Fiction:Essence

"It is our essence, the reason why we are alive, the reason for our existence, our actions and our thoughts. It is a way of thinking, an uncontrollable force that runs though us all. Light and dark, everything is due to Enyirgy."

- Unknown



Essence, sometimes called Energy or occasionally Enyirgy and sometime even NRG, soul, life-force, or spirit, is the immaterial nature of all living things. Though it is usually simply named as such in some galaxies of the First Gigaquadrant, it can manifest in many other named ways, usually as energies that can be manipulated in many ways but also as psychological and physical traits, i.e. or malevolence. Essence usually manifests itself in reality is invisible forces, or energies, that surround species and beings, which can sometimes be manipulated to produce various effects, such as telekinesis. The varied forms of essence throughout history have sometimes gone ot the extent of defining entire cultures, as is the case, for example, of Psionic Energy.

Pure Essence
Although Essence is only directly known from the Energies that manifest themselves in reality, the study of these Energies for many millennia has resulted in a model of "pure Essence" being created. There are many theories as to how this Essence would have been "split" into the different Energies that currently exist.

Pure Essence is considered to be one of the two fundamental components of the universe, the other being that which makes up matter and energy. Essence and matter/energy are both capable of affected each other. Essence is believed to be behind consciousness (as creatures' souls are usually composed of an Energy such as Elemental Energy), and so may tie into scientific theories such as Cosmospawn Theory, and even religious beliefs such as the as worshipped by many civilisations across the universe. However, as mentioned, matter is capable of affecting Essence, which is a major item of consideration when relating Essence with consciousness, as individual creatures' consciousnesses are heavily affected by material factors such as brain chemistry. If Essence is conscious, then it must be a consciousness completely alien to anything else in the omniverse.

Division and Variations
Energy is classified into five main groups. Only "primary" Energies are described on this list. There are others that seem to be "subtypes" of primary Energies, such as Gyronic spawn energies and Elemental subtypes.

In addition, different Energies can be combined to create what appear to be entirely new powers, such as "Demonic Energy" (Chaos mixed with Elemental). The most unusual of these is "", which is formed when polar Energies such as Chaos and Celestial Energy mix. It is difficult to control and purely destructive, but very little else is known about it. Some theories suggest that it is pure Essence, being all that remains after the opposing aspects of the two Energies annihilate each other.

Chaos
Chaos Energy (associated with Kamik'Shi) is an Energy characterised as being "evil". It is primarily associated with destructive powers - either ones used for offence, or those used for the improvement of the user's own body but often at the cost of being transformed into a demonic entity, a process known as "".

The extent of these powers depends on the means of accessing Chaos (or the "form" of the Energy), and are best shown by how the Descension takes place. In pure Chaos or as "Entropy", it destroys the user outright if they attempt to access the necessary levels of power without being able to do so. When mixed with Elemental to form "Demonic", it causes permanent disfiguration. Finally, the main feature of "Descension Energy" (hence the name) is that it causes a similar, but temporary, transformation.

Celestial
Celesial Energy (associated with Kkia'Sihm) is characterised as being "good", and is often considered to be a polar opposite of Chaos Energy. In some ways, this appears to be true, as Celestial Energy does not seem to have much of an emphasis on offensive powers, being based primarily on mind control and manipulation of their own Essences. Celestial also exists as "Dream Energy", acting opposite to Entropic Energy, and seems to connect the Elemental Energy of most creatures' souls with Celestial Energy during dreams.

The nature of Psionic Energy is disputed by many scientists and users of Essence. It is generally treated as a distinct Energy, although it resembles both Celestial and Elemental Energies in many ways and is a polar opposite to the Demonic form of Chaos.

Gyronic
Gyronic Energy (associated with Vyro'Nazdea) is involved with the manipulation and progression of time. It does this because it is bound to the nature of time and its perception. The Taldar claim that they can access Gyronic by bringing their consciousness to the Gyronic consciousness, giving them whole new perspectives on time with which they can easily manipulate it. Gyronic is often classified into two powers, "Light Gyronic" and "Dark Gyronic", which are sometimes thought of as being literal opposites like the Celestial and Chaos Energies, but this is not really accurate.

Mystic
 (associated with the "Ultimate One") has features of both Celestial and Elemental Energies, but all evidence so far seems to point to it being a distinct Essence. There is also "", which is to Mystic Energy what Dark Gyronic is to Light Gyronic.

Elemental
Elemental Energy (associated with Vi'Naherza), known by numerous other names by thousands of other civilisations across the universe and throughout history, is believed by many to be the closest thing to how pure Essence as used by mortal beings would appear to be, although it is significantly less powerful. Elemental Energy is based around the principle of balance, and using it to go to any particular extreme is harmful for the user and its surroundings alike. A few powers were once believed to be distinct from Elemental, but are actually other means of accessing the same Energy. For example, "" is ultimately accessed from Elemental accumulated in the body over time, while "Life Energy" is Elemental as used by divine beings.

Elemental Energy is also what most creatures' souls are made of; because of this, the Energy flows through their bodies via specific points known as "meridians" and "subtle bodies" in a complex structure. Tests of beings with non-Elemental souls with their own particular Essences have so far not been done.

The created their own synthetic Essences, based on Elemental Energy and with the theme of manipulating their classical elements of fire, lightning, water and land. Only the former of those, known as Fiammian Energy, currently exists in usable form. Essentially, each "Synthetic Essence" would grant a typical user with a more limited use of Elemental Energy, but with a greater command of the specific powers on which it focuses.

Practioners of Essence
Almost every culture in the universe has its own perceptions on Essence, nearly all weilding Elemental as it permeates all of reality, and has different uses and groups. This page concerns universal societies.

Sages
An 'Essence Sage' is an individual with certain mastery, knowledge (and thus authority) of a certain/multiple energies. Most societies inspired by the Omnipotent Four, such as the Onuris Alliance, use the concept of "Essence Sages".


 * Less than 3D mortal: Unknown
 * 3D Mortal: After being trained by another Sage and a Taldar, a Ravenrii and Verezaph or a Xhodocto for at least a few years, they can be recognised as an Essence Sage for the energy they were practising.
 * They must be part of the Onuris Alliance, or else this is normally not accepted.
 * Their future must be completely analysed by the Taldar to prove safe and beneficial, with several checks made for Dark Gyronic clouding the future.
 * They must undergo at least 20 (timeless) years of practice (by testing their energy, mind and body to the limits), pilgrimages (to several Essence-related locations) and tests (testing mind, body and soul for the limits, and pushing them).
 * Very few individuals do get this opportunity.
 * Higher than 3D Mortal: They are given similar tests to 3D, but these are much more complex and difficult.
 * Immortal: Immortals usually already are Sages.

Essence Sages have around a quarter of the power a member of the Omnipotent Four with their specialist energy. They can channel and manipulate energies perfectly, and have total knowledge of the energy. They are given authority of their energy, as well as total responsibility. They also serve as mentors of essence practiser. Some Sages can train even further and become immortal.

Scientists
The scientific study of Essence is a universal effort to discover the truth about Essence and to come up with a "theory of everything" that includes Essence along with the spacetime of conventional physics.

Much like physics, the study of Essence is built around equations, including the universe-famous and remarkably simple:



Which describes how the quantity of Essence ("eta", H) in a particular spherical volume of n-dimensional spacetime is related to the universal Essence constant ("delta", &delta;) and is also connected to spacetime, but also in many ways free of its limits.

Theories
Nearly every race in the universe has speculated on Essence; each theory differs radically depending on which Energy or Energy subtype the race trains in Perception and state of consciousness can also differ wildly between races and even individuals. Ultimately, some features remain similar, such as consciousness, perception, abd balance, among others. This list is of univesally accepted theories, rather than those that are race-specific. It is generally accepted that no theory is really superior to any other as "pure Essence" can never be percieved; all are inadequate attempts to describe something that cannot be described.

Dualistic philosophy
One of the many philosophies of reality, dualism concerns perception of the universe more being powerful than it is in materialism, replacing substance with consciousness. It is based on the fact each species observes the world from slightly to extremely differently, depending on what senses or abilities that species has evolved the need to experience. An example is how light never reaches the brains of most vertebrates, so what is the light they percieve? Their brains must interpret incoming sensory data, interpreting what the brains have either learned or been taught, thus the world percieved is constructed by consciousness. For example, a human never observes the quantum nonlocality of the universe, wavelengths of light outside a certain range of frequency, matter being 99% void, extra dimensions and dark matter because their brains had not evolved to percieve them. Thus, the entire world is percieved in a tiny region of the brain, with much of the real universe blocked out selectively, so every observer is living in a world that their consciousness constucts.

Essence itself is part of the perception of reality that consciousness constructs. It is either consciousness expanding itself to see a wider band of the universe or is a change in the state of consciousness itself; either way, perception and construction of the reality for the observer changes.

In this view, each observer is the "One God" of their personal reality. There are similar theories, including extreme interpretations of quantum physics, such as quantum immortality (each observer living in their own reality forever as a wave of probabilities, while other observers are more like points and can only live or die). This principle is similar to Cosmospawn: in the Cosmopawn theory, life and consciousness is what builds the universe by observing it.

Some dualistic ideas involve the soul, which would be the discrete piece of Essence that makes up an individual creature's consciousness, and becomes the "matrix of all matter", its connection to the universe or, in certain pantheistic views, the universe's mind.

Quantum reality
Quantum reality is similar to dualism, but does not always neccesarily promote the idea of mind and body being different substances. In various theories on the quantum scale, the act of measurement or observation has an effect on the experiment, one that is not fully explained and heavily debated, although many interpreations exist, including objective reality, and picking distinct paths and timelines through choice or chance. Quantum reality as a theory of the nature of Essence states that some individuals learn to manipulate this effect more than others.

Holomatter
Holomatter is theoretical fifth-dimensional matter, based on the holographic principle, which manipulates fifth-dimensional holospace. Holospace contains all of the information about three-dimensional realspace, allowing somebody who can act in the fifth dimension to manipulate the holomatter and thereby affect realspace.

Different Energies fit into this theory with different forms of holomatter having specific control over different aspects of spacetime. Gyronic Energy, being focused around direct spacetime manipulation, fits holomatter theory best, although models for Celestial and Mystic powers as holomatter types have also been created. For Chaos Energy, even higher dimensions with holomatter-like "" have been proposed, while the nature of Elemental Energy in the holomatter interpretation is subject to much more debate, with some who study Essence even believing that it is something that cannot be accomodated for in the theory.

Truly supernatural
Another common theory considers Essence to be a physical and tangible "substance" in the universe, but one that is distinct from that which makes up matter, energy, spacetime, and everything else that has been studied and defined in the science of physics. It is often thought of as being an "immaterial substance" or "vital force". There is little more to say to this theory; it simply attempts to justify the "supernatural" by defining it as being a distinct branch of science to those currently known. In many religions, this is a mystical force created by the gods themselves. In some such beliefs, to undertake the teachings of Essence is to take on the form of the god.