Web of Time: Difference between revisions

From Tardis Wiki, the free Doctor Who reference
(5.1 Corrected spelling/grammar)
m (CosmeticChanges regards this as an error.)
 
(12 intermediate revisions by 5 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
The '''Web of Time''', ([[TV]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (TV story)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'', et al.) also known as the '''Spiral Politic''' ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'', et al.) was the orderly structure of [[The Totality|the universe]]'s [[history]], built and maintained by the [[Time Lord]]s. It was consubstantial with [[Gallifrey]]'s [[noosphere]].
{{You may|Established History|Natural timeline}}
The [[Great Houses]]'s '''metastructure of [[history]]''' ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|The Book of the War (novel)|namedpart=Yssgaroth}}, {{cs|The Book of the War (novel)|namedpart=The Imperator Presidency}}), termed the '''Web of [[Time]]''' by most accounts ([[TV]]: {{cs|Attack of the Cybermen (TV story)}}, ect.), was the [[Anchoring of the thread|orderly and rational structure]] of [[N-Space|the universe]] and its [[history]], constructed and maintained by the [[Time Lord]]s of [[Gallifrey]], and was located within their [[noosphere]], with the term "[[Spiral Politic]]", sometimes being used to refer to either the '''structure of history''' or even the universe itself. ([[PROSE]]: {{cs|The Book of the War (novel)}})


The rationality-bound universe was once described by [[Chris Cwej]] as '''the [[Linear Universe]]'''. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[A Bright White Crack (short story)|A Bright White Crack]]'')
The rationality-bound universe was once described by [[Chris Cwej]] as '''the [[Linear Universe]]'''. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[A Bright White Crack (short story)|A Bright White Crack]]'')  


== Structure ==
== Nature ==
Rather than being a necessary fundamental aspect of the universe, the Web of Time was a meta-structure created and imposed on the [[N-Space|universe]] from [[the Matrix]] by the [[Time Lord]]s during the [[anchoring of the thread]], when [[Rassilon]] used the [[Eye of Harmony]] as "the hitching post of chronology". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'', [[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') Before this, the universe had no [[history]] or defined set of physical laws. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Christmas on a Rational Planet (novel)|Christmas on a Rational Planet]]'')
=== Structure ===
The meta-structure of history was made of a number of temporal [[thread]]s, which were not initially dependent upon each other until the [[Great House]]s effected the "anchoring", weaving them together into one whole with [[the Homeworld]] at the centre. The [[machine-heart]] at the centre of the web ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') included the [[Eye of Harmony]], ([[COMIC]]: ''[[The Final Chapter (comic story)|The Final Chapter]]'') which served as "the hitching post of chronology". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'') However, when the [[Yssgaroth]] broke through at the moment of the anchoring and wrecked the machine-heart, they created the [[caldera]], a gap in space-time, which became the ''de facto'' "centre of history". ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') The [[Untempered Schism]] was the heart of the caldera. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Tempered (short story)|Tempered]]'') In [[the Dragon Scriptures]], the structure of History was said to be "stitched and sewn between stars like a tapestry of gold and bronze". ([[PROSE]]: {{cite source|A Bloody (And Public) Domaine (short story)|A Bloody (And Public) Domaine}})


It could be visualised as a map of [[history]], with [[the Homeworld]] at its centre. The Homeworld was immediately surrounded by a core set of worlds over which it had the most influence, locked into place as protections against the uncertainty outside. Like any [[noosphere]], the Spiral Politic had an edge, the [[frontier in time]], beyond which the [[Great House]]s had great difficulty penetrating or even observing. Worlds made up the majority of historical systems on the map of the Spiral Politic, but there were some significant exceptions: these included regions outside normal time, like the [[Eleven-Day Empire]] and the [[City of the Saved]], as well as a rare few individuals of blinding historical importance.
The structure was held together by strategic "node points" in space-time, holding each of the threads in place. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') They took the form of events with effects so significant that they would cause significant disruption to the Web if changed. This could cause disastrous repercussions in every corner of the universe, killing billions, instantly disappearing major civilisations, and threatening the fabric of the universe itself. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (novelisation)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'') If such a [[fixed point in time]] was altered, the whole of Time would "disintegrate": linearity would break down as all of history began to collapse in on itself, ([[TV]]: ''[[The Wedding of River Song (TV story)|The Wedding of River Song]]'') and the universe itself would ultimately be destroyed, except for realms excised from normal space-time, like the [[Eleven-Day Empire]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'')


[[Homeworlder]]s were directly linked to their noosphere. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') The [[Ninth Doctor]] told [[Rose Tyler]] that he could see all that was and all that could ever be, and it was maddening. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Parting of the Ways (TV story)|The Parting of the Ways]]'') The Web was in constant flux, like an ocean of shifting possibilities; it could only be frozen into certainty by a Time Lord's direct touch or [[intervention]], through the [[observer effect]]. It was for this reason that the Time Lords established their [[non-interference policy]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Gallifrey Chronicles (novel)|The Gallifrey Chronicles]]'')
The Web of Time was not without its "weak points", such as the [[village]] of [[Foxgrove]], which was situated on a [[fault line]]. The Web was especially weak near religious sites like the [[Abbot's Gateway]]. This allowed [[the Trickster]] to break into N-Space from the [[limbo]] [[dimension]]s when [[Sarah Jane Smith]] saved her [[parent]]s who were destined to die in [[1951]]. The Trickster was ultimately banished when Sarah Jane's parents chose to meet their fates. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith (TV story)|The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith]]'')


[[Amaranth]]s could also be used to rebuild unstable or discontinuous elements of the universe ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Christmas on a Rational Planet (novel)|Christmas on a Rational Planet]]'') along the lines of the established laws of the Spiral Politic. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Against Nature (novel)|Against Nature]]'') The [[Dalek Time Controller]], upon being propelled through the [[Time Vortex]], found it had all of eternity to study the ebb and flow of the universe and history. The "patterns" of time and space were imprinted into its mind, teaching the [[Dalek]] about "the beginning and end of everything". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[To the Death (audio story)|To the Death]]'')
[[Amaranth]]s could also be used to rebuild unstable or discontinuous elements of the universe ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Christmas on a Rational Planet (novel)|Christmas on a Rational Planet]]'') along the lines of the established laws of the Spiral Politic. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Against Nature (novel)|Against Nature]]'') The [[Dalek Time Controller]], upon being propelled through the [[Time Vortex]], found it had all of eternity to study the ebb and flow of the universe and history. The "patterns" of time and space were imprinted into its mind, teaching the [[Dalek]] about "the beginning and end of everything". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[To the Death (audio story)|To the Death]]'')


The Web of Time was not without its "weak points", such as the [[village]] of [[Foxgrove]], which was situated on a [[fault line]]. This allowed [[the Trickster]] to break into N-Space from the [[limbo]] [[dimension]]s when [[Sarah Jane Smith]] saved her [[parent]]s who were destined to die in [[1951]]. The Trickster was ultimately banished when Sarah Jane's parents chose to meet their fates. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith (TV story)|The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith]]'')
=== Relationship to the Time Lords ===
Because the founding members of the [[Great House]]s "stitched" their [[biodata]] into the structure itself upon the [[anchoring of the thread]], their kind's [[noosphere]] was directly linked to the structure of time. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') The [[Ninth Doctor]] told [[Rose Tyler]] that he could constantly see "all that was" "all that could ever be", though he rarely acknowledged it. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Parting of the Ways (TV story)|The Parting of the Ways]]'') As demonstrated by the [[Tenth Doctor]], a Time Lord could also feel which events were [[fixed point in time|fixed points in time]] and which were not. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Fires of Pompeii (TV story)|The Fires of Pompeii]]'')
 
Most of the Web was in constant flux, like an ocean of shifting possibilities; it could only be frozen into certainty by a Time Lord's direct touch or [[intervention]], through the [[Observer Effect]]. It was for this reason that the Time Lords established their [[non-interference policy]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Gallifrey Chronicles (novel)|The Gallifrey Chronicles]]'')


The techniques which led to history's creation were almost rediscovered by the [[Democratic Saturnian Entanglement]], prompting the [[Superior]]s to have [[Chris Cwej]] to implement the [[Planetary ring|rings]] of [[Saturn]], which were in fact [[disintegrator]]s, ready to destroy the DSE if they ever tried to go further with their research. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[A Bright White Crack (short story)|A Bright White Crack]]'')
=== Changeability ===
Even concerning events that were not fixed points, time could be [[crystallized time|crystallized]] along a particular web-way, ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Sands of Time (novel)|The Sands of Time]]'') making that event a fixed part of the Web of Time so that it had always happened and would always happen. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (novelisation)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'') This could occur when a person learned about their personal future, ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Sands of Time (novel)|The Sands of Time]]'', [[TV]]: ''[[The Angels Take Manhattan (TV story)|The Angels Take Manhattan]]'') an effect first predicted by [[Blinovitch]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Sands of Time (novel)|The Sands of Time]]'')


== Flexibility and fixed points ==
The [[Sixth Doctor]] once explained that the Web of Time would be disrupted if [[Earth]] were destroyed before its time, ([[TV]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (TV story)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'') as Earth was a [[nexus world]] linked to the destinies of many major intergalactic powers. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Alien Bodies (novel)|Alien Bodies]]'') The saving of the ''[[Titanic]]'' would have similarly perturbed the Web by condemning all the later ships that were saved by round-the-clock [[radio]] surveillance, [[lifeboat]] capacities, or the [[International Ice Patrol]], all of which were developed due to the ''Titanic''{{'}}s sinking. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Left-Handed Hummingbird (novel)|The Left-Handed Hummingbird]]'')
The [[Eighth Doctor]] explained that the Web of Time was resilient. In some cases, [[event]]s could be reshaped; for instance, some people could safely have been made to die early if they led quiet, unobtrusive lives without any children. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Zygon Who Fell to Earth (audio story)|The Zygon Who Fell to Earth]]'') An example of this was [[Andrew Edwardson]], who lived a quiet life on his own, so his [[death]] could not disrupt causality. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[My Dinner with Andrew (audio story)|My Dinner with Andrew]]'') Removing such a person was a mere "hiccup" in causality, easily mended. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'') In legal terms, such people whose deaths would have little to no impact on the [[causal nexus]] were deemed "[[future-proof]]". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Moving Target (audio story)|Moving Target]]'')


In other cases, when specific events were removed from the Web, analogous events would take their place. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Left-Handed Hummingbird (novel)|The Left-Handed Hummingbird]]'') The [[First Doctor]] often found that "things balance out in curious ways". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Daybreak (audio story)|Daybreak]]'') For instance, if [[Adolf Hitler]] was prevented from rising to power, a different man would have taken control of the [[Nazi]] party and begun [[World War II]], though the War would've ended differently. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Timewyrm: Exodus (novel)|Timewyrm: Exodus]]'') Alternatively, [[Susan Foreman|Susan]] explained that if [[Ian Chesterton|Ian]] had written a letter to [[Napoléon Bonaparte]] and told him of the events that were to happen, Napoléon would've forgotten or lost it or believed it to be written by a mad man. [[Barbara Wright|Barbara]] also speculated that if they fired a gun at Napoléon, the bullet would've missed. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Reign of Terror (TV story)|The Reign of Terror]]'')
However, more generally, the [[Eighth Doctor]] explained that the Web of Time was resilient. In some cases, [[event]]s could be reshaped; for instance, some people could safely have been made to die early if they led quiet, unobtrusive lives without any children. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Zygon Who Fell to Earth (audio story)|The Zygon Who Fell to Earth]]'') An example of this was [[Andrew Edwardson]], who lived a quiet life on his own, so his [[death]] could not disrupt causality. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[My Dinner with Andrew (audio story)|My Dinner with Andrew]]'') Removing such a person was a mere "hiccup" in causality, easily mended. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'') In legal terms, such people whose deaths would have little to no impact on the [[causal nexus]] were deemed "[[future-proof]]". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Moving Target (audio story)|Moving Target]]'')


However, some [[space-time event|events]] called [[fixed point in time|fixed points in time]] had effects so significant that they would cause significant disruption to the Web if changed. This could cause disastrous repercussions in every corner of the universe, killing billions, instantly disappearing major civilisations, and threatening the fabric of the universe itself. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (novelisation)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'') An early death for [[the Doctor]] would cause the [[star]]s to go out, ([[TV]]: ''[[Turn Left (TV story)|Turn Left]]'', ''[[The Name of the Doctor (TV story)|The Name of the Doctor]]'', [[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Furies (audio story)|The Furies]]'') and when the fixed point of the [[Eleventh Doctor]]'s apparent death was altered, [[time]] itself began to fall apart. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Wedding of River Song (TV story)|The Wedding of River Song]]'') The [[Tenth Doctor]] explained to [[Donna Noble]] that only Time Lords could tell the difference between fixed points in time and events that were in flux. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Fires of Pompeii (TV story)|The Fires of Pompeii]]'')
Upon finding [[Dalek]]s attacking the [[1966 World Cup]], the [[Fourteenth Doctor]] remarked that attacking the football match would not be enough to change history. ([[COMIC]]: ''[[Liberation of the Daleks (comic story)|Liberation of the Daleks]]'')


The [[Sixth Doctor]] once explained that the Web of Time would be disrupted if [[Earth]] were destroyed before its time, ([[TV]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (TV story)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'') as Earth was a [[nexus world]] linked to the destinies of many major intergalactic powers. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Alien Bodies (novel)|Alien Bodies]]'') The saving of the ''[[Titanic]]'' would have similarly perturbed the Web by condemning all the later ships that were saved by round-the-clock [[radio]] surveillance, [[lifeboat]] capacities, or the [[International Ice Patrol]], all of which were developed due to the ''Titanic''{{'}}s sinking. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Left-Handed Hummingbird (novel)|The Left-Handed Hummingbird]]'')
In other cases, when specific events were removed from the Web, analogous events would take their place. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Left-Handed Hummingbird (novel)|The Left-Handed Hummingbird]]'') The [[First Doctor]] often found that "things balance out in curious ways". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Daybreak (audio story)|Daybreak]]'') For instance, if [[Adolf Hitler]] was prevented from rising to power, a different man would have taken control of the [[Nazi]] party and begun [[World War II]], though the War would've ended differently. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Timewyrm: Exodus (novel)|Timewyrm: Exodus]]'')


Early in the [[War in Heaven]], [[the enemy]] would often drastically alter certain worlds' relationships with history. On the map of the Spiral Politic, these previously-static worlds would appear to suddenly shoot across the chart. If one of these [[shooting star world|"shooting star" worlds]] collided with the Homeworld, it could take the Homeworld's place and retroactively replace it as the centre of history, wiping the Great Houses and their influence from the [[timeline]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'')
Alternatively, [[Susan Foreman|Susan]] explained that if [[Ian Chesterton|Ian]] had written a letter to [[Napoléon Bonaparte]] and told him of the events that were to happen, Napoléon would've forgotten or lost it or believed it to be written by a mad man. [[Barbara Wright|Barbara]] also speculated that if they fired a gun at Napoléon, the bullet would've missed. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Reign of Terror (TV story)|The Reign of Terror]]'') However, an [[Imperial Dalek]] plot to alter the [[Battle of Waterloo]] was close to changing history, forcing the [[Sixth Doctor]] to intervene and meet with Bonaparte. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Curse of Davros (audio story)|The Curse of Davros]]'')


Even concerning events that were not fixed points, time could be [[crystallized time|crystallized]] along a particular web-way, ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Sands of Time (novel)|The Sands of Time]]'') making that event a fixed part of the Web of Time so that it had always happened and would always happen. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (novelisation)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'') This could occur when a person learned about their personal future, ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Sands of Time (novel)|The Sands of Time]]'', [[TV]]: ''[[The Angels Take Manhattan (TV story)|The Angels Take Manhattan]]'') an effect first predicted by [[Blinovitch]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Sands of Time (novel)|The Sands of Time]]'')
== History ==
Rather than being a necessary fundamental aspect of the universe, the Web of Time was a meta-structure created and imposed on the [[N-Space|universe]] from [[the Matrix]] by the [[Time Lord]]s during the [[anchoring of the thread]], when [[Rassilon]] used the [[Eye of Harmony]] as "the hitching post of chronology". ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'', [[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') Before this, the universe had no [[history]] or defined set of physical laws. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Christmas on a Rational Planet (novel)|Christmas on a Rational Planet]]'')


== Events in the Web of Time ==
Since the [[Yssgaroth]] emerged during the anchoring, the Yssgaroth taint remained in the fabric of the universe, irremovable except through the unweaving of [[time|time itself]]. ''[[The Book of the War]]'' speculated that the [[Yssgaroth]] were areas of hostile anti-structure produced by the collision of the [[Spiral Politic]] with the [[Spiral Yssgaroth]]'s foreign and hostile structures and protocols. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') [[Lolita]] thought that the [[Eternal War|Vampire Wars]] had dictated the shape of the Spiral Politic for its first ten million years. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Toy Story (short story)|Toy Story]]'')
Events the Doctor stated as being part of the Web included the destruction of [[Mondas]], ([[TV]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (TV story)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'') the sinking of the ''[[Titanic]]'', ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Left-Handed Hummingbird (novel)|The Left-Handed Hummingbird]]'') the destruction of the [[Halcyon (species)|Halcyon race]] through the [[Ice Warrior]]s creating an [[atmosphere]] on [[Halcyon (planet)|Halcyon]] more suited to them, ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Resurrection of Mars (audio story)|The Resurrection of Mars]]'') [[Deimos]] becoming an [[artificial sun]] that heated [[Mars]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Resurrection of Mars (audio story)|The Resurrection of Mars]]'') [[Gallifrey]]'s [[Racnoss Wars]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Empire of the Racnoss (audio story)|Empire of the Racnoss]]'') the burning of [[Joan of Arc]], the [[assassination]] of [[Francis Ferdinand]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Cobwebs (audio story)|Cobwebs]]'') the [[Manussan Empire]] overthrown in [[Manussan year]] [[2326]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Cradle of the Snake (audio story)|The Cradle of the Snake]]'') [[Magnus Greel]] dying in the [[1800s]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Butcher of Brisbane (audio story)|The Butcher of Brisbane]]'') and [[human]]ity's 50-year war with [[the Eminence]]. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Death of Hope (audio story)|The Death of Hope]]'')


Events in the Web that were explicitly recorded in [[the Matrix]] included the ''[[R101]]'' crashing and all passengers dying, [[Adolf Hitler]] becoming [[Chancellor of Germany]] (and being alive to continue [[World War II]]), [[Edward VIII]] abdicating the [[British monarchy|British throne]], [[German]] forces invading [[Poland]], the [[evacuation of Dunkirk]], [[Peladon]] entering the [[Galactic Federation]], [[Zephon (The Daleks' Master Plan)|Zephon]] overthrowing the [[Embodiment of Gris]], [[Mavic Chen]] being elected [[Guardian of the Solar System]], [[Dalek]] forces assembling on [[Kembel]] and being engaged with the [[Movellan]]s in [[4-X-Alpha-4]] in [[4949]], the [[Cult of Morbius|Cult]] of [[Morbius]] being established, plans for the [[Doomsday Weapon]] being stolen by [[the Master]], Chancellor [[Goth]] visiting [[Tersurus]], President [[Romana]] and [[Etra Prime]] being taken by the Daleks and the subsequent Dalek invasion of [[Gallifrey]] being repelled by Romana, and a Dalek time fleet being captured in the [[Time Vortex]]. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'') [[Charley Pollard]] was added to the Web when she saved it, not having died in the crash of the ''[[R101]]'' as had been recorded. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Storm Warning (audio story)|Storm Warning]]'', ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'')
The techniques which led to history's creation were almost rediscovered by the [[Democratic Saturnian Entanglement]], prompting the [[Superior]]s to have [[Chris Cwej]] to implement the [[Planetary ring|rings]] of [[Saturn]], which were in fact [[disintegrator]]s, ready to destroy the DSE if they ever tried to go further with their research. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[A Bright White Crack (short story)|A Bright White Crack]]'')


== References ==
== References ==
Line 44: Line 49:


Since the [[Yssgaroth]] emerged during the creation of the Spiral Politic, the Yssgaroth taint remained in the fabric of the universe, irremovable except through the unweaving of [[time|time itself]]. ''[[The Book of the War]]'' speculated that the [[Yssgaroth]] were areas of hostile anti-structure produced by the collision of the Spiral Politic with the [[Spiral Yssgaroth]]'s foreign and hostile structures and protocols. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') [[Lolita]] thought that the [[Eternal War|Vampire Wars]] had dictated the shape of the Spiral Politic for its first ten million years. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Toy Story (short story)|Toy Story]]'')
Since the [[Yssgaroth]] emerged during the creation of the Spiral Politic, the Yssgaroth taint remained in the fabric of the universe, irremovable except through the unweaving of [[time|time itself]]. ''[[The Book of the War]]'' speculated that the [[Yssgaroth]] were areas of hostile anti-structure produced by the collision of the Spiral Politic with the [[Spiral Yssgaroth]]'s foreign and hostile structures and protocols. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Book of the War (novel)|The Book of the War]]'') [[Lolita]] thought that the [[Eternal War|Vampire Wars]] had dictated the shape of the Spiral Politic for its first ten million years. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Toy Story (short story)|Toy Story]]'')
The [[Great House]]s kept a backup of the Spiral Politic in their [[Shada (prison)|prison]] outside the universe, so that it could be remapped onto the universe if time was ever altered. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[A Labyrinth of Histories (audio story)|A Labyrinth of Histories]]'')
[[Iris Wildthyme]] derisively called the Spiral Politic the "Tale Without Meaning". ([[PROSE]]: ''[[First Meetings (short story)|First Meetings]]'')
It was also called the "Kaliyuga" to differentiate it from the [[Dvapara Yuga]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Dharmayuddha (short story)|Dharmayuddha]]'')


Witnessing a projection of what Gallifrey would be like under [[anti-time]], the [[Eighth Doctor]] watched as a twisted version of [[Romana II]], under the title of [[Imperiatrix]], rejected the [[Dalek Prime|Dalek Emperor]]'s plea for help. Despite the Emperor claiming that the Time Lords' "continuity" could not survive without the Daleks, the projection ended with Romana declaring its species enemies of the Time Lords and having the Emperor's [[Dalek Fleet|entire fleet]] destroyed, wiping out the Daleks. This projection held that the Web of Time would fall into shreds and Gallifrey fell into corruption. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'')
Witnessing a projection of what Gallifrey would be like under [[anti-time]], the [[Eighth Doctor]] watched as a twisted version of [[Romana II]], under the title of [[Imperiatrix]], rejected the [[Dalek Prime|Dalek Emperor]]'s plea for help. Despite the Emperor claiming that the Time Lords' "continuity" could not survive without the Daleks, the projection ended with Romana declaring its species enemies of the Time Lords and having the Emperor's [[Dalek Fleet|entire fleet]] destroyed, wiping out the Daleks. This projection held that the Web of Time would fall into shreds and Gallifrey fell into corruption. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'')
Line 55: Line 54:
Ancient [[Gallifreyan]] prophecies recorded in [[the Matrix]] forewarned that [[the Hybrid]], standing in the ruins of Gallifrey, would unravel the Web of Time. ([[TV]]: ''[[Hell Bent (TV story)|Hell Bent]]'')
Ancient [[Gallifreyan]] prophecies recorded in [[the Matrix]] forewarned that [[the Hybrid]], standing in the ruins of Gallifrey, would unravel the Web of Time. ([[TV]]: ''[[Hell Bent (TV story)|Hell Bent]]'')


== External links ==
=== Events in the Web of Time ===
{{fpx|Spiral Politic|Spiral Politic}}
[[File:Mondas.jpg|thumb|The destruction of Mondas ([[TV]]: ''[[The Tenth Planet (TV story)|The Tenth Planet]]'') was a part of the Web of Time. ([[TV]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (TV story)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'')]]
Events the Doctor stated as being part of the Web included the destruction of [[Mondas]], ([[TV]]: ''[[Attack of the Cybermen (TV story)|Attack of the Cybermen]]'') the sinking of the ''[[Titanic]]'', ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Left-Handed Hummingbird (novel)|The Left-Handed Hummingbird]]'') the destruction of the [[Halcyon (species)|Halcyon race]] through the [[Ice Warrior]]s creating an [[atmosphere]] on [[Halcyon (planet)|Halcyon]] more suited to them, ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Resurrection of Mars (audio story)|The Resurrection of Mars]]'') [[Deimos]] becoming an [[artificial sun]] that heated [[Mars]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Resurrection of Mars (audio story)|The Resurrection of Mars]]'') [[Gallifrey]]'s [[Racnoss Wars]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Empire of the Racnoss (audio story)|Empire of the Racnoss]]'') the burning of [[Joan of Arc]], the [[assassination]] of [[Francis Ferdinand]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Cobwebs (audio story)|Cobwebs]]'') the [[Manussan Empire]] overthrown in [[Manussan year]] [[2326]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Cradle of the Snake (audio story)|The Cradle of the Snake]]'') [[Magnus Greel]] dying in the [[1800s]], ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Butcher of Brisbane (audio story)|The Butcher of Brisbane]]'') and [[human]]ity's 50-year war with [[the Eminence]]. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Death of Hope (audio story)|The Death of Hope]]'')
 
Events in the Web that were explicitly recorded in [[the Matrix]] included the ''[[R101]]'' crashing and all passengers dying on [[5 October]] [[1930]], [[Adolf Hitler]] becoming [[Chancellor of Germany]] (and being alive to continue [[World War II]]) on [[30 January]] [[1933]], [[Edward VIII]] abdicating the [[British monarchy|British throne]] on [[10 December]] [[1936]], [[German]] forces [[invasion of Poland|invading]] [[Poland]] on [[1 September]] [[1939]], the [[evacuation of Dunkirk]] on [[27 May]] [[1940]], [[Peladon]] entering the [[Galactic Federation]], [[Zephon (The Daleks' Master Plan)|Zephon]] overthrowing the [[Embodiment of Gris]], [[Mavic Chen]] being elected [[Guardian of the Solar System]], [[Dalek]] forces assembling on [[Kembel]] and being engaged with the [[Movellan]]s in [[4-X-Alpha-4]] in [[4949]], the [[Cult of Morbius|Cult]] of [[Morbius]] being established, plans for the [[Doomsday Weapon]] being stolen by {{Delgado}}, Chancellor [[Goth]] visiting [[Tersurus]], President [[Romana]] and [[Etra Prime]] being taken by the Daleks and the subsequent Dalek invasion of [[Gallifrey]] being repelled by Romana, and a Dalek time fleet being captured in the [[Time Vortex]]. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'') [[Charley Pollard]] was added to the Web when she saved it, not having died in the crash of the ''[[R101]]'' as had been recorded. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[Storm Warning (audio story)|Storm Warning]]'', ''[[Neverland (audio story)|Neverland]]'')


[[Category:Web of Time| ]]
[[Category:Web of Time| *]]
[[Category:Gallifreyan technology]]
[[Category:Gallifreyan technology]]
[[Category:Causality]]
[[Category:Causality]]


[[pt:Teia do tempo]]
[[pt:Teia do tempo]]

Latest revision as of 17:37, 21 October 2024

You may be looking for Established History or Natural timeline.

The Great Houses's metastructure of history (PROSE: "Yssgaroth" [+]Part of The Book of the War, Loading...{"namedpart":"Yssgaroth","1":"The Book of the War (novel)"}, "The Imperator Presidency" [+]Part of The Book of the War, Loading...{"namedpart":"The Imperator Presidency","1":"The Book of the War (novel)"}), termed the Web of Time by most accounts (TV: Attack of the Cybermen [+]Loading...["Attack of the Cybermen (TV story)"], ect.), was the orderly and rational structure of the universe and its history, constructed and maintained by the Time Lords of Gallifrey, and was located within their noosphere, with the term "Spiral Politic", sometimes being used to refer to either the structure of history or even the universe itself. (PROSE: The Book of the War [+]Loading...["The Book of the War (novel)"])

The rationality-bound universe was once described by Chris Cwej as the Linear Universe. (PROSE: A Bright White Crack)

Nature[[edit] | [edit source]]

Structure[[edit] | [edit source]]

The meta-structure of history was made of a number of temporal threads, which were not initially dependent upon each other until the Great Houses effected the "anchoring", weaving them together into one whole with the Homeworld at the centre. The machine-heart at the centre of the web (PROSE: The Book of the War) included the Eye of Harmony, (COMIC: The Final Chapter) which served as "the hitching post of chronology". (AUDIO: Neverland) However, when the Yssgaroth broke through at the moment of the anchoring and wrecked the machine-heart, they created the caldera, a gap in space-time, which became the de facto "centre of history". (PROSE: The Book of the War) The Untempered Schism was the heart of the caldera. (PROSE: Tempered) In the Dragon Scriptures, the structure of History was said to be "stitched and sewn between stars like a tapestry of gold and bronze". (PROSE: A Bloody (And Public) Domaine [+]Loading...["A Bloody (And Public) Domaine (short story)","A Bloody (And Public) Domaine"])

The structure was held together by strategic "node points" in space-time, holding each of the threads in place. (PROSE: The Book of the War) They took the form of events with effects so significant that they would cause significant disruption to the Web if changed. This could cause disastrous repercussions in every corner of the universe, killing billions, instantly disappearing major civilisations, and threatening the fabric of the universe itself. (PROSE: Attack of the Cybermen) If such a fixed point in time was altered, the whole of Time would "disintegrate": linearity would break down as all of history began to collapse in on itself, (TV: The Wedding of River Song) and the universe itself would ultimately be destroyed, except for realms excised from normal space-time, like the Eleven-Day Empire. (PROSE: The Book of the War)

The Web of Time was not without its "weak points", such as the village of Foxgrove, which was situated on a fault line. The Web was especially weak near religious sites like the Abbot's Gateway. This allowed the Trickster to break into N-Space from the limbo dimensions when Sarah Jane Smith saved her parents who were destined to die in 1951. The Trickster was ultimately banished when Sarah Jane's parents chose to meet their fates. (TV: The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith)

Amaranths could also be used to rebuild unstable or discontinuous elements of the universe (PROSE: Christmas on a Rational Planet) along the lines of the established laws of the Spiral Politic. (PROSE: Against Nature) The Dalek Time Controller, upon being propelled through the Time Vortex, found it had all of eternity to study the ebb and flow of the universe and history. The "patterns" of time and space were imprinted into its mind, teaching the Dalek about "the beginning and end of everything". (AUDIO: To the Death)

Relationship to the Time Lords[[edit] | [edit source]]

Because the founding members of the Great Houses "stitched" their biodata into the structure itself upon the anchoring of the thread, their kind's noosphere was directly linked to the structure of time. (PROSE: The Book of the War) The Ninth Doctor told Rose Tyler that he could constantly see "all that was" "all that could ever be", though he rarely acknowledged it. (TV: The Parting of the Ways) As demonstrated by the Tenth Doctor, a Time Lord could also feel which events were fixed points in time and which were not. (TV: The Fires of Pompeii)

Most of the Web was in constant flux, like an ocean of shifting possibilities; it could only be frozen into certainty by a Time Lord's direct touch or intervention, through the Observer Effect. It was for this reason that the Time Lords established their non-interference policy. (PROSE: The Gallifrey Chronicles)

Changeability[[edit] | [edit source]]

Even concerning events that were not fixed points, time could be crystallized along a particular web-way, (PROSE: The Sands of Time) making that event a fixed part of the Web of Time so that it had always happened and would always happen. (PROSE: Attack of the Cybermen) This could occur when a person learned about their personal future, (PROSE: The Sands of Time, TV: The Angels Take Manhattan) an effect first predicted by Blinovitch. (PROSE: The Sands of Time)

The Sixth Doctor once explained that the Web of Time would be disrupted if Earth were destroyed before its time, (TV: Attack of the Cybermen) as Earth was a nexus world linked to the destinies of many major intergalactic powers. (PROSE: Alien Bodies) The saving of the Titanic would have similarly perturbed the Web by condemning all the later ships that were saved by round-the-clock radio surveillance, lifeboat capacities, or the International Ice Patrol, all of which were developed due to the Titanic's sinking. (PROSE: The Left-Handed Hummingbird)

However, more generally, the Eighth Doctor explained that the Web of Time was resilient. In some cases, events could be reshaped; for instance, some people could safely have been made to die early if they led quiet, unobtrusive lives without any children. (AUDIO: The Zygon Who Fell to Earth) An example of this was Andrew Edwardson, who lived a quiet life on his own, so his death could not disrupt causality. (AUDIO: My Dinner with Andrew) Removing such a person was a mere "hiccup" in causality, easily mended. (AUDIO: Neverland) In legal terms, such people whose deaths would have little to no impact on the causal nexus were deemed "future-proof". (AUDIO: Moving Target)

Upon finding Daleks attacking the 1966 World Cup, the Fourteenth Doctor remarked that attacking the football match would not be enough to change history. (COMIC: Liberation of the Daleks)

In other cases, when specific events were removed from the Web, analogous events would take their place. (PROSE: The Left-Handed Hummingbird) The First Doctor often found that "things balance out in curious ways". (AUDIO: Daybreak) For instance, if Adolf Hitler was prevented from rising to power, a different man would have taken control of the Nazi party and begun World War II, though the War would've ended differently. (PROSE: Timewyrm: Exodus)

Alternatively, Susan explained that if Ian had written a letter to Napoléon Bonaparte and told him of the events that were to happen, Napoléon would've forgotten or lost it or believed it to be written by a mad man. Barbara also speculated that if they fired a gun at Napoléon, the bullet would've missed. (TV: The Reign of Terror) However, an Imperial Dalek plot to alter the Battle of Waterloo was close to changing history, forcing the Sixth Doctor to intervene and meet with Bonaparte. (AUDIO: The Curse of Davros)

History[[edit] | [edit source]]

Rather than being a necessary fundamental aspect of the universe, the Web of Time was a meta-structure created and imposed on the universe from the Matrix by the Time Lords during the anchoring of the thread, when Rassilon used the Eye of Harmony as "the hitching post of chronology". (AUDIO: Neverland, PROSE: The Book of the War) Before this, the universe had no history or defined set of physical laws. (PROSE: Christmas on a Rational Planet)

Since the Yssgaroth emerged during the anchoring, the Yssgaroth taint remained in the fabric of the universe, irremovable except through the unweaving of time itself. The Book of the War speculated that the Yssgaroth were areas of hostile anti-structure produced by the collision of the Spiral Politic with the Spiral Yssgaroth's foreign and hostile structures and protocols. (PROSE: The Book of the War) Lolita thought that the Vampire Wars had dictated the shape of the Spiral Politic for its first ten million years. (PROSE: Toy Story)

The techniques which led to history's creation were almost rediscovered by the Democratic Saturnian Entanglement, prompting the Superiors to have Chris Cwej to implement the rings of Saturn, which were in fact disintegrators, ready to destroy the DSE if they ever tried to go further with their research. (PROSE: A Bright White Crack)

References[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Sixth Doctor believed summoning a Chronovore onto 21st century Earth threatened the Web of Time. (PROSE: The Quantum Archangel)

The Seventh Doctor later described the work of artists being removed from 1922 Paris as causing "irreparable damage" to the Web of Time. (AUDIO: Muse of Fire)

During the first battle of the War in Heaven on Dronid, the Great Houses discovered that the enemy had constructed their own meta-structure of the universe to replace the Spiral Politic. (PROSE: The Book of the War)

The Celestial Intervention Agency-operated Klyst Institute arranged to recruit their test subjects at the end of their lives in order to preserve the Web of Time. (AUDIO: Unregenerate!)

Since the Yssgaroth emerged during the creation of the Spiral Politic, the Yssgaroth taint remained in the fabric of the universe, irremovable except through the unweaving of time itself. The Book of the War speculated that the Yssgaroth were areas of hostile anti-structure produced by the collision of the Spiral Politic with the Spiral Yssgaroth's foreign and hostile structures and protocols. (PROSE: The Book of the War) Lolita thought that the Vampire Wars had dictated the shape of the Spiral Politic for its first ten million years. (PROSE: Toy Story)

Witnessing a projection of what Gallifrey would be like under anti-time, the Eighth Doctor watched as a twisted version of Romana II, under the title of Imperiatrix, rejected the Dalek Emperor's plea for help. Despite the Emperor claiming that the Time Lords' "continuity" could not survive without the Daleks, the projection ended with Romana declaring its species enemies of the Time Lords and having the Emperor's entire fleet destroyed, wiping out the Daleks. This projection held that the Web of Time would fall into shreds and Gallifrey fell into corruption. (AUDIO: Neverland)

Ancient Gallifreyan prophecies recorded in the Matrix forewarned that the Hybrid, standing in the ruins of Gallifrey, would unravel the Web of Time. (TV: Hell Bent)

Events in the Web of Time[[edit] | [edit source]]

The destruction of Mondas (TV: The Tenth Planet) was a part of the Web of Time. (TV: Attack of the Cybermen)

Events the Doctor stated as being part of the Web included the destruction of Mondas, (TV: Attack of the Cybermen) the sinking of the Titanic, (PROSE: The Left-Handed Hummingbird) the destruction of the Halcyon race through the Ice Warriors creating an atmosphere on Halcyon more suited to them, (AUDIO: The Resurrection of Mars) Deimos becoming an artificial sun that heated Mars, (AUDIO: The Resurrection of Mars) Gallifrey's Racnoss Wars, (AUDIO: Empire of the Racnoss) the burning of Joan of Arc, the assassination of Francis Ferdinand, (AUDIO: Cobwebs) the Manussan Empire overthrown in Manussan year 2326, (AUDIO: The Cradle of the Snake) Magnus Greel dying in the 1800s, (AUDIO: The Butcher of Brisbane) and humanity's 50-year war with the Eminence. (AUDIO: The Death of Hope)

Events in the Web that were explicitly recorded in the Matrix included the R101 crashing and all passengers dying on 5 October 1930, Adolf Hitler becoming Chancellor of Germany (and being alive to continue World War II) on 30 January 1933, Edward VIII abdicating the British throne on 10 December 1936, German forces invading Poland on 1 September 1939, the evacuation of Dunkirk on 27 May 1940, Peladon entering the Galactic Federation, Zephon overthrowing the Embodiment of Gris, Mavic Chen being elected Guardian of the Solar System, Dalek forces assembling on Kembel and being engaged with the Movellans in 4-X-Alpha-4 in 4949, the Cult of Morbius being established, plans for the Doomsday Weapon being stolen by the Master, Chancellor Goth visiting Tersurus, President Romana and Etra Prime being taken by the Daleks and the subsequent Dalek invasion of Gallifrey being repelled by Romana, and a Dalek time fleet being captured in the Time Vortex. (AUDIO: Neverland) Charley Pollard was added to the Web when she saved it, not having died in the crash of the R101 as had been recorded. (AUDIO: Storm Warning, Neverland)

Retrieved from "https://tardis.wiki/w/index.php?title=Web_of_Time&oldid=3875234"