Possible Future Inter-real Travel

The inter-real travel that features in the framing device is somewhat different from what the characters do throughout most of the novel. This opening is set in Artemisia's near future, in a world where inter-real travel is known to the world, and more of its possibilities have become apparent.

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***Note to the reader: This article is not marked with spoiler tags, as it contains only information that may end up at the very start of the novel in the framing device. Furthermore, as a character makes clear almost right away, the future glimpsed in said device is not guaranteed to happen. At any point throughout the novel, character choices could alter that future or steer Artemisia away from it entirely. Basically, nothing from the end of the novel is really being given away by its beginning.***

Complexity

Inter-real travel is still really complicated, still takes both tech and psionic power, and Deverick would still be really sarcastic about it if someone in his presence observed that it seems overly complex. For his amusing rant and the specifics contained within, see the "Complexity" section in the main Inter-real Travel article.

Utility

Inter-real travel is still necessary, even in the future. While the gaps between the shards of Artemisia are much narrower than they were--in some places more river than ocean--and some of their psychological effects have been tamed, the world is still not the same. There remains significant void between islands. When a drone equipped with experimental photography equipment was flown high enough and successfully grabbed some pictures, people likened the appearance of the world's surface to kintsugi, pottery that has been put back together with golden glue--though in Artemisia's case the glue is glowing and multicolored cosmic stuff.

What this means in practical terms is that there is still void to be crossed, and inter-real travel now offers a couple of solutions. In some places, large tunnels now span the gaps, allowing a certain amount of foot and vehicle traffic through the void, which can be seen in all its glory through the clear walls and roof. Some people come just to look out and contemplate, or make sketches, and some musicians say that they have had melodies occur to them when something in the echoes of the busy tunnels catches in their ear.

The other big option, and an attractive one for anyone needing to transport large amounts of cargo, is traveling the void in ships not unlike the ones first developed and used by the Fleet. Since the void is now less haunted than it was, the way is safer, provided they stick to known routes and don't venture out too far. With the new shipping methods have also come smuggling and piracy, however, as shown by the ship that is boarded in the opening of the novel.

Social Impact

Inter-real travel has been a boon to the fractured world of Artemisia, restoring significant communication and trade to the place as a whole. Though it takes longer than it used to, travel from one end of Artemisia to the other is possible again, which has reunited friends and families, and stabilized the government situation in many locales.

Parent Technologies

• Inter-real Travel

Inventor(s)

Still Charl Wikhtori. Nobody goes back in time and tries to invent it first.

Access & Availability

In this possible future, basic inter-real travel--from Island A to Island B in the same month--is now known to the world, and its use is being accepted as a way of traveling and trading, both lawfully and otherwise. The more cutting-edge, experimental stuff--like using the void for limited time travel--is something that some people are peripherally aware of, but the technology that powers it is not fully proven and is a few years away from being more widely available, even to the wealthy.