Tramnox - Birth of the World
Once, the universe was smooth and even, like a taut string. The scientists (from times before time itself) called it the Perfect Membrane.
But one day, a Resonance Fracture appeared in its fabric. The strings of existence began to vibrate not in unison, but each in its own way. These vibrations formed into a chaotic chord that tore through the fabric of being - and the world fell downward, through all dimensions at once.
Thus came to be Tramnox - the point where all dimensions are tangled, where past and future chew on each other, and where the same person can be a blacksmith, a pirate, and a talking seagull all at the same time.
The inhabitants of Tramnox know that the world here is broken, but they stopped asking long ago how to fix it. For the fracture - is their home.
The planets in the Tramnox universe are arranged in a spiral, each slowly rotating on its axis. On every planet there are manifestations of what we know as seasons, but since the influence of Lum-Lom and the Black Maw depends on proximity, a our-style calendar is used for convenience. The whole thing resembles a croissant or a horn narrowing toward its bottom, where a blazing sphere of energy (like our sun) is located, known as Lum-Lom. Closer to Lum-Lom are small planets with dense landscapes and hot climates; further away from Lum-Lom are larger planets, colder and less populated by common life forms. Legend says the other end of the croissant is a black hole, slowly pulling the rest of Tramnox into itself. The Black Maw - as this darkness is called - is used to scare children at bedtime so they don’t fall into an eternal sleep.
For convenience, each planet is assigned a number based on its proximity to Lum-Lom. For example, the closest known planet to Lum-Lom is numbered 1. There are about a hundred known planets, but the number grows as exploration continues (no one knows how many planets the croissant spiral truly contains).
Here are the planets known so far, though legend says there are countless more, connected and tangled by the torn strings of temporal matter:
1 - Karash’Ah - One of the hottest planets in the croissant spiral. Legend says all life once originated here before fleeing to cooler worlds. Technically, Lum-Lom could be called a planet too, but it is customarily considered “zero.”
7 - Okruss - A desert world torn apart by endless sandstorms. It is believed that beneath its surface lie ancient cities buried millennia ago (if time even means anything when the strings are involved).
71 - Glenmar - The home planet of one of the heroes, Pigeon Polly. Polly was born here and now lives here with friends - and not only friends.
All planets, many thousands of years ago, agreed to use a unified system of spatial coordinates, so every planet has street names and house numbers. Even if, due to string distortions, a house is, for example, a boot in another dimension. Heh.
🔴 Location System:
Dimension: Tramnox-1, Tramnox-2, Tramnox-3...
Planet: 1 Karash’Ah, 71 Glenmar
State: Gigglenook
Street: Tomago Street 52, Corn Street 18...
In Tramnox, the main challenge is not to reach the address - but to figure out what form it’s in today.
Places where the string fractures are most intense have also shaped local culture. For example, the fracture of the 7th string in the area of planet number 71 inspired locals to name a nearby street Yesterday’s Tomorrow Street. Incidentally, this is where the control center for this trading card game is located - in a small, 24/7 computer club. Directly across from it runs Falling Up Rock Street, home to a gas station where I love to grab coffee and donuts.
🔴 LANGUAGE
Unlike our world, the people of Tramnox managed to agree - and for thousands of years have used a single language throughout the Spiral of the Great Horn.
Of course, every world has its own dialects, accents, and local words, but everyone understands Lumknot.
Without it, trade, exploration, planetary addressing, and interdimensional navigation would be impossible.
The name Lumknot comes from the combination of Lum (light, from Lum-Lom - the heart of the universe) and knot (a symbol of the tangled strings).
The language became that very “knot of light” that binds cultures, peoples, and planets into one whole.
Naturally, it’s impossible not to notice that the entire universe is steeped in a love for baked goods - after all, how else could it be when you literally live inside a croissant (Kipferl)?
🔴 WORLD HOLIDAYS
Once a year, the inhabitants of all planets without exception celebrate the Great Kipferl Bake, honoring the croissant they live in. During the celebration, they bake a giant croissant and divide it into as many parts as there are planets currently listed in the explorers’ catalog.