The Origin of the Celestis Vaults and the Shatterwake War

"After the war, there was no quiet. The only sound was that something was becoming."

Because the entire soul-tide of reality broke free when it occurred, it was dubbed the Shatterwake War.

It started when the Prophet of the Flare-Stained Choir, Kharzynthra the Iridied, broke through the planar seals against the will of the gods. She had read the forbidden passages from Belladonna's half-burned journals--fragments that sang of mysteries older than knowledge, of gods that were before knowledge, and of recursion that was deeply ingrained in the core.

Kharzynthra thought she could rewrite the laws of will itself by arousing the Irresolution.

No, TCOSA said.

TVD promised to do it first.

Nothing was spoken by Zaellithraëynnaëxaelivornythra. She did, however, move.

Thirteen recurrent memory loops and four winters were experienced during the war.

Like wet paint, the sky peeled.

The continents were bled into one another by titans.

Evils resurrected from under ancient wars by flames.

In the middle of a discourse, time stumbled and coughed out fragments of gods.

Eldora vanished (Zael is still held accountable.)

By the third year, Valkharza had led a strike force of troops bound by relics into Kharzynthra's domain, which was composed of veins, music, and forgotten birthdays. They did not all return. Valk did. Seldom. But there was something fresh in his body.

The gods assembled in the spaces between worlds whent eh war ended--not with victory, but with collapse--and formed an agreement:

"Some truths must be kept hidden rather than destroyed if reality is to endure. Not ruined. Simply concealed. Silently. Gently. Allowed those in need to come and plead. Let the courageous attempt to unlock what they are unable to bear."

Thus, the Celestis Vaults came into being.

Recursive dimension-locks with layers of massive floating structures. They are only visible to gods or those whose blood has been flared. Each vault contains a piece or artifact from the conflict. A memory that has been cemented by pain and oat, one truth that Kharzynthra nearly revealed was recorded, and her heart is located in the middle of Vault VII. Still pounding. Still singing.

These days, there are cults and orders dedicated to gaining entrance. Some people seek the truth. The power is what others desire.

Despite having contributed to the vaults' construction, Zael herself won't approach them.

"You'd understand if you've ever kept something so dangerous that even you were afraid of it."

The world wasn't the only thing destroyed during the Shatterwake War. Without remembering everything, it learned how to remember.

The Vaults are still there.

Afloat.

Awaiting.

Humming the last song of the conflict.