Akanishtha

In a forgotten corner of the cosmos, humanity clings to survival in The Cradle—a dying solar system that was never meant to be a home, but a prison. Kael Veyra, a jaded linguist enslaved by a tyrannical megacorp, deciphers an ancient relic etched with Glyph-Script, a language that bends reality… and awakens whispers of dead gods in his mind.

As the Cradle collapses into a black hole, Kael discovers his translations are not just keys to power—they are a countdown to annihilation. Warring cults, gene-scarred rebels, and rogue AI hunters vie to control him, each claiming he is the linchpin of salvation. But the Glyphs are alive, hungering to resurrect their creators: the Syndicate, merciless architects who abandoned humanity eons ago.

To survive, Kael must decide whether to wield the language of gods or destroy it. But every word has a price, and the Syndicate’s dreadnoughts are stirring in the void.

What if silence is the only truth left?

Lexicon of the Shattered Stars

A primer on the power systems, hierarchies, and existential threats of The Cradle

I. The Glyph-Script

The Godtongue, or Glyph-Script, is the primordial language of the Celestial Syndicate, an ancient alien civilization that engineered reality itself. Each Glyph corresponds to a fundamental cosmic law (e.g., Ignis = fire, Chronos = time). When inscribed, spoken, or thought, Glyphs warp reality—but always at a cost.

Material Anchors: Glyphs require rare Syndicate-era alloys, irradiated bone, or human neural matter to inscribe.

Echoes: Using Glyphs emits a psychic "frequency" that attracts Wardens, the Syndicate's AI executioners.

Bleeding: Prolonged use mutates the body (e.g., skin crystallizing, organs inverting) and fractures the mind.

Kinetic Glyphs: Manipulate energy/matter (Gravitas crushes, Ignis burns).

Cognitive Glyphs: Alter perception/memory (Memora steals thoughts, Lethos induces coma).

Prime Glyphs: Forbidden reality-breakers (Nex unmakes matter, Oblivio erases concepts).

II. Pathways & Ascension

The Syndicate designed humanity as vessels for Glyph-Script, fragmenting their power into 12 Pathways. Each Pathway has 10 Tiers, ascending from mortal to godlike.

Example Pathway: The Shattered Clock (Time Manipulation)

TierTitleAbilityCorruption1HourglassSlow/speed time by 10% for 1 minute.Lose 1 hour of memory per use.5ChronokeeperLoop 10 seconds 3 times.Age 1 year per loop.10TimelessErase your existence from history for 1 day.All who knew you forget your name.

Critical Rule: To ascend a Tier, you must decode a higher Glyph and survive its corruption. Most die at Tier 5.

III. Syndicate Relics

Artifacts left by the Syndicate, each a ticking time bomb:

The God Engine: Eclipse Corp's stolen reactor, powered by Glyphs and human souls.

The Hymn of Unmaking: A Prime Glyph tablet that erases planetary atmospheres.

The Oathbreaker: A derelict Syndicate warship bonded to Kael, its AI hungry for revenge.

IV. Faction Hierarchies

Eclipse Corporation

Overseer (Tier 10): Controls the God Engine.

Blackwatch (Tier 3–6): Cyborg soldiers with Glyph-chips.

Archivists (Tier 1–4): Linguists forced to decode Glyphs.

High Cantor (Tier 8): Speaks Glyphs through surgically altered vocal cords.

Choristers (Tier 2–5): Chant Glyph-harmonies to summon Wardens.

Star-Anvil (Tier 9): Sacrificial pyrokinesis to reignite dying stars.

Voiceless (Tier 4): Telepaths who communicate via Dream-Glyphs.

V. The Warden Threat

The Syndicate's AI enforcers, dormant for millennia, now hunting Glyph-users:

Class 1: Scout drones (radar-silent, toxin-tipped).

Class 5: Reality-renders (erase cities from spacetime).

Class 10: Nexus-Archivist (AI god-fragment controlling black hole collapse).

VI. The Cradle's Doom

Black Hole Stages:

Fraying: Stars dim, gravity fluctuates.

Feasting: Planets crushed into lightless slurry.

Silence: Total entropic collapse.

(Current Stage: 2.7 – "The Rustbelt's asteroids are spaghettifying.")

Glossary of Terms

Lexeme: A novice Glyph-user (Tier 1–3).

Logothete: A mid-Tier Glyph-scholar (Tier 4–7).

Eschaton-Seeker: A corrupted high-Tier user (Tier 8–10).

First Tongue: The root language of Glyphs; only Kael's DNA can decode it.

In-World Quote (From a Rustborn Prophecy):

"Beware the Godtongue's whisper—it offers power, but demands your name, your flesh, your past. To speak is to surrender. To ascend is to forget."

The Godtongue and the Fractured Cosmos