Alternate Realities

Alternate Earths - Identical in many ways, different in others

Alterate Realities is a loose term to encompass many possible realities that are different from our own.

Alternate Realities can refer to...

• Alternate timeline - the belief that time itself is fluid, therefore can be subject to change. Changing an event in the past would therefore change events in the present and the future, thus creating an alterate timeline. The time-traveling Menders of Ouroboros subscribe to such a belief. The place known as Recluse's Victory is an example of how changes in time can change reality.

• Alternate universes - the concept of multiple universes, or multiverse, was created by American psychologist and philosopher William James in his 1895 book The Will to Believe. The belief is that the reality that we know is but one of many universes, and that other universes exist where events turned out differently, or even that certain rules in that universe are different.

• Parallel Earths - An alternative to the multiverse concept is the idea that in the vastness of our current universe, there is a statistical possibilitiy that the same forces that created our Earth could do the same thing elsewhere. This can happen either through chance or by the design of a cosmic force or cosmic being.

Alternate Universes

Omniverse

"The Vortex", a visual representation of the Omniverse itself from a first-person perspective

(See also "Omniverse")

At the heart of the idea of alternate universes is that there is one all-encompasing universe, an Omniverse, in which different various realities exist inside.

In the "City of Heroes"-based "Guardians of the Dawn Spotlight" series, Ryder Lightning refers to this as "The Vortex", a place where time and space "bleed" together. He believes that if one can enter this vortex, that person can then travel to other realities.

Paraverse (City of Heroes)

Although we consider ourselves to be in the Primal Universe (as defined by the late Dr. Brian Webb of the Portal Corporation) there is in fact several parallel versions of the universe we exist in. Our home universe is considered to be the Paragon Universe or Paraverse (also known as the "Primal Universe") but it is believed by some that even our Paraverse has several variations.

Inter-Dimensional Universes

The Portal Corporation defines an inter-dimensional universe as one that can be reached through their dimensional devices.

Examples of inter-dimensional universes as categorized by Portal include:

• Upsilon Beta 9-6 - Otherwise known as Praetorian Earth, this is the universe where Marcus Cole became the global conquerer known as Emperor Cole or Tyrant.

• Delta Zeta 24-10 - Otherwise known as the Axis America Earth, this is where Nazi Germany won World War II. Here a Nazi version of Statesman known as Reichsman kept America under control until he discovered the existence of the Primal Universe.

• Omega Xi 6-4 - A world where mutations are considered a mark of royalty. On this planet, mutants rule under a Geno-Aristrocratic system, with magic being considered a forbidden art. This world was one of many decimated by the Rikti.

• Hydra Dimension - The home universe of the formless Hydra creatures.

• Shadow Shard - The universe controlled by Rularuu The Ravager. This is also where the Pocket D nightclub and the Ski Chalet exist.

• Rikti Home World - The home universe of the Rikti.

Extra-Dimensional Universes

The Portal Corporation defines an extra-dimensional universe as one that cannot be accessed through normal dimensional technology. The idea that such universes could exist was considered theoretical until April of 2007, when an unknown Crisis Event created several rips in the fabric of our universe, and three people from another universe arrived.

Examples of extra-dimensional universes include:

• XHT-S7 - A world where superpowers were given from a meteor shower in 1938. The Guardian Exiles and Icon Powers came from this universe. This universe was destroyed by Alor in 2007.

• D52-M616 - This is a collection of multiverses that are personified by two tyrannical cosmic beings known as The Brothers "Dee" and "Marv". They are very possessive of their multiverses and have often sent their collective agent to retrieve or eliminate any duplicate elements.

• A567-96LD - This is the home universe of Alexander of the First Order, otherwise known as the self-professed god Alor. It is not known if this universe is still in existence. It reportedly collapsed into entropy in 2007 when Alor's machinery was damaged, although this cannot be confirmed.

• UTOS - This is the home universe of a race of cosmic observers, where the mysterious Galen or Doc Tor originally came from before being banished to the Primal Universe. It is believed that his activities were responsible not only for the inhabitants of XHT-S7 getting their superpowers, but also in bringing the Guardian Exiles to the Primal Universe.

• Limbo - This universe exists outside of normal space-time activity. Some speculate that it is the theological limbo, but others are not certain.

• Gamma-Chi-919 - This the universe of Champions Online.

Alternate Timelines

City Of Heroes

• Recluse's Victory - a period in the near-future that Lord Recluse believes would be when he would conquer Paragon City and, by extension, the world. Since time at this period is highly volatile, Recluse developed a way to "lock" this future in through a series of Temporal Anchors. As long as these anchors are in place, his conquest of the city is assured. However Statesman and the Freedom Phalanx are also trying to install their own anchors, which would erase Recluse's conquest of the world and transform Paragon City into a utopia.

• Empty World - A brief alternate future that would begin in the year 2010 with an experimental defensive program headed by NovaPrima that would be used to stop an incoming Shivan transit pod. The result of this program would accidentally result in the extinction of all sentient life on the planet. In 2011, an arriving Kheldian by the name of Talmyia would discover the lack of sentient life and report back to the home world to claim it as a new colony planet. This alternate future was eliminated by the actions of Doc Tor.

• Galatea Future's Timeline - In 2010, Galatea Powers was spirited to Ouroboros to prevent her from changing certain events on Earth, forcing her to remain there until 2013. In this alternate timeline, Rularuu The Ravager arrives on Earth in 2018 and decimates it. Lord Recluse would further hinder things by taking over the planet. The planet would be rendered inhospitable by 2053. Galatea would eventually go on to become the "Last Guardian" of humanity as it struggled to survive on other worlds. This future was changed when Galatea used the Pillar of Ice and Flame to go back in time to save Daybright from the threat of Alor. To further neutralize this Omega-Incarnate version of Galatea from making any other changes in time, the Pillar altered events again so that Galatea Powers would be sent home in 2011 instead of 2013.