1. Contact

      The people of Earth discover the old network and the virtual people living in it.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   2. Incarnation

      The virtual people aquire robotic and later holographic bodies.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.

   3. Endgame

      The holograms assert themselves in galactic politics to the devastation of all. Christi locates Niarba, finds Keius, and with his help aids the Dhampires of the virtual world in reawakening the Eldest and putting an end to the demons' reign.

      1. Part I

         To do.

      2. Part II

         To do.

      3. Part III

         To do.