Story Concepts

The ADAM Core


Also known as "The Core of The Universe". The existence of the ADAM core is known by everyone in the planet, yet is still seen as a mysterious entity from another dimension that governs the world. No one has seen the ADAM core except for the Steinway Bloodline of Vessels. Eve tends to refer to the ADAM core as a "him" and speaks to it as if it were a close friend, which implies that the ADAM core has a conscious. The ADAM core is the entity that governs the order of the Universe. It has the power to not only control the world, but also to alter the past, present, and future. The ADAM Core is often the main target of men who wish to receive power, and therefore chooses the Steinway family to be its guardian.

ADAM's role in the story is unknown, and it is also unknown whether he is good or evil. According to Edmund Mulligen, the ADAM CORE is cruel and manipulative, like a child playing God.

It is later revealed that the ADAM Core is indeed a being who once had a human form, until the Creator put him into that position, all other information is unknown.

Vessel


The Vessel is a member of the Steinway bloodline who is given direct spiritual access to the ADAM core in order to heed its will. Vessels are the only way humans can connect to the ADAM core and have total access to its power, whereas the physical gateway to Eden is highly limited in power and also extremely lethal. Only one who is of purest Steinway blood can become a Vessel, but typically cannot be an offspring of the current Vessel (because they must be pure themselves), with the exception of Eve, who became the Vessel after Train Steinway offered her body to the ADAM core as retribution for his sin of destroying the pure bloodline.

The Forbidden Fruit
The Forbidden fruit is also known as the nucleus of the ADAM core, or the heart of the universe. It is the very essence of the ADAM core. Part of the contract of ADAM's agreement was that the Vessel dedicated their soul and bodies to ADAM, so when Train Steinway fell in love and had children, he broke the contract. This also meant the severing of the connection humans had to the ADAM core. In addition to the severed connection, this would lead to the end of humans, because the ADAM Core is the one maintaining the order of the world. In order to prevent this, Train took the Forbidden fruit and implanted it into Eve's heart, which replaced the severed connection, and formed an entirely new and supernatural bond. However, because he was not able to do this without paying a price, Train was forced to give Eve's soul and body to the ADAM core, in retribution for his sin. By doing so, the ADAM core is able to switch places with Eve and enter the human world with her body.

Eden


The dimension in which the ADAM Core resides. The dimension is highly toxic to humans, and entering through the gateway into Eden too often leads to death. This is where the Vessel comes in, where Vessels are able to enter Eden spiritually, without harming their physical bodies. Simply by touching the doors of the gateway will give them spiritual access to Eden. Physically, when regular humans enter through the gateway, Eden is often described as a strange wonderland, where it appears to be filled with bizarre qualities (think Alice in Wonderland). However, Eden's true appearance is a vast icy-blue ocean where wisps roam and with a few small islands surrounding the ADAM Core (which is usually for the Vessels to stand).

The Gateway
Located underground at the center of the Steinway Manor, the Gateway is the one and only physical entrance to Eden, and is considered one of the strange wonders of the world. It is guarded by the Steinway family and only the Vessel is allowed to use it. Anyone who physically enters through the gateway to EDEN must pay a valuable toll to gain access to the ADAM Core. In addition to that, every second inside EDEN drains away human life, because souls are what feed EDEN. After overcoming these two factors, people are able to plead with the ADAM Core in order to gain whatever they desire. Depending on what the ADAM Core decides, you must pay another toll to get what you want. For this reason do Vessels exist; not only are they are granted free spiritual access into EDEN through the gateway, but they also are given rights to ask the Core for things without paying a toll, due to the fact that they have already sold their souls to the ADAM Core. Usually, unless they are absolutely desperate, people will not enter the gateway (both Grace Blackshear and Raphael Witherspoon have entered due to desperate measures).

Vicissitude Soul


Also known as VicisSes. Drifting wisps that had been created by the ADAM Core. Unlike real Vicissitudes, these souls are the ones who do not have a physical body. In technical terms, they are like Homunculi; while the Creator created human souls, the ADAM Core is only able to make Vicissitude souls, incomplete beings. Every Vicissitude soul has their own personal traits and characteristics like humans, but do not have physical bodies, because it is not within ADAM's ability to create humans. When he does give a Vicissitude Soul a body, he must take away their sanity as equivalent exchange. This results in a Vicissitude.

Vicissitudes


The difference between a Vicissitude and a Vicissitude Soul (VicisS) is that the Vicissitudes are the souls that have an actual physical form given by ADAM, where as the VicisS are the Vicissitudes without a body. All VicisS yearn for a body, and because the ADAM Core has freely granted a number of them physical forms, he takes away their sanity as retribution, which is why Vicissitudes fall deep into madness, while VicisS still retain a consciousness and personality.

Vicissitudes are classified into 4 types; Ogres, Buccas, Beasts, and Demons.

The Creator
An entity that resides over the ADAM Core. He is the one who created ADAM to govern the world. Not much is known about the Creator other than this fact and that he created human kind. Over the course of the story, it is eventually revealed that the Dragon god, Alder, is actually the creator.

The Cyma War


"The Great War" began in xx830, and lasted until xx865. It was rumored to be caused by a member of the royal Silverciel family who fell in love with a peasant girl (story that led to the city being called Chevalier). In addition to this rumor, underhand tactics by the Kaiser family, who were once allies to the royal family, eventually led to the fall of the royal line of kings. The crown became woven with lies as the Kaiser family took the throne in XX850, until XX865, where they lost power entirely when the Steinway family formed a contract with the Adam core, ending the war.

The EVE Project


The EVE Project was an experiment made by the Men of Eden and the corrupted Steinway family.

"Falling into Madness"


"Falling into Madness" refers to the different levels of chaos in Vicissitudes or Vicisses, particularly defined for the latter. The order of the five different stages are Lucid, Vulnerable, Psychotic, Broken, and the Lunatic stage.