Home of Aetheria

THE WORLD:

Aetheria, as the whole world itself, is a fantasy world named after the base element of magic, energy, and all of existence: Aether. In terms of how the world is laid out, there’s the base plane of existence, and then planes of existence based on the 8 elements aether can be transmuted into on the most rudimentary level: water, earth, wind, fire, light, darkness, order, and chaos.

THE BANISHED KING:

This world is ruled by the 8 Kings of the Gods and their children, known as the Titans. In the world’s long existence, war between the Kings and their Titans has ravaged the lands. After millennia of fighting, the Titans had refused to fight any longer. The Titans instead joined with a mysterious force refered to in legend as "The Banished One", having their own war against the Kings. This war lasted a long while until a temporary ceasefire was agreed on, with The Banished One acting as a martyr and being sent off to a different dimension entirely.

In the modern day, the world’s affairs are handled by the Titans, who are now together under the banner of the New Age Pantheon. (NAP for short, because there is no way in hell I'm typing that out every time I mention them lmao.) This was something that was agreed on in the terms of the ceasefire.

So you know how I said there was eight kings? Yeah, there’s technically nine.

Born from the same Sacred Sea of Stars the previous eight had been created in, a new god named Typhon had been given title as King due to his vast amount of power. The other 8 had tolerated him, as he had no intention of getting in their way and seemed to be a pacifst. Yet when the deity of fate had foretold that he would destroy the world and remake it anew, the other 8 Kings kinda... Did Not Like That.

THE HUMAN WORLD AND THE PROTAGONISTS:

Once they had seen that he had created a whole new plane of existence, one where the other Kings could not touch, the other Kings grew even more infuriated with him. To make matters worse for them, Typhon had begun taking the Titans' side in the conflict and started a rebellion alongside them. However, the Titans and Typhon slowly grew distraught at how much death of their people was being caused by the war between the Kings and the NAP. This lead them to make an agreement to a temporary ceasefire (as mentioned prior), and Typhon accepted his martyrdom. The Kings immediately got to work, and they had imprisoned Typhon in a rift between time and space. The deity of fate, warned him of this outcome, so before Typhon was imprisoned, he had sent a tiny fragment into this new world. This was in hopes of some day finding someone to help him. This event also lead to him being known as "The Banished One".

So Aetheria at large, isn't populated by humans. Full of fantasy folks of all kinds, the concept of a human is sort of alien to them. They inhabit the new world that Typhon, the Banished King, had created. The Human World is mundane, with seemingly no signs of significant aether deposits that make Aetheria so… fantastical. The flow of aether is nowhere to be observed, yet life still springs up anyway.

A LONG time after Typhon had sent his soul fragment into the human world, it ended up in the archipelago known as Cerulea off the coast of the region of Vermili. This unconscious piece of his soul had fused to a soul of a sickly human newborn named Rin, better known as Meeby.

Meeby was known as a strange child. Though a slightly deadpan child, she loved to learn. Her mind was a steel trap for knowlege of all kinds. Yet, she was always a bit spacey. If she wasn't laser focused on what she was doing, she would constantly be dreaming up new ideas to pursue. (AuDHD. She has autism and adhd.)

While others may have been slightly offput by her behavior, her neighbor and childhood best friend Jun De had never minded her oddities. In fact, he had come to appreciate them. One night, as the two kids lay awake during a sleepover, the two had made a promise to always be there for each other, no matter what. This had metaphysically connected their souls into the strongest connection of what a “Soul Link” can make, making them soulmates.

ENTERING AETHERIA:

One night in the current time, Meeby had a strange dream. Along with Jun De, she heard a mysterious voice beckoning her to the doorway in the white void they found themselves in. With nothing better to do, they opened the door and went through.

Turns out that, had left them high up in the sky, and fell right into a park fountain. This left them soaked as hell. Unfortunately for them, that also soaked a Titan named Leviathan, who was nearby and his million Crysta (Aetherian currency) suit. Before he could smite the two, the deity of fate had appeared and helped them, y'know, not die by negotiating a deal. Meeby and Jun De would now work as secretaries for the NAP, to pay off the dry cleaning debt they owe. Luckily, they were given a nice place to live, so they wouldn't be homeless in their time in Aetheria.

RIFT MONSTERS AND AWAKENED POWERS:

So, Aetheria at large faces a big problem. Creatures known as Rift Monsters appear everywhere at times, and kinda wreak havoc by tearing shit up and attacking people.

Meeby and Jun De, after being at work for a few days, got ready to head to work one morning. While they were heading out to the train station, they encounter one of these monsters destroying the area and attacking people. The two turn to run, but the voice speaks up again in Meeby’s mind. Suddenly, a symbol appears on the back of Meeby and Jun De’s right hands. Doing as the voice tells them, they transform. Meeby looked like a magical girl, and Jun De looked very "power rangers/hero"-core. Next, Meeby unlocks the power to trap the monster in a Rift Arena. This is a pocket dimension like space, used in order to fight the rift monster without risk of more damage being done to the real world.

Turns out, in these forms they have a base instinct for combat. They are able to defeat the Rift Monster after getting into the groove. Afterwards, once the rift monster is gone and they're back to their office garb, they panickedly remember they need to get to work and hurry to their train.

BECOMING REAL HEROES:

So they finally arrive at work. Leviathan is pissed off (as usual.) that they're late, but hearing their story, as incredulous it may be, he drops the subject. Later that day, the deity of fate comes to their shared office to discuss what happened. While they're unsure what the natures of their powers are, they insist they join the Rift Monster Hunters’ Guild. Meeby and Jun De are still reeling from the experience, so they ask for time to think about it. The deity of fate agrees pleasantly.

Later after work on the train home, Meeby dozes off and has a dream. Turns out, Meeby and Typhon have a psychic link across dimensions. This is their primary method of communication. He tells her that he needs her help, and explains that he was split into two. This was due to the fact that after centuries of complete solitary confinement, he had been driven mad. He needs her and Jun De's help in protecting Aetheria from the threat of his other self. His other self is gathering the Aether from the wreckage and deaths caused by the Rift Monsters, so he can leave the confines of their prison and destroy the world as revenge.

Meeby is rightfully shocked, expressing that they had just arrived and know very little about Aetheria. Typhon assures her that he can provide a guide for them to learn more about Aetheria, and how it operates. She’s still hesitant, but Typhon expresses that she's the only person who can complete this duty. Then, Typhon leaves her and gives her time to think.

Meeby is woken up by Jun De as they get to their stop, and as they walk home Meeby talks about her dream. Jun De is more easy to accept the strange dream, and argues that it's reasonable since they handled the Rift Monster from before.

Upon arriving home, they find a mysterious creature inside their home. This creature goes by the name Tippi. Tippi says that they’re the guide sent to help them, and pleads fervently that they become Rift Monster hunters.

Seeing as how this guide was the one sent by Typhon and not wanting to disappoint such a helpless creature, they agree.

Ok, that's it. I'm done, this is already way too long. More content to come at some point. May, outtie.

THE LAYOUT:

Zenith is a giant megalopolis that has features separated into different overall zones of distinct habitat environments. These are conjured by magic to suit different types of peoples’ comfort, organized by element.

●The Water District has a wetter climate, more water features, and colder temperatures in certain areas.

●The Earth District enjoys more natural features, such as lush parks and various vegetation naturally incorporated into infrastructure.

●The Fire District incorporates a more hot, arid climate and support for hot springs throughout the zone.

●The Air District supports a constant overall breeze and more verticality in it’s infrastructure for those who can fly, as well as travel options for those who are “ground bound” to move throughout the zone.

●The Light and Darkness Districts each have longer daylight and nighttime hours respectively. The amount of day and night time function without much regard to the time of year.

●The Order and Chaos Districts are also a pair of Districts that directly contrast each other in terms of setup. Unlike the Light and Darkness Districts however, they vary in navigation. The Order District features a grid like layout of streets, while the Chaos District has sprawling interconnected streets that some not used to the infrastructure would find hard to navigate.

At the very center of the city is the hub of Politics and Management. This is often the place where all the members of the NAP converge to conduct business.

The Outer Ring is another District where magic does less to aid specific folks, but is often considered a happy medium to many. Unlike the city-like environment of Zenith, the Outer Ring contains more minor urban areas and many suburbs. It is a common retirement location for older folks.

THE LANDMARKS:

There are a wide array of landmarks in the city that make it quite noteable compared to other regions of the planes. (Mod May here: Bear with me, I've been sick for a long while. ( O_o;;) )

In each Elemental Sector,.there are spots of significance where each spot has a statue of one of the assorted NAP members’ Beast Forms. The most extravagant statue features are reserved for the First Rank Deities, who are known to be the most powerful of the Pantheon.

In Central City there are quite a few landmarks of note, such as Capitol Tower. Capitol Tower is the NAP's government building and meeting location, while also being Meeby and Jun De’s place of work. Another popular landmark is the Museum of Divine History, where mortals have kept records and artifacts. These relics of the past have been kept over the long history of Aetheria, detailing the life, culture, and history throughout the millennia. This also includes the War and Revolution of the Gods.

Zenith is also known for hosting minor deities. For example, the Goddess of the Culinary Arts hosts a welcoming restaurant to all, and her son the God of Baking hosts a confectionary shop of a similar nature. Many other minor gods of specific domains congregate here, while also being in their associated elemental planes.

The city is also the main connector to the Elemental Planes, as sort of Hub World in the web of Planes of Existence the world is comprised of. Public accessability and public transportation options are available for travel throughout the world, for people to come and go as they please. This allows them to visit any Elemental Plane they choose, without having to expend the magic to teleport themselves and any company or belongings they’d like to take with them.

Finally, Zenith is the main congregation for the Hunters’ Guild, and has many facilities throughout the city in order to aid Hunters in their pursuits and training to fight against the Rift Monsters.

THE CULTURE:

As Zenith is home to many peoples throughout the world at large, it is a gigantic melting pot of culture.

As for one thing, the food has been shared and adapted to suit the many different palates of the people of the city. Unusual food combinations (think spicy ice creams), randomly crafted orders of fast food burgers, a wide array of vegetarian options, both light and hearty arrays of food, and late night hours for some restaurants for night owl dining, there is a multitude of options for anyone looking for a bite to eat.

It is also home to widely known fast food chains such as McDoodle’s and Chippy Chirps Chicken Checkpoint (C4 for short). Seeing cute mascots out on the street is a common occurrence, and seeing different chains fight amongst each other is strangely also a common sight.

Another popular thing to attend is the hosted festivals and holidays. Things such as the Fire District’s well known Summer Flame Festival, the Light District’s Week of Winter Shining Lights, the Water District’s First Rain of Spring, the Earth District’s Day of Harvest, and many other such events.

Finally, the City is a massive hub for media, technology, entertainment, and fashion. The city itself greatly helps spread the cultures of other planes throughout the world at large. Many flock to the city to visit many of the specific districts throughout it, to be the first to catch up on trends firsthand.

(Mod May here again. PHEW, this was tough to finish. Hope you enjoyed!)