Alliance–Union universe
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The Alliance–Union universe is a
fictional universe A fictional universe, or fictional world, is a self-consistent setting with events, and often other elements, that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed, or fictional realm (or world). Fictional universes may ...
created by American writer
C. J. Cherryh Carolyn Janice Cherry (born September 1, 1942), better known by the pen name C. J. Cherryh, is an American writer of speculative fiction. She has written more than 80 books since the mid-1970s, including the Hugo Award-winning novels '' Downbelo ...
. It is the setting for a future history series extending from the 21st century into the far future. To date, the corpus of the Alliance–Union universe consists of 27 science fiction novels along with a series of seven short story anthologies edited by Cherryh and a few other miscellaneous works. It encompasses both books for which Cherryh won the
Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier a ...
for Best Novel, ''
Downbelow Station ''Downbelow Station'' is a science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh, published in 1981 by DAW Books. It won the Hugo Award in 1982, was shortlisted for a Locus Award that same year, and was named by ''Locus'' magazine as one of ...
'' and '' Cyteen'', and also incorporates various other series books such as the '' Faded Sun'' trilogy, the '' Chanur'' novels, the four '' Morgaine'' books, and the ''
Merovingen Nights ''Merovingen Nights'' is a series of shared universe science fiction books set in writer C. J. Cherryh's Alliance–Union universe. There are eight books in the series: a novel by Cherryh, '' Angel with the Sword'', and seven short fiction anth ...
'' shared universe series.


Description

The Alliance–Union universe is a fictional future history created by Cherryh. It spans the third and fourth millennia, and is centered around humanity's exploration and colonization of space. Three economic powers have arisen, Earth Company, operating from Earth, the Alliance, a confederation of trade merchants operating interstellar freighters between Earth,
space station A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a human crew in orbit for an extended period of time, and is therefore a type of space habitat. It lacks major propulsion or landing systems. An orbital station or an orbital space station i ...
s and colonized planets, and the Union, a breakaway government based on the planet of Cyteen. The Earth Company's attempts to control the expansions into space are defeated during the Company Wars, and the Union clashes with both the Alliance and Earth Company in their quest to expand their territories using cloned humans called ''
azi ''Azi'' (''Today'' in Romanian) is a Romanian daily newspaper published in Bucharest. The paper was started in 1990. Today was also the name of a literary magazine published monthly in Romania, from March 1932 to August 1938, under the directio ...
''. In addition to Cherryh's Company War novels, her Alliance–Union universe also comprises several other novel series, including
The Faded Sun Trilogy The Faded Sun trilogy is a series of science fiction novels set in the Alliance-Union universe of American writer C. J. Cherryh. The series comprises the three novels ''The Faded Sun: Kesrith'' (1978), ''The Faded Sun: Shon'jir'' (1978), and ' ...
, the Compact Space series and the
Merovingen Nights ''Merovingen Nights'' is a series of shared universe science fiction books set in writer C. J. Cherryh's Alliance–Union universe. There are eight books in the series: a novel by Cherryh, '' Angel with the Sword'', and seven short fiction anth ...
shared universe.
Patricia Monk Patricia Monk (1938-2021) was a professor at Dalhousie University from 1970 to her retirement in 2003. She was the first woman to be promoted to full professor in Dalhousie's English department and is known for her work on Canadian literature and s ...
suggested in her paper "The shared universe: an experiment in speculative fiction" that linking these Alliance–Union series in a common future history creates a "megatext" or "collage novel".


History

As humanity reaches out to the stars,
space station A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a human crew in orbit for an extended period of time, and is therefore a type of space habitat. It lacks major propulsion or landing systems. An orbital station or an orbital space station i ...
s are financed by the private Sol Corporation, eventually known as the Earth Company. Each new station is built by the previous one and is located ever farther away from Earth. In the days before faster-than-light travel (FTL), nine stations are laboriously constructed around nine stars, all lacking habitable planets. The stationers and the merchanters who man the ships that supply them both develop distinct cultural identities, but remain psychologically and to some degree materially dependent on Earth. Still, directives from Earth, bound by the speed of light, arrive hopelessly out-of-date and are routinely ignored, making the Earth Company's attempts to maintain control increasingly futile. When Pell's World is discovered in the Tau Ceti system, the fragile economic and political equilibrium is disrupted. Not only is this new planet's biosphere reasonably hospitable to humans – requiring only gas masks and air tanks for survival – but it also supports intelligent alien life, the gentle, technologically primitive Hisa, called "Downers" by humans. Importantly, human crops can be grown on Pell's World, dangerously weakening Earth's economic dominance. After the construction of Pell Station above the planet, colonists expand outward in space with renewed vigor and build additional stations even more distant from Earth. The first successful FTL probe using newly developed jump technology is launched in 2248. Earth takes advantage of the breakthrough to try to re-assert its authority among the colonists. With a poor understanding of stationers and merchanters alike, its clumsy attempts backfire, provoking first unrest, then occasional armed clashes, and eventually
rebellion Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...
. As the situation spirals out of control, the Earth Company commissions the building of 50 military carriers, the "Company Fleet", under the command of Conrad Mazian, to enforce its orders. The situation culminates in 2300 with the declaration of an independent Union by the colonists centered at the Cyteen system, another habitable planet and space station at Lalande 46650, precipitating outright war. Union augments its population and
armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
with genetically engineered and psychologically conditioned human clones, called
azi ''Azi'' (''Today'' in Romanian) is a Romanian daily newspaper published in Bucharest. The paper was started in 1990. Today was also the name of a literary magazine published monthly in Romania, from March 1932 to August 1938, under the directio ...
, which are seen as an abomination by Earth. Fighting between the Fleet and Union forces is fierce during the ensuing "Company War". The stations closest to Earth, disturbed by the azi and other developments on the Union side, remain loyal to Earth; several of these are destroyed by Union action. With sporadic, inadequate support from Earth, the Fleet has no choice but to forcibly requisition equipment and personnel from the increasingly alienated merchanters. However, these measures only serve to maintain the existing warships. Without new ships to replace its combat losses, the Fleet gradually begins to lose a war of attrition. Caught in the middle are the merchanter families and Pell Station, the primary transit point between Earth and Union space. The conflict comes to a head at Pell in late 2352 and early 2353, as described in the novel ''Downbelow Station''. Faced with the increasingly dangerous situation, many of the merchanter families finally band together to form the Merchanter's Alliance, creating a third, neutral power, soon after a team arrives from Earth to negotiate an end to the conflict. Mazian refuses to accept the peace, and the Fleet continues to fight on, this time in the service of his ambition. When Signy Mallory, one of his most senior captains, learns of his plans to seize control of Earth itself, she and her ship, ''Norway'', defect to the new Alliance, becoming the core of its militia. The remainder of the Fleet remains loyal to Mazian, but he is forced to launch his coup attempt prematurely. Forewarned, Earth manages to defend itself. With Earth turned against the "Mazianni", Union sees a chance to finally rid itself of its bitter enemy. Because Union does not dare weaken its forces at this crucial juncture to guard its rear against the newborn state, the Alliance is able to broker a favorable peace treaty, with Pell Station as its de facto home base. The treaty cedes to the Alliance a monopoly on interstellar commerce, even within Union, giving it the power to shut down stations simply by withholding trade. The Mazianni are gradually driven off, as mentioned in ''
Rimrunners ''Rimrunners'' is a science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh, set in her Alliance-Union universe, in which humanity has split into three major power blocs: Union, the Merchanter's Alliance and Earth. Chronologically, the book fo ...
'' and ''
Merchanter's Luck ''Merchanter's Luck'' is a science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh. It is set in the author's Alliance-Union universe, in which humanity has split into three major power blocs: Union, the Merchanter's Alliance and Earth. In the ...
''. In '' Tripoint'', however, it is revealed that they have discovered another habitable world and are establishing a colony there. As the danger of the Mazianni recedes, a new rivalry develops between the Alliance and Union. Union resents the treaty restrictions, while the Alliance fears being overwhelmed by Union's much larger population. Tensions rise further when Gehenna, a precious habitable planet in the Alliance sphere of influence, is found to harbor a population descended from a secret Union military mission deliberately abandoned there to deny the Alliance an easy acquisition. Meanwhile, within Union, two political factions vie to determine its future. Unbeknownst to either, brilliant scientist and political leader Ariane Emory has her own agenda. The events depicted in the first books in the series, '' Heavy Time'' and '' Hellburner'', take place shortly after the start of the war. Most of the books set in this universe, however, take place subsequent to the establishment of both the Merchanter Alliance and the breakaway Union, hence the label "Alliance–Union" universe.


Genre

The many of the works in this universe are set in space, and are usually described as
space opera Space opera is a subgenre of science fiction that emphasizes space warfare, with use of melodramatic, risk-taking space adventures, relationships, and chivalric romance. Set mainly or entirely in outer space, it features technological and soci ...
, while those set on planets can be seen as planetary romances. Works such as ''Cyteen'' and ''Downbelow Station'' are also regarded as hard science fiction. The "Company Wars" novels and the ''Faded Sun'' trilogy concerning the Mri Wars are examples of the military science fiction subgenre. The ''Merovingen Nights'' series takes place on a single planet and features swashbuckling heroes and low levels of technology, and as such might be classified as
science fantasy Science fantasy is a hybrid genre within speculative fiction that simultaneously draws upon or combines tropes and elements from both science fiction and fantasy. In a conventional science fiction story, the world is presented as being scientif ...
, borrowing elements from the historic
sword and planet Sword and planet is a subgenre of science fantasy that features rousing adventure stories set on other planets, and usually featuring humans as protagonists. The name derives from the heroes of the genre engaging their adversaries in hand-to-ha ...
subgenre; this is also true for the Morgaine Cycle books, set remotely in time and space from the main sequence. Unlike most works in this universe, the novel ''
Voyager in Night ''Alternate Realities'' is a 2000 omnibus collection of three short science fiction novels by American writer author C. J. Cherryh: ''Wave Without a Shore'' (1981), ''Port Eternity'' (1982), and ''Voyager in Night'' (1984). All three novels are se ...
'' also borrows elements from horror fiction.


Books and reading order

: ''For a complete list of works in the Alliance–Union universe, see the article C. J. Cherryh bibliography'' Cherryh has stated that with two exceptions, the books set in the Alliance–Union universe can be read in any order, "just like real history." The first exception she notes is the two novels ''Heavy Time'' and ''Hellburner'', which should be read in that order (as originally published and as compiled together in the omnibus edition '' Devil to the Belt''). The two are prequels to ''Downbelow Station'', although they can be read either before or after that novel. The second exception is ''Cyteen'' and its sequel ''
Regenesis ''ReGenesis'' is a Canadian science-fiction television series produced by The Movie Network and Movie Central in conjunction with Shaftesbury Films. The series, which ran for four seasons from 2004 to 2008, revolves around the scientists of No ...
'', which are tightly linked and should be read in that order too. The novels in the ''Faded Sun'' trilogy are designed to be read in sequence, as are the books within the ''Chanur'' and ''Morgaine'' series. The ''Merovingen Nights'' series begins with the novel ''
Angel with the Sword ''Angel with the Sword'' is a science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh, published in 1985 by DAW Books. It is set in Cherryh's Alliance–Union universe, and is the first book in the shared universe '' Merovingen Nights''. Recept ...
'' and then continues to the short story anthologies, numbered 1 through 7.


Major characters

* Pyanfar Chanur, Hani captain of one of her clan's merchant starships, the ''Pride of Chanur''; later leader of the Compact, a loose confederation of diverse species that deliberately excludes humans lest they disrupt the delicate balance of power (the ''Chanur'' novels) * Sten Duncan, Alliance Security special forces soldier; human who "goes native" and joins the Mri; serves as mediator between the Mri and humans (the ''Faded Sun'' trilogy) * Ariane Emory-1, superb scientist and Union administrator of the influential and politically powerful Reseune research complex, source of most azi innovations (''Cyteen'') * Ariane Emory-2 PR (Personal Replicate), clone of Ariane Emory created after her progenitor's death (''Cyteen'', ''Regenesis'') * Damon Konstantin, Pell Station administrator and ''ex-officio'' leader of the Merchanter Alliance; husband of Elene Quen (''Downbelow Station'') * Elene Quen, co-founder of the Merchanter's Alliance; last survivor of the respected Quen merchanter family, casualties of the Company War (''Downbelow Station'') * Conrad Mazian, brilliant commander of the outnumbered Earth Company Fleet; after the end of the Company War, leader of the renegade Mazianni, the remnant of the Fleet—except ECS ''Norway''—that survived the war (''Downbelow Station'') * Signy Mallory, captain of the Earth Company military carrier ship ''Norway''; defects to the Alliance after Mazian turns against Earth; her ship (along with the armed superfreighter '' Finity's End'') forms the core of the newborn Alliance's militia (''Downbelow Station'', ''Merchanter's Luck'') * Elizabeth McGee, Union scientist (''Forty Thousand in Gehenna'') * James Robert Neihart, senior captain of ''Finity's End'' and one of the Merchanter Alliance negotiators (''Finity's End'') * Kurt Morgan, sole surviving crewman of the Alliance ship ''Endymion'', participant in the Hanan Rebellion and the wars of the Nemet race ('' Brothers of Earth'') * Raen a Sul hant Meth-maren, sole survivor and head of the Sul sept of the Meth-Maren House of the Kontrin company; human mediator with the alien, hive-mind Majat (''
Serpent's Reach ''Serpent's Reach'' is a 1980 science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh. The book was nominated for the Locus Award for Best Novel in 1981. It is set in the author's Alliance-Union universe. Specific placement of the novel withi ...
'') * Thorn, Hatani guild member; human raised by the Shonunin to be their ambassador to his species (''
Cuckoo's Egg ''Cuckoo's Egg'' is a science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh, which introduces a fictional race (the Shonunin) raising a human boy. It was published by DAW Books in 1985, and there was also a limited hardcover printing by Pha ...
'')


Sentient alien species

Cherryh has been praised for her complex, well-developed alien cultures. Her Alliance–Union universe features numerous sentient alien species, including the following: The novels ''
Port Eternity ''Alternate Realities'' is a 2000 omnibus collection of three short science fiction novels by American writer author C. J. Cherryh: ''Wave Without a Shore'' (1981), ''Port Eternity'' (1982), and ''Voyager in Night'' (1984). All three novels are se ...
'' and ''Voyager in Night'' feature additional sentient alien races. The ''Morgaine'' books are built around the actions of a humanoid race called the ''Qual'', ''Khal'' and similar names, while Morgaine herself is a half-blood member of the "ancestors of the qual", and the third book in the series features an arboreal species called the ''Harilim''.


Planets


Pell's World

Pell's World, also known as Downbelow, is a planet orbiting Tau Ceti; it was discovered by a probe in 2093. It was the first planet in the Alliance–Union universe to be discovered by humans that has an advanced ecosystem and, more significantly, intelligent
extraterrestrial life Extraterrestrial life, colloquially referred to as alien life, is life that may occur outside Earth and which did not originate on Earth. No extraterrestrial life has yet been conclusively detected, although efforts are underway. Such life might ...
, the Hisa. Pell Station, a
space station A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a human crew in orbit for an extended period of time, and is therefore a type of space habitat. It lacks major propulsion or landing systems. An orbital station or an orbital space station i ...
prominent in this universe, orbits the planet. It was the discovery of
sentient Sentience is the capacity to experience feelings and sensations. The word was first coined by philosophers in the 1630s for the concept of an ability to feel, derived from Latin '' sentientem'' (a feeling), to distinguish it from the ability to ...
life that sent shock waves back to Earth, sparking off moral, religious, philosophical and policy debates. Then, to aggravate an already delicate situation, Pell Station became a source of agricultural goods and other luxuries, hitherto only available from Earth. This economic advantage disrupted the whole balance of power in the Alliance–Union universe, and became one of the main contributing factors to the outbreak of the Company Wars in 2300. Pell's World and the Hisa feature in a number of Alliance–Union universe novels, in particular ''
Downbelow Station ''Downbelow Station'' is a science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh, published in 1981 by DAW Books. It won the Hugo Award in 1982, was shortlisted for a Locus Award that same year, and was named by ''Locus'' magazine as one of ...
'' (1981) and '' Finity's End'' (1997).


Gehenna

Gehenna is a rare habitable Alliance–Union universe planet in the
Zeta Reticuli Zeta Reticuli, Latinized from ζ Reticuli, is a wide binary star system in the southern constellation of Reticulum. From the southern hemisphere the pair can be seen with the naked eye as a double star in very dark skies. Based ...
system, and home to the calibans, sentient lizard-like creatures. Although in Alliance space, it was secretly colonized by the Union, and then abandoned for the Alliance to discover a lost colony on what should have been a pristine planet. Gehenna features in two Alliance–Union universe novels, ''
Forty Thousand in Gehenna ''Forty Thousand in Gehenna'', alternately ''40,000 in Gehenna'', is a 1983 science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh. It is set in her Alliance-Union universe between 2354 and 2658, and is one of the few works in that universe t ...
'' (1983) and '' Cyteen'' (1988).


Cyteen

Cyteen is a planet deep in Union territory that was discovered between 2125 and 2201; it was found to have nonsentient life. Two space stations were constructed in orbit around the planet, the Inner and Outer Stations. The planet's atmosphere is toxic to humans and necessitated terraforming and the establishment of enclaves, or semi-encapsulated city-states. Its native life is also toxic, although it was the source of Cyteen's rejuvenation drug. Cyteen features in several of the Alliance–Union universe novels, most notably '' Cyteen'' (1988).


Technologies

In addition to the advanced technologies required to mine the asteroids, send slower-than-light vessels to nearby stars, and establish large space stations there, signature futuristic technologies of the Alliance–Union universe are: * The jump drive, derived from the theoretical physics work of Estelle Bok at Cyteen Station in 2230, allowing faster-than-light travel. When ships jump, they shift into a space parallel to normal space and appear to move at faster-than-light velocity until they re-enter normal space via their trajectory encountering a star-sized mass. Ships emerging from jump possess a large velocity relative to and pointed at the target mass; the jump drive is also used to lower this velocity to more reasonable levels. Jumps of more than about 10 light-years can sometimes result in the destruction of the jumping ship or its permanent disappearance into hyperspace, so ships' courses hop between stars and other nearby stars or ''jump points'' (large collections of matter that are not large enough to achieve fusion, such as
brown dwarfs Brown dwarfs (also called failed stars) are substellar objects that are not massive enough to sustain nuclear fusion of ordinary hydrogen ( 1H) into helium in their cores, unlike a main-sequence star. Instead, they have a mass between the most m ...
or
rogue planets A rogue planet (also termed a free-floating planet (FFP), interstellar, nomad, orphan, starless, unbound or wandering planet) is an interstellar object of planetary-mass, therefore smaller than fusors ( stars and brown dwarfs) and without a ...
). Jumps appear to take days to weeks from the perspective of the crew of the ship, but weeks to months from the perspective of the residents of stations and planets. The experience of jump is unpleasant enough to threaten the sanity of most of those who endure it without being tranquilized – spacers seem to fear few things more than "jump without trank". * Rejuv, a life-extension drug derived from lifeforms on the planet Cyteen sometime in the 2220s. Rejuv leaves users with the mental and physical capacities they had at the time they started using it (usually in a person's 40s) while extending life up to about age 140; when ''rejuv failure'' sets in, life functions collapse rapidly in a one- to two-year period. However, once a person begins using rejuv, they must continue to take it regularly or suffer fatal consequences. Side effects include sterility, some bone and muscle mass loss, and whitening of hair. The Earth Company's inability to control the underground rejuv trade with Union is one of the precipitating factors of the Company War. * Human cloning. Human cloning technology is developed to a high degree in Union. The clones require the normal amount of time to reach maturity, i.e. they must be raised to adulthood just as natural-born children are. A small amount of cloning is done to replicate children who die in accidents or to produce "Parental Replicates" for those who can afford them, but the vast majority of cloning is done to produce
azi ''Azi'' (''Today'' in Romanian) is a Romanian daily newspaper published in Bucharest. The paper was started in 1990. Today was also the name of a literary magazine published monthly in Romania, from March 1932 to August 1938, under the directio ...
, genetically-tailored laborers, technicians, and soldiers who lack civil rights (although they can acquire them). An azi genetic type's cognitive level is rated using a Greek-letter system similar to that in Aldous Huxley's '' Brave New World''. * Subliminal conditioning and information transfer, known as tape. Tape is used for a variety of purposes: entertainment, teaching both physical skills and advanced concepts, psychotherapy, and social and political indoctrination. The technologies involved do not involve direct brain interface, but instead use visual and auditory stimulation as well as electric muscle stimulation (to provide a kinesthetic component), all while under the influence of drugs to induce a state of suggestibility. Azi use tape extensively for rapid learning of skills required by their jobs as well as a constructed psychological state to make them do those jobs effectively and happily, as well as obey designated authorities. A technology similar to tape,
mindwipe A mindwipe is a fictional memory erasure procedure in which the subject's memories and sometimes personality are erased. Often those are replaced by new memories more useful to those who are carrying out the mindwiping. It is a more thorough for ...
, is used to create a blank-slate psychology and artificial amnesia in criminals, those with catastrophic psychological conditions, and deep-penetration secret agents, on top of which regular tape can be used to rebuild the person's psychology as desired. * Terraforming. Terraforming technologies were used by Union to make some areas of the planet Cyteen suitable for Earth-based life; Cyteen's native life is extremely toxic to Earth-based life, although it was the source of the rejuv drug. In the early years of Union this was a brutal "hand over fist" process, but later concerns over potential disruption of the rejuv supply led the Union government to stop the terraforming. During the period of détente after the Company War and Earth's contact with the Compact, Cyteen provides terraforming know-how to Earth, which uses it for bioremediation on Earth itself as well as terraforming on Mars.


Society

A broad trend in the Alliance–Union universe is the divergence of fundamental attitudes in planet-dwellers, space station-dwellers, and starship crews. Planet dwellers (ordinary residents of Earth and Cyteen) seem to have many of the same attitudes and concerns as 21st century people in developed countries. The space-dwelling populations find it strange that planet-dwellers fight over things like energy sources and territory (which are plentiful in space) but act in a cavalier and wasteful manner toward their physical environment (which must be carefully tended in space). Space station residents (stationers) tend toward extreme caution towards both their physical as well as social and economic environments, since an unplanned change in any of them could be fatal to the entire station population. For example, a great deal of the conflict in ''Downbelow Station'' is caused by Pell Station's need to absorb a large refugee population, for which they do not have adequate housing or jobs. Starship crew (spacers) have an extremely insular world-view engendered by the time-dilation effects of jump; this attitude was even more extreme before the jump drive was developed, when travel between stars took years. Merchant starships are all crewed by extended families, which occasionally fission if the family prospers enough to purchase another ship. Merchanter women will often have unprotected sex while in port in order to become pregnant and preserve genetic diversity in their crew-families. Spacer self-identification is so great that many spacers would rather starve to death than accept "grounding" and a stationer's life. Spacers often feel they can only relate to other spacers, since stationers and planet-dwellers seem to rapidly age and die from their perspective. Additionally, in Union, there is a cultural and psychological division between the unengineered citizen population ("CITs" or "born-men") and the azi. Azi are treated by CITs on a continuum between outright slavery and the companionship of equals; in many ways they are treated like children, since they are vulnerable to stimuli that lie outside the coping abilities of their artificially-constructed psychologies. The majority view in Union is that azi are necessary to preserve the technological and industrial base of their many space settlements, while a minority wants to abolish the practice and cease azi production. The majority view is apt to be the more stable and persistent, since azi can, in time, become citizens whose children are born CITs, and these children receive their basic values from their parents. This process is the result of deliberate social engineering on the part of Reseune, the Cyteen-based center of all research and development concerning human cloning.


Mazianni

The ''Mazianni'' is a term which refers to the military star-ships and their crews who remain loyal to their commander, the charismatic, ambitious Conrad Mazian, when he renounces his allegiance to Earth. The ships had begun their existence as the 50-ship strong Earth Company Fleet, sent out to enforce Earth's control of its star stations. In the long Company War between Earth and the breakaway Union, their number had been whittled down to 15 patchwork ships with waning loyalty to an increasingly indifferent Earth. Losing a war of attrition, Mazian devises a subtle, dangerous plan to establish a firebreak between Union and Earth. The Fleet retreats to Pell after the war. Mazian makes the fateful decision to rebel and attempt to take over Earth itself. ''Downbelow Station'' ends with his (implied) failure, and the defection of one of his most senior captains, Signy Mallory, and her ship ''Norway'' to the newborn Merchanter's Alliance, based at Pell. The remaining ships, outlawed by all three major powers, return to
guerrilla warfare Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or Irregular military, irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, Raid (military), raids ...
: hit-and-run raids and preying on merchant ships for replacement personnel and equipment. At least three subsequent merchanter novels mention the Mazianni. It is suggested that the Mazianni may have secretly discovered and settled their own habitable world.


Songs

C. J. Cherryh wrote a collection of songs about the station trade in the Alliance–Union universe. These were recorded by filk musician Leslie Fish and others, and released in 1985 on an album entitled ''Finity's End''.


Critical reception

Science fiction and fantasy critic
John Clute John Frederick Clute (born 12 September 1940) is a Canadian-born author and critic specializing in science fiction and fantasy literature who has lived in both England and the United States since 1969. He has been described as "an integral part o ...
called the Alliance–Union universe Cherryh's "central achievement". Writing in '' The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction'', Clute added that while the universe's structure is "rough at the edges", reading a novel in the series creates the impression that it is part of a larger history yet to be revealed. In a biography of Cherryh in the ''Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction in Literature'', M. Keith Booker described the Alliance–Union universe as "so far-reaching that its overall outlines remain unclear and continue to develop".


References


Works cited

* * *


Further reading

*


External links


Official Site
run by the author





{{DEFAULTSORT:Alliance-Union universe Science fiction book series by C. J. Cherryh Military science fiction Future history Fictional universes Dystopian novels Faster-than-light travel in fiction Cloning in fiction Genetic engineering in fiction Fiction about memory erasure and alteration Novels about extraterrestrial life