More content! This time it's the revised intro. --Mal
"Everything happens for a reason."
That's what most of us are taught, and for a broad enough definition of ‘reason,' it happens to be true. Cause and effect is one of the basic mechanisms of the Cosmos.
Some of us are taught that there are Prime Movers out there that are responsible for things happening. And that's true, to an extent: none of the Prime Movers out there exist outside the Cosmos, they all spring from the same explosion (or implosion, or jes' happened) of matter that makes up stars, planets and little mortal things like us. But there are Prime Movers out there, working their will on the fabric of the Cosmos.
The dirty little secret is that every last one of those Prime Movers are also titanic assholes. The theologian on the street might prefer the term "ineffable," and claim that it's not our place to know what their motives are, but let's face it: they're assholes.
Today, we're going to look at the works of one group of the Prime Movers, best known throughout the Cosmos as the Alien Space Bats. The Space Bats are beings of vast and incomprehensible intellect who like to play with branches of the infinite multiverse. Nobody knows how they do it, and nobody knows why they do it; those inclined to theorize think that it's the cosmic-being equivalent of a schoolyard argument. Whatever the reasoning, the Space Bats have focused their attention on two universes.
The first universe is one not to dissimilar from our own, but in some ways it's very different. Here, a small thing overlooked - somebody remembered to pick up a packet of cigars left behind - led to incredible changes. The world of Timeline-191 is one of nearly-perpetual war, with the next big one only a few months away. The quasi-fascist alliance of the British Empire, the Kingdom of France and the Confederate States of America are powering up the machinery of war, while the militaristic, jingoistic and only slightly better nations of the Second Reich and the United States of America wait for the hammer to fall.
The second universe is a world in flux. The miracle substance called handwavium has enabled the conquest of the solar system. The new power on the block is the Fenspace Convention, a rough alliance of science-fiction fans, otaku and other assorted nerds who've taken the promise inherent in handwavium and run with it. The rest of the world is cautious, waiting to see how the Convention survives. While things aren't as good as they could be, this world is enjoying a period of relative peace and prosperity. The Fen are in the heavens, and all's right with the world.
Neither world is aware of the other. The Fen recently learned that the Cosmos is much greater and stranger than they knew, but the demands of colonization and civilization have kept them from exploring across the timelines. The people of Timeline-191 have no knowledge, ability or interest in such things; the physics necessary to describe the situation hasn't been invented there yet.
In the ordinary state of affairs, the paths of the Fen and Timeline-191 would never cross. But these are not the ordinary state of affairs.
The Alien Space Bats have taken an interest in these two timelines, and the changes they'll make will shatter conceptions, change minds and reduce paradigms to splinters. It's the last few minutes of November 18th, 2016 in Fenspace and 1940 in TL-191. When the clock strikes midnight, the Space Bats will make their move and things will get very strange.
The hall is rented, the orchestra engaged. Everybody take their places, please. It's time to engage in a little comic-opera we like to call...
Whaddya think, sirs?
Mr. Fnord interdimensional man of mystery
FenWiki - Your One-Stop Shop for Fenspace Information
"I. Drink. Your. NERDRAGE!"
part the zeroth: where we learn a little about how the world works
"Everything happens for a reason."
That's what most of us are taught, and for a broad enough definition of ‘reason,' it happens to be true. Cause and effect is one of the basic mechanisms of the Cosmos.
Some of us are taught that there are Prime Movers out there that are responsible for things happening. And that's true, to an extent: none of the Prime Movers out there exist outside the Cosmos, they all spring from the same explosion (or implosion, or jes' happened) of matter that makes up stars, planets and little mortal things like us. But there are Prime Movers out there, working their will on the fabric of the Cosmos.
The dirty little secret is that every last one of those Prime Movers are also titanic assholes. The theologian on the street might prefer the term "ineffable," and claim that it's not our place to know what their motives are, but let's face it: they're assholes.
Today, we're going to look at the works of one group of the Prime Movers, best known throughout the Cosmos as the Alien Space Bats. The Space Bats are beings of vast and incomprehensible intellect who like to play with branches of the infinite multiverse. Nobody knows how they do it, and nobody knows why they do it; those inclined to theorize think that it's the cosmic-being equivalent of a schoolyard argument. Whatever the reasoning, the Space Bats have focused their attention on two universes.
The first universe is one not to dissimilar from our own, but in some ways it's very different. Here, a small thing overlooked - somebody remembered to pick up a packet of cigars left behind - led to incredible changes. The world of Timeline-191 is one of nearly-perpetual war, with the next big one only a few months away. The quasi-fascist alliance of the British Empire, the Kingdom of France and the Confederate States of America are powering up the machinery of war, while the militaristic, jingoistic and only slightly better nations of the Second Reich and the United States of America wait for the hammer to fall.
The second universe is a world in flux. The miracle substance called handwavium has enabled the conquest of the solar system. The new power on the block is the Fenspace Convention, a rough alliance of science-fiction fans, otaku and other assorted nerds who've taken the promise inherent in handwavium and run with it. The rest of the world is cautious, waiting to see how the Convention survives. While things aren't as good as they could be, this world is enjoying a period of relative peace and prosperity. The Fen are in the heavens, and all's right with the world.
Neither world is aware of the other. The Fen recently learned that the Cosmos is much greater and stranger than they knew, but the demands of colonization and civilization have kept them from exploring across the timelines. The people of Timeline-191 have no knowledge, ability or interest in such things; the physics necessary to describe the situation hasn't been invented there yet.
In the ordinary state of affairs, the paths of the Fen and Timeline-191 would never cross. But these are not the ordinary state of affairs.
The Alien Space Bats have taken an interest in these two timelines, and the changes they'll make will shatter conceptions, change minds and reduce paradigms to splinters. It's the last few minutes of November 18th, 2016 in Fenspace and 1940 in TL-191. When the clock strikes midnight, the Space Bats will make their move and things will get very strange.
The hall is rented, the orchestra engaged. Everybody take their places, please. It's time to engage in a little comic-opera we like to call...
(music_LOAD: " World" Red, Innocence & Instinct)
The South Is Rising
(Someone Get A Hammer)
a Fenspace Infinities story
directed by S. M. Breen & acted by the Fenspace Collective
(Someone Get A Hammer)
a Fenspace Infinities story
directed by S. M. Breen & acted by the Fenspace Collective
Whaddya think, sirs?
Mr. Fnord interdimensional man of mystery
FenWiki - Your One-Stop Shop for Fenspace Information
"I. Drink. Your. NERDRAGE!"