Hyperion

**Hyperion** is a Second-Genesis world first settled in a relatively obscure region of space in the Pegasus Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy, far from Sol System. Its star is called **Hephaestus Luciferus** (or Hephaestus the Lightbringer) and the planet was conquered by settlers from Hyperion. It was settled in two waves of colonization: the first were Rimmer settlers from Uranus, Sol System; the second were Icari'yon fleeing the destruction of Earth.

For it's entire history, the world is dominated by a largely peaceful and heterogeneous society, a comparative rarity in Solverse.

During it's time in the Second Dominion, it was classified as an **Artisan World** and was a shining example of Second Dominion worlds.

## Geography and System

Hyperion the world is everything that Hyperion the moon was not. It has a large temperate equatorial region, perfect for agriculture, stretching across two main continents. A frigid Northern Arctic region is navigable even in the deepest winter due to it's constantly moving ice floes. A small Antarctic continental ice shelf exists in the South.

It's circumference is 30,055.7063 kilometers (about 3/4 of that of Earth) and has .76g of gravity. It's twin naturall satelittes, called Selene A and Selene B, generate powerful tides along the coastal regions world wide. Oceanic currents are most powerful in the Titanic Sea on the Western side of the Ionian Isles, a volcanic region.

It is the only inhabited world in it's star system and is relatively sparsely populated for it's size.

It's solar year and seasons are vastly longer than Earth's, being 1,096 standard days in length. The Hyperion Year is equal to 3.002 Standard Years. It's calendar uses it's first year as the arrival of Hephastion the Great and the first wave of Sons of Uranus on the planet's surface.

The two continents are called Illydonius and Elysius in the West and East, respectively. Elysius is the largest of the two, being about 11,221 km across at it's widest point and Illydonius only slightly smaller at 10,018 km.

### Notable Features

During the winter time, the two continents are joined in a northern region known as the Hellespont via an ice bridge.

Three islands throughout the world are the sole domains of the Three Oracles of Hephastion the Great. The Oracles are centerpieces of Sybillic Religion and are regularly consulted in person by world leaders.

In the South are the Gates of Heraculus, seperating the turbulent and violent Titanic Ocean from the Gulf of Illydonia. The Gates also join the Southern Antarctic ice shelf with the Illydonian Isles. Heraculus is the mythological demigod father of the Sons of Uranus and consort to the Furies, the mythological ancestors of the Sons of Gaia.

## Government and Provinces

Hyperion exists under a peaceful, global government who's motto is "*Gnosis. Pax. Fraternitas."*or "Knowledge, Light, and Brotherhood". It is officially known as a **Republican Absolutism**. The world is organized into ten provinces; chief of them is the first founded among them, Iona. Each of these provinces is ruled in a benevolently authoritarian style by heads of state of various styles. Each of these are centered in a primary city-state which lends it's name to the entire province. From the city, the various outlying small towns and villages throughout the provinces are governed. Representatives from each city-state meet in the Hyperion Senate located in Iona City, where global policy is made and enacted. Policy is made and interpreted in the light of the great collection of founding documents laid down in the time of Hephastion the Great.

Each of the Provinces exists in a mutual pact of alliance with one another to mutually wage war on any Province that attempts to attack another. For this reason, Hyperion has never experienced a civil war due to this policy of mutually assured destruction and the general cultural principle of preservation of peace.

### Iona

Iona was the first province settled by the Sons of Uranus. It's domain includes the large part of the western temperate region of mainland Illydonia up to the mountains in the North, and the Cretian Isles stretching all the way to the Gates of Heraculus.

The largest of the Cretian Isles, called Lemnos, has the Temple of Hephastus built by Hephastion the Great himself. The other isles contain temples to each of the lesser deities.

### Illion

After the death of Hephastion the Great, civilization spread into the rest of the temperate agrarian region of Illydonius. Borders were set and the Province of Ilion organized with the construction of the city-state. It stretched north along the coastlines until it's borders were set at the peninsula of Samnos Minor.

Here, the first of the Oracles became stationed on an island in the Southern Mesogian Ocean.

### Illydonian Atticus

Atticus became a city-state founded at the Western edge of the Hellespont. It's region of influence stretched west across the Northern Arctic isles and half of the largest isle.

### Abderikkan

Abderikkan was founded by Western-moving settlers from Atticus, crossing the frigid Arctic waters back to the mainland. The city was founded at the Western-most coast and it's province stretched South to the mountains, where it met with the Iona Province.

### Elysian Atticus

A twin city also called Atticus was founded on the Eastern end of the Hellespont. The two cities became known as Illydonian Atticus and Elysian Atticus respectively, and the Senate moved to allow the twin city-states to remain one single united province.

Elysian Atticus stretched East across Elysius until it set it's borders at the Alpine Mountains.

The **second oracle, t**he Oracle of Atticus, was set on it's island in the Arctic North.

### Alpina

Rugged settlers from all over Hyperion settled the high mountains and formed the Alpina Province, terminating where the mountain chains ceased. Alpina is the only Province without a major city-state.

### Odessia

The first of the Icari'yon settlers arriving on the world, quickly becoming known as the Sons of Gaia, settled in the wild and thickly forested Southern regions of the Elysian continent. The city-state was built on the westernmost coastline.

### Monitea

Sons of Gaia from the Odessian South combined with Sons of Uranus coming frorm the Alpine North to stretch across the broad temperate region around the equator on Elysius, becoming the breadbasket of the whole continent.

### Calabria

Sons of Gaia crossed the Monitean Sea to the Easternmost peninsular region of Elysius. It was given the name Calabria, an ancient Earth name, for it's resemblance to ancient Italia. The Isle of the Attican Oracle was ceded to the Province for administrative purposes and the third and final Calabrian Oracle was given their own isle in the Calabrian Bay.

### Eremos

The most sparsely populated Province, the city-state was founded at the Southernmost point of Elysius and stretched across the wide desert region, setting it's borders at the Odessian Mountains to the West and the temperate grasslands of the Monitean North.

## History

### First Wave (Second Trilogy Era)

The first settlers of Hyperion came from Uranus in the Rim of Sol System. The overwhelming majority of them were adherents of Architecture, whereas the Rim itself is primarily of the religion Faith. Led by a charismatic member of the Order of Eluvius named Hephastion the Great, the group successfully obtained lightdrive technology - the first people in Sol System to do so - from Hephastion's petitions to Joshua and the *Dominion* fleet during their travel through the Rim towards Anthroperium-era Earth.

Using the lightdrive, the group of several thousand traveled Galactic North West West into unexplored space in increasingly larger jumps through space. They finally arrived at a habitable world in the far end of the Perseus Arm of the Milky Way Galaxy.

Hephastion himself was the first man to set foot on this world on what would become the continent of Elysius. They discovered a world of vibrant flora and fauna not quite unlike that of Mediterranean Earth, completely devoid of sentient life or signs of habitation of any kind. They quickly tamed the world and set out to become the masters of their own destiny.

Within Hephastion's lifetime, Hyperion society and culture was largely formulated into the shape it remains in today.

### Second Wave (Age of Exploration)

About a century after the founding of the world, a group of Icari'yon starships fleeing the destruction of Earth from the ill-fated use of the Infinity Gate technology arrives in Hyperion's star system. The Icari'yon had picked up the same signs of life that initially drew the first wave of Rimmer colonists; they initially believed the world to be uninhabited.

Finding a vibrant world of millions of sentient humans in a peaceful, artisinal society of high technology, the Icari'yon made contact with the world and were welcomed with open arms, so long as their intentions were peaceful. These "Sons of Gaia", as they came to be called, tamed the Eastern Continent and named it Illydonius in the style of their new, adopted culture.

Hyperion remained largely isolated and peaceful for the next six millennia until the arrival of the very same beings who's instrumental role allowed for the colonization of the world in the first place.

### The Second Dominion Comes

Joshua - now no longer mortal but an ascended and divine being - and the Watcher themselves came to world, welcomed as divine beings. They were surprised to find the world largely already self sustaining and unambitious. Joshua, despite only dimly recalling Hephastion and the original Sons of Uranus who settled this world, was welcomed as the heraldic fulfillment of divine prophecy. The Watcher was considered to be the literal manifestation of a semi-deific being in the now well-developed cosmology of Sybilline religion. Because of this identification, Joshua became the *de facto* ruler of the world, as whatever his counsel was to The Watcher for the world was passed onto the Illionic Oracle who considered The Watcher to be their actual Herald. The Oracles' words were then passed onto the Senate, which was enacted into official policy.

Despite some initial protests on ethical grounds from Joshua, The Watcher convinced him to benevolently exploit their mythopoeic identity on the world to further the cause of the Second Dominion. Thus, Hyperion quickly became a member of the SD.

For the first time in it's existence, Hyperion opened up to trade. The world quickly gained fame throughout the Galaxy for it's idyllic society and became a favorite choice of high society citizens as a vacation and retreat world. Students of all subjects came from all over the Galaxy to study at the Hyperion Institutes, and the Oracles began their great missionary program to spread Sybilline religion throughout the Galaxy.

### Hyperion League (Great Expansion) Era

In only a few standard decades, the demand for cultural and luxury goods from Hyperion outpaced the ability of the world to produce them, skyrocketing both price and demand all the more. Thus, the Hyperion League was formed at the behest of the Senate concurrent with the mission of the Second Dominion. A well organized and disciplined trade union, the League's official mission was to export the culture (including the religion) of Hyperion, the proliferation of advanced technology, and unity under the common Hyperion currency.

The League would grow to incorporate both Second Dominion and Independent worlds throughout the galaxy, solidifying Hyperion's place as a benevolent galactic superpower and one of the most culturally important worlds in the Galaxies.

### The Last War (Third Trilogy Era)

By the time the Last War breaks out, the Hyperion League had become the solid center of the great decentralized trade network of the Infinite Empire in Solverse. The world and it's space became one of the most heavily guarded targets during the War because of this role. Throughout the struggle, Hyperion and the League continued to supply the Empire with anything and everything necessary to combat the Hiterian menace.

### Destruction by Sun Gate

In an act of unforeseen and unparalleled cruelty, Hyperion was suddenly, totally annihilated by the Sun Gate, the Hiterian superweapon. This would be the only time this particular ability of the Sun Gate would be used, as the force of will and strength of concentration required to summon such power required the sacrifice of billions of souls on Throneworld and nearly consumed Exades himself.

### Legacy

Despite the world's destruction, Hyperion's influence remained strong throughout Local Space and was fondly remembered throughout the Infinite Empire as a quiet, innocent world. Sybilline religion never quite recovered from the world's death but a minority of it's practicioners remained scattered throughout Local Space all the way until the death and recreation of Solverse.

## Culture

Hyperion enjoys a very well educated and literate society. A notable feature of Hyperion is it's complete lack of infighting.

### Institutes

The Institute of Illydonia and the Institute of Odessia are two of the most respected centers of learning throughout the Galaxy and all Local Space.

## Language

Hyperion language utilizes a simple script in which only upper case letters exist. This becomes the basis for the common trade language of the Hyperion League. It is the single language of the entire world.

## Religion

**Sybilline Religion**, as the practices of the people of Hyperion are called, is a **pluralistic henotheistic** interpretation of Architecture formed from it's positive fusion with an enlightened, philosophical view of Terran Humanism. It is one of the Five Great Solar Religions.

Sybilline adherents regard the excesses of the Anthroperium's religion as a mistake and also rejects the ancient mainstream interpretation of Terran Humanism.

They believe that Architect is a title and not a *nomum verum;* as such, they refer to the penultimate Divinity of their pantheon as **HEPHASTUS THE ARCHITECT**. Hephastus is associated with forgecraft, art, artisanship, craftwork, sculpture, painting, literature, music, metals, metallurgy, fire, and volcanoes. In contrast to mainstream Architecture, Hephastus is referred to with the singular pronouns He and/or She, rather than They. Hephastus the Architect is enumerated with all of the same qualities and principles as in mainstream Architecture, in addition to the various qualities endowed upon Him by the Hyperion people.

Worship is officially participated in by the various provinces of the world via a contiguuous Priesthood which derives it's authority from an unbroken line of secession back to Hephastion the Great, who himself was a member of the Order of Eluvius. Worship takes place in temples, through festivals, and in the home.

Hephastus, through the panetheon, endows mortals with Profane (Intellectual) Knowledge and Sacred (Saving) Knowledge. Through the acquisition of this Knowledge, mortals may transcend mortality and escape the natural fate of humanity: condemnation to Desmios, or limbo.

### Pantheon

The Sybilline pantheon is drawn from a variety of sources, including Breath, the writings of Hephastion the Great, and the Oracles. Each of the Beings within the pantheon are categorized into either Gods, Titans, Demigods, Mortals, or Antitheons.

#### Gods

The Gods, of which Hephastus the Architect is Chief, King, and Source thereof, also include the so-called "Old Gods" of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune and their associated satellite consorts. The Old Gods are venerated in memory only and not in active ritual. Hephastus is the only divinity worthy of worship, and to worship any member of the pantheon but Hephastus is a grave sin.

Uranus and Gaia are the children of Hephastus, perfect encapsulations of the male and female principles of divinity respectively. These two gave rise to Hyperion (the sentient divinity incarnated in both the planet and the star themselves) and Theia, Hyperion's female consort that exists only in the Empyrean Verse.

#### Titans

Hyperion and Theia gave rise to the four Titans: Helios, the Selene Sisters, and Eos. Helios is the main sequence star of Sol System. According to the Sybilline mythology, Hyperion was the original home of the Sons of Uranus before they were taken away and enslaved in Sol System. They fulfilled ancient prophecy through moving to Uranus in the Rim and returning to their ancestral home once more under Hephastion the Great.

Unlike traditional Greek mythology, the Titans were neither overthrown by nor do they oppose the Gods. Rather, they are the progeny of the Gods who benevolently guide the Sons of Uranus and Gaia in the quest to fulfill their destiny.

The Selene Sisters are the only members of the pantheon other than Hephastus to be considered hermaphroditic. These Sisters are identified with the twin moons of Hyperion and gave rise to the Furies, demigods who in turn are the ancestors of the Sons of Gaia.

Eos is the Titan who gave rise to the three Heralds.

It is said that the Titans dwell in the Titanic Ocean, hence the name.

#### Demigods

Demigods are the progeny of Titans. They include the Makers who rose from mortality due to their work in the revelation of ancestral Architecture and the mythopoeic figure Heraculus, said to be the universal ancestor of all of the Sons of Uranus. Joshua was identified by the people of Hyperion as being the literal incarnation and return of Heraculus.

The Heralds are also considered demigods, as the progeny of the Titan Eos. Each are nameless and are called only by the name of the Oracle that is associated with them: The Calabrian Herald, Attican Herald, and Illionic Herald. The El'yon known as The Watcher was identified by both the Oracle and the Priests as being the literal incarnation of the Illionic Herald.

The Harbingers were the first Demigods. They are identified with the El'yon after the coming of Joshua and The Watcher to Hyperion.

#### Mortals

The two principal groups of mortals within the pantheon are the Sons of Uranus, the first settlers of Hyperion led by Hephastion the Great, and the Sons of Gaia, the Icari'yon who joined them on the Eastern continent. In theory, there is a place for all of humanity within the framework of Sybilline religion, but this status is nominally assigned only to these two groups. People born on the Western Continent are given the former title, whereas those born on the Eastern Continent are given the latter, as are any and all converts / proselytes to the religion.

It's the duty of both groups of mortals to seek Knowledge that will allow them to transcend mortality and become demigods themselves. Only a very few can achieve this in life; most will achieve this in death and move to one of the Seven Realms.

#### Antitheons

Antitheons are fallen Harbingers, rebels who chose to fight against Hephastus and the other Gods. They are traditionally identified with Chaos and Demorgas and given the names Charon and Pluto. In the Last War, Exades is identified as Charon.

### Scripture

Sybilline scripture includes the closed canon of *Breath*, the open canon of the Sybilline Auguries, and the writings of Hephastion the Great.

In addition, there are a variety of poetic epics and prose writings that circulate among the world that are considered scripture by the common populace.

### Cosmology

True to it's Architectural roots, Sybilline religion posits a ten layered cosmological hierarchy of worlds with the mortal realm at the center. They are referrred to as the Seven Heavens and the Three Hells.

* Henosis: assigned the "0th point". Primordial oneness and the origin of Light.
* Lumia: the Realm of Light. The personal abode of Hephastus.
* Basilae: the highest heaven. Home to the Old Gods and Gaia.
* Olympios: the middle heaven. Home to the Titans.
* Othrys: the lower heaven. Home to the Demigods and the Heralds. Identical to the Empyrean.
* Cosmos: the mortal realm. Identical to the Empirical.
* Phulake: spirit prison. A purgatorial place of re-education and repentance.
* Desmios: limbo. The lowest world a mortal can descend to and still be saved.
* Abyss: first of the three hells. The abode of the Antitheons.
* Tartauros: Realm of complete metaphysical torture.
* Nox: Absolute damnation. Identical to outer darkness.

## Technology

The world has relied on clean atomic, solar, and geothermal power since it's initial colonization. Attempts to harness the violent power of the Titanic Ocean have failed.

The world is most famed for it's global method of travel, the Hyperion Loop, a complex system of pneumatically driven tubes that propel passengers up to 300 km/hr and utilizes electromagnetic braking. The Loop runs across all ten continents to every major City-State. The Loop twice stretched over sea, once over the Hellespont in the North and again across the Southern Mesogian Ocean.

For non-loop travel, nuclear and wind powered ships are common for traversing the seas and electrically driven vehicles for work and pleasure transportation across land.

## Trade

Due to it's proximity in space relative to other inhabited worlds, Hyperion did not engage in trade with other worlds until it's incorporation into the Second Dominion.

### Hyperion League

The **Hyperion League** is a system of trade worlds uniting them under the common currency of the Hyperion Dinar. It includes both Second Dominion and independent worlds, as well as a handful of Tontheonic worlds. It was the primary means by which Second Dominion technology was exported throughout the galaxy.

The League becomes an important factor in the Last War as the backbone of the Infinite Empire's war machine in it's struggle against the Hiterian Empire.