Repose was initially dreamed up as a novel series in 2020, but my writing style changed and, 25 thousand words into the story, I decided to scrap it despite developing the universe out significantly. I missed writing Repose (then called "The Reposing Force of the Great Lakes"), but I have moved on to other projects, though I really didn't want to let the universe go. So when I found Cosmic Voyage I was instantly inspired.

Story

Repose is set in a modern 21st century Earth, with the catalyst of the story being set in 2025, that officially also encompasses the demon dimension of Xulthea, the alien dimension known as the Entity's Mouth, and an infinite number of other dimensions you can come up with and play around in. Superpowers on Earth and the existence of alien/demon dimensions have been public knowledge since the early hominids were visited by Entity Zero M, the former leader of the Entity's Mouth, and humanity's ancestors were given the gift of the Light. Upon seeing the potential of humanity, Entity Zero M wrapped the planet in a field of light and energy that changed the genetic structure of anyone carrying a child at the time, thus ensuring their offspring would develop superpowers. The exact nature of these superpowers is not known, as the title of Entity Zero has been passed on many times since this, and the Entity's Mouth does not have written language. Superpowers awaken in humans seemingly randomly, and can be anything from making cheese appear, getting super strength from THC, manifesting nightmare creatures into reality, or pretty much anything you can think of. Not sure what abilities you'd like your characters to have? Here's Superpowers Wiki!.

(You can also make regular humans or non-powered aliens, too ;))

Xulthea

Xulthea is a dimension ruled by the queen of the Xultheans, Xorna. Xultheans are typically various shades of purple, and each Xulthean can have anywhere from 4-8 eyes. Xultheans also have jaws that can unhinge entirely from their skulls and fold outward from the head. Dark violet mandibles protrude from the dimples.

Xorna is a just and kind but utterly amoral ruler. She has values, but she doesn't adhere to human moral standards; she's perfectly fine taking souls in exchange for trapping humans in her dimension for eternity, and she's perfectly fine trapping Soren's wife Jessica in there too. (What Soren doesn't know is that Jessica is safe and Xorna is taking a liking to her and pampering her. But you know. Why ask about that when you can just enact revenge on the world.)

Xac is an abandoned continent that became frozen in stasis from a rather unusual invasion of insect swarms long before the story begins in 2025. The insects halt Xulthean aging processes and trap anyone near their swarm in a pheromone-induced eternal psychic torture, entering the brain and mind to find each affected individual's worst fears and nightmares and wield it against them.

Xulthea's realm is largely landscaped as purple with lilac skies. There is no sun as it is not a planet but rather a different plane of existence entirely, but there is an illusion of there being a planet (e.g. there are oceans, forests, continents.) Each building in the downtown city is painted white, black, or a shade of gray.

Tree bark is typically pink, coral, or salmon, and leaves are black. Common fauna include the Taratul, a rodent that resembles a cross between a tarantula and a rat; Xaelas, common Xulthean avian pets with two sets of wings and one head with two faces; Zells, graceful cyan deerlike creatures with pale white eyes and blades for antlers that are the common prey of Tarantul packs; and Gxillels, which have lion-like furry heads attached to 3-4 ft long serpent bodies and loving, affectionate, dog-like temperaments.

The Entity's Mouth

A dimension initially only accessible by a portal a little bit behind the other side of the moon and populated by Spirals. The dimension interior is in the form of a mouth; the tongue is the common area and the teeth are infinite rows of pocket dimensions that are entered through doors made of dentine (the inner/bulk tissue of a tooth.) The pocket dimensions are the equivalent of apartment complexes that individual Spirals or clusters of Spirals live in. The doors can only be called on by intentionally recalling fond memories, so many stay in either the common areas or their dwellings for extended periods of time; trips and absences are often long. Spiral homes are typically minimalist with only bare necessities; a maximalist counterculture has been brewing for ages.

Spirals are alien beings of energy that resemble small galaxies in transparent humanoid mannequins. Think of a clear, entirely see-through doll full of burning, fiery rainbow stars. They cannot communicate verbally; they communicate by tracing words into the air with beams of energy.

When Graham Case, the leader of the Reposing Force, sold his entire soul to trap Soren's wife Jessica in the continent of Xac on Xulthea, the sheer magnitude of cruelty in the act despite Graham's love for Soren shifted the fabric of the universe for just a moment, enough so that when Xorna canceled out the cruelty with an act of kindness towards Jessica by keeping her safe under personal watch, a portal to the Entity's Mouth ripped open on the land of a cemetery in Luther, Michigan, USA, thus beginning open integration of human and alien cultures.

and.... yours!

If you have an idea for a Repose dimension, come join us!