Afterlife

# The Afterlife:

The Afterlife is a preternatural formation of land and water, in a currently unknown cosmic location or realm. The Afterlife is the home to all Earthen life, and Earthen objects forgotten by the denizens of Earth. The Afterlife, for most of is existence was whole, but due to a cataclysmic event known as "The Rift", the Afterlife split into nine separate parts, creating "The Nine Universes". It is on the Eighth universe that most of the story takes place. It is not possible as of 27 A.O.G. to traverse from the Afterlife to Earth, save for the Conductor, who is the only character known to able to do so. The extent to which he can travel to Earth appears to be limited.

Contrary to popular beliefs surrounding the concept of an afterlife, the realm of the Afterlife is neither heaven nor hell. It stands as a neutral expanse, free from the influence of a creator's will, where life flourishes unencumbered. The surface of the Afterlife boasts vast expanses of liquid water, akin to oceans that stretch into the horizon, and its climate remains remarkably stable, perpetually granting comfort to its inhabitants. Although occasional peculiarities in weather patterns may arise, the Afterlife's perfect equilibrium ensures the continued existence of a thriving ecosystem that has stood the test of time. However, one notable difference between the Afterlife and Earth is the color of its Flora, taking on a hue of red and purple naturally, where green plants are more rare. The "sun" also does not set, nor revolve around the body that is the whole afterlife (or nine universes), and is dim enough to look upon. The Afterlife manages to maintain its warmth and atmosphere due to unknown sources. The sun is referred to as the "Moonstar" due to it being as bright as the Earthen moon. The Moonstar is blue, as opposed to yellow. The Moonstar may be involved in inter-universe travel, as well as travel from Earth to the Afterlife, due to the Chosen Five witnessing a blue ball of light before their accident, from which the train that hits their car emerges.

## History:

### Pre Human Civilization:

It is unknown whether the Afterlife was created, or has existed for all time. At one point, it was possible for beings to traverse from Earth to the Afterlife, but this is no longer possible, save if a Child of Time attempts this.

The Afterlife is predicted to have existed for millions of years, as before Humans and Neanderthals, there were sentient dinosaur civilizations, as well as a relatively unknown race of ferrous life, known as the Gevvyd. It is unknown where the Gevvyd come from, the level of sentience they possessed, or how they influenced the Afterlife's natural state. Some refer to the Gevvyd as "the old gods," as the First King of the Afterlife, Darys Avvalin, was a Gevvyd. Darys Avvalin at some point, for an unknown reason, visited Earth and provided the populace with legends of his domain. This visit to the reasonably uneducated populace (who didn't understand what they were seeing) resulted in the Abrahamic religions. He also may have visited ancient Mesopotamia, helping create the legend of Zoroastrianism. Darys Avvalin's message to Earth was ultimately lost, though many who arrived to the Afterlife later came to understand what his cryptic message of doom was.

During the reign of Darys Avvalin, a meteor struck the Earth in the Yucatan peninsula, and brought the dinosaurs to extinction. Once upon the Afterlife, Darys Avvalin gave them the gifts of consciousness (and some the gift of wisp which enhanced their consciousness further). The dinosaurs, over millions of years, formed human-like civilizations. In Saurian history, there were many armed conflicts between herbivores and carnivores, each rebelling, warring, and enslaving the other. The Gevvyd seemed to leave them alone for much of their history.

### Early Kings:

The Second King of the Afterlife was Yeshua Magdalena, the son of Zoroaster (who by the time of Yeshua's birth was ~600-800 years old), and Maudlin Magdalena. Upon Yeshua's execution by the Roman Empire, Darys Avvalin brought his grandson to the Afterlife, and bestowed his powers on him. This act ultimately killed Darys Avvalin, and Yeshua became the first human king of the Afterlife. His reign was rife with political struggle and conflict. He was assassinated by Lumin Malheur (see: Lumiere Mallory), who attempted to usurp his throne in the name of the god Sagittarius.

Yeshua's father, Zoroaster, assumed the mantle of king after Yeshua's assassination. Zoroaster had no issue, and when Zoroaster died, the realm was plunged into the First Age of Chaos.

It is mentioned in the Tomes of Sagittarius Books that there were ten Lumieri kings, all in service of Sagittarius. It is assumed these dark kings lived hundreds, if not thousands of years apart from one another. The names of the carbon-life rulers who fought them is not known, though it is known that they were mostly successful. One such figure of the Lumieri was "Ceras Ouli", who took the mantle of Lumiere III. Another, was Ricardo Volpe the Traitor (who hailed from the First Afterlifian People's Republik), who ultimately took the mantle of Lumiere IX. All of the Lumieri kings had either been apocolites before their sworn allegiance to Sagittarius, or became apocolites of immense powers afterwards.

### The Rift War:

In a cataclysmic world-war level conflict, a man worshipping the dark god Sagittarius raised armies of millions of individuals, as well as monsters from the deep, to destroy the afterlife. The man was Solomon Von Eberstark, a supposed child of shadows with immense control over his apocolite abilities. Solomon took the moniker of Lumiere X, and enslaved most, if not all of the afterlife in an attempt to destroy it. His usage of living creatures to serve Sagittarius's will was unique (but possibly inspired by Ricardo Volpe, who had a nation under his thumb before he became Lumiere IX), as previously the Lumiere kings would simply rise their slain foes from the dead, or use monsters from the void to achieve their goals. During this time, a slave revolt broke out, and the name of "beggar-king Gregoros" entered the lips of slaves around the land. Gregoros, a charismatic and enigmatic figure, emerged as a beacon of hope for the enslaved inhabitants of the Afterlife during the tumultuous Rift War. Little is known about his origins or how he acquired his power, but his ability to rally the oppressed and lead them in their fight against Lumiere X's tyranny became legendary.

Under Gregoros' guidance, the slave revolt grew into a formidable resistance force, with diverse beings from all corners of the Eighth universe joining their cause. They waged a guerrilla war against Lumiere X's forces, employing unconventional tactics and exploiting the weaknesses of the dark god's enslaved monsters. The resistance fighters, inspired by Gregoros' unwavering determination and strategic brilliance, unleashed a wave of rebellion that spread across the Afterlife. Saurs, Neanderthals, and Gevvyd were said to have joined the fight (some accounts say on both sides).

The Rift War ended when Gregoros (now a "thane", though that terminology would come later), used his powers to fracture the Afterlife. The land fissured, and cracked, and the seas boiled. It is said every volcano across the Afterlife erupted at once, and blotted out every Moonstar, as well as the sky. Countless species (including some intelligent species such as the Cro-Magnon and certain species of dinosaurs) went extinct. At the end of the Rift, Gregoros was crowned King of All Men. He granted lands to the Saurs and Neanderthals, but all other lands were ceded to humanity. During this early period after the rift, it is said the Gevvyd went extinct.

## Recent Events:

The Afterlife is the setting of the Tomes of Sagittarius books, and the first of the nine universes to be seen is Universe Eight. It appears first in Book One: Universe Eight.