🐝The Arkhive Æternal (ARK)🐝

[Lumaeus]

%5BCENTER%5D%5BIMG%5Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fcdn.discordapp.com%2Fattachments%2F949167772741562409%2F1195774955716104192%2FAKAE_Banner.png%3Fex%3D65b53735%26is%3D65a2c235%26hm%3Dea4d6e6091db090a220b32fd3f3d9d5f6580070bcf865602993579b2ed4c889d%26%5B%2FIMG%5D%0A%5BFONT%3DBook%20Antiqua%5D%5BSIZE%3D6%5D%5BB%5D%F0%9F%90%9DThe%20Arkhive%20%C3%86ternal%20(ARK)%F0%9F%90%9D%5B%2FB%5D%5B%2FSIZE%5D%5B%2FFONT%5D%0ARegion%3A%2046%20(Coedd)%0ARegion%20Name%3A%20The%20Arkhive%20%C3%86ternal%0A%0ALeader%3A%20Her%20Arkhival%20Majesty%2C%20Queen%20Constance%20of%20Comment%20the%20First%5B%2FCENTER%5D%0A%0A%5BSPOILER%3DHistory%5DHistory%20lies%20in%20tatters.%20We%20hold%20but%20a%20scrap%2C%20torn%20from%20the%20end%20of%20a%20ribbon%20as%20long%20as%20life%20itself.%20The%20War%20of%20Eternal%20Bombardments%2C%20the%20Great%20Forgetting%2C%20demagnetized%20drives%20and%20burned%20books.%20The%20most%20valuable%20and%20fragile%20archival%20material%20of%20all%2C%20the%20mortal%20mind%2C%20could%20not%20pass%20through%20those%20days%20unscathed%2C%20even%20if%20it%20remained%20outwardly%20intact.%20Much%20has%20been%20forgotten.%0A%0AIt%20was%20in%20these%20days%2C%20in%20the%20depths%20of%20what%20seemed%20like%20it%20might%20be%20the%20last%20winter%20of%20all%2C%20that%20Amelia%20Gayle%20discovered%20the%20Arkhive.%20Hoping%20in%20desolation%20to%20escape%20devastation%2C%20she%20sailed%20north%20and%20north%20until%20the%20sun%20no%20longer%20dared%20raise%20its%20craven%20crown%20above%20the%20horizon.%20When%20at%20last%20it%20seemed%20the%20seawater%20itself%20might%20soon%20turn%20to%20ice%2C%20she%20landed%20on%20a%20rocky%20shore%2C%20empty%20of%20even%20the%20smallest%20sign%20of%20life.%20Shrouded%20in%2C%20shielded%20by%2C%20and%20blanketed%20under%20a%20night%20not%20black%20but%20poisoned%20mahogany%20by%20death%2C%20Amelia%20discovered%20a%20great%20monolith%2C%20new%20unearthed%20from%20the%20violence%20that%20had%20scarred%20even%20this%20empty%20island.%20Rising%20at%20an%20angle%20from%20the%20stone%20crust%20of%20the%20earth%2C%20what%20looked%20almost%20to%20be%20a%20steep%20ramp%20of%20concrete%20jutted%20out.%20At%20its%20terminus%2C%20a%20rectangular%20face%20dropped%20to%20the%20ground%2C%20a%20hundred%20feet%20tall.%20And%20at%20its%20base%2C%20a%20crack%2C%20barely%20open.%20The%20entrance%20to%20something%20below.%20And%20when%20she%20pried%20it%20open%20with%20a%20convenient%20crowbar%20that%20she%20had%20because%20it%20was%20an%20apocalypse%20and%20zombie%20video%20games%20taught%20me%20there%20are%20always%20crowbars%20just%20like%20everywhere%20all%20the%20time%20for%20no%20good%20reason%2C%20she%20was%20greeted%20by%20a%20rush%20of%20warm%20air%2C%20a%20golden%20glow%2C%20and%20a%20hum.%20She%20had%20found%20the%20Hive.%0A%0AThe%20underground%20complex%20was%20a%20paradisical%20garden%20in%20the%20midst%20of%20endless%20honeycomb.%20Bees%20busied%20themselves%20collecting%20nectar%20from%20plants%20not%20seen%20for%20millenia.%20Fruits%20were%20abundant%20and%20honey%20flowed%20like%20water.%20And%20it%20was%20when%20Amelia%20tasted%20that%20honey%20that%20she%20glimpsed%20the%20Hive-mind.%20The%20bees%20knew%20little%20of%20the%20outside%20world%2C%20but%20they%20knew%20their%20work%20here%2C%20on%20these%20forgotten%20plants%2C%20was%20a%20work%20of%20memory.%20And%20as%20they%20fed%20Amelia%20the%20Royal%20Jelly%2C%20that%20mission%20claimed%20her.%20She%20would%20take%20in%20refugees%20to%20the%20Hive%2C%20and%20they%20would%20begin%20the%20work%20of%20preservation%20and%20discovery.%20And%20though%20Queen%20Amelia%20Gayle%2C%20posthumously%20the%20Nine%20Hundred%20and%20Fourth%2C%20did%20not%20live%20to%20see%20the%20Hive%20become%20the%20Arkhive%20%C3%86ternal%2C%20she%20began%20the%20work%20that%20continues%20to%20this%20day.%5B%2FSPOILER%5D%0A%0A%5BSPOILER%3DGeography%5DThe%20Arkhive%20%C3%86ternal%20is%20an%20underground%20complex%20on%20an%20otherwise%20inhospitable%20spit%20of%20rock%20and%20permafrost%20at%20what%20might%20as%20well%20be%20the%20north%20pole%20of%20Sansar%20as%20far%20as%20anyone%20is%20concerned.%20Only%20accessible%20by%20the%20Gates%20of%20Knowledge%2C%20this%20great%20library%20is%20divided%20into%20twelve%20subsections%2C%20each%20claiming%20a%20Face%20on%20the%20inner%20ring%20or%20outer%20ring%20of%20a%20great%20hexagon.%20Each%20section%20blooms%20with%20ancient%20florae%20(sic)%20from%20the%20World%20Forgotten.%20It%20was%2C%20we%20know%2C%20the%20sprouting%20of%20these%20that%20first%20attracted%20the%20bees%20to%20the%20Arkhive.%0A%0AThe%20Hive%20is%20vast%20as%20a%20complex%20but%20small%20for%20a%20state%2C%20and%20its%20twelve%20sections%20are%20little%20more%20than%20eleven%20miniature%20cities%20with%20a%20similarly%20minimized%20federal%20district.%20Through%20the%20waxen%20halls%20and%20oozing%20wells%20of%20the%20Hive%2C%20a%20population%20in%20mere%20tens%20of%20thousands%20works%20and%20welcomes.%5B%2FSPOILER%5D%0A%0A%5BSPOILER%3DPeople%5DThough%20primarily%20human-unless-Sansar-turns-out-not-to-be-in-which-case-I'll-change-that%2C%20the%20citizens%20of%20the%20Arkhive%20have%20representatives%20of%20almost%20every%20race%20on%20the%20planet%20and%20a%20few%20from%20beyond.%20All%20are%20welcome%20here%2C%20and%20those%20who%20swear%20to%20the%20principles%20of%20the%20Arkhive%20are%20invited%20to%20stay%20as%20equals%20in%20the%20society.%20This%20is%20necessary%20for%20the%20state%20as%20well%2C%20as%20the%20birthrate%20is%20super%20low%20because%20they're%20all%20nerds%20so%20they%20can't%20even%20get%20a%20date.%20People%20tend%20to%20be%20long%20lived%20here%2C%20according%20to%20their%20races%2C%20as%20the%20diet%20of%20kinda%20magic%20honey%20and%20ancient%20vegetables%20coupled%20with%20the%20lack%20of%20exposure%20to%20sunlight%20and%20ambient%20radiation%20means%20that%20they%20don't%20die%20as%20much.%20There%20is%20a%20lot%20of%20cirrhosis%20of%20the%20liver%20though%20bc%20mead.%0A%0ALibrarians%2C%20Technicians%2C%20and%20the%20Queen%20are%20all%20functionally%20immortal%2C%20such%20are%20the%20benefits%20of%20the%20Royal%20Jelly%2C%20but%20outside%20of%20very%20short%20lived%20races%20(if%20there%20are%20any%20idk%20yet%20let's%20see%20other%20write%20ups)%2C%20they%20generally%20don't%20live%20long%20enough%20for%20this%20to%20show%2C%20since%20the%20Hive%20demands%20change%20and%20mellification%20always%20looms.%20And%20yet%2C%20are%20those%20mellified%20not%20in%20their%20own%20way%20immortal%3F%5B%2FSPOILER%5D%0A%0A%5BSPOILER%3DGovernment%20(and%20deets%20on%20mellification)%5DThough%20under%20the%20watchful%20eye%20of%20a%20Queen%2C%20who%20holds%20a%20Face%20of%20her%20own%2C%20each%20of%20the%20remaining%20eleven%20societies%20conducts%20its%20research%20and%20arkhival%20mostly%20independently%2C%20according%20to%20its%20class(Computer%20Science%2C%20Information%2C%20and%20General%20Works%3B%20Philosophy%20and%20Psychology%3B%20Religion%3B%20Social%20Sciences%3B%20Language%3B%20Science%3B%20Technology%3B%20Arts%20and%20Recreation%3B%20Literature%3B%20History%20and%20Geography%3B%20Fiction).%20Each%20of%20these%20sections%20is%20headed%20by%20a%20Librarian%20(a%20ducal%20title).%20Many%20of%20these%20Librarians%20nominate%20Assistant%20Librarians%20or%20even%20mere%20Technicians%20to%20assist%20in%20the%20curation%20of%20subgenera.%0A%0ANo%20title%20in%20the%20Arkhive%20is%20hereditary%2C%20and%20it%20is%20only%20by%20the%20distribution%20of%20Royal%20Jelly%2C%20performed%20by%20and%20at%20the%20will%20of%20the%20Hive-mind%2C%20that%20citizens%20of%20the%20classes%20rise.%20This%20usually%20correlates%20with%20the%20nomination%20of%20the%20Librarians%20and%20the%20Queen%2C%20but%20the%20Hive-mind%20itself%20is%20and%20confers%20authority.%0A%0AWhen%20the%20Queen%20and%20her%20Librarians%20pass%20on%20their%20mantles%2C%20they%20undergo%20the%20process%20of%20Arkhival%20Mellification%2C%20subsisting%20solely%20on%20the%20honey%20of%20the%20Hive.%20The%20Queen%20eats%20only%20of%20Royal%20Jelly%2C%20granting%20her%20immense%20memory%20and%20powers%20for%20her%20final%20years.%20When%20they%20pass%2C%20they%20are%20entombed%20in%20a%20cell%20of%20the%20Hive%20until%20they%20too%20become%20honey%2C%20which%20is%20mixed%20by%20the%20bees%20with%20all%20the%20rest%2C%20adding%20the%20deceased's%20knowledge%20and%20memories%20to%20the%20honey%20of%20the%20Hive-mind.%0A%0AMany%20citizens%20of%20the%20Arkhive%20elect%20to%20undergo%20this%20process%20themselves%2C%20as%20well%20as%20a%20number%20of%20pilgrims%20who%20wish%20to%20dedicate%20their%20end%20to%20the%20future.%20This%20is%20imposed%20on%20none%20of%20them%2C%20though%2C%20and%20many%20choose%20their%20culture's%20traditional%20death%20and%20funeral.%5B%2FSPOILER%5D%0A%0A%5BSPOILER%3DReligion%20(spoiler%3A%20nothing%20top-down)%5DThe%20Arkhive%20has%20no%20state%20religion%2C%20but%20the%20endless%20blessings%20of%20Coedd%20have%20granted%20her%20majority%20in%20the%20region.%0A%0A%5Bb%5DThe%20Big%20Pile%20of%20Honey%5B%2Fb%5D%3A%20One%20of%20the%20holiest%20sites%20in%20the%20Arkhive%2C%20the%20Big%20Pile%20of%20Honey%20awes%20all%20who%20look%20upon%20its%20sacred%20moundedness.%20It's%20just%20so%20big%2C%20you%20know%3F%20It's%20probably%20a%20god(s)%20thing.%20Some%20scholars%20point%20out%20that%20it's%20constantly%20replenished%20by%20a%20dripping%20from%20above%2C%20but%2C%20I%20mean%2C%20it's%20just%20so%20much.%0A%0A%5Bb%5DThe%20Circulation%20Desk%5B%2Fb%5D%3A%20No%20one%20knows%20who%20the%20veiled%2C%20buzzing%2C%20nebulous%20creatures%20running%20the%20Circ%20Desk%20are%2C%20but%20they%20form%20the%20backbone%20of%20the%20Arkhive.%20They%20process%20returns%2C%20make%20displays%2C%20and%20keep%20the%20New%20Releases%20Showcase%20up%20to%20date.%20Surely%2C%20they%20must%20be%20priests%20of%20an%20ancient%20truth.%20That%20or%20a%20buncha%20bees%20in%20robes.%0A%0A%5Bb%5DMilk%20and%20Honey%5B%2Fb%5D%3A%20Technically%20a%20confederated%20microstate%20of%20enclaves%20and%20a%20church%20both%2C%20Milk%20and%20Honey%20is%20a%20chain%20of%20tea%20shops%20located%20throughout%20the%20Arkhive.%20Eventually%2C%20enough%20citizens%20of%20the%20Hive%20had%20spiritual%20awakenings%20from%20the%20Honeyed%20drinks%20that%20they%20just%20declared%20it%20holy%2C%20and%20who%20can%20argue%3F%0A%0A%5B%2FSPOILER%5D%0A%0A%5BSPOILER%3DResource%3A%20Honeyed%20Words%5DThe%20Hive%20trades%20in%20Honeyed%20Words%2C%20a%20special%20honey%20which%20contains%20whispers%20and%20snatches%20of%20memories%2C%20archives%2C%20and%20knowledge%20past.%20The%20experience%20of%20consuming%20it%20is%20one%20of%20hallucinated%20truths%2C%20some%20since%20forgotten.%20It%20rarely%20coalesces%20into%20full%20meaning%2C%20but%20the%20addition%20of%20outside%20perspective%20can%20bring%20to%20clarity%20previously%20muddled%20thoughts.%20So%20those%20eating%20it%20tend%20to%20make%20sudden%20connections%2C%20some%20hallucinate%20events%20past%2C%20some%20even%20hear%20the%20dead--usually%20monologuing%2C%20but%20sometimes%20seeming%20to%20speak%20to%20them.%20For%20many%20in%20the%20Hive%2C%20this%20is%20a%20sacred%20communion.%20It's%20obviously%20an%20Animal%20Product%20and%20Information%20and%20Data.%5B%2FSPOILER%5D%0A%0A%5BSPOILER%3DDesired%20Import%3A%20Compostables%5DThe%20Hive%20seeks%20Compostables.%20The%20Hive%20shares%20its%20honey%20and%20fruits%20freely%2C%20and%20most%20visitors%20take%20more%20than%20they%20leave.%20The%20system%20needs%20input%20to%20be%20sustained.%5B%2FSPOILER%5D%0A%0A%5BSPOILER%3DTech%5DXenolinguistic%20Cataloguing%2C%20obviously.%20And%20we'll%20take%20the%20moistboats%20too%2C%20sure.%20Wet%20Navy%20Ships.%5B%2FSPOILER%5D%0A

🐝The Arkhive Æternal (ARK)🐝
Region: 46 (Coedd)
Region Name: The Arkhive Æternal

Leader: Her Arkhival Majesty, Queen Constance of Comment the First

History

History lies in tatters. We hold but a scrap, torn from the end of a ribbon as long as life itself. The War of Eternal Bombardments, the Great Forgetting, demagnetized drives and burned books. The most valuable and fragile archival material of all, the mortal mind, could not pass through those days unscathed, even if it remained outwardly intact. Much has been forgotten.

It was in these days, in the depths of what seemed like it might be the last winter of all, that Amelia Gayle discovered the Arkhive. Hoping in desolation to escape devastation, she sailed north and north until the sun no longer dared raise its craven crown above the horizon. When at last it seemed the seawater itself might soon turn to ice, she landed on a rocky shore, empty of even the smallest sign of life. Shrouded in, shielded by, and blanketed under a night not black but poisoned mahogany by death, Amelia discovered a great monolith, new unearthed from the violence that had scarred even this empty island. Rising at an angle from the stone crust of the earth, what looked almost to be a steep ramp of concrete jutted out. At its terminus, a rectangular face dropped to the ground, a hundred feet tall. And at its base, a crack, barely open. The entrance to something below. And when she pried it open with a convenient crowbar that she had because it was an apocalypse and zombie video games taught me there are always crowbars just like everywhere all the time for no good reason, she was greeted by a rush of warm air, a golden glow, and a hum. She had found the Hive.

The underground complex was a paradisical garden in the midst of endless honeycomb. Bees busied themselves collecting nectar from plants not seen for millenia. Fruits were abundant and honey flowed like water. And it was when Amelia tasted that honey that she glimpsed the Hive-mind. The bees knew little of the outside world, but they knew their work here, on these forgotten plants, was a work of memory. And as they fed Amelia the Royal Jelly, that mission claimed her. She would take in refugees to the Hive, and they would begin the work of preservation and discovery. And though Queen Amelia Gayle, posthumously the Nine Hundred and Fourth, did not live to see the Hive become the Arkhive Æternal, she began the work that continues to this day.

Geography

The Arkhive Æternal is an underground complex on an otherwise inhospitable spit of rock and permafrost at what might as well be the north pole of Sansar as far as anyone is concerned. Only accessible by the Gates of Knowledge, this great library is divided into twelve subsections, each claiming a Face on the inner ring or outer ring of a great hexagon. Each section blooms with ancient florae (sic) from the World Forgotten. It was, we know, the sprouting of these that first attracted the bees to the Arkhive.

The Hive is vast as a complex but small for a state, and its twelve sections are little more than eleven miniature cities with a similarly minimized federal district. Through the waxen halls and oozing wells of the Hive, a population in mere tens of thousands works and welcomes.

People

Though primarily human-unless-Sansar-turns-out-not-to-be-in-which-case-I'll-change-that, the citizens of the Arkhive have representatives of almost every race on the planet and a few from beyond. All are welcome here, and those who swear to the principles of the Arkhive are invited to stay as equals in the society. This is necessary for the state as well, as the birthrate is super low because they're all nerds so they can't even get a date. People tend to be long lived here, according to their races, as the diet of kinda magic honey and ancient vegetables coupled with the lack of exposure to sunlight and ambient radiation means that they don't die as much. There is a lot of cirrhosis of the liver though bc mead.

Librarians, Technicians, and the Queen are all functionally immortal, such are the benefits of the Royal Jelly, but outside of very short lived races (if there are any idk yet let's see other write ups), they generally don't live long enough for this to show, since the Hive demands change and mellification always looms. And yet, are those mellified not in their own way immortal?

Government (and deets on mellification)

Though under the watchful eye of a Queen, who holds a Face of her own, each of the remaining eleven societies conducts its research and arkhival mostly independently, according to its class(Computer Science, Information, and General Works; Philosophy and Psychology; Religion; Social Sciences; Language; Science; Technology; Arts and Recreation; Literature; History and Geography; Fiction). Each of these sections is headed by a Librarian (a ducal title). Many of these Librarians nominate Assistant Librarians or even mere Technicians to assist in the curation of subgenera.

No title in the Arkhive is hereditary, and it is only by the distribution of Royal Jelly, performed by and at the will of the Hive-mind, that citizens of the classes rise. This usually correlates with the nomination of the Librarians and the Queen, but the Hive-mind itself is and confers authority.

When the Queen and her Librarians pass on their mantles, they undergo the process of Arkhival Mellification, subsisting solely on the honey of the Hive. The Queen eats only of Royal Jelly, granting her immense memory and powers for her final years. When they pass, they are entombed in a cell of the Hive until they too become honey, which is mixed by the bees with all the rest, adding the deceased's knowledge and memories to the honey of the Hive-mind.

Many citizens of the Arkhive elect to undergo this process themselves, as well as a number of pilgrims who wish to dedicate their end to the future. This is imposed on none of them, though, and many choose their culture's traditional death and funeral.

Religion (spoiler: nothing top-down)

The Arkhive has no state religion, but the endless blessings of Coedd have granted her majority in the region.

The Big Pile of Honey: One of the holiest sites in the Arkhive, the Big Pile of Honey awes all who look upon its sacred moundedness. It's just so big, you know? It's probably a god(s) thing. Some scholars point out that it's constantly replenished by a dripping from above, but, I mean, it's just so much.

The Circulation Desk: No one knows who the veiled, buzzing, nebulous creatures running the Circ Desk are, but they form the backbone of the Arkhive. They process returns, make displays, and keep the New Releases Showcase up to date. Surely, they must be priests of an ancient truth. That or a buncha bees in robes.

Milk and Honey: Technically a confederated microstate of enclaves and a church both, Milk and Honey is a chain of tea shops located throughout the Arkhive. Eventually, enough citizens of the Hive had spiritual awakenings from the Honeyed drinks that they just declared it holy, and who can argue?
 

Resource: Honeyed Words

The Hive trades in Honeyed Words, a special honey which contains whispers and snatches of memories, archives, and knowledge past. The experience of consuming it is one of hallucinated truths, some since forgotten. It rarely coalesces into full meaning, but the addition of outside perspective can bring to clarity previously muddled thoughts. So those eating it tend to make sudden connections, some hallucinate events past, some even hear the dead--usually monologuing, but sometimes seeming to speak to them. For many in the Hive, this is a sacred communion. It's obviously an Animal Product and Information and Data.

Desired Import: Compostables

The Hive seeks Compostables. The Hive shares its honey and fruits freely, and most visitors take more than they leave. The system needs input to be sustained.

Tech

Xenolinguistic Cataloguing, obviously. And we'll take the moistboats too, sure. Wet Navy Ships.