TIME DILATION - QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Time Dilation is the one enemy Travelers cannot escape. Traveling at near lightspeed our choices create consequences – impacting those we love for generations – which cannot be changed.

For that reason, there is a desire to know more about Time Dilation.

Below we offer some answers to your questions. The answers to the rest of your questions are waiting for you in Centauri, where your journey begins.

Q1: What is meant by "THE EDGE OF LIGHTSPEED, WHERE TIME MOVES DIFFERENTLY?"
Nothing in our universe can travel faster than the speed of light, but as you get closer and closer to that limit, time will move slower and slower for you. While you may experience only days or weeks passing by on your journey, years or even decades will pass for everyone and everything else in the galaxy.

Q2: Why Are Travelers forced to Travel at the Edge of Lightspeed on their Missions?
The size of the galaxy is almost too large for the human mind to comprehend. Even traveling at lightspeed – the fastest speed possible in our universe – it can take years, decades, or even centuries to visit and explore other stars. However, because of Time Dilation, even if a mission takes years to reach its destination, the Travelers on the journey will only age a few days or weeks during that trip.

Q3: Can Travelers do anything to PREVENT THE IMPACT OF TIME DILATION?
Time Dilation is an inescapable fact of our universe. In order to explore the galaxy, Travelers must journey as close as possible to the speed of light. But that means the people they leave behind will age much, much faster than the Travelers themselves.

Q4: Can the Travelers manipulate Time Dilation in any way – through specific items, abilities, or technologies?
Time dilation is an immutable law of physics – the faster you travel, the slower you experience time compared to the rest of the galaxy. Just as there is no possible way to travel faster than the speed of light, there is similarly no possible way to prevent, avoid, or alter the effects of time dilation.

Q5: What are the Gates of Heaven? How did they get there?
The Gates of Heaven are hyper-advanced technology that makes it easier to journey across the Centauri Cluster. The Gates allow ships to safely and instantly accelerate to 99.9999% of lightspeed, significantly reducing the time it would otherwise take to travel between star systems. The Gates were created by the Elohim – mysterious Celestials that were once the most powerful faction in the galaxy, though in the current era they are little more than myth and legend.

Q6: Who are the Elohim – why did they build the Gates?
Little is known about the Elohim, other than that they were one of the most powerful Celestial Dominions. They were instrumental in ending the Formation Wars and ushering in an era of peace and prosperity across the Cluster through a system of Laws that govern Celestial behavior on a galactic scale. The Elohim also built the Gates of Heaven to facilitate travel between star systems, effectively creating a network that connected all but the most distant and remote worlds of Centauri.

Some believe the Elohim have now gone extinct. Others believe they evolved into beings of pure energy that transcended physical form. But most legends hold that the Elohim are still out there somewhere, carefully watching the other Celestial Dominions to guard against a cataclysmic interstellar war that could wipe out all life in the Cluster.

Q7: Are there any dangers to using the Gates of Heaven for the Travelers?
Any ships using the Gates of Heaven must be equipped with advanced engines and shielding – vessels lacking in these areas will be obliterated by the immense energy fields generated by the Gates before the journey even begins.

Q8: Are there any biological or psychological effects on humans or creatures through repeated use of the Gates of Heaven?
The only known effect of the Gates of Heaven on biological creatures is a brief state of altered consciousness called “frame dreaming”. Some Travelers who journey through the Gates report strange visions or powerful emotional responses the moment the Gate accelerates them to the edge of lightspeed, but in every case these experiences are temporary and leave no long-term effects.

Q9: Is there anyone or anything protecting the Gates? What would happen if one of them was destroyed or damaged?
One of the Laws of the Elohim is that the Gates are inviolable. Any society or group that dared to damage or disrupt a gate would be instantly ostracized by the rest of the galaxy… and potentially be subject to cataclysmic retribution from the Elohim themselves (assuming the Elohim still exist). Apart from this, the Gates are so massive and heavily shielded that there is virtually no known weaponry that could seriously damage them.

On the rare occasions where a Gate has been damaged by a major astronomical event – such as the radiation from a nearby supernova – the Gate becomes inoperable permanently, as no current Celestial Dominion has the technological knowledge or skill to repair them. There are rumors of a techno-virus known as “the Rot” degrading the efficiency and reliability of Gates in distant systems on the edge of the Cluster, but such reports are typically dismissed as little more than fear mongering.

Q10: How long does it take to travel through the Gates of Heaven relative to the Travelers, and does it necessitate something like cryosleep or sleep stasis?
From the perspective of a Traveler, a journey through the Gates of Heaven to another star system only takes a few days or – at most – a week. Even though years or decades are passing for those they left behind, anyone aboard the vessel on Exodus will only experience a few days going by, so there is no need for any kind of cryosleep.

Q11: As Traveler’s make choices that impact their loved ones back home, once they see the consequences of their actions can they revert those choices and change them?
The choices Traveler’s make often have profound long-term – and sometimes unintended – consequences. Returning home, Traveler’s often find much has changed in their absence… though not always for the better. And while Traveler’s may take actions to improve their homeworlds in various ways after they return, there is no way to rewind time and undo what has already been done. Accepting the consequences of your choices is a price all Traveler’s must pay.

Q12: Will time dilation mean our companions could live and die if we leave them behind?
When Travelers go on Exodus, they will age much slower because of the effects of Time Dilation. Anyone they leave behind, including friends, family, and other companions, will age much more rapidly than those who are on the journey. Returning home, a Traveler may discover years or even decades have passed, which could mean the friends they left behind have lived entire lives, aged, and possibly even died during their absence.

Q13: Will our protagonist also feel the effects of time dilation?
Time dilation affects everyone and everything in the universe. If you travel close to the speed of light, you will age more slowly than the rest of the universe, and anyone left behind will be much, much older when you return. On the other hand, if someone else goes on an Exodus and you stay behind, you will age many years before they return, while they will have stayed the same age.

Q14: Are the Travelers aware of how much relative time they will lose on an Exodus?
The amount of relative time that passes for anyone a Traveler leaves behind is directly related to the distance of the destination. If you take an Exodus to a star system 3 light years away, 6 years will pass for everyone you leave behind (3 years on the journey there, plus 3 years on the journey back home), even though only a few days will pass for you. For this reason, Traveler’s are always aware of exactly how many years they are sacrificing before they leave on each Exodus… assuming the mission goes as planned.