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- "Renounce the temporal obligations of existence and transcend the constrictions of spatial understanding to unearth a world on the fringes of liberation, accursed by a divine stratagem and only a coruscation of hope, a prophecy of light and a tragic love."
- — BZP Topic
Worlds Beyond the Horizon of the Mind, often shortened to WBtHotM, is a heavily plot-oriented comic series written by BZPower member Emkay. It was in planning since September 2009, and it was posted on May 22, 2010.
On December 8th, 2010, Emkay updated the first post with a new header and opening lines. This was the second time the topic had to be re-opened due to topic death.
On June 20th, 2011, Emkay announced a complete reboot of the series giving changes to the method of storytelling, character development, and minor plot details while still retaining the core mythology and key characters.
Plot
Chapter One: Pilgrimage
The comics begin with Emkay and Allira, a female Huna-wearing character, walking through a large desert discussing the existence of alternate universes and versions of oneself. They are going to a temple, which Allira says is not far away. Allira then leads Emkay around in a circle, and Emkay gets frustrated. While taking out her frustration, it is revealed that they are on a pilgrimage to the temple to find out if Emkay is the child of an entity called the Ankab Shaddai. Allira then reminds Emkay to have faith.
Emkay then notices the ring system in the sky (and another presently unknown factor) and realizes she can use it for navigation. After traversing several large sand dunes, they reach the Laeva, the temple they have been looking for.
Chapter Two: Yesterday's Dawn
Upon entering Laeva, Emkay points out how empty it is. Allira then spots an Ahatiar, a religious figure, and speaks with her claiming Emkay to be their Messiah. In order to support such a claim, the Ahatiar leads Emkay to the Monolith, a mysterious stone structure built into the temple itself with a piece of the symbol carved into it. This Monolith then sends Emkay into a dream state where details about her past are revealed to the reader. The dream state begins a vision of a green body of water with a large tower far in the horizon and a vision of a spider with the upper section of the Shajrah on its abdomen. She is then seen laying in the sand after being transported to the desert planet of Allira. She gets up and tries to determine where she is noting the ring system of the planet and the fact that the sun has been on the horizon for hours without moving. She then finds a house standing in the sand and decides to check it out, but passes out before reaching it. She wakes up in a room with an elderly man named Ghern standing above her.
After she has fully regained consciousness, she starts asking him questions about where she is and who he is. It is then revealed that English, or as he calls it, The Language, is an ancient language used for religious purposes. Ghern also reveals to her that she is on the planet Allira and has a granddaughter of the same name. He mentions that the rest of his family, including his wife Masyr, was killed by the Tw'man and then hands her the Hakim Credo, a religious book that is the foundation for all their beliefs.
Ghern leads Emkay to Allira's room where she was studying The Language. Emkay then has a series of visions: the two of them holding eachother on a sand dune, a moon in the sky, a line of scripture that reads "...ground shook and echoed the cries of the dispossessed, the great / Tw'man opened its mighty maw and swallowed the world. / The light was cast to a towering spire that protruded..." and a vision of a strange beast. Emkay then goes to introduce herself to Allira but gets interrupted by her commenting on how strange she looks and asks if she is from the Tomahna Province. Emkay begins to explain how she doesn't believe that she's from Allira and doesn't know why she was there. Allira then comments on how crazy that sounds.
After going over the Credo together, Allira invites Emkay to explore the desert, but Emkay runs into Ghern before they head out. He asks Emkay what she thinks about planet of Allira and she responds by telling him that his worlds is nothing like she's ever seen before; Emkay, of course, is talking about the character and the planet. It is unknown if Ghern caught on to this. Ghern then tells Emkay to be careful and they proceed to head off. Emkay asks Allira where they go first and she tells him that they're going to Almadyna.
The Execration of Karadaya
Chapter Three: Fallen Angels
On their way to Almadyna, Allira tells Emkay how to navigate the desert using the Itarah, the planetary rings, and the position of the sun. Allira uses this method to find the city. When they get to the city, Allira leads Emkay to a statue called the 'Execration of Karadaya' which symbolizes the murder of Yuzaraal and the eternal exile of Karadaya. The two continue on and come across an abandoned library. Allira informs Emkay that many of the Hakim that lived in the city were called into battle against the Tw'man and never came back. Emkay decides to stay in the library as the books may give her some insight on how she was brought to their world in the first place.
Symbol
The Shajrah, a religious symbol that litters the comics.
Within the comics is a recurring symbol known as the Shajrah. It represents the Ankab Shaddai and it's three children, pivotal figures in The Hakim Religion.
Graphics
Worlds Beyond the Horizon of the Mind has been unanimously regarded as having some of the best graphics in all of AWIII. It blends RZMIK sprites nearly seamlessly with backgrounds made using photographs compensating for both shadows, lighting, and reflections.
Trivia
- The name of the series is an homage to long Sci-Fi titles (most notably classic Star Trek episodes) such as The Day the Earth Stood Still, The City on the Edge of Forever, and For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky.
- Emkay describes the story as a Shakespearean play mixed with an Arthur C. Clarke story as it blends both the sci-fi and religious elements in Clarke's work with characters and conflicts one would see in a Shakespearean play.
- Allira and Ghern are the only two names that aren't derived from either Hebrew or Arabic words.
- Various references have been made to the MYST game series. Some examples are the Alliran text used in the Hakim Credo and the reference to the Tomahna Province with Tomahna being a major location in the MYST series.