Discussion: Albrecht Entrati

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Albrecht Entrati was the patriarch of the Entrati family, and a renowned Orokin scientist. He has yet to be seen in person, and is presumed dead by many. However, the mark he left on the Origin System continues to be felt throughout millennia of history, and his legacy is kept alive by his descendants. His story – particularly his first journey into the Void – is documented in the Requiem glyph fragments displayed in the secret chamber under the Necralisk on Deimos.

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Requiem glyph fragments

The hidden chamber underneath the Necralisk, where Loid operates the Necraloid Syndicate, holds the Cosmic Clock, a device of unknown function. On the walls around the Clock are displayed the eight Requiem glyphs. Ranking up with either the Entrati or Necraloid Syndicate will cause one of these glyphs to activate, revealing part of the story as a Vitruvian entry, similar to Ballas' Vitruvian device as seen in The Sacrifice. As there are five ranks in the Entrati Syndicate and three with the Necraloid, it is necessary to achieve maximum rank with both to unlock all eight glyphs. These lore fragments are not technically "fragments", and are not shown in the Codex; they can only be reviewed in the Cosmic Clock chamber.

Xata (Truth) discusses the reason for exploring the Void. The Orokin have achieved functional immortality through their advanced biotech and kuva which transfers them into new bodies when their old ones finally wear out. However, when the Sun eventually dies (an event that was likely still several billion years away in Albrecht's time), the Orokin will die with it, regardless of their immortality. Thus, Albrecht saw a need to travel to other star systems and populate them, in order to ensure the perpetual continuation of the human race. In doing so, he knew that he was also tapping into the innate human need to explore and discover, and this was an emotional impetus in addition to the logical one. "Truth" refers to the reality that life on Earth would not outlast the Sun's death.

Jahu (Form) begins the narration of his first successful journey to the Void. Albrecht had spent years theorising about the Void's existence, postulating that it could be the breakthrough they needed, and trying to establish a gateway. As he expended massive amounts of time and wealth with no results, he was ridiculed and abandoned by his peers. This drove Albrecht to take greater risks and ignore the costs of his obsession – presumably, his relationship with his daughter, Euleria, whom the Tenno later meets as Mother. Eventually, Albrecht had constructed a "Bell", similar to a diving bell used by early undersea explorers, out of seriglass, and he would, on that fateful day, occupy it himself and enter the Void – using himself as a guinea pig. "Form" is the opposite of "Void", and refers to the voyage's beginning in the real world, before he transitions into the Other.

Vome (Order) tells how the gateway between worlds was opened. The laboratory callipers had stretched open a gap in reality, and the seriglass Bell descended into it, with Albrecht inside. Even before he crossed the gap, the paradoxic effects of the Void manifested in the laboratory, causing Albrecht to experience unusual sensations. This appears to be the first successful gateway into the Void, as Albrecht was surprised by the sensations he felt. He stumbled against the side of the Bell, causing it to tilt far enough to graze the edge of the portal. As it encountered the edge of reality and unreality, it lost structural integrity, and shattered into fragments – and Albrecht, its occupant, fell into the Void without any protection. "Order" refers to Albrecht's deliberate plan to study the Void, which was dashed by the Void's chaotic influence.

Fass (Chaos) speaks of Albrecht's first moments in the Void. He had fallen on his face, confused and in pain. He was lost in old, childhood memories, but he could not gather his thoughts. Eventually he realised that he was not dead or dying, and he tried to get his bearings. When he realised that he was lying on the familiar stone floor of his laboratory, he believed that he was still in his own reality and had failed again regarding the Void portal. He heard footsteps crunching on the shattered fragments of the seriglass Bell, and assumed it was his daughter, but when he looked, it was instead a reflection of his own self. "Chaos" refers, of course, to the Void's paradoxic energies, and the confusion that follows.

Ris (Light) describes Albrecht's reaction to the Void. The Void appeared as a horizonless plane of bright white light, with stars of black as a backdrop – the inverse of our normal night sky. Albrecht was standing in a small section of his laboratory that appeared to be transported along with him from reality, attached to nothing. A stream of colour, like a smoke plume, billowed both from the gateway into reality – still open – and from Albrecht's own head. "Light" refers to the brightness of the Void, which is presumably an expression of its immense energy.

Khra (Time) describes Albrecht's reaction to his reflection. The other him spoke, greeting Albrecht with a childhood nickname he hadn't heard in centuries: "Little Bengel". The twin started to approach him, in a curious fashion; although he did not move, the space between them appeared to compress. Albrecht was confused, but greatly unnerved, and decided to flee back through the portal. He "moved" in the same fashion, arriving at his destination without traversing the distance. He jumped through the portal and arrived back in reality, dazed and confused, vomiting on the floor in his bewilderment. He could sense the presence of the other man attempting to enter through the portal, and was terrified, but he could not see nor speak. He grasped the shattered seriglass fragments from the floor and squeezed them until blood flowed, and used his bleeding hands to write urgently on the floor: CLOSE IT. His daughter complied, shutting down the portal just as the other man's fingers reached through, severing them. "Time" could refer either to the use of Albrecht's childhood name, or to the confusing manner of travel in the Void.

Netra (Decay) recounts Albrecht's musings after the incident. He notes that, to the Orokin, no injury was permanent. They could always move on to a new body, and unpleasant memories could be excised. The Orokin lived in a state of perpetual bliss. But Albrecht could no longer say the same. He was haunted ever since that day. In the years that followed, the severed fingers of the other man were studied in order to develop Void-based technologies, and the Void itself was explored as well. Later explorers used advanced technology to shield themselves and study the Void's energies. However, none of them ever saw the man that Albrecht saw – the man "trapped in the wall". Albrecht became more and more paranoid that he had never really escaped, that he was still stuck in the Void and that the other man had crossed the gateway instead. So he decided to never take the kuva again, to stay in his body as it aged and eventually died. "Decay" refers, then, to Albrecht's body, unique among the Orokin, as he chose to die. It could also refer to the deterioration of his faculties as his paranoia grew.

Lohk (Void) consists of the poem that is found on the Requiem mods. Albrecht intones the verses in a serious and dramatic tone. The poem is dark and apocalyptic when read without context (as it was when the Tenno first encountered the Requiem mods), but in light of Albrecht's story, it clearly refers to the Void entity consuming the physical realm, with no hope of escape. The order of the Requiems in the poem is Lohk-Xata-Jahu-Vome-Ris-Fass-Netra-Khra, while the order of the Requiems in Albrecht's story is Xata-Jahu-Vome-Fass-Ris-Khra-Netra-Lohk. "Void" refers simply to the Void, the subject of Albrecht's obsession.

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Vitruvian discussion

Albrecht's story reveals many details aside from the main narrative.

A key observation is that the Orokin had achieved their immortality before they ever established a successful connection to the Void¹. By the time of Albrecht's first journey, he is already centuries old². Albrecht was wealthy before his success with the Void; his laboratory seemed to be self-funded, located in or below his home, and he states that it was decorated with "filigree gold" and "rare cuts of marble".

Albrecht seems to have had a daughter and wife in the traditional sense (in the same way that the modern Entrati family seems to be related in traditional ways as well), showing that at least some Orokin still participated in the institution of family as it is currently understood (in contrast to the Anti Moa Synthesis entry, which states that "Orokin didn't have parents like you do; it was done differently then"). Albrecht's wife, however, is no longer present, and may possibly have died or left when Euleria was young. Albrecht also seems to have had a traditional mother when he, in turn, was young.

Albrecht's encounter within the Void greatly aligns with other accounts of the Void entity known as the Man in the Wall. Indeed, the story reveals the origin of the name itself; Albrecht explicitly refers to him as "that man, trapped in the wall". The Man in the Wall must have later introduced himself to Rell under that name³, and his appearance during The New War, resembling a statue of a man in a literal wall, appears to be a mocking reference to this exonym. The Man in the Wall greeted Albrecht with a childhood name of affection, and took on his form – both of which hold true for the Man's interactions with the Tenno. It is not known why the Man in the Wall tried to enter the physical realm, nor why he did not appear to any subsequent Void travellers until the Zariman incident (as far as our current records indicate). However, Albrecht's encounter seems to put paid to the theory that the Man in the Wall was a product of the Tenno's collective trauma (previously postulated by the Lotus⁴).

The illustration for the Netra glyph depicts a Reliquary Drive from a Railjack ship⁵, implying that the Man in the Wall's severed fingers are those interred within the Drive, serving as the basis for its operation. This is reinforced when Cavalero and Archimedian Yonta discuss the Reliquaries, noting that there is a finite number of them and that the "originals" are not the same as the fingers in the Drives themselves⁶. This may mean that the finger in the Reliquary Drives is either a clone of the original finger or some sort of quantum-entangled facsimile, which would explain both the size of the finger and the number of Railjack ships⁷ from the Old War (which would otherwise be limited to, at most, ten). It is unknown what properties the physical flesh of the Man in the Wall would have, especially seeing as he usually copies the appearance of others.

Albrecht's theory that somehow the Man in the Wall had crossed over and that Albrecht himself was still stuck in the Void is intriguing. On first glance it appears to be nonsense; Albrecht, after all, narrates his thoughts and experiences after the incident, which he could only do from the real world. His choice to die could only really have effect were he in the real world. In addition, the severed fingers would seem to indicate that the Man in the Wall was stopped from crossing completely. However, if one imagines that Albrecht was somehow possessed by the Man in the Wall in some way, serving as a physical anchor, then his fears appear more founded, and his death more meaningful. This theory is not conveyed by Albrecht's own words, but is a possible interpretation of what later happened to Rell of the Red Veil⁸.

The purpose of the overt reference to the Requiem mods (currently used only to sever the Continuity of Kuva Liches and Sisters of Parvos) and the poem that comprises them is currently unknown. It is possible that Albrecht created the Requiems later in life. If so, the purpose would certainly be to sever his own Continuity and prevent the Man in the Wall from living on in the real world, but this theory is yet unconfirmed. Requiems did have other uses, and were known to be employed by those working in the Zariman's Reliquary chamber⁹.

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Other references

Albrecht was responsible for the Heart¹⁰, a biomechanical device on Deimos which keeps open the gateway to the Void, and thus enables Void technology throughout the System to function. It is unknown if Albrecht actually made the Heart himself, but it is not unlikely, given his continued work in Void theory. The trauma of his initial crossing and the chaotic influence of the Void led to him losing both his sight and voice after the incident¹¹, but that does not seem to have impeded his research.

Albrecht is known to have authored multiple texts, including Beyond the Wall of Lohk and The Palimpsest of Spacetime¹². The latter was co-written with his daughter, Euleria, and posits that the Void can be used to rewrite historical events, though traces of the original will persist in one form or another¹³. The unlocking of the Void led to a paradigm shift in the understanding of time¹⁴, causality, and existence itself, initiating a wave of scientific development and discovery¹⁵. As evidenced by his works, Albrecht was instrumental in this period as well. His main motivation for opening the Void appears to have been interstellar travel¹⁶, but he was able to recognise how the Void changed every aspect of science and philosophy, and he was a part of the scientific revolution that followed. While many of his accomplishments can be attributed to the diligence and obsession that comes with a life of research, one must wonder to what extent his fear of the Man in the Wall impacted and even propelled his work in his later years. Albrecht is also mentioned as having written a codex containing rituals "strange and profane" that dealt with the most mysterious aspects of the Void¹⁷; it was later used by Executor Tuvul to summon a horde of Void manifestations to protect him during his final, unsuccessful, Continuity.

The Zariman Project, being so deeply reliant on Void technology, was greatly influenced by Albrecht – personally, it would seem. The Zariman captain stated that without Albrecht's "tireless work[,] this voyage would not be possible," and gifted each colonist with a complimentary portrait of the scientist¹⁸. Cephalon Melica also mentions Albrecht's research, implying it is both cutting-edge¹⁹ and foundational²⁰. Archimedian Yonta, the specialist in charge of the Zariman's Reliquary Drive, seems to have known him personally, as she describes a recurring dream wherein she asks him where he has gone²¹. This suggests a personal connection between the two, as well as an implication that Albrecht's disappearance had already occurred. Given that Albrecht mentions the Zariman parades in his Vitruvian²², his disappearance must have been quite recent when the Zariman departed, making it that much more poignant to Yonta. The Zariman crew refer to the boundary between the Void and the real world as the "Albrecht Membrane"²³, though it is not clear if this was an established terminology or a term invented by Archimedian Yonta.

Euleria mentions that the Orokin had no respect for Albrecht's work, which is exceedingly curious, since all their advanced technology (aside from their biotech) is based on Void energies, and specifically the Heart he built²⁴. Additionally, this does not align with Albrecht being held in such esteem on the Zariman, or the statues of him seen in various locations around the System²⁵. Perhaps she was referring to an anti-science sentiment within the higher echelons of Orokin leadership or some other form of implied disrespect, but Albrecht certainly seems to have had an important position, at least among the scientific elite. It is known that, in the wake of the Zariman disaster, the Orokin tried to scrub all records of the ship from official records²⁶, and given how involved Albrecht was in the project, this may have involved sidelining his contributions to science as a whole, rewriting history to remove him.

When the Tenno re-established contact with Deimos in the modern era, millennia after the Collapse of the Orokin Empire, Euleria (who had forgotten her name at this point, later taking on the name Gomaitru) was convinced that Albrecht was still alive somewhere²⁷. She carried with her a shard of seriglass, likely from his shattered Bell, that she believed would lead her to him, having forgotten its original purpose due to Deimos' corrupting influence²⁸. Eventually, the Tenno were able to find another seriglass shard, convincing her that her shard was not unique and allowing her to let go of her obsession with her father.

Gomaitru says in passing that "[the Tenno] proved him right in the end", perhaps referring to Albrecht's belief that the Void would ultimately destroy the Orokin. She remembers searching for Albrecht in the Void, hearing him tapping but unable to find him²⁹. Based on what we know, it is highly likely she was actually chasing the Man in the Wall instead of her actual father. Vilcor mentions that she had been searching for Albrecht since before they met³⁰. Loid reveals in passing that both he and Otak served Albrecht before they passed into the service of Gomaitru and the other Entrati³¹.

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Duviri

From all accounts, it appears that Albrecht Entrati disappeared from the Origin System after expressing his desire to die, and so most now assume he met his end millennia ago. And yet, revelations from the mystical land of Duviri may shed light on his ultimate fate. According to Acrithis, a man arrived in Duviri long ago, speaking of the Void and other worlds beyond it³². The Scholar, as he was known, appears to have been Albrecht himself. He was given permission by the King to build a laboratory to study the Void directly, a copy of his old laboratory in the Origin System. "The time would come, the stranger said, when Duviri would be needed. There was a work of repentance to be done, and he could not do it alone." However, the island containing his laboratory disappeared overnight, along with Albrecht (and at least one other person³³). Islands are known to disappear in Duviri, taken by the Void, and are never seen again³⁴, and so Albrecht's fate may once again be seen by some as final.

The Scholar is memorialised with an ornate tomb deep underground. The grave is of course empty, as are many of the graves in Duviri. The epitaph on his tombstone speaks of how he arrived in Duviri, and just as easily departed.

The sky could not hold him
In cupped hands we caught him

Death will not hold him
Open-armed lies this grave

This world could not hold him
And so we are without him

Stranger. Father. Scholar.
In our hearts
We hold you

It is unknown who wrote the epitaph, which speaks of a close relationship to the Scholar³⁵.

Sythel, one of the king's courtiers, whispers that Albrecht's first voyage into the Void actually created the Man in the Wall, as "his fear took shape" in a form of conceptual embodiment³⁶. It is unknown to what degree this is true, as it is not implied by other sources.

Other archives from Acrithis reveal that the Man in the Wall appears to have taken a personal interest in Duviri, meddling in its affairs from time to time. He has been personally responsible for the loss of at least four islands from the kingdom³⁷, and the quiz tablets scattered around the land, though seeming to derive from the Zariman's classrooms, exhibit a degree of direct influence from the Man in the Wall, including one that may imply that Albrecht still lives, in one plane of existence or another³⁸. The Vagabond, a mysterious stranger who can appear around Duviri, seems to be a manifestation of the Man in the Wall himself³⁹, and it should be noted that one of the locations he has been seen is at Albrecht's underground grave. Albrecht's "work of repentance" seems to have made Duviri the battleground for a future confrontation with the eldritch entity.

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Summation

Albrecht Entrati opened the first gateway to the Void, opening the solar system and even other stars to Orokin colonisation. The Void would later power almost all Orokin technology, and lead to the creation of their most enduring legacy: the Tenno. However, in doing so, he also provoked an ancient, alien entity that even today cannot be comprehended. This knowledge haunted him for the rest of his life, and ultimately led to his apparent death.

He was quite intelligent, and had the wealth to explore his curiosities, yet his search for knowledge led only to ruin and disaster for his life and legacy. In the late period of the Orokin Age, his family seems to have been relatively isolated on Deimos, still distant from the highest echelons of power within the Empire despite their intimate connection to its most critical infrastructure. In the eyes of the Orokin, his accomplishments could not outweigh his failures.

Albrecht was quite prone to obsession, a trait that he passed on to his daughter. He was manically obsessed with opening the Void, and afterward fearfully obsessed with the Man in the Wall. His obsessions led to him taking actions others might view as unwise, yet they were consequential in their effectiveness. Was it luck that he succeeded, beholden to the whims of fate? Or did he see something others could not, a lodestar that pointed him to the hidden truths of the universe?

Albrecht's tale reveals much detail on both the Orokin and the Man in the Wall, giving a more distinct shape to the things we already know. We may enjoy certainty in some things which were previously only theory. Yet, at the same time, more questions are raised. What did Albrecht truly accomplish by making contact with the Man in the Wall? Did his unshielded foray awaken the Void entity, or was it already watching and waiting? What are his current efforts to confront the Man in the Wall, and when will they come to fruition? Will Albrecht return to the Origin System one day? Some of these questions may be resolved soon, while others may never attain clarity at all. But for now, all we can do is study, analyse, and above all, wait.

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[Navigation: Hub → Discussion → Albrecht Entrati]

1. Albrecht Entrati: "…immortal as we are…" (Xata)
2. Albrecht Entrati: "…the centuries since my mother reared me." (Khra)
3. Palladino: "The Man in the Wall! That is what he called it." (Chains of Harrow)
4. Lotus: "This 'Man in the Wall', these delusions – symptoms of the Void exposure all Tenno experienced." (Chains of Harrow)
5. Or a ship with similar capabilities such as the Zariman 10-0.
6. Cavalero: "Hey, Yonta, how many of those big finger-relics are out there, d'you think?"
   Archimedian Yonta: "Well… fewer than there used to be. So long as the originals are still safely sealed away, of course." (Angels of the Zariman)
7. The Rising Tide quest sees the Tenno retrieve components from six different crashed Railjacks, and the Erra cinematic shows multiple Railjack ships engaging in a single battle.
8. Palladino: "Rell has become the very thing he warned us of." (Chains of Harrow)
9. Zariman Captain: "Welcome to Oro Works. Unseal only those Requiems you are authorised to recite." (Zariman Captain elevator announcements)
10. Gomaitru: "All thanks to my father. It pumps the arteries of 'the here' and the Void. The Entrati family has maintained it for an age." (Heart of Deimos)
11. Albrecht Entrati: "I screamed, but my voice was gone. Forever. I looked, but my eyes would never see again." (Khra)
12. "Further reading: 'Beyond the Wall of Lohk', A. Entrati; 'The Palimpsest of Spacetime', A. and E. Entrati." (Temporal Axioms lesson, The New War)
13. "The core thesis of The Palimpsest of Spacetime [is] events can be rewritten; traces of the original persist" (Zariman quiz tablets)
14. Euleria Entrati: "The Void offers humanity the truer telling of Eternalism. That now is merely a facet of a great block." (The New War)
15. "Originally we studied Void occurrences from afar, observing and cataloguing the distribution of galaxies and refining cosmological evolution models. We are in a new age of cosmic exploration. Advancements in space travel partnered with determined curiosity have brought us closer to our object of study, and with it, revelation." (Void Cephalon fragment)
16. Albrecht Entrati: "…immortal as we are – we die with the sun. That's where I come in." (Xata)
17. Drusus Leverian: "In Tuvul's hands, so it is said, were an artefact and a codex belonging to none other than Albrecht Entrati himself: Father of Void travel, and a man who had sacrificed his sanity to it." (Voruna Leverian gallery)
18. Zariman Captain: "Of particular import is the complimentary portrait of Albrecht Entrati, without whose tireless work this voyage would not be possible." (Zariman 10-0 welcome letter, Zariman ARG)
19. Cephalon Melica: "Zariman Ten Zero's school is the first to offer access to Albrecht Entrati's research archives. Aren't we lucky?" (Melica dialogue)
20. Cephalon Melica: "Well done! Who knows? Maybe someday, you'll walk the halls of House Entrati and access their great works!" (Melica dialogue)
21. Archimedian Yonta: "I had the Albrecht Entrati dream again. It's always the same. I ask him where he's gone, and he says 'Everywhere'. Then… he tears himself in half." (Yonta dialogue)
22. Albrecht Entrati: "And it swelled larger in the latter days: the regal domes, the Rail dedications, the unholy Zariman parade." (Netra)
23. Archimedian Yonta: "The Angels are tearing through the Albrecht Membrane. Void is flooding in through the ruptures they've created." (Angels of the Zariman)
24. Loid: "The Solar Rails, the Tenno… we all depend on the Heart to keep the wall open to the other side. If the Heart stops, everything goes with it." (Heart of Deimos)
25. Statues of Albrecht are seen on Earth during Awakening, in Deimos' underground Entrati facilities, and on board the Zariman 10-0.
26. Lotus: "When the Zariman was found adrift, the Orokin did everything they could to erase their mistakes. Transit recordings, personnel logs… everything was wiped out." (The War Within)
27. Gomaitru: "One shard of seriglass is all I have left of my father. But it's all I need to find him again." (Gomaitru dialogue)
28. Vilcor: "She knew, once. Deimos stole the memory." (Entrati rank-up dialogue)
29. Gomaitru: "The Wall of Lohk was before us. I had my, my proofs, my father’s. I could hear him… I could hear him tapping… tapping at the Untime door…" (Heart of Deimos)
30. Vilcor: "When I met her, Mother, she was as brilliant as she was broken. Chasing her father’s ghost, convinced he was still 'out there'." (Heart of Deimos)
31. Otak: "They say the two are connected through the Void, to this day!"
    Loid: "What would our old master have made of that?" (Otak dialogue)
32. Acrithis: "The stranger had haunted eyes and a downcast mien, and spoke of the Wall and the worlds beyond. He wore his hair like looped snakes, and his voice carried an accent unlike any in Duviri." (Lost Islands of Duviri)
33. "Roon. Forever curious
    Escaped in the night
    With Scholar's Landing
    Remembered here"
    (tombstone at Titan's Rest)
34. Acrithis: "I dream of a Lost Island returning one happy day, or an entirely new island appearing, birthed from the Void. But this place has not changed in so long, except for the worse, and there is no reason for hope." (Lost Islands of Duviri)
35. This epitaph is listed along with the other graves in Duviri.
36. Sythel: "The first scholar looked into the Void and he feared it. And his fear took shape. Do you understand? That's how all this started!" (Sythel dialogue)
37. The losses of Academe, the Galleria, Scholar's Landing, and Watcher's Island are detailed in the Lost Islands of Duviri.
38. Q: "What was the ultimate fate of Albrecht Entrati?"
    A: "That's the question, isn't it, kiddo?" (Zariman quiz tablets)
39. Based on his missing index finger and his behaviour of laughing ominously when approached, and disappearing when looking away.