Jove's Thunderbolt; Velma Porter Arrives In Bermuda

ALTERNATE HISTORIAN'S NOTE: We are holding another contest! Please send us entries for an Alternate Valentine's Day, February 14th, 2006. You may send us up to three entries for the day, and we will choose the best 10 to appear on February 14th. Enter now - deadline will be February 10th! By entering, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on February 14th, 2006, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. And, another cool thing - Let us know where you are on Frappr!

January 19th, 2006

in 1000 Post-Creation, with Lucifer suffering the torments of the Abyss, Gabriel and Emmanuel summon the angels who had followed them to earth. Derdekea, now the Creator's favorite, does not attend this meeting. Emmanuel proposes freeing Lucifer and fleeing the earth for the far corners of Creation. Ariel asks, “Would that not be a mockery of Lucifer's sacrifice?” The assembled angels part company, feeling ill at ease about continuing in the Creator's service, but unwilling to break ranks with Him again.

in 736 AUC, Caius Lumis Juventus, Roman inventor extraordinaire, demonstrates the most powerful steam engine ever built. Caius had been a student of the ancient Greek sciences, and had learned of the simple uses they had put the power of steam to in the old days. Jove’s Thunderbolt, the engine that Caius Juventus built, was capable of pulling a carriage with three heavy men for miles. His designs revolutionized Roman society.

in 3896, Japanese Zen philosopher Dogen Kigen is born somewhere in southern Japan. As a young man, he traveled to the Chinese Empire to study the true ways of Zen at Mount Tendo. His mountain temple in Echizen has become a regular stop for pilgrims, including every Chinese emperor; tradition dictates that the emperor spend a week there before his coronation.

in 1809, renowned author Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, Massachussetts. The most popular writer in America during his lifetime, Poe invented detective fiction, as well as popularizing what would come to be known as horror stories by those who sought to imitate him at the end of the century. Poe died in 1883, a wealthy and happy man of letters.

in 1840, Captain Charles Wilkes claims a third of Pluto for the North American Confederation. Although considered a bad piece of property to own at first, Pluto’s position at the outer reaches of the solar system becomes important when the Congress of Nations decides to build its defensive base there, and the N.A.C.’s importance in system affairs is increased.

in 1923, Jeanne Murray, award-winning actress of the stage and screen, was born in New York City. A well-known fixture of the New York stage in the 1950’s and 60’s, she made the leap to film as Mrs. TeeVee in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Her perfect comic timing led to other film comedies, but in her later years she turned to drama, winning an Oscar opposite Henry Beatty in his film Reds.

in 1940, the anti-German Underground film by the Three Stooges, You Natzy Spy, premiered in America. The highly controversial film featured comic Moe Howard as a Hitler-like figure who ruled over an amorphous country known as Moronica. The American Bund called for a total boycott of the film, and incited riots at many of the theaters showing it.

in 1943, singer Janis Joplin was born in Port Arthur, Texas. Her hard living fueled the blues that she sang so beautifully, but it all came crashing down on her when she missed the Woodstock Music Festival in 1969 because she was too drunk to perform. She checked into rehab after that, but her music never recovered. Today, she runs a counseling center for performers trying to kick addictions.

in 1960, the capitalists of China formally recognized the counter-revolutionaries of South Chile as an independent government. The imperialist nations of Europe, waiting for an excuse to further break up the perfect harmony of socialism in South America, follow suit, and clandestine arms begin flowing to the divided nation.

in 2005, Chelsea Perkins, Alma May Watson and Geraldine McRae reach a small village on the edge of the plain they have been walking out of. Exhausted, dehydrated and hungry, they stumble into a pub and ask for drinks and food. Miss Watson recognizes the accents of the people speaking as Irish, and she has a few Euros on her, so she is able to pay. The women and young girl sit down and plan how they will contact the Council of Wisdom.

in 2005, the Save Earth crowd begins bombarding Jeanna Best and Dave Lange with information about the “claws”, telling the pair how they have been positioning themselves to take over from the humans for some time. They tell Best and Lange how to watch for the claws - see how many fingers they use to perform simple tasks. If they only use 3, then they are aliens. Best and Lange leave this meeting feeling ashamed of themselves for attending, but curious to see if what the kooks said will turn out to be true.

in 2008, Velma Porter arrives in Bermuda to join her husband, Mikhail von Heflin. She is ready for a nice vacation, but the Baron has other ideas. He sails her out into the ocean where he saw the boat disappear and together, they feel something tugging at the walls of reality. Before proceeding further, they head back to shore and get a few supplies.

Timelines in today's post: the Roman timeline, the Chinese Empire, the Fall, the Mlosh, von Heflin, the GZR, the Chelsea Perkins timeline. and Communist America.

We still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

The Forum lives again! My esteemed Co-Historian has brought the forum back to life, and in spite of the issues we've had with the forum in the past, we think that this time, it'll stay up!
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Help the Alternate Historian get a better day job!
My email address for contacting me with your good news, or for more direct goodness, go to the web site and leave a comment, buy a book, or leave a Paypal donation! Remember, it's only 6 degrees of separation between you and anyone else - and thanks again!