The Night's Dawn Trilogy
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British author Peter F. Hamilton's The Night's Dawn Trilogy consists of three epic science fiction novels: The Reality Dysfunction (1996), The Neutronium Alchemist (1997), and The Naked God (1999). A collection of short stories, A Second Chance at Eden, shares the same universe, and The Confederation Handbook documents that universe in non-fiction style.
The sprawling narrative deals with a far future where humanity struggles and wages war against past souls flooding back into the land of the living via possession (Al Capone and Fletcher Christian are among the returnees). Hamilton's future is expansive and primarily optimistic, with huge sentient space-cities that can closely resemble a natural Eden. He extrapolates on current trends concerning the blurring of technology with biology, and environmental devastation. But Hamilton pulls no punches on humanity's darker side. Poverty, sexual exploitation and cruelty still dog our civilizations in Night's Dawn, and the coalition opposing the Possessed are faced with a particularly cruel moral conundrum; they cannot destroy them without also killing their host bodies.
[edit] Humanity in the 27th century
In the Night's Dawn trilogy, humankind, although now united under an organization known as the Confederation, has been broken up into two major divisions, Adamists and Edenists. The economy is dominated by the Edenists, who maintain a powerful monopoly across the Confederation by harvesting helium 3 from suitable gas giants. This resource is utilized by all Adamist starships as a primary fuel source. The use of the only other major energy source, antimatter, is illegal, and possession or production of antimatter is a capital crime, punishable by death.
[edit] Adamist culture
- Also see Adamism.
Adamists are the larger of the two groups, and consider themselves to be normal humans. They allow themselves to use some genetic-engineering improvements (referred to as "geneering"), but do not generally condone the use of "bitek" (organic/bio technology) in their culture. They are a vast group of people of various cultures and backgrounds, and realistically, the Adamist group encompasses any non-Edenist humans. The majority of Adamists are religious, and as such do not utilise bitek (which was banned by the Pope during the 21st century) and instead use nanotechnology (which they refer to as "nanonics"). Nanonics perform many of the same physiological feats as bitek, and the two technologies are relatively compatible. Adamist starships use fusion-energy based drives, and as such much of the human economy is based on the proliferation of He3. Use of the ZTT (Zero Temporal Transit) faster-than-light drive allows Adamists to colonize star-systems, usually through the settling of both planets and asteroid belts.
[edit] Edenist culture
- Also see Edenism.
Edenists are, for the most part, a single culture. They are an idealized, egalitarian, utopian society which, while not believing or practicing religion, do not prohibit it. The majority of Edenists live in huge, multi-kilometre space stations called 'habitats' orbiting gas giants. Each individual habitat is a living organism, fully sentient, and is the perfect arbitrator of its community. Habitats cannot be bribed, are perfect impartial judges, and are completely aware of everything that occurs within them and immediately around them, 99% of the time. The most important aspect of any Edenist is his/her use of affinity. Affinity is an advanced form of mental communication similar to the modern-day concepts of telepathy or entanglement. Edenist affinity allows them to communicate with each other as well as with their technology (known as bitek). Unlike Adamist culture which is divided into various political units, Edenists form a single governmental entity known as Consensus. Consensus is formed when all Edenists willingly join into a temporary collective-consciousness. This allows total direct representation of their entire population in government decisions. At death, Edenists can use affinity to transfer their memories and personality into the mind of one of their bitek ships or habitats where they live on for many centuries before gradually becoming an integral part of the habitat personality. Since habitats have no maximum lifespan - and could in turn pass on their memories and personality to another habitat if they ever did die - this is regarded as a form of immortality. Adamist religions reject this as an attempt to avoid God's judgment on the soul after death, and it is this which is the root cause of the schism between the Adamist and Edenist cultures.
Edenists have access to faster-than-light travel through large, engineered bitek creatures called "Voidhawks", also fully sentient, whom, along with their crew, make up the vast armada of Edenist merchant vessels that operate throughout the Confederation, and a large contingent of the Confederation Navy. Voidhawks are born and live in the vacuum of space. They are naturally attuned to the magnetic fields and energy fluctuations of the space around them, and have precise and exact control of a massive distortion field that emits from their bodies. Utilizing this control, they open wormhole interstices, referred to as "swallows", that allow them to jump from one point in space to another instantaneously, and by utilizing the full power of their distortion fields, Voidhawks can attain a speed and manoeuvrability that can never be matched by Adamist vessels (unless powered by antimatter).
Edenists heavily genetically modify their children, including the gene which allows affinity to develop from conception. They also use modified "servitors" which are often chimpanzees with affinity which carry out small tasks and leave Edenists to concentrate on more important matters. Edenists operate cloud scoops in gas giants in order to extract the rare isotope helium 3 which can be used for fusion energy.
[edit] Story
The story of the Night's Dawn Trilogy is separated over three books primarily: The Reality Dysfunction (1996), The Neutronium Alchemist (1997), and The Naked God (1999); but is also supported by "A Second Chance at Eden", a collection of short stories which provide insight into the history of Hamilton's universe.
The story is divided in many threads, based around primary, secondary and tertiary characters. Not all of these will be discussed here, as they delve deeply into the rich and complex texture of the Universe providing a greater sense of verisimilitude, also exploring some of Hamilton's darker themes. These story lines include Dariat's struggles inside Valisk, and the Deadnight's voyage to their 'Saviour'.
In the 27th century humans have colonised nearly 900 worlds, have living, sentient starships as well as the conventional kind, living also in Asteroid communities and in large, living Space stations. Due to policies of 'Ethnic Streaming' by the colonisation authorities, worlds are generally united under a single government, with these governments collectively forming a Confederation. The Confederation includes both Adamists and Edenists, a small collection of Alien races including the Tyrathca and the Kiint, has an armed Navy (which acts primarily against smugglers, pirates and anti-matter production facilities, which are considered highly illegal) and a central 'house' based on the world of Avon. Earth is still an important world, with a massive population, exporting massive amount of colonists (both voluntarily and involuntarily), but virtually environmentally destroyed after years of technological abuse.
[edit] Events
The opening sequence of the story revolves around a war between the planets Garissa and Omuta, both of which claim ownership of a tremendously valuable set of asteroids called the Dorados. Several Garissan ships are sent to attack Omuta with a superweapon called the Alchemist. However, en route, the spacecraft are ambushed by Omutan-hired blackhawks, a type of living starship which is far more versatile in combat than its conventional opponents. After a short, furious melee the Garissan ships are destroyed and/or disabled, leaving them drifting through the void of space. Dr. Alkad Mzu, the designer of the Alchemist, is among the few survivors. Meanwhile, the blackhawks advance to Garissa and drop antimatter planet-buster bombs on the planet, killing 99% of the Garissan population and rendering the planet uninhabitable. As the possession and/or use of antimatter is a capital crime (indeed, the prevention of the use of antimatter was the reason for the creation of the Confederation), the ruling cabinet of Omuta are executed and their world placed under stringent sanctions for 30 years.
Introduced next is young would-be space captain Joshua Calvert. Joshua lives on Tranquillity, a huge, living spacestation, which exists in orbit around a gas giant. Thousands of years ago, the native race of Tranquillity's star mysteriously committed suicide. Tranquillity was grown in order to investigate the Ruin Ring, the ruins of the unknown civilisation, which form an artificial circle around the gas giant. While exploring the Ruin Ring, Joshua finds a memory storage device. Containing huge amounts of information about the extinct aliens, the auction of the device fetches him enough money to refit his father's starship, the Lady MacBeth, and once again use her for commercial shipping and trade.
Syrinx, a young Edenist, is next introduced, leading life from a young age telepathically attached to a bitek starship - similar to a Blackhawk - called a Voidhawk. As she grows she learns more about the world with her sentient starship, becoming best friends (as is the normal bond between bitek starship and owner). After a mandatory stint in the armed forces, including an encounter with Joshua Calvert in which he outsmarts her, Syrinx takes her ship and her crew into the realm of commercial shipping, becoming competitors with Calvert and his ship.
On the tropical world of Lalonde, the newest colony in the Confederation, a group of Involuntary Transportees 'Ivets' from Earth (It becomes clear that the basic sentence for basically every crime on Earth is transportation, as its population is far too large to sustain prisoners) is made to work while voluntary colonists set out to make a new life for themselves - some eager, some forced to come along with their families. One such girl is Marie, who wants to return home, and so hitches a ride back to the capital of Lalonde after settlement, in an attempt to return to Earth. The leader of the Ivets is a cruel, sadistic Satanist - Quinn Dexter - who despite his evil nature is an apt leader. He organizes a campaign of murder, in order to steal enough money to return him back to Earth for him to take revenge of the woman who put him there. His campaign accelerates in speed until he eventually captures the local lawman, and is going to torture him. However, simultaneously an Alien entity known as the Ly-cilph, a non-corporeal race from a distant galaxy, comes into contact with the dying man. The Ly-cilph, it's only purpose being to gather knowledge, is amazed when it detects a flicker of energy leaving the man's body (apparently the essence of his consciousness, his soul) through a spatial distortion leading to an "energistic vacuum". The being unknowingly finds itself trapped in a threshold between this dimension and the dimension of souls (the beyond), where human souls go to after death. This results in the souls of the dead, most demented after countless aeons of 'imprisonment' flooding back into our world, possessing human bodies. These newly reincarnated dead can harness superhuman powers - most notably the power to project 'the white fire', the ability to alter form, and the ability to allow others to be possessed. Quickly the new settlement is overrun, with the possessed claiming spaceships and leaving Lalonde to spread to the Confederation at large.
Calvert, having visited Lalonde unwittingly gives Dexter a ride to the world of Norfolk. Dexter begins to infect the Norfolk locals while Calvert begins to trade in the extremely revered 'Norfolk Tears', an Alcohol, coming into opposition with Syrinx. Calvert begins an affair with a wealthy nobles daughter Louise who falls madly in love with him. The infection starts a short-lived military campaign by the local militia, which results in the total destruction of the social system, Louise and her sister fleeing for their lives.
Dr. Alkad Mzu, for years kept virtual prisoner on Tranquillity because of her knowledge of the Alchemist and her terrorist ambitions, escapes in a breathtaking sequence including using a blackhawk to 'Jump' inside the habitat to aide her escape.
Syrinx travels to the world of Atlantis, a world covered by water, inhabited by floating 'islands' which themselves are sentient only to discover that the possession has too begun there. In the process she is captured and tortured badly, and suffers a psychotic breakdown.
In Tranquillity the scale of the infection begins to become apparent to the Confederation, who immediately ban all non-essential travel between worlds. A team of mercenaries is assembled and ferried to Lalonde to assess the scale of the possession and its true source, dropped there by Calvert.
The team discovers the small Tyrathca settlement, a race of (socially) insect-like Aliens who have suffered great losses to attacks by possessed humans, passing by a small temple being constructed even though the Tyrathca race do not have religion. Later, they stumble across a group of non-possessed children and a preacher who escaped the settlement, and try to protect them from the attacks by the increasingly effective possessed humans, the weapons of the Mercenaries of limited use, and their numbers insufficient to fend off the attackers. In a climactic final scene as Calvert fights a space battle above, the mercenaries valiantly defend the survivors from the hordes of the possessed until they are extracted by space plane.
The nature and breadth of infection become better known in the second novel, the possessed occupying several factions, including that of Al Capone on New California, Keira Salter on Valisk and Quinn Dexter as he travels from world to world, until finally reaching Earth.
Calvert and his group is tasked with finding Dr Mzu, who is believed to be searching for her doomsday weapon to complete her dream of slaying the Omutan people. The search takes her to the Disk-system which is now inhabited by the survivors of the Garissan genocide, and finally to an uninhabited system (with the aide of Calvert) to find the Alchemist starship which was damaged at the beginning of the first novel. The weapon is used to destroy a gas giant world, also destroying possessed starships controlled by the Capone organization.
Syrinx is psychologically reconstructed with the help of the founder of the Edenist culture.
Louise and her sister, aided by one of the Possessed (who are not universally sadistic or evil) find their way to Earth in search of Calvert. The possessed also reach one of the Kulu Colonies, resulting in the loss of a peninsula.
The final book takes place (largely) with a mission to a far off system to discover the Tyrathca 'sleeping god' (which was previously unknown, but learnt of in the first novel), which was discovered by the Tyrathca when they were technologically sophisticated, thus implying some true god-like ability. Syrinx and Calvert both participate, their ships and skills aiding each other considerably, to the Tyrathca home system then to the location of the "god".
Simultaneously Louise, on Earth, must fight Quinn Dexter who is subjugating the population.
The campaign to liberate the possessed peninsula becomes a bloody quagmire, with massive losses on both sides.
The Sleeping god is eventually revealed to be an entity created by an ancient, long dead culture, which was able to create a stable, naked quantum singularity. This singularity has untold knowledge and power, and talks with Calvert for some time, able to transplant its consciousness across time and space, to Earth and Louise, and to the point at which the possession began. Bestowed with the god’s power Calvert is able to exorcise the infected across the Confederation, and discover the truth behind human existence.
[edit] Timeline leading up to the trilogy
- 2020: Mining of Lunar resources begins.
- 2037: Large scale genetic engineering of Humans begins.
- 2044: The Christian religions are reunified.
- 2055: Lunar cities gain independence.
- 2058: Affinity invented by Wing-Tsit Chong.
- 2064: Jovian Sky Power Corporation begins mining He3 fuel from Jupiter.
- 2064: Islamic secular unification.
- 2075: Eden is germinated in Jupiter orbit.
- 2077: Research into the ZTT drive system begins.
- 2085: Eden opened to settlement.
- 2090: Wing-Tsit Chong dies and becomes the first person to transfer his memories into a habitat.
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- Beginning of the Edenist culture. All persons using affinity are excommunicated by Pope Eleanor.
- 2103: Earth governments combined to form Govcentral.
- 2115: First use of the ZTT drive.
- 2118: First exploration of another solar system.
- 2125: First extrasolar colony world established on Felicity.
- 2180: Earth's first orbital tower is constructed.
- 2205: The first antimatter production station is built.
- 2210: Richard Saldana opens the Kulu colony.
- 2218: The first voidhawk is gestated.
- 2232: Twenty seven thousand people are killed when antimatter weapons are used for the first time.
- 2238: All production and use of antimatter is outlawed in the Sol system.
- 2240: Gerrald Saldana is crowned King of Kulu.
- 2271: After skirmishes involving antimatter over the last few years, the material is banned throughout inhabited space.
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- The Human Confederation is formed to enforce the ban.
- 2300: Edenists join the Confederation.
- 2301: First contact with the Jiciro.
- 2330: Gestation of the first Blackhawks.
- 2356: First contact with the Kiint.
- 2371: Atlantis is colonised by Edenists.
- 2395: First contact with the Tyrathca.
- 2420: Discovery of the Ruin Ring.
- 2432: Prince Michael Saldana is exiled after he engineers affinity into his son.
- 2550: Mars terraforming reaches a point where the planet is habitable.
- 2581: The planet Garissa's population is destroyed by a series of antimatter weapons detonated on the surface.
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- A thirty year isolation is placed on Omuta by the Confederation.
- 2582: Lalonde is colonised.
[edit] Technology
In the Night's Dawn trilogy, a large number of advanced and unusual technologies utilised for various functions. These technologies include:
[edit] Blackhawk
As bitek starships, blackhawks are a variation of the Edenist Voidhawk which were created by reverse-engineering the voidhawk genome and modifying it. The aim was to produce a vessel with a greater combat capability. The original voidhawk genome was purchased by the Edenist Serpent Rubra, along with the genome to create Edenist Habitats. From this genetic base he germinated Valisk as a base for his company Magellanic Itg and as a place for Blackhawks to feed and embark on their mating flights.
The maximum hyperspace-jump ("swallow") distance for a Blackhawk is around 22 light-years. Blackhawks are frequently used for smuggling and mercenary operations since they and their captains do not often have the same ethical grounding that their Edenist equivalents have. As a result they tend to have a somewhat unsavoury reputation. Blackhawks and Voidhawks can interbreed. The Blackhawk and his captain share the same neural symbionts thus enabling them to use affinity. As the symbionts are unique, this affinity is limited to the communication with the Blackhawk. Affinity-based communication with an Edenist is not possible. Typical Blackhawk lifespan is 75 years.
[edit] Combat wasps
One of the standard weapons used by all spacecraft, combat wasps are essentially highly advanced missiles containing a wide variety of submunitions. These include gamma pulse laser warheads, hit-to-kill kinetic energy projectiles, thermonuclear warheads, full-spectrum sensors, electronic warfare pods, and anti-matter warheads. The computer controlling each wasp is capable of analysing tactical situations and plotting the optimum way to reach the target, engaging other wasps on the way if needed to ensure success. The wasp has a maximum acceleration of 20 G when using standard fusion fuel (deuterium or He³).
Standard anti-matter fueled combat wasps can accelerate at an average of 30 G. This superior acceleration and speed allows anti-matter fueled combat wasps to outmanoeuvre and outrun their fusion powered counterparts. It also gives its targets less time for evasive manoeuvres, running away, or time needed to shoot down the combat wasp with point defense guns. Dr. Alkad Mzu's Neutronium Alchemist is deployed by a special anti-matter fueled combat wasp capable of a maximum acceleration of 40 G. This speed and acceleration advantage allows it to outrun and outmanoeuvre any anti-missile defense it might encounter.
Anti-matter warheads are also far more destructive than fusion, gamma pulse laser, or kinetic projectile warheads. The energy released by a matter-antimatter reaction more easily overwhelms a starship's atomic force binding generator. The far heavier xray and gamma ray radiation generated by an anti-matter detonation also is far more effective in killing voidhawks and blackhawks. These organic vessels do not have atomic force binding generators like Adamist starships.
In addition to attacking enemy ships or space stations, combat wasps can also be utilized as defense drones. In this mission profile, the wasps will be fly around a designated target and defend it from all threats. The wasps will then use their ECM to jam or fry the sensors of enemy wasps. They will also use their thermonuclear or anti-matter warheads to carpet bomb the space in front of the oncoming enemy combat wasp submunitions. This will cause enemy wasps to be destroyed when they fly through the rapidly expanding waves of super heated plasma and intense radiation.
Combat wasps are also employed as minefields around strategically vital areas like around bitek habitats. The Edenists commonly seed the ZTT emergence points around their habitats with thousands and even millions of combat wasps (depending on the star system's industrial capacity). These combat wasps, upon commands from defending voidhawks or habitat personalities, will attack hostile starships just as they are emerging from their wormholes. Adamist warships like the majority of Capone's fleet were vulnerable to this tactic because it takes them a few seconds to extend their sensitive combat sensors which were kept retracted in order to prevent them from getting fried during the ZTT jump. Only the Edenists with their bitek technology can afford this practise.
[edit] Cosmonik
A Cosmonik is a cyborg - a person who has spent so long in zero-gee conditions that large parts of his or her body have atrophied and been replaced with technological systems. Some Cosmoniks are little more than heavily augmented humans, but at the other end of the spectrum they are more like miniature spacecraft with a brain inside.
The wide range of customizable implants available mean that no cosmonik is ever exactly the same as another, but generally they all have the following basic characteristics:
- A very large and heavy-set body, normally exceeding two metres in height, with heavily boosted biomechanical muscles and a carbon-fibre or metal alloy skeleton.
- Synthetic skin or implanted armour, replacing the entire epidermis and protecting the cosmonik from any threat he or she may encounter in space, from the effects of the vacuum to stellar radiation. Many cosmoniks have no real facial features, instead opting for robotic masks with implanted sensors and communication systems.
- Boosted larynxes, giving the cosmonik a powerful voice-amplification ability.
- Mechanical interlink sockets in the forearms, allowing for the implantation of a wide range of weapon, tools and sensors.
- Mechanized internal organs, storage cells and life-support implants, allowing the cosmonik to survive for long periods of time without air, food or water.
Though far stronger and more versatile than normal humans, cosmoniks often have to suffer somewhat shortened lifespans in return for their endless augmentations and upgrades. Also, they are nowhere near invincible, and are as susceptible to energy weapons and bullets as any normal person.
[edit] Fission blade
Although not described in detail, fission blades appear to be some form of powered knife which are capable of cutting through more or less anything - only materials protected by a molecular binding force generator can resist a fission blade. The blades glow brightly when in use.
[edit] Maser Cannon
Masers are lasers which transmit electromagnetic energy in the the microwave band. This makes the maser invisible to the naked eye. It damages its targets by vibrating their molecules causing them to heat up to extreme temperatures. Organic substances like trees, people, and bitek are especially vulnerable because these contain lots of water molecules which can be vibrated by the microwaves of a maser. The water molecules will then flash vaporize into steam causing the organic object to explode.
Maser cannons vary in size and power output. There are models which are handheld, ground vehicle mounted, and they are also often found on voidhawks, blackhawks, Adamist starships, Confederation Navy warships, and even on SD platforms.
[edit] Medical Nanonics
Appearing something like green plastic bandages, medical nanonics are able to treat a wide variety of ailments from simple disease through to reconstruction of deep burns or broken bones. They work by knitting themselves with the skin of the patient and pumping medicines, painkillers and nanonic healing filaments into the wound, quickly healing it from the inside out. They are non-specific in function - that is, any nanonic package can be used to treat any condition. However, it is frequently stated that specialised training is necessary to cure some ailments, e.g. mental problems, internal injuries etc.
[edit] Molecular binding force generator
This technology projects some form of force-field across a structure, greatly reinforcing its strength. When used on matter, the binding force generators prevent the molecular structure of said matter from being altered or broken apart. The effect results in an object being able to resist far more force than is usually required to destroy it, and so ordinary matter can resist the heat of a star or a fission blade attempting to slice through it. Starship hulls are generally protected by this technology. It is by no means invulnerable however; and on several occasions starships' molecular binding generators are overloaded by extreme heat and/or radiation, usually from a beam or antimatter weapon.
[edit] Neural Nanonics
Neural nanonics are advanced neural computer systems which are implanted into the human brain via a direct injection. They are powered by the body's biochemistry. The user controls his or her nanonics directly by just thinking about it. Nanonics can be used for a very wide variety of applications. New skills and knowledge can simply be downloaded into the nanonics, becoming instantly available to the user, though generally without the finesse or expertise that someone who comes by the skill or knowledge naturally possesses. Messages can be sent to the brains of other users in a process analogous to using present day email or instant messenger programs (datavising), providing a form of technological telepathy. They can allow the user to control pain and regulate bodily functions. Unarmed combat programs can take control of the user's body, calculating and even implementing the optimum attacking and defensive moves. Other programs allow direct interface with external hardware, from personal weapons through to spacecraft.
[edit] The Neutronium Alchemist
A weapon developed by the astrophysicist Dr. Alkad Mzu, the Alchemist is capable of either snuffing out a star or causing it to go supernova. This has been her quest for 30 years ; she plans to use it for revenge against the Omuta star system, whose government murdered nearly the entire population of her homeworld (Garissa) using antimatter "Planet-Buster" bombs. Near the end of the second book (the second part of the trilogy), apropriately named The Neutronium Alchemist, Hamilton has a long scene describing the effects of the supernova, as it is used to destroy a pair of Adamist cruisers sent by the Al Capone possessed faction. This weapon has two settings, "humane" and "violent". In both cases, Zero-Tau technology is used to freeze an energy patterning node as it reaches or approaches singularity.
In the humane setting, the effect freezes the energy patterning node as it becomes a singularity, but before it can form a wormhole. This has the effect of turning the weapon into a black hole. When fired into a star, this cleanly siphons away the fusing mass, eventually absorbing the entire star. However, there is no direct risk to the occupants of the star system from radiation, and they can evacuate their planet before the atmosphere starts to condense. This was the setting Dr. Mzu intended to use on Omuta's star, condemning the Omutans to a life as homeless wanderers.
The violent setting actually freezes the energy patterning node before it becomes a singularity, producing an object of the highest possible density. This has the effect of compressing all matter it comes into contact with into neutronium, in the process releasing huge amounts of energy. When fired into a star, this extra energy leads to the star (or gas giant) to go nova.
[edit] Voidhawk
A bitek starship, Voidhawks are sentient beings who are bonded to their captains at birth via affinity. Whilst growing up both Voidhawk and captain can communicate with one another through affinity, and generally have a very loving and affectionate relationship. Typical Voidhawk lifespan is 110 years. The Captain usually outlives their Voidhawk. This is because of the Voidhawks patterning cells are degrading faster than they are reproduced once the Voidhawk has reached maturation. After this the captain usually remains in a habitat to raise his or her children. A Voidhawk will conduct a mating flight at the end of its life, producing upto ten eggs [each with a zygote (the Voidhawk's future captain) inside] which it leaves in orbit of a gas giant to mature. Voidhawk mating happens mostly in the orbit of Saturn, and Romulus and Remus are traditionally the Edenist Voidhawk bases. After one year the Zygote is ejected from the egg and from this moment on raised by its mother and the habitat personality.
A Voidhawk's body is largely (about 80%) composed of energy patterning nodes (or cells) which give the Voidhawk its unique abilities. These cells are used to create a distortion field which enables the Voidhawk to accelerate in space, reload its pattern cells, create wormholes to perform swallow-manoeuvres and to sense the emergence point of a ship/Voidhawk/Blackhawk performing a ZTT-jump. A Voidhawk's distortion field is also capable of preventing other ships from performing ZTT-jumps. A Voidhawk can block ships up to a distance of 100,000 km. Voidhawks are far superior to the mechanical starships used by the Adamists, although they are far more vulnerable to the effects of radiation. While creating a forward acceleration outside of the Voidhawk, the Distortion Field can produce a counter-effect inside the Voidhawk, producing a comfortable gravity of 1G for the crew. A Voidhawk can "tailor" a wormhole according to its needs, while wormholes produced by Adamist ships are bound by orbital mechanics. The Affinity of a Voidhawk can cross distances of up to 30 AU (about 4.5 billion kilometres).
[edit] Zero-tau pod
A form of stasis chamber, once activated the zero-tau pod locks its contents within a certain position in the space-time-continuum and therefore actually stops time from passing within the chamber. Anything placed inside will therefore not age or decay in any way for as long as the pod is active. As the possessed are still connected to the Beyond they remain aware of their surroundings while in a zero-tau pod, experiencing something akin to utter sensory deprivation. This is described as being "even worse than the Beyond" and therefore highly unpleasant for them, so much so that the possessing soul will abandon the body rather than remain in zero-tau. Zero-tau is commonly used by starships to place passengers in stasis for long or crowded journeys or during manoeuvres with high G-forces (like an active anti-matter-drive), and most interstellar spacecraft have at least a few such pods. Zero-tau technology forms part of the Alchemist weapon. Some people choose to make "future hops" and visit future eras trough the pod's means.
[edit] ZTT drive
The faster than light drive used throughout the Confederation, the ZTT (zero temporal transit) drive allows spacecraft to generate a wormhole through which they can pass, covering large distances almost instantaneously. The ZTT-drive was invented by the Nova Kong research facilities located on Earth's O'Neil Halo. For Adamist ships a single jump can cover anything up to 21 light years, though 12-15 light years is a more common value. During the jump Adamist ships are also bound to orbital mechanics - the ship preserves its flight vector during translation. The jump takes approximately 0.005 sec.
All Bitek-constructs capable of ZTT-jumps have the ability to "tailor" the wormhole according to their needs. While Adamist ships create the wormhole around their ships, a Voidhawk can create it ahead of its flight direction, and therefore the manoeuvre is called a "swallow". Bitek-constructs are not bound to orbital mechanics during swallows. The travel down this kind of wormhole takes a few seconds depending on the external distance. Edenist Voidhawks have a maximum jumping capability of up to 15 light-years, while Blackhawks can also jump up to 21 light-years. Tranquillity, an independent habitat, can jump several thousand light-years. It was implemented into the habitat (around one end of the habitat but under it's polyp shell) as an emergency escape system in case of danger, and it is the only habitat known to be capable of ZTT-swallows. In conjunction with Zero-Tau, ZTT technology also forms part of the Neutronium Alchemist weapon.
Engaging a ZTT drive deep within the gravity well around a star or planet is difficult, and attempting it will frequently result in permanent damage to the drive system of an Adamist spacecraft or the ships complete destruction. Whilst standard terra-compatible planets prohibit Adamist ships from jumping from orbits lower than 55,000 km and bitek ships from those lower than 2,000 km, a Jovian-size planet extends this minimum orbit to 175,000km/100,000km. The gravity limitation does not apply to the artificial "gravity" produced by rotating habitats. The Udat, a Blackhawk, once performed a swallow directly into the Habitat Tranquillity while assisting Dr. Mzu on her escape.
[edit] TIP Carbine
Thermal Induction Pulse carbines are weaponized versions of the heat-based thermal induction tools used by civilians across the Confederation. Around the same size as a large handgun, the TIP carbine is powered by an internal electron matrix and can be targeted via neural nanonics. It fires concentrated, invisible thermal pulses - hot enough to melt steel and punch through armour - at a rate of 250 per second, and can have a devastating effect on flammable environments such as woodland and jungle. It is frequently used for sweep-scorch or scorched earth tactics, burning everything in a wide radius to the ground to flush out or destroy enemy personnel and raze enemy constructions.
TIP carbines are in wide use throughout the Confederation, mostly with military and special forces units, but many criminal elements have managed to purloin TIP weaponry to gain the upper hand in their gang feuds and armed robberies.
[edit] Gaussgun
While the TIP carbine can generally be considered a light weapon, gaussguns are extremely powerful heavy support weapons - practically the deadliest handheld weapon in use in the Night's Dawn trilogy. A composite-metal bazooka-shape with a pistol grip and ammo feeds, the gaussgun is a metre and a half long and weighs nearly forty kilograms. Generally, its users have to be specially augmented or combat-boosted to withstand the fierce recoil generated by the weapon's five-rounds-per-second rate of fire. Gaussguns can be targeted using neural nanonics and fire two types of ammunition - fragmentation and electron-explosive (EE).
Frag rounds are high-velocity ballistic shells, which contain a powerful explosive and are packed with diamond-hard carbon shrapnel splinters. A single frag shell can totally demolish a building and rip unprotected personnel to shreds.
EE rounds are energy shells which unleash a huge explosion on impact, powerful enough to shatter concrete and hot enough to vaporize steel. A volley of EE shells can flatten a city block.
Used together in a sweep-scorch pattern, gaussguns firing frag and EE ammunition can decimate entire enemy battalions and raze whole towns in a matter of moments. Generally, heavily combat-boosted mercenaries and Confederation troops use gaussguns as annihilation weapons to crush enemy resistance.
[edit] Other Handheld Weapons
Aside from TIP carbines and gaussguns, lighter weapons are often used to great effect by Confederation forces and civilians alike.
- Laser rifles are basic energy weapons, fairly powerful and accurate in experienced hands.
- Magnetic rifles use powerful magnetic pulses to fire kinetic projectiles over medium-to-long distances with considerable force.
- Maser carbines are visually similar to TIP carbines, and have a similar effect, igniting targets instantly with powerful focused microwave emissions.
- Chemical-projectile weapons are basically advanced ballistic guns, similar to the machine guns and assault rifles of modern times, although admittedly far more powerful and accurate. Examples range from 9mm handguns and kinetic guns to the Confederation Navy's powerful Bradfield rifles. They are also one of the few weapons to be effective against The Possessed, due to their lack of electronic components making them invulnerable to the 'electronic warfare' field generated by The Possessed.
[edit] Characters of the trilogy
[edit] Samual Aleksandrovich
The commanding officer of the Confederation Navy, Admiral Aleksandrovich is in command of the military response to the possession crisis. A realist, he understands that military force is fundamentally unable to deal with such a problem. He is reluctant to agree to support the attempt to reclaim Ombey from the possessed for this reason, but agrees to the mission because he recognises the political necessity of securing a victory against the possessed for the purposes of public morale.
[edit] Joshua Calvert
Captain of the starship Lady Macbeth, Joshua Calvert is one of the main protagonists of the story. Captain Calvert, along with Captain Syrinx and others is one of those directly responsible for ending the possession crisis.
[edit] Liol Calvert
Estranged older half-brother to Joshua Calvert, Liol seeks to take Joshua's ship, the Lady MacBeth, which he believes is rightfully his. He eventually comes to understand that Joshua is the better captain after flying with him on the mission to the Sleeping God.
[edit] Al Capone
One of several well-known historical figures to return from the Beyond, Al Capone constructed an organisation which quickly gained control of New California. He attempted to spread to several other planets, with varying degrees of success. Capone's Organisation was most notable because he tried to force both the possessed and non-possessed to continue to work together.
[edit] Dariat
A descendant of Rubra, Dariat despises his ancestor for trying to manipulate him through affinity in order to turn him into the perfect heir. When the possessed arrive on the Valisk habitat, Dariat commits suicide in order to join their ranks. Eventually he becomes disenchanted with the possessed, and gradually joins forces with Rubra to work against them.
[edit] Quinn Dexter
One of the major antagonists and primary villains, Quinn Dexter is a man wholly lacking in redeeming qualities. A dedicated satanist, he takes great pleasure in inflicting physical and emotional pain on others, and considers torture, rape, murder and brainwashing to be perfectly acceptable hobbies. He is the first person to become possessed by a soul from the Beyond. When the possessing soul balks at the pain and horror it is inflicting on humans, Quinn manages to regain control of his body whilst retaining the energistic capabilities that possession confers. He dedicates himself to gaining revenge on those who he feels have betrayed him and, ultimately, to inflicting the maximum possible amount of suffering on the whole of Mankind. Quinn is the most powerful of the possessed, developing abilities which no other can match, and all attempts to thwart him fail. Killing, raping, and tricking his way across the Confederacy, he wishes to bring about the end of the world. Finally, Joshua is able to defeat Quinn and all of the other possessed by employing an advanced alien technology - the "Sleeping God" - which banishes Quinn from the real universe for all eternity.
Quinn is also sent through time by the effects of Sleeping God, to witness what he wished to bring about, the end of the universe, which he considers to be the ultimate victory of his Lord. While this could, in some ways, be considered something of a downbeat ending, it is balanced by the multiple positive endings for many of the characters. Any perceived victory of his deity is also only Quinn's perception of events; there is no indication that this is not simply the natural end of the universe, billions of years in the future.
[edit] André Duchamp
A French trader, Captain of the "Villeneuve's Revenge". Duchamp is an amoral character who will perform more or less any task for the right price. His less savoury actions included piracy, trading in antimatter technology, and working for Capone's Organisation to defend New California. He nearly dies in an antimatter explosion near Trafalgar asteroid set off by Hudson Pryor, a non-Possessed coerced working for Capone. He is later sent off to a penal planet.
[edit] Ashly Hanson
A member of Joshua Calvert's crew, Ashly is the pilot of the Lady MacBeth's shuttlecraft. Although he was 67 years old at the time of the first book, he was actually born prior to 2229. Born to reasonable wealth he had signed his trust fund over to a bank in return for the long-term use of a zero-tau stasis pod. Ashly subsequently alternated fifty years in stasis and five years travelling the Confederation.
[edit] Ralph Hilch
The head of station for the ESA on Lalonde. Ralph battled the return of the possessed almost from the very beginning of the first outbreak. After evacuating Lalonde he travelled to Ombey and fought the infiltration there. He was unsuccessful in preventing the possessed from gaining a foothold on the planet, but became grimly determined to defeat them. To that end he convinced both the Kulu Kingdom and the Edenists to join forces in building a massive army to take on the possessed on Ombey.
[edit] Louise Kavanagh
A beautiful teenage girl, the daughter of Grant Kavanagh, Louise grew up in the Cricklade Estate on Norfolk, largely ignorant of the rest of the Confederation. She slept with Joshua Calvert when he stayed at the estate, and became both pregnant by him and infatuated with him. When the possessed took over Norfolk she managed to escape and make her way to Earth along with her sister Genevive and Fletcher Christian, one of the possessed. Louise eventually reunited with Joshua, and he abandoned his previous life to live with her.
[edit] Laton
An Edenist serpent, Laton was one of the greatest criminals known to his culture. Self confident to the point of arrogance, he was a leading expert in biotechnology. He sought to develop a process whereby he could use affinity to spread his consciousness throughout multiple bodies and so become effectively immortal. When he was discovered Laton covered his escape by releasing a virus into his habitat's brain, destroying it and killing many thousands of Edenists. Laton went into hiding on Lalonde, where he remained until discovered by Quinn Dexter. He attempted to frame Dexter and his group for the murder of a child, leading ultimately to Quinn's possession. Laton was himself possessed, but managed to gain the upper hand over his possessor. He subsequently committed suicide to halt the spread of the possessed on Atlantis, an Edenist planet.
[edit] Dr. Alkad Mzu
A resident of the planet Garissa, Mzu developed a super-weapon known as the Alchemist which was capable of making a star go nova or turning it into a black hole of the sun's original mass. Whilst attempting to deploy the weapon during a war with the planet Omuta, Mzu's ship was disabled by an Omutan attack. The surface of her planet was subsequently wrecked by 6 high-yield antimatter planet-buster bombs which killed the entire population. Mzu ended up in the Tranquillity habitat; she agreed to remain there under observation by various intelligence agencies so that the secret of the Alchemist would not become generally available. During the course of the trilogy Mzu escapes Tranquillity and attempts to retrieve the weapon so that it can be used on Omuta; instead she helps Joshua Calvert use the device to ignite a gas giant so as to facilitate their escape from ships under the control of the possessed.
[edit] Rubra
An Edenist serpent, Rubra germinated the Valisk habitat. He retro-engineered the Voidhawk genome and manipulated it to create the first Blackhawks. Using Valisk as a Blackhawk base for trade and transportation, as well as smuggling and mercenary activities, made Rubra extremely rich. After death Rubra transferred his memories and personality into Valisk’s neural strata, as was common for Edenists. He used affinity to try and manipulate his descendants into near identical copies of himself so that they would be worthy heirs. Each attempt was a failure in Rubra's eyes, and he became exceedingly bitter as his financial empire disintegrated. It was widely believed that Valisk/Rubra had become insane.
[edit] Ione Saldana
Also known as "The Lord of Ruin", Ione is the granddaughter of Michael Saldana, once the Crown Prince of the Saldana Royal Family and creator of the Tranquillity habitat. The Saldanas had been staunch defenders of the Adamist culture for centuries, and Michael's betrayal caused a considerable scandal which led to the exile of himself and all of his descendants. Ione is the absolute ruler of Tranquillity, with complete dictatorial power over every aspect of life. She kept her presence on the habitat secret for some years, concerned that her youth and seeming inexperience would cause a crisis of confidence amongst the economic community if she revealed herself. Joshua Calvert is one of Ione's lovers and the father of her unborn children.
[edit] Gerald Skibbow
A colonist on Lalonde, Gerald was one of the first people in the Confederation to be possessed. He was captured and placed into zero tau for return to civilisation; the time in the pod forced the possessing soul to leave his body. Gerald was left deeply traumatized by his possession, and became obsessed with finding his possessed daughter Marie. He spends much of the trilogy trying to find her.
[edit] Marie Skibbow
An extremely beautiful 18 year old young woman with red hair and green eyes, Marie was deeply unhappy when her family moved to Lalonde to become colonists there. When she turned 18 she abandoned her settlement and went to work in Durringham, the capital city of the planet, to try and raise money to leave for good. She dealt with Joshua Calvert when he visited Lalonde, and was possessed shortly afterwards by the soul of Kiera Salter. Kiera left Lalonde on the Yaku. She managed to take over Rubra's habitat Valisk and allied with Al Capone's organisation, but was banished from Marie's body by the Sleeping God.
[edit] Syrinx
An Edenist, daughter of Athene, and captain of the Voidhawk Oenone, Syrinx served a two year term in the military, where she conspicuously failed to catch Joshua Calvert smuggling contraband, before becoming a commercial trader. She runs into Calvert on several more occasions throughout the books. Syrinx travels to the Kiint home world to investigate their knowledge of the possession phenomena, and undertakes various other missions for the Confederation.
[edit] Wing-Tsit Chong
A biotechnologist and the Founder of the Edenism. He invented the affinity gene, a form of communication similar to telepathy which also enables to share emotions, sensual experience and even see through someone else's eyes. The affinity gene was invented in 2058. If this gene is incorporated into the DNA, it becomes dominant, therefore even the offspring of an Adamist-Edenist relationship are true Edenists. An Adamist can gain the ability of affinity by having neuron symbionts implanted. In 2090 the habitat Eden was already opened for settlement. That year a homicide occurred in Eden. During the investigation it became clear that the homicide (although carried out by one of Eden's servitor chimps) was "plotted" by Wing-Tsit Chong to prevent one of the female scientists of Eden to transfer her memories into Eden (although this is only known to the officer carrying out the investigation). During these events Wing-Tsit Chong died and transferred his memories into the neural strata of the habitat using affinity. Pope Eleanor, seeing this as an attempt to avoid divine judgment, excommunicated all humans which possess affinity. This led to the creation of the Edenist culture. Although most of the transferred memories merge with the habitat personality over time, Wing-Tsit Chong still remains a single and self-aware entity within the neural strata of Eden.
[edit] Planets
[edit] Atlantis
The only planet colonised by Edenists, the surface of Atlantis is completely covered in water. The settlements consist of large islands which are grown by the Edenists using the same bitek technology as their space habitats (polyp, a living coral). Seafood is the planet's primary export.
[edit] Avon
The capital world of the entire Confederation. It was originally a Canadian-ethnic colony, but was later chosen as the Headquarters for the Confederation Navy. This HQ was later moved to Trafalgar, an asteroid that orbits Avon.
[edit] Earth
The original home of Humanity. Earth's environment has long been devastated by heat pollution, which causes massive "armada storms" to rage across the surface periodically. The large population live wholly within sealed arcologies. It has the highest population of any world (officially 43 billion, unofficially, 72 billion), has the largest military, the highest industrial output, and is called "the fortress world" because its massive orbital defence network is believed to be impossible to penetrate.
[edit] Felicity
Discovered in 2123 in the Ross 154 system, it was the first terracompatible planet discovered. Soon after in 2125, the founding multiethnic colonists arrived from Earth.
[edit] Garissa
Dr. Mzu's home planet. Garissa's population was eliminated by a series of antimatter warhead strikes which polluted the biosphere.
[edit] Golomo
A gas giant planet, home to a species of airborne amoebas.
[edit] Jobis
The supposed home planet of the Kiint (it is actually a research station, in truth their home is a ring system of inhabitable worlds, located in another galaxy). Jobis has three moons orbiting the Lagrange One point, rotating around a common centre. This triad was created deliberately by the Kiint in what they called an old experiment. The planet is not heavily populated. Syrinx visited Jobis to question the Kiint concerning their knowledge of possession.
[edit] Jupiter
The largest planet in the Sol system, and one of the major Edenist worlds. More than four thousand Edenist habitats orbit Jupiter, including Eden itself.
[edit] Kulu
The capital world of the Kulu Kingdom. Kulu was settled by Richard Saldana, and is still home to the Saldana royal family. The capital city Nova Kong is considered to be one of the most beautiful in the whole Confederation. One of the most technologically advanced worlds in the whole Confederation, Kulu was one of the few worlds which managed to resist the attempts of the possessed to infiltrate it. Kulu also built their own fusion mining system so that they were not dependent on the edenists for fuel. the Kulu Kingdom is a major political power within the confederation, and has the third largest navy (after earth and the edenists).
[edit] Kursk
A planet conquered by Capone's organization. Kursk is located six light years from Arnstadt. The conquest was quick and easy, as the planet had no strategic defence network.
[edit] Lalonde
A relatively new colony world several hundred light years from Earth and twenty two light years from Ombey. Lalonde was home to a large Human colony and a much smaller Tyrathca settlement. Lalonde has an extremely hot and humid climate. It was the world Quinn Dexter was sent to after his conviction for smuggling, and was the first world to fall to the possessed.
[edit] Mars
Fourth planet in the Sol system, Mars was colonised by the Lunar government. The planet has been terraformed over a period of centuries, leading to a near-Earth environment.
[edit] Mastrit-PJ
The home planet of the Tyrathca, Mastrit-PJ was abandoned many thousands of years ago.
[edit] Mirchusko
A gas giant, home to the Tranquillity habitat and the Ruin Ring.
[edit] New California
The first colony whose immigration was limited on ethnic grounds, New California was settled by the Govcentral state of California. It was the first planet to fall to the Capone Organisation, and was home to the organisation throughout the remainder of the possession crisis.
[edit] Ngeuni
A colony world.
[edit] Norfolk
An agricultural world, the Norfolk constitution forbids the use of most high technology in favour of a more pastoral style of living. Norfolk is home to Norfolk Tears, one of the most expensive alcoholic drinks in the Confederation.
[edit] Nyvan
One of the first habitable planets settled by Humans, Nyvan was a mutli-ethnic colony. As a result there is a history of much civil strife on the planet as the different ethnicities struggle to live together (it is one of only a few worlds to have more than one nation). Quinn Dexter successfully infiltrated the planet and spread possession there before raining asteroidal material on the planet to wreck the ecology. It was his hope that the possessed population would therefore live under conditions approaching a living hell. Quinn planned to repeat this process on other worlds across the Confederation.
[edit] Ombey
A colony of the Kulu Kingdom. Ombey was almost able to resist infiltration by the possessed, but one section of the planet was taken over. The Confederation mounted a massive military campaign to recapture the area; this came close to success, until the remaining possessed removed the area from the normal space time continuum.
[edit] Omuta
An enemy of Garissa, Omuta was threatened with Dr. Mzu's Neutronium Alchemist during the brief war between the two. They managed to prevent the attack and retaliated with an antimatter warhead strike against Garissa, killing the entire population. Omuta was placed under complete isolation for thirty years in punishment for the attack.
[edit] Oshanko
Capital world of the Japanese Empire, and the home port of the Confederation's 4th largest fleet.
[edit] Saturn
Another major planet with many habitats.
[edit] Yosemite
A gas giant planet in the same system as New California, home to 30 Edenist habitats. The Capone Organization attempted to take control of Yosemite after capturing New California. Unknown to Capone, the Yosemite habitats had turned a large part of their massive industrial capacity over to military production when the threat became apparent. They met the attack with overwhelming force and destroyed it utterly.
[edit] Habitats
[edit] Tranquillity
Germinated by Prince Michael Saldana to research the Ruin Ring. The Ruin Ring consists of the debris of ancient Laymil habitats which self-destructed some 2000 years ago. This was because if they did it to themselves, they had a good reason too, and Michael knew that humanity would one day find out what that was; or whatever caused them to suicide was encountered by humanity. If it was inflicted on them, however, whatever did it was still out there, and he wanted to be ready if they ever found it. Currently ruled by Ione Saldana (the so called "Lady Ruin"), Tranquillity has a tax-friendly policy to attract the wealthy, as Michael was essentially cut off by his family's fortune for using bitek.
[edit] Valisk
An independent habitat run by Rubra, an Edenist sepratist. Home of the Magellanic Itg. The first home base of Blackhawks. Falls almost completely into the hands of the possessed during the crisis.
[edit] Eden
The first ever habitat, germinated by JSKP (Jovian Sky-Power Corporation) in Jupiter's orbit, Eden later launched a buyout of JSKP shares, thus beginning the Edenist monopoly on energy within the Confederation. Eden is the closest thing to a capital in the Edenist culture, and many Edenists make a journey to pay their respects to Wing-Tsit Chong and Eden at least once in their lifetime.
[edit] Pallas
Very little is known about this habitat orbiting Jupiter. It was the second habitat to be germinated, after Eden.
[edit] Perseus
Habitat orbiting a gas giant of the Ross 154 system, the same primary as Felicity’s. It was the first Edenist extra-Solar habitat.
[edit] Remus
Orbits Saturn. One of the two Voidhawk bases.
[edit] Romulus
Orbits Saturn. One of the two Voidhawk bases.
[edit] Themes
The story is epic and sweeping, encompassing and describing hundreds of civilisations, races and species on thousands of worlds. While not bestowing upon the reader any singular theme or underlying purpose, it shows that despite the obviously massive advances in technology, society and scope of human civilisation, we are still fundamentally the same. As described by the Sleeping God, the Confederation is (paraphrasing) "one vast middle-class estate", still suffering war, genocide, environmental destruction, hideous crime and greed, best exemplified by Earth as a rotten core to the confederation. On the other hand, the prospect of Alien races, starships, genetic engineering and habitable worlds is hugely optimistic, describing the state of the Confederation as a "golden age of humanity".
[edit] References
- Hamilton, Peter F. (1996). The Reality Dysfunction. Grove Pub. ISBN 1-56865-501-0.
- Hamilton, Peter F. (1997). The Neutronium Alchemist. Warner Books. ISBN 1-56865-762-5.
- Hamilton, Peter F. (1999). The Naked God. Pan MacMillan. ISBN 0-333-68791-4.
[edit] External links
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Works by Peter F. Hamilton |
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The Greg Mandel trilogy • Mindstar Rising | A Quantum Murder | The Nano Flower |
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