Evening Star

At the end of every rotation, the Evening Star will rise and wreak havoc upon the Meridian Eternal Equatorial Rise, shifting the unprotected Meridian Wasteland and the World Scars randomly across the world, eradicating all who find themselves outside the safety of the Civil Perimeters. No one is quite sure what the Evening Star is, only that it has remained in the place of the real star some few years before the Meridian's founding, supposedly first appearing after the destruction of a Greater Coven settlement named Rainzul in an Old World region called Tilth. Since then, it has refused to relent, growing increasingly hostile and larger every rotation, the cause of which or its implications is also entirely unknown. Astralshaper shelters the Meridian in a temporary blanket of darkness, banishing the Evening Star for a time, allowing for a small moment of peace using massive structures called Tether Anchors. These Anchors "anchor" the empire to night, keeping the dreaded Evening Star at bay for roughly thirty full days longer for every Tether Anchor operational; however, its ravenous nature is only becoming more uncontrollable as the rotations continue, fighting back against the Anchors and bringing Evening sooner.
Because of these two variables, how long night lasts is essentially random, though the Vicarvoyancy is well aware of when the Anchors are nearing depletion, usually informing the general populace before-hand so that they may prepare, and so that the Rompus tournament can be called. Eventually, the tethers will fail as they lose their stores of power, consuming more energy than they can possibly regain, every single one shutting down in near-unison and reverting to a "collection" state that siphons the ambient magic to recharge quicker. While they replenish their depleted stores of Divination, the dreaded Evening Star will rise above the horizon, pulsing madly and twisting the skies. Should anyone find themselves outside the Civil Perimeter when Evening is at its fullest, they will almost certainly perish; but even the dead know no rest during these forsaken time. Unfathomable creatures of Evening as black as the void will resurrect the fallen, bringing them to bear against the Meridian as they helplessly batter against the shielded cities, gazing through with sheer animosity, staring at your very spirit with unblinking, red eyes. The horror doesn't stop with monsters however as Evening catalyzes any remaining fields of solidified magic that the Meridian could not harvest, dispersing their stored energy and releasing it in an explosive reaction that could incite the creation of another World Scars, or increase the size of the field by ten-fold.
The Evening Star brings with it a flurry of particulate, bombarding the Meridian in an extreme dosage of every school of magic which in turn causes the catalysis of existing fields as well as creates new ones, with the World Scars focusing the barrage on key locations, permanently marking a swathe of territory uninhabitable. This continual cycle is what formed the Wastes, the Old World unable to persevere and resist the constant assault of Evening, all life being snuffed out and extinguished, replaced by a new environment ruled by magic. When the Tether Anchors finally recharge, they will banish the Evening Star once more, returning the Meridian to the safety of darkness, the dust and ash settling. Monstrosities born from the magical volley will continue to wander for some time and pose a danger to wandering travelers, though many will wither and die as the nights continue without Evening. Everything not under the protection of a Civil Perimeter will change locations, disappear entirely, or old structures and facilities of ages past will reappear suddenly, requiring the Houses to expend their time and resources remapping the Meridian Wasteland, World Scars, and find all fields of magic to harvest before next Evening. For the duration of Evening, Astralshaper is not seen outside of the Moonstone Anchor, supposedly actively combating the evil that is the Evening Star in the defense of her people and her world.

_{The Evening Star, as depicted within the Saga of Night.}