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by Jared N. Michaud (Author)
In a universe that almost is, just out of reach beyond the edge of reality, mysterious forces underlie the fabric of existence. Energematrice6, the very energy of creation, serves as both the elixir of life and the arsenal of destruction for its human--and not-so-human denizens. Crushing darkness, whose source they cannot fathom, grips the cosmos and its people. In anguish, they dream of the long-foretold Brightstar.
From the Void is the collected stories of those who await his coming.
Genesis of a Dark Age:
Thousands of years before the arrival of the Brightstar, escapees from dying Earth were transported through the darkness beyond reality itself to a new home. Though the colonists' physical safety was never in danger following their arrival in the Aurora Galaxy, the little group struggled to confront the horrors of a dark past that some wished simply to forget.
This story occurs millennia before Brightstar, when the Aurora Galaxy is only newly-settled.
From the Void:
Rachel Casisia and her brother Jon were the first of the "Odds," but they were not the only ones in the Aurora Galaxy. Soon after their confrontation with the mob on Aterria, the Casisias encountered another who aged as slowly as they did. Later, after Paul disappeared, the episode survived only in the memories of the three young people. For personal reasons, Teron Galton never shared his own recollection.
For a millennia, the story was lost to history, leaving Galton's origin shrouded in mystery until it was finally recorded and passed down by Jon Casisia several thousand years after the fact.
The Keeper of the Mysteries:
Between the mysterious disappearance of Paul Casisia and the arrival of the Brightstar in the Aurora Galaxy was the time of Teron Galton, the Keeper of the Mysteries. Galton faced many challenges and though he was never able to defeat the enemies that threatened humanity decisively, his tireless efforts created a safe haven for the people of the Aurora Galaxy and specifically the Telestry.
This story is written as a prologue to Brightstar, specifically to give prospective readers a window into the Energematrice6 universe.
The Boy from the Darkness:
During the time of the Brightstar, at the height of the conflict, a strange new presence arrived in the Aurora Galaxy. Tom Nelion's fame would never rival that of the Brightstar, but he played a role that would dramatically change the course of history. His alliance with the "Odds" who followed Nate Brightstar would eventually become the stuff of legend. He isn't exactly human, but he's still just a boy, at least by The Peoples' standards, and he's on a mission to find this "Brightstar" everybody's been talking about. The problem is, the most powerful enemy his people have ever known are hiding him. The only place Tom knows to look is directly in the center of their most powerful citadel, the Telestry itself!
The events of this story occur significantly after Brightstar (roughly during the end of the Epimyth).
The Boy from the Megalith:
Tom Nelion's strange odyssey concluded in alliance with the "Odds" who followed the Brightstar. His origin was inglorious by any standard, an unholy melding of human genetics with the pure blood of the People. His family-his clan-is dead at the hands of the People's own leader. Tom should have died as well, and by the same hand. Now his fate will be decided by those who despise him.
This story is set concurrently with Brightstar, giving readers a window into the galaxy where humanity originated and one of its more unusual peoples.
