I'm new here, but this bears acknowledging: While searching for more info on Rasputin, a character who greatly intrigued me and got very little screen-time, I discovered a film from '96 titled "Rasputin: Dark Servant of Destiny." Thought you may want to look into that title a bit. Also, I've developed a theory that the Traveller is not only provided gifts to the people of Earth, but also living off of a precious commodity: time. Think about it: NO history is touched on in detail following life before the Traveller save for some of it's gifts. If the Traveller literally consumes time from Earth's history (weeping angels style, without actually sending you back in time), that would explain Rasputin's cause/effect anomaly. Perhaps Rasputin detected the Traveller's true food source and, in an attempt to destroy the Traveller and preserve what history was left (as an AI who's very existence is dependent on it's ability to learn, IE, observe HISTORY) Rasputin, perhaps hungry or mad on power, hacked into the Traveller and used it's own systems to summon it's mortal enemy, the Darkness. Once the Darkness did it's job, Rasputin went to work eliminating the Darkness, a more feasible feat for a disembodied AI. Just a thought, let me know what you think.