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* AndroclesLion: While scouting out the ruins on the island, Vis saves an alupi pup from drowning and leaves his cloak behind to keep it warm. Later, the same alupi-- albeit supernaturally aged into an adult through means Vis doesn't understand-- shows up and saves him against [[spoiler: the hoard of undead husks that pour out of the ruins]].
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* CanisMajor: Alupi are enormous, intelligent wolves indigenous to the island of Solivagus. Vis doesn't know too much about them, but the one he does meet is smart enough to help him [[AndroclesLion after Vis saved its life]].
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* CommonalityConnection: Vis and the alupi pup he saves. At first, Vis intends to grant it a MercyKill, figuring that it would be kinder. When he actually gets near it, he is reminded of a puppy his sister had gotten not long before the Hierarchy invaded. Then he notices how afraid the animal is, but how it's staring right at him.
--> I slide the knife back into its sheathe and crouch beside the alupi. "I know exactly how you feel," I mutter to it, carefully holding out a hand to indicate that I don't wish it any harm. "Maybe I should call you [[spoiler: Diago.]]"
--> I slide the knife back into its sheathe and crouch beside the alupi. "I know exactly how you feel," I mutter to it, carefully holding out a hand to indicate that I don't wish it any harm. "Maybe I should call you [[spoiler: Diago.]]"
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* GivenNameReveal: It's not until the 8th chapter, almost a hundred pages in that the audience learns Vis's real name, [[spoiler: Diago]].
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The Hierarchy Series is a planned series by [[Literature/TheLicaniusTrilogy James Islington]].
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The Hierarchy Series is a planned an ongoing series by [[Literature/TheLicaniusTrilogy James Islington]].
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* WhenDimensionsCollide: [[spoiler: Apparently the labyrinth beneath the ruins is a security system preventing people from accessing a machine that enables some form of dimensional travel. At the end of the novel, Vis manages to accidentally clone himself, sending a copy of himself in all three available dimensions.]] It is heavily implies that the Cataclysm was a result of some kind of dimensional split or dimensional collide.
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* WhenDimensionsCollide: [[spoiler: Apparently the labyrinth beneath the ruins is a security system preventing people from accessing a machine that enables some form of dimensional travel. At the end of the novel, Vis manages to accidentally clone himself, sending a copy of himself in all three available dimensions.]] It is heavily implies implied that the Cataclysm was a result of some kind of dimensional split or dimensional collide.
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* WhenDimensionsCollide: [[spoiler: Apparently the labyrinth beneath the ruins is a security system preventing people from accessing a machine that enables some form of dimensional travel. At the end of the novel, Vis manages to accidentally clone himself, sending a copy of himself in all three available dimensions.]] It is heavily implies that the Cataclysm was a result of some kind of dimensional split or dimensional collide.
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* WhamEpisode: The majority of the novel is a straightforward story from Vis' point of view as he tries to covertly investigate Caeror's murder, tries to keep his identity hidden, tries to avoid angering the Anguis agent who knows who he is, and navigates the complexities of Academy life. The epilogue suddenly shifts genre and reveals that [[spoiler: there are multiple dimensions/universes, and by going through the strange rooms in the labyrinth Vis has inadvertently sent copies of himself into the other worlds. Caeror is in one of them, and tells Vis that there is something called a Concurrence, and that the previous war with it resulted in the universe being copied and split apart.]]
* WhenDimensionsCollide: [[spoiler: Apparently the labyrinth beneath the ruins is a security system preventing people from accessing a machine that enables some form of dimensional travel. At the end of the novel, Vis manages to accidentally clone himself, sending a copy of himself in all three available dimensions.]] It is heavily implies that the Cataclysm was a result of some kind of dimensional split or dimensionalcollide.collide.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: The Anguis are a resistance group fighting against the Hierarchy. At first, Vis is hopeful about them, but then he finds that they fully support murdering innocent people and in fact think of murdering Octavii as an easy way to destabilize the higher ranks. Vis hates the Hierarchy, but he can't condone murdering random villagers whose only crime is that they're having their life force leeched from them.
* WhenDimensionsCollide: [[spoiler: Apparently the labyrinth beneath the ruins is a security system preventing people from accessing a machine that enables some form of dimensional travel. At the end of the novel, Vis manages to accidentally clone himself, sending a copy of himself in all three available dimensions.]] It is heavily implies that the Cataclysm was a result of some kind of dimensional split or dimensional
* WellIntentionedExtremist: The Anguis are a resistance group fighting against the Hierarchy. At first, Vis is hopeful about them, but then he finds that they fully support murdering innocent people and in fact think of murdering Octavii as an easy way to destabilize the higher ranks. Vis hates the Hierarchy, but he can't condone murdering random villagers whose only crime is that they're having their life force leeched from them.
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* AdvancedAncientHumans: The ancient pre-Cataclysm civilization created mind-boggling technology and feats of Will. The Aurora Columnae and Sappers are actually ancient technology, and if the anyone in the modern day has found out how to replicate them, Vis doesn't know about it.
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* NeverSuicide: Numerous students have died mysteriously over the past several years, many of them via suicide. Some like [[spoiler: Feriun]] are confirmed to have been murdered, but most are implied to have [[spoiler: died accessing the ruins and running the ancient labyrinth under Veridius' instructions]]. Caeror's supposed suicide is what sparks Ulcisor's obsession into investigating the academy, as he is certain his brother never would have killed himself. [[spoiler: He's right. Caeror apparently made it through the labyrinth and wount up in the next dimension over.]]
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* NeverSuicide: Numerous students have died mysteriously over the past several years, many of them via suicide. Some like [[spoiler: Feriun]] are confirmed to have been murdered, but most are implied to have [[spoiler: died accessing the ruins and running the ancient labyrinth under Veridius' instructions]]. Caeror's supposed suicide is what sparks Ulcisor's obsession into investigating the academy, as he is certain his brother never would have killed himself. [[spoiler: He's right. Caeror apparently made it through the labyrinth and wount wound up in the next dimension over.]]]]
* PortalNetwork: [[spoiler: What the labyrinth in the ruins apparently was guarding. There are at least two other dimensions that can be accessed: Luceum and Obiteum]].
* PortalNetwork: [[spoiler: What the labyrinth in the ruins apparently was guarding. There are at least two other dimensions that can be accessed: Luceum and Obiteum]].
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[[AC: The books in the series are:]]
# ''Will of the Many'' (2023)
# ''The Strength of the Few'' (TBA)
# ''Will of the Many'' (2023)
# ''The Strength of the Few'' (TBA)
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The Hierarchy Series is a planned series by [[Literature/TheLicaniusTrilogy James Islington]].
Three hundred years ago, an unknown Cataclysm nearly destroyed the world, leaving less than one person in twenty alive and decimating the technological advances of the era. Now, the Catenan Republic, also known as the Hierarchy, has conquered the known world. It sustains its control through a class system that uses remnants of Pre-Cataclysm technology to force the lowest classes to cede their mental and physical energy, ''Will'', to the classes above them.
But with no more territory to conquer, tensions have heightened and the three senatorial pyramids of Governance, Religion, and Military have started to jockey for power. One of the most crucial arenas for this burgeoning power struggle is the elite Catenan Academy, where the sons and daughters of the Republic's most powerful families compete to earn placements in the Hierarchy's structure.
. . .
As far as the rest of the Catenan Republic knows, seventeen year old Vis Solum is an unremarkable war orphan a few months away from his first government-mandated Will ceding to the Aurora Columnae. By day, he works in the Letens Prison, seeing to the unfortunate prisoners confined to Will-draining devices called Sappers. By night, he fights in the local arena for extra money. What nobody knows and what nobody ''can'' know is that he isn't ''just'' a war orphan, he's the last remaining member of the royal family of Suus, the final nation to have been conquered by the Hierarchy only four years before. If his identity is revealed, he will be summarily executed-- or worse, put onto one of the Sappers he spends his days tending.
Enter Quintus Ulciscor Telimus, a powerful man from a powerful family who is determined solve what he believes is the murder of his brother, a student at the Catenan Academy. Former classmates of Caeror Telimus have been mysteriously disappearing, and Ulciscor is certain that the Principalis of the academy -- and former friend of Caeror's-- Quintus Veridius Julii has ''something'' to do with it. But the Academy is under the control of Religion, and as a member of Military, Ulciscor is unable to go and conduct his own investigation. He needs someone young and promising enough to pass as a student to conduct his illicit investigation for him, and lucky for him, he's just so happened to find an intelligent young man tending the prisons where one of Caeror's old classmates was hidden. . .
----
!! The novel contains examples of:
* BoxedCrook: An interesting case where Ulcisor doesn't realize that he's boxed a crook; he doesn't know that Vis is a fugitive that the government would want dead, but he nevertheless holds the threat of being sent to the Sappers over Vis' head for the entire duration of the novel, ensuring his compliance in the investigation.
* CommonTongue: The language of the Hierarchy is literally called "Common," and it is the enforced language taught across the empire. Vis knowing multiple languages, including "officially dead" ones are what bring him to Ulcisor's attention, and what later helps him befriend [[spoiler: Eidhin]].
* DeliberateUnderPerformance: Callidus, one of the students Vis befriends at the Academy, is in the lowest class rank of Seven, but he clearly belongs much, much higher up. Despite his clear intelligence and ability, he intentionally does mediocre in his lessons, going so far as to ignore the basic level-seven assessment tests to read complex books on scientific philosophy instead. He has three reasons as to why he's doing this:
** 1. The three Senate pyramids are at odds with one another, and his father is an incredibly powerful figure in the Governance pyramid. If things go south between Religion-- who run the school-- and Governance, then a highly successful son would make for a good hostage, while a shameful, disappointing son who is bringing the family name down would be ignored-- or at least a justifiable loss for the family.
** 2. [[spoiler: His father has access to confidential Census data that discloses the recent number of suspicious deaths among the higher ranked classes and warned Callidus in advance that things might be dangerous if he advances.]]
** 3. [[spoiler: The main reason: Callidus had crush on Belli, and tried to warn her about the dangers of advancing to the higher ranks. When she wasn't convinced, he stole the confidential documents from his father's office and gave them to her as proof, which she promptly used as blackmail to get him to give up his position in Class Three. If she exposed the documents and his role in acquiring them, then at the very least he would be sent to the Sappers, and possibly his family would join him.]]
* TheEmpire: The Hierarchy, which has conquered and assimilated every nation known to exist.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: The Hierarchy is this to the Roman Empire, complete with the use of a Senate, GratuitousLatin, SwordAndSandal aethetic, and a strong history of conquering and colonizing its neighbors.
* HumanResources: The Hierarchy's system of magic involves harvesting "Will" from other people in a hierarchical pyramid, with those at the top having the most amount of power and prestige. Citizens are required by law to cede Will to structures called Aurora Columnae, which allows those higher up to access it. The Heirarchy also uses marble tables called "Sappers" to drain the Will out of whoever is strapped to it.
* LifeEnergy: Every low ranked citizen cedes their mental and physical energy, "Will", to those higher up. This results in a higher ranked citizens capable of supernatural feats of what essentially amounts to magic, while the lower classes are in a constant state of mental and physical exhaustion.
* NeverFoundTheBody: Part of what's feeding Ulcisor' obsession with finding out what happened to his brother is the fact that they never recovered his body. This is actually foreshadowing that [[spoiler: Caeror is still alive.]]
* NeverSuicide: Numerous students have died mysteriously over the past several years, many of them via suicide. Some like [[spoiler: Feriun]] are confirmed to have been murdered, but most are implied to have [[spoiler: died accessing the ruins and running the ancient labyrinth under Veridius' instructions]]. Caeror's supposed suicide is what sparks Ulcisor's obsession into investigating the academy, as he is certain his brother never would have killed himself. [[spoiler: He's right. Caeror apparently made it through the labyrinth and wount up in the next dimension over.]]
* TheSmartGuy: While Vis is no slouch thanks both to his upbringing in Suus and training with Lanistia, Callidus is the most intelligent out of their group and ''ought'' to be in a much higher rank than Seven.
* WhenDimensionsCollide: [[spoiler: Apparently the labyrinth beneath the ruins is a security system preventing people from accessing a machine that enables some form of dimensional travel. At the end of the novel, Vis manages to accidentally clone himself, sending a copy of himself in all three available dimensions.]] It is heavily implies that the Cataclysm was a result of some kind of dimensional split or dimensional collide.
Three hundred years ago, an unknown Cataclysm nearly destroyed the world, leaving less than one person in twenty alive and decimating the technological advances of the era. Now, the Catenan Republic, also known as the Hierarchy, has conquered the known world. It sustains its control through a class system that uses remnants of Pre-Cataclysm technology to force the lowest classes to cede their mental and physical energy, ''Will'', to the classes above them.
But with no more territory to conquer, tensions have heightened and the three senatorial pyramids of Governance, Religion, and Military have started to jockey for power. One of the most crucial arenas for this burgeoning power struggle is the elite Catenan Academy, where the sons and daughters of the Republic's most powerful families compete to earn placements in the Hierarchy's structure.
. . .
As far as the rest of the Catenan Republic knows, seventeen year old Vis Solum is an unremarkable war orphan a few months away from his first government-mandated Will ceding to the Aurora Columnae. By day, he works in the Letens Prison, seeing to the unfortunate prisoners confined to Will-draining devices called Sappers. By night, he fights in the local arena for extra money. What nobody knows and what nobody ''can'' know is that he isn't ''just'' a war orphan, he's the last remaining member of the royal family of Suus, the final nation to have been conquered by the Hierarchy only four years before. If his identity is revealed, he will be summarily executed-- or worse, put onto one of the Sappers he spends his days tending.
Enter Quintus Ulciscor Telimus, a powerful man from a powerful family who is determined solve what he believes is the murder of his brother, a student at the Catenan Academy. Former classmates of Caeror Telimus have been mysteriously disappearing, and Ulciscor is certain that the Principalis of the academy -- and former friend of Caeror's-- Quintus Veridius Julii has ''something'' to do with it. But the Academy is under the control of Religion, and as a member of Military, Ulciscor is unable to go and conduct his own investigation. He needs someone young and promising enough to pass as a student to conduct his illicit investigation for him, and lucky for him, he's just so happened to find an intelligent young man tending the prisons where one of Caeror's old classmates was hidden. . .
----
!! The novel contains examples of:
* BoxedCrook: An interesting case where Ulcisor doesn't realize that he's boxed a crook; he doesn't know that Vis is a fugitive that the government would want dead, but he nevertheless holds the threat of being sent to the Sappers over Vis' head for the entire duration of the novel, ensuring his compliance in the investigation.
* CommonTongue: The language of the Hierarchy is literally called "Common," and it is the enforced language taught across the empire. Vis knowing multiple languages, including "officially dead" ones are what bring him to Ulcisor's attention, and what later helps him befriend [[spoiler: Eidhin]].
* DeliberateUnderPerformance: Callidus, one of the students Vis befriends at the Academy, is in the lowest class rank of Seven, but he clearly belongs much, much higher up. Despite his clear intelligence and ability, he intentionally does mediocre in his lessons, going so far as to ignore the basic level-seven assessment tests to read complex books on scientific philosophy instead. He has three reasons as to why he's doing this:
** 1. The three Senate pyramids are at odds with one another, and his father is an incredibly powerful figure in the Governance pyramid. If things go south between Religion-- who run the school-- and Governance, then a highly successful son would make for a good hostage, while a shameful, disappointing son who is bringing the family name down would be ignored-- or at least a justifiable loss for the family.
** 2. [[spoiler: His father has access to confidential Census data that discloses the recent number of suspicious deaths among the higher ranked classes and warned Callidus in advance that things might be dangerous if he advances.]]
** 3. [[spoiler: The main reason: Callidus had crush on Belli, and tried to warn her about the dangers of advancing to the higher ranks. When she wasn't convinced, he stole the confidential documents from his father's office and gave them to her as proof, which she promptly used as blackmail to get him to give up his position in Class Three. If she exposed the documents and his role in acquiring them, then at the very least he would be sent to the Sappers, and possibly his family would join him.]]
* TheEmpire: The Hierarchy, which has conquered and assimilated every nation known to exist.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: The Hierarchy is this to the Roman Empire, complete with the use of a Senate, GratuitousLatin, SwordAndSandal aethetic, and a strong history of conquering and colonizing its neighbors.
* HumanResources: The Hierarchy's system of magic involves harvesting "Will" from other people in a hierarchical pyramid, with those at the top having the most amount of power and prestige. Citizens are required by law to cede Will to structures called Aurora Columnae, which allows those higher up to access it. The Heirarchy also uses marble tables called "Sappers" to drain the Will out of whoever is strapped to it.
* LifeEnergy: Every low ranked citizen cedes their mental and physical energy, "Will", to those higher up. This results in a higher ranked citizens capable of supernatural feats of what essentially amounts to magic, while the lower classes are in a constant state of mental and physical exhaustion.
* NeverFoundTheBody: Part of what's feeding Ulcisor' obsession with finding out what happened to his brother is the fact that they never recovered his body. This is actually foreshadowing that [[spoiler: Caeror is still alive.]]
* NeverSuicide: Numerous students have died mysteriously over the past several years, many of them via suicide. Some like [[spoiler: Feriun]] are confirmed to have been murdered, but most are implied to have [[spoiler: died accessing the ruins and running the ancient labyrinth under Veridius' instructions]]. Caeror's supposed suicide is what sparks Ulcisor's obsession into investigating the academy, as he is certain his brother never would have killed himself. [[spoiler: He's right. Caeror apparently made it through the labyrinth and wount up in the next dimension over.]]
* TheSmartGuy: While Vis is no slouch thanks both to his upbringing in Suus and training with Lanistia, Callidus is the most intelligent out of their group and ''ought'' to be in a much higher rank than Seven.
* WhenDimensionsCollide: [[spoiler: Apparently the labyrinth beneath the ruins is a security system preventing people from accessing a machine that enables some form of dimensional travel. At the end of the novel, Vis manages to accidentally clone himself, sending a copy of himself in all three available dimensions.]] It is heavily implies that the Cataclysm was a result of some kind of dimensional split or dimensional collide.
