CH1 - The Beginning
“In the beginning, everything was one, whole. It was everything and the absence of everything all at once. But that very paradox ripped through the consciousness of the center of all things, dividing the universe into an ever-expanding dispersal of all matter, emotion, and spirit. One force yearned to be connected once more. It was the force that originally drew everything into itself. This is the force of compassion and all things have the capacity for it. But for every compassionate flame, light, glimmer, and lingering pearlescence; there was something else born from this reality-shattering cataclysm. These dark thoughts dwell in the shadows and wreak havoc in the mind's nightshade gardens. It is the opposite of compassion, the opposite of love, the opposite of pleasure, but it hides in masks painted with glossy warm hues.
Compassion lets its doppelganger live, but only so much as to be compassionate. Letting something live when it would rather not exist is not Compassion. This is the second paradox that gutted reality. It created sentience. Compassion gave its creations the capacity for a multitude of Compassions and binaries upon binaries of gradients. While having the ability to flip between them back and forth several times in one instance. Thus the paradox of sapience expanded its hold. It started simply at first, in the lazily rotating harmony of planets. This system of stars was the first. These first were harnessed and spread the sapience to the very matter that made up their galaxy. It was the first epoch. The beginning of the singularity. This one system beat its heart and everything became aware. There was also a connection. It was subtle but it had never been there before.
We are now on the eve of our 48th epoch. With many worlds beating as one, but for all the synchronicity the universe was just as harsh as it was before. The different sapient beings that interfaced with the saturated matter had very different interpretations. As is the catch-22 of such reality. Some were attuned fully with compassion some with the opposite, and most with both for whenever it suited them. The third paradox; after being given a consciousness what do you do when you are given power over your reality? Where if you will it, fire can leap from your outstretched hand. How many epochs until compassion’s goal is achieved? What is compassion’s goal? And who will get hurt along the way?
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These are the questions we ask ourselves in this season of, “One Universe!”
The words faded away and two silhouettes pierced the screen. One is a lumpy, tower of intertubes piled on top of each other. The other silhouette is all sharp angular edges that fold in on each other and then expand. As if the whole body is lung working oxygen in and out.
“What a great Intro Furalt, you get better every Season my friend,” said the lumpy silhouette!
“We get better every Season Oribob,” Laughed Furalt. The borders around their images would flash when they were speaking and several different languages and runes flashed in the panes each time.
Oribob continued and each of his rolls gesticulated with enthusiasm as they spoke, “Last season we had the pleasure of integrating Earth into the CU (Collevetive Universes). This was a sensational season to behold. Milky Wayers are such interesting people. They had a lot of the same things we had but just had Furalt, what would Milky Wayers call it?”
“Pizzaz, Chutzpah, maybe even Rizz would be appropriate.” supplied Furalt.
“Rizz,” Oribob nodded with approval, “yes I like that one! You impeccable scholar Furalt!”
“Thanks, Oribob,” Furalt’s outline folded in on itself as if to inwardly blush at the compliment.
”Thanks to the Mily Wayers, we are doing things differently this season. A full list of rule changes and new event types have been added to the mix. We won’t bore you with all the details but it will be full of Rizz. I promise this to be the Rizziest Season of One Universe that has ever aired!”
“That’s right Oribob,” A few graphics and charts blipped open next to Furalt, “ I’ve been consulting our initial long-range scans and this new world is Low-magic and low-tech with few sapient species. Ironically there is one genus of people not too dissimilar to humans in their looks and customs.”
“Ohh, I can’t wait to see them,” Trilled Oribob, “but first. Let’s get started by reviewing this season's participants!