Ones Above
| Ones Above | |
|---|---|
| World of Origin | Unknown |
| Universe | Cosmere |
The Ones Above is the colloquial name for a spacefaring group that regularly visits the Eelakin people on First of the Sun.[1] Their name references the fact that they arrived in the sky above First of the Sun in spaceships.
Characteristics[edit]
Vathi, who has met some of the Ones Above in person, notes that "they look like us; at times they talk like us".[1] This indicates that they are (or can appear) human and that some individuals may be able to speak the Eelakin language. Vathi also says that they have their own language when describing a translator device and an equipment manual.[1] Vathi suspects that they are immortal, until she sees one individual appear to choke to death.[1]
The Ones Above are fascinated with the Aviar; Vathi believes that they want to acquire them.[1] However, the Ones Above seem to be bound by certain laws preventing them from simply invading the islands or even trading with less advanced cultures.[1] They don't explain these laws to the Eelakin, but they insinuate that they know of other space-faring peoples that would not face similar restrictions.[1]
Technology[edit]
The native people of First of the Sun were traditionally sailors and wayfinders who used outrigger canoes to navigate the Eelakin Islands and the Pantheon. Vathi says that they had barely worked out marine propulsion on their own.[1] The Ones Above have technology that is far superior to anything found on the planet before their arrival. They visit First of the Sun through interplanetary space travel.[2][3] They give some of their technology to the Eelakin, typically without an explanation of how it works.[1]
- Dusk (and presumably other trappers) use sea charts created by the Ones Above that are more accurate than any that they can create themselves.[1]
- Vathi uses a handheld device that is both a language translator and a short-range Aviar-locating device.[1]
- The Northern Interests Trading Company also possesses a larger, long-range Aviar locator that can scan an entire island and print a map of any Aviar detected there. Aviar react negatively when the machine is activated.[1]
The Company also has iron-hulled ships, cannons that can fend off deepwalkers, and gunpowder-based spear guns capable of killing a nightmaw.[1] Based on the description of traditional Eelakin society, it seems unlikely that these technologies were developed naturally; however, it is not explicitly stated that they originated with the Ones Above.
Vathi tells Dusk that he has not "seen the things they can do", implying that the Ones Above have demonstrated even more advanced technologies to some of the Eelakin.[1]
History[edit]
The Ones Above did not specifically seek out First of the Sun, but there are ways of detecting intelligent life in the Cognitive Realm.[4] This allowed the Ones Above to "stumble upon" the planet, but they realized that they could not travel through its perpendicularity due to the unusual history of a Shard there and the exceptionally dangerous location of the perpendicularity.[3][5] Instead, they decided to safely travel to the planet via the Physical Realm.[2][4]
The Ones Above first began visiting First of the Sun less than ten years before the Patji expedition.[6] The visits occurred regularly and seemed to quickly become an accepted part of the culture.[1] The specifics of the meetings between the Ones Above and the native population have not been revealed, but they did meet in person; an emissary worked directly with Vathi and others at her company.[1] Eelakin society on the homeisles underwent various changes that stemmed from the advances in technology. This included a new focus on education and industry, reduced interest in traditional names and professions, and increased demand for Aviar, including new demand from the mainland.[1] Dusk believed that only trappers still learned the "old arts".[1] Dusk noted that companies such as Northern Interests Trading had been looking to establish outposts on the Pantheon "for years" and that the visits of the Ones Above were not to blame for their ambition.[1]
Although both Dusk and Vathi were distrustful of the Ones Above, they both used their technology, like all other Eelakin.[1] The Company's latest expeditions to the Pantheon would likely have been impossible without the advances that originated with the Ones Above. The Ones Above seemed benevolent, but Dusk and Vathi ultimately realized that there had been subterfuge on various occasions that resulted in the Eelakin rapidly gaining technology or making "discoveries" through planted devices or information. They theorized that the Ones Above were intentionally doling out the technology, quickly advancing Eelakin society in order to subvert the "laws" that were preventing them from taking the Aviar.[1]
Trivia and Other Appearances[edit]
Some version of the Ones Above was seen in the cosmere prior to the publication of Sixth of the Dusk.[7][8][9] Since no other works take place on First of the Sun, this means that they have been part of the storyline on another planet.[10]
Chronologically, Sixth of the Dusk occurs near the end of Brandon's overall plans for the cosmere.[11][3] Brandon has mentioned that his long-term plan for the Mistborn series includes books in a sci-fi setting that include FTL (faster-than-light) space travel.[12][13][14] Based on this, it may be that the Ones Above are travelers from a future version of Scadrial, however Brandon has declined to confirm this.[15][16] Scadrians are not the only option, as there are other societies that would be capable of space travel by that time.[17][18] Dusk is also known to have tried food that originated on Roshar.[19]
When Hoid is telling the story of Tress on Lumar, he mentions visitors to "your planet" whose spaceships have a form of intelligent AI or spren similar to Seslo. He refers to this phenomenon as spirits or "speaking minds" that inhabit the ships and can control many of their functions at the request of their owners.[20] Given the timeframe and Hoid's references to the reader's seafaring culture, it is heavily implied that the intended audience is a resident of First of the Sun and the visitors who possess these sapient ships are the Ones Above,[21][20] but Hoid does not explicitly confirm this.
Notes[edit]
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Sixth of the Dusk#
- ↑ a b Sofia signing
— Arcanum - 2017-03-28# - ↑ a b c Arcanum Unbounded Seattle signing
— Arcanum - 2016-12-01# - ↑ a b San Diego Comic-Con@Home 2020
— Arcanum - 2020-07-23# - ↑ White Sand vol.1 release party
— Arcanum - 2016-06-28# - ↑ American Fork High School Signing
— Arcanum - 2019-12-12# - ↑ General Signed Books 2014
— Arcanum - 2014-07-22# - ↑ Orem signing 2014
— Arcanum - 2014-12-06# - ↑ Idaho Falls signing
— Arcanum - 2018-12-29# - ↑ Firefight Houston signing
— Arcanum - 2015-01-23# - ↑ Sixth of the Dusk postscript#
- ↑ Arcanum Unbounded Chicago signing
— Arcanum - 2016-12-06# - ↑ /r/fantasy AMA 2011
— Arcanum - 2011-08-31# - ↑ Alloy of Law release party
— Arcanum - 2011-11-07# - ↑ Calamity Philadelphia signing
— Arcanum - 2016-02-20# - ↑ Oathbringer Chicago signing
— Arcanum - 2017-11-21# - ↑ Skyward Pre-Release AMA
— Arcanum - 2018-10-04# - ↑ /r/books AMA 2015
— Arcanum - 2015-06-25# - ↑ General Signed Books 2016
— Arcanum - 2016-01-24# - ↑ a b Tress of the Emerald Sea chapter 60#
- ↑ Tress of the Emerald Sea chapter 43#