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WARNING----SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

So I was going around the Great City when I found OWW note #25, which basically spoils the end of Extinction for us. After reading the note and accidently learning the end of Extinction, I figured, "Ah, f@ck it" and looked up the end cutscene. Here is a link for viewing, but YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koANO557eT4

In case you don't know, Helena/OWW's line "Sun's rising" is a reference to her first and fourteenth notes on The Island, where she talks about watching sunrises, and maybe OWW's last note on Extinction. After saying this line, she stares at the sunrise and just sort of fades into nothing, a poetic end for Helena that almost had me in tears. Speaking of the Island, anyone else notice which ARK landed in the city?

And so ARK ends.

... Or does it???

After the credits roll, we're treated to the ending- ending scene. We see a black wasteland, a leaning structure, and an obelisk on it's side that powers on. We also hear some roaring or metallic bangs. Some youtubers have their own theories, but here's mine.

My belief is that what we're seeing is the Aberration ARK. Or rather, what's left of it. We can make this conclusion for 3 reasons:

1. The large gray structure we see to the right of the obelisk is one of the columns that supports an ARK.

2.The obelisk in question glows PURPLE when it powers on. Purple=Aberrant.

3. There would be no reason for the ground to be on fire unless there was some kind of fiery impact.

Remember how Aberration had one of the support columns blown up and floating around it? My belief is that when the Aberration ARK came down to Earth with the others, the broken column came crashing down after the ARK lowered it's shield. This impact destroyed Aberration and left only the fireproof element pieces sitting in a black crater. This included the columns, some rocks, and the obelisks. THIS, the aftermath, is what we're seeing. Clearly SOMETHING survived the explosion. Though the possibility of it being Rockwell is unlikely, it could be possible. However, it would make more sense If some element leaked from the column and made a NEW, mutant creature, and this scene is teasing a new game or DLC from Wildcard.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXIHAJI9orI

Watch until 6:15

Good work researching this, Anthomnia! Some things to point out:

1. Given the crater's convenient location under the island and it's small size compared to the large crater we saw from Aberration, I'm led to believe with Anthomnia that the crater is for an ARK and not from an asteroid. This would confirm that the ARKs are hunks of Earth hearth that were lifted into the sky using some kind of anti-gravity machine and NOT from the moon. So Glerian's original post here came true after all :D

2. The tidal locking theory makes a lot of sense. It would certainly explain why the Sun doesn't move AT ALL but the moon does, since it would still be stuck in Earth's own gravitational pull. One thing I noted, however, that In Helena's second Extinction Note, she mentions that the ARKs may be controlling Earth's atmosphere with magnetic fields of something like that. 

"It's hard to believe that this is actually Earth, but the proof Santiago provided is undeniable. The lack of night is disconcerting though, unless you really enjoy apocalyptic events. Could the Earth's rotation have slowed down, or worse, stopped entirely? 

No, that's rubbish. With the atmosphere out of control, all those abandoned buildings would have been decimated by wind and those giant creatures would never survive the shifting oceans, extreme temperatures and weakened magnetic field. Yet, if all those space stations above us could somehow form a magnetic barrier and repair the atmosphere...well anything's possible at this point. 


Maybe that's their real purpose, or maybe they're behind this mess in the first place. Whatever the truth is, I have to find it. There's no way I'm getting squashed by some monster before I do." -Helena Note #2 on Extinction.

By the way guys, I'm still going to look for Extinction notes. But I'm also going to go to into the Great City and do some... translating.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Image result for ark thanksgiving event 2018

Edit: i found Santiago log #3 today. He confirms that the planet's rotation has indeed stopped entirely. In his own words, the fact that there is any life left at all is nothing short of a miracle.

Edited by ArkTheorist123
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Extinction All Ascension Code Translated + Hidden Lore!

So after 4 whole days, I've translated most of or all of the Ascension Code found in The Great City. I did it using a translator on the ARK Wiki ( https://ark.gamepedia.com/Ascension#ARK_Code ). These messages appear to not be personal, but messages to the city's military personnel. The varying colors of the messages doesn't seem to have any meaning.

I will say this, though: the messages are only loosely translated. I don't think the translator is 100% accurate. Unless this is my own error. Regardless, some of these translations will have lines replaced with "*****" to signify lines I was not able to translate no matter what I tried.

However, you can still help. As I've already mentioned in my "ARKs: Everything to know" post, I mentioned that the Ascension Code is just a basic Quaternary Code. If you're familiar with Quaternary, than I suggest going to the coordinates included with the translations and translating the mixed up parts. Then you can post the corrected version here. In other translations I'll give little side notes. Let's begin. 

45.2 - 48.9: "Xuanzang Residence *****. Baret Residence *****."

44.7 - 52.4: "Vasco Residence *****"

44.1 - 52.7: "Cabot Express *****"

42.3 - 40.8: "Hostile forces are inbound!"

58.2 - 38.7: "Hostile forces are inbound! Proceed to your nearest shelter!"

48.6 - 57.9: "All gamma ***** personnel. Proceed to your nearest shelter!"

48.9 - 53.2: "WARNING! Hostile contact! Defensive barrier active."

47.2 - 55.2: "Overseer protocol in progress. Switching to automated."

43.8 - 41.7: "Manual override initiated. Hostile forces inbound!"

47 - 50: "Livingstone Plaza closed *****"

This name, "Livingstone", stands out to me. I've heard it in this game before. It a little easier to see in - game, but if you bring up the Broodmother Lystrix dossier and zoom in and squint at the bottom left-hand corner, you'll barely be able to see the words " L Livingstone @ BIODIDAC". I think Livingstone was the original maker of tek, that's why the Plaza's named after him? You can see the words barely in this image:

https://d1u5p3l4wpay3k.cloudfront.net/arksurvivalevolved_gamepedia/a/a8/Dossier_Broodmother.png?version=598e02a02dc1570935c7e4b4299f3b25

55.6 - 40: "Emergency rationing is in effect. Violations will result in immediate punishments."

42.6 - 38.9: "***** priority. Communication received. Arat Prime is locked down."
56.3 - 35.7: "Arat Prime is locked down. ***** launch initiating. Proceed to nearest shelter."

44.1 - 38.7: "Arat Prime has gone silent. Launch was not confirmed."

As you can see, this "Arat Prime" is referenced again and again. But what exactly is it? And what did they launch from it? i'll explain my own theory once I find all the explorer notes.

This last translation is what I believe to be an inside joke left in by the developers. As we all know, ARK, being a survival game, relies on us to pick bushes for berries and fiber. The irony here is that at the coords 49 - 65.3 is the following message:

"Please do not touch the plants."

PS: At the coords 54.2 - 33.3 is the grave of Santiago, a mek's tek sword lodged in the ground. At 56.8 - 48.8 is the place where Helena and friends set up camp. The tek structures sticking out of the ground are NOT the shelters that the translations speak of.

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Anthomnia just made a video about Arat Prime :

 

Basecally what he says is that Arat ist a reference to Ararat. In the Bible this is the mountain that Noah's ARK is resting on. (I think it's pretty clear what this has to with ark)

So my own theory on this would be that Arat Prime is maybe the main facility that the ARKs are controlled from. Possibly even the place from which the Player activates the "Reseed Protocol" in the the final cutscene in Extinction. I also think that the Great City was inhabited by the Homo Deus that built the Arks, because the messages in the city are all written in Ascension code and I don't think even future Homo Sapiens would be able to read Ascension Code. They could translate it, but not just directly read.

The launch that is being talked about in the messages is probaply the launch of the Arks into space, which would make sense if the Homo Deus that built them would live there. Though it looks like just before the launch Arat Prime "went silent" so I guess the ARKs creators never really found out if they even lauched or not.

Also as I understood from "The One who Waites" Notes the ARKs are already operaiting for a couple MILLION years, if that is so that would mean the City is also as old !

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Today I expanded my boundaries a little bit and have started making posts on the PUBG forums. If you want my thoughts on the lore of THAT game, or just want to see the result of me banging my head into a wall repeatedly over the lore of that game, here's the link:                      https://forums.playbattlegrounds.com/topic/316284-pubg-lore/?tab=comments#comment-1133495

 

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On 10/5/2018 at 6:21 PM, ArkTheorist123 said:

 

(Side note: While Ragnarok and The Center technically aren't Story ARKs, they DO make a cameo outside the overseer arena, to the right of the Aberration ARK. So they DO exist in the ARK universe, we're just not supposed to visit them.)

This is absolutely not true. I just went through the Ascension sequence and the ONLY ARKs visible from the Overseer Platform are The Island, Scorched Earth, and Aberration. There is nothing that looks even remotely like Ragnarok or The Center either geographically or otherwise. Not even the tiny ones in the distance. 

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On 11/29/2018 at 7:42 PM, Leebum said:

GReat stuff ArkTherosrist123. 

 

Sorry to add this now, but the ascension code can be translated in game via tek helmet ;)

You must not be mounted on a dino and u must be in first person. How that helps.

 

 

Okay then, could you send me the missing pieces of text? You know, the *****'s that I wasn't able to translate? Thanks.

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On 11/29/2018 at 9:10 PM, CyanicEmber said:

This is absolutely not true. I just went through the Ascension sequence and the ONLY ARKs visible from the Overseer Platform are The Island, Scorched Earth, and Aberration. There is nothing that looks even remotely like Ragnarok or The Center either geographically or otherwise. Not even the tiny ones in the distance. 

OMG you're right. sorry!

8x554hxctra11.jpg

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One who has read some of the extinction notes might assume that Arat Prime is the facility that Helena and Diana visit on Extinction, the one containing the ARK's data servers. But in one of Diana's notes, AFTER she explored this facility, she mentions Arat Prime, but says it's on the other side of the planet.

Also, we can assume that Arat Prime is indeed the facility that launched the ARKs. Having translated the ascension code, I propose that the URE realized the titans might attack Arat Prime, and so sent a message to them to "lock down", buying the staff inside Arat Prime time to launch the ARKs.

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ARK's Meaning

What I'm about to say here may sound weird, but having read 99% of the TOTAL explorer notes/dossiers, I think I've found that ARK has a philosophical meaning. That meaning is civilization and how it leads to corruption in society, and how it differs from evolution.

First of all we have this recurring theme in ARK of cities being ruined. Mei-Yin remembers her home in China being attacked, Nerva had plans to build a city before he was killed, Nosti was destroyed, the tek village was attacked, the great city was attacked, and the ARKs have been known to hate cities since Scorched Earth. All this may not be a coincidence.

Note how OWW describes element; a brilliant thing that caused impact, discovery, invention, and production to rapidly increase. I believe that element represents civilization and the pros and cons of it. When together, humans have caused the same things to increase as element did. The refined element, or tek, represents the pros of civilization - food, shelter, and safety. The raw stuff, or corruption, represents the tempting human desires that civilization offers, like power, fame, and money. And when that corruption spreads to powerful people, like Rockwell, they become "monsters" - yet another metaphor.

Think about this - one man cannot start a war, but a whole country's worth of people CAN. Given that the right people persuade the country to let it happen. That would be taking advantage of civilization. Then think about Santiago notes #3 and #7:

"Some of the readings were outside my estimates, but this is definitely Earth. That same old, self-absorbed ball of dirt.

I figured as much. According to that biologist, Helena, people from my time are the most advanced humans on those stations. That means they couldn't have been built too far in the future, and last I knew, the Federation and the URE were still stuck on Earth. It wasn't for lack of technology, just the usual suspects - politicians.

They could barely share one planet, much less space. People like to talk about having AI overlords as a nightmare scenario, but if we were ruled by machines, I might be looking at a flourishing Martian landscape instead of this ravaged one on Earth. Doesn't sound all that bad when you think about it. I mean, look what happened with humans in charge..."

"I ran the numbers. We're living in a scientific impossibility. Element simply couldn't expand fast enough to reach this level of density under natural conditions, even with millennia of uninterrupted growth. That means something accelerated it at an alarming rate, even if this area's readings are an outlier. Well I say "something," but there's an obvious answer here: man.

Any tech that runs on Element emits a few molecules of it back into the atmosphere, which take root in the soil. It's kind of like pollination, but the scale's so small and we consume it so fast that it's practically negligible. To spread it to any significant degree, you'd need a huge spike in Element proliferation.

A spike you'd get from, say, a century of open warfare with Element based weaponry. And the best of that weaponry? That'd be mine."

To put these two notes in short, the entire ARK game started because people couldn't stop fighting, and element being taken advantage of - civilization being taken advantage of - in these wars is what led corruption - the embodiment of human desires turned into propagation, hunger, and hatred - to take over the planet and destroy it. In other words, human wants led to civilization being taken advantage of, and, in turn, the planet being ruined. Think about why wars start in the first place - the want for more land, riches, and love from your country.When you think about it, it's the same thing in real life - homes are destroyed and innocent people are killed in real wars, most of which are pointless.

But this theory wouldn't be complete without mention of the explorers, ARKs, and players. Well, they obviously represent the people (explorers and players) and communities (ARKs) that don't care about wants. The people that care about helping EACH OTHER in order to make actual progress, which represents EVOLUTION.

And that is what I think ARK stands for. It's a PSA to stand up to corruption in society and ignore the wants to help the planet. Oh, and don't use alien materials without checking to make sure it won't become self-aware and, you know, destroy the planet. Big no-no.

Edited by ArkTheorist123
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  • 2 weeks later...

All Explorer's backstories:

Before we begin, I know what some of you might say: "But aren't the explorers memories fake?" Well, that subject is brought up, but never confirmed. It was one of the big mysteries surrounding Aberration and Extinction. It was brought up multiple times by Helena and Santiago. But the subject was usually dropped after a few notes. It was never confirmed. (Santiago mentions being able to recreate his device blueprints from memory, meaning that if their memories are fake, they were created with extreme attention to detail.) Also, these bios will be coming in order of appearance.

 

Helena Walker:

Place of birth: Darwin, Australia

Age: 23 (on Extinction)

Date of existence: 2008

In Helena Note #10 on Extinction, she recalls her life in Australia, or "Oz" as she calls it, saying, "The sunsets on the coast, the splendor and fury of the storms during the wet season, and volunteering in Kakadu whenever I could. I was an obnoxious little bugger, chasing after my next great discovery but usually just finding trouble."  On the Island she recalls spending her time on Oz exploring the many rainforests and reefs dotting the continent. Her exact age in 2008 is likely somewhere between 19 and 21, given that she spent some time on the other ARKs prior to Santiago stating her age on Extinction. She has a very advanced nervous system, which some consider to be required of a person in order to become a Homo Deus. This would explain why she fainted when she touched the Homo Deus prism, but Mei-Yin did not.

Edmund Rockwell:

Place of existence: London, England

Estimated Age: 50's?

Date of existence: 1800's

We can assume that Rockwell was both born and raised in England. On Scorched Earth, he mentions fighting Bengal tigers and killing rhinos on the banks of the Serengeti River in Africa. This suggests that he left England as a young man to participate in the British conquests of Africa and India. Given the number of medicinal herbs and, yes, berries, found in such tropical regions, this may also be where he first became interested in medicine and chemical reactions. We can then assume he went back to England and studied in the human body before getting his own lab. In his second note on the Island he says "If I told my colleagues in London that I could create a concoction capable of erasing someone's memories, I'd be laughed out of the room and never invited to tea again." This suggests that his research earned him memberships in some of the more prestigious scientific organizations in England at that time in history. Helena says on scorched Earth that he was on the Island a very long time. This means that he was only in his 50's when we first meet him on the Island, but was much younger when he first arrived there. His memberships in higher organizations also made him egotistical and power - hungry, contributing to his breakdown on Aberration.

Li Mei-Yin:

AKA the Beast queen of the jungle, depths, and wastes.

Location of existence: Yi Province, China

Date of existence: Late 100's - early 200's CE

The timeframe of Mei-Yin's memories take place before and during the Yellow Turban Rebellion in China, which led me to estimate her date of existence. Whether or not the Rebellion had actually ended or was still going when Mei-Yin's pre-ARK memories ended is unknown. She does tell us that her parents were hoping for a boy. Even though Mei-Yin turned out being a girl, her father still decided to train her in the use of a sword and spear in secret, despite her mother's talk of it being nontraditional for a woman to fight. That was where she got her fighting skills from. Those same skills proved useful when the Rebellion broke out and her little village was attacked. Her fellow villagers were so desperate for warriors that they let Mei-Yin fight despite her gender. To quote her 14th Extinction note: 

"As I slept in the belly of the armored giant and the storm howled outside, I dreamed. I was home again, in our little village in the Yi Province. It was during the rebellion. Everyone was huddled together in an empty grainery, debating surrender. Arguments went back and forth until at last I stood, grabbed a spear, and made for the exit.

"See? Even this girl would rather die for her emperor than give in to that scum," one man declared.

"You're wrong," I replied, turning to face him. "I have no intention of dying. I will survive."

The others talked about our memories not being our own, that the home I sought for so long may have never existed at all. Perhaps that is true, but those words are mine, more than anything in the world. This is not the end. This is not where I fall.

I will survive!"

Gaius Marcellus Nerva:

Birthplace: Numidia, North Africa

Estimated Age: 40's?

Date of existence: 100's CE

Nerva recalls growing up in Numidia during the height of the Roman Empire before being shipped off to Rome, where he was in constant awe of the wonders around him. He received legionnaire training, yet for some reason was made into a centurion, a leader of a unit of legionnaires, despite apparently being very young to receive that rank (This was likely, given his war success on the Island, because he was a brilliant battle strategist). He and his unit were sent to either conquer or defend the Roman province of Dacia (Modern-day Romania). Said Nerva later on the Island: 

"I am reminded of my first command in Dacia. Many men questioned my rank, wondering why they had to follow a Centurion so young. It took time to earn their trust, but it was necessary. I could not have even a single soldier questioning me in battle, lest our discipline fail." 

Raia:

Birthplace: Luxor, Ancient Egypt

Estimated Age: 20's when she founded Nosti, 70's when she met Helena.

Estimated date of existence: 2134 - 1991 BCE

Raia only goes into her past once or twice, but we can assume she lived in Luxor as a priestess during it's peak - the 11th dynasty in Egypt. She seems to have cared about people even before ARK. This was the best of her past I could find in her notes:

"Back in Luxor I always tried to stay out of politics. I never aspired to be Divine Adoratrice as some priestesses did. I found that such selfish ambitions often led to suffering both for oneself and for others." - Raia Note #2

Also, if she was 20 when she founded Nosti and 70 when she met Helena, that menas she survived on Scorched Earth on her own for some 50 years or so. Way to go!

John Dahkeya:

Place of existence: Texas/Arizona

Date of existence: Somewhere between 1865 - 1895

John was born to an Apache Native American father. He never mentions his mother, indicating she must have died. It was his father who taught him to hunt and kill using a bow. 

"Now I know how the old man felt while he was teaching me how to hunt. We stopped seeing eye to eye even before I left the tribe, but I'll always thank him for the time he spent telling me the same damn things over and over again. Must have drove him wild inside, but he never showed it."

John's original name wasn't even John, but some Native american name. Sometime when he was young he met a man named Doc Russo. According to John, Russo taught him how to read and use a gun. Over time, Russo brainwashed John to leave his tribe and join his gang of outlaws, with promises of being wild and free. This eventually worked, and John left the tribe. That was when he started calling himself John Dahkeya, though the other members of Russo's gang called him the "Apache Nephew". He and the Russo gang traveled all over Texas and Arizona pulling robberies. And since John at one point says...

"I have no history here. There are no posters showing off my sneering face, no posses hunting me."

..We can assume he became very infamous.

"Even after all this time in Nosti, I have trouble sleeping in the same bed every night. Sometimes I'll just toss and turn until I give up and go to sleep beneath the stars.

Hell, I'm not sure we ever slept in (the) same spot twice back in the Russo gang. Thought I'd live that way forever, wild and free like Doc Russo. Probably die guns blazing like him too. Sounded better to me than withering away with the rest of my tribe as the world passed us by.

I don't think Doc would recognize me now. I'm not the "Apache nephew" he taught to read and shoot. Matter of fact, if he were here, I'd probably have to shoot him."

Graduate students:

Age: Teens

Date of existence: 1950's - Present day.

In addition to the previously mentioned Skye, there were 5 other Grad Students - Rusty Stafford, Emilia Mueller, Boris, Trent, and Imamu. The grads probably existed in the late 50's or today because Imamu uses the word "Vodun" which was popular during the 50's. Rusty Stafford lived in the countryside of Kentucky ad had an ancestor who was a frontiersman. Emilia Mueller was a shy engineering student who briefly mentions having a sister and that...

"I've never been brave or adventurous. I was that kid that who always colored between the lines and followed every rule, no matter how arbitrary. No risks, no mistakes, just good grades and a forgettable face."

Absolutely nothing is known about Boris, other than that he was a cross between Nerva and Rockwell, being crazy and power hungry, yet at the same time thinking some godly entity had put him there with a purpose. Also, being very calm and noncompassionate when Rusty and Emilia died. Trent was a football Running Back from New Jersey (As in, a type of football player). And Imamu was actually the son of a royal family from West Africa.

"My parents believed that royal hands should be free of calluses, so I always relied on servants for everything, right up until the moment I snuck off to college."

Diana Altaras:

Date of existence: During or after March 2134 (The date of a magazine she references in her 2nd extinction note).

On Aberration, Diana briefly mentions her Jewish mother giving her a star of David necklace, one that Diana never wore because she's "Never been too religious."Like all her friends, she went to the URE military academy and excelled in all forms of warfare. It was in this academy that Diana first met Santiago, before graduating and forgetting him until they met again on Aberration. Afterwards she was made a first lieutenant in the 82nd URE Orbital Strike Fighter Squadron.

Santiago "Nightmare" Camacho:

Like Diana, Santiago went to the academy. But when he graduated, he was given a job offer by the URE's nemesis, the Terran Federation. Santiago accepted and was given an isolated mountain villa to live in in exchange for him giving them tech help in the battle with the URE. Santiago became famous and started calling himself by his first name. According to Diana, he was:

"the guy who hacked into URE command one day and reverse engineered our latest TEK armor the next."
Edited by ArkTheorist123
Add more to Rockwell's backstory.
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Earth's story

Just a quick post on what we can assume happened to Earth prior to ARK based on the explorer notes and ascension code.

In the (not-so) distant future, a large space rock hit the Earth. This MIGHT explain the massive crater on Earth visible from Aberration. When the rubble was being cleared, a miraculous discovery was made. The alien metals inside the rock had melted into a curious purple liquid upon entering Earth's atmosphere. Scientists studied the liquid and eventually were able to make a lightweight metal brimming with energy. This metal they had refined was a miracle metal. In the words of OWW...

"It was never normal. Always extraordinary. Always an enigma.

The uses for it were beyond counting. Hardier than tungsten. More versatile than copper. In the right form, its ability to generate electricity and produce radiation were unrivaled. It's no surprise then that things moved quickly - impact, discovery, invention and production. All in rapid succession."

That liquid was molten element. The metal they created was refined element. And with that refined element, they were able to make the first tek, possibly made by this "Livingstone" person.

Skip forward a few years or months or weeks or even days and tek is being used in all aspects of human life. Advanced AI robots were created. Militaries were using tek to amplify warfare. Scientists were able to revive hundreds of prehistoric species of animals. And most importantly, a huge city was founded, built entirely of tek, as a memorial. As the center of futuristic human civilization on this planet.

Everything was perfect.

But there was one small problem. The global conglomerate that was selling tek had an enemy. That conglomerate was the Terran Federation. It's enemy was the United Republics of Earth, or URE. The exact cause of the war between these two political giants is unknown. What is known is that the URE recruited Diana Altraras as a pilot in their army. The Feds recruited Santiago Camacho as a data terrorist and info trader, with the objective of sabotaging URE property and stealing URE tek blueprints to sell to the feds. On one occasion Santiago even inserted some "Nuke death" malware into the URE nuke arsenal, making the nukes useless.

That was the point at which Diana's and Santiago's memories ended. But Earth had not ended. Not yet, at least. Tek expanded some more for a time. It became even more advanced. And so did tek products. The technology became more complicated. And the architecture became more scary, more like the halls before the Overseer Arena. And human language changed into ascension code that could be translated via tek helmet. Yet two things remained; the great city, and the war between the URE and feds. In fact, the cold war between these two sides escalated into actual battles where people died. This happened in a war that continued for centuries. And THIS was humanity's downfall. The want for more.

"I ran the numbers. We're living in a scientific impossibility. Element simply couldn't expand fast enough to reach this level of density under natural conditions, even with millennia of uninterrupted growth. That means something accelerated it at an alarming rate, even if this area's readings are an outlier. Well I say "something," but there's an obvious answer here: man.

Any tech that runs on Element emits a few molecules of it back into the atmosphere, which take root in the soil. It's kind of like pollination, but the scale's so small and we consume it so fast that it's practically negligible. To spread it to any significant degree, you'd need a huge spike in Element proliferation.

A spike you'd get from, say, a century of open warfare with Element based weaponry. And the best of that weaponry? That'd be mine." - Santiago Note #7

While the war between the URE and Terran Federation was going strong, element was collecting on the battlefield. This burnt, post-use element was much different. It was using it's energy to it's advantage. It's potential. It...

It became intelligent. Self-aware, even. 

And when it gained enough used element, it made it's move. It changed it's molecular structure entirely. Instead of a metal, it became a living soft-tissue organism. More specifically, a virus.

Then suddenly the fighting stopped. 

But not because of peace. There was an update on their PDA's that read:

"Hostile forces are inbound! Proceed to your nearest shelter!"

 They were probably confused at first. Then they understood. Th whole world understood.

The element had come to life and got themselves inside the animal's bodies. It had "corrupted" them. Worse still, it was forcing the animals to turn on their human masters. That was why the fighting stopped. But something different began. 

The URE and Feds (hopefully) came together to work on a project to fight this corruption. They had the technology to kill element. Problem was, it was spreading too fast to fight. It seemed the only hope was to put humanity where the element couldn't reach it - space. Then maybe, from there, humanity could pick up the pieces and find a way to eliminate enough element to return the ARKs to Earth and revive the planet. Because the current people were being attacked in their own city, by their own pets. Maybe, if time passed up there, the element would forget about humans enough to buy their descendants some time, any time at all. That would explain why there aren't hordes of corrupted creatures attacking the city today like it did before you arrived there.

And so began the ARK project. They planted trees and made lakes, oceans, and rivers on thousands of 19 square-mile chunks of land. Then they bred a bunch of non-infected creatures on them, sealed them up with a holographic/atmospheric dome, and began development of a robotic shapeshifting AI to oversee the ARKs. The ARKs were to be launched from a single console found on a launch facility on the opposite side of the planet from the great city. A facility by the name of Arat Prime.

The ARKs were just about completed when the corrupted creatures realized what was going on. They mounted a huge assault on Arat prime, the city, and the ARK data centers, which for some reason were kept separate from Arat Prime and located near the city. Spotting the beasts on the horizon, the citizens alerted the staff at Arat Prime and the data center, which fortunately had reinforced tek bulkhead doors for just such an occasion. That bought them at least some more time. With almost no time left, they launched the ARKs.

"Arat Prime has gone silent. Launch was not confirmed."

For some reason the citizens of the great city never knew the ARKs launched (Which is ridiculous, since in the end cutscene we see an ARK land only a few hundred meters from the city. How could the citizens of the city NOT know the ARKs launched even when one presumably launched right on their doorstep?!). After they launched they holed themselves up in the city and started rationing food. They later either starved to death, or, given the absence of bodies and large chunks of the city walls, the creatures got in and ate them. Over the next few million years, the element fused with creatures in the environment to cause the titans to evolve. But luckily, they put too much elemental power into the titans. If they were all killed, they would have killed enough element for the ARKs to have enough time to take root and eliminate the remaining element before it could multiply.

But luckily, the ARKs had launched. And they did work. And if you've read the explorer notes and played the game, you know what happened next.

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So what's next for ARK?

There are a few loose ends in Extinctions that could get tied up in a future DLC.

*Arat Prime

*The shattered moon - it wasn't mentioned ONCE during all of ARK's explorer notes, indicating it must have broke between when Helena turned into a Homo Deus and when we arrived on the Island.

*More info on "L Livingstone @ BIODIDAC"

*More backstory on the city and the ARKs? Maybe the same backstory I just told?

*And of course, the dark area with the Glowing purple obelisk.

Also, tell me if these codes from the ascension code have any hidden messages hinting towards a new DLC or if they're just serial numbers:

*A7 Priority

*Y114-44

*Y115-45

*Y124-16

*Z126-88

*Z127-81

Edited by ArkTheorist123
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My thoughts on ATLAS:

Related image

 

To all ATLAS players who think the current version of the game is trash:

 

You all realize that it isn't easy making a video game, right? Think of it: First, you have to work on the map. Then, you have to work on the map's environment. Then the animals. The building mechanics. All the other mechanics the game has. The bosses. And of course, the literal THOUSANDS of players having to implement all of the above items. And all of that for ONE server. The current version of the game has 225 servers. 

So yeah, if you have to code all THAT, I'd imagine that there would be a lot of delays and a few slip-ups left in the current product. But that's why the game was shared with a few people in the first place. 

Keep in mind that ATLAS is still in "Early access". That doesn't mean what you're currently playing is the final product. According to Wikipedia, the definition of "Early Access" is:

"Early access, also known as early funding, alpha-access, or paid-alpha, is a funding model in the video game industry by which consumers can pay (or get it for free) for a game in the various development cycles (pre-alpha, alpha, beta) and obtain access to the pre-full release versions of the game, while the developer is able to use those funds to continue work on the game. Those that pay to participate typically help to debug the game, provide feedback and suggestions, and may have access to special materials in the game."

In other words, ATLAS was only given to us early because the dev team wants to make sure what they fix these problems so they're out of the way when the main game drops. But here come the A-holes on steam posting reviews saying mean things about not just the game, but devs themselves. And that part's not just my personal opinion, either. Anthomnia recently made a video saying basically these exact same things. So please don't throw hate at the devs, because they're working very hard on this game. I hope people listen to me and change their minds. 

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Hi,

I am convinced the team knows what to improve and what not. Of course bigger and complex is better for core game experience. And I am convinced the studio knows in which direction to develop the game. It is the right choice to connect the islands of "ARK" with a wide ocean, expand the endless blue by small islands and offer the people a way to explore. The combination of the great working ARK mechanics with a fantasy setting, a new server structur and more questing next to the caves is in my opinion the right way. 

For me it is fine to replace the tech items by fantasy items. Because knowledge is limited. Fantasy not. As Albert said. Of course high level fantasy items should be hard to craft or maybe unique artifacts, linked to a single server. A reason for working together or fighting each other. And of cource tech can still be  capted in the game later. 

I hope the claim mechanic, just placing flags, will be improved. The builded basic structures (walls, houses etc) should create the claimed area. Countryborders on islands. If somebody destroyes all the doors and interior the basic structure (the house) becomes lawless and after the cooldown somebody can claim it to build in it or demolish it. 

I am convinced the people of the studio know how to create farming, stockbreeding, trading, different races with skins and professions with the skill tree, different island types, dynamic events, quests with special loot and all this nice stuff you can make from crafting.

It is a long way to go but you are doing a realy good work and I still believe that ARK or Atlas or any other named game based on this mechanics (Survival, crafting, exploring, claiming, questing, leveling) can be the great mmorpg I am looking for the whole time. 

If the whole server workes together...maybe..we can build a spaceship.

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

"We finished marking the last of the graves a few hours ago. It was hard to say goodbye, but having recently died myself, I know that sitting here and crying my eyes out for a week straight won't help them. Hopefully they find peace within that void, or something better beyond it.

Now it's just me, Mei-Yin and the long road ahead. Well, and the faceless presence that's guiding us down that road of course. I've already started to feel the tugs pulling me towards Arat Prime.

Not sure what's waiting for us there, but with Mei by my side and a dangerous mission in front of us, I'm just going to relax and enjoy the ride. I can admit that I'm certifiable for saying so, but this kind of life? It's just my speed.
" - Diana log #29 on Extinction.

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  • 2 months later...

Stuff I would add to ARK if I could.

  • This is just a list of things I think would optimize ARK (IN ADDITION TO BUG FIXES). Most of it is just cutscenes and minor environment changes. I don't expect this to gain any popularity.

  • Change the thumbnails and descriptions for Aberration and Extinction so as to not make them so plot-spoiling for new players.
  • Loading screens for when map is loading, that vary depending on what map you are joining. The normal box art, beach, etc for Island, Desert themed-box art, Nosti, desert scenes, etc for SE, Aberration box art, portal, etc  for Aberration, Extinction box art, Great City, etc for Extinction.
  • Cutscene detailing backstory of our character. Should only be activated in first story ARK that player uses when all save files on story ARKS have been erased. Cutscene starts with the words Studio Wildcard presents... ARK: Survival Evolved", followed by character stepping out of doorway into the Great City (preferably on rooftops either at 46.4-34.8, or the one where Santiago note #26 is), but the city and planet look normal. As character nears edge of building, we see the streets filled with people, animals and robots. A scout flies by. Meanwhile, a sound track similar to the Aberration version of the ARK theme or Extinction teaser trailer plays in the background. Suddenly, the scene flickers and glitches before the screen goes black. For the last few frames of of glitching, images of the ruined city and an image of the Tomb of Ascension. Then, suddenly, an image of Helena/OWW (similar to the one at the end of Extinction launch trailer) appears, and says "Help...You have to help!" before character suddenly finds themselves gasping, collapsing, and blacking out on the ARK they chose to play on.
  • Improved spawn animation for every new character created. Character awakens laying on side. Picks up handful of sand, sprinkles it from hand, only to notice the implant, which blinks a few times before "Activating". Character  picks at implant before looking over to right to examine landscape, before standing up and taking few steps forward, while shielding eyes from sunCharacter lowers hand, thus entering gameplay.
  • Move Helena Note #1 on each ARK to the easiest, most visited locations for some exposition.
  • Remove Helena notes 2,3, & 4 on the island from underwater caves, and put them on the mainland. Replace the notes in the underwater caves with dossiers.
  • Swap the locations of Rockwell notes 1 and 2 on the Island.
  • Swap the locations of Mei-yin note and Helena notes #1 on Aberration.
  • Add small holes at base of obelisk, surrounding platform, for artifacts to be inserted in.
  • Cutscene that plays the first time someone steps onto Obelisk platform (Met under same conditions as Cutscene in 3rd bullet) Character steps onto platform, examines holes around platform, and then examines pedestal. Character then lifts arm up to reveal the implant is glowing. Gem in pedestal is also glowing. Character then waves arm near pedestal out of curiosity. Mist briefly appears between implant and pedestal, before we are introduced to an...
  • Improved Obelisk hub, which looks more holographic and is projected from the pedestal.
  • Add animation where collected artifacts are inserted into holes and pulled in by platform at base of obelisk after player inserts it by walking up to hole with artifact in inventory and hitting interact.
  • Add cutscene for when player first creates tek replicator in Obelisk: A sphere suddenly appears in the beam of light coming out of the obelisk. Bits of tek begin appearing and swirl around and then into the sphere, before compressing into a small cube with an image of a tek replicator on it that zooms into the player's hand.
  • Add a small cube that tek structures can be built with, with an image of the structure in question on the side of it.
  • Add holes for trophies and a holographic hub to tek cave terminal.
  • Decrease the volume of soundtracks for ALL boss battles in the game (If you've done a boss fight you'd understand).
  • Add cutscene to Overseer boss battle: At the end of the arena is a terminal, just like the one described in the explorer notes. It has a large touchscreen pad on it's surface. When player walk up to terminal and hits "Interact", the character will hesitantly touch the screen, making the Earth/ARKs hologram appear, and start cycling through images of a bunch of different ARKs, including SE and Aberration. Character touches random ARK, but Terminal screen flashes red and hologram disappears before Overseer begins powering up, and outputs small sonic boom which knocks player backwards. As player gets up and sees Overseer powering up, the battle music starts playing. Character turns around only to find the door to the arena closing. C (which is what I'm calling the character now because I'm sick of typing "Character" ?) turns back to Overseer as it finishes powering up, and fight commences. 
  • Upgraded ascension cutscene for The Island: After Overseer is defeated, C goes back to terminal and reactivates it. This time, C is granted access to go to selected ARK - which happens to be SE. When shield around teleporter pad closes, a slightly alternate cutscene could play where C observes tek armor dissolving, should the player be wearing tek armor when ascending. At end of cutscene, the SE ARK is more clear and easy to distinguish as a desert. Also the obelisks on the ARK are in correct order. After touching down, C wakes up in Recreation of the red obelisk area on SE. But it isn't revealed until the character wakes up similar to before, but this time is startled by large amounts of sand, spots the obelisk's shadow, and turns around to see a picture-perfect shot of the obelisk. A wyvern is flying over the mountain and roars as the screen cuts to black. All this while the SE theme plays in the background, perfectly timed for the obelisk reveal and the cliffhanger.
  • Post-credit scene for the Island of the Homo Deus portion of the Hall of History.
  • Alternate spawn animation for C's that have been uploaded to an ARK after an ascension, where C is walking forward while shielding eyes, before lowering hand and entering gameplay.
  • Ascension cutscene for SE (We all want this): As the explorer notes describe, the Manticore trophy should be brought to the manticore stone in the center of the metal trapdoor in the center of the colosseum in the southwestern ruined city. When player goes to this location with the Manticore trophy, they will be given the option to "Interact". If it is interacted with, C will hold up the trophy, which begins glowing. Suddenly, the trapdoor opens up to a long drop, which C falls down screaming. C then lands in a pool of water, and climbs out gasping. When C lifts head after climbing out, they see a teleporter platform and terminal like the one in the Overseer arena. C does the exact same thing as before with it, too, but this time the ARK shown is Aberration. During ascension ( dissolving tek thing in place, too ), we get a sweeping overhead view of SE before zooming towards Aberration, zipping past the broken remains of the Overseer arena on Aberration and landing on the surface of Aberration. C wakes up in a recreation of the slanted, broken obelisk area on Aberration during "night" and is shocked by the devastation around him/her, and looks up to see destroyed Earth while an ominous note plays. Suddenly, C is jumped by a group of nameless and a reaper. C is only saved by a bit of sunlight that peaks from behind the horizon and falls on ONLY the enemies, causing tem to retreat into the ground. As C realizes that the ground is setting on fire, C turns around and runs to the cave entrance, falling down it and falling unconscious once hitting the bottom. C wakes up and flips over to see the surface entrance above, now with flames shooting out of it. C then gets up and walks forward. The screen goes black as times skips ahead to when C is more near the forest zone entrance, represented by a blindspotted, bright hole on the wall. suddenly, a bulbdog comes out of the entrance and startles C. C realizes it is docile and briefly plays with it. Bulbdog runs towards entrance, then turns back to C and barks. C moves to entrance and rounds the corner to look out and see the lush forest. Aberration theme is playing in background throughout this and is once again dramatically timed. Both in the moments before and after the screen cuts to black an earthquake can be heard.
  • Post-credit scene for SE where the Rockwell teaser for Aberration slowly blinks onto the screen.
  • Animation at start of Rockwell boss fight where Rockwell's tentacles emerge from the water and slam down on either side of C before the rest of Rockwell emerges and roars at C before raising tentacles and fight commences.
  • Upgraded Aberration ascension cutscene: In moments between Rockwell's defeat and ascension cutscene commencing a female robotic voice can be heard from somewhere in the cavern saying "Portal energy blockage eliminated, teleport commencing...error, coordinates defective, repositioning landing point to closest position to selected coordinatee.". Also, the holographic/geographical pam that pops up actually looks like the geography of Extinction. After C passes through teleporter and into space, C passes between two ARKs in order to confirm to the player that they are indeed going to Earth. Also, the ground is a little clearer to see approaching, and that part of the scene isn't just flashing lights. C wakes up behind a rock on the cliff at 43.75, 2.90 ( view of the actual Extinction map is blocked at this point). C looks at a grove of trees and waterfall next to the rock before looking at the implant variant. C is startled by the sound of a deploying Orbital Supply drop, and gets up and moves to look behind rock, THEN sees a recreation of the Extinction map. After looking at the diamond structure and the city (with the drop In the middle of the scene), the camera pans to the left to look at the forbidden zone backdrop. Then the roar and black screen. Basically, like the original cutscene, but the map looks like the actual extinction map.
  • Add a post-credit scene for Aberration where the tomb of Ascension is shown.
  • Add the mek as a deployable cube like the aforementioned tek structure cubes once created in the tek replicator. Mek can also only deployed from hotbar.
  • Mek spawns with glowing animation like when tek structures are built.
  • Add cutscene for when first entering a mek: C walk to one of mek's legs and presses a button on it, making the cockpit open and a tek ladder come out of it. C climbs it into the cockpit, and the ladder disappears when C closes cockpit.
  • Add an interior view to the mek when using it, kind of like when riding a pteranodon. Imagine a rig or glove that goes over C's arms, and anytime the mek raises the sword or gun, C does the same. Also, pedals at the front of the cockpit for flying.
  • Add a new location to Extinction: the large data server complex that Helena and Diana explored. located in the forbidden zone. Imagine a large main building built into the side of a hill, with a large joined tower built in to it's right. The tower has a large room at the top with glass windows facing the city. Beyond the broken entrance doors to the main building is a long hallway. On Either side of the hall are inaccessible rooms that can be viewed through glass windows (there are locked doors next to them). Inside the closed-off are rows of data servers with a statue of an implant at the end of each row. Also inside the rooms are more unopen doors. At the end of the main hall is a staircase that loops up and around to the tower. At the top of the stairs is the aforementioned malfunctioning door, which must be crouched under in order to access the tower room. The tower room is a sort of meeting/control room. In the center of the room is an array of command chairs surrounding a diamond-shaped table with a hologram of Earth floating over it. At the far end of the room is two rows of consoles and flashing lights, one row on the left side of the window, one on the right. Between the two rows is the endgame terminal. If interacted with, C will attempt to start the endgame cutscene, only to be met with a flashing red screen and a female robotic voice saying "The conditions have not been met". On the ceiling above the terminal is a closed hatch. Finally, in front of the whole complex is the large hole the planet-saving light beam shoots out of, but it's closed until the end cutscene.
  • Slightly alter the end of Extinction. Rather then teleport from the King Titan bossfight right to the end cutscene, C must go back to the data server complex and try again with the control room terminal. This time, it will work, and the platform will rise up and through the opening ceiling hatch. C lowers hand from shielding sun before looking over edge of roof and seeing now-open hole before the beam shoots out of it. The rest of the cutscene is normal. After ARK logo flashes, we cut to C walking on the reformed island beach. C walks up to a tree to punch it and start over. Before he can hit it, though, a faint boom/rumble makes C turn head in direction of noise, to see dimorphs flying out of trees surrounding the Island. This is a nod towards the post-credit scene at the end of the next bullet.
  • Add awesome credits for extinction: The first few moments of chanting is met with the image of the words "Thanks for playing" on the screen. The main portion of music is met with credits as well as art from the explorer notes off to the side. In the moments leading up the guitar drop a blank Helena notebook page is shown that slowly starts drawing out the words "the end" and a drawing of the destroyed Aberration ARK after it touches the planet. Right before the note hits a "?" is put after "the end". When the note hits, the page moves down to reveal the 3D rendered version of the scene.
    • Add an option for the player to hit a button to skip a cutscene should they so choose.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Remember, I'm not demanding or expecting any changes to be made to the game, but I think it's good to imagine what the game COULD be like.
  • P.S: Sry I haven't posted in a while :(

    PPS: I'm sure there will be at least ONE piece of negative feedback to this  :(

Edited by ArkTheorist123
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  • 3 weeks later...

Who really is L Livingstone?! POSSIBLE ANSWER!

So after looking carefully at some explorer notes and other small details, I think I've come a little closer to the meaning of L Livingstone. First, my sources:

 

"We finally managed to get a terminal working, and well, this is it. I almost can't believe it, but I've finally found it! The mystery behind those stations, the whole reason we even exist, it's all right here!

According to this, those space stations are deliberately designed bio-domes called "ARKs," and they're exactly what they sound like: lifeboats. Whatever happened to the Earth, whether it was Element based technology like Santiago suspected or something else, these ARKs were built to preserve and cultivate life in all forms - fauna, flora and of course, human - safely separated from the planet's poisoned surface.

But something's gone wrong. There's all sorts of errors here...maybe that's why they turned into such death traps. There's something about a "Reseed Protocol" too.

I'll need time to look this over.
" - Helena Note #18 on Extinction

 

"When I said that things got "fuzzy" when I touched the artifact, that's not really the whole truth. I remember bits and pieces of it - images, flipping across my vision in rapid succession. At first they were hard to distinguish, but now that Mei-Yin has allowed me to study the prism at a distance, they're gradually becoming clearer.

A man made of light, monsters roaring, a sky on fire...they didn't seem like memories. At least not mine. If the prism put those images in my head, well that's a little frightening, honestly.

Mei-Yin's right. I need to tread carefully here. As much as I want to know the prism's secrets, if I delve for them too deeply, I could lose myself to it. We both saw where that could lead, back in that violet pit. I should apologize for pushing the matter...
" - Helena note #21 on Extinction

 

Based off my previous research, as well as these new findings, here's my verdict: Livingstone is A)The man who discovered, manufactured, and distributed tek, B)The precursor homo deus to Helena, and C)The being who INTENTIONALLY filled the ARKs with errors.

 

As I've mentioned before, Livingstone was likely the man who designed tek structures and distributed them around the world, gaining fame and fortune in doing so. We see this in the plaza in the Great City, "Livingstone Plaza", as well as an apparent trademark on the Broodmother dossier (Also, BIODIDAC may have been a codename for the tech behind the holo-dossiers). Considering that the dossier seems to come from the homo-deus era, it may be that Livingstone POSSIBLY invented some sort of life-extension tech in order to live throughout the element age.

 

My second point is that Livingstone was the homo deus that came before Helena. Not only that, but I think he could have been the one... that was PUTTING THOSE IMAHES IN HELENA'S HEAD!!! In the story, Helena is shown images, one of which was a "glowing man". Even if the glowing man was a representation of the human race, since it climbs an evolutionary ladder later, something or someONE was putting those images in Helena's head. Even more in support of this, she gets these hallucinations after touching a "glowing, diamond shaped prism". This is EXACTLY like collecting the One Who Waits notes - we get the notes from a pedestal with a GLOWING, DIAMOND-SHAPED PRISM in it, only for that same prism to explode in light and show us written messages and images!!! The prism is also inside Helena in the end cutscene, basically confirming that the prism is the symbol of the homo deus. So it COULD be that what Helena saw was Livingstone communicating with her in the same way she communicates to us in the game - the glowing prism.

 

But even so, we don't know for sure that the glowing man was LIVINGSTONE - anyone could have turned into a homo deus and talked to Helena. Which brings me to my last point. What if the humans didn't want homo dei involved in the ARKs AT ALL?! The ARKs seem like they were designed to be run by the Overseers, and the Overseers ALONE. Also, if the homo dei WERE meant to be included in such an important project like the ARKs, then why is the Tomb of Ascension so well- hidden underground? And why would the ARKs, with the ability to electromagnetically fix the atmosphere and evaporate element, fall victim to simple programming errors? Unless they were INTENTIONAL. Livingstone would have the perfect motive for syncing up with the ARKs and filling them with errors. As Helena mentions in the end Extinction cutscene, the ARKs also have the ability to "Purge element from the soil". Element was Livingstone's money-maker, his pride, his LIFE. If he saw that humans were designing tech to DESTROY element, he would definitely be unapproving. Or maybe he fell to the lures of element and took erratic action.  Either way, if he was also the ultimate precursor to Rockwell, the easiest way for him to solve this problem would OF COURSE be to sync with the ARKs and wreak havoc on them. Maybe that's why he REALLY communicated with Helena, to get her to follow in his footsteps.

 

Either way, it seems he was kicked from his position as homo deus when Helena inserted the prism in her wrist. But what if, contrary to him communicating with Helena, he wasn't dying like Helena was (again with possible life extension tech?)? Is the being in the Aberration crash site Rockwell, or Livingstone?!

 

Okay, that last bit could be wrong.

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