Omega

A Story of Kivekian Origins

Kivekian history is filled with complications and conflicting information. It has been pieced together over the centuries by people across the known world, working to discover the true reasons behind everything. The wide variation in mindsets and culture across the continents has led to stories which often disagree from different points of view, but there are similarities, constants if you will, that overlap the tales that are told.

One such constant is the story of the beginning, before the times of civilisation, before the dawn of the first days over the Kivekian horizon. With little information to go on, whether they are Abehan cultists or Ossacan atheists, historians have had to agree on some facts from the ancient writings discovered in the depths of now long destroyed or lost caverns below the surface of the known lands of Kivekia.

It is believed by all that the reason for Kivekia's coming into existence lies in magic. The very soil of the land and the atmosphere around it is saturated with varying intensities of magic energy. Back before Kivekia existed, magic just roamed the cosmos, expanding to fill anywhere there was space or time for it to exist. Magic makes its own rules, often with an amazing predictability only normally associated with in intelligent life, while maintaining an edge of being completely misunderstood when attempts are made to observe and study it.

The ancient texts suggest, at least, that there was a time when magic converged upon a point, causing a reaction of energies of a magnitude that had never occurred before, and has never occurred since. It is written that this event caused the creation of the first concept of sentience, the first purpose-driven intelligence to exist. To survive.

Here is where the opinions across present-day Kivekia split. Ossacan historians and sages will tell of how the sentience within the magic was unstable and short-lived, and that it forced rock and water to come together to form a stable environment for its existence, and that this became Kivekia; the centre of an infinite ocean of magic. They will tell of how it was forced to create creatures in this environment as vessels for the sentience, as no other outlet was available, and that this force of energy merely dissipated, never to exist again, leaving a variety of species to inhabit the lands and to tap the powers around them to create civilisations and lives.

Those of Abeh, however, have woven together an intricate account of what followed the creation of sentience based on centuries of beliefs, faith development and interpretation of ancient documents. They tell stories of deities that come and go, the few that prevail bestowing life upon the worlds that they create.

However, interpreting documents with a purely historical, fact based mindset, while maintaining an open belief in the deities and greater powers, a much fuller account can be read from those found of the lost texts.

It is agreed that the sentience within the magic was unstable, that it could only maintain its state while the convergence of the magic continued. As a result, it applied itself to a single creation, an embodiment of itself so that it may contain and preserve its properties, to give it a chance to 'consider' what it could do.

Out of the sentience came a figure, a being that was corporeal in the loosest definition of the term. It had no place on which it could exist, no direction in which it could focus. It only had purpose enough to exist. The texts of the past refer to this being as having a name associated with it. It never named itself, and there is no record of the name being dubbed upon it from any known language or by any known historian. It is referred to in a single text as Yanis, though the origins of the text are unknown, and therefore of dubious reliability at best. They Abehans adopted this word to mean 'Creator'. Even in the Ossacan tongue a similar word has prevailed to mean 'beginning'.

Despite being the embodiment of all that was at the time, Yanis was the first that could be defined as a lifeform, and as such was a young being. Yanis is said to have simply remained, flowing almost as randomly through the cosmos as the uncontrolled magic before it, for much of an eternity, unaware of what it was capable of, unaware of what it should do, besides exist, and survive.

But like all life, even that which had none before it, Yanis developed, evolving on a timeless scale. Fuelled by energies infinite in scope and proportion, Yanis developed a mind, though not perhaps a mind like any other. Indeed, the term is used loosely for it would be impossible to comprehend in the time we call Now. Nonetheless, it was capable of thought to drive beyond the simple purpose to exist.

Yanis gained a comprehension of the magic that surrounded it, that saturated it, that was it, that it was. It was a comprehension that Kivekian mortals will most likely never attain. The magic was random, but the magic was everything and the only definition Yanis knew of itself was that it was a focus of that magic, and therefore it concluded, a focus for anything and everything. Like once before, when the magic had focused to become Yanis, it knew it needed a focal point for, itself a place where such randomness could be ordered such that it served a purpose.

Yanis forged a perfect sphere of magic at the centre of its being, and channelled its purpose to exist throughout. And so, Kivekia came to be. Land and water, held together by the powerful forces of raw magic as bestowed by Yanis. Many to date still debate the concept of a Sphere, insisting the known world of Kivekia is merely a circle, a disc, surrounded by a barrier of magic - the Parallax Storms that none, save maybe San Celu himself, have passed and survived.

Though all-powerful by any definition, Yanis was still young, and all-knowing it was not. With no way to learn, knowledge could not be gained. It had no way of knowing what to do with the sphere of rocks, water and other matter it had formed. The formation had been triggered by Yanis, but the spherical mass was the result of random channels of magic driven by a purpose Yanis only knew existed, and did not understand. The mass, Kivekia as it was, could not maintain itself under the stress of raw magic, and Yanis did not know how to maintain it.

So, Yanis created another being. With no quantifiable methods to apply, and no experiences on which to base its decisions, the second being was forged of pure magic, identical in every respect to Yanis, except that it was created with physical form on the landmass, born unto a dying world with only the knowledge that it was there to maintain it alongside Yanis.

The second being was Omega.

With no comprehension of emotion, Yanis could not be impressed with Omega's achievement in maintaining the world it had created, but maintain the mass Omega did. As the second being, Omega was purpose driven to channel magic to maintain the dormant elements, while Yanis maintained the magic beyond.

As time passed, though that in itself is an arbitrary judgement based on reality, Omega and Yanis developed. With both present in the universe, they could work from each other, comprehend more of what they could do, what they should do. Simple life, plants and small animals were created from magic as experiments on the world. Most did not survive more than a generation or two, but the two beings learned as they channelled magics in different ways. On a cosmic scale, they were but children, trying to get their invention to function properly.

Life developed. No sentience came to be, but basic life developed. Instincts became a part of life. Three simple concepts of gender arose from the forced revolutions. Even simple emotion seemed possible with some creatures. Yanis created an envelope within the torrents of magic so that the world could exist within a calm saturation of energies. A source of heat and a source of magic; the sun and the moon; were placed around the world circling it and giving it focused energies so that life may continue without the permanent interactions of Yanis and Omega.

A moment came to pass, though when is impossible to tell without a concept of time, when Yanis and Omega began to develop from their creations. Instincts and emotions came to be within them. With these in place, decisions became less uniform, less with the simple intention to experiment to maintain the world.

It was then that Omega left the world they had created for the first time in its existence. A curiosity had developed that drove it beyond the purpose Yanis had created it for. Infinity was something it wanted to understand. Infinite magic was more than just a rock in the cosmos. Yanis had never invited Omega beyond Kivekia, and until now there had been no need within Omega to go beyond.

Omega travelled the cosmos, exploring that which it was a part of, exploring that which was a part of it. The universe was a wondrous place, and wonder was a new emotion for Omega, for emotion was a new concept that it was only beginning to understand and experience. In time, its emotions stirred further still, and so it was that the first negative emotion was forged. Omega grew bitter of Yanis, bitter that Yanis had not shown what lay beyond the limits of Kivekia, bitter that Yanis had not shown the magnitude of the universe and the power they possessed.

Yanis had been forced to remain on Kivekia in Omega's absence, to watch over the land and its inhabitants, and so was easily located when the bitter Omega returned to seek reason for this new emotion. The ancient texts do not explain how Omega sought answers from Yanis. It seems unlikely they had a language, though they likely were capable of communication on a conceptual level. What is clear is that Yanis could not answer Omega, incapable of understanding the bitterness that was present. Omega, trapped in the form bestowed upon it by Yanis, had developed beyond its creator, and now felt a second negative emotion. The being grew angry at Yanis, filled with fury and frustration that his questions went unanswered. Omega turned on Yanis, unleashing the very forces of the universe at that which had created it. Saved perhaps only by an eternity of experience with such forces, Yanis fled Kivekia, returning to the cosmos.

After that which Ossacan historians (those that are willing to humour the tale) call a cosmic teenage outburst, Omega's fury subsided. The target of his emotion was gone, and it was left with Kivekia. It looked about its world, and saw what had been done by its actions. Kivekia was hurt, damaged by the uncontrolled forces of reality ripping across the fabric of space that Yanis had so carefully forged. Sorrow followed. Omega was a part of Kivekia, and had no desire, if indeed it was capable of desire, of breaking the young planet. Omega knew not what to do, and so gathered that which had survived his actions into one place, leaving the magic to ravage the rest of Kivekia forever more. Omega protected what was left, resolving to remain and maintain it.

The aeons passed by. Omega maintained Kivekia, and continued to evolve. Yanis maintained the cosmos, and continued to evolve. Yanis watched Omega over time, and, as a consciousness grew within the beings mind, came to disapprove of that which Omega had done, past and present. Under Omega, Kivekia was maintained, but did not develop as Yanis had designed.

And so Yanis created two more beings, forged with the very magics of reality, but this time with care put into the forging of their consciousness. Yanis' new creations were forged of its own consciousness, so that they would never stand to follow the direction of Omega.

And so, the Universe gave birth to Beta and Senai.

Omega, however, was as much a part of the universe as its creator, and as such knew of these creations. Omega assumed, perhaps rightly, that Yanis intended to return to take back Kivekia, and replace Omega. And so, Omega left Kivekia, vowing to return once Yanis' new creations had been sent back to the energy from whence they came.

Omega first encountered Senai. Created second of the two, Senai was far from ready for such an encounter, and was easily defeated. Battle is not a term fitting to that which is said to have taken place, for Omega had developed beyond simply unleashing the forces of magic. Senai was subdued into awe by the power of that which it encountered. It was no challenge for Omega to strip Senai of power and consciousness, reducing him to little more than a shell. Omega considered the situation presented before it, and decided that the work of Yanis need not be wasted. Senai was transferred through the cosmos and onto Kivekia, where Omega left the shell of the being merely with the instructions to watch the world in his absence.

Yanis' consciousness had been weakened by the generation of the recent creations, as perhaps had its rational thought processes. Nevertheless, while Omega appeared busy with Senai, Yanis chose that moment to strike. In no way developed as a tactician, Yanis' attack was filled with the the very force of the raw magic of reality, but was unplanned and uncontrolled. In contrast, Omega had was tactically capable on a universal scale, and easily evaded Yanis, though the power of its own abilities were as limited as before, leaving him unable to strike down the resilient Yanis.

Evenly balanced, the two fought, Omega evading Yanis' every move, Yanis seemingly unhindered by every strike of Omega. It is said that if Yanis had not created Senai and Beta, that he might have taken down Omega, but the theory is perhaps not worth considering, as that which we know today may rely on the outcome of that single battle. For Yanis was not completely unhindered by the forces of Omega. Indeed, with time Omega gained the advantage and Yanis could see defeat encroaching. With inevitable loss as the only option, Yanis surrendered to Omega.

Omega was again presented with a situation requiring consideration. Yanis was more than Senai had been. As the first being, the creator of reality, Yanis was tied to existence. It was not simply a being that could be controlled as a subservient shell, nor could it be destroyed. Left, in its mind, with no other choice, Omega reduced Yanis' ability to influence existence and banished it to a place beyond reality, referred to as Juxten. Indeed, like "Yanis", this word has permeated to modern day in both the Ahehan tongue, where it refers to a place the unfaithful go after the Final Reincarnation, and in the Ossacan tongue, where it translated literally as "Nothing".

And so, Omega returned as it had vowed to the world of Kivekia. But Kivekia had changed. The static image that Omega had maintained over past aeons had been broken. A new race walked the surface of Kivekia; a race with sentience and individual wills of their own. Omega did not understand how these 'humans' had come to exist on his world. He sought out Senai, and found the shell exactly as had been left, watching and maintaining the world. So Omega searched Kivekia for a reason, the frustration building as it had once before.

At the end of the search, Omega discovered Beta. Concealed by magic, he had been sent by Yanis to sow the seeds of a new race on Kivekia, so that it might develop once more, and this is what he had done. Omega lashed out, the frustration taking its outlet once again. But Beta was ready for this, easily evading it. In fact, it is said that Beta channelled the very forces of Omega into Kivekia, revitalising some of the damage that had been caused by Omega many aeons before. Instead of retaliating, Beta performed an action unexpected by his opponent. Beta entered Omega's mind, quickly working to place suggestions within the darkest recesses of Omega's omnipotent subconscious.

Omega awoke, a strange sensation considering it had never as such slumbered before, to find itself again one with Kivekia, maintaining its very being. Its memory of recent events was clear, but it felt different. Beta was present, alongside, working to assist the maintenance of the land. Omega knew Beta, but was not sure why. He was assisting, and therefore Omega assumed he was an ally. Then Omega saw the humans, and recognised their position on Kivekia as one of importance, with potential for greatness in the future. Their development was dependant on the natural course of reality, though, as Omega's had once been. And so, Omega and Beta remained beyond the sight of mortals. Senai, a limited shell of a deity, was left amongst the mortals, though no reason for this is ever given. Some say they even placed beings of great power, ultimate mortals perhaps, amongst them to watch their progress while the immortals beyond the clouds maintained the very fabrics of reality.

It is often declared that these stories are little more than fiction, fabricated by the Order perhaps as part of an attempt to maintain control on Abeh and influence beyond their shores. Others believe in them with a passion, founding their entire lives from their faith. No one is sure when the lost texts end and modern history picks up, but throughout everything, references to parts this account of Kivekia's creation are made. Names are frequently mentioned, except Yanis of course, though some draw links to other religious texts that link the deity, Janus, to the human race for both reasons of faith and simple laws of pronunciation. The truths of these matters are very much up to interpretation, and every mortal on Kivekia has their own opinion.