It came like a suggestion. A knock on my door. I became aware of a Possibility, and out of curiosity, I let it in. There, in my Abstraction, I felt space and time warp and shift. Of course, if I didn't want it to, it wouldn't be able to continue... but with a gentle push, it split open a portal of reality, showing me a glimpse of a space that felt both halfway to familiar and completely alien. It was an Abstraction, I could feel, with columns of ink floating up in a misty space. 

There was another Edeia there. Our eyes met, and I knew. I knew they knew, too. They were me, and I was them — same but different, having traversed different roads. They were an Identity, where I am Names. 

"Well, hello there," I said. "Might I have the honor of having your name?" 

Their eyes smiled. "Not mine, no," they said, "but I'll allow you one just like it." 

— Names meeting the Identity they could have become if they did not diverge in their identity. 

The Ideation universe is one that allows for the existence of an infinity of possibilities. One treads a path in one timeline, and they tread a different path in another. Under normal circumstances, these possibilities are just that — possibilities. But with the magic of Possibility — perhaps one of their fusions at work again — Edeia see themselves invited to glimpse a road not traveled, to see how they would have been different if they had made a few different choices in their life. 

Notes:

• The timelines for this prompt must diverge from the same Continuity as the Edeia in question; for reference, the alternate timeline will be referred to as a "divergence" for the prompt. Entirely different Continuities are not permitted for this prompt. 

• You can fill this prompt through a "canon" encounter of the same individual across two different timelines, or you can simply depict the alternate timeline, but only if they are alive and share an origin.  For an encounter, they do not need to "match" time; that is, an Edeia in 2025 might encounter their alternate self from 1900. 

• The Edeia and their divergence should be strongly distinct in some way. A minor divergence is not permitted. 

• You are welcome to explore alternate timelines that are "better," "worse", or simply "different." You could, for instance, explore "bad endings." 

• In the alternate timeline, your Edeia can be non-Actualized, dead, or reincarnated with some connection or relevance to the life they shared with the Edeia in question. 

Design Prompt

Design a "divergence" of an Edeia.  

• They must share the same origin and diverge at some point in their existence, rather than being separate AUs of each other. 

• They can be an Edeia or non-Actualized. They can become an ideogenic species. They can be a reincarnation if there is a connection or relevance to the life they share with the Edeia, which is uncommon. 

• If they are an Edeia, they can have the same or different Idea. However, for a different Idea, you cannot use Ideas of Edeia owned by others, only your own or Identity. If you wish to use the design officially in the future, you can make it official through a MYO slot. 

Please provide some written explanation about the divergence, and note who it is a divergence of. 

Art Prompt

Create artwork of one of the following: 

• an encounter between an Edeia and a divergence of them.

• a divergence of an Edeia. 

Writing Prompt

Create writing depicting an encounter between an Edeia and a divergence of them, or a divergence of an Edeia. 

Some questions to consider: 

• When did the Edeia and their divergence split? Was it a major choice, or an accumulation of small differences?

• Did the divergence of the Edeia Actualize? Did they change in other ways? 

• How does the divergence of the Edeia feel about their path, and how does the Edeia feel about their path? If it is an encounter, how do they feel about each other's paths — are they glad they took the path they did or do they feel that their divergence might have made better choices? 

Once again, a strange phenomenon sweeps across the world of Ideation, this time induced by a different fusion with Possibility. One way or another, Edeia find themselves meeting who they were in the past - a sort of "beginning" as opposed to how they, as an Edeia, have reached a sort of "ending."  What do they do? Do they even recognize their past self, or do they figure it out because of the widespread phenomenon? 

Some notes about the mechanics of this phenomenon: 

• Not all Edeia experience this phenomenon. However, if they want it to happen to them or if they find themselves intrigued by the possibility, it will almost certainly happen to them. 

• It does not occur to everyone at the same time. The phenomenon occurs most intensely over the course of approximately two months, though there are very rare, more isolated cases that occur after that time. 

• There are a few possibilities of how the meeting occurs: 

  • The Edeia's past existence is transported in time to the present.

  • The Edeia's present existence is sent to the past. 

  • Both past and present are pulled into some kind of intermediary space, whether this is a distorted pocket of spacetime or a dream. 

• In the case of transporting across time, the one transported will appear close to if not right next to their counterpart. They can wander around, but cannot interact with anyone except their counterpart. They will know when they are looking at their counterpart at an instinctive level, though they might not understand what that connection is. 

• The past and present counterparts cannot harm each other. 

• The timeline effects can vary as well: 

  • The timeline splits due to the past meeting the future. The main continuity is unchanged, but there is another timeline where the past self remembers that encounter. 

  • The timeline is continuous. The present Edeia might remember that encounter; in a meta sense, the timeline did split, but they happen to be in a path where the events line up. Alternatively, the memory of the encounter is forgotten by the past self (most often if it occurs in a dream), and the timeline remains undisturbed. 

• The conditions for ending the encounter vary. Generally, they have to at least acknowledge / become aware of the other's presence. Usually, it ends when both feel that important things have been said, or if the one who has been displaced in time feels strongly that they are ready to go. If the one displaced is mortal, they will not age. If they are reluctant to leave, after around a month, they will gradually fade over the course of a few days. 

Design Prompt:
Design your Edeia's previous form or one of their previous incarnations. 

Art Prompt:
Create artwork featuring your Edeia encountering their past self due to the phenomenon described in the prompt. Their past self can be their previous form, a past form with a different Idea, or a previous incarnation of their same soul. 

• Part: for two characters - minimum partial body + halfbody; three characters - minimum halfbody; four or more - minimum one halfbody, the rest can be bust/headshot.

Writing Prompt:
Create writing featuring your Edeia encountering their past self due to the phenomenon described in the prompt. Their past self can be their previous form, a past form with a different Idea, or a previous incarnation of their same soul.

"Fascinating, isn't it, to think about the ways we diverged? You strove past life to the potential of artificiality, while I found my answer in life and the renewal of it."

"Yet we are not so different in certain respects, you and I. We both redefine the limits of life. We both persist, and help others do so as well." 

— Sylnae and Simulacra

It is possible for there to be many versions of an entity, be them parallel existences from another dimension, or individuals from a similar or vastly different timeline of the Ideation universe. Sometimes, these entities may meet — and perhaps there are many interesting happenings to come from that. 

Design Prompt:
Design an alternate version of the previous form of your Edeia. This can be a parallel existence from another dimension, which may or may not be the same species, or an existence from a similar or different timeline of the Ideation universe. 

If you have an Edeia that is an alternate existence of another Edeia, you can design one of their previous forms. 

Art Prompt:
Create artwork depicting an Edeia interacting with an alternate version of themself.  

Writing Prompt:
You have two options: 

1. Write a scene depicting an Edeia interacting with an alternate version of themself. 

2. Write a backstory/synopsis summary of events about an alternate version of an Edeia with a significant (but can be brief) interaction between them and their Edeia alternate self. This can include narrative elements and dialogue. If you have an Edeia that is an alternate version of another one of your Edeia, you may write for them. 

The form of a cat was particularly useful to me. No one bats an eye for a curious cat wandering a little too close to a crime scene, after all. It was all too easy to watch the humans try to figure things out on their own. It was all to easy to see what they were missing, and give a little spark of insight to help them to figure it out. 

— Eilah  

Edeia are master shapeshifters, capable of taking the form of their previous form, an animal, an object, etc. Did any of your Edeia shapeshift into a mundane form to blend into society during the Age of Secrecy, whether regularly or in a particular circumstance? 

Design Prompt: Design a shapeshifted mundane disguise for your Edeia. It can be a human, animal, object, plant, etc.; any mundane creature or object. Many "disguises" are simply the Edeia's previous form, and you can design that as well. 

They must be "decent," i.e. wearing clothes or something if they have parts to cover. If parts do not show normally and/or they are as decent as any other of their species would be, that is fine. 

Art Prompt: Create artwork of your Edeia in their shapeshifted disguise, perhaps in a situation in which they would use that disguise. 

Writing Prompt: Write a scene involving your Edeia using their mundane disguise to blend in or hide or such during the Age of Secrecy.