Right, so this is going to take a while. The first thing you need to know is that the Hectorverse is a multiverse of sorts. Before we start, I'd like to go over some terms. You'll see the terms "Void, Rift, Funnel, Rust and Canvas" a lot. The Funnel constitutes the reality of all the universes, the Void is what is beyond that reality, and the Rift is what separates the Funnel from the Void and makes reality real. The Rift is sort of like a protective envelope around the Funnel, and the Funnel is contained within the Rift. The Canvas is the fabric of the Rift, the fabric of reality. There's also the Rust, but that will be covered more extensively in the Rift section. A simple explanation of the Rust is that it's what eats away at the Canvas, causing it to twist and contort and in doing so create time within the Funnel.
Keep in mind that this is sort of a crash course in the lore, so if you want to know more about a certain part of it, visit that individual section.
click on titles (ex: "The Void") to view entries (coming soon)
The Funnel is the name given to the structure of all the universes in the Hectorverse. The Funnel is the structure of our wider reality, where universes are arranged in the funnel depending on their stability. Levels of the Funnel are separated into rings, think of it as kind of like the planetary model of the atom but funnel shaped. Unstable universes will lie towards the bottom of the funnel and are worlds of galactic horrors and unimaginable beauty. Towards the top are the most stable universes, universes more anchored in reality. Our universe -- Earth's universe -- lies at the top outer ring of the funnel. On this outer ring are universes very similar to ours with varying levels of uniqueness. The rings are labeled from 0 to infinity as they go down the Funnel. The outer ring (ring 0) is the largest of all the rings of the funnel, the higher the number ring the smaller it is. Every ring is NEAR infinite in its own way, but the farther down you go, the more packed they are together creating the funnel effect and causing extra dimensional “bleeding” between universes. The bottom rings are the most chaotic and packed, and the universes contained there are more one universe than they are individual universes. At infinity-1 there are only 2 universes, constantly at risk of collapsing into each other. If this were to happen, the Funnel would be sucked down into the Void and destroyed. At the very bottom lies the last part before the funnel empties out into the void. This part is mostly unexplored, but those that have described it as, “a black and white still of a peaceful town, endless, empty, horrifying, and bleak.” The bottom of the funnel lies at infinity. The Rust contorting the Canvas of the Rift is what gives the Funnel its shape. At infinty, the Canvas is in contact with the Rust and being pulled into the Void by it. The Rust and its effects on the Canvas is the source of instability, and also the cause of the movement of time within the Funnel. To get to the bottom, you would have to traverse the hallways. The hallways are passageways to different sections of the funnel, wormholes of sorts, but it is very easy to get lost in a hallway. The void envelops the funnel, but cannot be accessed through the top. The mass of the bottom of the funnel (which is very dense) combined with the weakening of reality caused by the Rust rips a hole in the Canvas of the Rift allowing access to the Void. Similar how a black hole tears apart the fabric of space.
The Void is infinitely large space surrounding the funnel. Very little is known about the Void except that it exists, and that some sort of immense life resides wihtin it. This life is the Spawn, the last of the cosmic beings. All other cosmic beings have long since gone extinct such as the Funnel Makers (also known as Rift Weavers). The cosmic beings influence over the funnel is restricted from their place in the void. While the most powerful of their number can influence thoughts, dreams, and nightmares, the cosmic beings have little physical influence until they enter the funnel, which is a rare occurence. More often a Shade of a Spawn (sort of like a fragment or shard of the Spawn's existence) will enter the Funnel through the bottom at infinity, rather than a Spawn itself.
The Rift separates the Funnel from the Void, and can be thought of as a dimension of sorts. The Canvas of the Rift is what makes reality, and its shifting and movement is what creates time within the Funnel. This is where the Hallways are located, as they are paths through the Rift which open out into the Funnel. The laws of physics and of all Funnel reality are imprinted in the Canvas, and the Funnel is somewhat like a hologram being emitted from the bounds of the Canvas. As the Canvas shifts, so too does reality. Hence time. The Rift has been described as appearing very orange, with murky, heavy air and a ground (ground is used loosely, it morphs between ground, walls, ceilings, and pathways that extend like tendrils) that looks and feels like canvas.There isn’t a sky really, just a burnt looking orange glow emanating from beyond the canvas. The not-sky orange glow is referred to vaguely as the Rust. It is unknown whether the Rust is living or just a natural phenomenon. The Rust eats away at the canvas, while the canvas contorts and grows and stretches (thus changing reality, giving the funnel time). The Rust forces time upon the funnel by causing the canvas to change in order to not be destroyed. The canvas is not alive (in the sense that it’s not conscious or anything, it’s sort of like a microorganism that, even though it can’t think, still reacts. It is not truly alive though, it only reacts to stimuli such as the Rust). The Rift has lifeforms native to it, but they are unlike anything present in the Funnel. Think trans-dimensional plants whose roots stretch down into reality sucking at the thoughts of Funnel life and creating a dream world in their leaves. That kind of stuff.
Universes separate from the Funnel, created by bubbles/pockets formed in the Rift. These universes are unlike anything found in the Funnel. As the reflections of their reality bounce around in the pocket of Rift which they occupy, their realities can become morphed and distorted. They are also isolated from the rest of.. well everything, really. These universe can only be accessed by puncturing through the Rift in the right spot. Doing this can also allow these mutated realities to bleed into the Funnel, so caution is advised.