Elder Beyond

*"What I am is for me to know AND for me to find out. I just know that this here is me, and that out there somewhere is another me. It's not that I've been hiding what I am, its that I don't know what I am and am worried that it might fracture us to look too far into it. All I truly know is that I care for you guys and my family and I don't want to lose that, no matter what else I am" -* Elder S2 E36 "Finale pt.2"

Some say the universe itself is formed by the thoughts of a sleeping ancient god, and that once it awakens that all of existence shall once again fade into nothingness awaiting its next slumber to rebuild anew. Others yet insist that above all else is a truly omniscient god watching over the universe and molding it by will alone, All that is certain is that the **Elder Beyond** has some fundamental connection to the **Elder** and has either created or manipulated him as an avatar so it can interact with the world. By the start of the series the Elder is already ancient and only ever provides vague clues on his past. It is clear that he has formed groups similar to the one he builds in the series before, but what happened to them is never elaborated on. Most likely these previous groups fell apart simply due to everyone growing old and passing away, while the Elder remains to spread his influence to the next generation. The **Elder** servers as the individual who collected the group serving as an older wisdom giver and caretaker.

* **Plot Impact**

While not directly being directly involved in most events of the main story, the **Elder** is almost always interacting with the group and helping initiate the arcs as they happen. During the beginnings of season 1 his methods of individually interacting with each character to bring them together were shown, after that initial introduction his role as a primary mover shifter into the more supportive piece he has become known for. During the run of season 2, he mostly is involved in providing a guiding hand for Ere on his journey through his large arc spanning across the entire season. After the tragic loss suffered by **Ere** at the end of the first season, it is the **Elder** along side the **Lord in Red** who initially help with kickstarting the redemption of **Ere.** Other than this supporting role, the **Elder** does not have much particularly going on for the story aside from his brief interlude of beginning a family and having a child. While this is a large event, it is implied that the **Elder** earlier in his life had gone through these steps with several other families before and keeps going through with having a family knowing that his timeless form will live longer than everyone he knows for the same reason he continues to bring people together: to spread joy into the world wherever he can.

During the build up to the season finale, it is revealed that the **Elder** is connected to a larger force beyond himself that was unknown even by him. The group is interested in finding out what exactly this connection is and what their friend had seemingly been hiding from them, only to find out the truth that even the **Elder** has no knowledge on exactly what lies beyond and after imploring the group to not push this any further than they already have, the group relents and agrees to stop. It's uncertain whether this is the end of the **Elder Beyond** story arc or if there will be a larger arc centered entirely around this being later in the series, potentially being a series finale scale endeavor.