Apocrypha

The Apocrypha (JP: アポクリファ / FR: L'Apocryphe), is also known as "the relic" or simply referred to as "God", and its physical manifestation in the world.

In the hanaworks collective universes, the Apocrypha triggers expansion events, big bangs that create said universes. It also can work as an infinite energy and matter resource, pulling it from another upper dimension. Lastly, it has the unique function of being a gate, the only non-destructive way to bridge multiple universes together, whether it is to transport something, someone or even simply communicating between the worlds.

The Apocrypha has various names depending on those whom find it. The Ancient named it the "Apocrypha Device", humans "Magnetic Abnormal Matter Device", and other races mentions it as "Gate", "Relic", "Monolith".

## Background, as a Concept

The Apocrypha, in reality is rather a concept that is difficult to grasp.

As a concept, the Apocrypha is the origin of all worlds, similarly to the concept of Yggdrasil and the World Tree. Internally, this schema allows it to function as a gate as well, since all worlds and dimensions are theoretically within the Apocrypha, so accessing it would mean accessing all worlds that the Apocrypha has created. It is not known whether the Apocrypha exists in a vacuum or if it is a meta-device that originates from an even more primordial world, but the latter seems unlikely.

The Apocrypha itself can be described as a higher dimension, which is why many races makes allusion to godhood. The higher domain having unlimited energy can seep into the lower domains (universes, worlds, dimensions) that the Apocrypha is linked to, and allow the living beings to transcend themselves.

A Lower Domain, or a universe in this case, can be split into two in the eyes of the Apocrypha:

* The Real Plane, which encompasses the physical dimension of the said lower domain, its quantic laws and particles
* The Imaginary Plane, which encompasses the collective unconscious, a pool which life creates a cycle with and exchanges with the Real Plane.

The Apocrypha will technically, always appear close to forms of life in the respective universes, due to its intrinsic attachment, making sure that the Real and Imaginary planes cycle are well woven together and don't immediately collapse upon the creation of a universe. This explains why the Apocrypha in its physical manifestation is always eventually found by a sentient lifeform, regardless of universe.

The reason why the Apocrypha can safely bridge worlds together is because as explained above: each world has its real and imaginary planes of existence, and the Apocrypha has access to all of them at the same time. This means that if a person desires to travel to another universe, the Apocrypha can automatically take out the person's real and imaginary plane identifiers and transplant them to the universe and back if needed. Even if the worlds have different set of rules, the Apocrypha should be able to fork up a solution that preserves all sides mentioned.

* By example, the Ancient race, departed from their universe without the use of the Apocrypha, destroying it in the process. The Apocrypha self-corrected the error by transplanting the imaginary plane of the old universe towards the one of the kosmos universe *(and is why the previous universe was destroyed: being stripped of the imaginary plane, the real plane collapsed)*. As a result, the kosmos universe is in a unique position of having two imaginary planes independent of each other, while sharing the same real plane. This phenomenon explains why the Ancient are immune to the Eternal Recurrence that Melia put into place, which automatically resets the Collective Unconscious of the native imaginary plane of the kosmos world. The Ancient have seemed to be stagnant because in normal circumstances, an imaginary plane and its associated real plane expand together, allowing sentience to go even further. The Ancient's imaginary plane does not expand with the kosmos world's own two planes, therefore limiting the Ancients to a hypothetical glass-ceiling in terms of sentience and evolution as a lifeform.

## The Physical Manifestation

The Apocrypha is certainly known due to its physical manifestation, otherwise it would only be conjecture for those who are sentient to think about it. It looks like a monolithic slab with an indescriptible material to its surface. In most appearances, it seems to have a number on the upper middle part of its surface. In the kosmos universe, it abhors the number "alef", meaning "the one"

The Apocrypha, physically possesses several unique properties, which are not always consistent from universe to universe. The only consistent ability it has is to work as a gate, as mentioned above.

* In the kosmos universe *(where the projects KOSMOS and GALAXY TRAVAIL take place),* the Apocrypha is magnetically abnormal and if used correctly can generate infinite amounts of energy. It also has the unique faculty of creating even more Ether*(a native particle in the kosmos universe)* than the universe already has. In this world also, it manifested a consciousness of its own, which later became Melia and Épiphanée. The two mirror the same properties as the physical monolith. Épiphanée is seen able to make consciousnesses jump bodies and manipulate the laws of the universe to her desires, temporarily or permanently, which implies that the monolith is capable of the same, but lacks any conscious intent to make it act on its own *(but does imply that there is a way it can be manipulated into doing that)*. Lastly, the monolith can be seen changing forms, as Épiphanée turns it into her personal weapon tool, the Sword of Origins. In the kosmos universe, the imaginary plane makes use of reincarnation and recurrences to allow the reuse of souls, which works thanks to the Apocrypha.
* In the stars universe, the Apocrypha can corrupt people and manipulate the five matters, which is how Pastelle was created.
* In the infinity universe, the Apocrypha is no more, but lingers of its powers reside within Shandian.

## the Case of Consciousness

   In the kosmos universe, the Apocrypha seems to have developed a conscience of its own. A self-evolving phenomenon to protect it from misuse by humans. While the Apocrypha and its conscience are beyond the good and evil, and caters to any heart, the measure was done to prevent self-destruction or annihilation, an outcome that the Collective Unconscious has thought of so some humans would find the need to get rid of the Apocrypha eventually, or at least its physical manifestation that can be interacted with.

The Ancients, were the first to lay hands on the Apocrypha, since the Collective Unconscious was not mature enough to create sentient natives. They noticed the conscience of the Apocrypha, and decided to give it a physical host, so they could interact with it. After numerous failed attempts, they finally manage to create a host of the Apocrypha's conscience. This is how Melia is born.

Melia, as a divine entity, explained that she isn't to judge one's actions, but merely act upon it, as a warning to Ancients she could be either a force of good or evil to them depending on how they wanted to use her. Melia eventually incorporated herself into the Ancient civilisation, acting similarly to a constitutional monarch. Her presence also cemented the concept of Apocryphism, a religious belief into her sacred presence.

Technically, Melia only seeks balance, perpetuity and constance for the universe. Her actions in the KOSMOS Project timeline clearly depicts Melia trying to fix up humanity's mistakes and prevent the unvierse from collapsing. She has established the "Eternal Recurrence", due to humanity's desire for the beyond, to the point of having destructive tendencies towards themselves and the universe. The Eternal Recurrence merely resets the Collective Unconscious to a primordial state, even though it ultimately freezes and locks down the universe's expansion.

During the timeline of Galaxy Travail, the Apocrypha's conscience takes on a new persona, named Épiphanée. Unlike Melia, who was kindhearted and benevolent thanks to being based off the Ancients' Collective Unconscious, this time it was based off the actual kosmos world's C.U.. This made her attitude more gritty and bitter to reflect how humans at this stage of the universe. According to her, humanity is getting dangerously close to being due for an Eternal Recurrence reset, but Épiphanée is going against it due to "being curious to see what happens", and would eventually trigger it if humanity tried to collapse the universe.

## Contacts

Contacts are people that have been able to resonate with the Apocrypha and are able to channel some of its properties and grant some people powers.

* Lavande, is one of the first Contacts, and was seen able to live indefinitely.
* Kyuubi, the second Contact, is able to reincarnate infinitely.
* Sirène, the third Contact, is able to transcend the laws of the universe in a small area.
* Ampoule, the fourth Contact, is able to manipulate the flow, leading her towards what she desires.

In the kosmos universe, Ether Resonance is how strong of an affinity a person has with Ether. As for Contacts, they essentially have infinite Resonance when they channel their Apocrypha powers. To become an Apocrypha Contact, the prerequisites are only to have a strong soul for enough Apocryphal powers to flow through. In most cases, when someone tries to come into contact with the Apocrypha in an attempt of becoming a Contact, it fails. This is due to the prerequisite not being met, and the Apocrypha may or may not trigger an event that kills the person due to how much energy is being flown through the after mentioned trying person, sending their consciousness back to the Collective Unconscious pool.

## Findings History

??? : The Apocrypha releases energy into a space-time that was not existing, therefore triggers its creation to hold that said energy. This is how the big bang occurs.

**Ancient Times 1999** : the Ancients find the Apocrypha adrift in space. They retrieve it and manage to use it as an energy source so far. While they cannot tap directly into its powers, the infinite energy already allows the Ancient to make grand schemes and make themselves comfortable in this new universe.

**Ancient Times 2000** : Melia appears. The Ancients create the "KOSMOS Mainframe", which uses the Apocrypha as its source of power.

**Nanuetta Domini 28,050** : Humans unearth the Apocrypha from underground caves in Egypt. Naming it the MAgnetic Abnormal Matter, tapping into its limitless energy resource makes humanity explode in technological evolution, such as creating the Earth Low Orbit Space Station.

**Nanuetta Domini 28,058** : Humans get a small taste of the Apocrypha's true powers, as they trigger a space-time related event which annihilates Earth's biosphere. Kyuubi and Lavande become Apocrypha Contacts.

**Anno Domini ???** : The Apocrypha falls into the hands of the Miktam found in ruins within Michtam-04B. They build their own Orbital Space Station with it, alongside their Starflight System. Echelon Sirène and Ampoule become Apocrypha Contacts.

**Anno Domini ???** : An attempt is made to make Seraphita an Apocrypha Contact, which fails.

## the Religion of Apocryphism

Apocryphism is having faith into Melia/Épiphanée as divine beings, Gods. The Faith started with Ancients during the Ancient Times Era where Melia first appeared. The religion has been present ever since in the kosmos universe and even 13 billions years later during Galaxy Travail, many still adhere to it, especially since Épiphanée made her entrance.

The reason why it isn't an unanimous religion is because of the logic that a godly entity shouldn't be able to interact with mortals, or should only be in the after-life. There is also the fact that humans can't really prove the after-life exists even if it does. The same goes for reincarnations, because a soul takes from centuries to millenias to recharge and finally gain the ability to incarnate again, stripping any possibility of learning that the process exists.

Many strange occurrences and miracles have happened, which led to the creation of other religions, and none that survived technically contradicts each other, meaning that people can have generational beliefs or cultures that makes one religion more prevalent than Apocryphism. Derivatives from Apocryphism aren't really considered Apocryphism in the minds of many, therefore even variations in beliefs finally contribute to the many other religions there are.

In the stars universe, Apocryphism is a different belief based on the faith that the Apocrypha as a monolith is a godly entity, the origin of the world and its matters. Though, the concept mostly applies the same as the kosmos universe, where many adhere to it.

Statues, art and buildings have been built to promote Apocryphism. The prevalent trend is to wear talismans and jewelry to mark one's sign of belief, which take the shape of the Apocrypha as the monolith. Statues can also be found in houses to induce blessings, according to the religious. They pray for the Apocrypha to lead them to the path of good, and give them the strength to get through difficult situations.

## Melia's Perspective

Melia and Épiphanée as the Apocrypha's conscience has some unique think pieces that she often shares with those around her.

Melia wise, she believes that she is kind and benevolent because the Ancients are themselves, kind of how a pure-hearted pool of souls created the positive aura she carries. She considers that the Apocrypha and herself are one and the same, just different aspects of it physically, explaining that whatever the monolith can do, she can as well and vice-versa. To her, the Apocrypha can be defined as biting a forbidden apple for humans, because it usually lead them to downfall. Her logic is that humans always strive to move forward, and encompass the next bigger thing : humans first want to conquer a land, make technology that can be used for the whole world, harness energy from the entire solar system to feed their ever growing aspirations etc... Leading to the Apocrypha, being the ultimate world-shaping device is something that humans often cannot get beyond, but will try regardless, to their own demise as seen multiple times in the kosmos timeline, which leads her to reset humanity every time they get to their point of no return.

Épiphanée wise, she explains that her attitude merely reflects the statue of humanity. To her, humanity encompasses all living beings native to the kosmos universe, implying that Mankind, Miktam, Matterkind, Estrellakind are all humans. It is because they all share the same imaginary plane. Someone could be born an Earthling or a Spectre, their soul or their nature would be the same. The Apocrypha is the other part of her, and transforms it into a sword to prevent humans toying with it as she deems them no longer worthy of handling it due to how Melia countlessly gave them chances throughout the universe's lifespan, without avail. She describes her sword a tool of creation, destruction and manipulation of the universe.