Lost Civilisations of The MiddleVerse

The MiddleVerse is an ancient and sprawling cosmos, one that has witnessed the rise and fall of countless civilisations across its immeasurable age. To fathom its full history is beyond the capacity of even the most advanced scholars and sages of the present Age - aside from the House of Tempus. With its boundless galaxies,  solar systems and innumerable planets, The MiddleVerse is a place where sentient life has not only flourished but also succumbed to the inexorable tides of time, war and internal decay. Civilisations that once reached for the stars, only to be brought low by their own flaws and hubris, now serve as stark reminders of the transient nature of power and the relentless march of time.

Civilisations of the Early Ages

Long before the rise of the prominent Houses that dominate The MiddleVerse today, there existed a period known to historians as the Arthropodan Epoch. During this galactic Age, several sentient Arthropoda species achieved prominence, creating complex and highly organised societies across multiple solar systems. These civilisations were remarkable for their intricate social structures, which mirrored the physical complexity of the species themselves.

Amongst the most notable of these species were the House of Xylos, a race of winged Arthropods known for their hive-like cities that spanned entire continents on their home planet, in the Aurelia System. The Xylosians were master builders, constructing their cities from organic materials that were both resilient and flexible. Their towering spires and sprawling underground chambers were interconnected by vast networks of tunnels and aerial pathways, enabling the efficient movement of their populace.

Developing a form of organic technology, known as Symbiotic Engineering, they were able to manipulate living organisms to serve as tools, vehicles and even as weapons. Their cities pulsed with life, as their architecture was integrated with living systems that maintained the environment and responded to the needs of the inhabitants. Despite their technological prowess, the House of  Xylos was also deeply spiritual, worshipping a pantheon of deities that they believed resided within the very essence of their worlds. Their society was ruled by a caste of Priest-Kings who were both political leaders and spiritual guides, ensuring that the balance between the natural world and their cultures was maintained.

However, the Xylosian downfall came not from external threats but from within. Over time, their society became rigid, with the caste system stifling innovation and breeding resentment among the lower classes. This discontent eventually erupted into a series of devastating civil wars, known as the Great Divisions, which fractured their once-unified civilisation into warring factions. Xylosian cities, once vibrant with life, became battlegrounds and their intricate social structure collapsed under the weight of its own complexity. Today, the ruins of the House of Xylos stand as a testament to their former glory, overgrown by the very organic life they once commanded, serving as a somber reminder of a civilidation that could not adapt to the changing currents of time.

The Lycothranian Empire: Rise and Fall in the Galactic Age

In the millennia following the Arthropodan Epoch, The MiddleVerse saw the rise of numerous mammalian species, whose civilisations would come to dominate large swathes of the cosmos. These empires were characterised by their ambition and their drive to conquer and colonise new solar systems and its worlds. Amongst the most powerful was the House of Lyco - the original race of Lycans - from the Udo System, whose empire, at its height, spanned multiple star systems.

The Lycothrans were fierce warriors, their society built on a strict code of honour and loyalty. Their cities, built in harmony with the rugged landscapes of their homeworld Vulcanis, were fortified strongholds, each one a bastion of their martial prowess. These cities were constructed from a unique alloy known as Lunas, mined from the moons of Vulcanis, which gave their structures a silvery sheen and made them impervious to most forms of energy weapons.

The Lycothrans were also renowned for their advancements in Quantum Navigation, a technology, prior to Stargates, that allowed their fleets to traverse the vast distances between galaxies with unprecedented speed and precision. This capability made them a dominant force in The MiddleVerse, enabling them to expand their interstellar territory rapidly and establish colonies on dozens of star systems. Their capital planet of Vulcanis, later renamed Lupis Magna, was a marvel of engineering, a sprawling metropolis where the tallest towers seemed to touch the heavens, and where the Lycothranian High Council ruled over their vast domain.

Yet, like so many before them, the House of Lyco was undone by its own hubris. Its relentless expansion brought them into conflict with other powerful civilisations, most notably the House of Felinaris of the Viridios System, a race of sentient felines - with academic help from the leonians, Abraxian scholars have speculated the Felinaris to be ancient relatives of the House of Leo. The resulting wars, known as the Claw Wars, were amongst the most destructive in the history of The MiddleVerse. Entire planets were laid waste in the conflict. The House of Lyco, unwilling to compromise, fought to the bitter end, but their empire eventually crumbled under the combined weight of external enemies and internal dissent. Today, the ruins of Lupis Magna lie in the shadow of Vulcanis’s twin moons, a once-great city now silent and deserted, save for the pilgrims who go there to pay homage to the fallen warriors of a bygone era. Lycothran DNA was later extracted by the House of Draco, from fossilised remains, and used in their genetic experimenst; combining it with Abraxian DNA to create the House of Udo. Turning what was once, like the dark Selvans, a proud race into a mere twisted shadow of its former self; slaves to do the House of Draco's biding.

The Amphirian Metropolises: The Glorious Underwater Kingdoms

While the Lycothranian Empire waged its wars amongst the stars, other sentients of The MiddleVerse built their civilisations beneath the waves of many planets. The most illustrious of these was the House the Amphis of the Oceana System, whose underwater cities were, during that Age, amongst the most beautiful and technologically advanced in The MiddleVerse.

The Amphirians were an eclectic species, with sub-races adapted to different aquatic environments, from deep ocean trenches to shallow coral reefs. Their capital planet, Okun, was a breathtaking sight, with metropolises of shimmering spires and glowing domes built on ocean floors. These cities were illuminated by bioluminescent organisms, which were cultivated by the Amphirians to create a kaleidoscope of colours that bathed entire cities in a soft, otherworldly glow.

The House of Amphis was the original developer of Hydrokinetic Engineering, a technology that allowed them to manipulate water on a massive scale. With this ability, they constructed vast canals, underwater highways and even submerged floating gardens that drifted through the currents like islands of greenery. Their cities were not confined to the ocean floor; they extended upward into the shallow waters and even onto the land, where the Amphirians built grand palaces and temples that overlooked the vastness of their domains.

Despite their peaceful nature, the House of Amphis was not immune to the troubles that plagued other civilisations. Their downfall came in the form of environmental collapse, triggered by a series of natural disasters that devastated their homeworlds. Massive undersea earthquakes, followed by a series of tsunamis, destroyed many of their cities, including all those on Okun. The survivors were forced to abandon their homes and migrate to other worlds, still their civilisation never fully recovered. Today, the ruins of Okun lie deep beneath the waves, a haunting reminder of a once-great civilisation that was brought low by forces beyond its control. What they did not know was that the House of Draco, already well established at the time as a galactic power, was causing all these environmental changes, to bring about the end of a House they considered to be a threat to their end goal of total hegemonic domination. 

The Cephalian Kingdoms: Masters of the Deep

In the oceans of many MiddleVersian planets, another civilisation flourished alongside the House of Amphis - the House of Cephas, a sentient molluscan species whose empire was as vast as the various oceans they inhabited. The Cephalians were known for their intelligence and their ability to communicate telepathically, a trait that allowed them to build complex societies without the need for spoken language.

They built their cities from a unique material known as Pearlsheen, made from a substance secreted by their own bodies and hardened over time. Their cities were built in the deep ocean trenches of many worlds - including the planets of the Hydronis System -  where the pressure was immense and the darkness was almost absolute. Underwater cities of spiraling towers and vast domes, each one a masterpiece of Cephalian architecture. Cities illuminated by bioluminescent flora cultivated all over and around its edifices, creating surreal landscapes that seemed to glow with an inner light. The Cephalian were, themselves, bioluminescent beings. Scholars from the current House of Hobotnica have postulated the House of Cephas might be their distant ancestors. 

The Cephalian also counted amongst their ranks skilled artisans, crafting intricate sculptures and jewelry from the shells of various sea creatures and pearls that were abundant in their waters. These artifacts were, and still are, highly prized throughout the cosmos these artisans became known as the greatest jewelers and artists of that Age.

However, the House of Cephas, like many other Houses from that epoch, was not immune to the inexorable forces of time and change. Their civilisation, which had thrived for many millennia, began to slowly decline as the oceans of their homeworlds started to recede, exposing their cities to the harsh elements on its planet's surfaces. Unable to adapt to the ever-changing environment, most died, the rest were forced to abandon their cities and migrate to other worlds. Their cities, once "jewels of the deep," are now crumbling ruins, half-buried in the shifting sands of the ocean floors, a silent testament to the cruel impermanence of all things.

The Legacy of the Lost: Lessons and Pilgrimages

The ruins of these lost civilisations serve now as places of pilgrimage, study and reflection, for the multiple sentient species of The MiddleVerse. Scholars and sages from prominent Houses - such as the House of Leo, the House of Abraxas and the House of Hobotnica - regularly visit these ancient sites, seeking to learn from the mistakes of the past and uncover the secrets of the civilisations that came before them.

These sites are more than just relics of bygone Ages; they are precious repositories of ancient knowledge and wisdom, offering insights about the nature of existence and the forces that continue shape it.

The Eternal Watchers

The House of Tempus, seeded by the Ancients, in the Kronos System, at the dawn of The MiddleVerse, stands as the eternal guardian of cosmic history. Existing outside the confines of time and space, yet ever-present within its physical realms. the House of Tempus are the custodians of all that has ever and will ever transpire. Their task, as ordained by The Ancients, is to observe, record and, when absolutely necessary, intervene to maintain the delicate balance of time. From their vantage point, their House has witnessed the rise and fall of countless civilisations, each contributing to the vast and intricate tapestry that is the history of The MiddleVerse. Their chronicles, in the Echoing Archives, serve as testament to those lost kingdoms and civilisations, whose stories are etched into the intricate fabric of time itself.

The Legacy of Time: Lessons from the Lost

Each of those lost civilisations, whether they were the insectoid House of Xylos, the lycanthrope House of Lyco or the aquatic Houses of Amphis and Cephas, contributed in their own way to the vast and intricate history of The MiddleVerse.

The ruins of these ancient cultures represent more than mere relics of bygone Ages. They are reminders of the cyclical nature of history and the lessons that can be taken from the past. The House of Tempus continues, now and always, to oversee the flow of time, and the surviving Houses of The MiddleVerse. Interfering only when galactic balance is at risk.

In the end, the History of The MiddleVerse, as recorded by the House of Tempus, is a testament to the resilience and fragility of sentient life. It is a chronicle of dreams realised and dreams lost. Dreams that dared to reach for the stars and fell back into the sands of time. They represent the eternal quest for meaning in a universe that is both infinite and finite, timeless and ever-changing.