Controversy: A Universe in Parallel

Premise:

Most alternat hsitories begin at the POD and head forward in time. Controversy is built the opposite way, strating at the present and looking backwards. To an unobersavant American in 2007, Controversy and our world look almost exactly the same. I would be possible for one to seitch universes in America and not notice for several months or years that something was amiss. In just about any other part of the world, things are differnt to one degree or another.

To that end, I have engaged several PODs designed not to change the overall flow of history and arrive in a world strikingly similar to ours achieved by different ends. Since I am an aspiring stroyteller, I will divide up the muddied hisotry of Controversy in a few storylines I hope to use one day. I will add more if I can fit them in with the premise. I do warn you I am the relgious sort and do beleive in the supernatural. If that bothers you, you are free to ignore my TL.

The Fall of Luci:

A New take on the fall of the Devil. Set in anti-devulvian times.

Premise:

Most alternate histories begin at the POD and head forward in time. Controversy is built the opposite way, starting at the present and looking backwards. To an unobservant American in 2007, Controversy and our world look almost exactly the same. I would be possible for one to switch universes in America and not notice for several months or years that something was amiss. In just about any other part of the world, things are different to one degree or another.

To that end, I have engaged several PODs designed not to change the overall flow of history and arrive in a world strikingly similar to ours achieved by different ends. Since I am an aspiring storyteller, I will divide up the muddied history of Controversy in a few storylines I hope to use one day. I will add more if I can fit them in with the premise. I do warn you I am the religious sort and do believe in the supernatural. If that bothers you, you are free to ignore my TL.

The Fall of Luci:

A New take on the fall of the Devil. Set in anti-devulvian times.

Constantine's Female Legions:

Ruthless and ambitious, Constantine I sees the Empire needs to get manpower from whatever source it can, and so opens up Legion recruiting to women. This is an iconoclastic move: though widely celebrated and totally overblown in Controversy, the two female legions, made up of reformed prostitutes, bored noblewomen and gladiatorixes allow Constantine to recover Dacia and further stabilize the border, while drawing the condemnation of some in the church. This comes to a head after his death, resulting in Theodosius the Great disbanding them entirely. Without the (wo)manpower, Rome slips back into decline, losing Dacia and eventually everything else.

The Vandal Kingdom:

The Vandals become Roman clients after fighting Belisarius to a standstill in 536. They break away from Rome after the fall of Egypt, only to be subdued by the Arabs they thought to be allies in 698. At the fall of the first caliphate, the legendary king Godfrey the Wise (Anglicized) leads a rebellion against the Muslims, uniting the desperate Christian groups of North Africa under the banner 'It matters not,' and offering religious toleration to any who would: "confess with [their] mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, [they] will be saved. For with the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made to salvation. (Romans 10:9). Though not perfect, and prone to violence, this coalition decisively defeats the armies of the Abbasid Caliphate at Tripoli (OTL Libya) in 753. As a result, Romano-Vandal Civilization survives into the present, as well as the Arian church.

THis is the Vandal Kingdom at it's height:

[IMG]http://img466.imageshack.us/img466/2940/vandalkindgdom753ii3.gif[/IMG]

Fortunately or unfortunately, the Popes regard the Arian kings of the Vandal Kingdom as worse than the Muslims, even during the height of the Crusades. Without coordination with other Christian states, the Vandal Kingdom faces 800 years of relentless warfare and slave raids with their Arab and Berber neighbors, bereft of aid. The Vandals wisely submit to Ottoman vassalage in 1520, after the conquest of Egypt. This continues until the loss of Egypt to Britain in 1880, at which point they break away and swear allegiance to Italy (Italy being weaker than France of Britain.) The Vandal Kingdom becomes the staging point for the invasion of Egypt by Axis forces in World War. The Vandals, especially the Arian and Dontonist ones are considered the more fearsome fighters in the Italian military.

I will post more, as this is ongoing. My name is Chris Wolery, I can be reached at [mailto:wolery.3@osu.edu wolery.3@osu.edu]