User blog:ToaGonel/End of an Era

Hello, everybodies.

The Kragator Cycle Closes
As you may have noticed, I have recently completed The Circle of Kragator rounding out three of the four stories I detailed in my previous blog. The fourth one is quickly inbound, my own celebration of the tenth anniversary year for CBW--something that indeed holds ties to my contest entry (yes, that's still in the works). More details below. But first, a brief reflection on the Circle of Kragator. (It's not every day someone finishes his story saga on this wiki). Read it, don't, this is as much for my sake as yours.

​Spoilers below.

For those not in the know, The Circle of Kragator is the final entry in the "original Broken Order Saga." This was about as far as I'd planned when working through the first few books of the story and tbh the ending was inspired by a quote that came to me when either writing Wake or preparing for Beyond the Known I believe.

"The great conflict between the Kritor Empire and the Makuta League ended, but the universe was deprived of the ending we deserved. The Kritor Empire triumphed, but Reality isn’t finished with the Kritor/Makuta War. Destiny has not yet had its way!"

- Hag to Callah, The Circle of Kragator, Chapter Three

When I originally began Shadow of the Truth, I did minimal planning aside from the premise of "Universe where there is no Order of Mata Nui"; I wanted it to be my first story that I wrote "Greg-style" with minimal planning. This would eventually fail as I did some planning ahead for the rest of the story--I realized that to tell a meaningful story, you have to know where you're going. (Ironically, the second cycle will take the opposite extreme with a great deal of outlining just for me to try it out and try myself as a writer.) Yet somehow it expanded into the full four-book story it stands at today--a cliffhanger it was meant to be. Yet upon reading some of other story sagas, the next path became clear and I immediately set about arranging for and writing the second cycle (such shall make sense in time).

This four-book cycle, "The Kragator Cycle" saw Kragator's plans unfold and the Kritor Empire returning to a position it held at its height halfway through Destiny's Way. With Krevator now at the reins of the reformed Kritor Empire, the loyalty of the universe to the Empire shall be affirmed once enough time passes and the enemies of the Empire are weeded out. It is now ready to expand beyond its confines in the Matoran Universe.

For those of you paying enough attention, you may notice that one chapter of The Circle of Kragator, Echoes of an Order has yet to be released despite my statement that the cycle is complete; this is because Echoes of an Order is a bookend to the saga much like Shadow of the Truth was as everything is wrapped up and the future is painted for the Saga. The "short-story"/chapter will resolve all threads remaining in the story and hint toward the future. In addition, a short journal will be released of Krevator's called The Next Stage explaining what happens in the next few thousand years leading up to the next great Kritor conflict. Echoes of an Order will release tonight and The Next Stage will drop before Oblivion's Game does.

Oblivion's Game : The Next Great Crossover Event
Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pride that I announce to you today the next cycle of the Broken Order saga, the next great crossover event since Dark Realities (and one that shall be completed at that).

''With the Kritor Empire regenerated and under the secure grasp of Emperor Krevator, Cycle One of the Broken Order Saga closes. The Empire, quickly growing to encompass the entire universe now and can now turn it's attention beyond the Dimension Gates. But many forces await beyond the safety of the universe's walls; some more zealous than others. When knowledge of the existence of Interdimensional spies sent from the Agency of the Olmak reaches Krevator, the time must come for the Empire to flex it's new-found might. But the Agency has dealt with multiversal threats before, though none so great as this. Complicating matters are the sudden formation of an interdimensional Lykos Dominion seeking revenge for millions of years worth of savage cruelty on the part of the Agency and countless roadblocks on the Road of Life. The stage is set for the most devastating clash of empires the multiverse has ever seen.''

The collaboration between myself and FireDrag1091 has been the result of much planning and preparation. We were working for some time on this via Discord DM before he left, and with Broken Order: Cycle One completed and fully published, the story is finally ready to unveil. The story involves three sides: The Agency of the Olmak (Olmak), The Kritor Empire (Order), and the Lykos Dominion (Osade). In the style of many of the Bionicle serials, they consist of three separate tales that, when combined, form a more cohesive whole.

Much research has been done in preparation for this, and those familiar with the CBW's other greatest threats will have their knowledge rewarded. The Agency of the Olmak has seen many empires and kingdoms in its day, and only time will tell if the Kritor Empire and Lykos Dominion stand a chance.

What's more, familiarity with key scenes from the Broken Order Saga and V Osade is crucial to understanding the key themes of the story, although it isn't necessary to enjoying the plot.

A crossover between these series was bound to happen, especially considering similar themes and concepts; namely philosopher-kings doing what they consider to be right in their eyes and the right to decide fates of universe's. In fact, when we sat down to compare our universe's, they eerily had a great deal in common, despite the absence of any influence of one story on the development of the other. I will explain these down the road.

Now of course, those of you who have sampled both of our writing may know how long such stories can get; at present course, Oblivion is projected to reach top ten pages on the wiki, although we shall see how that goes. It may be daunting, so that has partially played into the decision to build three seperate though interconnected stories. However, to truly appreciate the story, one must read the full tale.

Nevertheless, here it stands. The multiverse on the eve of Oblivion's Game. Slip but once and your name and carcass will be lost in the ashes of time.

Recent Photoshoot
As I have mentioned to some of you, I recently did a photoshoot of some of my mocs in an ashheap with yet-lit embers and live flames. But all can be sacrificed for a good photo.

All of this was for the sake of a good photo for The Circle of Kragator, and while the most striking one made it into the banner, there were still some more pretty good ones (if I do say so myself). For kicks, I've included them below (and you can get some good idea as to the tone and premise of the story just by looking at them). In-story they would take place in either the ruins of Bythrain or after the Battle of Odina; however, I'm inclined to think the ashes are the universe at large.