Afterlife

Demis    Universal    Biology/Nature    Natural Phenomena      Afterlife

This article or category covers information that involves the entirety of Demis

This world, as with all others, remains captivated by the incredible journey from mortal life to the afterlife. Regardless of beliefs or values, the inevitability of death creates a need to better understand its process. This extraordinary mystery, and the theories of its process, can cause fear or comfort in the hearts of those who think on it. This article doesn't look to explain the process of death, but rather is a recording of what is known about the journey and its many available results.

The Transition of Death

Death is part of the natural order of things and it means different things to different people. Whether it elicits fear, wonder, or sadness depends typically on when and where you grew up. Many cultures and religions have focused on the end of life as a culmination of one's story, while others are deeply frightened by its unavoidable conclusion. There is so much that isn't known about the passage of death and this article only hopes to better frame the process as it is understood in the current age.

The Soul's Journey

In terms of biology, all creatures can be broken down into various parts, e.g. muscle and bone. Though the tangible portions of a person's existence are important in their own way, they are not a part of the journey at the end. That is for life's intangible parts.
Though there are a variety of naming conventions, in the Common tongue it is in general agreement that each creature possesses a soul. You might even say that the soul is the creature, and the body is nothing but a mortal vessel through which it can hold itself to the Material Plane.
This soul is made up of pure energy, which type, however, is up to the person within. Unwittingly, all souls gather more energy through its mortal life based on the attraction created by their choices and actions. Which choices and actions attract which energies may seem straightforward, but is really a matter of opinion.
Regardless of one's chosen philosophy, when the physical body ceases to function, the soul liberates itself from its earthly bounds and embarks on a transformative quest. At this point the soul begins making its way back to the source of the energy that is more prevalent within it. For those who have garnered enough of either positive or negative energies naturally move toward and through the Outer Planes closest to that particular Source Plane.
At this point the almighty rulers of the various Outer Planes may lay claim on a particular soul, and bring them into their fold.

Accessing the Outer Planes

There is a good understanding of what happens when a soul disconnects from the Material Plane mostly because of the continued presence of the creators of the Outer Planes. That isn't to say that the journey to these realms is a fully known concept. In fact the presence of this expansive group of "architects" brings with it even more questions. The mystery doesn't lie so much in what comes next, it is more related to the how and why.

The What

Before Demis, before the Material Plane, before the afterlife, there was only energy.
The story of the energies of the world, and the creation of these planes, is only important here in that it occurred. This story is the precursor to a time where a set of otherworldy beings were able to gain power over these energies in such a focused way that they generated planes of their own.
These beings, widely known as the Gods, manipulated the various flows of energy they had access to and created the Outer Planes, a collection of dimensions that only accessible to souls that match a specific set of standards or requirements.

These planes can be broken down into their relative energy balances that they originated from. For the planes that exist closest the the Plane of Positive Energy, such as Evergarden, they are usually depicted as gardens of plenty, featuring beautiful vistas and in a consistent state of bliss. As for the planes closest to the Plane of Negative Energy, such as the Shadowlands, you'll hear tales of punishment, horror, and dread. To some this may seem pretty self explanatory but there are many unknowns associated with where a soul may ultimately be destined.

Lawful Good Evergarden Plains of Evergarden	Neutral Good Fruited Plains Plains of Evergarden	Chaotic Good Fruited Plains Plains of Evergarden
Lawful Neutral The Shifting Nexus	True Neutral The Shifting Nexus	Chaotic Neutral The Shifting Nexus
Lawful Evil Nine Hells The Beneath	Neutral Evil Shadowlands The Beneath	Chaotic Evil The Burning Chaos The Beneath

What type you life you should lead in order to reach your preferred plane, and how it is seen by those who control the planes, has been a never-ending debate.

The How & Why

It is one thing to know the various planes that exist, it is another to understand how to be reach them. The energies that helped generate the various planes are consistently looked to as the metric that determines where a person may end up as their soul passes from their mortal vessel. How a person chooses to live their life, and the effect that has on the positive and negative energies they posess, is the closest to a explanation that the inhabitants of the Material Plane have been able to come up with.
As with the Outer Planes, the Material Plane is a mixture of both positive and negative energies based on its proximity to the Source Planes. It being in the middle of the overall universe means it has the closest balance of the two. Reflectively, every creature born to the Material Plane naturally possesses an equilibrium of these two energy sources. During the course of their lives, these beings have the ability to attract more of either type through their actions and choices.