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Entries in the Guide to Worlds of the Multiverse have the following format:

 

Appellation

 

The Appellation is the common name used by multiverse travelers to refer to this world. It is sometimes the name the world’s inhabitants use, but not always. For instance, many worlds in the database call their world “Earth.” The inhabitants of Willow-Wells do not call their home Willow-Wells, they call it Earth just like we call our home planet Earth.

 

Often, the name of the planet we interact with the most is used as a synecdoche for its entire universe. This can sometimes create confusion. A person could, for instance, say “We’re going to Willow-Wells.” and mean they’re going to the Earth of Willow-Wells or the Mars of Willow-Wells.

 

Other Appellations 

 

Universes never have just one name. 

 

Several classification systems have been proposed for the multiverse. The common system used by ARGO is the Fox Harmonic system, which has its own place on entry forms, but many other systems exist such as the numbering system used by the W-series.

 

Other appellations are listed with their origin in parentheses.

 

Fox Harmonic

 

In 1961, physicist Gardner Fox made the breakthrough discovery of extradimensional vibrations. Before his discovery, it was unknown why one universe was separate from another. Dr. Fox discovered that, from the perspective of the far Astral, all universes progressed through unique and fixed motions. This progression was related to time, but it was not, strictly speaking, time. Universes could progress in ways completely different from the “time” known to us in our universe, time could run slower or faster or in loops within these universes, but still they progressed through a sort of “hyper-time.” Things within the universes changed, there was “one thing, and then another” as opposed to the unchangeable, instantaneous reality of the far Astral. Dr. Fox called these motions continuities and the differences between these continuities extradimensional vibrations.

 

Through the use of a device called a Fox switch, the natural extradimensional vibrations of a universe can be changed allowing for matter to pass from one universe into another by harmonizing with different frequencies. These harmonies are called Fox harmonics, and they are incalculable. ARGO discovers a new harmonic about every twenty seconds, which makes it incredibly difficult to catalog them all. Every letter of every alphabet on Earth has been used and continues to be used with added numeration. There is the beta harmonic, and beta2, and beta 3, and beta101000…

 

ARGO has chosen to use Fox harmonics as their standard universe classification system because of an interesting feature about Fox harmonics–no matter where you are in the whole wide multiverse, if you know the Fox harmonic name, you can go home.

 

A universe’s harmonic name consists of the extradmensions one harmonizes in a sequence to reach that universe from our universe, which is designated by the null harmonic alpha. It is a “path” one follows to reach a universe, and by reversing that path, one can return home.

 

For instance, to reach Willow-Wells, one harmonizes He20-Gimel20-Vav. To return to our universe from Willow-Wells, one harmonizes Vav-Gimel20-He20.

 

It is very important for students of the multiverse to remember that Fox harmonics only work when harmonized within our universe. Harmonizing He20-Gimel20-Vav within any universe but our own will take you somewhere, but it won’t be Willow-Wells.

 

Fox harmonics are not spatial dimensions, though they are used to travel through “multiversal space” in “directions” and in that sense can be thought of like spatial dimensions. Travel through spatial dimensions, be they 3 or 3000, is designated by the null harmonic alpha.

 

Alpha is a deceptively complex harmonic. It is literally turning the Fox switch off, and a common joke is that alpha is “the most used harmonic in the multiverse.” But by skillfully blending in alphas within a harmonic sequence to create pauses and beats, one can determine not only what universe they travel to but where in that universe they travel to, or even when. This use of alpha is called cosmic conducting, as in an orchestra conductor. 

 

Pretty cool, huh?

 

It’s a neat feature, but it’s also the reason you never turn off a Fox switch while it’s active and running. Putting in unintended alphas will make you manifest in deep space instead of on a planet.

 

Keywords

 

Keywords quickly relay important information to the reader and allow for quick cross-referencing with similar universes.

 

For a list of common keywords, click here.

 

Astral Connection

 

A measure of how readily this universe interacts with the metaphysical, thought-responsive cosmos known as the Astral.

 

The measure is divided into L and D which represents the Astral Light (also known as the unconscious Astral) and Astral Dark (also known as the conscious Astral) respectively. Higher numbers indicate a stronger connection.

Inferences can be made about a universe based on its Astral connection. A universe with a high L score is likely to have telepaths, thought-forms, ghosts, and dream-walkers. A universe with a high D score is likely to have gods, faeries, angels, and other examples of homo fabula.

 

Caution Rating

 

A relative measure of how threatening a universe is to the multiverse. 

 

It is important to note that this is not a measure of how peaceful or stable a universe is. A universe could be controlled by a sentient black hole tyrant forcing absolute obedience from its inhabitants under threat of banishment to its gravity well and have a caution rating of 0 because that universe can’t access the multiverse. The Weft Authority records the peace and stability of each universe through a developmental index, but even that is imprecise as it only measures across prominent contact civilizations. A universe could be 99.9% peaceful, but because a civilization of robot tyrants is its civilization that interacts with the multiverse the most, it has a bad developmental index.

 

Caution ratings are based on a comparison with our own universe which has a constant rating of 5. Ratings lesser than 5 are less threatening to the multiverse than our own universe while ratings greater than five are more threatening.

 

Multiverse Activity

 

How active a universe is outside their own universe. 

 

Frequent means that a universe is very active, explores the universe, assists in the general goodwill when able, and has dedicated organizations for facilitating contact between their universe and the multiverse. 

 

Occasional means that a universe has dedicated organizations, but their exploration is limited. These universes spend more time observing the multiverse than they do interacting with it. Their people typically don’t go out into the multiverse to right wrongs and fight evil, but if they or a neighboring universe is threatened, they will take action.

 

Seldom means that a universe interacts rarely with the multiverse. Knowledge about the multiverse may be limited in these universes, or their people may be cautious about adventuring out into other worlds.

 

Inactive means that a universe does not engage with the multiverse either through choice, circumstance, or ignorance of the existence of the multiverse.

 

Description

 

A description of the listed universe, written for brief reference by civilian readers and nowhere near as long as the descriptions kept within ARGO databases.

 

While ARGO database descriptions of universes tend to be (relatively) brief and focus on the main contact civilization, Weft Authority descriptions are anything but. The Weft Authority collects cultural data down to the most trivial minutia, and observed cultures sometimes consult the Weft Authority for information on their own civilizations. 

 

Warp Authority descriptions tend to be more thorough than ARGO descriptions but more brief than Weft Authority descriptions. Their sections on physics tend to be extremely brief. If the physics of a universe aren’t the same as our own, then they’re likely similar to a universe already recorded and analyzed. Their sections on biology are much longer as even an analog of Earth can produce startlingly novel organisms.

The differences in the length of database entries from ARGO and the Warp and Weft Authorities are often used in classrooms to demonstrate a theory by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, famed metaphysician and father of the modern noosphere concept. De Chardin believed that the informational complexity of a universe increased through stages. First there was the geosphere, the inanimate stage of matter and energy and physics. Then there was the biosphere, the stage of life and self-awareness. And finally there was the noosphere, the stage of sapience. Multiverse database entries demonstrate these stages. Warp Authority entries on physics and chemistry are shorter than Warp Authority entries on biology which are vastly shorter than Weft Authority entries on culture.