Species & Civilizations
in Lumen Expanded Universe
Eighteen major species. Nine galaxies. One rule that binds them all:
Every civilization must discover faster-than-light travel alone—or remain forever earthbound.
◈ The Independent FTL Rule
In the Lumen Universe, propulsion technology cannot be shared, stolen, or gifted between species. This is not law—it is physics. Something in the Primordial Essence itself refuses to let one species carry another to the stars.
The result: every spacefaring civilization earned its place through independent invention. Every empire that spans galaxies deserves to be there—at least by the universe's own brutal metric.
WHAT THIS MEANS
Between 12,320 AD and 13,700 AD, eighteen species independently cracked faster-than-light travel. Some through gravitational manipulation. Some through biological symbiosis. Some through methods that still defy explanation. Each solution reflects the species that invented it—their values, their fears, their fundamental relationship with reality.◈ Choose Your Lens
> SPECIES DATABASE INITIALIZED
> SELECT CLASSIFICATION VECTOR:
By Origin
Where did they come from?Human-Derived — Species that began as humanity
Uplifted Earth — Animals granted sapience
Non-Earth Origin — Species from other worlds
Original Nine — Ancient species, mostly extinct
By Alliance
Who do they stand with?LCUS — Lumen Coalition of United Systems
BHP — Biotic Harmony Pact
DMA — Dark Matter Alliance
ORA — Outer Rim Alliance
Neutral/Independent — Unaligned powers
By Galaxy
Where do they rule?• Milky Way Galaxy — Lumen, Humans, Uplifted, Elders
• Andarion Galaxy — Aetherians
• Drago Galaxy — Draken
• Krythar Galaxy — Krythorians
• Lumoriae Galaxy — Ethereans
• Solarae Galaxy — Terradorians, Luminar
• Vyxian Galaxy — Vyxians
• Zorlac Galaxy — Zorlacians
By Technology
How do they build?Dark Matter Tech — Gravity, singularities, spacetime manipulation
Biotic Tech — Living systems, organic symbiosis, growth
Hybrid/Non-Aligned — Mixed or unique approaches
◈ The Major Powers
Human-Derived Species
What humanity became—and what it refused to become.Lumen
"We did not abandon humanity. We fulfilled it."Post-human beings transformed through Chrono-Biogenesis (7800 AD). Bioluminescent skin, 800-year lifespans, six fingers per hand, and the ability to manipulate energy as naturally as breathing. They founded the LCUS and now control 40 of 58 galactic sectors.
FTL: 12,500 AD — Quantum Singularity Drive Homeworld: Earth (UniTerra) Alliance: Lumen Coalition of Unified Systems (founders)
Humans (Holdouts)
"We remember what it meant to be mortal."The 0.1% who refused transformation. They preserve baseline human genetics on the island of Tungol and scattered enclaves across the galaxy. Lifespan: 100-120 years. They are living museums—and living warnings about what was lost.
FTL: Via Lumen Starbridges (not independent) Homeworld: Earth (Tungol) Alliance: Human Confederation
Uplifted Earth Species
Animals granted sapience through Project Ascendancy (4280 AD). They inherited a world where Humans had become gods—and had to build civilizations anyway.Canines
Pack-minds who compute through scent. Their Olfactory Processing Arrays can solve problems no digital system can match. Loyalty is not sentiment—it is architecture.FTL: 13,500 AD Society: Pack-based democratic federation
Felines
Aristocratic predators who built an empire on territorial instinct. Their Purr-Wave Communication carries emotional truth that words cannot falsify.FTL: 13,400 AD Society: Clan-based meritocratic hierarchy
Primates
Tool-users who achieved FTL not through independent invention but through the Lumen Starbridge network. They are the exception that proves the rule—and they know it.FTL: 9,412 AD (via Starbridge) Society: Consensus-based eco-technocracy
Swine
Nomadic industrialists who smell opportunity the way others see light. Their biotech innovations in agriculture feed half the galaxy.FTL: 13,700 AD Society: Nomadic herds, sustainable resource focus
Cephalopods
Color-shifting strategists whose 300-500 year lifespans allow for plans that span generations. They communicate in chromatic languages that transmit emotion as data.FTL: 13,300 AD Society: Bio-gothic political hierarchies
Cetaceans
Ocean-born philosophers who perceive time as fluid rather than linear. Their sonic technologies shaped the Surf and Turf Wars—and the peace that followed.FTL: 13,542 AD Society: Ecological stewardship, deep philosophy
Non-Earth Origin Species
They evolved under alien suns, with alien pressures, toward alien solutions. Meeting them changed everything we thought we knew about intelligence.Aetherians
Born in the perpetual cyclone of gas giant Aethoria. Four arms, prismatic skin, atmospheric navigation as instinct. They deny the Primordial Essence exists—while using it constantly.FTL: 12,600 AD Galaxy: Andarion Alliance: Neutral Zone
Draken
Volcanic warriors whose homeworld died but whose empire did not. Honor-scarred, heat-resistant, and carrying a grudge against the universe itself. The Dra'kor Honor Code governs everything.FTL: 12,550 AD Galaxy: Drago Alliance: DMA (major faction)
Elders
Sole surviving civilization from the Original Nine. Three feet tall, millennia-old, masters of temporal technology. They watch. They guide. They omit. They are playing a game measured in geological time.FTL: ~1,087,000 BC Galaxy: Milky Way (Pleiades) Alliance: Neutral (officially)
Krythorians
Warrior giants from a world of constant conflict. Seven to nine feet tall, grey ridged skin, tactical genius bred into their bones. They founded the Outer Rim Alliance to resist Lumen expansion.FTL: 12,320 AD Galaxy: Krythar Alliance: ORA (founders)
Nebulites
Nomadic historians born from interstellar clouds. They travel without ships, live 3,000-4,000 years, and remember everything. Mediators, archivists, and keepers of truths others would prefer forgotten.FTL: ~500,000 BC (innate ability) Galaxy: All (nomadic) Alliance: Independent
Terradorians
Plant-humanoid hybrids from forest world Terradora. They photosynthesize, grow their technology, and believe spreading life across the cosmos is a sacred duty.FTL: 12,520 AD Galaxy: Solarae Alliance: BHP
Vyxians
Reptilian shapeshifters from the shadows of Vyxia. Color-changing scales, centuries of lifespan, and a society built on blackmail, patronage, and the Shadow Syndicate. Trust nothing they show you.FTL: 12,750 AD Galaxy: Vyxian Alliance: ORA
Zorlacians
Volcanic industrialists from Zorlac. Heat-resistant, electromagnetically sensitive, rarely seen outside armored exoskeletons. They mine dark matter itself—and they're very good at it.FTL: 12,680 AD Galaxy: Zorlac Alliance: ORA
◈ The Hidden Players
The Nexum
Not officially a species. Not officially anything.Descendants of the Mechanix—one of the Original Nine, supposedly extinct for a million years. They survived through bio-synthetic metamorphosis, becoming shapeshifters capable of replacing anyone, anywhere, indefinitely.
They control the Celestial Concordat from the shadows. Their "Grand Design" has been shaping galactic history since before most species achieved sapience.
You have already met them. You did not know it.
The Original Nine
Eight species destroyed in the First Unraveling. One survived.• Mechanix — Extinct (Nexum descended)
• Dynari — Extinct
• Cognix — Extinct
• Aurorin — Extinct
• Vortexi — Extinct
• Seraphel — Extinct
• Syclynx — Extinct
• Elders — Survived
• The Artisans — Extinct
Their technology, their knowledge, their warnings—most of it is lost. The Elders remember. The Elders do not share.
◈ Power Blocs
LCUS
Lumen Coalition of United SystemsThe dominant power. 40 of 58 galactic sectors. Founded by Lumens, joined by allies and client states. Dark Matter technology. Officially democratic. Secretly run by the Shadow Arbiters.
ORA
Outer Rim AllianceThe resistance. Krythorians, Vyxians, Zorlacians united against Lumen expansion. Their motto: sovereignty over convenience. Their method: whatever works.
BHP
Biotic Harmony PactThe alternative. Terradorians, Ethereans, Luminars, and others who grow their technology rather than forge it. They believe the Schism is a choice—and they chose life.
DMA
Dark Matter AllianceThe engineers of spacetime. Lumens, Draken, and their partners who bend gravity to their will. They believe the universe is a machine—and they are learning to operate it.
◈ Where to Begin
RECOMMENDED ENTRY POINTS
New to the Lumen Universe? Start with Lumen — the post-human species at the center of modern galactic politics.
Interested in Earth's future? Explore the Uplifted Species — Canines, Felines, Cetaceans, and their transformed world.
Want alien perspectives? Try Draken for warrior honor or Aetherians for storm-born philosophy.
Looking for mystery? The Elders know everything. They share almost nothing.
Eighteen species achieved faster-than-light travel independently. Each one thought they were special. Each one was right—and wrong in exactly the same way.
World Codex
Timelines
© Lumen Universe, Kyle Barrett 2024. All rights reserved.