: I hold that the M2 timeline is failed, that universe was destroyed by the
: W'rkncacnter, as were all the other failed timelines of Infinity, and a
: *different* but similar set of events to the M2 epilogue continue on from
: the end of Infinity. The most notable difference here is the existence of
: a merged Durandal/Thoth entity who releases the player from servitude,
: versus regular old Durandal we know from M2, who takes the player with him
: again and off to another adventure.
Not to put a damper on Eternal, but I tend to side with Mark on that debate. I have a problem with the existence of multiple timelines in gereral, and with time travel - it flies in the face of general relativity but, hey, this is science fiction. The big problem for me with multiple or infinite timelines is that it strains believability. If each timeline can spawn a multitude of timelines and so on, the number of timelines becomes incomprehensible, and there is the small matter of conservation of matter and energy. Time itself is a very nebulous concept and, as counterintuitive as it may seem, time is a strictly local phenomenon. The events on earth occur in a timeframe independent from events elsewhere in the universe and the only thread connecting them is the speed of light - a very thin thread indeed as you get farther and farther away.
If we do accept the concept of multiple timelines, then I believe that there is only one true timeline. I particularly like the concept so beautifully laid down in the Star Trek TNG episode "Yesterday's Enterprise". Not all altered timeline plots in Star Trek are so neat, but this one really hit it right. Basically, a rift in space caused the Enterprise C to be propelled into the future at a very critical juncture to, extremely coincidentally, meet up with the Enterprise D. With the loss of the C at the wrong time, all of history was altered and, as a result, the Federation was losing a war to the Klingons - a war that had claimed 40 billion lives. The episode then revolved around sending the C back through that rift to correct the past. Once the C was returned, the timeline was corrected and it was as if the events of the altered timeline had never occured. However in subsequent episodes we later encounter remnants of that altered timeline - things that were different on the returned C that affected small parts of history. It was as if the altered timeline were a loop - it branced off when the C disapeared and looped around back onto itself when the C was returned. This is somewhat plausable - if you accept the existence of time travel. But if you accept time travel, then you're left with the disasterous scenario of the current plot of Star Trek Enterprise with it's temporal cold war. The bottom line is that if time could be altered, we would ultimately destroy it altogether. Thank God only the Jjaro possess such technology!
