A Summary of the World of ‘Precipice’

The World of The Precipice Dominions  

The narrative of the series takes place in a world, which may our future, or an alternative version. Or some world in this vast universe which bears similarities to ours. At some stage in the past a previously unknown Natural Force arrived. The circumstances of its arrival are clouded with allegory in the form of legends and religions. Its arrival caused disruptions in the environment exacerbated through profligate usage by opportunistic factions, which culminated in series of wars. One result of this turbulence was the bringing into existence of a number of realities which are linked to the world by tenuous pathways. Humanity is the only race inhabiting the original world, which in these Books is commonly called The World Physical .

The Natural Force is called by many names; the most common being The Ethereal or The Stommigheid. It has many properties; to name a few, a means of travel or communication, a destructive force, an engine of power. Some beings have a latent ability to use this while others work through machines or device we might recognised as laptops. It is believed in certain quarters every being has some link no matter how small or tenuous to this. Most consider it something to be wary of, in some areas of the world its use is officially restricted to the ruling authorities, although unsanctioned use is common. The folk who engage in such are known by authorities and public as The Jordisk , they are not organised and generally shunned. This differs from tolerated The Mechanicals who work solely with devices for such matters as communication, weather prediction and industrial tools, they work in guilds and dislike unsanctioned work as much as anyone. There is naturally a level of hypocrisy in that the official religions often consider its use a sin, while making certain accommodations. (Same as it ever was). Amongst some scholars there is the a question to how much influence Humanity has upon this force and vice versa. Some maintain there is now a symbiosis.

A second and arguably more dangerous result was the arrival of alien predatory creatures, these are viewed as demonic creatures and their realm and collective name being The Zerstorung; categorised by most of humanity as The Lords of The Land, The Lords of The Deep and The Lords of The Air; the latter having a kinship with Humanity.  (although they are very touchy about that assertion)

The majority of the narrative takes place in The Oakhostian a long standing empire on a land mass similar to Europe whose general level of civilisation bears resemblances to the early 17^th Century with aspects of later centuries also noticeable. The empire comprises a number of princedoms and city states. Imperial houses come and go as do princes, the principal dynamic being the Grand Dukes of the various princedoms. Religion teaches of “The Good Lord God” and is organised by the currently lacklustre Ecclesiastes, itself relying upon supposedly subservient institutions. Firstly, The Custodians of The Word similar to Inquisitors but very fragmented with a tendency for independence or internal intrigue and secondly The Libratery a wholly female organisation set in various nearly fortified locations with its own agenda to survive, guard the culture and supply social support to the localities. Most formidable and least liked is The LifeGuard, run on military lines and originally charged with assisting protecting The Stability of the Empire; it is now very much a state within a state supressing outbreaks of instability as it sees fit. The Libratery and The LifeGuard share a certain accord based on mutual respect and suspicion , particularly in the area of The Stommigheid at which they are both adept. The LifeGuard insist upon their own term The Astatheia.

The realms which are literally attached to the world are homes to a variety of folk, some once human, others are of The Zerstorung. In Volume Two

The Shadow Lords are introduced, the first to harness some of the Ethereal potential and thus rule the world, of Human origin due to a schism over whether to continue ruling and some hubris they quit the realm now the domain of Humanity. Although their nature and intentions are seen by most Human authorities as distant and vague to the point of being Legends some disparate groups are plotting a return and seizing back lordship.

The books cover an interlude when the general informed consensus in The Oakhostian is the danger of an large incursion by The Zerstorung is at a high point. This has resulted in divergent approaches. Some are making preparation to repel this, others endeavour to use the Ethereal/ Stommigheid to foil it taking place, within The Custodians the notion is to supress all use of the Stommigheid as they see this as the cause. Some folk seek to gain the favour of The Zerstorung, while others more opportunistic look to make the best of whatever happens. The vast majority of the population remain ignorant of the situation.

All this takes place against the backdrop of a new, young untested emperor seeking to assert himself from forces within his and realm and at least one rival empire.

These events and manoeuvrings play a part in the narrative. Although such as members of the nobility and the emperor himself do figure in the tales, the stories are mostly seen from the perspective of characters whose positions are relatively low in the social chain, in particular the three central characters. These three would rather it remain so but events and their own natures preclude them from remaining in the background. The books therefore chart their progress through a turbulent episode in Oakhostian history. In this era whereas there are external threats; internal rivalries, factionalism, opportunists and the instability of individual princes cause crises of troubling magnitude.

Thus as is the case in many wars there is more than one reason for the start, more than two sides and a myriad of perspectives to the arguments. Bearing this in mind on finally settling upon a basic direction for the narrative I was mindful of the the folk swept up in the events not as victims, but who find themselves at the jagged edge of one part of the conflict; trying to make sense of it all, survive and therefore in achieving those two make some impact, although not necessarily the one those above them would wish them too. Of course there would be times where the more alert and astute parties would encounter opportunities to improve their own situations; in these volumes such motivations are complicated and varied, depending on the particular opportunity.

Therefore this is not an apocalyptic, post-apocalyptic, nor completely ravaged world. Somewhat like ours, perched on the brink of complete disaster, with most folk hoping whatever might happen doesn’t happen in their time or place. Thus there are tracts when it all might seem low-key, and the action sporadic unless of course you happen to live in that location. Again somewhat like our world. Confusion, poor perceptions, hubris, random events, clashing of motives, haste through fear or suspicion are some of the engines which give rise to events. Once more like our world.

I would warn prospective readers, over and over again, particularly those who read Fantasy, there are high levels of feel-good, upbeat and heroic endeavours winning through. I make no apologies for that.