Portals and the Polycosmos of Realms
Beyond the modern world—beyond its punctual trains, damp pavements, sensible shoes, and the innumerable little concerns which persuade a person that his own street must surely be the center of creation—there lies the Polycosmos: a multitude of realms existing all at once, more numerous, it has been said, than the stars. Most are separate and self-contained, knowing nothing whatsoever of their neighbors; yet here and there, through doors, storms, staircases, rails, mirrors, and other less obliging arrangements, a passage may be found.
Each realm is a world in miniature, complete in itself and entirely convinced of its own importance—which, to be fair, is rather how worlds ought to behave. A traveler may find that a realm extends scarcely a hundred or two hundred miles from one peculiar edge to another. The Poppet Swamps, for instance, contain swamps, swamp-things, swamp weather, and the general conviction that anything not damp, greenish, and faintly suspicious must be a wicked invention. Elsewhere, there are lands of sweets, where sugar is architecture and supper may answer back; fire realms peopled by sparks, imps, and hot-tempered fairies; and watery dominions in which the inhabitants have never had cause to imagine dry socks.
Those who move between such places are called Realm Travelers—or Realm Nomads, among persons inclined to make the business sound more athletic than it usually is. Some travel deliberately, for trade, study, pleasure, rescue, mischief, or reasons best omitted from respectable company. Others stumble through by accident, become lost, exploit what they find, make careful records, or discover that they have lived between realms for so long that ordinary geography no longer seems entirely trustworthy.
Yet the Polycosmos is not merely a collection of strange countries hung in the dark like ornaments. It appears to possess an intelligence of its own. Portals open at curious moments; coincidences arrange themselves with suspicious neatness; and travellers sometimes emerge altered in form as well as circumstance. A man may enter one realm human and arrive in another as a troll, an imp, or some equally inconvenient version of himself. Such transformations are rarely explained, though they often reveal something the traveller had hoped to keep hidden. The realms, it seems, have a discouraging habit of teaching lessons.
For this reason, the realms often make themselves known to those who are ready—not necessarily those who are prepared, which is quite another matter. They offer paths of danger, wonder, error, courage, and consequence, and seem particularly interested in drawing out what is strongest, weakest, kindest, or most corruptible in a person’s character.
Above all whispered destinations stands Ber’Ebrin, the Beautiful Place: a realm believed to be a paradise beyond comparison. It is said to admit only the worthy and to protect itself from evil; it cannot be discovered by pursuit, map, machine, wealth, or desperation. Indeed, those who seek it most fiercely may fall prey to Realm Fever, an affliction of obsession that twists longing into madness and carries its victim ever farther from the place he desires. Ber’Ebrin has two inviolable rules: one must be worthy to enter, and one must never seek it.
The hidden currents of the Polycosmos are watched, disputed, and occasionally meddled with by three ancient sisters. Ahniella, the youngest and most perverse, delights in corruption, mischief, and splendidly ruinous temptations. Khailley, luminous and compassionate, inclines toward mercy, restoration, and the stubborn possibility that people may become better than they were. Between them stands Constance, the steady keeper of balance, duty, and unpleasant necessities—the celestial patroness, perhaps, of bitter greens and sensible decisions. Together, they embody temptation, virtue, and choice; their disagreements may appear divine, though they are sometimes conducted with all the restrained irritation of a family argument.
Outside the borders of any ordinary realm floats the Etherodrome, a vast control hub tethered to none and influential overall. It is a labyrinth of brass cathedrals, pneumatic tubes, telescopic gears, spiraling staircases, and mechanical planets, curled upon itself like an impossible Möbius strip. At its heart turns a colossal orrery, where miniature realms glow, spin, flicker, and occasionally behave in ways that make the responsible officials look profoundly concerned.
The Etherodrome is also, rather inconveniently, a destination. Realm Travelers gather there for lodging, food, entertainment, gambling, rest, and commerce of every imaginable sort. Its workings are overseen by the Ripplewrights: seasoned travelers and cosmic meddlers who do not so much govern the realms as nudge, rearrange, and occasionally misfile them. One might call them guardians, if one were feeling charitable; stagehands, if one were feeling accurate; and a menace, if one had recently been redirected through the wrong portal.
Portal Types
There are several different types of portals that realm travelers have encountered (the appearance of which can vary, the functions can be one or multiple, the demands unpredictable). Examples are:
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Propylon (one way portal) – allows one to enter in one place and appear in another with no way back.
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Polypylon (multi portal) – allows one an option as to where to go when using, but travel is still one way.
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Diapylon (two-way portal) – allows one to enter a place and then come back through.
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Skopopylon (device portal) – allows someone to travel to a place or when activated take one back to a place where one has been.
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Horapylon (viewing portal) – allows one to look at another place or places but not travel there—a scrying device.
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Hodospylon (traveling portal) – this is a vehicle portal that allows one to travel to places. Examples include compasses, wagons, sleighs, ships.
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Acupylon (listening portal) – allows one to hear what’s happening in another place but not go there or communicate.
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Chronopylon (time portal) – allows one to travel through time and space.
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Epiriapylon (influence portal) – allows one to cause changes in another place without traveling there, such as a spellcaster in one place casting a spell that affects another realm.
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Drastiripylon (trigger portal) – this is a portal that is triggered by an event or set of circumstances—i.e., a trap.
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Enermironpylon (notification portal) – allows some form of communication between portals, such as a journal that, when written in, provides the message in some form in another place. The best example is used in the Pan-dimensional Academic Encyclopedia of Standard Knowledge, Seventh Edition to provide updates by headquarters
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Tuchaospylon (random portal) – this is a portal that has a random effect with no predictability when one uses it.
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Metapylon (changing portal) – this is a portal that alters the user when traveling. For example, the user is a human, but then when one uses it, he becomes something else, e.g., a willowpillar, a troll, a bug, a horse.
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Phantaspylon (ghost portal) – this is a portal that projects an illusory image of the user to another realm so he can interact in a limited way but not be affected by what happens there.
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Pseudopylon (false portal) – this is a portal that appears to function one way but hides its true nature.
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Antistrefpylon (reverse portal) – this is a portal that works in reverse, a shield preventing all portal use within a certain radius from working.
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Thanospylon (death/destruction portal) – this portal utterly and absolutely destroys whatever goes through it.
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Phonepylon (talking portal) – this portal has limited intelligence and can speak with a person about events in another place. It is passive. See below – egopylon.
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Tseponopylon (pocket portal) – this portal opens up a space, like a pocket, where one could enter temporarily and hide and then reappear or store something for later retrieval. For example, a magician’s hat may have such a portal inside where he can keep a bunch of rabbits, accessories, etc., or his entire library.
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Engenospylon (inherent portal) – this type of portal is an inherent ability of a creature to travel. This may be anything from a unicorn to a demon to a god.
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Anamnepylon (memory portal) - allows one to view (possibly visit) a place as it was remembered, not as it is.
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Hypnopylon (dream portal) – allows the user to enter another’s dream world. Risky to use as one might become trapped.
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Thesmopylon (wish portal) - Grants a single, limited wish by tapping into energy or objects in other realms. Often warps results to reflect subconscious fears or misinterpretations, the results of which might not be felt for years.
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Cohlepylon (magnet portal) – this a portal that pulls a realm object or creature to you. Often used by conjurers or sorcerers.
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Egopylon (sentient portal) – this is a sentient, intelligent portal, often with unpredictable behavior, demands, logic. It is known to require: Compliments, philosophical debate, sacrifices/offerings.
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Skiapylon (shadow portal) - this is a portal that fabricates reates a shadow self, facsimile, or projection in the destination realm while keeping the real user behind. The shadow self may learn and evolve … and not want to switch back. It might fire without a person’s knowledge, where the user does not realize a shadow image has been created. Often, it requires a token of the user’s soul to operate.
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Dialogospylon (communication portal) - this is a portal that allows two-way portal conversation only, long-distance soul-banter. Used mainly by nosy beings and overbearing aunts. Has been hacked by imps for pranks.
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Epistolopylon (letter portal) – this is a portal that transmits written correspondence between two locations. Often used by the inter-realm postal service.
“Three sneezes near a Chronopylon opens a loop.” (Imps call this “loop-lag.”)
“If a cat stares at a closed portal, wait until it leaves.” Cats can see failures coming.
“Stepping through a portal backward undoes your last lie.” Useful ... but not always safe.
“The seventh portal on a Tuesday leads to the place you were supposed to go.”
“Eating right before a portal jump means you’ll meet someone you once loved.” Usually in a cursed form.
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Always bow, curtsey, or tip your hat before a portal you have not yet met.
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Never speak ill of the destination until after returning. Portals may have ears (and cousins).
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Use your non-dominant hand to touch any frame—just in case it bites.
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If someone emerges mid-trip, avert your eyes. They may not be … entirely clothed.
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Always offer something when crossing. A coin. A song. A secret. Portals respect tribute.
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Don’t thank the portal aloud. It might expect a tip next time.
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Let it burp. Some portals release trapped metaphysical wind. It’s rude to comment.
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Always knock thrice before using an Epiriapylon … it listens.”
Portal Etiquette
Superstitions
