Justina Robson - Quantum Gravity 01 - Keeping it Real.pdf - NEW EBOOKS - allforjesus2001

QUANTUM GRAVITY: 1

KEEPING IT REAL

QUANTUM GRAVITY: 1

KEEPING IT REAL

The right of Justina Robson to be identified as the author of

this work has been asserted by her in accordance with

the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

First published in Great Britain in 2006 by

Gollancz

An imprint of the Orion Publishing Group

Orion House, 5 Upper St Martin's Lane,

London WC2H 9EA

This edition published in Great Britain in 2006 by Gollancz

13579 10 8642

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the

British Library

ISBN-13 9 780 57507 907 6 ISBN-10 0 57507 907 X

Typeset at The Spartan Press Limited, Lymington, Hants

Printed and bound in Great Britain by Mackays of Chatham pic,

Chatham, Kent

www.orionbooks.co.uk

The Orion Publishing Group's policy is to use papers that are

natural, renewable and recyclable

products and made from wood grown in sustainable forests.

The logging and manufacturing processes

are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the

country of origin.

For Stephanie Burgis-Samphire

COMMON KNOWLEDGE

In the days that followed the explosion at the Superconducting

Supercollider in Texas, at some unknown

point in the Lost Year, 2015, scientists discovered a hole in the

fabric of spacetime over the blast site.

The collider itself - a ring some eighty-five kilometres in

circum-ference built far beneath the Texas soil had

utterly vanished, and only the surface buildings remained.

The explosion had followed an unknown quantum catastrophe

inside the machine. However, it was not

the kind of explosion that blew matter to smithereens and laid

waste to worlds. Its actions took place in

the near-infinitely tiny spaces between one raw energy flicker

and the next. It transmuted fundamental

particles into new states, altering the fabric of the universe as if

changing cotton into silk. In less time than

it takes to blink an eye everything had undergone subtle

alteration, though the how and the what of it was

a matter which is still debated to this day - a matter not helped

by the fact that nobody could remember

exactly or say with certainty how things used to be. In the

meantime there were more immediate

problems to deal with, namely the stable but infinitely

mysterious hole inside the circle of the old collider,

and the fact that it led directly into another world.

In the five years since the Quantum Bomb, as it is popularly

known in Otopia (which was once called

Earth, according to records made prior to 2015), a total of five

other realities have been discovered.

They lie parallel to, or approximate with (all words, definitions

and specu-lations are being assessed as

we write, since nobody has yet come up with a theory that can

explain the phenomena completely) the

human universe.

Earth, according to records made prior to 2015), a total of five

other realities have been discovered.

They lie parallel to, or approximate with (all words, definitions

and specu-lations are being assessed as

we write, since nobody has yet come up with a theory that can

explain the phenomena completely) the

human universe.

The second realm is Alfheim. Since early in 2016 a diplomatic

relationship has been established with

the elves, as the inhabitants call themselves. The elves strongly

dispute the QBomb theory. They claim

that they have known of Earth and Otopia since times that

predate early human civilisations. Few

Otopian technologies function in Alfheim, which is the first of

the Adept or Aetheric Realms. It is a

pristine Eden, untouched by industrialisation despite the

complex civilisations that have risen and fallen in

its massive history. However, there are tensions within elf

society and frosty diplomatic explorations are

the only contact that regularly takes place with them. Their

borders are closed to immigration of any kind

and they allow only a few of their emissaries out in turn.

Common people of Otopia know only stories of

Alfheim.

The third realm is Demonia. The demons are, like the elves,

lifeforms which appear adept in magic

Demon scientists have assisted humans in their discovery of the

physically real presence of

extradimensional regions (I-space) since 2017, regions of

incredible power and vitality which seem akin

to spacetime itself, yet co-exist with it. This region is known to

demons and elves commonly as

Aetherstream, though their scientists and researchers have

agreed to adopt the human name of Interstitial,

or I-space. Demons do not recognise the QBomb event as

historical fact either, and also claim a lengthy

knowledge of 'the fourth realm' - Otopian Earth.

The fifth region, is Thanatopia. This unlikely place is bound

tightly to the I-space continuum. To cross

into Thanatopia requires death and return is not possible to

those not greatly skilled in necromancy. Only

the Aetheric races possess necromancers, and not many of

them. It is worth noting that so far no human

of Otopian Earth has displayed

anything other than the most fleeting ability to detect let alone

manipulate, I-space. Certainly no one has

ever been to Thanatopia, or, if they have, they have not

returned and its true nature is a complete

mystery. The only human knowledge of it has been given by

demon necromancers whose strength in

I-space permits them access. Officially we may state that the

Undead shepherd the Dead of all realms,

though what this actually means is anyone's guess. All other

knowledge con-cerning Thanatopia is

classified, and as such may not be printed here.

The sixth realm, which most quickly adopted protocols with

Otopia and has generated the most traffic

is Faery. Faery has issued tourist visas since 2018. Faery

culture, as with all other realms, is unique and

complicated. Faeries assure us they have had a long association

with certain regions of the Earth over the

more interesting parts of human history and the author is not

willing to dispute the point, even -especially

- in writing.

For the last two years an increasing familiarity with and

acceptance of the six-realm structure has led to

a steady popularity of migration and trade across willing

borders, but human beings have a lot yet to

learn.

One year ago Alfheim closed its borders and cut off trade. It

began an exclusionary policy which

diplomatic negotiations have so far failed to lift. The reasons for

this change of heart are classified

information. At the time of writing, in 2021, an uneasy state of

affairs exists between Alfheim and the

Justina Robson - Quantum Gravity 01 - Keeping it Real.pdf

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