The universe is not about light it is about information.
In the beginning there was the Ether. The Ether is like the material that the world is made of. A time ago people thought the Ether was the breath of creation.. Nowadays in the world of Aetheris nobody is supposed to remember the Ether.
Ten thousand years ago some powerful beings came down from the sky. They did not come to save people. To build a big cage around the world. They made a net called the Mana Grid. The Mana Grid helps to control the Ether, which's very powerful and can change reality. The Ether is turned into an energy called Mana.
General Astra of Judgment was standing on a balcony made of light. The balcony was high up above the clouds in a place called the Empyrean Heights. General Astra looked down at the world below. The world was shining with a blue light. To a person it would look like a beautiful sky.. To General Astra it looked like a farm.
"The energy is stable " a soft voice said from behind him. It was a Lesser Angel. The Lesser Angel is a being made of energy. "People are still using Mana to power their cities, their wars and their daily lives. Every time they use Mana, a little bit of their soul is taken away. We think we will get 4% soul energy this century than we did last century."
General Astra nodded. He was looking at the part of the world. His eyes were very strange they did not have pupils. They were always changing. "The Mana System is perfect. We give people the tools they need to live. They give us the energy we need to live forever. They worship the things that are holding them back."
"But General " the Lesser Angel said slowly. "We have found something. A child in the part of the city has appeared. The Mana-Pillar did not recognize him."
General Astras face did not change,. The air around him became very serious. "This is an anomaly. A mistake in the system. For ten thousand years we have been getting rid of people like this. People who cannot use Mana are the ones who can see the truth. That is why we call them 'Zero-Stars.' We have to make sure they do not tell the others or the others will realize what is happening to them."
"Should we get rid of him?"
"No " General Astra said quietly. "The Four Maze Grimoire has been silent for a long time. If it has chosen a host it means the Ether is trying to change itself. Let the child grow. It is easy to stop something when it's small and weak."
Down on the surface of Aetheris in a part of the city called Iron-Scrap, a fifteen-year-old boy named Arata Yukihira was looking at a special lamp. The lamp was using Mana for energy. But Arata did not see the light he saw how the energy was being taken away, from the room and sent up to the sky.
The time of harvest was coming.. This time the people being harvested were not going to go quietly.