[Journey Deck] The Themes

[indicoyote]

Here's the last entry describing particular cards in the Journey Deck, these are the Themes, which are the most esoteric and probably hard to describe, since they often reference parts of Puzzlebox cosmology that are rather different from the one most folks here are used to. Again, the aforelinked wiki might help provide some context, and I'm also more than happy to explain stuff at length in comments.
The Themes

The Themes are the big ideas and powers that can intervene in the workings of Downwarp (and the rest of the puzzlebox). They're not all entities, per se, but many of them are often seen that way, especially given the animist outlook that predominates in Downwarp. As such, the Themes fill a very similar role to the Major Arcana in the Tarot deck, speaking to difficult-to-control external and esoteric forces at work in the worlds.

The Themes also form a companion set to the Scenes, the meanings of cards at the same position in each set often mirroring each other. In a sense, the Themes are the "as above" to the Scenes' "so below"; having even one pairing of Scene and Theme in a reading often dramatically affects the reader's interpretation of the cards, amplifying their combined (or individual) implications, especially if they're in complementary or opposing positions.

The specific names and representations of the Themes are very specific to the milieu they came from, and the correspondence might be hard for outwarpers to understand at first glance. The descriptions below try to unpack the origins a bit, but those who are still confused can just rely on using the symbolic meanings and not worry much about the more literal origins.

1. Tree - The Cube Tree stands at the center of the Puzzlebox, in a space all its own, outside the warps, yet seemingly serving as a crossroads between them all. Some believe the Cube Tree is the heart of the 'Box, while others think it's the mind. Nearly everyone assumes it's an entity, and somehow related to the creation of the Puzzlebox itself. In a reading, the Tree references beginnings, uniqueness, singularity.
2. Mirror - The Magic Mirror is a shimmering substance that can seeming appear anywhere, made of willful nanoassembler or something stranger. It acts as both a replicator and a cross-warp transit system, but seems as if it could do nearly anything, if one could just work out how to ask it correctly. The Mirror Theme represents unbridled potentiality, plenty, and movement, all figurative and literal.
3. Circuit - The Circuit has been mentioned before, it's the central tool and metaphor of Downwarp mysticism, the flow of energy through Spark, Steel, and Smoke. As such, its Theme directly references that sort of willwork and creative process, as well as productive work and progression more generally.
4. Entropy - Things fall apart in Downwarp. Entropy seems to have the advantage, it's always in ruin, and it seems that if anyone wanted to build it up, they wouldn't get far. And yet, people still live there. For the inhabitants, there's more to it than aesthetics. Sure, some like the look of rusted metal and crumbling buildings, but for many it's more about the challenge of building something from what you find, and keeping it going. This Theme represents that challenge, the hardships we willingly accept that make life interesting.
5. Datasphere - One of the other services the Puzzlebox provides is ubiquitous connection. Whether by implants, psychic link, magic mirror access, or something else, everyone has the ability to talk to people they know and find information. It's second-nature to speak to friends over the datasphere, and use it as a secondary brain. Like all the Puzzlebox's services, it seems to have a personality of its own, which is earnestly helpful, but sometimes a bit flighty. Still, in a reading the Datasphere usually speaks to external sources of support and social ties.
6. Virus - Generally, damage can be fixed via a restore from backup. Generally, Puzzleboxers have resources to protect themselves from things they don't want to happen. But generally, these generalities don't apply to the Strangevirus. The Strangevirus is a piece of the essence of one of the other warps, gone very very bad. It twists and corrupts in ways that get right around the defenses that everyone takes for granted. The Virus Theme represents change you don't want, violation of consent, or at best, simply unthinkable incomprehensible interference.
7. Museum - Twined around and through the Puzzlebox are the impeccably designed extradimensional corridors of the Museum. The Museum seems to be separate from the 'box, but still a related... organism? Entity? No one is sure. Like the Puzzlebox, is has its owned themed areas with their different correspondences and rules, but where the Puzzlebox is ad-hoc and personable, the Museum is perfect and austere, showcasing the best things the multiverse has to offer. A a Theme, it represents excellence, perfection, and external interaction of a positive (or at least non-destructive) sort.
8. Renewal - It's been mentioned before, but the impact is big enough that of course it has its own theme. Barring extraordinary conditions or personal choice, death isn't really a thing that happens in the Puzzlebox. Bodies don't age unless they want to, and the Backup System is yet another service that watches over everyone. A death and renewal usually means you learned something, and got a fresh start. Some cultures, especially in Downwarp, even use personal death and backup-restore as part of rituals. This Theme represents the freedom provided by that system, and the productive cycles of change that it allows.
9. Grid - The names given to this Theme vary, but the concept is simple. It's also called The Box, The Mess, the Universe, or the Multiverse. The name Grid, though, references a concept in Candescent Engineering, the grand superstructure, the sum of all ways and paths along which energy can flow. The underlying theme is easy to see; it's completion, totality, abstraction and sometimes even transcendence.

Though their meanings are abstract, most of the Themes do correspond to something that has a physical existence or effect somewhere in the Puzzlebox, so the sorts of imagery on the Themes is often centered around a relatively concrete representation. Still, they are the most likely to have quite a bit of abstract elements as well, often around the borders, where a concrete Theme seems to reach out and subtly pervade the space of the rest of the card and, by implication, beyond.
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