Dark Infinity

How Van Zandt persuaded the world’s great powers to accede
(mostly) to his terms is one of the “big secrets” of the Infinite Worlds
setting. Some possibilities:
Conspiracy: Infinity Unlimited is the instrument of a vast, ruthless
conspiracy that has dominated the corridors of power for centuries.
The rise of Infinity was the culmination of centuries of preparation.
But who won? Do the Illuminati control it?
The Menace from Beyond Time: The world’s leaders caved in because
of what Van Zandt showed them. They’ve suppressed this to prevent
panic, but perhaps the truth is leaking out. Whatever the truth may be,
it’s obviously vitally important that humans spread across many
worlds. If the GM wants to have a “new power” invade the hyper-cos-
mos, there’s plenty of scope.
Deus Ex Paramachina: What if Van Zandt is much more than he
seems? Could he be a visitor from another, more advanced timeline? A
retired, wandering god? A rogue technomancer, exiled from the Four
Realms? It seems odd that Infinity and Centrum developed parachron-
ics so close together. Maybe it was planned. If so, who was responsible?
Was conflict the goal, or did something go wrong? Maybe Centrum was
supposed to be Infinity’s ally . . .
scouts” that the corporation recruited
for its perilous first-contact missions.
Trade opened with dozens of worlds.
Natural resources flowed in from the
untouched ore deposits of uninhabit-
ed alternate Earths. On the world that
came to be known as “Homeline,” the
environment began to recover as the
worst industrial wastes – and the most
polluting industries – were sent to
dead worlds already blighted beyond
anything mankind could do. Political
intrigues continued . . . but the econo-
my of Homeline was no longer one of
desperate scarcity.
Van Zandt retired immediately. “I
plan to devote the rest of my life to
travel and study,” he said, “and I’m
never going to touch a soldering iron
again.”
For a little while, it looked like the
start of a utopia, at least for Homeline.
And then the worm peeked out of the
multidimensional apple: Centrum, a
different reality-spanning culture,
with its own ideas of what a utopia
should look like.
Suddenly, infinite worlds meant
infinite trouble . . .