The Chronicles of St. Mary’s 1

Just One Damned Thing after Another

by Jodi Taylor

• Release: June 2013
• Format: Novel
• Genre: Science Fiction
• Audience: Adults
• Content: Definite Time Travel
• Original Language: English

Think of History as a living organism, with its own defence mechanisms. History will not permit anything to change events that have already taken place. If History thinks, even for one moment, that that is about to occur, then it will, without hesitation, eliminate the threatening virus. Or historian, as we like to call them.

VARIANTS

1 English variant

TAGS(SPOILERS!)

Time Periods

• Age of Reptiles (252 Ma to 66 Ma: Mesozoic/Triassic/Jurassic/Cretaceous): the Cretaceous
• Ancient History (3000 BC to AD 476: Bronze/Iron Ages): the Library at Alexandria and the Chief’s secret hideaway
• Middle Ages (AD 476 to 1454): 11th century Westminster Abbey
• Circa AD 1900 to 1929: World War I
• Circa AD 2000 to 2099: the present day
• Unspecified Year: Max’s test run

Time Travel Methods

• Time Habitats: the pods

Themes

• Antiques or Ancient Artifacts for Fun and Profit: the scrolls from the Library at Alexandria
• Causal Loops: The Chief knows that the bad guys are going to get TB2, so he arranges for them to get it under his own terms.
• Changewars: We’re not sure that anyone ever actually changes anything, but there are certainly time wars.
• Chronology Protection Conjecture: If History thinks, even for one moment, that that is about to occur, then it will, without hesitation, eliminate the threatening virus.
• Ex Nihilo Obects and People: A small ex-nihilo paradox: “So the Boss brings a pod from the future to now. And that pod is the template for all future pods?”
• Time Corps: St. Mary’s Institute of Historical Research
• Time Travel Agencies, Safaris, and Tourists: “Someone started shooting. Someone else shot back and then trigger-happy tourists were letting off at everything in sight including each other.”

Real-World Tags

• Battle of the Somme
• World War I

Groupings

• Chronicles of St. Mary’s (story series)

TIME TRAVEL ITINERARY (SPOILERS!)

1. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to an unspecified place and time at an unknown time. Round trip. Note: The trip is arranged to make it look as if things have gone wrong, but it’s only a test.
2. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to the site of the future Westminster Abbey, London, 11th century. Round trip. Note: Max and Peterson.
3. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to France, during the Battle of the Somme, September to October 1916. Round trip. Note: Max, Kal, and Sussman.
4. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to the Cretaceous, 67Ma. Round trip. Note: Max and Sussman.
5. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to an unspecified place, circa 3000 BC. Round trip. Note: Max and the Chief, just for fun.
6. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to an unspecified place, circa 3000 BC. Round trip. Note: Max and the Chief, for another quickie.
7. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to the Cretaceous, 67Ma. Round trip. Note: Max and Dieter discover the other camp!
8. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to the Cretaceous, 67Ma. Round trip. Note: Max and the whole combat team for about twenty minutes.
9. From the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013 ⋙ to the Library at Alexandria, AD 391. Note: Max and others to save scrolls.
10. From an unknown time ⋙ to a nearby desert, around the same time. Note: to bury the scrolls.
11. From an unknown time ⋙ to the St. Mary’s Historical Research Center, circa 2013. Note: the final return to the 21st century.