Advent

Advent is the term used by the intercosmic expedition for each extended period of contact and activity at a world, carried out by the command crew aboard the vessel Daban Urnud. Advents are numbered to distinguish different eras of contact at different worlds.

Known Advents

• First Advent
• Second Advent
• Third Advent
• Fourth Advent

Usage and Roles

• The ship’s stated purpose is to make its way to new cosmi and conduct new Advents.
• Linguists are regarded as strategic assets during an Advent because communication with a new world is essential to the mission.
• Reports describe each Advent as a long, disruptive era of contact that culminates in a complete refit of the ship before it departs for the next cosmos.
• Shipboard accounts describe a recurring pattern at Advent: some visitors settle on the visited world, while some locals join the voyage to continue on.
• Political alignments aboard the ship are often framed as the Fulcrum opposing the Pedestal. During an Advent, influence is said to tend to shift toward the strategic command (“Gan”) and away from the tactical command (“Prag”), though usage and emphasis vary among shipboard groups.

Current Context

• The contact with Arbre is referred to as the Fourth Advent. Shipboard speakers also refer to earlier Advents at Tro, Laterre, and Fthos, with the vessel rebuilt and re-crewed between these eras before moving on.

Notes

• Accounts describe long intervals between Advents, with extensive activity during each period before the ship moves on.