Aliens Among US!
KRYPTONIANS*
Although we know of only two true Kryptonians that have been a marked influence on the Wold Newton Universe, other Kryptonians have had quite an influence on it as we will see.
The origins of Krypton have been overly mythologized in novels, films and especially in series of funny books that purport to be the life story of Superman.
The story of Krypton actually begins shortly after the Capellean and Eridanean civilizations have made contact and are in the process of attempting to create one large intergrated civilization.
A world in an aged solar system was found to be fabulously wealthy in the crystals that power hyperdrive ships. The world was located on the border of the Capellean and Eridanean civilizations. So much of its surface and crust was crystalline that it was named Kryp'Tn (Crystal World)
Despite many eager volunteers to mine the wealth of Kryp'Tn a moritorium was put on mining activities because the combination of high gravity, thin air and destructive solar radiation causes a 90% fatality rate.
A few years later volunteers from both the Capellean and Eridanean civilizations underwent irrevokable gene therapy which enabled them to breed true, passing genetic manipulations and enhancements onto their progeny. Oddly enough, despite their great genetic enhancements, the gene therapy brings them closer to the original earth genetic norm, making Kryptonian and Earth human hybrids quite possible.
They have become not merely miners but colonists for this barren world. The fact that both of the civilizations have participated is heralded as the first step for true integration of the two civilizations.
The Kryp'Tn colonists are given enhanced skin, musculture and bone density to withstand the high gravity and harsh atmospheric conditions of Kryp'Tn. Because the giant red sun gives off solar radiation in proportions not conducive for Mammalian life, the colonists cellular structure contains solar filters and solar batteries. The filters strain out the destructive radiation and the batteries store up the positive radiation reducing but not eliminating their need to eat.
Because light is at a premium on their world, the Kryp'Tn colonists are also given ocular enhancements in the form of multiple lenses giving them vision of great depth, distance and detail. As a by product of the ocular enhancements and as a means of bleeding off excessively stored energy they are given the ability to focus and project light beams from their eyes. At first this was an ability that could not be used very often and was used only in cases of extreme emergency such as in cave ins where there was no light light source. However as the generations passed the ability grew stronger and easier to use, the light beams evolved into heat beams akin to biological laser beams.
Finally the Kryp'Tn colonists were given an inherent affinity for the fuel crystals, in this way, they could locate and distinguish the necessary crystals faster and more efficiently.
As time passed it soon became apparent that the basic ideological differences between the Capellean and Eridanean civilizations precluded any sort of unification.
Eventually both civilizations decided to claim the rich mining colony of Kryp'Tn for itself. This dispute caused the first Eridanean and Capellean War which took place in about 8,000 BP.The war was costly but only lasted a few years. A truce was signed in which both civilizations abrogated all claims to Kryp'Tn. Seizing its chance, Kryp'Tn declares its independence.
With its vast wealth of fuel crystals the newly independent state's citizens became fabulously wealthy. Most of the miners had drone clones created from their genetic material to free themselves of laborous work. The former miners used their new found leisure time coupled with their genetic enhancements to found a great civilization rich in art and the sciences. They imported materials from other worlds to planoform the mined out parts of Kryp'Tn.
They modified plants and animals to thrive in the harsh environment of the planet.
About two hundred years after the first Eridanean-Capellean War ends, a Kryp'Tn scientist discovers what he names as the Phantom Zone. He describes it as the space between the space between dimensions. If transported into the Zone, living tissue becomes static and insubstantial without losing cohesion. At this time however there is not way to successfully retrieve an object back from fthe Zone.
In twenty five years this problem is solved and living objects can be successfully transported back and forth between the phantom zone and and real space. This method however did not work for the first human volunteer who was trapped in the Zone for fifty years.
After the first human explorer is finally retrieved from the Phantom Zone it is discovered that his physical body had not aged one second while he had been zoned. His mind however had been active all the while he was zoned. He described the phantom zone as a vast chaos of quantum sinkholes, black holes estuaries, floating energy fields and distortions, odd singularities and formless wastes. Shortly after his restoration to the physical world however he comitted suicide, something he had wanted to to for the past 45 years.
Having recently undergone a particularly vicious war, using bacteriological and genetic weapson that killed millions, the Eridanean and Capellean civilizations began using the Phantom Zone imprison incorrigible criminals. Among them are the notorious Tocs and Ogs.
Kryp'Tn however believed that the Phantom Zone was a punishment worse than death and refused its use for such purposes. They came to regret their decision a few few years later as the highly advanced Kryp'Tn civilization nearly falls into chaos as a clone rebellion turns into a civil war.
The leader of the rebellion assumes leadership of the planet. Under the name of El (Lord) he establishes a ruling dynasty that will eventually step down in favor of a ruling council. El brings an end to the practice of cloning as a means of creating a servile class. He further more declares all clones to be full citizens of Kryp'Tn. Citing the recent biological war between the Capelleans and Eridaneans, El declares Kryp'Tn isolated from the universe. To this end Kryp'Tn will no longer receive incoming space travel.
The technology for space travel is declared forbidden and the records are destroyed.
Thus there is scant knowledge about Kryp'Tn for nearly a thousand years, from information released from Superman, Kryp'Tn apparently thrived in its isolation. Creating a near utopia and transforming its originally barren world into a marvel with a self sustaining ecosystem of fabulous animals, fantastic plants and odd meterological conditons.
As a side note, athough it took several years before Superman landed on the Earth, Kryp'Tn did have exert some influence on events taking place on the Earth, In 1894, chemist and biologist, Abegdano Danner having corresponded with Marra (then using the name Moreau) was given a sample of an unstable "serum" that Moreau had created that would give a mammals the proportional strength of an insect. The "serum" was actually a non-species specific genetic virus based on the DNA of the Kryptonian, which Marra had helped develop. Danner successfully stabilized it and tested it first on kitten and then on his unborn child. After Danner was forced to destroy the kitten by poisoning it, he knew the "serum" was too dangerous for general use or knowledge.
He destroyed all his notes and the rest of the "serum" The son Hugo Danner grew up to have abilities close to Clark Kent's but frustrated at being a freak turned to crime and then went into seclusion. A lightning bolt in South America purportedly killed him. However in the 1940's a teenager having abilities close to his first appeared. The teenager, Arnold "Iron Munro was Hugo Danner's natural child.
From Jor-El's notes and from other sources of information, namely information sent back from Bronson's Planet aka Mongo by Dr. Alexi Zarkoff, we now have a clearer picture of the destruction of Kryp'Tn.
The planet Mongo from the Barsoomian Universe had achieved a method of opening extradimensional rifts successfully open extradimensional rifts into the Wold Newton Universe. Although the rifts closed once the ray creating them was shut down, their effects were sometimes long lasting, as was the case of the rift accidently opened in the planetary core of Krypton which occured around the earth year 1912. This rift lead to a long lasting geological instability that eventually lead to the planet's destruction.
Shortly after his son Kal-El is born on the planet Kryp'Tn Jor-El discovers the geological instability that threatens the planet of Krypton. Because he cannot pinpoint the exact cause or development of the instability his findings are refuted. Jor-El begins to study forbidden spaceflight technology as a means of saving his family.
Around the earth year 1917 Krypton blows up and Kal-El is sent to Earth in prototype warp capsule. He is discovered and adopted by the Kents, who name him Clark Kent and keep his alien origins a secret. As Clark grows he finds that his Kryptonian enhanced physiogamy and genetic alterations make him the strongest, fastest man on the planet. However, the built in affinity that the Kryptonians have for the fuel crystals turns out to be a liability for those that crystals find their way to earth have undergone transformations due to various radioactive contaminations and now have deadly or peculiar effects on Kryptonian biology.
Clark Kent eventually married Lois Lane, a "typical" earth human with genetic ties to the mutant Wold Newton family. They have two children, Joel and Kara. Athough Joel born typically human this is attributed to Lois being exposed to gold kryptonite while Joel was still a fetus. The more likely explanation is that being a hybrid, Joel merely took more after his mother whereas his sister, Kara took more after their father.
Kara Kent had a short career as Supergirl but her appearances began tapering off after her marriage to Bruce Wayne jr.
*Portions of the theories presented in this article have been substantially expanded and revised due to new evidence that has come to light in the past few years. The new findings can be found in the article entitled Krypton Decrypted
© 2000 Dennis Power
Special thanks to Matthew Baugh for providing the information on the Rogue Planet incident.
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