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 Posted: Fri May 18, 2007 3:32 pm
Welcome to Cascade Introduction Twenty years ago, humanity lost its innocense when reality's "darker"... metaphysical, some might say, side got exposed through a murder, a political scandal and many, many years of hidden "top secret" information coming to light. Clearly spoken, and in words few of that day's hard science would like to use, magic was let out of the box it had been kept hidden in. The general populace suddenly knew that vampires walked among them by night, feeding on the unwary, knew that werewolves were a part of the human population all but a few days each month, when they might be said to be more animal than human, knew that quite a few of their politicians had bargained away quite a few precious things to beings few would call anything else than "demons" for power, and much, much more. Status quo struggled, and fell. Ten years ago, war broke out, burned the land and the human civilization, rearranged a balance that had held for thousands of years, for better or worse. After that war, which left countries in ruins, cities toppled and the earth scorched and torn in places, overly soft, wet and green in others, a new balance slowly, laboriously, started to assert itself. The difference? The "Inhuman" part of Earth's population, in particular the vampires, have been left in control (though don't be fooled... there's most probably a demon somewhere in all of the highest echelons) of the new, staggering, society. Humans follow the new laws, or follow not at all. The cities and towns still standing and now well on the way to be fully rebuilt, are all firmly under Inhuman control, and almost any little wild settlement out in the countryside have at least one Inhuman Enforcer of the new law. That doesn't mean humans aren't putting up a protests, though. Most of the countryside is no more than a no man's land when it comes to law and order; this age is a veritable wild west, and as long as you can keep out of the Enforcers' hands, the world is yours. Justice in this world, though, is swift and harsh. Better pay attention to the shadows.
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Posted: Fri May 18, 2007 3:55 pm
Information
(To be added as you ask questions in need of clarifying, or as I come up with the info. This is very much a WIP.)
Basically, you can choose almost any supernatural being, though most of the more clearly "inhuman" ones are keeping firmly away from any established settlement, so you better have a good explanation of why they would even have left their homes.
The beings that are around in the cities/towns/villages; vampires, werewolves, witches, a disguised elf or two (mind you, these have less than stellar patience for any other beings, and tend to answer even the slightest of precieved insults with various nasty diseases - some of which might not even be known to the rest of the populace), and humans, of course.
Though the humans who are more shy of the law, don't like things as they are, or simply don't want to give up one of their family members for the Feedings tend to keep to the small countryside towns.
Vampires: Are sensitive to any religious icon. Or, a better way to phrase it might be "sensitive to any icon infused with religious faith/belief". Will burn in sunlight, though aren't any more sensitive to fire than what any human might be... don't try to use stakes, honestly. They're dead, what'd you expect? Irises turn red when they're hungry. Superior strenght and speed, can "fly" short distances (more like floating/defying gravity for a bit).
Werewolves: Forcibly change three days each month around full moon, otherwise have complete concious control of when to change. Can take either full or a "half-man/beast" form at will, except on full moon; then it's the animal. They won't become raging, frothing beasts on full moon, but are driven to a larger degree by their instinct. Fights with the vampires of the control of the new civilization. Superior strenght above your average vampire, speed slightly less, but their stamina is impressive. Sensitive to silver, but only if it's introduced to the insides of their bodies, so just holding a piece of silver jewellery against their skin won't do anything. Werewolves are slightly larger (1.10-15 cm) than a Shetland Pony).
Elves: Nasty, curious disease-bearers. To anyone else but themselves, of course. They are tall, pale and "beautiful" by human standards, but have nothing but contempt for most anyone but their own people. But, like children, can't help but poke and prod at the cockroach. Cute, eh? Can be pleasant and down-right charming, but then they most probably want something from you, and it won't necessarily be in your own self-interest to give it to them. Trust us.
Demons: You probably won't meet these, since they keep quiet, and behind the scenes, so to speak. Have a variety of looks, powers and interests... Even if you met one, you'd be left wishing you hadn't.
(Demons are pretty much off-limit, except for special cases or as NPCs. Don't bother.)
Anything else, like centaurs and various nature spirits; stays the hell away from the crazy humanity, as they always have done. Some might be curious, but these are even fewer than the elves.
Feedings; by vampire law, each (human) family have to submit at least one person to be providing blood for the vampires in the town, proportional, of course, to how many vampires are present. Depending on age (the older, the shorter you last), the average rate of years any one survives in the Feeding is ten, with both more and less not unusual.
Iconoclast; not the literal word for the law, but all religious symbols have been outlawed, and any symbol when found is destroyed, and the owner "fined" with serving as part of the Feedings for six months.
Religion hasn't been outlawed as such, but it's better to keep any such inclinations and utterances on the lowdown, for your own safety. Not to say there aren't underground movements, like with anything else...
Trying to (or succeeding to) kill a vampire will, of course, put you frimly on the side of "against the law", and you'll be hunted and executed as such, so it's ill-adviced to do.
Gasoline is controlled by the vampires, so while you can have a car or any other such vehicle needing fuel, be aware it'll be hard to get, and if it runs out inconveniently, you either have to be due your ration, be ready with bribes (and hope you won't get ratted out), or be willing to go to more... extreme ends.
Guns and bullets are also controlled, and most of you law-abiding human citizens won't have them. If you do... well. Either you better be careful to stay on the "right" side of the law, or you're just not on that side at all. Werewolves and vampires are more likely to (lawfully) be wearing such arms.
Cascade; Our immediate setting. This rather large town (by current standards) is only three days away from a large city ruled by the Master Vampire Ash, though it has, as of yet, kept from being taken firmly in hand. Cascade has its local Enforcer, but, for whatever reason, that's, as of yet, pretty much it when it comes to Cascade's vampire population. That might change, though.
Cascade has its local Shelter; ten, or even twenty years ago, that could have been a "church"; today, it's simply the one place humans are guaranteed a refuge from Inhumans... though an Enforcer can still enter. The shelter is roughly in the middle of the town, by the square, like the Enforcer's house and office and the largest bar; The Singing Nymph.
On the left edge of the town is the graveyard, mostly empty as of yet, and more or less just an extension of the park that's on the center-left edge of town.
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Posted: Fri May 18, 2007 4:23 pm
How to become a vampire:
One has to be bitten, and mostly drained, then given the vampire's blood to be turned, so Feeding doesn't make the victim a vampire. On top of that, only vampires that have been around for a while (around ten years) can turn other humans into vampires themselves, which is speculated because the vampire blood need time to completely adjust the body (not to say a less-than-ten years old vampire isn't a vampire. They just don't have the juice needed to turn anyone).
A vampire under ten years trying to turn someone will only end up needing to feed again, and with a dead body.
How to become a werewolf:
A werewolf has to be in full moon transformation to be able to "pass on" the virus/disease/genetic marker/whathaveyou that makes one a werewolf, and it needs to be by bite. Otherwise, no one has to worry. One can, of course, also be born a werewolf, as they're fully functioning humans, though the ones born after the war are, of course, still children.
On witches:
Witches can be both male and female, as it's only a question of people more "sensitive/open" to the spirits and "loose energy" (magic) that's floating around in the world. They are just, for simplicity's sake, called the same thing.
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Posted: Fri May 18, 2007 4:59 pm
NPCs (for now):
Legion: Demon possessing Ash, with the goal of destroying Earth as we know it. It seems to involve something with religious icons and sites? And is it working alone, or with others?
Marya: Another Demon. Sent Dee as an Executioner (and her own personal agent) to Cascade to keep an eye on something... Is Marya on Legion's side, or not?
Ash: The unfortunate and, in his own way and possible for everyone else too well-meaning Vampire Master of the large city close to Cascade and its surroundings.
Sister Maria: Since a year back, the Sister (caretaker) of Cascade's Shelter. Only 13 years old, she seems somewhat pre-mature, and is convinced of something important laying somewhere around Cascade.
Drakul: Tacky and equipped with dubious morals, ethics, and lusts, he's Cascade's Enforcer. One would have to wonder if his name is actually the one he was born with.
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Posted: Sat May 19, 2007 8:56 am
The road leading into the rather sorry-looking town of Cascade was hard, down-trodden dirt, leading away from the cracked tarmac road leading to the city three days away; putting just that bit more of a distance between the Vampire Master in the city and Cascade.
Once, she might have roared into the town on the Harley she'd stolen during the confusion after the war, but that had been rather quickly abandoned in favour of a horse; this way she wasn't kept dependent on the vampire-controlled fuel depots.
"Let's see if this isn't the place to stay, hmm, Sunny?" Spooky, also known as Bedlam Bird (real name unknown by authorities), chuckled as she brushed the short fringe out of her dark eyes, giving Sunny her head and allowed their brisk trot to fall to a very leisurely walk.
Cascade's buildings, though certainly not old, already had a bleached, weather-worn look to them, which could be attributed to the near-constant wind blowing in this area now, or maybe it just was something in the air that had aged the town beyond its few years. It was, nonetheless, a light and airy place to live, with none of the rather dank oppression that was prominent in any of the larger cities.
The main square had a fountain with some vague, very post-modern piece of art squeezing out water from a lot of holes, with the town's Shelter on the right side of the square, the Enforcer's office snuggled up just beside it and the bar, the Singing Nymph, on the left side, facing the other two buildings. Frowning at the Enforcer's building as she jumped down from Sunny, Spooky took off her sturdy leather gloves and pushed them, as well as she could, in the waistband of her hip-hugging, short shorts.
"Be nice for me, um, Sunny?" Spooky said as she patted the strong neck and tied Sunny up to the rail in front of the bar and brushed off the front of her Áo yem, the dust billowing around her before sinking down and settling. She really looked forward to a proper bath.
((As you might understand... this is more or less the go ahead, after you've gotten you characters approved, of course, to start posting.))
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Posted: Sat May 19, 2007 9:53 am
"I hope you know what you're doing, Marya. I don't want a hotpot of trouble brewing practically under my nose and not tend to it, just because you asked me to keep away." Ash's cool, cultured tones had a slight disapproving bite to them, and he's even more irritated that the back he stared at doesn't turn around when he spoke.
"Dear Ash, believe me, I have things well in hand. If it worries you so, I'll have you know I have an Executioner on site. Is that enough to reassure you?" The slim body turned around, arched eyebrow raised and a small, sharp smile upon lush, dark lips. She's a wet, wicked dream with loose, shining waves of ebony hair, though the slightly pearlescent shimmer to her skin and her solid black eyes were clues to a more... unearthly nature.
"... An Executioner?" Ash's pale eyes widened and he shook his head, the hand gripping his Feed's hair tightening enough to make the hunched man make a choked sound in the back of his throat. "Well, I suppose that's well enough for me. If you would excuse me..?" It's not really a question, and Ash doesn't budge from his plush wingchair.
Marya, though that is, of course, not her real name, bent her head just slightly and swept out of the room, a quick sneer flittering over her smooth face with its clean lines. No manners at all, that vampire. And that he would dare to use her affected name as he had a right to it... The Vampires were already settling in in their high seats, showing a displeasing amount of arrogance towards the Demons walking the Earth, deigning to speak with Earth's new "masters".
Marya wasn't impressed. Striding down the windowless corridors of the skyscraper, one built after the war, she let a small smile light her face as she tapped the middle, and largest, stone of her diamond necklace.
"Dee, pet?" She let her voice drop down to a dark, enticing purr; talking to her crowning achievement was always a pleasure, and Dee had done nothing to deserve her ire...
"Mistress?" The voice is slightly fuzzy, with an aftertaste of alcohol. Naughty thing, but it didn't matter, as Dee could be ready in no less than a few seconds to set out as her Mistress commanded.
"No one has found anything, yet? While my patience is sorely tested by using the "hospitality" of our resident Vampire Master Ash, I wouldb't want things to move quickly. There is no beauty in a hurried piece of art, after all," Marya chuckled softly, a lamp set into the wall casting her shadow on the opposite wall, for a moment showing something incomprehensible, so twisted and dark that a human would go mad trying to just look at this faint reflection.
"No, nothing, Mistress." No added, needless words, no suggestions or thoughts; if Marya wanted them, she would ask, and Dee knew better than to speak out of turn.
"Good, then. I'm sorry for have disturbed your recovery from last night's entertainment, pet. Continue as you were," Marya breathed and the conversation was terminated as she stepped out of the elevator she had taken the last ten stories down, placed a pair of dark sunglasses on her nose, and left Ash's "office". She had more important things to do than stay in the precense of the overblown ego of the city's Master Vampire.
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Posted: Sat May 19, 2007 1:00 pm
Jackson looked up from the newspaper he was paging through as a young woman entered his bar, looking as though she had recently travelled quite some distance. He didn't say anything, but stopped glancing over the articles and folded the paper up, leaning on the counter he stood behind, waiting silently for her to talk.
The bar itself was rather plain looking, with whitewashed walls and a cream tiled floor under the rough wooden ceiling. Several red-topped stools were lined up along the bar counter and a handful of tables and chairs were placed nearby. A small television rested on a plank nailed into the wall above the stools and was currently off. A large and rather mediocre picture of a beautiful young woman wearing a translucent blue veil wrapped tightly over her sharp curves adorned the wall at the back of the room next to the flight of stairs that led to the guest quarters on the second floor.
The lighting was dimmer inside than out due to the dusty blinds closed over the few windows in the establishment and the whole place smelt vaguely of smoke and dark beer. The reason behind this was apparent, as Jackson took out a package of cigarettes from the breast pocket of his long-sleeved black work shirt, flipped it open, and pulled one out, leisurely lighting up. His loosely captured brown hair was a couple shades lighter than his skin and rather obviously dyed with the roots just starting to revert to their original black. Several bottles of hair dye were placed under the counter next to the alcohal as though he had recently been looking through them.
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Posted: Sat May 19, 2007 3:46 pm
"Hello," Spooky said while she cracked a lopsided smile, dragging a hand through her short hair with a small, if rather broad, hand. She easily jumped up on one of the stools and planted her elbows on the worn-smooth counter, looking much too relaxed for a woman who openly carried two knives large enough to be used in butcher work, and what could possibly be a small gun.
"Have any hard cider? It's way too dry around here to be travelling out in the open for as long as I did." Her eyes adjusting to the dimmer light compared to the hard, bright sunlight outside the bar, Spooky rubbed her hands together, grimacing at the feel of dust causing enough friction to make her palms burn. Something to drink, ask the bartender if there was anywhere around here where she could hire a room... and if those stairs indicated anything, there should be, and a bath later, and she'd be as right as rain.
And, of course, somewhere to stable Sunny. Right now her beautiful horse had her mouth in the through outside, greedily drinking of the probably luke-warm water.
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Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 1:10 pm
The cloaked figure stumbled into town. Her face couldn't be seen behind the one-way black out cloth that draped from the hood of the garment that draped to brush the ground to protect her from the sun. She staggered slightly, under the weight of the head combined from the daylight and the heavy fabric. If they could be seen, her eyes would have been burning bright red...It had been days since she had found anything to eat...
Ruka had for a time been living off animals she came accross durring the trip, never draining more than just eneough to keep her going in order to spare them...However, now it seemed that she should have taken more: She was on the verge of collapsing if she didn't find something to eat soon.
She glanced around with hidden eyes at the people she passed in the street...They looked delicious...No! No. Her lingering respect for life kept those thoughts as best it could from her mind, but instinct was a hard thing to remove.
She saw a cat...She couldn't feed on it, it was well fed, and healthy looking...it was most likely a pet...She noticed a dog...A thin little thing...ratty even...probably a stray...would anyone notice if it lost a little bit of blood?...Skinny puppies scurried out from behind it; The dog was a mother...Those puppies needed their mother in the best health concievable...they needed her more than Ruka did.
Ruka noticed the horse tied up outside...Outside a bar, as a matter of fact. In some places she had been, bars had stores of blood on hand in case of emergencies...Maybe this one would share? She had money eneough to pay for it, she was sure...Unless they wern't willing to let her have it...Then she would have to resort to finding rats. A lot of rats. A lot of big rats. She could barely get more than a mouthful from each unless she wanted to kill them...
Her tired feet led her into the bar. It was cooler inside, thanks to the indirect lighting of the sun. She let out a small sigh of relief.
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Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 4:23 pm
Jackson nodded, reaching under the counter for a bottle and glass, deciding that this visitor certainly looked as though she would be able to pay. He held his cigarette loosely between his lips as he poured the drink, taking a long drag and pulling it out as the door to his bar opened again.
"You're early," he commented, exhaling smokily, "it's barely..." Jackson's voice cut off as he realized that it was another newcomer, not one of his regular visitors. Another young woman, what was more, and this one looked far more beaten that the first.
"s**t," he muttered with a stab of annoyance, stubbing out his cigarette in a chipped ashtray and hurrying over to the door. "Excuse me, miss, do you need help?"
"Do you think we should get a drink?"
From the wooden steps leading up to the front door of his shop, Horatio had been able to see the two women enter first the town square and then the bar. A pile of wood shavings curled around his feet and lap as he glanced slowly at the black and white dog lying by his side, her ears perked up and keen brown eyes looking towards the pub.
"Can't hurt," he commented again in a soft murmur and stood, brushing off his jeans and kicking the larger bits of wood off of his steps. "Come." The dog stood silently, following at his heels as he walked slowly towards The Singing Nymph. Horatio looked the tired horse over as they passed it and slipped his small block of wood and knife into the back left pocket of his pants. He pushed the door open, ignoring the "NO ANIMALS ALLOWED" sign and let them both into the cool building.
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Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 4:23 pm
Dee had, the first few days she'd been in Cascade, hired a room in the Singing Nymph, but had quickly found a small, slightly run-down, but clean, apartment to rent as she would be here much too long (most probably) to stay just above a noisy bar. Shaking her head and squinting against the sunlight as she stumbled out on the stairs leading down to street level on the outside of the building, Dee refrained from using her little "talent" to sober up quickly; she enjoyed all parts of being drunk... or sobering up, and tended to avoid using her talents for such if it wasn't needed.
Wandering out on the main street and up to the square, she saw someone dark clad slip inside the bar, and tilted her head with a sniff. Vampire? Dark clothes. Clever. Smirking sharply, showing off a row of white teeth, Dee closed the distance between herself and the walkway in front of the bar, sitting down on the planks and stretched out her boot-clad feet over the dusty ground, ignoring the heat being trapped beneath her feathery-like fur cape. She was only wearing a blue bikini top beneath it, and the fur was surprisingly airy; she could take it.
"Wonder how many more will come to play?" The question, while rethorical, had been aimed at the only one around, if you didn't count the vampire hovering just inside the bar's doors; the horse tethered to the rail, who raised her head and gave a nervous snort.
"Oh yes, we'll just have to wait and see..." Giving a vicious grin, Dee stretched out lazily on the walkway, kind of like a slumped guard god, and just soaked in the reflected sunlight and covering shadow.
"Thank you," Spooky nodded and snatched the glass, taking a deep swallow before dropping the appropriate amount of money for the bottle and turning her head to have a look at the newcomer. And from the bartender's abrupt stop, not a regular as expected, but another newcomer. Spooky raised an eyebrow and shook her head; such clothes in this dry, hot climate could only be murder, but... they'd had to be worn for a reason. Staring more closely at the woman, Spooky could only come up with two possibilites, and one of them was unlikely (a Muslim woman), so it had to be a vampire being creative to avoid the sunlight.
A corner of her mouth turned down, then Spooky just turned away from the vampire woman, not particularily interested in being polite. Even if that would be smarter if she wanted to try and stay in Cascade for any longer than this drink.
"Any place where I can hire a room and a place to stable my horse?" Spooky did wait a moment, to give the vampire a chance to speak, but when she was quiet, Spooky decided to cut in; the other woman could speak after she was done. Again with the rudeness... Though, it seemed it didn't matter, as the barkeep was apparently much more polite than Spooky, and had rushed over to the vampire's help. Well, Spooky could wait; she had her cider.
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Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 4:40 pm
Ruka pulled her hood up a little more as he came over, giving him just shortest glance at her pale hands; her complexion was even more fair than most vampires from having starved herself for so long.
"...P...Please don't...Don't be afraid of me..."She said, in more of a begging tone than a request, "...But I need something to drink...I'll even take rat blood if you have it..."She spoke softly, so that only he could hear, not wanting to alarm anyone. She wanted to make it clear that she had no intention to drink human blood, but wasn't entirely sure if it came accross that way or not.
She kept her hood up the whole time, trying her very best to keep what she was from the other occupants of the bar.
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Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 5:02 pm
The clinic had been quiet all morning, which was nothing short of miraculous to Lucretia. Usually she had to mop up wounds from a tangle with a werewolf, or treat for blood loss, thanks to some vampire's snack. But nothing today. It was actually rather nice. Lucretia felt like she could leave the clinc for a short while, if only to get something cool to drink. Grabbing a pen and some paper, the doctor scribbled down a note to any potential patients, indicating that she was having lunch at the Singing Nymph, and would be back in 30 if the situation was not life-threataning. Then she carefully affixed the note to the door and stepped out into the sun and crossed the short road to the popular tavern.
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Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 5:09 pm
Dee had been dozing for the few minutes she'd been lounging on the walkway in front of the bar, but her eyes slid half-way open as a distinctly human scent (separate from those inside the bar), made itself known. Dee grinned, sharp and eager as she identified it. She couldn't exactly pin-point why, but Cascade's resident human doctor interested her.
Flexing one hand, claw-like nails scratching the smooth, bleached wood, Dee tilted her head back slightly after following the doctor's approach from bottom up.
"Hi, Doc. Thirsty?" Dee's lopsided smile really didn't suit someone who supposedly was just twenty years old, and the tone even less, as the leer was subtle enough as to not be overbearing, but obvious enough to be glaringly clear.
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