The Nonliving Cosmos

Core premise: Human civilization is a thing of the distant past. Perhaps it was lost in a “Great Calamity,” or perhaps humanity chose to ascend and depart, leaving behind some of its legacy and a terraformed Solar System. A civilization of robots, who call themselves “descendants” or “heirs,” develops and flourishes independently, built upon the seed AIs and basic infrastructure left behind by humanity. They take an extraordinarily diverse range of forms. At the heart of the story are the interactions within this civilization, the meaning of its existence, and how it evolves in the face of challenges from the depths of the universe or from within itself.