#ekklesia lore

[polyodynos]

The Ekklesia Galaxy's Relationship With the Xianzhou Alliance

The Ekklesia Galaxy isn't on hostile terms with the Xianzhou Alliance, and many planets, species, and cultures in the galaxy maintain diplomatic relationships with the Xianzhou Alliance. However, many Ekklesian species are long-lived, and while none of them swear allegiance to the Abundance, they view the Xianzhou’s perpetual war with the Denizens of Abundance with concern. After all, there’s a possibility that if the Xianzhou somehow manages to eliminate the Denizens of Abundance, the enemy that they define themselves against, the Xianzhou might seek a new enemy to replace them. There has also been a long internal debate about whether Ekklesian death magic should be brought to the Xianzhou’s attention as a possible treatment for mara. Although rare, there have been instances of mara-afflicted Xianzhou Natives ending up in the Ekklesian Galaxy and asking to be put out of their misery in a moment of clarity. Each time, an Azonaic Keybearer who was also an Emanator of Azonos was summoned, and they successfully fulfilled the Xianzhou Natives’ request for mercy. While many Ekklesian species are horrified by the suffering mara inflicts, the possibility of the Xianzhou Alliance trying to recruit Thanategos to fight against the Denizens of Abundance have lead many Ekklesian species to warn Thanategos, especially those who are Azonaic Keybearers and Emanators of Azonos, to avoid using their death magic around Xianzhou Natives. Hakarians tend to perceive Xianzhou species as being uncomfortable with their place in the cycle of life and death and reluctant to acknowledge that the Abundance and the Hunt are inextricably linked. After all, if Yaoshi did not exist, then Lan would not exist. That being said, Hakari does have a diplomatic relationship with the Xianzhou and engages in trade and cultural exchange with them. The Ekklesia Galaxy also has a millennia-old policy forbidding any Xianzhou ship from traveling through it. 

This policy stems from an incident where a group of Torian students and their professor were surveying an erratic asteroid population in the Ekklesia Galaxy. One of the students noticed a Xianzhou ship approaching, and because that stretch of space was particularly treacherous, the Torians approached the ship to try and guide it away from danger. However, the Torians were wearing spacesuits powered in part by stellar magic. The suits obscured their faces and the propulsion provided by their suits led to the Xianzhou ship mistaking the group for Wingweavers. The ship fired a warning shot, causing the group to scatter. While neither party technically did anything wrong and no one was hurt, the possibility that a similar incident might occur in the future gave Ekklesia pause. A lot of Ekklesian species have a history of being discriminated against in other parts of the universe, and they tend to band together and are also abundantly cautious about protecting the galaxy and its inhabitants as a result. They also viewed the ship’s conduct as a betrayal of trust and an insult to the galaxy’s hospitality. As a result, the Ekklesia Galaxy instituted a policy forbidding the Xianzhou from traveling through Ekklesian territory.

[polyodynos]

What inspired you to make Yumina?

(( Oooh, this is a good question! Part of why I make fandom OCs because it's fun and because it lets me engage in a piece of media's worldbuilding in a fun and interesting way. But I also make fandom OCs because it's more productive than just complaining that there's a type of character or theme or concept I'd like the creators of that media to include.

The earliest records (aka timed and dated messages where I talked about her to friends on Discord) of Yumina's concept (kind person who wields yin powers, including powers of death, was comfortable with death powers, and then became frightened of them due to trauma and therefore Never Wants To Use Them out of fear of what the people around her will think and who is an Emanator of the Liminality) actually date back to about September 2023, so Yumina emerged from my noggin pretty fully formed. I really debated whether making her a member of the Astral Express would be Too Much at my first. One of the damned if you do, damned if you don't things about making fandom OCs is that if you make them too disconnected from canon characters and canon events, it might be hard for you and your RP partners to come up with potential character dynamics or figure out how they'd interact or where they'd interact. The problem is that if you make them too closely connected to canon characters or canon events, some RPers will be understandably uncomfortable with that, so I always take those things into consideration. I ultimately decided to make Yumina a member of the Astral Express crew, but I'd keep things open and flexible so that potential RP partners would hopefully feel less pressured or constrained by that. Also, I knew early on that Yumina usually stays on the Express or runs errands while the rest of the crew are out and about, so her presence hopefully wouldn't interfere with canon events too much. Funnily enough, the one time in Yumina's canon within HSR canon that she's out in the action is when the Express is on the Luofu. Oh, and the reason I gave Yumina some ancient Greek epithets and named her home galaxy the Ekklesia Galaxy is because I thought it was kinda funny that the English translation of HSR translated Yǐnyuè-jūn into Latin, so I thought I'd include a nod to that in Yumina's surrounding lore and worldbuilding. Yumina's also variously inspired by my love for the moon and water, my penchant for moon and water themed characters, my appreciation for indie perfumery, my goth sensibilities, ancient Greek epithets and culture, my interest in Japanese culture, my love of Art Nouveau decorative arts and jewelry (Yumina's country's aesthetic is a blend of Art Nouveau, Jugendstil, Vienna Secession, and traditional Japanese aesthetics), and my fondness for characters who love people a lot but feel the need to distance themselves due to trauma.

[polyodynos]

Things I need to do: -Code a custom theme for Yumina bc she's Worth It -Write up lore post and thoughts for Azonos -Write up lore post and thoughts about Hakari and the Ekklesia Galaxy -Write up introductory thing about the magic system of the Ekklesia galaxy