Convergences and Divergences.... (Part 1)

"Oh, that's just great," mutters Dragon Synizn, annoyed. 

Meanwhile, in a universe far away (where a certain TARDIS had come from).....an enclave inside a Time Barrier....flickers....and vanishes...... 

And several other things get dragged along with it. One of the things being the dragged along is the spaceship that houses an insane AI called Xoanon and those who worship it as a god, the Tesh. The almost godlike machine is scared to death of this (this shouldn't be happening!), and is reduced to a scared rambling mumble during a discussion with a certain Time Lord located within the Enclave. Soon, the Time Lord and a few friends arrive at the mouth of an idol at the Great Cliffs......
 
 

With the exception of Xoanon, nobody being transported know that they're moving! Those inside the Enclave can't see out to see the events happening outside. Those people, besides Xoanon, rarely go outside their ship, except to guard certain positions to keep the savages (the Sevateem) from the Xoanon and the "Tower" (what they call the ship). The one guard on duty right now had been too busy doing his job to note the strange scene going on behind him. He's keeping an eye the entrance through the mouth of the idol! However, his attention soon wanders and he glances back behind him.....and is floored by what he sees!

 The Doctor 

You know? I could get used to this! I think simply to myself, looking back and seeing how my friends (and dear Inquirer) handle potential problems.....letting me handle the tasks I had set off in doing instead of haring off, putting out yet another set of problems that my Companions just can't seem to be able to handle (besides...some of them.....running and screaming). 

I then turn back, but find that Xoanon seems to be giving off some rather......frightened muttering. I can't make out most what he's saying and no manner of prodding or coaxing seems to work. However....what I do get....is a bit.....disturbing. 

"We have gotten all we are going to get here," I sigh. 

We soon seem to follow a similar path that my.....TV counterpart (a concept that still strikes me as bizarre at times) followed with Leela in examining the Barrier. Yes, it is a Time Barrier and everything inside it is just moved forward a few seconds in time. A true void, impervious to all forms of energy and such. Leela's (amazing girl....good brain in that head of her's) questions about how, if that's true, we hear the voice of Xoanon leads us to the very base of the Great Cliffs. Betty and Ragan smile when Leela's question brings us here. 

I believe that they knew....but that small tidbit of information was left out in the brief synopsis of what happened on that TV series while on that trek through the jungle. 

Well, we had been in a hurry back then and no matter what, their telling me about the Mordee expedition was invaluable in aiding me finding this planet. See, back in my reality I'd aided my version of the Expedition (and I'm rather inordinately happy to say that unlike my...er......that other Doctor I remembered to wipe the core of my personality). 

Thankfully, I happen to know through the Melcit Theorem that the personality the other Doctor left in Xoanon is compatible with my own. One wouldn't think it, seeing that the chap is.....or would have supposedly been a future incarnation of me. However, despite how different some of my previous selves had seemed.....as much as it sometimes irks me.....all of those aspects of their personality of previous incarnations go into in some way at creating the new incarnation. 

If nothing else, I spoke with Sigin privately awhile ago and he assures me if I do go insane....he can use his magic to heal my mind. 

Dragons, I'm told, are rather good at that particular brand of healing magic. 

I pause, noting the fact that the faces carved into the cliff aren't perfect. Then again, what is perfect in this imperfect universe? 

"So how do we get in?" Leela asks, "Up the nose?" 

Betty and Ragan break into laughter at that one as I explain it's through the mouth of the Fourth Doctor. 

That said, it's a rather easy climb, but when we get to the top, we discovering a Tesh guard gaping out the back of the cave.....looking at the strange landscape that just popped into existence. 

After tending to the Tesh's stabbing wound caused by Leela's thrown knife, we soon see just why that now unconscious guard was looking! 

"Nantucket?!" the Doctor blinks, recognizing the town behind the spaceship in the distance. 

Meanwhile.....

 What exactly his happening here? Why is it happening?

 Well, a simple timeline and a list of players called for here to sort things out. 

One fact to keep in mind with regards to the passage of time compared to Nantucket Earth to Fred 5a's Terra. Time passage on Nantucket Earth is slower than that of time passage on Fred 5a's Terra.

 1. Some undetermined time ago, one Randall Flagg met on Dragon Mage Minestus. The Demon was suitibly impressed with the evil lizard, and the two hit it off. Such meetings between Demons and those who prove to be pivotal figures (in a negative sense) in the future. Point in fact, in one instance (in a Stephen King novel) Flagg played an influential role in at least one version of Lee Harvey Oswald. RF gets around.

 2. Minestus of Fred 5a's world attempts to raise the magical level on the world where the Book is located so as to be able to safely travel there.

 3. After regaining lost memories from the Norns, RF realizes that the magic rituals that Minestus is using isn't going to be enough, so lends an unseen hand. Some out of a sense of what passes for friendship to the evil dragon, mostly out of sense of wicked humor in envisioning the chaos and despair it'll cause in the future.

 4. Flagg comendeers that had been created by a Time/Space throwoff incident. The Doctor who'd been inside had just finished doing what he thought was aiding the Mordee expedition of Dr. What's universe, but forgot to wipe the computer core of his personality. This duplicate dies before he can do anything to correct this mistake.

 5. Flagg takes this TARDIS and allows it to evaporate in another universe, the Earth of Nantucket of 1998, following it's owner into death. The Eye of Harmony within it soon finds itself unconstrained by the control mechanisms of this TARDIS, and all hell breaks loose. This Earth get's suck through the Eye. Many die and that Solar System is destroyed.

 6. Flagg feeds the results of the 1998 Nantucket Earth into Minestus'efforts and, unknown to the evil dragon mage, allows a magical ritual doomed to failure to succeed. Magic begins to flow through the "seed" set down by the Atlantian much earlier. A "seed" that, earlier, had been stillborn....until now.

 6. The "seed" blossoms, and in a large area surrounding the "seed's" enclave is transformed into the landscape void of human beings that a Fred and Astra will soon see in episode 236. The Olmecs living in the area are caught along with other native creatures, and are also transformed into various animals. The process snuffs out the minds of the Olmecs. Those who aren't caught in the area of transformation run off, seeing that area as cursed by the gods! The Book takes up residence within what had been an Olmec pyramid (transformed into an Atlantian pyramid now), and the scene is set for the Red Pyramid.

 7. Minestus arrives in this tranformed area, gains access to the Red Pyramid, and soon takes possession of the Book. The dragon mage takes it for study back to Fred 5a's world. Due to the outrageous time differentials involved here, only a few days pass back on Nantucket Earth, but a few decades pass back on the world Minestus hails from as he studies the Book before the dragon returns the Book back to the security of the Red Pyramid for safe keeping.

 8. Meanwhile, through a freak set of circumstances, the island of Nantucket is spared. Instead of being destroyed, it gets tossed back three thousand years and thus sets that world on a different course. The fact that there is now magic on this Earth isn't known yet to the majority of people of this Earth.

 9. Soon after Nantucket's arrival, an search team out for answers stumbles across a village of frightened Indians. The warriors of the tribe attack the Nantucketers first, and the Nantucketers return fire (with firearms). Several Indians are wounded and the rest flee for their lives. The wounded Indians are tended to, and the more critically wounded one is taken to Nantucket for medical attention. In the course of things, one Nantucket with a cold accidently sneezes on one of the wounded Indians who stays behind. Nothing was thought of it at the time, but it soon comes to light that the Indians of this time have never been exposed to Eurasian sicknesses. An epidemic soon breaks out amongst the Indians, and many soon start to die. All because of a common cold.

 10. Minestus of Fred 5a's world dies. A signal is sent to the Book, setting off a means of revenge on the dragon's slayer. Freds and Astras soon are being snatched by the Book, who's all to eager to finally to do *SOMETHING* after centuries of inactivity.
 
 

11. In another universe, one Author (a person with almost godlike powers) has been transformed into a woman called Lady Joshine. Randall Flagg abducts her and strips her of this power, so the Demon can give it to a young man called Scott Chen (so he can cause more damage and chaos....spread more evil and despair). Flagg dumps the now unconscious woman on a convenient world, out of the way. He dumps her on Nantucket Earth....just as a few other strange people are arriving.

 12. In another universe entirely, one Frank Marn get's caught up in a strange set of events that soon deposit him on Nantucket Earth, a few months later by that world's Callander (about the same time as events in #11). Very soon afterwards, a Starship Voyager also gets dumped here as well. The wrecked ship soon finds it has a food supply problem, and so contact is soon made with the governing, ad hoc government of Nantucket for trade. The Voyager would provide things like electricity and some other things (like a cure for the common cold) in exchange for food and other trade goods. Trade talk meeting soon breaking on a positive note, the Council and a few Voyager members (including the holo-Doctor) have come along....and beam into an abandoned house just as Queen Astra, Roland and friends have just arrived..... See, Frank Marn has within him a cache of Chaos Energy, and thus makes him a Weirdness Magnet. Strange things happen around him, and strange things are attracted to his presence. The Magnet has attracted, in part, some rather strange folk.....and now you know.

 13. The kidnaped Freds, Astras, and others soon arrive a few months later on Nantucket Earth. Some arrive as intended inside the Red Pyramid. Some who hadn't been intended on being "snatched" arrive together much further north from the Red Pyramid, a bit away from a logging camp set up by Nantucket.

 14. Through a side effect of the tampering done by Flagg AND something to do with the Chaos Energy within Frank Marn (Voyager's spokesperson ), the enclave that Xoanon had set up with his Time Barrier (and a bit of real estate, including the ship Xoanon and the Tesh were housed in) got snatched up and also dumped on Nantucket Earth....within sight of the island town! We left Dr. Who and friends looking out and seeing Nantucket....
 
 

15. Around this same time we begin to get a clue into just HOW the Book plans of implementing. It had knocked out at those trapped within the the Red Pyramid and took a Fred and Astra and attempted to use them in creating a magical curse that would turn a LOT of folks back on Fred 5a's world into a type of mad, animalistic lycanthropic creature that the Manimals of Terra Prime would call the Foresaken! The Book found, however, that this Fred and Astra were unsuitable for it's original purpose, so instead had the resulting shambling creature (something called Chrysalis) sent out to "fission" off in several areas.....to set the seeds of what would grow into several dozen fantasy races! In this case, a Chrysalis was being sent to several areas to "seed" an area with a bunch of elven children in the hopes they'd form a few hundred small elven villages....and eventually unite to form an elven nation (who'd later have been challenged and conquered by Atlantis....if those Atlantians weren't already dead).
 
 

Now, for the list of the groups and the people who make them up!
 
 

The Nantucket Council
 
 

This council was created in response to the need to organize the traumatized, shell shocked inhabitants of Nantucket together in the task of surviving. See, Nantucket back in 1998 was a tourist spot. It didn't have much in the way of industry, farming, and other little things that make life possible. Trade was needed to get needed seeds and livestock for farming (Nantucket didn't nearly have enough.....importing much from the mainland. They needed to soon make their own tools. Make their own cloths. They were on their own right now.....and needed to do things quickly or else bad things (like starvation) were going to happen.
 
 

People on the Council and closely related people seen so far....
 
 

Jared Coflin - This is the head of this ad hoc, emergency council, the Chief Executive. He was the local sherif, and was elected in an emergency session as leader because he stepped forward in the early hours of the crisis to handle things. One thing of note about this man is that he took off his uniform, badge, and gun in assuming this office. Wouldn't do to be Chief Executive and Chief Sherif at the same time. 

Martha Coflin - She's one of the Council members and happens to be Jared's wife. She does have her own mind, is smarter than her husband. She also has a college degree, as opposed to her husband's high school degree. Jared Cofflin isn't stupid, but . . . . his wife has a larger personal data base . . . if you catch my meaning. 

Steve Macy - This is the head of New Haven Engineering. It was originally just a side hobby, an machine shop run out of his basement, but it's been scaled up to handle the industrial needs of Nantucket. He's a good enough man, but a real advocate for the right to bear arms....and has opinions on the matter that couldn't be changed with high explosives!
 
 

Pamela Lisketter - This woman probably is one of the most liberal member of the Council. Was involved in all the good causes back up in 1998, and many marginal ones as well. Some have described her as a "holdover hippy." Has over time since the Event (the name given to whatever had brought them back in time) has increasingly isolated herself, politically by keep insisting on Nantucket leading a spiritual life....freeing themselves from the tyranny of the machine and such. Seeing that her agenda wasn't getting anywhere, she and her core group of still loyal followers were soon joined by one William Walker (who had plans on using Lisketter and her group as patsies in a play for power). However, she's recently learned just how much she's been manipulated by Walker by Marn and so has tipped off the Council about Walker. Also, upon seeing what all the Voyager crew can do for the Native Americans (like stopping the cold that's was killing a lot of them) and such.....has relaxed her stance on a few tightly held convictions....
 
 

Marion Alston - Alston is the Captain of the Eagle, an U.S. Coast Guard sailing ship.. She is an African American and went up through the ranks, (the last part is something that is actually a strike against her in the 20th century Coast Guard). She's a black belt in karate, practices with a katanna. Having a cool exterior, she sees most problems as nails, and she's a hammer. One last item of note, she has a high degree of restraint, discipline, and honor. However, that said, she's attracted to another: a woman named Swindapa. Her sense of honor -Swindapa is a bit younger than she is- as well as perhaps a fear of public opinion, prevents her from acting on this attraction.
 
 

Swindapa - A young eighteen year old blonde woman of the Bronze Ages from what would have been England. The people who she belongs to are called the Earth People (the native folk of England of that time). She is a Moon Woman priestess (a religion that reveres the Moon as a goddess) who'd gone out to seek revenge on the invaders of her lands who'd maimed her man (can't say husband, since her people don't have weddings), the Sun Folk. She was captured, gang raped, and thrown into slavery shortly before being given as a gift to the those who came from the Eagle (that sailing ship mentioned earlier). Alston almost lost it, and killed the giver of the "gift" but instead bit down and accepted the "gift." They needed the trade goods the Sun Folk had desperately, so there really wasn't much choice in the matter. Alston freed her, and this won Swindapa affections...... Currently is wondering why Alston isn't returning her interest in her. This woman can later play an important part in establishing trade ties with the Earth Folk, who are MUCH less socially and morally objectionable than the Sun Folk.
 
 

Lt. William Walker - We've only seen this character briefly, but this villain is worthy of note. He is a member of Alston's crew with dreams of setting up his own little kingdom, using knowledge and resources that come from the 20th century. He's not really part of the effort to keep things together. He's . . . an opportunist. He's out for only one thing, himself. He wants power, and will use it BADLY! Has been working in the background, once he got back to Nantucket from England, in bringing his dreams to reality by gather a group of followers.
 
 

1. Now, for the other groups..... 

 Go Back