Related Characters |
Ancestor Taris |
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Jack was horror-struck when he first saw ancient cave pictures of an Ancestor, who looked exactly as he does. There were three in total, leading into the Corridor of Knowledge.
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Jack |
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Jack remained unsettled by the images, until he learned they were of Taris, the Ancestor who lived on the Island.
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Oma |
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Discovers the Ways of Gaia.
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Vela |
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Landed their craft intact
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Idym |
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The youngest crewmember
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Taris |
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Painted on stone walls thirty thousand years ago, Taris bears an uncanny resemblance to Jack.
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Ræm |
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Like her mother, Ræm chose not to take a husband at age sixteen. She had decided to wait for the right man, and at the time she was apprenticed to the Shaman.
It is not until she meets Idym, that she takes her first real interest in the opposite sex, and he proves to be great company to her, and very entertaining.
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Matron |
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Leading Medic 37851 is the leading robotic nurse. Her body has ports where extra, and specialised arms can be attached.
In Book Three, Chapter Fifteen, she reveal her humanity in conversation with Jack. In the context of the book, this is a deliberate challenge by the author, to define our humanity.
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Ælkræleinnoire |
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Kay has a strange reaction when she meets the resurrected Oma, another person with black hair and white eyes. She realises how unusual the combination is, and is transfixed, as others are when meeting her.
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Characters |
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Oma & The Ancestors |
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Important Ancestors:
- Oma – Captain of the ship that became the Great Ogre’s control centre.
- Vela – Second in command and Science Officer.
- Idym – The youngest of Oma's crew; marries Ræm.
- Taris – First Officer of the third craft that landed on the island.
- Kael – Captain of the third craft, killed in the escape pod.
- Obsidian – (Obus), aka Captain Black, Captain of the second spacecraft.
- Robots - Matron or Leading Medic 37851.
- The Core - The controlling computer of each spaceship.
Introduction
The Ancestors are the story of myth, until we meet them at the end of Book Three. Drawing on their technology in bio-manipulation, and using their own genetic material to supplement what they found existing on Gaia, the Ancestors set
about creating homo sapient life as it exists today.
Their leader, Oma, personally donated specific genes to the first Queen of the Eleventh, who like her, had black hair and white eyes. The genes were programmed to remain dormant until a specific catalyst empowered them.
This occurred when Kay was conceived, and they are the only three people to have these distinctive features.
The Ancestors had been entombed in permanent stasis by a previous Great Ogre, where they had remained for millennia. Unable to escape or die, they endured being alive, but locked in their minds. Their bodies were regularly harvested
for DNA, which the current Great Ogre used in his cloning experiments. Before any could die, they were cloned and mind-mapped, so they retained full awareness of their enduring prison.
After enduring capture and torture at the hands of the Great Ogre, Jack releases them in stages, and after recovery, they teach Jack and his Allies how to fly the two spaceships. Vela is skilled in flying the craft,
and demonstrates her skills, encouraging others to learn. Oma suggests she would be the ideal person to captain the third spacecraft.
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Oma is leader of the Ancestors that fled from Mars to Gaia. On Mars she was one of the foremost scientists, heading a department producing food in biodomes. On hearing about the threat from space,
she asked Vela to ready spaceships to leave the planet. Because of Vela's skills, they managed a safe landing on Gaia.
Little is related about their time on Earth, other than they created the Twelve Tribes, and were incarcerated by the Great Ogre. In fact, the Twelve Tribes was an additional project, like an occasional hobby, indulged in infrequently.
Their focus remained on survival, and making Gaia their new home.
When released, Oma sneaks extra food at the University, loves the environment, but insists she is not a teacher or researcher.
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She is aware others think she may try to take her old powers back, but she has no need of them. Instead, she tries to earn the trust of her children, devoting her remaining years to helping the Second with
new farming techniques, various leisurely pursuits, and studies the paths leading to enlightenment. She has made a vow, never to be reanimated, again.
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Book Four, as are the offspring, and what they bring to the cause.
Oma adopted the Old Religion, but not passively. She visited the Shaman from time to time, but even Sun Kist had little idea about what they discussed. Perhaps this will be revealed in Book Four?
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Vela worked under Oma on Mars, specialising in plants, yield manipulation, and photosynthesis. She led a small but dedicated team that included several future crew members. Her personal expertise
lay in the engineering behind their biodomes, and improving functionality.
Perhaps because of her inherent interest in engineering, she spent much of her free time studying design technology, and became enamoured with spacecraft. She was one of few to visit 'the scrap yard', a loose term for where mothballed
spacecraft and other machinery no longer required were stored. It was akin to a messy, unsorted museum, and she loved the place.
She aimed to adapt extant technology to improve their systems, but she came to love the imagined power of space flight.
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Vela trained on simulators to become a certified spacecraft carrier captain. She also passed courses in piloting fighter craft, and all manner of Ancestral ships.
At the end of Book Three, she instructs Jack and the crew on how to fly their ship, then shows her skill when she puts the craft through its paces.
Oma suggested to Jack that Vela would make a perfect Captain for Obsidian's spaceship, once it was fully restored. The suggestion is left to hang, but results in a surprising twist in Book Four.
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Idym is the youngest of the Ancestors; is clever, quick-witted, and adaptable. When released from eternal entombment, he relishes the life that was denied him.
He discovers freedom, and loves the Outland shore, but his heart is captured once more, this time by Ræm.
Their first child is produced through artificial insemination of Ræm's egg, and called Eve Ning. This deliberately mirrors elements of various religious beliefs; the virgin birth, and the creation of humankind by Adam and
Eve.
But there is more. The couple have several other children, as a decade passes; all by natural means.
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Taris is revealed to be a better pilot, and captain than Kael, who was in charge because he outranked Taris. On reaching Gaia, the spaceship was not fully repaired, and shields were minimal. Kael
decided to evacuate using the escape pods, but Taris insisted he could land the craft, once repairs were completed.
A disagreement followed, and as they fought for control of the craft. Kael instigated landing procedure, before Taris could remove his ring of power. During the struggle, a thin piece of metal entered Taris' skull, and he
lost a vital part of his being. Meanwhile, Kael and the others jettisoned for safety, but their pods burned up in Earth's atmosphere; the story is told in full to Jack, by the Matron medic.
Taris turned the Island into his homeland, and eradicated all threats to life, and nuisances like mosquitoes. However, he was lonely, so spent much of his time in stasis, waiting for Gaia's conditions to improve.
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A highly intelligent and down to earth man, Taris never once sought out the other Ancestors, which may have been due to impairment caused by his head injury. Nevertheless, he did track the planet's development,
and brought in useful looking plants and animals. In many ways, he created his own Garden of Eden.
He noticed hominids appearing, and these multiplied and were of differing types as years turned into millennia. He visited most, first making personal weapons and shields as a precaution. He was warmly greeted by the Second, who
he grew very fond of. In time, the Earth cooled and ice sheets spread south, endangering all life. He determined to rescue the Second, and brought them to the Island for safety. He also helped them adapt, and gave them husbandry,
and a moral code to live by.
Taris' legacy is recorded in the four caves he made, and in the Corridor of Knowledge. And so, once more with family, he lived out his days as father, husband of his current wife, and his nation.
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| Additional Information
The earthbound Ancestors should be viewed as three distinct groups, two of only one person, those being Taris and Obsidian. The third group are the thirteen lead by Oma, the ones brought back to life.
Unlike the Last, they made no attempt to search for the other craft, accepting their fate as accomplished. This indicates they are not an adventurous or inquisitive Tribe, unlike most of their creations. This leads them to be overly
trusting in Destiny, remember those three elemental beings, who will reveal themselves in the second trilogy. They are too accepting of life as is, and see science as the way forward, not exploring all opportunities, regardless of the
risk.
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After their release from the purgatory of being un-dead, the Ancestors live with the Second, making a new home for themselves at the University. After being resurrected, most of the Ancestors felt
comfortable in the environment of the University, and most adapted well to University life, bringing with them superior knowledge that they shared. In time, developing a structured and progressive learning experience.
Most Ancestors joined teams to lead research projects, or become teachers, relating their knowledge of the world, and technology, in ways the scientists and students of the other Tribes could relate to. In return, they were given their
own workshops, and years on, some of these became the focal point for pioneering scientific and medical discovery.
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Entities
Several entities are related in the first trilogy, of which only the Core and Matron bear further examination. They are both similar and different, both having apparently sentient thought, but used in very differing ways.
The Core is the computer-like brain that runs the spaceships. Each is build the same, but they become minutely different, as each is programmed to respond to the Captain's wishes, and in time,
comes to personify the installed captain.
In most spacecraft, the Core has two elements, one in each part of the craft; the main ship, and the detachable front module. Technical Drawings show these to by juxtaposition, and interlinked
when the spaceship is whole. When separated, higher functions remain with the command centre, or detachable part of the ship.
Leading Medic 37851, or Matron as Jack calls her, is an advanced automaton who leads a team of medical units. They are, and are not 'human' in appearance, and disposition; depicted left.
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The 12 Commandments of the Ancestors:
Primary Principle:
To create new life in your own image, to become a better person, to progress as a species, and seek enlightenment.
- Love and honour your mother, your creator.
- Love and honour your father, your sustainer.
- Do not lie; tell the truth.
- Do not steal; give excess to those that have too little; shun those with too much who refuse to share the feast.
- Do not cheat; respect grows from another’s faith in you.
- Treat others as you would treat yourself, your standards will give others hope of emulation.
- Honour the official union of one woman and her husband, and do not come between them for personal gain or gratification.
- Do not kill another, except when an enemy would kill you, or take from you what is not theirs.
- Be fair in judgement of others; understand why they do what they do. [Justice.]
- Indulge freely in the pleasures life has to offer, but do not become a slave to addiction. [Temperance.]
- Stand up for what is right for all; the greater good. Speak up for the rights of the worthy and the less fortunate. Challenge wrongdoers, and bring them to account, even if you agree with them. [Courage.]
- Practice the wisdom of knowing, of choosing right from wrong, even to your own shortcoming. Often the immediate disadvantage is for the longer-term greater good of all, especially yourself. [Prudence.]
And including the Primary Principle, that makes thirteen.
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The second trilogy develops along science fiction lines, and introduces the Ancestor's cousins,who are led by Poh. They arrive on Earth
after fleeing from the Aleutian-Hallion Alliance; an intra-galactic version of the Ogres. It can be revealed, a drone picks up a faint and old signature pulse from Poh's spacecraft, but one that is later logged for checking later. Fortunately
for species homo sapien, that was to be a long time later.
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The Ancestors |
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| The Ancestors, when resurrected, base themselves at the University.
Later, Oma and Vela move to the Old Capital, and Idym lives with Ræm in the Valley of Knowledge.
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Oma's crew |
| from least to most senior
- Iydm. male
- Xor. m.
- Cloof. female.
- Jem. f.
- Raune. f.
- Enok. m
- Stel. f.
- Kurnar. m
- Volf. m.
- Carro. m.
- Eljo. f.
- Vela. f.
- Oma. f.
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Oma
Info & Stats: |
| Sex: Female.
Born: Agronomic Colony, Mars, when Mars was
a habitable planet.
Human related age: 42.
Eyes: White.
Hair: Long, black.
Height: 6'7"
Marital status: Single.
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Oma
was immediately stunned by Kay; |
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reflected in the Eleventh, and considers Kay
to be her granddaughter.
Kay also bonds with this existentialist perspective,
and as a consequence, they form an unlikely
bond.
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Vela
Info & Stats: |
| Sex: Female.
Born: Agronomic Colony, Mars.
Human related age: 37.
Eyes: Blue.
Hair: Long, white.
Height: 6'5"
Marital status: Single.
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Vela
Further Info |
| Like Oma, after her release,
is not interested in the University. Instead,
she makes herself available to those intending
to fly Taris' spaceship.
It becomes apparent where her interests lie,
and after a probationary period, she is welcomed
as a crew member, if one mainly used in the
role of teacher.
While it is strongly hinted that Vela will become Captain of a starship, the unanswered question remains: which one? The answer is revealed in Book Four.
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Idym
Info & Stats: |
Sex: Male.
Born: Agronomic Colony, Mars.
Human related age: 27.
Eyes: Blue.
Hair: Long, white.
Height: 6'8"
Marital status: Single.
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Taris
Info & Stats: |
| Sex: Male.
Born: Agronomic Colony, Mars.
Status: Deceased.
Eyes: Blue.
Hair: Long, white.
Height: 6'9"
Marital status: Married one of the Second, then twice again, each time as widower.
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| Other Ancestors |
| Book 4
Poh – Leader of the Ancestors cousins from Alpha Centauri. f.
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Snippets |
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One reason the Ancestors choose to stay on the Island, was because they were safe from harmful influences: magnetic and UV from Gaia and the Sun.
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Hunter - Killer |
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Jack wanted to remodel Taris' spacecraft, and chose the design of Hunter - Killer. He was looking for a larger and more integrated Bridge layout; the type of craft was at that time, irrelevant.
He and Kay found they had just enough resources to make the change, as the new craft was more than twice as large as the previous version.
Work on renovating, and learning how to fly all three spaceships progressed as days and weeks turned into years. Vela became a central member of the Bridge crew, as teacher; but would Jack allow her Captaincy of Obus' spaceship?
We find out in Book Four: The Centaureans.
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Oma studied
Mind Mapping. |
| Regeneration technology was based upon transporter theorem, as was most of their advanced science; the new version of their bodies and higher brain function was a perfect copy.
Lower brain functions, like circadian rhythms, dreams, and subconscious thought, reverted to Martian sequences, leaving them disorientated for months.
Their goal was to create a body that would survive the harrows of Gaia without protection, but their unique essence never fully transferred, leading to many reversals; something of their individuality was always lost; the
Spirit, the Soul.
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