The Becoming of Haven

The Tommyknockers

This thread traces how an alien influence spreads from the excavation into Haven, altering bodies, minds, behavior, and the town’s relationship with outsiders.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

First Symptoms First Symptoms from "The Tommyknockers". First Symptoms An unseen exposure Near the buried ship, Peter’s cataract begins to recede and Bobbi experiences abnormal bleeding, lost time, and exhaustion.

First Symptoms from "The Tommyknockers". First Symptoms An unseen exposure Near the buried ship, Peter’s cataract begins to recede and Bobbi experiences abnormal bleeding, lost time, and exhaustion.

First Symptoms An unseen exposure Near the buried ship, Peter’s cataract begins to recede and Bobbi experiences abnormal bleeding, lost time, and exhaustion. Dead wildlife appears around the excavation. Change without explanation The effects are small enough to rationalize separately. Together, they suggest that contact with the ship is changing living things.

Ideas in the Air Ideas in the Air from "The Tommyknockers". Ideas in the Air Sudden invention Haven residents begin making devices they could not previously have designed, often using batteries and scavenged household…

Ideas in the Air from "The Tommyknockers". Ideas in the Air Sudden invention Haven residents begin making devices they could not previously have designed, often using batteries and scavenged household…

Ideas in the Air Sudden invention Haven residents begin making devices they could not previously have designed, often using batteries and scavenged household parts. Some also acquire unusual perception or mental abilities. A dangerous imbalance The new competence does not bring judgment with it. Residents act on compulsions and inventions whose risks they barely understand.

The Shared Mind The Shared Mind from "The Tommyknockers". The Shared Mind A town-wide network Thoughts pass among Haven residents, first as confusing murmurs and then as a shared mental current.

The Shared Mind from "The Tommyknockers". The Shared Mind A town-wide network Thoughts pass among Haven residents, first as confusing murmurs and then as a shared mental current.

The Shared Mind A town-wide network Thoughts pass among Haven residents, first as confusing murmurs and then as a shared mental current. Outsiders who approach the town experience sickness and disorientation. Resistance becomes isolation Ruth McCausland realizes that the town’s growing unity is not simple community. Its collective mind pressures dissenters to remain and change.

The First Disappearance The First Disappearance from "The Tommyknockers". The First Disappearance A trick goes wrong Hilly Brown uses his invention to make David vanish during a magic show.

The First Disappearance from "The Tommyknockers". The First Disappearance A trick goes wrong Hilly Brown uses his invention to make David vanish during a magic show.

The First Disappearance A trick goes wrong Hilly Brown uses his invention to make David vanish during a magic show. The machine does not bring the child back when Hilly reverses it. Denial takes hold The family and neighbors conduct a search while the linked minds know David is not in the woods. The community’s public concern conceals its growing alien consensus.

The Borders Close The Borders Close from "The Tommyknockers". The Borders Close A fortified town As the danger escalates, Haven residents use devices and mental coordination to control entry and prevent outsiders from…

The Borders Close from "The Tommyknockers". The Borders Close A fortified town As the danger escalates, Haven residents use devices and mental coordination to control entry and prevent outsiders from…

The Borders Close A fortified town As the danger escalates, Haven residents use devices and mental coordination to control entry and prevent outsiders from reaching the ship. The town becomes increasingly cut off from the world. A local crisis becomes global A fire, deaths, and failed rescue attempts draw wider attention. The community’s transformation now threatens people far beyond Haven.

Late June 1988

Early July 1988

Mid-July 1988

July 17, 1988

August 19, 1988