The Infinite Consortium

Summary
Between each world is a swirling void of angry flames, the colorless dark eating and lapping at those who enter it's sea. Where existence is not tolerated and souls are lost within the white crackling tide, swimming through the endless dimensional pool, with no knowing where the surface is. The suffering lasts forever as the pain of stripped sentience and restricted senses digs down onto the primitive mind. No matter how much one may try, it stretches farther, farther, and farther. No matter how far one paddles their way up, they only continue to drown in the infinite suffering of the Consortium.

However, there are bubbles. Bubbles free of the horrors that float up from the indeterminable ocean floor, entire worlds and entire realms resting inside. These souls, if ever so lucky, can collide with the soft barriers of these bubbles and scratch at their soft, soothing surfaces, begging for a breach. A breach to allow them into the greatness of reality and existence once more.

But as much as the flames of the void tear down the mighty, the mighty can build up the flames. Those who can resist the voracious flames can learn to manipulate it; those who can manipulate it can learn of it's properties; those who learn of it's properties can understand it. And those who understand the Infinite Consortium can leave their lives behind for a new life. Rarely can one understand the Consortium, much less survive it. When the bubbles are popped, complete demise is certain. But for those who survive it, they can open their eyes within the bright darkness, feel the fire nibble and support them, a new champion of the void. And these heroes of light may travel, spreading the Consortium wherever they go, be it for malicious or noble purposes. The pages of the esoteric dimensional magic only expands, different mages discovering different techniques and uses, no wizard the same.

When given this domain, many questions flash through the mind. But the most important one is the one that will linger with you for your entire life; "What should I do next?"

Powers of the Verse
The power of The Infinite Consortium is surprisingly high overall. Not only do all travellers of the void possess an extra-dimensional resistance to the erasure of one’s existence and manipulation of one’s soul, but the abilities utilized by these travellers can stretch from the most basic casting to manipulation of space and time. While the lower tiers, usually around 8-A, lack very much hax, a select few individuals rise even up to Low 2-C with even more powerful hax.

One example of this would be Valev, who prides himself with incredible magical defenses against most commonly known forms of hax, all powered by the Soul of Valev. The more souls he has, the stronger his abilities and resistances. At his peak, he could exert influence with his own hax on a fifth-dimensional level, and defend himself similarly.

Regarding speed, most 8-As in the verse have varying travel speeds, but at least Massively Hypersonic+ speeds via being able to dodge or avoid attacks of raw sound, alongside various other feats.

Overall, the verse varies in power but a majority are 8-A. However, to make up for relatively similar AP, a large amount of stronger enemies have powerful abilities and hax.

Magic
All magic within The Consortium comes from the soul. Every world and every realm draws their mana from deep within. Some have powerful souls, blistering with incredible and esoteric abilities that rip apart the fabric of reality with anguish and flamboyance, defying all that was set in stone. Some have weak souls, and rely on their body rather than the arcane.

What is important, though, is how the soul interacts. The raw, undefended soul is separate from the body. If the host were to die, the soul shall live on. This allows people such as Valev to optimize on these windows of opportunity, such as sending Valev off to another world every time he is dead. Even existence erasure doesn’t tear apart a soul in The Infinite Consortium. To truly destroy an individual, soul manipulation is required. One weakness of this version of the soul is that the exposed soul is separated from the resistances of the body. All soul manipulation within the verse is specially effective on the dead or dying, as the souls weaken to such a point that even an amateur soul mage could damn a higher-dimensional entity.

Cosmology
There are three main worlds to The Infinite Consortium; The Worlds, The Infinite Consortium, and The Nothingness. These layers of the verse make up all that is known, although the possibility of things existing beyond current understanding still lingers.

The Worlds
The Worlds are simply 3-D worlds littered among The Infinite Consortium. They vary in age, development, and even the life inside. Some worlds are normal, some are more dangerous. But no matter what, each and every one exists in a small bubble of existence among the cruel sea of erasure.

These worlds are afflicted by The Infinite Consortium in varying degrees. Makara, for example, suffers heavily from rifts in the void that lets in spatial anomalies and otherworldly entities on a regular basis. To counter this, adventurers are in high demand to constantly travel the world in small parties and wipe out issues swiftly. They have turned their suffering into a rampant business that attracts demand from throughout the multiverse.

Meanwhile, some worlds are afflicted by The Consortium in other ways. Tidatia, while only moderately struck by rifts and pillars of white flames, is under the control of several Consortium organizations, primarily The Consortium Federation. It is often used as a stronghold for multiversal crime and operations, with no real way to rid itself of it's invaders.

The Infinite Consortium
The flames that make up the fabric of the fourth dimension are known as some of the most esoteric and cryptic materials known to man. This expansion stretches across all of reality, containing every last world. Time flows oddly, with the past, present, and future fluctuating within the void. Any and all existence and matter within it gets consumed by the ravenous souls and licking embers within, leaving not even a cell behind. Those that can survive and control it are truly the strongest entities in the multiverse.

However, while Consortium Travelers are both rare and powerful, there exists true entities native to The Consortium. These creatures are known by many names, but are often referred to as Leviathans. Little is known except from the rumors. Some say that for every billion worlds, one Leviathan is born. Some say that every breath they take releases thousands of bubbles of existence into the sea around them. But one thing is known; their power is immeasurable. The slightest glance can obliterate an entire world and all within it. They have never been seen, for their existence is beyond dimensional comprehension. To destroy a Leviathan is to achieve godhood.

Part of the mystery of The Consortium comes from merely the fact that nothing is really known about it. Completely comprehending the fourth-dimensional space is nigh impossible and induces madness on even the strongest of travelers. To just exist within it for any period time shows powerful resistances to Soul Manipulation and Existence Erasure on a four-dimensional level, and manipulating these flames allows for one to erase others on a similar field.

Yet, there is still more behind it.

The Nothingness
Where little is known about The Consortium, nothing is known about The Nothingness. Rumors have been spoken of spatial holes within The Consortium that lead to a space impossible to see, understand, much less describe. The few sightings describe it as a void, lacking any resemblance of reality. Some say that as their eyes met the rifts, they were locked in place for years on end, eternally gazing into the rift, even if they were only gone for thirty minutes.

One theory stands strong, though; a fifth-dimensional space. A void beyond the void.

The Consortium's Blessing
The affliction of the void brings curses as well as boons. While some say that only those with a warrior's heart can obtain The Blessing, the truth is that it's simply a thing from birth. What makes up The Blessing is unknown, along with what decides it. All that's known is that occasionally, individuals will discover an affinity for the extradimensional fire. And from there, their magic will flourish.

All Consortium Travelers have the following: As well, many Consortium Travelers have unique abilities that come with their Blessing, such as the following:
 * 4-D Resistance to Existence Erasure and Soul Manipulation.
 * 4-D Fire Manipulation and Existence Erasure via The Flames of The Consortium.
 * Dimensional Travel, Portal Creation, and oftentimes short-ranged Teleportation.
 * Superhuman Physical Characteristics.
 * Self-Sustenance (Type 1; The Infinite Consortium has no air).

Valev 'Valev' Valev

 * Valev possesses incredible Soul Manipulation, using souls as a power source to fuel immortality and his magic. While in his Arc 1 and World of Myths keys, his manipulation is lackluster against living people, his utility is still incredible, allowing him to even gain the blessings of others, although in more minute capabilities.
 * He also has marvelous control over time itself. His Time Manipulation allows him unbridled versatility, from stopping time to duplicating attacks to even cloning himself. He uses this domain over time in many incredibly unique ways, even learning how to cast illusions with it to trick the enemy. With this came his famed Anamnesis Technique, an incredibly powerful enchantment of time Valev cast upon himself. More details about this ability on Valev's profile.

Canonicity
The Infinite Consortium has two main parts; the stories, and the roleplay. It is important to note that the canonicity of these two do not directly overlap. The stories compose of short stories written about Valev’s adventures, canonically involving his Homeworld, Act, and Collective keys. The roleplays consist of both current and past RPs, with varying canonicity to the main verse.