AFFINITY AND THE OCTANTS

Originally written in Summer of 2022.

i kind of want to delve into what the octants are and how they exist.

so when they were first discovered, practically the ONLY thing known about them was that there were eight of them. and this was only found out via interdimensional pocket detectors, which… back in 2101, were kind of clunky tech. prior to the octants there were about three other pockets found across the world, one of which was uninhabitable, and the other two which hosted active research facilities. so the octants were not the first of their kind, methods of exploring and residing in other dimensions already existed… what made the octants truly notable were their numbers.

once the first few train voyages took place and the octants could be tangibly examined, it was discovered there were only seven portals in total. this was still the biggest cluster of portals found yet though and the scientists had gotten attached to the term ‘octants’ already, and so, the octants they stayed ever since. 

one by one, every pocket was investigated for dangers. one of the octants contained copious amounts of noxious gas within its atmosphere, though the rest supported human life for at least a few hours at a time. certain octants were altered via manmade platforms and small buildings, initially built to sustain extended research without going back to the train. these installations were left behind once fornax became open to the public. extensive notation on every octant was also put on display along with sets of necessary gear and instructions on how to summon more if needed. entry within another additional octant was discouraged, not because it was solidly inhabitable like the first, but because it required too much prudence and care to travel through which could not be guaranteed with volunteers. in the end only five out of the seven were deemed safe ‘enough’.

on a technical level, the way octant entry works is fairly simple — the train’s supposed to stop at a built platform that houses organised ‘doors’ for each portal. the doors were labelled with colors that signified which was which according to inner-train displays. however, since fornax ii never reached the octants, it became… somewhat more complicated to visit them.

enter ulises, who adapted various dimensional code to summon her own portals leading into the octants directly. since these are artificial openings in spacetime, they’re more difficult to keep open. ulises has only managed to get three stable portals established, though she herself has managed to temporarily visit every octant at least once, including the supposedly dangerous ones. 

barring the ones she’s unable to consistently enter, ulises’ research encompasses a far deeper look into the various environments of every octant. a lot of the advice initially given by the fornax scientists ended up becoming ineffective and inaccurate, and in the first place, it lacked a lot of documentation about foreign plants and animals. most of the study done on the former takes place on the train directly, often handed over to sabri. in general ulises et al have formed a more thorough understanding of every dimension and just… dimensions in general, compared to every other present study back on earth.

aside from affinity business, ulises also keeps the octants open to visitors. this was started off as a venture to combat claustrophobia and derealisation as a result of the train’s artificial interior, whilst also allowing her to study variation in human responses to alternate dimensions. in recent years ulises has placed more limits on permitted ‘wandering’ areas, following growing concerns with damaging the octants inadvertently.

for easier identification, ulises has also relabelled each octant through a numbering system. in audio records and her stations’ interfaces, ulises usually uses nahuatl numbers for distinction’s sake.

I

a swamplike dimension. covered with water all throughout, though it’s mostly small coursing streams that can be skipped across. as a result of the scientists, it also contains various built bridges. the sky is consistently a vibrant shade of indigo, and hosts a single sun. natural light is extensive, but frequent wind currents even out warmth. the ground oscillates between grass and what appears to be sandstone. shrubbery and trees are also present, but they are not terrestrial species, and in fact resemble certain extinct plants. the weather conditions are consistent — there is no evidence of rain or thundering ever occuring.

overall, the octant most similar to earth.

II

covered in particles resembling sand, albeit white and bearing a ‘holographic’ sort of sheen. the air here is dense, akin to the pressure of riding an airplane. truly a kind of moon-esque world — the most striking features in this otherwise barren environment are craters and hills. the sky is open, though its a very washed-out, dusty white. there is no visible light source though there’s really no need for one… the entire world seems to glow. fairly active winds, and occasional storms that rain down fairly fragile crystals akin to hail. there is a repetitively noted faint rumbling coming from beneath the ground, though it’s uncertain whether this is due to sensitivity of the aforementioned pressure or a ‘feature’ of the environment.

III

cavernous. seems to be a tunnel system made up of ‘strings’ of fragile rocklike materials. extremely low light, most of which originates from gelatinous clusters stuck on the walls. high density of various small mouselike animals and big bugs. there is autotrophic plant life, but it resembles shells and honeycombs more than anything botanical. 

this octant is frequently ignored due to the high potential of getting lost in here… it’s quite labyrinthine.

IV

briefly visited, and the octant described as ‘too dangerous for casual visit’. an apparently endless field of flowers and ferns, or at least organisms resembling them. various samples have been collected and reside in sabri’s greenhouse — a portion of them are carnivorous, though nobody’s spent enough time there to spot any of their prey. many also contain various poisons assumedly more potent than any earth ones. 

V

briefly visited. an ocean of tangy, citric liquid that runs like syrup. vaguely birdlike organisms frequent the deep depths. the horizon is a neon yellow, and appears to be coated in distant stars. there’s a cliff in the far distance, which according to fornax notes is where the natural portal starts, but ulises’ does just leave entrants knee-deep in water. 

the ocean’s liquid has been sampled as a condiment and an ingredient for drinks, due to having a fairly safe composition. it’s been described by other passengers as resembling honey with the taste of lemon and salt.

VI

the noxious gas one. apparently just a bleak void. there really is no point in visiting this one.

VII

a dark, clustered field encased in tendril-esque brambles sensitive to touch. carries bigger beasts than the other octants — various ungulate-esque animals inhabit this nocturnal world, and though reminiscent of deep-sea creatures with big eyes and spines, they pose no direct threat and indeed flee when confronted with humans. this octant’s light source is three radiant moons, barely visible to the naked eye. this octant also contains various edible plants, most notably, a series of vibrant berries. various plants from here have been taken and cultivated in sabri’s greenhouse as well — they grow far slower in extensive light, however.

this was formerly a stabilised portal, but ulises severed the connection as a result of injury during an expedition. it has scarcely been sought out again since.

octant one, or ce, features the most construction left behind by the scientists and is also the one most passengers visit nowadays. 

back in the early days it was mostly just ulises and demeter who worked together to explore given parts of each dimension. for a while she garnered the aid of valerie, faris, olzhas and sabri, though months later expressed worry with sending them to completely uncharted bits of the octants. they were both still on board but ulises insisted on dispelling them from deeper investigations… as mentioned sabri’s helped grow and sustain octant plants, beatrix is often consulted for any odd structural makeup of things, anything edible that’s been tested for toxins is often passed along to olzhas for culinary experimentation… though not everyone is involved in the core of the process, affinity has its spread.