I'm not stating Ian placed RED within a failed timeline. I'm saying *I* place it in a failed timeline. The events of Lh'owon still occurred (in which Michael/Joshua escape from the surface of the sun before the Jjaro station is fully activated by Durandal/Thoth). However, the ‘river’ splits at one juncture in WMaiD.
I place RED in the label of a "failed" timeline for a few reasons. Feel free to dispute them:
- There is zero communication with the Jjaro in RED. The Marine in RED (not the Trilogies Marine, mind you - but another of the Mjolnir cyborgs) appears cut off from any god like guiding force. Odd, given that he/[she?] is facing not one, but two embodiments of W’kkr.
Assumption: Perhaps the Jjaro (for reasons unexplained in RED, but created in WMaiD) abandoned this timeline.
- In RED, there exists an abundant amount of Human ship textures that have heavy Jjaro influences. This may because Ian was using the only decent resolution texture set [then] available (Inf. Jjaro) - another, more interesting supposition exists.
Inference: After the conquest/assimilation of the technologies (Genetic development, weaponry, and interiors design [heh]) of a Jjaro outpost, Human technology - most obviously their construction material - becomes Jjaro influenced.
-Mention of the UESC as a current entity (as far as I know) cannot be clearly found in RED. "THE TERRAN ALLIANCE", as you so quoted exists in its place.
Assumption/Inference: RED takes place after Humanity [somehow] was able to destroy Pfhor Prime, resulting in the Pfhor empire being reduced to tattered remnants. The RED player boards one of these vessels along side enhanced armored Bobs in the first few levels.
I place the time of RED, within it’s own universe, - perhaps a decade (or more?) after Rubicon-Like events transpired in the RED timeline.
However... we know what occurs in Rubicon when the player does not interfere with the DANGI corporations Achilles virus plans.
It’s my supposition that UESC actually fell to the DANGI corp. Boards of Directors demands - and was replaced. Over time, this corporate entity became “THE TERRAN ALLIANCE”. An interesting “what if” adaptation of future events, transposed into another timeline. : D
- At the end of RED (spoiler alert, if that really matters at this point) the RED marine - now an unholy W’kkr/Cyborg Hybrid now has the total power of [a recently defeated] Joshua. This entity of chaos loosened on the universe I believe is roughly equivalent to any W’kkr being released upon any universe - the kind of events that the Jjaro had the Trilogies player *stop* throughout Marathon Infinity. All in all - this timeline is descending towards chaos/oblivion/failure.
An obvious hole in my logic is that Ian (from Dylan's copy/Paste) seems to place the events around RED’s “PX-39” colony planet at the same time as those in Marathon:Infinity. I believe this is more of a screwup on Ian’s part than mine. By his mention of “THE TERRAN ALLIANCE” existing at (presumably) the same time as the UESC in Infinity... I think our artistic friend simply didn’t think things through enough.
In any case, it is easy to disregard much of the information on the RED bighouse site, as it even conflicts at times with what is *in* Marathon:Red.
The walking Juggernat-tanks of RED, according to the site at one point belonged to the Pfhor forces. Uh, sure Ian. ; )
I could fill in more of my reasoning behind RED being in an alternate timeline (one which I diverge from the primary with WMaiD) - but I’d end up giving away far too much plot for my own scenario. I’d love to know what people think of my suppositions, as numerous as they are. : D
-Blayne
