Mission to Minerva

He wondered if they would one day meet the culture that existed somewhere, developed from the humans and the Thuriens who had met long ago. What kind of world would they have created by now, that might make even VISAR and Thurien seem quaint and antiquated in comparison? After the things he had seen in just five short years, Hunt had a feeling that life still held much in store yet that would be new and exciting.

As the edge of Earth's dark side crept slowly into view ahead, the Ishtar moved away and diminished, finally disappearing below the horizon.

THE GIANTS CHRONOLOGY

Compiled by Dr. Attila Torkos Szeged, Hungary

20.09.2001

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Appr. 4.6 billion years ago

Birth of the Solar System. At its birth the Solar System consists of nine planets which are the following in order of growing distance from the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Minerva, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune.

25 million years ago

The evolution of a species, the Giants, results in the emergence of intelligence on Minerva. Rise of the civilization of the Giants. Later the CO2 content of Minerva's air begins to rise thanks to plate tectonics. The Giants set out to normalize the situation. In order to achieve this the crew of the starship Shapieron performs experiments on the star Iscaris. The experiments go wrong, Iscaris goes nova, and the fleeing Giants suffer a relativistic time shift on board the malfunctioning Shapieron which throws them 25 million years into the future. Learning about the failure at Iscaris, the Minervan Giants import animals (proto-humans among them) and plants from Earth to Minerva and successfully isolate their gene which is responsible for their CO2 tolerance. They plan to insert this gene into their own genome, but finally give up the plan, fearing its consequences. As they find no other solution to the CO2 problem, the Giants move to planet Thurien orbiting Giants' Star. During the evacuation one of their starships crashes on Ganymede. Terran life conquers Minerva, reaching a new ecologic equilibrium. The Thurien giants observe the changes on Minerva via relays left on the planet.

Appr. 4 million years ago

Rise of Australopithecines on Earth.

Appr. 2.5 million years ago

Homo habilis evolves on Earth.

Appr. 2 million years ago

Homo ergaster appears on Earth.

Appr. 1.6 million years ago

Appearance of Homo erectus on Earth.

Appr. 150,000 years ago

Homo neanderthalensis evolves on Earth.

Date unknown

The evolution of hominids with altered gene set leads to Homo sapiens on Minerva.

Date unknown

Along with the rise of human civilization an ice age begins on Minerva threatening to destroy civilization. Mankind starts to develop space travel to flee the planet.

Appr. 50,200 years ago [Note: later reduced to 50,020. See p. 274]

Imares Broghuilio and his generals appear from the future with five starships. They land on Minerva u

50,000 years ago

The race for space leads to total nuclear warfare between Cerios and Lambia at the dawn of space travel. The war involves the surface of Minerva's moon, too, where Cerians built a base. The nuclear catastrophe shatters Minerva to pieces: a major fragment becomes the planet Pluto, the rest scatter to form the Asteroid Belt. Upon their request, Thuriens observing the war transport the moon's Cerian survivors to Earth and leave them to their fate. Lambian survivors are settled on planet Jevlen in Thurien's neighborhood and are slowly integrated into Thurien society. The moon, freed of Minerva's gravitic grip, is later arrested by Earth's gravity well and Minerva's onetime moon becomes Earth's Moon. The Moon arriving to Earth orbit causes upheavals and floods on Earth, almost wiping out the Cerian survivors, throwing them back into barbarism. In a race to stay alive they soon wipe out the Neanderthals who until now ruled the Earth. Homo sapiens spreads on Earth and starts his second ascension toward civilization.

Date unknown

On Jevlen the Thuriens set up JEVEX, a supercomputer modelled after their VISAR. Later, Jevlenese secretly transport JEVEX to planet Uttan and set out to extend it so that it should reach and eventually top VISAR's performance. Unbeknownst to the designers, a universe later named Entoverse evolves in the growing JEVEX. Its intelligent inhabitants, the Ents, sometimes manage to transfer to the world outside JEVEX by invading Jevlenese minds. Such obsessed Jevlenese (the so-called ayatollahs) sometimes create religious-mystic cults around themselves. The existence of Entoverse remains unknown.

Date unknown

Upon their request, Jevlenese are trusted by the Thuriens to conduct the observation of Earth. Driven by vengeance, Jevlenese leaders spread religions and superstitious beliefs on Earth via agents in order to hinder the development of civilization.

1831

A newly obsessed ayatollah, Sykha founds the Spiral of Awakening cult.

Nineteenth century

Seeing that Earth's civilization grows in spite of their meddling, Jevlenese help develop certain areas of science to provoke arming and global, self-destroying wars on Earth.

1914

Begi

1939

Begi

After 1945

Thanks to the Jevlenese agents, Earth begins a nuclear arms race after World War II, which threatens the existence of its civilization for a few decades. In the meantime, unbeknownst to the Thuriens, Jevlenese leaders also start to arm.

1979

Birth of Joseph B. Sha

1992

Birth of Victor Hunt.

1999

Birth of Lyn Garland. Birth of Duncan Watt.

2002

Birth of Hans Baumer.

2015

As cold war slowly dissolves on Earth in spite of Jevlenese machinations, Jevlenese agents help demilitarize Earth. In the meantime, Jevlen keeps on arming itself in secret. The ultimate goal of the Jevlenese leaders is the isolation of Thurien, destruction of Earth, and rule over the Galaxy. Jevlenese keep on reporting to Thurien about a militarized Earth on the brink of World War III.