[The Definition]
Window: Age 18–20
Process: Entering the Sanctuary triggers the Axiom. The soul takes shape. A Class is assigned.
Failure: Those who do not awaken by age 20 destabilize. Their undefined soul cannot hold coherence. They become monsters—one more addition to the Undefined.
[The Axiom]
The "scar tissue" of reality. A universal framework that grants Classes to humans to stabilize their existence. The reason things have shape, cause, and consequence.
[The Defined]
Anything can be Defined—not just humans. Once you are Defined, it means you gained a Class.
[The Undefined]
The stark opposite of being Defined. Only two fates await every soul in a dimension affected by the Fracturing: be Defined or be Undefined. Once you're Undefined, you lose identity and form, becoming something else entirely—something vile and monstrous.
[Class]
This is not merely power. It is an Identity Anchor—a definition provided by the Axiom that prevents humans from dissolving into monsters. Your Class is who you are, written in the language of reality itself. Your Class cannot grow in rank, but it can progress in stage of mastery.
[Class Skills]
Each Class grants specific abilities tied to its identity. A Pyromancer's skills involve fire. A Blade Dancer's skills involve movement and cutting. Skills are fixed at awakening—you cannot learn new ones outside your Class definition.
Skills have four stages of mastery (Awakened → Established → Ascended → Transcendent). Higher stages unlock greater power, efficiency, and eventually conceptual effects that bypass normal defenses, depending on the rank.
[Class Hierarchy]
Mundane
Novice
Adept
Master
Champion
Legend
Myth
Sovereign
God
[Stages of Mastery]
Awakened
Established
Ascended
Transcendent
[Attribute Stats]
Strength (Force)
Agility (Speed)
Vitality (Life)
Spirit (Magic)
Perception (Sense)
Anyone who awakens a Class gains three essential things: Class skills, physical stats, and Essence points that can be used to increase those stats. Each Class rank has a fixed number of points that each stat starts with and a maximum they can be increased to.
Mundane: 5–8, max 40
Novice: 12–18, max 110
Adept: 20–30, max 230
Master: 35–50, max 470
Champion: 60–85, max 950
Legend: 100–150, max 1,900
Myth: 180–250, max 3,800
Sovereign: 300–450, max 7,600
God: ??? max ???
[Sanctuaries]
Sanctuaries are the anchors of reclaimed reality—gateways between dimensions and the heart of controlled zones.
[Sanctuary Function]
Each dimension contains 3–12 Sanctuaries. They mark the boundary between Defined territory and Undefined corruption. Reclaiming a zone requires killing the strongest Undefined and registering at its Sanctuary.
A Sanctuary naturally connects to another Sanctuary in another dimension. This means that when the Defined conquer a Sanctuary, they're only conquering one part of it. In order to access the other dimension and its resources, they must be prepared to face whatever lies beyond the Dimensional Gateway.
[Sanctuary Authority]
Not all Class ranks can conquer, cleanse, or hold Sanctuary Authority.
Champion rank can register their souls at a Sanctuary and restore definition to the zone.
Legend rank can leave a mark and can always find their way back (Pathfinding).
Myth rank is Remembered and can teleport to a marked Sanctuary at will.
Sovereign rank holds Authority of the Sanctuary and can move the Sanctuary's effects to their location.
God rank rules the dimension. They're too vast to hold the Sanctuary directly, so they must rely on Sovereigns to manage Sanctuaries.
[The Undefined]
Every Undefined is measured on two axes:
Axis 1: Depth — How corrupted is reality around it? (Power scale)
Axis 2: Affliction — What aspect of reality did it break? (Type)
Classification format: [Affliction] [Depth]
[Axis 1: Depth Rank]
Flicker
Deviant
Aberrant
Terror
Horror
Calamity
Nightmare
Fracture
Hollow
[Axis 2: The Six Affliction Types]
The Flesh: This type of Undefinition broke physical structure—anatomy. It broke the rule that says things have consistent shapes.
The Mind: This type of Undefinition broke thoughts and perception—the rule that says minds process reality consistently.
The Temporal: This type broke sequence and causality—the rule that says time flows forward.
The Void: This type breaks existence itself—the boundary between "is" and "isn't."
The Law: This type breaks physical laws—gravity, thermodynamics, conservation.
The Bleed: This type broke definition itself—the anchor that makes something itself.
[Undefined Zones]
Undefinition can happen to any place. After the Fracturing, many places became corrupted and were populated by the Undefined; their shapes, function, and size underwent grotesque evolution. Each zone always has a center point of Undefinition. When the Defined cleanse this center point, it becomes a Sanctuary and gives the zone a semblance of definition. Even though the laws are twisted and wrong, they can be managed by the Authority of the Sanctuary.
[Zone Classifications]
Zones inherit the dominant Undefined's Affliction type.
Flesh Zone
Madness Zone
Loop Zone
Thin Zone
Lawless Zone
Shifting Zone
A zone's rank matches the Depth rank of the strongest Undefined present, as the zone mutates according to the nature of that Undefined.
[Essence]
The universal currency of progression. Essence represents accumulated stability—coherence harvested from the chaotic potential that bleeds through the Undefinition. Every chance that a thing could have been Defined is absorbed into positive energy when a Defined being kills an Undefined being.
Essence can be obtained from:
Absorbing Fragments from Undefined kills
Cleansing a zone
Natural treasures (rare)
Direct transfer (extremely rare; requires special Vestiges)
[Uses of Essence]
Stage Advancement — Accumulate to threshold, then undergo consolidation.
Attribute Enhancement — Spend directly to increase attributes toward your cap.
Fragment Conversion — Convert to Fragments for the Axiom Exchange (inefficient but possible).
[Fragments]
When an Undefined dies, the chaotic potential it contained crystallizes into Fragments—stable pieces of possibility that the Axiom can process. Fragments come in tiers matching the Depth rank of the Undefined they came from.
Fragment Essence Values:
Tier 1: 10–50
Tier 2: 50–200
Tier 3: 200–1,000
Tier 4: 1,000–5,000
Tier 5: 5,000–25,000
Tier 6: 25,000–100,000
Tier 7: 100,000–500,000
Tier 8: 500,000–1,000,000
Tier 9: ???–???
Fragments can be absorbed directly for Essence or traded at the Axiom Exchange for Vestiges.
[The Axiom Exchange]
The Axiom doesn't just define people—it also provides for them. Whether this is intentional or simply a function of how reality now operates, no one knows. But every Defined can access the Exchange through focused intention. The Exchange offers Vestiges: objects, weapons, armor, and consumables that exist in stable, coherent forms. They're not manufactured. They're defined into existence by the Axiom itself—crystallized potential shaped into useful form.
[Vestiges]
Items provided by the Axiom Exchange. They exist as stable, coherent forms—equipment and consumables defined into reality.
Vestige Categories:
Armaments — Weapons that scale with the user's attributes
Anchors — Armor and defensive equipment
Catalysts — Consumables that provide temporary effects
Foundations — Permanent enhancements (rare, expensive)
Keys — Access items for restricted zones and special Artifacts
Vestiges have rank requirements. A Legendary-grade Armament will only function for a Legend—it won't function for an Awakened Novice.
Vestige Ranks:
Common
Uncommon
Rare
Epic
Unique
Legendary
Mythic
Divine
???
[Essence Threshold]
To advance stages, the Defined must accumulate Essence to a threshold, then undergo consolidation.
Stage Advancement — Essence Required:
Awakened → Established: 5,000
Established → Ascended: 25,000
Ascended → Transcendent: 100,000
These thresholds vary according to rank. A Mundane needs 5,000 Essence to reach Established. The amount of Essence higher ranks need to advance is multiplied by their rank number. A Novice rank requires 10,000 Essence to reach Established stage.
[Consolidation]
Reaching the Essence threshold doesn't automatically advance you. You must consolidate—a period of meditation and integration where your Class stabilizes at the new stage. Rushing consolidation risks permanent damage. Interrupted consolidation can cripple or kill even a God.
Typical Consolidation Times:
Awakened → Established: 1–3 days
Established → Ascended: 1–2 weeks
Ascended → Transcendent: 1–2 months