The Hydra Galaxy is a gigantic negative density galaxy that moves through the universe.
History[]
Early History[]
At a currently unknown point in Earth's history, a race of Super-Ancient Beings discovered the Hydra galaxy, which was hurtling outwards from the center of the universe on the crest of a gravitational wave. Having actually created this universe themselves, the Ancients were able to somehow change the direction of the Hydra galaxy as they saw fit.
Already in the process of devising a series of trials to determine if a sentient species was worthy of existing, the Super-Ancients decided to set about constructing a mysterious antennae out of an unknown substance with the appearance of mountain rock within a meteor crater on Earth that any intelligent species that arose could use to accomplish this. During this process, they created nine spheres made of golden quartz possessing an unusual energy, which upon their placement in the antenna structure would re-direct the Hydra galaxy's path away from Earth.
To made the diverting of the Hydra galaxy more of a challenge, they established a set of arenas within crater the antenna was situated in, which would become part of a ritual of challenges to prove that whoever earned the Spheres was of a race that deserved to continue living past the Hydra galaxy's impact.
Since 10,000 BC, the Hydra galaxy has made preliminary passes of the Earth on three occasions in early preparation before the true Age of Trials began. Each time, the Four Legendary Kingdoms held the Great Games of the Hydra in order to undertake the ritual for the time and divert the Hydra galaxy from its course towards Earth; upon the success of each of these Games, a signal was sent to the Hydra galaxy, which in response would send out a signal containing information from the Ancients known as the Mysteries, which would provide whoever received them with knowledge regarding the final two trials.
The Four Legendary Kingdoms[]
Around September 2016, the observatory in the Underworld which tracked the movements of the Hydra galaxy detected that it was close enough to Earth, and unlocked the Star Chamber vault the Golden Spheres were locked inside, signaling to the Four Kingdoms that the time to divert the Hydra galaxy was upon them.
At the same time that the Four Kingdoms began their final preparations for the Great Games of the Hydra, the Pine Gap facility's Square Kilometer Array discovered the incoming Hydra galaxy. Australian intelligence quickly realised the severity of the situation, and after a month, General Eric Abrahamson called for Jack West Jr to consult him on the crisis in the hope that the former specialist might know of something that could save them. Jack recognised the shape of the Hydra galaxy resembling a Tetra-Gammadion, which had been a symbol used by ancient civilisations and agreed to look into it. However, the Kingdom of Land agent General Redbeard allowed Iolanthe Compton-Jones and her people to kidnap Jack for participation in the Great Games.
During the interim between the Second and Third Challenges, Iolanthe explained the history of the Hydra galaxy and its relationship with the Super-Ancients and the Great Games of the Hydra to Jack and his friends.
Later, during the banquet hosted by Hades between the Fourth and Fifth Challenges, Ricardo Mendoza further explained how the Hydra galaxy and its diversion was but the third of five tasks set by the super-ancient beings to test life on Earth.
Following the Fifth Challenge, the first five Golden Spheres were set in place within the Summit Temple atop the antenna mountain, raising the obelisk and completing the first phase of the trials. After Jack won the Great Games, the remaining four Spheres were set into place, and though Orlando Compton-Jones attempted to enter the recess that would allow him to recieve the Mysteries, Jack stopped him, and so as the obelisk powered up and sent out its signal to the Hydra galaxy, the ever-moving galaxy was re-directed to alter its course away from Earth, completing the third trial.
The Three Secret Cities[]
As Alby Calvin was tasked with figuring out when the fourth trial, the Trial of the Cities, was set to be completed by, he discovered that radio waves from the Sagittarius A-star singularity in the Milky Way galaxy would pass through Earth and onwards through the path that the Hydra galaxy had cleared a path on its original trajectory to the center of the universe, be able to determine if the fourth trial had been completed or not.
Attributes[]
The Hydra galaxy is in the shape of a tetra-gammadion / swastika, and is 400 times larger than the Milky Way galaxy. Because it moves on the crest of a gravitational wave originating from from the center of the universe, the Hydra galaxy is moving at 10 times the speed of sound. What keeps it from expanding and falling apart devastatingly as it moves is the Hydra galaxy's own negative density, which draws in its own matter as fast as it is being flung.
Trivia[]
- The shape of the Hydra Galaxy inspired the myths regarding the multi-headed Hydra beast because of the shapes of its arms.