Gates of Artseindard

**The Gates of Artseindard** (often called simply **The Gate**, or sometimes **Artseindard**) are a mysterious set of trans-dimensional gateways which contains an unquantifiable amount of space and potential realities within them. The Gates themselves appears to be a somewhat sentient entity while also being the main setting for Tales from The Gate.

## Appearance

The physical structure of The Gate's main gateway that that of a stone arch with inward opening doors filling it. The arch and doors are carved with many intricate designs displaying images from various stories. The stone of which it is composed of is of a yellow color and glows faintly. The doors open inwards and of their own volition, The Gate seemingly cannot be opened by the attempts of an outside force. As a result The Gate controls who is able to enter and exit from it.

When its doors are open a thick fog rolls out from The Gate's interior. Its interior is completely obfuscated by the fog, and once stepped inside it completely obscures all direction. The fog is spaceless and movement within it fails to reach any destination, except though the manipulations of Gate Masters or The Gate itself. In most cases the fog leads into one of The Gates respective internal realities, which completely varies in appearance depending on its intention.

The interspace between realities in The Gate is composed almost entirely of the thick fog, giving it an endless expanse. The fog in these internal mechanisms is interspersed by huge gears composed of the same stone of the gateway. There are also metal catwalks which allow for travel through the bottomless void. The gears and walkways are in constant flux and motion.

## Purpose

The exact origins and nature of The Gate is unclear. It appears at seemingly random across any number possible universes to invite travelers to explore its interior. Those who enter The Gate find themselves transported to any of infinite possible realities which exist within it. In addition, The Gate contains an extraplanar space irrespective of any of its individual worlds, which seems to act as a medium for internal movement across the 'stories' which are played out within Artseindard. Those who master the metaknowledge of The Gate are capable of manipulating this extraplanar space and its mechanisms to use The Gate's reality manipulation towards their own ends. Those who achieve this level of control are often referred to as Gate Masters.

Typically reaching the true interspace of The Gate is impossible for those outside of Gate Masters, and those who traverse its depths have no context of its nature beyond whatever reality it places them within. These stories remain short and self contained, usually allowing the travelers to depart at the conclusion. Indeed most inhabitants of the Gate's many realities have no knowledge of it at all, much less that they exist inside of it.

Irrespective of the Gate Masters who can control the stories which play out within Artseindard, The Gate itself seems to possess a will of its own. Which typically passive, it maintains a desire to continue finding new actors to play out tales within its universes, and grows increasingly resistant to Degare Engelbreit when he begins to restrict these stories for his own gain. The Gate is capable of both granting its power to manipulate reality in favor of those opposing Degare and pull aspects and characters of previous stories back into existence to fight him.

The Gate is seemingly aware of the meta implications of its existence as a medium for storytelling. As such it is possible for action in the real world to impact its reality.