The Empyrean

History

The Empyrean is the least visited of the "original" Outer Planes, primarily because its composition makeup is so fundamentally different than the one we enjoy in Aeyvis. Though its existence has been conjectured for decades if not centuries, it has proved difficult to tap into the wavelength of this plane in locations that have traditionally spearheaded planar research, such as Jalekhar and Siekol. The first recorded contact with the plane occurred high in the mountains, in a fringe research center in Vustor. (It is for their unparalleled work on the Plane of Air that the research community around Vustor has been given a second chance in the eyes of academia as a whole. Let us hope that this was not a mistake.)
It took weeks after its initial discovery for anyone to attempt anything besides peer inside the planar rift and observe the clouds and currents as they passed by, or so the academic legend goes. Tired of waiting for his superiors to figure out how to transport a hot air balloon through the rift and inflate it fast enough (much like earlier work with the Pelagic, except with the added problem of falling through endless space), an apprentice simply chucked an apple through when no one was looking... only to watch as it did not fall, instead being pushed up and down and left and right solely through the winds that blew in all directions. That apprentice was swiftly reprimanded then subsequently promoted for his discovery that there was, in fact, no gravity in the Empyrean plane of air.
Research immediately shifted -- instead of figuring out how to inflate air balloons, researchers began to pour their efforts into creating person-sized propulsion systems that could point in any direction. Gyroscopes and sealed glass helmets helped to alleviate the motion sickness that arose from exposure to the otherwise breathable air, and particularly daring volunteers were sent in to build up tolerance to the strange orientation or lack thereof.
In recent years, another interesting discovery was made: though most of the open air was subject to battering by harsh winds, most puffs of clouds appeared to be somewhat immune, moving slowly in their trajectory and even shielding from the worst of the effects. Upon placing down an item on one such cloud (an apple, out of tradition) explorers watched as the apple simply... sat on the cloud, as if pulled by the faintest effects of gravity. Further interaction showed that the cloud had a wet texture but otherwise gave way, similar to freshly powdered snow.
Though travel to the Empyrean has been the briefest of all classic elements so far (minutes, compared to upwards of a week in other planes), the glimpses into this strange dimension have led scholars to believe that life could in fact be sustained here -- if not naturally, then perhaps manmade with a lot of investment.
Though it hasn't been confirmed, some have sworn that in the far distance of a plane rift they've seen the vague silhouette of a bird, or even (strangely enough) a colony of fish. Such claims are still unfounded, though those who argue in favor of its existence speculate that such lifeforms are easily able to flee upon sighting of a strange disturbance such as a planar shift, hence why we have yet to witness nay up close.
More research is required.

Alternative Name(s)

Cumulo

Type

Dimensional plane