Publisher's Summary
'I'm scared of letting all these people down. Like the whole human race. At least if I get blown up as well, they can say I died heroically. Assuming I ever existed at all.'
When Bernice Summerfield visits the People -- an incredibly advanced civilisation living in a Dyson Sphere -- she discovers that even in utopia, they still have their problems.
An illegal time travel experiment threatens a war which could destroy them all. Rather than risk it, the People and their ultra-powerful computer, God, are prepared to eradicate the source of the problem -- the ancient city of Babylon. But such action would involve the death of a quarter of a million human beings, and do incalculable damage to Earth's history.
Babylon -- and the human race -- have one hope. Benny returns to the cradle of civilisation to try and stop the interference. She has just one week to prevent a catastrophe that could mean she will never be born. Her only assistance comes from a Victorian linguist who has stumbled across the experiment himself. But he's no help at all -- even though he has a power neither of them suspects.
Characters
- Bernice Summerfield
- Is studying some D'nasian poetry.
- Once had sex with some Citdbtbeds.
- John Lafayette
- Is a time sensitive and thus was able to walk the Time Path.
- Clarence
- Collects Benny from St Oscar's.
- Cin-ta!x
- Spokesperson for the Temporal Interest Group.
- Ninan (High Princess)
- Loved to hear of her guests' travels, but could never leave her temple.
- WiRgo!xu
- Is a veteran of the People’s war with ‘them’.
- !Ci!ci-tel
- Is a veteran of the People’s war with ‘them’.
- Aged to death by temporal energy stored in John Lafayette.
- !qu-!qu-tala
- The drone accompanying !Ci!ci-tel and WiRgo!xu, the drone is also a veteran of the war.
References
- The People can't develop Time travel because of their treaty with the Time Lords.
- Temporal Flexibility is the ability build up in frequent time travelers to not store up potential temporal energy (as a result of some forms of time travel).
- The Path is an unstable temporal path leading back to ancient Babylon.
- The People decide to send back a Singularity Bomb to shut down the path, which would also destroy Babylon.
- Bernice mentions the planet Jalkejai.
Notes
- This novel was adapted for Big Finish by Jacqueline Rayner, see Walking to Babylon (audio drama).
Continuity
- The People first appeared in NA: The Also People.
- Benny agreed to become an agent of The People in BNA: Oh No It Isn't!.
- The People make a deal regarding time travel in BNA: Dead Romance.