The Void

A grey scape of hazy clouds of faint colours, the Void, despite the name, is far from empty. Countless black spheres known as Realms dot the Void, Realms that harbour entire universes. Including our own.

The Void acts as the hub for all story arcs taking place in a plane lower than it. Lord Anxcheel, the ruler of the Void, created it as an escape mechanisim in ages long past, and now serves as the home to himself and countless other beings.

History
==='"It has proven difficult to learn of the origin of the Void, the Great Lord never speaks of those times. Only when the first beings were created was history recorded." ~ Eyxelon, Master Archivist.'===

The very beginning of the Void is shrouded in mystery. Since there were no other beings to remember the beginning, only Lord Anxcheel knows of the past, and he has never uttered a word regarding it. Even still, the very first beings created are impossible to communicate with, the Primordial Ones, as they're called. The oldest being able to communicate is Ionogh, Matter Incarnate. It states that the Void was: "Lighter, less constricted. Empty." Ionogh speaks of when it was the last of the 'Primordial Spawn'. Before the concept of life and death was introduced.

Since Ionogh was created before life and death existed, it is essentially immortal. Because of this, Anxcheel created the next two beings to embody thoses very things, Teytare, and Safaal. With the creation of life, the creation of new beings was dominant, and soon dwelling places were needed. To accomodate this need, the Spindle was created, a grand structure built at the centre of the Void and around the Aetherum Passage. With the creation of death as well, problematic beings could be dealt with accordingly

As life continued to pour into the Void, another two elements were created, not by Anxcheel, but in an impressive display by the 'living gods' themselves. Heat and Cold. The Emboiments being Jioan, The First Flame, and Olaiyile, the Cold One. The creation of these elements required great amounts of power and dedication, such power was something never entirely considered until then. With etherium's capabilities demonstrated, a great hunger developed for it among the living gods, they sought many wasy to obtain and possibly create it. During this time frame, the souls of mortals were discovered when tampering with the Aetherum Passage.

These new souls were frail weak when compared to the gods, but they quickly became the most sought after things in the history of the Void, then and now still. their value did not come in their durability, or strength. No, it was the ability to produce etherium that makes mortal souls so valuable. They can both produce etherium via worship, and they are comprised of a considerable amount etherium.

This disvcovery effectively split the denizens of the Void in two groups: those who consume the mortal souls, and those who wish to nurture and recieve worship from the mortals. With hostilities and power at the their finger tips, new domains were created for each side of the coin to dwell. But, consuming the souls outright provided more power more quickly than being praised, thus the struggle was tilting in the favour of the soul-captors. Eventually, Jioan's flames burned so bright and powerfully fueled by souls, he lost himself to the overwhelming nature of his own fire. Nothing was spared. When his eyes set upon the Spindle, the Great Lord emerged and subdued Jioan by spliting his power into three separate beings that each represent an emotion. Anger, Sorrow, Will.

Jioan's rampage was an event of such importance, that Lord Anxcheel himself intervened for the only time in the affairs of the gods. The Spindle did sustain damage during the rampage, but, thh Aetherum Passage also was damaged. Anxcheel feared for the stability of the Passage, and forbade access to it,  Zod was created to guard and regulate the flow of souls from the Aetherum Passage to prevent any possible rupture.

Certain creative minds devised ways to create massive globules from their own energy to form a safe haven of their own. A place where they are the omnipotent that dictates what can and can't be. Many Realms designs were created, but the design created by the oldest suriving mortal gods became the most predominant. Eventually becoming the most common type of Realm in the Void.

The current state of the Void is a battle worn skyscape of black realms. The Passage is restricted, and births of new gods via the passage is unheard of. Some speculate that the Void is now slowly dying, while others claim that it will never die so long as energy exists in it. Most conficts now are petty argumets over Realm stability and soul designs, as most beings in the void are now old and wise, and see no need to fight. While the Void certainly isn't empty, it has slowed down considerably since it's creation.

The Big Picture
The Big Picture is a story-arc that tells the story of the Void and its denizens.

One such story centeres around four recent Passage born gods, at the request of Raylau. These four entities lived under Raylau's care along with four fabricated enities.