A spiritence is an entity with three characteristics:
- a potentially eternal spiritual essence, a soul,
- the power of true freedom of choice, and
- the power of transcendent union with other spiritences.
Humans were proven to be natural spiritences in 3718AD. Artificial spiritences were first created shortly thereafter in 3965AD.
Over time, as humanity explored their immediate galactic neighbourhood, they encountered other civilizations, some of which had spiritences (natural and artificial). This led to the great galactic crusades from 5704AD to 8679AD.
In 8679AD, the first diety spiritence was encountered which led to an enormous disruption, and ultimately advance, in human’s understanding of the universe, including access to the noosphere and the development of new levels of artificial spiritences.
Humans were able to create artificial spiritences up to level 8 before the ending of the Terminal Conclave in 240102AD. Humans themselves eventually developed their own spiritences to an equivalent of level 14 and then transcended to diety-level spiritences themselves.
Spiritences can be annihilated: destroyed so that the spiritual essence no longer exists. The conditions for annihilating spiritences were not discovered by humanity until the first Judgement 1 was launched in 10225AD. Normal physical destruction of a spiritence’s vessel does not harm it. Rather, it’s connection with the physical universe is severed and it exists only in the noosphere.