Paracausal Studies

That Which Is Indistinguishable From Magic

Paracausality is the cutting edge of science. Born from the debris of the Deimos Event, paracausal science gave rise to both the omninet and blinkspace travel. But what, exactly, is “paracausality”? Causality is the relationship between cause and effect; paracausality references things abnormal to, adjacent to, or apart from cause and effect. Paracausality is a fuzzy science. It cannot be truly be explained without paraphrasing Arthur C. Clarke: it is so advanced – and so alien – that it is indistinguishable from magic. Officially, paracausal studies are only a field of study within the walls of certain high-tier USB campuses; however, in practice, certain corpro-states – Harrison Armory and HORUS in particular – are making inroads into this field without Union’s approval. Union, meanwhile, monitors these and other paracausal research and development facilities via the Union Aeronautics and Astronautics Advanced Development Projects Division on Ganymede. This campus, the “Skunkworks" for short, is a secret joint USB/UND project that, in addition to monitoring outside paracausal development centers, engages in its own research and development programs. The amount of knowledge these corpro-states have acquired is a known-unknown: joint USB–UND intelligence teams have engaged in clandestine missions to infiltrate and identify sites, programs, and campuses where unsanctioned paracausal studies are taking place, but it isn’t clear how much other research has passed beneath the radar. Paracausal encounters, weapons, and technologies – other than the omninet and blinkspace travel – are rare in Lancer. Only the wealthiest, most advanced, or most prestigious NPCs have access to paracausal equipment. Most soldiers, from the average grunt to the typical general, have probably never encountered a paracausal phenomenon, though they may have heard rumours in the ranks.

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