Home again

 

After hearing Larry’s warning Mac wakes with a start and gets dressed immediately.  After a short conference Larry gets to work gathering intel.  You take a few maps, one personal log and a couple of souveniers (the pocket knife and ball cap with the CSA logo) for evidence.  You make sure to secure the parts of the probe that you came for and strap them to an improvsed sled.  Then you look for flammables.  The camp has a propane heater that suits your purposes.  You turn it on, set some clothes on fire in the other corner of the tent, and head out.

 

The walk back is a slow one, and dragging the heavy probe doesn’t help.  You are able to locate your camp in the near-darkness, but the wind and the cold make communication and orienteering difficult. Adding to the difficulty, your previous trail has been wiped clean by the wind and landmarks are sparse.

You collapse into your tent and get the heat going.  After a couple of hours Larry notices that his toes aren’t moving well.  You suspect frostbite in at least one of them.  Not wanting to risk further injury Mac takes the lion’s share of the watches.  While you’d prefer to both stay in the tent the risk of your adversaries coming back is too great.  Mac burrows out a small igloo to shelter him from the wind that looks out in the direction you came from.  You pass the next 36 hours in this miserable way. You leave behind some gear (rifles, camp stove, etc) as you heft the heavy parts of the probe into your packs and over your shoulders.  You watch the timers on your synchronized watches count down together and after the brilliant flash of light you are back in the lab.

Lab Techs in environmental suits greet you as you find yourselves standing on the Gate (thankfully, both conscious).  You are told to strip and are headed to a decontamination cell.  You are de-loused and will be kept in quarantine for three days.  You are separated and the questioning begins after you get some sleep.

The doctor looks at Larry’s toes and says that frostbite has set in on his left foot.  The smallest toe will likely have to be amptutated.   Larry is put under anthestesia while still in quarantine and a surgeon in white biohazard suit removes the smallest toe on his left foot.

 

Mac is still conscious and so spends the next three days telling his story over and over and over.  Every minute detail is explained. After Larry recovers he is subjected to the same.  About a week later you finally see each other again.

Col. Hodgeson debriefs you both and praises your work on the mission.  Your information was unexpected and valuable (though he doesn’t say how).

Due to the fact that Larry will need some rehab, you’re going to be given three months off between missions.  How would you like to spend them?  Larry will need to stay in the immediate area for at least 8 weeks, as he has rehab he must attend.  You are both instructed to do some more homework around physics and continue to work on your German. Other than that, the time is yours.  Remember that you are now flush with cash.  What ever will you do?

Round 2

Mac kneels on the ground and pulls out his walkie.  Larry quickly informs him that he has two targets pinned down (stopping for a second to fire a shot at one who was trying to get up).  With Larry able to direct him, Mac sneaks around the back of the tent and fills a 10 yard area with automatic fire from the battle rifle until it clicks empty.  He blows one of the men into bits.  As he drops and pulls his sidearm, the area where the second man is fills with a flash of blinding white light (Larry is blinded for a minute as his scope washes out with heat).  You look and see a melted crater in the ice where the man layed.  You smell ozone, but can see no body.

You’ve been out in this cold for too long and are starting to notice it as the adrenaline wears off.  Although you want to investigate more you need to get out of the cold.  Larry can’t get a heat signature on anyone inside the tent, so you decide that Mac will lead with Larry rushing in behind him with his pistol drawn. 

There’s nobody there.  There is equipment scattered in the 3-man tent which is eerily similar to yours.  You fire up a heater and locate a stash of MREs.   Although you’d rather not you realize you both need sleep and to eat.  You decide to let Mac sleep first and keep Larry awake for three hours (then switch).  While Mac is asleep Larry starts to search the tent and dig into an MRE (chicken fried steak).  You quickly find your sensor array crated up which makes your mission objective nearly complete.  Of much more interest are the few personal effects in the tent. 

It is clear that whoever these men were they weren’t natives.  You can only assume that they arrived here in much the same way you did (but with slightly different technology).  As you examine their effects you see a couple of items (a jackknife and a baseball hat) with the letters C.S.A. and the confederate flag on them.  As unbelievable as it is, you think that these men are your counterparts from an alternate time line where the South won the Civil War and is a world power.

Larry, you’re very tired so it takes you a few minutes before that paranoid mind of yours gets going.  At first you wonder if the third man killed himself or if he escaped.  Escaped, you decide.  Commandos don’t kill themselves (especially Southern ones).  Then you think “if 2 of my buddies got killed and I escaped what would I do”?  You decide that you would re-arm, get as many guys as possible, and go back and blow them (you) to hell.  Or maybe you’d just open a portal and send an explosive device through in case they hung around to search your tent.  Or were desperate enough to sleep in it.  You drop your MRE and kick Mac awake.  You say “We’ve got to get the Hell out of here.  Now!”

What do you guys do?  I’m assuming that you’re leaving (but you don’t HAVE to).  If so, how quickly (and what do you take with you)? Be specific.  You’ve got a day and a half before your pickup.  How do you plan to spend that time (what precautions, if any, do you take)?

Contact

Larry hunkers down behind a small pile of rocks and waits for Mac to circle around the other side of the encampment.  It takes about a half hour for Mac to low crawl down the slope and close to within 100 yards.  Mac is freezing by the time he gets to the other side and his hands are starting to lose feeling.  Despite Larry being a worse shot, he keeps the rifle (being stationary it is the only way he could help if trouble comes down) and watches with his thermal scope.

As he gets closer, Mac is able to see a two-man tent, similar to the one you brought with.  You crawl low and can see some movement on the other side of the tent (you are apparently on the back side of it now, the front being on Larry’s side).  Mac slowly circles to get a look at the front of the tent (about 75 yards out now) when an alarm sounds from inside the tent.

Larry, you can see three man-shaped images run from the tent and take up defensive positions.  When nobody comes at them, they start to slowly fan out; one comes at you, one toward Mac, and one away from Mac.  The man approaching Mac (Mac can see him and the one approaching Larry; you can’t see the third) gets to within 50 yards or so yells “Put your hands up” and aims a rifle at you.  You start to get to your feet and he fires a panic burst 10 yards to your left (you assume he was bluffing and couldn’t see you).  Mac, you instinctively step forward, steady your pistol and three shots directly at him.  Two of them strike him in his chest and he drops.

With no cover available, Mac chooses to cover the distance between him and the now dead body in front of you and take his battle rifle.  Larry hears shots fired and sees the two others start to run toward Mac.  you assume that Mac is alive, as you saw the man nearing him drop.  Knowing that Mac will be quickly overtaken Larry shots at the figure nearest him.  The rifle cracks loudly, but misses (you are shooting in twilight conditions through a thermal scope).  Still, the shot confuses the two other men, who immediately hit the ground.

Now, you need to decide what to do.  Mac, you are standing on the back side of the tent, 50 yards from it.  You can’t see either of the other men.  You hold an assault rifle in your hands.  It seems familiar, but doesn’t match any design you’ve seen. 

Larry, what will you do?  Keep in mind that while you both carry walkie-talkies, using them may reveal your position to the other men.  Retreat is an option, but you may be vulnerable while you back up the slope.  Staying out in the cold much longer will risk frostbite (although you’d probably be okay if you kept moving).

Respond with your actions, keeping in mind taht communication is risky (you may not know what the other is doing).  Larry can see Mac’s outline, but nothing else.  Mac can’t see Larry at all.

Sensor

You both set out to the east, which is the direction indicated on the homing device. You start out slowly. It takes your bodies a while to adjust to the subzero temperatures (equipment at your base camp puts it at -20F) and the half-light makes you cautious. After a bit, your eyes adjust and you warm enough to move more quickly. The wind is bitter and you keep your goggles on tight. The flat ice sheet you are on starts to give way to a rocky downward slope. Mac, it is easy for you to collect a few sharp rocks, and you pick a few to bring back.

After a half hour, your homing device gets a stronger signal. You can still see only 100 yards or so in front of you, so you hear a metallic ringing before you can detect what is causing it. It is coming from the direction of your homing device. You instinctively start into a low crawl and make for the sound. You have binoculars, which are equipped with thermal imaging and range finding. You turn them on and can spot two human shaped heat signatures 250 yards out, down a slight (likely rocky) slope. Your homing device has a very strong signal at this point; obviously, whoever is here has your sensor.

The question now is, what do you want to do? You can slowly make your way down the hill, but the rocks are too small to give you much cover. You can circle around and try to approach from the other side (where it is flatter and you’re less exposed), but you are already feeling the effects of the cold and may end up with frostbite if you stay out here too long. You can just boogie back to base camp and come up with a story (or report that you failed). If you approach I want to know how (quiet or loud and which direction). If you attack, how close do you get before shooting (and are you going to shoot first)? Mac is holding the rifle (he is the better shot), you could probably shoot someone from 100 yards out in this light. If you shoot one person what is your plan for the second (assuming there are only two people)?

Over the bridge

Col. Hodgeson briefs you on your first official mission.  “We try to start our agents on low-risk missions.  This one should be a pretty standard milk-run.  You will be sent for three days across the Bridge to a polar world (4E01451).  Obviously, this is why you were stationed down South for the last three months. We were planning on waiting another two weeks to send you in, but we lost contact with the remote two days ago.  It recorded temperatures in the subzero range, so you’ll be outfitted accordingly. The air will be breathable (just cold).  No life was recorded, but we’re sending weapons with you just in case.  You’ll have three days to find the remote and the bridge will re-open.  Your secondary objective is to take digital pictures and voice record temperatures and any unusual phenomenon.  Make sure you’re at the rendezvous site (it is the same as where you’ll arrive).  If you miss the pick-up we’ll try again three days later.  Unfortunately, you can only carry enough propane and food for one week.  If you were to miss the second rendezvous we would send an emergency recon team with extra supplies.  I certainly hope we don’t have to.”

Dr. Farnsworth walks you through the ins and outs of walking the Bridge as your gear is brought into the room.  She reminds you that disorientation and passing out are common side effects.  She warns you to get your bearings and get a shelter established right away when crossing.  She tells you that in three days they will send a signal to retrieve you, which should pull you back here (no bridging equipment needed).  You do need to be within 100 yards of where you arrived, so marking it is a good idea. She tells you that at most you can have 100 pounds of gear each.  Any more and you may not make it back.  The remote you’re looking for weighs almost 100 lbs, so you’ll be leaving gear behind if you’re successful.   She seems worried as the techs arrive to gear you up.

You are given top-quality cold weather gear. You are given heavy duty parkas, polar fleece overalls, thermal underwear, balaclava, gloves, boots, and goggles.  You are to share a pack of extra clothing.  You will carry over a tent, one two-man sleeping bag, survival gear, and propane for heating and cooking.  You have a basic field kit with a cook stove and utensils.  You’ll have ice climbing gear, but are supposed to avoid using these if possible.  You have a basic first aid kit and enough food for one week.  You’ll carry binoculars, a digital recorder, and a homing device that should be tuned to the remote you’re looking for.

You are each issued a combat knife, a Smith & Wesson .342 (a 5-shot pistol that weighs less than one pound, and you are to share a 7mm Magnum Remington Model 700 hunting rifle.  They tell you that its used to hunt Kodiaks in Alaska.

You gear up, step onto the bridge and they power it up.  Mac, you seem to blink and suddenly you are standing on an icy plain with the wind ripping right through you.  The cold shocks you and it takes a minute to gain your senses.  Larry is slumped on the ground next to you.  The sun is going down and you know you don’t have long in these temperatures.  Larry starts to groan as you quickly assemble the tent.  Larry, you gain consciousness as Mac pulls you into the tent and starts the propane heater.  You both spend a long, cold quiet night together. 

The view to the north.

After 6 hours, the sun starts to come up, but holds low in the sky.  It is not really a dawn, more like pre-dawn.  You can see about 100 yards out.  You are on a wide plain and can faintly see mountains to the north, but have no way to gauge distance (or what is between you and them).  There is no vegetation present and the only sound is the wind.  You wait another two hours, and it doesn’t get any better.  You get a faint reading on the homing device; your compass says it is east.  Do you head out in the half-light or wait longer for the light to come out?

Cold

Before you leave Col. Hodgeson gives you a few rules pertaining to your next training site. “You are being transferred to a German research station because we want you to acquire foreign language skills.  It will also be difficult for you to converse with the researchers, which minimizes the chances of you accidentally discussing your mission.  You are not to disclose your mission or our existence to anyone (this should go without saying).  Your cover is US Air Force research, which is top-secret.  You are to carry out experiments in the cold.  The experiments are real, but we’re mainly putting you down there for the cold-weather training.  Study while you’re down there.  It will keep you sane.  I’d tell you to stay out of trouble, but you’ll find that there really is not trouble there to get into.  Enjoy.”

To get to Neumeyer Station in East Antarctica you need to take three planes to Perth, Australia (a total of 30 hours in the air), ferry across the southern Indian Ocean (56 hours), then transfer to a smaller skiff to run through the icebergs (6 vomit-inducing hours).  After that it is a short drive (2 slow hours) to the research station itself.  You arrive in May (just before their winter hits), after which there will be no outside transportation available for three months (barring life-threatening emergencies).

At first, East Antarctica is a beautiful place. It is white and clean and sterile.  The charm wears off after a day.  After that it is just cold.  In fact, it is the coldest place on Earth. You are given a German Army liaison who speaks limited English and can help you navigate the do’s and don’ts of cold weather survival. You spend the first two weeks learning how to stay alive in the Antarctic.  After that you start field trails on equipment and setting out samples that you’ll collect in a few weeks.  Even with that, you’re bored.  The satellite TV is intermittent and the alcohol is rationed.  You find plenty of time to study.

It turns out that being locked in a German research station is an excellent way to learn German.  By the end of three months you feel almost comfortable with the cold and are pretty conversational in German.  As your electronic tutor advices, you speak this to each other and rarely use English.  You conduct some experiments and manage to avoid dying of boredom.  You manage to strike up a friendship despite (or maybe because of) you very different personalities. 

You make the long, long trip back to Long Island and are greeted by Col. Hodgeson, who you think is a bit more friendly after your return.  He gives you three days to recover before calling you into a conference room on base.  “It is time,” he says “for you to apply your new training.”

Training time

Mac:

Mac, you are sent back home to collect your things and say your goodbyes.  You spend a long two weeks waiting for the call.  Your brothers are quite and you aren’t sure if they are skeptical or envious.  You say “yes” and are on your way back to Long Island for training.  You spend the next few weeks in tutoring learning about applied physics and the practical implications of trans-dimensional travel.  You read up on case files as cautionary examples.  They keep you on a strict physical training regimen.

After six weeks, you are sent to the Survive, Evade, Resist, and Escape (SERE) school in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where you spend the toughest five weeks of your life.  You meet up with a shaved-head Larry there, who has retained his smart mouth.

 

Larry:

 Your experience is not as enjoyable as Mac’s. Your apartment is raided two weeks after returning home. You are busted for possession of material used to cook meth (despite the fact that you had little in your apartment).  You go through the legal motions.  You meet with a NSA agent, and just like Col. Hodgeson promised, you are convicted.  The judge offers you three years in the Air Force and you accept.  You fly to the very hot and humid San Antonio, Texas to Lackland AFB.  You spend 6 ½ weeks shooting off your mouth and running.  At the end of that, you are inexplicably sent to the Survive, Evade, Resist, and Escape (SERE) school in Fort Bragg, North Carolina.  Your instructor assumes it is a mistake, but assumes someone else will correct it there.  They manage to finally shut your sassy mouth.

 

Both:

You spend the next five weeks bonding and learning how to survive on rat, endure torture, and hide.  You hope you never have to use it.  You fly back to Long Island and are given a week to enjoy New York City.  And you do.  When you return, Col. Hodgeson gives you each a password-protected Amazon Kindle (electronic book reader) loaded with selections in cosmology, physics, survival, comparative anthropology, and German.  You are told that you’re going to have plenty of time to study them at your next training site.  You’re told to pack your bags for Neumayer Station, a German outpost in Antarctica.

Post any replies you have, otherwise I’ll just continue with a new post and wrap up the last of the exposition (promise) in a week.

Offer

Sorry for the delay.  I take full responsibility.

 

You’re ushered back into the conference room in which you met with Col. Hodgeson before.  You wait a few minutes, and then he enters.

“Gentlemen, you’ve had a close look at our operation.  I hope you’re still interested.  As I’m sure you can imagine we need to keep what we do here top secret.  You are not allowed to ever talk about what you saw here with anyone outside this facility.  Not that anyone would ever believe you, but if you were to disclose even the existence of our operation the consequences would be severe.  One former recruit wrote a book about us. Before it was ever published he was found with child pornography on his computer and is currently doing time in a particularly unpleasant prison.  There is no threat so long as you don’t breach our security.”

“We contract with initial recruits for five missions, which are completed some time within a three year span.  You’ll each be paid $100,000 per mission, and you can terminate the contract early (but not in mid-mission for obvious reasons).  An additional $20,000 will be paid at the end of your training period.  We routinely deposit this money in offshore accounts, to be disbursed slowly and not raise eyebrows. In the event you die or go missing, a designated next of kin will receive a one million dollar settlement (through a surpsie life insurance contract).”

“Here’s what we’ve come up with for your cover stories:

Mac, you’ve just been offered a job with Haliburton working in a galley in the Green Zone in Iraq.  Tell your family that it’s a lucrative offer and you’re considering it.  In two weeks an agent will contact you to see if you’re still interested.  Let us know if you’re in or if you’re out.

Larry, your situation is a bit more tricky.  In two weeks you’re going to be arrested for possession of the material to cook methamphetamine.  While you’re awaiting trial you’ll be contacted by an agent as well.  If you are in let the agent know and the judge will offer you a choice: 3 years in prison or 3 years in the Air Force.  Choose the   and your training will start.  If you are out, your Miranda rights card will be lost and your public defender will get you off of the charges.”

“I do hope that you consider working for us.  If not, I wish you well.  We’ll provide transportation back home.”

“Any questions?”

History of travel

Dr. Farnsworth ques up her Powerpoint and starts in with her lecture.

 ”New Agers believe that the Earth has lines of electromagnetic power that run in unseen patterns.  Freemasons have talked about it for three centuries. The same theory was popularized by Alfred Watkins in 1921 under the name ley lines.  It may have been insanity or lucky guesswork, but both are right.  Lines of quantum energy do wrap around and puncture the earth.  Some are static, some have rotations, and some appear only once.  Where they intersect the fabric of reality is thinner.  Things that aren’t possible in most places become possible.”

“Many famous sites have ley lines intersecting on a constant or regular basis: Stonehenge, The great Pyramid at Giza, the Imperial Palace at Beijing, The former World Trade Centers, much of Washington D.C. (ever wonder why the built the capital in the middle of a swamp?), and of course, here.”

“People on other worlds have been using similar centers on their worlds for centuries to cross over here.  Sometimes they will accidentally cross into our world; sometimes it is intentional.  Any numbers of historical quirks or bad fortunes can be linked to intentional manipulation from other timelines.  The meteoric rise of Nazi Germany (and their leaps in technology), the Spanish Armada, and 9/11 are all examples.” 

“The United States’ experience with Bridges started after World War II. The Nazis had the fortune to be visited by technologically superior visitors from another Alt.  These visitors were willing to share their technology and several hundred of them moved to our Earth, as they had laid waste to the environment on theior own.  When we defeated the Nazis, many of these visitors came into possession of the U.S. government.  You’ve probably heard stories of Nazis scientists working for the U.S. government. This is the kernel of truth to that story.” 

“So, what does our timeline have to do with others?  Why bother to manipulate other worlds?  I will spare you the quantum explanations about bifurcated systems and strange attractors. Suffice it to say that when worlds are in close contact what happens on one is likely to happen on the other.  This is difficult to predict, as analogs change from world to world.  However, we are getting good at guessing how other worlds impact ours.”

“Let’s take 9/11 as an example.  There is a world which is now moving out of contact with ours.  It is remarkably similar except that the U.S. in that world, as well as most of Western Europe is Muslim.  In 1979 they had a huge terrorist problem on their soil.  In their case, it was militant Catholics.  The Catholics self-detonated a nuclear devise in the middle-class town of Middletown, Pennsylvania, to sow terror.  Middletown, PA, is the site of the 3-Mile Island reactor in our world.  The nuclear reaction in one world caused the meltdown in ours, as we were close to each other at the time.”

“So, back to 9/11.  In 1980, Reagan comes into office here.  He hears about the real cause of 3-Mile Island and wonders what this other world might do next.  He decided to send two-man teams of Green Berets across a Bridge into that world to help organize the resistance and try to topple the government, and it kind of worked (they destabilized, but are still in power).  However, the Muslim U.S. decided to retaliate. Their New York City is a hellhole, and their biggest Christian housing project was the Twin Towers (World Labor Center).  They knew that the Twin Towers were important here, so they dynamited theirs on 9/11 2001 and had one of their agents fund and assist some suicide bombers in our world.  You know how it turned out.  The combination of the bombers here and the quantum ripple from a world in close proximity brought down the towers.  The conspiracy nuts are half-right.  There is no way those planes should have been able to bring down those towers.  Not without government help (just not our government).”

“Obviously, the United States of America and the NSA does not take kindly to being attacked in this way.  After 9/11 our operation went into high gear.  Before 9/11 we were tasked with exploration and advance detection of possible threats. Now, we are primarily tasked with termination of threats and timeline manipulation for our benefit.  This was not a popular decision amongst some of the staff here and my predecessor resigned when he heard about it.”

“So all of this explains why we need to alter things on other worlds with care.  We don’t want to be detected, and we need to take care in what changes we make, as they can impact us.  If we nuke New York in their world, what happens here?”

“To complicate this all even more, we aren’t the only ones with active Bridges on our world.  The British have one (we frequently cooperate with them on missions).  The Chinese have one (although ti is notoriously inconsistent).  The USSR did have one, but it was sold to the Sultan of Brunei (we don’t think it is functional). There are rumors of private companies making them, but this is unsubstantiated.”

“Finally, it is important for you to know that there are different types of teams we send across the Bridge.  Some teams are strictly observation and threat identification.  Teams with language or custom specialties may be asked to interact with the populace and do some anthropological study.  Some teams are sent to extract important resources or people.  Of course, some teams simply blow things up and such.  What you do will be up to the NSA higher-ups.”

Click here to read about other worlds or post here when you’re ready to speak with Colonel Hodgeson.

Alternate Worlds

Dr. Farnsworth is told by an aide that she has a phone call.  She steps away for about five minutes, letting you drink in some of the sterile details of the Bridge access room.  She returns and starts with her Powerpoint slides.

 ”So, here is an alternate earth primer.  You’ll be exposed to more specifics about certain worlds later, but you’ll need to know a few basics right away.”

“Here’s a few terms you may hear: 
Alt: short for an alternate earth.
Bridge: Short for Einstein-Rosen Bridge. This refers to both the actual wormhole itself and the physical equipment that generates it.
POD: Point-of-Divergence. Where we think the alt’s timeline deviates from our own.
Main Sequence: Our earth.”

“We have a two-tiered classification system to group alike worlds.  Each Alt is categorized first by a number based on its physical characteristics. 
Class 1: Indistinguishable from Main Sequence in almost all respects.
Class 2: Physical laws are exactly the same, but structural changes to the Alt exist (i.e. different topography, a certain mineral rare in Main Sequence may be common).
Class 3: Physical laws and topography are compatible with human life, but are recognizably different (i.e. slightly lower gravity, probability works differently).
Class 4: Hostile world. Humans may be able to survive short periods of time with special equipment (i.e. and all ocean world or ice-covered world).
Class 5: Completely incompatible with human life (i.e. any other planet in our solar system).”

“Each Alt is then also given a letter that follows this number. The letter describes the cultural environment of the Alt.
A: Differs from Main Sequence in only smallest of details.
B: Significant cultural differences from Main Sequence.
C: Intelligent Life, but Main Sequence humans would be obviously out of place (i.e. an alt full of albinos or intelligent non-humans).
D: Life, but no recorded intelligent life.
E: No obvious life.
F: Quarantined. No contact or travel is allowed. Often, the existence of these worlds is classified, even to project staff.”

“Each world also has a code name.  Barren worlds have their classification followed by a five digit contact number (5E00123, for example).  A world which may be habitable will have the classification followed by a mission name (they retain the code, but it is only used by archivists).  An example is 2BHIGHTECH (or 2B00001), which we’ll talk about.”

“Statistically, most worlds are classed 4E or 5E. 9 of 10 worlds we contact are incapable of supporting human life.  Of the ones that aren’t inhospitable, 90% of those are functionally indistinguishable from our own (Class 1A).  They have only the smallest details different. A recent one has the White House address as 1601 Pennsylvania Ave instead of 1600, and this is the only difference we can find.  So, that means that 1% of the worlds we come into contact with are novel and capable of supporting exploration (about one or two per year).  I’m going to detail a few that have drifted out of contact with us so that you’ll have a feel for what these worlds are like.”

“The first world that we were ever aware of was 2BHIGHTECH.  This is a world with similar properties as our Earth, but different topography.  Beyond that, the humans inhabiting it were brilliant mathematicians and scientists, but lacked any social structure or skills.  The government was near anarchy and social order was weak, to say the least.  Imagine a world filled with people with Asperger’s Disorder and that would be a pretty fair description.  Well, a group of their eggheads built a Bridge and came over to our world in 1941.  They landed right smack in Nazi Germany and were put to work by the Nazis.  A few resisted and were dealt with, but most didn’t realize what sort of people they were helping.  They thought they were assisting us poor barbarians enter the modern age.  After WW2 a few were acquired by the U.S. and Britain, which helped us establish Bridges of our own.”

“3DTHINKTANK was a world we lost contact with ten years ago.  It seemed like a habitable world with some animal life, but not much to distinguish it.  When we landed a team there, we found that intelligent beings could control the physical environment by thought. Our team could lift rocks with their minds and control the flight of birds.  Sadly, one team member died there as the result of an aneurism (we suspect due to stress of thought).  The three who returned lost their abilities when they returned, so it was a phenomenon unique to that environment.  Two of them died of brain cancer not long after, and the fourth has no ill effects.”

“1B worlds are usually very interesting.  These are the “what if” worlds that are very similar, but in which time followed a different path.  A good example of of a 1B world is 1BPILGRIM.  The POD for this world was 1620.  The Pilgrims landed, but immediately established a new country.  The Revolutionary War was fought 150 years earlier, and the Brits won.  They didn’t get the last laugh, though.  Pilgrims kept coming and coming to the new world and started a terrorism campaign that lasted 100 years.  By 1740 the British pulled out to Canada and the Christian States of America (C.S.A.) was born.  By now, the CSA is established as a world power (though not the only, by far).  The CSA is not a pleasant place to visit.  They live under strict Protestant Christian law.  There is no alcohol, taking the Lord’s name in vain, or premarital sexuality involved.  Also, no Catholics, Jews, or Atheists allowed.  They did free the slaves a century before we did, though.  Thankfully, their technology is 100 years behind ours so we didn’t have to worry about them coming over on Bridges to save us (they’ve since drifted away).” She shows you a slide of the CSA Flag:

CSA Flag

“I’ll be able to brief you one other worlds in more detail as your training allows.”

Click here to hear about the history of time travel and post here when you’re ready to speak with Colonel Hodgeson.