The Stranded Saga

An abridged localisation of *The Stranded Saga*, a recovered transcription of the original chronicle as told by Veya. The names, genders and speech of the involved beings and characters have been normalised to those standard on this Earth, so as to avoid unnecessarily disrupting understanding.

PROLOGUE

Forsaken Memory

A person stood in his way.
“What brings you here?” their soft voice carried.
“I… can’t remember,” said Luce, taking a step towards them.
“You can’t enter,” they breathed.
“Why not?”
A moment passed. “Not yet.” Their face was still concealed.
“Where do I go, then?” Luce asked, tentatively.
They turned their back to him. “You only have to follow your heart.”

PREFACE

Many have spoken of the dreamscape, a place visited in dreams. In it lie an endless number of worlds, each hiding breathtaking beauty, terrible torment, or anywhere in between. Time is fluid, and parts may flit into and out of existence instantaneously. Whether it physically exists or not remains a mystery, but it is out there, somewhere – waiting for curious souls to venture into its unexplored depths.

ARC I – Descent

Catastropical Crisis

Cold. Death-cold, on the tip of his tongue.

Luce floundered up, choking on liquid. His eyes were blurred with tears. He felt heavy, like he had awoken from a long dream. As he ran a hand through his hair to wring out the water, he squinted open his eyes to take in his surroundings.

“Woah, what is this place?”

He could barely hear himself. The sound was muffled, like it was being swallowed as soon as it left his mouth.

“I–“

All he could see was endless grey in all directions. The same, still ocean, with a blanket of mist obscuring the air. He tried moving his leg, and watched the ripples vanish as quickly as they appeared.

Shivers raced down his spine. It was freezing.

〔~✦~〕

The Catastropical Lands, as they came to be known, were the remnants of a planet that once faced a world-ending calamity. Torn apart yet not destroyed, a devastated labyrinthine mess was left behind. Mutated creatures, natural disasters and supernatural phenomena ravaged the surface, in precarious equilibrium with the little life that survived. Curiosity drew some to study the chaotic ecosystem; few ever survived to make it out.

Dryadre	WATER
	“Life” is an intriguing concept in the Catastropical Lands. Indeed, many “beings” possessed the ability to move and act in ways that would appear of their own volition; yet everything was unpredictably chaotic, seemingly governed by randomness rather than will.
Fruity	EARTH
Furial	FIRE
Howler	WIND
	There was nowhere to hide with rain that beat and wind that cut. They pierced the landscape, tearing down mountains and floating islands alike.
Pyrovein	FIRE
	“Hurricanes” of fire would spontaneously emerge in dry regions of the surface, rapidly scorching everything in the vicinity. The flames seemed to have a mind of their own, curling to devour whatever they could find.

〔~✦~〕

After who knew how long wandering in the water, Luce approached the edge of a deserted island – a desert island, on closer inspection. In place of the water was sand, a muted sickly pale colour under the faded sky. Trudging through it dragged at his skin. Further in to the island lay a forest. The trees were sparse, but obscured any sights within.

〔~✦~〕

Hacking his way through, Luce suddenly froze. He had come to a small clearing. A purple-tinted lake lay before him, with barely visible tendrils of ash-coloured mist drifting above. Thin, burnt roots twisted their way out of the water into crumpled trees at the edges of the lake. It looked almost spider-like, with long hunched branches that obscured the sky.

Luce‘s foot stepped into the water, and in that moment, the tree started moving. The movement shook Luce to the floor. He gazed up as the canopy collapsed, melding into a humanoid face that was staring down at him. A single, pointed branch stretched out from beside him and edged closer to his face.

This really wasn’t a nice place, he thought.

But then the branch retracted, and the face appeared to look away. Luce followed its gaze to find it looking at something that had risen out of the water. It had a goopy, glinting surface, almost like melted glass, and was blob-shaped. A horrific groan resonated through the ground, and Luce looked back to see the branches bending backwards. In an instant the face had vanished, the water became still, and the trees looked as they did before.

splosh. The blob came bounding towards Luce. He backed up nervously. It landed on a rock, and paused. Then 2 dark spots popped into existence. Eyes!

“Hey…” Luce began.

The dots tilted. He could see the whole blob jiggling as it moved.

“I don’t know what you are, but I think you might’ve just saved me from whatever that was.”

Luce put out his hand. To his surprise, the blob rolled onto it without hesitation, and stayed firmly in place. As he got himself off the ground, it felt weightless in his hand. It was the strangest sensation, like he wasn’t even holding anything at all.

“Are you joining me, then?”

The blob only looked at Luce, unmoving.

“You’re cute.”

He shrugged, and looked around. Everything appeared to have returned to how it was before. The air was calm. The water did not look especially safe to drink.

Luce lifted his arm up, and the blob slid straight down onto his shoulder. Together they set off, ever deeper into the forest.

〔~✦~〕

Luce had been walking for what felt like hours. What he had thought was a small island was much larger than he could have imagined. The trees were starting to blur into each other, and the sky showed no signs of changing. He wondered if time had frozen. It felt like he was in a dream.

Luce’s only relief from insanity was talking to the blob. It had found its spot firmly on his shoulder, and silently bobbed along with each step. He couldn’t tell if it could understand him, or even hear him, but talking to it kept him going.

“Hey, what are you, really?”

The ground was unusually littered with twigs. Luce winced slightly at the constant cracking as he stepped over them.

“You look like… well, I mean, you’re just a blob, really. How are you even alive?”

The blob jiggled slightly, but Luce couldn’t tell if it had heard him or it was just being itself.

“I… I should give you a name.”

Luce realised he didn’t even know his own name. He knew that he had one, but his mind came up empty when trying to remember what it was.

A branch crumpled as he stepped on it, and he realised it had flattened to ash. He froze. Before him lay a graveyard of trees, all fallen and burnt. They looked mangled and folded, scarily so. It was a grey wasteland.

At that moment, Xlob started twisting frantically on Luce’s shoulder. He felt it clench down on him, as if trying to get his attention. He looked down to find Xlob starting intently at a point in the distance.

Inadvertent Destiny

[!Note] There is nothing restricting affinical powers to only humanoids. Any entity, animate or inanimate, corporeal or abstract, is capable of being infused with or itself harnessing affine. Hence, the term ‘being’ is used here to inclusively refer to any ‘affinityzable’ entity.

In the world of affine, beings are bestowed a great power in their life – what is known as an ‘affinity’. It is, certainly, not an uncommon phenomenon, occuring in plenty of other worlds under the name of ‘magic’.

Among the affinitics were the few Elders who inherited the greatest – and indeed most dangerous – affinitys of all. They devoted themselves to upholding the peace and protection of their world against any potential threats, both internal and external. No one else deserved these powers more. Tales of the Elders’ courage and purity in the face of tragedy and despair passed down the generations as legends.

Nerra	Vitakinetic
	Nerra held the very power of life and death in her hands: in an instant, she could breathe ‘life’ into any entity, and then suck it away the next. Much misuse in her younger years has taught her to use this affinity sparingly.
Topo Tychis	Felixus
	Blessed with the occasionally infuriating power of ‘luck’, Topo was well-known for being the youngest and least serious Elder – which still put his age at several hundred Earth years.
Xeros	Superior
	An explorer at heart with the ability to learn anyone else’s affinity. He has made it his life’s purpose to discover and study magical abilities in other worlds.
Vinita Arkhelm	Legend
	Though the Elders were all considered equal, Vinita was the oldest of them all, and held the greatest affinity – the ability to grant any other entity any affinity. However, after so long, he is tired, and seeks a successor.

〔~✦~〕

The pyrocane had brought Luce to the outskirts of Arkhelm, the high land of the affinitics. Before him was a breathtaking city of immense complexity, glimmering vividly in a haze of colour. Moments later, he found himself captured by the high guard, and brought to Xeros for questioning. However, upon seeing the state the poor boy was in, and sensing that he had no ill intentions, Xeros decided to take no action.

With nowhere to go, Luce told Xeros of his journey and begged him for help. Xeros hesitated. He could tell that Luce was not of this world, but it was not in his nature to refuse. He called for Hyakil.

Hyakil Khratos	Chronosynchronic
	A quiet but respected eye, who often kept his thoughts to himself. His studies allowed him to greatly sharpen his vision of the future, though he was ever careful to divulge what he saw.

“Fly with me,” Xeros said, as he lifted off the ground. Luce stared back, confused, until Xeros tilted his arm at him and he, too, floated up. The two left the building and soared above the city. Xeros told Luce of Arkhelm’s history, and explained how their affine powers came to be.

“Affine flows through everything. It is in everything, you can feel it in everything – but it is not everything.”

Luce had only dreamt of this. “I want to learn…” he exhaled.

This brought a smile to Xeros’s face. “Then stay, and we shall teach you.”

	Enyx Tower
	A striking landmark in Arkhelm, the Enyx Tower was an isolated structure hanging upside-down from below the High Windfalls.

When they reached the Enyx Tower, Hyakil rushed into the room, wearing a cold expression on his face. He was flanked by Topo Tychis, who though excited to meet the newcomer, was uncharacteristically solemn.

“I sense a dark presence,” Hyakil explained, “and there is every chance it has to do with your arrival, Luce.”

“That could be good, could be bad,” Topo added.

Taken aback, Luce wondered how they knew his name.

“As an eye, I have already seen the futures where Xeros tells me your name. There is no need for introductions.” Hyakil said with a small smile.

Luce could only scratch his head in understanding.

“Xeros, the peace has persisted for too long. While our lives have never been better, I fear our complacency may be our undoing.”

Xeros nodded gravely. “Topo, take him.” He nodded at Luce. “He shall learn our ways with you and Avier. Prepare him for what is to come.”

“What is to come??” Luce repeated.

“We must go.” Hyakil looked at Xeros.

“Very well.”

With that Xeros and Hyakil vanished into air, and Topo led a dazed Luce away to the Arkhelm Academy.

〔~✦~〕

Avier Accelis	Swift
	Light as the wind, Avier could move faster than the eye could see.

Avier was as much a character as Topo, and together the two were a formidable team. Once Luce’s body had recovered, they began his training.

As much as he tried, Luce could not remember from where he came. It was as much a mystery to him as how Topo could be so lucky every time they fought. Every night he searched his mind, to no avail; it was all murky.

〔~✦~〕

It was pure-night, and Luce was out for a stroll when a searing pain rushed down his arm. He looked down to find a dark blob writhing on his arm. “Xlob, what?!” he cried out, trying to shake it off. The dark split, one slither falling to the ground, still twisting unnaturally. It was not Xlob.

The pain worsened. Luce collapsed onto the ground and bit back a scream. In that moment, the blob on the ground was engulfed in a luminous glow, before vanishing into nothing. He raised his arm to find those on his arm gone as well.

When Luce told Avier what had happened, Avier frowned and said he’d never heard anything like it. Topo reassured him it would be fine, and with that the matter was dropped and they continued their training.

〔~✦~〕

It opened with the Arkhelm Academy. There were no witnesses, but in moments the Upper Wing was engulfed in a dark, swirling cloud – from which erupted an onslaught of flying creatures.

Teachers and students alike rushed in to engage them in combat – Secari, Quakes, Oblivia – yet they kept on coming. The creatures swarmed around affinitics until they were smothered.

Then the Upper Wing collapsed, smashing into the Training Fields below. From the explosion of darkness emerged several figures.

A Quest Across Time

Shrouded in the Arcane Lands

ARC II – Requital

To Make a Hero

The Truth Amidst the Ever-Shining Stars

Inversion from the Void

Paradox Falls

From the stellar heart of Delphoenix Aestivale, powered by the advanced technology of the Dyverse, Aeternity Catastropical Supnauticator, the Affine Dyverse Construct was born. Uniting the powers of time, nature and affine, it engaged Arkyrios in a devastating battle. Their world-shaking clash resounded throughout the dreamscape.

ENVOI

Everlasting Tragedy

Past the gateway, Luce and Seya came before the Primordial Construct. The hole had unravelled, spiralling outwards into a raging maelstrom of colour.

“It’s breaking,” Luce said.

“It would be the end,” Seya added.

Luce didn’t look at her. “We need to close it.”

Seya asked how.

“A new construct is needed,” Luce breathed. In that moment, a single tear traced its way down his cheek.

He turned to Seya, who looked tragically beautiful under the glow of the Primordial Construct.

“Luce?”

He stepped forward, raised his hand, and placed a finger on Seya’s heart. He smiled at her.

“Until we meet again,” he whispered, and pushed her away.

Then, he stepped back, closing his eyes with a soft smile, and fell back. Seya could only watch in silence as Luce dissolved before her eyes, swirling into a dark storm of essence that was swallowed by the Primordial Construct. With a blinding spark of light, he vanished, leaving not a trace that anything had happened.

〔~✦~〕

Luce split through the Primordial Construct to become the Aeternity Construct, a Xen Construct that would keep the fabric of Xistence intact.

〔~✦~〕

Despair turned to sadness, and sadness to cold acceptance. After a while, she picked herself up, and turned away from the Primordial Construct. One day she may return, but now he was a gatekeeper to destruction, holding the chaos at bay.

Then did she notice he had given her something on the tip of his finger: a tiny speck of stardust-surfaced fluid. A remnant of Xlob. Though it could not move or say anything, she could feel a gentle throbbing from inside.

Far away, Luce and Xlob were keeping the world – her world – alive.

finix.

EXTRACTS

Wisps of Creation

It had been like this for as long as he could remember. Each night, his mind would light up with spectacular visions so vivid and detailed, like entire lifetimes were passing by. Magnificent creatures came to life in worlds of breathtaking colour. He never felt more alive. Yet eventually, he would have to wake up. It was as if he had been submerged for a long time, and was pulling his head back out of the water. With each time, pulling out took more and more effort. Soon, it was the dreamscape that felt like home, reality reduced to a mere reflection of it. But waking up was inevitable, no matter how much he tried to cling on.

He couldn’t remember when she started appearing. It was a while before he started noticing her. She would lurk in the corner of his mind, stay by his side on his travels. Her presence was always there. The ghost of a touch, pinpricks dancing along his skin. He could feel her cries chasing after him, when nightmares sent him hurtling across the dreamscape. Her voice would echo in his head after he awoke, like a melody drawing him back into the dreamscape. Who was this faceless girl? He could never see her full figure, only ever a blur of iridescent hair rippling past, or a hazy silhouette half-shrouded in mist.

The closer he tried to approach, the further she appeared. And so, in time, he ceased trying, instead accepting her silent presence. It stayed like that, until she had vanished without him noticing.

Lone Wanderer

In the deep night below a starry sky, a lone girl gazed up with the heavens glistening in her eyes. Her hair danced behind her, ethereal in the starlight. In her hands, she clasped a tiny locket, tinted lilac. It seemed as if she was searching for something. What did she see in that shining darkness?

The cold was bitter and unforgiving, but against her, it held back. She made her way onwards, never tiring, even as the night dragged on endlessly. The grass tickled at her frosted skin, but the feeling didn’t reach her head. It was only as the clouds closed in and she could no longer see the starlight that she finally collapsed on the ground, shivering in silence.

〔~✦~〕

When he found her, her eyes were closed in a peaceful expression of detachment. He scooped her into his arms and sprinted back to his abode, laying her gently upon a large leaf that wrapped around her. Slowly, the cold drained from her body, and she arose to the sight of him washing up a meal.

His name was Souk. Tall, hunch-backed, with skin like the bark of wood and cut like rock, the odd weed twisting up a limb, arched feet with roots piercing into the ground, four tender fingers shaped like leaves on each hand, and the brightest pair of golden eyes filled with undeniable warmth. He lived on the outskirts of Supnautica, above the water, away from the others.

She never asked why. She never knew much about him at all. But he was there, always watching over her as she grew. Soon she ventured into the depths of Supnautica, and learnt their language, learnt to swim, learnt to breathe. And each day, she would return to their home, where Souk would open the door with his crooked smile, wrapping her in a rustled embrace. He never talked, but his eyes lit up her world.

Infinite Possibility

Gwob?
Xwobo wob
om zgo
Awgo!

Who knew who had conceived the idea? It was, after all, an incredibly obscure thought… a world within a world, confined into the tiny space of a small blob. Somehow, this blob was alive, whatever you might mean by ‘alive’, and it would occasionally swallow something into its infinite depths, or spit something out.

The Xen Constructs

Xistence is not stable. It never has been, and never will be; such is the nature of an existence born from the ever-fluctuating thoughts of ‘living’ beings.

Many things can lead to the collapse of a xerique. What’s worse is its corruption, an inexplicable unstoppable infection that eats away at the world and its continuity, until it shatters. Should this happen, fragments may, and almost certainly will, find their way into other xeriques. This may be harmless, only a minor disturbance that goes unnoticed. But with so many splinters, and so many worlds, disturbance is inevitable.

Disturbance leads to corruption, and what ensues is a chain reaction of corruption that tears away at xeriques on unprecedented levels. Indeed, there may be infinite xeriques, but beyond a breaking point, Xistence itself would collapse. Beyond that… is unknown.

Corruption is expected. Corruption can be contained. If minor enough, it can be contained within the xerique. But at the scale of entire xeriques?

The Xen Constructs, xeniqive ‘structures’, were created. They enclose corrupted xeriques, preventing the corruption from ever escaping. The worlds inside live on, degenerating further and morphing unrecognisably. To enter a Xen Construct would be beyond nightmarish. As it is, they are a necessary evil holding Xistence together. Not a perfect solution, but the one that works.