Okay, so by now it should be evident that the story is moving two threads that were out of sync with one another–Westward’s main storyline and that of the Arizonaverse–into concurrency. In Purgatory and Ascension, the story took place somewhere in the months leading up to the end of the countdown and the arrival of the alien “seed” on Earth; the effective end of the world. Next week, we’ll begin exploring what the consequences are. We’ll get hints of what happens in Westward, but post-Ascension Earth will be explored in much more detail in Arizona, a comic strip available exclusively to Westward patrons. You won’t want to miss it, Pioneers! -e