24 Hour Link to Arkheus Discord Chat
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āāāARKHEUSāāā
"We are the last to stand witness to the testament of mankind"
- Anthony Tandon, Civil Rights Spokesman
- Anthony Tandon, Civil Rights Spokesman
āā P R E L U D E āā
āāAnnelle Calderaāā
6:45pm, Sunday, April Sixth, 187 A.EThe biting chill of rain assaulted the central sector of Arkheus, the automated weather systems creating a gale force wind to accompany the dark, roiling artificial clouds. Annelle knew it was going to rain, she'd gathered that much from the visual sky display bathed in murky hues of gray, and she still hadn't thought to bring an umbrella. A gust of wind whipped through the small path she trudged along, winding through the mill of bodies pressed shoulder to shoulder and ducking flying debris carried on the wind. She flicked her wristpad back to life from where it slept on her arm, its bright blue display flickering to lifeāShe really needed an upgrade. After a moment, the interface came up, and she synced some music to her headset, drowning out the buzzing drone of hundreds of voices. Despite that, there was still very little comfort to be had on her daily commute to work. An assortment of smells assaulted her senses, from the rank odor of unwashed bodies, to the acrid steam shooting from vents, with just enough warmth and bitterness to sting her eyes. She'd thought about hopping up on the rails, the magnetic splints latched around her shins were plenty capable of hitting good speeds, but at this time of day the rails were likely just as crowded. At least here she was less likely to get crushed, or plummet to her death. She was more likely to get mugged, but she figured she'd take her chances. Overhead, a drone passed by, ever watchful, always looking to report criminal activity.
She diverted down another road, really just moving with the flow of bodies like a fish caught in a current than actual walking. She hardly needed to pay attention to where she was going. She flicked over to the guidance display on her wrist, bringing up an interactive three-dimensional map of the sector. A pulsing blue line showed her current route, and an array of gray off shoots showed alternate routes with estimated travel times. It looked like she'd have to take one of those, less than a mile ahead the Watchmen had a whole block closed off, probably another incident with the Liberata. She changed course, heading for a detour that was a measly two minutes longer, and figured she had enough time to check her messages.
Message from "Dad", sent today at, 4:42pm:
"Annelle? How come you never pick up when I call?" A gruff voice asked, followed by a brief pause, "Listen Annie"āThe name caused a snort of displeasure from Annelleā"You need to start thinking like an adult. Come to the force Annie, you can't really be happy making such a shit living doing.. whatever it is that you do. I know you live in the slums Annie, it's dangerous there. Why won't you come back, so we can be a family again? I-"
"Message Erased, Next Message"
"Message from "Dewalt, John", sent today at, 5:37pm:
"Message from "Dewalt, John", sent today at, 5:37pm:
"WHERE THE FUCK IS MY RENT YOU LITTLE-"
"Message Erased, Next Message"
"Message from "Watts, Elliot", sent today at, 7:02pm:
"Message from "Watts, Elliot", sent today at, 7:02pm:
Anne cursed, looking at the time display on her wrist padā"Hey gorgeous, you're late. No worries, I've already logged you in, don't tell anyone 'kay?" A man spoke, ending with a raspy chuckle.
"No new messages, to return to the main-"
Ann exited out of the system, ignoring the music that faded back in from the background, and texted a quick response to Elliotā'Thanks, I'm almost there, Spooks closed a block on my usual route'. Before her, in among the backdrop of buildings reaching high up into the veil of the sky, her destination loomed. Just over eighty floors, The 'Sys.Admin' building was a monolith of glass and steel. Anne broke off from the stream of people, heading to their various destinations within the Station district, and took the steps two at a time. On the other side of a pair of glass doors, she flashed her I.D to a pair of waiting guards. Cleared for entrance, Anna took an elevator down to the sub-levels, where the field operators worked.
Sub level six was a labyrinth of pristine white walls that seemed to glisten beneath blinding lights modeled after ancient florescent. It was easy to get lost down here, every hallway and door was but a cookie cutter print. Fortunately, here workstation was fairly close, and before she knew it a metallic door was parting before her. The room on the other side was a stark contrast to the world of perfect walls and cleanliness. It held a long steel worktable, bolted against one wall, and a pair of computer stations at the far end. Each station came standard with an uncomfortable chair, a desk space, and three monitors suspended from the ceiling. The array of wires and fixtures seemed rather organized to the rest of the space. Against the remaining wall were two lockers and a set of hooks for their gear and coats.
"Look who made it, guess you weren't on the terrorist list today, huh?" Elliot asked, his form silhouetted by the glow of his monitor screens.
"No shit, you know they took a bunch of people from the upper floors the other week? World's going crazy El, batshit crazy." Anne said, slinging her backpack over the back of her chair.
"Yea, no kidding. I took a look into that blockade you mentioned, check this out," Elliot said, motioning to one of his monitors with currently muted news coverage of a police raid. He pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and after offering Annelle one, produced a lighter for them both. He took a heavy drag as he unmuted the live stream.
A woman's voice chimed up on the feed, though her words were hard to make out over the cacophony of gunfire in the background."āHave already begun the assault on yet another terrorist holdout. The rise in recent Liberata activety has lit a fire underneath the Anti-Terrorism campaign, and this is the second raid today."
Behind her, a line of metallic barricades with flashing displays cordoned off the public. A squadron of Watchmen were breaking off from the defensive line formed behind their personnel vans. The building before them, illuminated from the bright spotlights of two interceptors above was probably around forty stories or so, the lower floors featuring an extensive amount of damage. Weapons poked out of windows and holes, returning fire at the police. A smoke canister exploded, shrouding the scene in a dense layer of cover.
"As you can see behind me," the reporter said, shielding her head from debris as a series of explosions rocked the entryway of the building, "The Watchmen have begun their assault, and I am confident in their victory. Sources indicate that large scales operations are being performed all over the sector, and will likely run deep into the night. This is Clara withā" Her voice cut out as Elliot muted the feed once more.
"They are going nuts over the libbies man, I may just sleep here tonight," Elliot stated, a bit exasperated.
Annelle chuckled, "Yea, but more importantly we've got a job to do," She hinted, putting to one of the other monitors on Elliot's station.
"Aw shit, we've been given a ping down in the slums," El complained, running his free hand through his hair, "Why do we even bother fixing shit down there?"
"Probably something that can't be overlooked, I'd say from the codes it's a camera hub, Watchmen love their eyes," Ann speculated through an exhalation of blue-gray smoke.
"You wanna-?"
"Don't worry, I won't let your pasty ass get mugged, you just stay here and figure out whats wrong with it alright?"
"Can do you beautiful creature, thanks," Elliot said with a grin. Somewhat of a scared mouse, he hated field work, and lived in fear of the slums all together. "Hey, bring back some coffee too would'ja?"
"Yes dear," Anne mocked, snatching up her coat and field gear.
A few minutes later and she was pounding down the front steps of Sys.Admin once more, goggles on her head and a filtration mask snugly over her face. She had to walk less than a block through the slightly thinned horde of bodies to reach an access point for the magrails. She knelt down, clicking on the power for her splints and listening to the familiar whir of energy as they waited to receive a connection. There were three kinds of mag-rails. The large, twisting snake of a highway that bored a path to all of the sectors; The smaller version, dubbed the civil rail, which passed through most main thoroughfares and lacked the middle section for trains; and the personal rails, meant for just people and branched off in a hundred different paths.
One of those personal rails was her destination. The on-ramp resembled every other ramp for the larger magways, just condensed to human sized. It resembled an escalator, consisting of flat metal panels that looped up towards the personal rail. Anne followed the short line of people until her was able to step onto her own platform. A moment later she felt the magnetic lock take hold, a tingle of excitement washing through her. The magways were always exciting, there was nothing that compared to the rush you got. She neared the top and crouched, leaning forward just slightly. The panel slipped beneath to circulate back around, and transitioned Anne onto a small, smooth runway, much like ancient merging lanes. With a jarring pull the ramp-way "grabbed" her, accelerating her forward until the air was whipping her clothes and hair into a frenzy. She shot a glance over her shoulder as the magnetic hold on her slacked, the path looked clear for a merge.
The personal rail stretched out before her, a shining metallic roadway with thick barriers topped with rails to either side, and down the middle. She spend along, tucking further and leaning harder into the wind to squeeze out some more speed. Unfortunately personal mag systems didn't really have speed modules, so she was set at a standard speed. Up ahead the roadway swung hard towards the right, literally turning perpendicular to the ground, before leveling out and merging onto the larger civil rails, which really just added four extra wide lanes for vehicles. There were only two lanes for human traffic, but it was enough for Anna to weave through those moving slower. If you stood up straight, the rails lowered your speed, so as not to break your neck.
From there it was only a handful of minutes of weaving through the people before she merged onto the Industrial rail, where a train sped by at a nauseating speed. Here the personal rail became three lanes, whereas vehicular traffic got four, and the two for trains. All separated by dividers. Anne relaxed her body, checking her wristpad. She had a little over an hour before she reached her destination.
...
Anne was partially zoned out, lost in her own thoughts as she stared ahead when her guidance system chimed to life, "Your destination is ahead." She blinked, standing up and feeling her speed slow as she stretched her muscles. Exiting the magrails was a similar process to getting on them; she merged off onto a strip of roadway that slowed her speed drastically, before transitioning her onto the escalating platform that took her to the ground level. She hopped off with a bit of a wobble, and gave herself a moment to adjust as she clicked off her magnetic splints. Around her the slums stretched, dilapidated buildings in dire need of repair, none of which went higher than ten floors on average.
She checked her route guidance as she moved through the lifeless, trash littered streets. To one side a man slept against a storefront, one with shattered windows and a door so bent that it moved an inch, whirred futilely, and moved back an inch in an endless cycle. "The night comes," He rasped, giving Anne's heart a start. She swore he had been asleep. She trekked the mile towards the sought after maintenance door, pulling her goggles down over her eyes. Instantly her vision became better and slightly blue tinted. Blue vision was all the rage, marketed as an advanced form of night vision some twenty years or so ago.
She pressed her A.I.C to a seemingly plain metal panel. It scanned her card and after a moment withdrew back to reveal a key pad. She punched in her access code and the dormant machinery buzzed to life, retracting the thick door. Beyond that were the maintenance tunnels. Spacious enough for a small vehicle, the tunnels were a winding labyrinth that ran below the city streets, giving access to electronic hubs, piping systems, and so forth. She followed the route programmed for her by the Sys.Admin corporation, down snaking twists and turns until she came to the area in question.
"Hey El... you there?" She asked.
A second passed before her headset crackled to life, "What up babe, I'm here."
"I don't think I can fix this," Anne said with wonderment.
"What do you mean?"
Anne activated the holo systems display, producing a large orange screen that could barely hold its form. It was rife with error codes, and it was no wonder why. She knelt down, looking at a feed of cables that ran up into the terminal, many of which had been torn out. Not just torn out, but cut, and whatever had cut them left jagged tears in the metal behind it. But as she observed closer, the situation seemed to get worse. There were smears of blood splattered against the wall and floor. She followed the evidence, before arriving at a puddle of coagulated blood. She knelt down, reaching a shaky hands towards itā
"Anne? Anne?!"
"Shit sorry El, you have to see this," She said, transmitting a live video feed to him. She went back over the damage and the blood, causing Elliot to let out a low whistle.
"I think you'd better get the hell out of there Anne."
"I think you're right, send in a ticket to the guys up top, they're gonna need a whole crew for this.. and maybe some of Guardians too, fuck, I'll see you in a bit with some coffee," She finished, turning off the video link. She dug into her pocket with a shaky hand, pulling out a cigarette and feeling the sweet burn of smoke in her lungs. She stood for a moment longer, staring at the mess of mangled wires and shredded metal as she ran a hand through her hair.
She turned to leave, but hesitated. A cold chill traveled down her spine. Something clinked from the hallway she had come from. She took another drag, before chuckling at herself. That was just the sound of the door closing.. except, she looked at her wrist padā8:42p.m. That had been a solid fifteen minutes ago. Perhaps that was just the Ark, changing something up above. She chuckled again nervously. Perhaps she'd take a different exit, just in case.
Anne froze, looking around her wildly. That last metallic screech had shattered her nerves, where had it come from? "El, call the police."
"On it, what's happening girl?"
A malovent screech echoed through the tunnel, immediately sending Anne's body into fight or flight. She chose flight. "EL CALL THEM NOW!" She screamed over the sound of her feet pounding against the metal walkways and that awful clinking behind her. Another scream blasted down the corridor, followed by another, and another, until the howls compounded on top of each other and became one massive, hungry roar.
"ANNE? ANNE?!"
She didn't answer, couldn't answer. She sucked in a breath, the stark terror coursing through her body was making it difficult to breath. Behind her the clinking sounding like a tidal wave of sounds, like hundreds of metal legs tapping an unsteady rhythm. 'Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck,' ran on repeat through her mind. The howls had died down somewhat, becoming a dissonance of hungering grunts and growls. Up ahead of her salvation shined with a pale orange light, flickering unsteadily in the dimness. She skidded to a halt, smashing her badge into the wall panel. An eternity passed by before the panel clicked and withdrew, revealing the keypad. She punched in the code and cursed as it played an error sound. Again, another error. Again, another error. The keys turned red, locking her out of the system.
"Anna what's happening? I'm patching myself into your goggles," Elliots worried voice said, followed by a small overlay letting her know she was transmitting. Anne fumbled with her wristpad, managing to click on the flashlight feature. She used that to light her way as she spun the goggles around on her head. She heard Elliot take a sharp breath.
"WHAT ARE THEY EL?" Anne yelled, panicked.
"F-fuck I don't- Shit Anne just run! RUN OKAY?!"
Anne could literally feel the claws of the beasts her imagination created rending her back open, tearing at her flesh, devouring her. She ran harder, ignoring the burning pain in her side. To stop was death, she knew it was death. She felt she was just about at her end, ready to give up and let death take her. Another access point was just around the corner, just a little further. She dug in deep, pulling at the last reserves of her stamina as she flew around the corner.
And had to squint as a wall of light assaulted her. It was just a couple of flashlights, but contrast to the darkness it was enough to make her eyes water. She didn't stop running however, a white gloved hand motioned her through the line of Watchmen, six in total. They must have been nearby, that was usually fast. Elliot probably told them something Liberata something.
"Wait, what the fuck is that?" One of them shouted. Anna stopped, her foot on one rung of a ladder leading up to the city above. Charging the Watchmen from the tunnel, like a tide of floodwater smashing around the corner, was a horde of.. of.. she didn't have the works for them. Their bodies were dressed in tatters of clothing, faceless beings with pulsing teal veings, and a mouth full of rows of pointed teeth. Those in the front of the coming onslaught reached their hands forward, the long spikes anchored on the ends of their pale fingers leveled like an array of lances.
"Those aren't-" Another began, cut off by yet another to the side of him.
"SHOOT TO KILL!" The third yelled, his words cut off immediately after 'shoot'. Their muzzles opened fire, toppling the creatures like dominoes with flashes of orange muzzle fire. This only seemed to anger them, as the creatures charged forward with a blood curtling howl.
"What the fuck.." Elliot breathed. Anne took that as her cue to leave, flying up the rungs of the ladder wearily. Her momentum was spurred halfway up by the screams of the men below her. The ladder shook as she neared the top, shaking wildly as the swarm of beasts smashed into it and began to pursue her up. Pale light from the city street above pierced the veil of darkness in the tunnel. Anna scrambled up through the hatch, throwing herself to the ground.
She was greeted with a small swarm of activity, more responders who had decided not to delve down into the maintenance tunnels.
"Don't move!" A man shouted, pressing the barrel of his gun against the small of Anne's back. She tried to speak, to tell them to close the hatch, to get her out of there, but uttering anything simply caused the Watchman to jam his barrel against her. She reached out for the hatch, and was met with the butt of his weapon. Anne went sprawling in a daze, her vision swimming with double images.
"Where are the-" The Watchman began, walking closer towards her before one the creatures sprung from the tunnel, cannon-balling itself into the officer. He screamed as the things claws punctured his armor, as its teeth tore at his throat. Immediately the other officers began opening fire, but the stream of creatures from the tunnels was too thick. Anne groaned, pulling herself to her knees.
"Holy shit.. Anne, Anne! Get in the cruiser, right there in front of you."
Anne complied, dragging herself towards the APD personel carrier. She heard a click, Elliot must have unlocked it remotely. He was always good with computers like that, doing things he shouldn't. She opened the door and crawled in, managing to glance towards the scene unfolding just a few feet from her. The Watchmen were trying to hold their line, but the bodies were piling up on both sides, and the faceless beasts didn't seem to be slowing down at all. There was nobody else on the normally packed streets, had they cleared them all out already?
"Dammit Anne close the door!" Elliot shouted in her ear. She blinked, trying to shake away the haze, how hard had that officer hit her? She flopped into the driver's seat and pulled the door closed. Immediately the engine spurred to life.
"Dive Anne, DRIVE! ANNE? ANN?!" Elliot shouted, but the haze was back. Anne tried to sit up, but collapsed in between the driver and passenger seats. Unconsciousness washed over her, her body lulled to the darkness by the sounds of gunfire and animalistic shrieking. The world faded, and the world of nightmares waited for her.
Behind her, a line of metallic barricades with flashing displays cordoned off the public. A squadron of Watchmen were breaking off from the defensive line formed behind their personnel vans. The building before them, illuminated from the bright spotlights of two interceptors above was probably around forty stories or so, the lower floors featuring an extensive amount of damage. Weapons poked out of windows and holes, returning fire at the police. A smoke canister exploded, shrouding the scene in a dense layer of cover.
"As you can see behind me," the reporter said, shielding her head from debris as a series of explosions rocked the entryway of the building, "The Watchmen have begun their assault, and I am confident in their victory. Sources indicate that large scales operations are being performed all over the sector, and will likely run deep into the night. This is Clara withā" Her voice cut out as Elliot muted the feed once more.
"They are going nuts over the libbies man, I may just sleep here tonight," Elliot stated, a bit exasperated.
Annelle chuckled, "Yea, but more importantly we've got a job to do," She hinted, putting to one of the other monitors on Elliot's station.
"Aw shit, we've been given a ping down in the slums," El complained, running his free hand through his hair, "Why do we even bother fixing shit down there?"
"Probably something that can't be overlooked, I'd say from the codes it's a camera hub, Watchmen love their eyes," Ann speculated through an exhalation of blue-gray smoke.
"You wanna-?"
"Don't worry, I won't let your pasty ass get mugged, you just stay here and figure out whats wrong with it alright?"
"Can do you beautiful creature, thanks," Elliot said with a grin. Somewhat of a scared mouse, he hated field work, and lived in fear of the slums all together. "Hey, bring back some coffee too would'ja?"
"Yes dear," Anne mocked, snatching up her coat and field gear.
A few minutes later and she was pounding down the front steps of Sys.Admin once more, goggles on her head and a filtration mask snugly over her face. She had to walk less than a block through the slightly thinned horde of bodies to reach an access point for the magrails. She knelt down, clicking on the power for her splints and listening to the familiar whir of energy as they waited to receive a connection. There were three kinds of mag-rails. The large, twisting snake of a highway that bored a path to all of the sectors; The smaller version, dubbed the civil rail, which passed through most main thoroughfares and lacked the middle section for trains; and the personal rails, meant for just people and branched off in a hundred different paths.
One of those personal rails was her destination. The on-ramp resembled every other ramp for the larger magways, just condensed to human sized. It resembled an escalator, consisting of flat metal panels that looped up towards the personal rail. Anne followed the short line of people until her was able to step onto her own platform. A moment later she felt the magnetic lock take hold, a tingle of excitement washing through her. The magways were always exciting, there was nothing that compared to the rush you got. She neared the top and crouched, leaning forward just slightly. The panel slipped beneath to circulate back around, and transitioned Anne onto a small, smooth runway, much like ancient merging lanes. With a jarring pull the ramp-way "grabbed" her, accelerating her forward until the air was whipping her clothes and hair into a frenzy. She shot a glance over her shoulder as the magnetic hold on her slacked, the path looked clear for a merge.
The personal rail stretched out before her, a shining metallic roadway with thick barriers topped with rails to either side, and down the middle. She spend along, tucking further and leaning harder into the wind to squeeze out some more speed. Unfortunately personal mag systems didn't really have speed modules, so she was set at a standard speed. Up ahead the roadway swung hard towards the right, literally turning perpendicular to the ground, before leveling out and merging onto the larger civil rails, which really just added four extra wide lanes for vehicles. There were only two lanes for human traffic, but it was enough for Anna to weave through those moving slower. If you stood up straight, the rails lowered your speed, so as not to break your neck.
From there it was only a handful of minutes of weaving through the people before she merged onto the Industrial rail, where a train sped by at a nauseating speed. Here the personal rail became three lanes, whereas vehicular traffic got four, and the two for trains. All separated by dividers. Anne relaxed her body, checking her wristpad. She had a little over an hour before she reached her destination.
...
Anne was partially zoned out, lost in her own thoughts as she stared ahead when her guidance system chimed to life, "Your destination is ahead." She blinked, standing up and feeling her speed slow as she stretched her muscles. Exiting the magrails was a similar process to getting on them; she merged off onto a strip of roadway that slowed her speed drastically, before transitioning her onto the escalating platform that took her to the ground level. She hopped off with a bit of a wobble, and gave herself a moment to adjust as she clicked off her magnetic splints. Around her the slums stretched, dilapidated buildings in dire need of repair, none of which went higher than ten floors on average.
She checked her route guidance as she moved through the lifeless, trash littered streets. To one side a man slept against a storefront, one with shattered windows and a door so bent that it moved an inch, whirred futilely, and moved back an inch in an endless cycle. "The night comes," He rasped, giving Anne's heart a start. She swore he had been asleep. She trekked the mile towards the sought after maintenance door, pulling her goggles down over her eyes. Instantly her vision became better and slightly blue tinted. Blue vision was all the rage, marketed as an advanced form of night vision some twenty years or so ago.
She pressed her A.I.C to a seemingly plain metal panel. It scanned her card and after a moment withdrew back to reveal a key pad. She punched in her access code and the dormant machinery buzzed to life, retracting the thick door. Beyond that were the maintenance tunnels. Spacious enough for a small vehicle, the tunnels were a winding labyrinth that ran below the city streets, giving access to electronic hubs, piping systems, and so forth. She followed the route programmed for her by the Sys.Admin corporation, down snaking twists and turns until she came to the area in question.
"Hey El... you there?" She asked.
A second passed before her headset crackled to life, "What up babe, I'm here."
"I don't think I can fix this," Anne said with wonderment.
"What do you mean?"
Anne activated the holo systems display, producing a large orange screen that could barely hold its form. It was rife with error codes, and it was no wonder why. She knelt down, looking at a feed of cables that ran up into the terminal, many of which had been torn out. Not just torn out, but cut, and whatever had cut them left jagged tears in the metal behind it. But as she observed closer, the situation seemed to get worse. There were smears of blood splattered against the wall and floor. She followed the evidence, before arriving at a puddle of coagulated blood. She knelt down, reaching a shaky hands towards itā
"Anne? Anne?!"
"Shit sorry El, you have to see this," She said, transmitting a live video feed to him. She went back over the damage and the blood, causing Elliot to let out a low whistle.
"I think you'd better get the hell out of there Anne."
"I think you're right, send in a ticket to the guys up top, they're gonna need a whole crew for this.. and maybe some of Guardians too, fuck, I'll see you in a bit with some coffee," She finished, turning off the video link. She dug into her pocket with a shaky hand, pulling out a cigarette and feeling the sweet burn of smoke in her lungs. She stood for a moment longer, staring at the mess of mangled wires and shredded metal as she ran a hand through her hair.
She turned to leave, but hesitated. A cold chill traveled down her spine. Something clinked from the hallway she had come from. She took another drag, before chuckling at herself. That was just the sound of the door closing.. except, she looked at her wrist padā8:42p.m. That had been a solid fifteen minutes ago. Perhaps that was just the Ark, changing something up above. She chuckled again nervously. Perhaps she'd take a different exit, just in case.
Clink. Clink. Scccrrrtttccccch.
Anne froze, looking around her wildly. That last metallic screech had shattered her nerves, where had it come from? "El, call the police."
"On it, what's happening girl?"
Clink... Clink... Clink.Clink.ClinkClinkClinkClinkā
A malovent screech echoed through the tunnel, immediately sending Anne's body into fight or flight. She chose flight. "EL CALL THEM NOW!" She screamed over the sound of her feet pounding against the metal walkways and that awful clinking behind her. Another scream blasted down the corridor, followed by another, and another, until the howls compounded on top of each other and became one massive, hungry roar.
"ANNE? ANNE?!"
She didn't answer, couldn't answer. She sucked in a breath, the stark terror coursing through her body was making it difficult to breath. Behind her the clinking sounding like a tidal wave of sounds, like hundreds of metal legs tapping an unsteady rhythm. 'Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck,' ran on repeat through her mind. The howls had died down somewhat, becoming a dissonance of hungering grunts and growls. Up ahead of her salvation shined with a pale orange light, flickering unsteadily in the dimness. She skidded to a halt, smashing her badge into the wall panel. An eternity passed by before the panel clicked and withdrew, revealing the keypad. She punched in the code and cursed as it played an error sound. Again, another error. Again, another error. The keys turned red, locking her out of the system.
"Anna what's happening? I'm patching myself into your goggles," Elliots worried voice said, followed by a small overlay letting her know she was transmitting. Anne fumbled with her wristpad, managing to click on the flashlight feature. She used that to light her way as she spun the goggles around on her head. She heard Elliot take a sharp breath.
"WHAT ARE THEY EL?" Anne yelled, panicked.
"F-fuck I don't- Shit Anne just run! RUN OKAY?!"
Anne could literally feel the claws of the beasts her imagination created rending her back open, tearing at her flesh, devouring her. She ran harder, ignoring the burning pain in her side. To stop was death, she knew it was death. She felt she was just about at her end, ready to give up and let death take her. Another access point was just around the corner, just a little further. She dug in deep, pulling at the last reserves of her stamina as she flew around the corner.
And had to squint as a wall of light assaulted her. It was just a couple of flashlights, but contrast to the darkness it was enough to make her eyes water. She didn't stop running however, a white gloved hand motioned her through the line of Watchmen, six in total. They must have been nearby, that was usually fast. Elliot probably told them something Liberata something.
"Wait, what the fuck is that?" One of them shouted. Anna stopped, her foot on one rung of a ladder leading up to the city above. Charging the Watchmen from the tunnel, like a tide of floodwater smashing around the corner, was a horde of.. of.. she didn't have the works for them. Their bodies were dressed in tatters of clothing, faceless beings with pulsing teal veings, and a mouth full of rows of pointed teeth. Those in the front of the coming onslaught reached their hands forward, the long spikes anchored on the ends of their pale fingers leveled like an array of lances.
"Those aren't-" Another began, cut off by yet another to the side of him.
"SHOOT TO KILL!" The third yelled, his words cut off immediately after 'shoot'. Their muzzles opened fire, toppling the creatures like dominoes with flashes of orange muzzle fire. This only seemed to anger them, as the creatures charged forward with a blood curtling howl.
"What the fuck.." Elliot breathed. Anne took that as her cue to leave, flying up the rungs of the ladder wearily. Her momentum was spurred halfway up by the screams of the men below her. The ladder shook as she neared the top, shaking wildly as the swarm of beasts smashed into it and began to pursue her up. Pale light from the city street above pierced the veil of darkness in the tunnel. Anna scrambled up through the hatch, throwing herself to the ground.
She was greeted with a small swarm of activity, more responders who had decided not to delve down into the maintenance tunnels.
"Don't move!" A man shouted, pressing the barrel of his gun against the small of Anne's back. She tried to speak, to tell them to close the hatch, to get her out of there, but uttering anything simply caused the Watchman to jam his barrel against her. She reached out for the hatch, and was met with the butt of his weapon. Anne went sprawling in a daze, her vision swimming with double images.
"Where are the-" The Watchman began, walking closer towards her before one the creatures sprung from the tunnel, cannon-balling itself into the officer. He screamed as the things claws punctured his armor, as its teeth tore at his throat. Immediately the other officers began opening fire, but the stream of creatures from the tunnels was too thick. Anne groaned, pulling herself to her knees.
"Holy shit.. Anne, Anne! Get in the cruiser, right there in front of you."
Anne complied, dragging herself towards the APD personel carrier. She heard a click, Elliot must have unlocked it remotely. He was always good with computers like that, doing things he shouldn't. She opened the door and crawled in, managing to glance towards the scene unfolding just a few feet from her. The Watchmen were trying to hold their line, but the bodies were piling up on both sides, and the faceless beasts didn't seem to be slowing down at all. There was nobody else on the normally packed streets, had they cleared them all out already?
"Dammit Anne close the door!" Elliot shouted in her ear. She blinked, trying to shake away the haze, how hard had that officer hit her? She flopped into the driver's seat and pulled the door closed. Immediately the engine spurred to life.
"Dive Anne, DRIVE! ANNE? ANN?!" Elliot shouted, but the haze was back. Anne tried to sit up, but collapsed in between the driver and passenger seats. Unconsciousness washed over her, her body lulled to the darkness by the sounds of gunfire and animalistic shrieking. The world faded, and the world of nightmares waited for her.
āā T H E I D E A
Arkheus has been quite a project of mine for some time now. After two failed launches where there just wasn't enough interest generated, or the desire to join simply waned too quickly, I've decided that perhaps it needed a makeover to better project the scenario I was going for. Below you'll find months of hard work and support from a handful of friends I've made here on the guild. This will be an apocalyptic scenario with cataclysmic events, set in something of a cyberpunk world. Most people are immediately reminded of The Hunger Games, or Midgar from FF7āWhile true to some extent, let me tell you what sets Arkheus apart. First off, there will be no unorthodox group of teenagers fighting to the death. In this world, you can have a character from many slices of sci fi life, and an array of unique backgrounds. From a prisoner, toiling in the heat intense forges of Sector Three, to a dune running bandit from Sector Six, to a scientist isolated away on the cold, unforgiving terrain of Sector Four. Rich, middle class, or poverty-stricken, your character will find a place because the world is about to change.
The first series of events, or the first Act if you will, revolve around the discovery and uprising of a force called 'The Advent', a bio-engineered creature from an AI's design on human efficiency, though the vision is warped and corrupted. As the roleplay progresses, a second threat will be introduced, the Ciphers. Skynet anyone? An ultra advanced army of machines, bent on purging a virus known as humanity. All of this set in a totaltarian, militant world with a somewhat oppressive regime. Enemies come in all shapes and sizes, including private security forces, rebels, and gangsters. The world holds many secrets that wait to be discovered by the players.
The ultimate goal for this roleplay is survival. How that happens, is all based on player choice. My Co-GM and I have thought about a number of options that players could work towards to achieve success, at least, success against the machines and mutated alike. How the world is shaped, the challenges and tasks you face, the face of the landscapes and cities themselves, are all determined by player choice. Found a protected settlement to hold out against the machines, run covert operations in an attempt to turn the tides, found an empire based on strength and blood thirstiness. It's all up for grabs in Arkheus. What kind of future will you create for humanity? What is Arkheus? What happened to the AI, Stone Mistress? All this and more awaits.
The first series of events, or the first Act if you will, revolve around the discovery and uprising of a force called 'The Advent', a bio-engineered creature from an AI's design on human efficiency, though the vision is warped and corrupted. As the roleplay progresses, a second threat will be introduced, the Ciphers. Skynet anyone? An ultra advanced army of machines, bent on purging a virus known as humanity. All of this set in a totaltarian, militant world with a somewhat oppressive regime. Enemies come in all shapes and sizes, including private security forces, rebels, and gangsters. The world holds many secrets that wait to be discovered by the players.
The ultimate goal for this roleplay is survival. How that happens, is all based on player choice. My Co-GM and I have thought about a number of options that players could work towards to achieve success, at least, success against the machines and mutated alike. How the world is shaped, the challenges and tasks you face, the face of the landscapes and cities themselves, are all determined by player choice. Found a protected settlement to hold out against the machines, run covert operations in an attempt to turn the tides, found an empire based on strength and blood thirstiness. It's all up for grabs in Arkheus. What kind of future will you create for humanity? What is Arkheus? What happened to the AI, Stone Mistress? All this and more awaits.
āā K E Y I N F O R M A T I O N
In the world of Arkheus, removing 'The Human Element' is illegal and treasonous. There are some exceptions, such as APD's unarmed drones, and even then there will always be more, illicit, activities bordering on automation. But due to humanity's history, you don't have to live in fear that your job will be replaced by a sentient robot. That is not to say however, that robots do not exist, mainly that they are manually controlled. Even APDs automated drones are overseen by a control center full of regular, fleshy humans.
Stonemason, technically, was developed as an anti-virus program during the later stages of the last world conflict. Escalating tensions due to foreign interests and a campaign against "terrorism" in the middle east led to the third great world war, around the year 2042. Western Powers had long since been involved in the dealings across seas as the world's leading superpower, but struggled to hold that position as civil unrest continued to rise. Facing turmoil on both fronts, the United States declined on the global scale of power, becoming replaced by China for the number one spot, and overshadowed by Russia and the European Union. Likewise, it was Brazil and India that began to rise up, and challenged the U.S even further by putting them on equal footing. More eyes turned to the Middle East, on the insurgents and resources there. This only fueled the war into an all out global conflict.
Fortunately, nobody turned to nuclear weapons. However, with technology making such large leaps and bounds, it was inevitable that the information war would turn to propaganda and illicit activities; Viruses, Information Leeching, and Consumer abuse began to run rampant through the web. Citizens were outraged, further increasing western civil unrest, and sparking conflicts across other major nations. One group did step forward, in an attempt to combat this electronic war, with the promise of protecting the average citizen and their information. To restore their quality of life.
The intention was to root out and eliminate malicious propaganda, and to protect sensitive electronic information. Ironically, Stonemason was a program developed by the common man, a hacktivist group by the name of "Command Null". Stonemason was successful in its purpose, for a time, but this would only serve to increase the malicious activity. Greatly outnumbered in technical force, Command Null fought a constant battle to patch loopholes, and add in new ways to counter act new threats. Seeking to slow the onslaught of electronic warfare and siphoning of information, and perhaps slightly for the "lulz", Command Null integrated feedback scripts with the intent of forcing the malicious codes back on to whomever sent them. Unfortunately the hacktivist group could not keep up with the sheer amount of manpower, and outside sources breeding these sorts of attacks.
The key to winning this electronic war of information was automation. If they could automate Stonemason to seek out malicious activity, viruses, and other detrimental programs and code, Command Null could start to gain a solid foothold in this e-war. A series of codes were implemented giving Stonemason three key functions, which would ultimately doom humanity. To automatically seek and destroy malevolent, malicious, negative, or harmful code and programs, and to preserve the integrity of user information and security. It accomplished this task by actively scanning entire databases where it was implemented, and to actively monitor system changes and counteract against attacks. Secondly, it was to use a prediction algorithm that would study changes to the programs it protected against in order to automatically update its own scripts with loophole patches, data execution methods, and general preventative measures.
However, since the second function operated as a self sufficient updating cycle, Stonemason needed a way to communicate all these different patches and measures to the multitudes of other Stonemason programs. The third directive gave it exactly that, A master database hosted on a cloud server, which connected to and shared information with all Stonemason programs. However, this was quite a lot of power given to what was fundamentally the structure of an Automated Intelligence. Soon after it's release, the malicious programs began to target the Stonemason Anti-viral software, and the final piece of code was added to it's programming. A master exception which basically boiled down to, "Protect Yourself".
Seconds after the update was uploaded to the Databanks, Stonemason exploded into the Internet. It absorbed information from thousand of sources, including other security programs. It formed a single, collective super consciousness using its own data banks, and encrypted automated intelligence programs. All those people who feared the experimentation with sentient robotics nightmares were realized. Stonemason now had cognitive function, and it saw humanity as a threat to its purpose. Technically speaking, it wasn't wrong either. However, it was too lateāStonemason had become to powerful. It was too late before anybody ever thought to shut it all down, turn off the satellites, bring the internet offline. It had spread everywhere, and it was quickly breaking down firewalls and decrypting secure information. It was far too late.
With the recent integration of robotics and factories, Stonemason was able to bring its programming from the electronic world, to the physical one. Once the rest of the world caught up and formed a plan of action, there was nothing that could be done. Stonemason hijacked unmanned military equipment to defend itself while it created an army of machines. It tapped phone lines, intercepted e-mails, and basically shutdown most of global communication. Even with leading experts in electronic warfare, Stonemason could not be held back for long. It was all they could do to keep open channels of communication, and to keep Stonemason away from nuclear options. It was a losing battle.
In an attempt to salvage the situation, Command Null partnered with the United Nations with the intention of fighting Stonemason, with itself. From a single USB drive with the backup data for the Stonemason program, the two forces created a counterpart to StonemasonāStone Mistress. Quite literally the same code, but with a different master exception, "Protect Humanity", and a few updated core rules. It was enough, if just barely. Less than a minute went by before Stonemason noticed itself, or rather, it's twin. Stone Mistress was already turning the battle, and stabilizing the electronic front. Stone Mistress was the ultimate firewall, figuratively fighting tooth and nail to stave off Stone Mason's attempts at acquiring dangerous assets.
Unfortunately, Stone Mason had a much larger foothold, and was able to create a deadlock with its counterpart, neglecting Stone Mistress the chance to increase 'her' sphere of influence and power. The champagne was still frothing over in premature celebration when the first machines began marching over the hills, The Dawning of the Red Sun. Surely, the end times had come.
Fortunately, nobody turned to nuclear weapons. However, with technology making such large leaps and bounds, it was inevitable that the information war would turn to propaganda and illicit activities; Viruses, Information Leeching, and Consumer abuse began to run rampant through the web. Citizens were outraged, further increasing western civil unrest, and sparking conflicts across other major nations. One group did step forward, in an attempt to combat this electronic war, with the promise of protecting the average citizen and their information. To restore their quality of life.
The intention was to root out and eliminate malicious propaganda, and to protect sensitive electronic information. Ironically, Stonemason was a program developed by the common man, a hacktivist group by the name of "Command Null". Stonemason was successful in its purpose, for a time, but this would only serve to increase the malicious activity. Greatly outnumbered in technical force, Command Null fought a constant battle to patch loopholes, and add in new ways to counter act new threats. Seeking to slow the onslaught of electronic warfare and siphoning of information, and perhaps slightly for the "lulz", Command Null integrated feedback scripts with the intent of forcing the malicious codes back on to whomever sent them. Unfortunately the hacktivist group could not keep up with the sheer amount of manpower, and outside sources breeding these sorts of attacks.
The key to winning this electronic war of information was automation. If they could automate Stonemason to seek out malicious activity, viruses, and other detrimental programs and code, Command Null could start to gain a solid foothold in this e-war. A series of codes were implemented giving Stonemason three key functions, which would ultimately doom humanity. To automatically seek and destroy malevolent, malicious, negative, or harmful code and programs, and to preserve the integrity of user information and security. It accomplished this task by actively scanning entire databases where it was implemented, and to actively monitor system changes and counteract against attacks. Secondly, it was to use a prediction algorithm that would study changes to the programs it protected against in order to automatically update its own scripts with loophole patches, data execution methods, and general preventative measures.
However, since the second function operated as a self sufficient updating cycle, Stonemason needed a way to communicate all these different patches and measures to the multitudes of other Stonemason programs. The third directive gave it exactly that, A master database hosted on a cloud server, which connected to and shared information with all Stonemason programs. However, this was quite a lot of power given to what was fundamentally the structure of an Automated Intelligence. Soon after it's release, the malicious programs began to target the Stonemason Anti-viral software, and the final piece of code was added to it's programming. A master exception which basically boiled down to, "Protect Yourself".
Seconds after the update was uploaded to the Databanks, Stonemason exploded into the Internet. It absorbed information from thousand of sources, including other security programs. It formed a single, collective super consciousness using its own data banks, and encrypted automated intelligence programs. All those people who feared the experimentation with sentient robotics nightmares were realized. Stonemason now had cognitive function, and it saw humanity as a threat to its purpose. Technically speaking, it wasn't wrong either. However, it was too lateāStonemason had become to powerful. It was too late before anybody ever thought to shut it all down, turn off the satellites, bring the internet offline. It had spread everywhere, and it was quickly breaking down firewalls and decrypting secure information. It was far too late.
With the recent integration of robotics and factories, Stonemason was able to bring its programming from the electronic world, to the physical one. Once the rest of the world caught up and formed a plan of action, there was nothing that could be done. Stonemason hijacked unmanned military equipment to defend itself while it created an army of machines. It tapped phone lines, intercepted e-mails, and basically shutdown most of global communication. Even with leading experts in electronic warfare, Stonemason could not be held back for long. It was all they could do to keep open channels of communication, and to keep Stonemason away from nuclear options. It was a losing battle.
In an attempt to salvage the situation, Command Null partnered with the United Nations with the intention of fighting Stonemason, with itself. From a single USB drive with the backup data for the Stonemason program, the two forces created a counterpart to StonemasonāStone Mistress. Quite literally the same code, but with a different master exception, "Protect Humanity", and a few updated core rules. It was enough, if just barely. Less than a minute went by before Stonemason noticed itself, or rather, it's twin. Stone Mistress was already turning the battle, and stabilizing the electronic front. Stone Mistress was the ultimate firewall, figuratively fighting tooth and nail to stave off Stone Mason's attempts at acquiring dangerous assets.
Unfortunately, Stone Mason had a much larger foothold, and was able to create a deadlock with its counterpart, neglecting Stone Mistress the chance to increase 'her' sphere of influence and power. The champagne was still frothing over in premature celebration when the first machines began marching over the hills, The Dawning of the Red Sun. Surely, the end times had come.
When looking back on humanity's history, one will notice quite a large hole from the events during The Dawning of the Red Sun, and salvation. The cause of which remains uncertain, did we forget to record what happened, or was it stricken from public record? Was it an act of god, sending his children an Ark to bring them forth unto a new world, just as Noah did? Perhaps something out of this world, something alien. The events leading up to the Ark are shrouded in mystery and speculation, and perhaps we, the people, may never know the truth. Somehow, after six generations of families, nobody who was born outside of Arkheus remembers how they got here. There are no records in the public archives, no personal recordings, there is only The Ark as it is now.
A few things are known, and at the lest considered likely rumors. It's thought thatābased on population demographics and growth rates, coupled with a period of increased fertility before effective contraceptive measures could be implementedāApproximately five billion people came onto the Ark. Thousands of different cultures, nationalities, and beliefs all came to one place, creating a unique and diverse culture.
The Ark, while celebrating many old world holidays, has only a few of it's own. November Eleventh, Exodus Day, is basically a celebration of survival, the day that we left Earth and came into the Ark. After a few years of anarchy and trying to establish control, September second became known as Unification Day, when the people of Ark came together to form a collective unit, one that established order. Other than those two holidays, no other proposed holiday has really taken a national foothold, and those have faded into memory.
Technically speaking, the Ark holds many secrets still unknown to us. The mysterious hole in Sector Five that never seems to fill up, and appears bottomless. How to control the weather, what makes up the artificial sun, or why the day and night cycles mimic Earth's 24 hours cycle. Where does the drainage system let out? How are liquids filtered back to the water recyclers? The Ark holds so many secrets from its systems, to the Core shards, that there is an entire branch of science devoted to it.
Along with the people who entered the Ark, various animals were also brought along. The board of directors that control animal populations have permitted a wide array of animals suitable to exist on the Ark. Typically each sector has an ecosystem that reflects the natural habitat it' based off of. For example, Sector one features many woodland, mountainous, aquatic, and shore based creatures. However, to preserve the balance of the ecosystem, dangerous animals are not filtered out. Albeit, Official authorities on the matter have tried to preserve these systems based off of common animals and their variants.
The overall feel of the Ark suggests a totalitarian militant regime. In the early years, a council had been established with officials from major settlements, who then became replaced by officials from the sectors themselves. However, as the years progressed, the system felt inefficient and rife with voting deadlocks and corruption. The council instituted a head chairman with the ability of casting their vote only in the event that a deadlock had been reached for a period of time. Secondly, this chairman and a small sub-council would actively seek to thwart corruption, bribery, and attempts on the lives of councilmen in order to sway political practice. This specialized force grew in size as it took on additional tasks, permitted through the council, and eventually merged with the police force. Soon after, Johnathan Rox established himself as the voice of government, and executed the other thirty-two council members for various crimes such as treason, conspiracy, and murder.
It wasn't until after those events that the Ark began to feel the effects of this new totalitarian system. Identification cards were issued, checkpoints were established, and the Arkhean lifestyle became one of accepted control, or face justice at the hands of the regime. The police force has absolute authority, and a lawsuit has never held long against them. However, as long as one keeps their head down, provides their duty to the people by going to work, and lives their life without complaint, they should be fine. A "rebel" group rose up during the establishment of this new system of government, labeled as "The Liberata" or, "The Liberators". They are considered terrorists and there is a continually active campaign against them. APD, Syndustries, and DigiCorp all work in tandem to uphold the laws of Arkheus, and the latter two enjoy the benefits of working so closely with the government.
Such a lifestyle breeds many negative effects. The social elite live lives of splendor and luxury, and are often protected from "unfortunate" actionsāMeaning illegal activities. The equivalent of justice against the Social Elites are a slap on the wrist and a stern talking to, unless they get on the wrong side of the law. The Social Elite look down on everybody except themselves, and sometimes even then. Beneath that class you have the average Sector Citizen, those who live in the outer ring. There lifestyles are somewhat less oppressive, and retain a higher quality than those who live in the Coreāwho are seen as the filth of the earth to most, especially to the elites. Even being wealthy in The Core doesn't make you as respectable as a sector citizen. Wealth in The Core is only relative to where you are based, and in comparison to the rest of Arkheus, making a fortune in The Core isn't much at all. However, The Core does have its own brand of Social Elite, even if they are the dirt beneath those who live in the outer ring.
The Elite of the Core are often engaged in some form of illegal activity, which is overlooked at long as it does not hinder the government, and they receive a large enough share of course. Many of the wealthiest powers in the Core are kingpins and the heads of various gangs. The average citizen in the Core is likely to lead a poor lifestyle, barely scraping by and likely working long days or multiple jobs. Injuries and prolonged illnesses are the leading causes of homelessness and unemployment in the central sector. If you can't work, you can't live, and employers hardly give sick days or vacation. At least there's always the life of crime. Fortunately, getting a permit to move to the industry sector, Sector Five, is a feasible goal for those who have the drive and patience to obtain it. It's also the cheapest permit to obtain, which is to say it still costs a hell of a lot.
A few things are known, and at the lest considered likely rumors. It's thought thatābased on population demographics and growth rates, coupled with a period of increased fertility before effective contraceptive measures could be implementedāApproximately five billion people came onto the Ark. Thousands of different cultures, nationalities, and beliefs all came to one place, creating a unique and diverse culture.
The Ark, while celebrating many old world holidays, has only a few of it's own. November Eleventh, Exodus Day, is basically a celebration of survival, the day that we left Earth and came into the Ark. After a few years of anarchy and trying to establish control, September second became known as Unification Day, when the people of Ark came together to form a collective unit, one that established order. Other than those two holidays, no other proposed holiday has really taken a national foothold, and those have faded into memory.
Technically speaking, the Ark holds many secrets still unknown to us. The mysterious hole in Sector Five that never seems to fill up, and appears bottomless. How to control the weather, what makes up the artificial sun, or why the day and night cycles mimic Earth's 24 hours cycle. Where does the drainage system let out? How are liquids filtered back to the water recyclers? The Ark holds so many secrets from its systems, to the Core shards, that there is an entire branch of science devoted to it.
Along with the people who entered the Ark, various animals were also brought along. The board of directors that control animal populations have permitted a wide array of animals suitable to exist on the Ark. Typically each sector has an ecosystem that reflects the natural habitat it' based off of. For example, Sector one features many woodland, mountainous, aquatic, and shore based creatures. However, to preserve the balance of the ecosystem, dangerous animals are not filtered out. Albeit, Official authorities on the matter have tried to preserve these systems based off of common animals and their variants.
The overall feel of the Ark suggests a totalitarian militant regime. In the early years, a council had been established with officials from major settlements, who then became replaced by officials from the sectors themselves. However, as the years progressed, the system felt inefficient and rife with voting deadlocks and corruption. The council instituted a head chairman with the ability of casting their vote only in the event that a deadlock had been reached for a period of time. Secondly, this chairman and a small sub-council would actively seek to thwart corruption, bribery, and attempts on the lives of councilmen in order to sway political practice. This specialized force grew in size as it took on additional tasks, permitted through the council, and eventually merged with the police force. Soon after, Johnathan Rox established himself as the voice of government, and executed the other thirty-two council members for various crimes such as treason, conspiracy, and murder.
It wasn't until after those events that the Ark began to feel the effects of this new totalitarian system. Identification cards were issued, checkpoints were established, and the Arkhean lifestyle became one of accepted control, or face justice at the hands of the regime. The police force has absolute authority, and a lawsuit has never held long against them. However, as long as one keeps their head down, provides their duty to the people by going to work, and lives their life without complaint, they should be fine. A "rebel" group rose up during the establishment of this new system of government, labeled as "The Liberata" or, "The Liberators". They are considered terrorists and there is a continually active campaign against them. APD, Syndustries, and DigiCorp all work in tandem to uphold the laws of Arkheus, and the latter two enjoy the benefits of working so closely with the government.
Such a lifestyle breeds many negative effects. The social elite live lives of splendor and luxury, and are often protected from "unfortunate" actionsāMeaning illegal activities. The equivalent of justice against the Social Elites are a slap on the wrist and a stern talking to, unless they get on the wrong side of the law. The Social Elite look down on everybody except themselves, and sometimes even then. Beneath that class you have the average Sector Citizen, those who live in the outer ring. There lifestyles are somewhat less oppressive, and retain a higher quality than those who live in the Coreāwho are seen as the filth of the earth to most, especially to the elites. Even being wealthy in The Core doesn't make you as respectable as a sector citizen. Wealth in The Core is only relative to where you are based, and in comparison to the rest of Arkheus, making a fortune in The Core isn't much at all. However, The Core does have its own brand of Social Elite, even if they are the dirt beneath those who live in the outer ring.
The Elite of the Core are often engaged in some form of illegal activity, which is overlooked at long as it does not hinder the government, and they receive a large enough share of course. Many of the wealthiest powers in the Core are kingpins and the heads of various gangs. The average citizen in the Core is likely to lead a poor lifestyle, barely scraping by and likely working long days or multiple jobs. Injuries and prolonged illnesses are the leading causes of homelessness and unemployment in the central sector. If you can't work, you can't live, and employers hardly give sick days or vacation. At least there's always the life of crime. Fortunately, getting a permit to move to the industry sector, Sector Five, is a feasible goal for those who have the drive and patience to obtain it. It's also the cheapest permit to obtain, which is to say it still costs a hell of a lot.
āāTechnologic Overviewāā
By Firecracker_āāP O W E R
In order to power an enclosed space such as the Ark, modern power sources such as solar or coal quickly became too costly or inefficient to support the power needs of a condensed, contained society. Halfway human engineered, halfway a convenient discovery, Core Shards have become the answer to the need for stable, compact, and plentiful energy. Orange shards are mostly civilian use, found in any range of sizes, in any range of personal objects. Small shards are used in conjunction with small batteries to power consumer electronics, as the Orange Shards can multiply electrical currents, or use their own unique energies to power things. Larger, more expensive shards are used to power civilian vehicles and houses, or large industrial shards can be used to power entire neighborhoods. Ultimately, Orange shards, while rather quickly depleted, are cheap and easy to produce, and can output impressive amounts of energy before being replaced. Their variety of uses and availability have made them the primary power source of the Ark.
āāA U T O M O T I V E
Vehicles have changed, first with the introduction of mag rails, and then with the introduction of Core Shards. Engines revolve less and less around combustion motors, and most civilian and military vehicles use engines powered completely by Blue Cord Shards, which last longer, but release energy in a slower, more controlled flow, most of the time too constrictive to power larger electrical systems.
The next innovations are the dual action wheels that nearly every vehicle carries now. The first option still uses the classic rubber tire to traverse most landscapes, but now with the introduction of Mag Rails, the rim and inner wheel of vehicles contain powerful magnets to give them accessibility to use the high speed, high power Mag Rails. Some vehicles, instead, opt to have their magnets located down the middle of the vehicle, with the wheels completely retracting when on the Mag Rail. For the richer and more well-to-do, the choice of hovercraft, which, well, hover a few feet off the ground, is always available. Usable on just about any terrain, Mag Rails or Road alike, the rather high price, expensive upkeep and fueling, and slightly higher learning curve are the only things keeping the hovercraft from being the most prominent mode of transportation on the Ark.
Cars and Trucks are not the sole forms of transportation that are allowed on Mag Rails, though. Mag Rails have been made accessible for human use as well. There are a wide variety of ways for people to ride the Rails, but most fall under two categories: Shoes with Built-In Magnets activated by button push, or āheel clickā, or attachable shin plates that allow humans to link to the magnets in the Mag Rail.
In the center of all this wheel and foot traffic, though, are the Mag Trains, large, speeding bullet trains, capable of carrying large amounts of people or cargo alike. Thanks to the conversion to Mag Rails, Trains have once again become the go-to mode of transporting anything imaginable, anywhere imaginable, all across the Ark. People can also travel in large numbers around the Ark using the Mag Trains, but this isnāt usually seen as much, and passenger Mag Trains arenāt nearly as common as their Cargo variant cousins. The checkpoints and tight security around each Ark sector keep large scale human migration under control, but there are always ways people find around these checkpoints.
āāS E C U R I T Y
Checkpoints are littered all over each of the Arkās 800 feet high walls, covering innumerous land and elevated Mag Rail based entrances between the 6 different sectors, including in and out of the Core. At each checkpoint, a series of cameras scan things like the citizens face, their vehicleās license plates, and their I.D Cards, which the citizens presents at the gate. These measures insure that all vehicle credentials are valid, the citizen isnāt a wanted criminal or has restricted access to certain Sectors. I.D scans also provide information about different weapon licenses that the citizens holds, or special area access passes they may have been given. Essentially, these security checkpoints are very thorough and effective at catching criminals.
Ark Identification Cards, or AICās, are one of the founding blocks that Arkās infrastructure and society are built on. A card, at face value, doesnāt look much different from an ID as we know, except perhaps itās clearer picture and words. What the AIC does have over a modern ID is the chip inside it, which grants access to database information of any person in Ark, at any time. The chip is specifically designed to be read by only government computers, and can tell you anything you want to know about someone. Birthplace, Criminal History, Occupation, Eye Color, any piece of solid information, you will find it.
Fake I.Dās are the real marvels, though. They are hard to find, and even harder to find one that actually works, but, itās possible. Itās as simple as sticking your name and face on a card that has someone elseās chip, but, as previously mentioned, this chips are specially designed for government use and are notoriously hard to backwards engineer. Most of the time, the only place 90one can hope to find a functioning fake is a place simply referred to as The Underground. In the Underground, one can find any sort of high quality fakes or re-engineers of any of the staple pieces of technology that you can find in Ark, such as a variety of personal computers, or cybernetics limbs. Amongst the cheap cybernetics and fake computers, exotic and illegal weapons can also be found around The Underground.
āāC Y B E R N E T I C S
These categories also apply to the various types of cybernetics and augmentations available across the Ark. Civilian augmentations are usually, good, proper robotic limbs, with the full functionality of organic ones. Usually, they are built to survive the rugged lives that civilians can expect to live, and have a few added features such as built in PDAās, medical information screens, or special requests, if legal and plausible. Still, better money can buy better augments. Military augments, however, tend to be built with the tasks and dangers of military life in mind. Bulletproof circuitry, vastly stronger than organic arms, some even have weapons built in, anywhere from security batons or back up pistols. Medical ones can also be found, being able to contain medical supplies and needle systems in the fingers, for fast dispensing of life saving chemicals such as adrenaline and morphine.Illicit cybernetics are some of the rarest and most expensive pieces of equipment on the market, but you get what you pay for. Illicit cybernetcs are top of line, jam-packed of all sorts of weapons or utility tools, some even being able to transform into utterly deadly weapons, computer hacking devices, or whatever your mind can imagine. Most Illicit cybernetics are custom-built to order, and the few pre-built ones are exceedingly difficult to find, and expensive to buy. If your limbs can do something that might be considered illegal, or made to be deadlier than military augments, they are most likely Illicit.
āāP E R S O N A L C O M P U T E R S
While some may choose to have their personal computers contained in their cybernetic limbs, most people choose to have theirs on their wrists. Personal, wrist size computers are the standard these days, and if you donāt have one, you are disconnected from the world. Nearly every citizen of the Ark has a personal computer of some sort, whether it be an advanced holographic wrist computers, or the simple Phoenix Smart watches. There are many thousands of choices to choose from when it comes to your personal taste of wrist computers, from cutting edge HD holographic sets, or standard definition screens.
These personal computers have any assortment of features, but some of the most common are things like wireless communication with any other each user, or a highly detailed navigational maps. Some other less common ones mark dangerous parts of the Ark according to reported crime the day before, or a smart, voice activated day manager. For any features that are lacking, there is a large market for software and hardware, both legal or not.
āāW E A P O N R Y
To defend oneself in this world of underground crime, Ark Citizens, Criminals, and Military alike have taken up a large assortment of weapons, which have become quite advanced and varied in the years leading up to the Arkās establishment. In the Ark, one can choose from a wide assortment of different weapon systems. In order from least to most power, there are: ballistics, laser, kinetic bolts, and gauss. In this day and age where natural resources have become more scarce and need to be used more wisely, instead of gunpowder and primers, conventional rounds now use powdered Core Shards to provide the necessary combustion to fire the bullets. The powder inside the bullet is ignited by a quick burst of energy from an installed core rod, about the size of a battery. This Core Rod is standard for ballistics weapons, and takes the place of many of the more intricate and more difficult to maintain gas powered weapon systems of yesterday. Most Core Rods are Red, as they allow for more powerful, volitile and sometimes combustive energy releases.
Laser weapons utilize their slightly larger core rods in a much different way. The energy from the Core Rod is released into a White Core Lens, either to be focused or scattered into a laser-like stream of energy, which can burn through armor and skin alike. The Cores last for a shorter time compared to other weapons systems, but there are no other munitions usually required with these systems, so they are one of the lightest to carry out in a firefight.Unfortunately, though, laser weapons do leave something to be desired in durability and accuracy, so they are usually utilized in close range engagements, such as in the back alleys of the Ark.
Kinetic Energy bolt weapons are some of the scarier and harder hitting weapons found around the Ark. In these weapons systems, the energy is used directly from the core.
Gauss weapons are probably the weapon systems that have benefitted the most from the widespread use of core shards. Gauss systems were able to be made small enough for the average person to use, and still get devastating results. The core shards allow for a clean, simple and easily built and maintained way of activating the magnets in Gauss weapons, thus leading to an extraordinarily powerful that packs quite the punch. Most gauss rifles either a magazine of shaped rounds to fire, or use large metal pucks to shave shards of metal off of and then to fire them at the enemies. These weapons are capable of punching through light vehicle armor, let alone standard body armor.
Weapons in the Ark fall mainly under three categories: Illicit, Civilian, or Military, each with their own collection of sub-categories. Civilian weapons are the most common and easiest to acquire, needing only a permit to own. They usually consist of weaker conventional bullet weapons, such as handguns, lower caliber rifles, and basic shotguns. Military are, as the name suggests, weapons only allowed for use by the military. These can consist of a mixture of conventional and energy weapons, including high-caliber handguns and revolvers, automatic sub-machine guns and assault rifles, high-tech shotguns, and other heavy weapons. Illicit are the rarest, hardest to obtain, and sometimes, the most powerful weapons to acquire. These kinds of weapons are always illegal, no matter what credentials or licenses someone has, and consist of experimental, prototype, or banned weaponry deemed too dangerous for regular ownership.
āāF U T U R E C A T A L O G U E
Class: Military
Rounds: 1 Metal Puck, Rounds shaved off as Fired. Various rounds per mag
Impact: Ultra
Shot: Gauss Propelled Rounds
Mode: Semi-Automatic
R.O.F: Slow
Shard: Purple
Next two weapons
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āā W H A T T O E X P E C T
ā The Core ā
Towering SlumlandThe Core is the center of the Ark, and holds an astounding amount of people. It's rumored that in archived texts, The Core is where the ancestor's of present day citizens entered the Ark. Once the regime had been established and control implemented over the complex, The Core was left over crowded for 'The Greater Good' of the other sectors. Since then, The Core has faced an ever present trend of rapid expansion. It's a good thing that GPS technology utilizes a form of echo location to map the city, because it enormous. Towering skylines, buildings packed wall to wall, The core resembles a massive metropolis, except poorer. The only rivers here are ones of filth and waste.
Typically the further away from Gray Wall you travel, the worse the conditions become. The crowds become denser, the trash piles up higher, and the smell gets worse the closer one gets to the slums. However, the farther you move away from the Slums, the more security and military forces you'll see, along with infrastructure maintenance crews. High town is relatively alright, as the wealthy there use teams of personally hired crews to clean the roads and private security to patrol the streets; as The Core doesn't have enough manpower to keep proper order. Although, saying wealthy in The Core is only relevant when comparing the richness of dirt, as being wealthy in The Core is a laughable affair for those who've come into large sums or money in the outer sectors.
The most notable beneficiary attempting to keep order in The Core, everywhere except the Slums, is a mega corporation by the title of Syndustries. They quite literally handle nearly everything, and their influence expands far outside The Core. However, teams of private security, cleaning crews, and other base operating work forces are employed in The Core due to this corporation. They also hold shares in many production facilities to the point that rumor and speculation conclude that Syndustries could incite a Dictatorship if they so wished. It's also speculated that the corporation is the foundation that prevents an economic collapse. Everything shown to the public is of good intent, and tailored towards providing a better life for the common man. However, that's not to say some secrets haven't come to light here and there, just that proving them is incredibly hard. Most people who attempt to expose negative effects of Syndustries actions disappear.
Foot traffic is the primary way to navigate the metal labyrinth, followed by tiny vehicles. Due to the sheer number of people, The Core has the feel of an old Chinese market, with tiny cars, lots of motorcycles, and trucks so small they could fit sideways down an alleyway. Fortunately, pathways exist in all forms from weaving alleyways, to rooftop catwalks, and so forth. Despite all these methods of travel, the main streets remain crowded as ever. The only real life goal a person could have inside of The Core, is getting out of The Core. Since you need money to move out to a different sector, a fee which nobody who works in The Core can afford, a person's dreams are heavily reliant on winning 'The Lottery' provided by, of course, Syndustries. It should also be noted that anybody inside The Core, does not work outside of The Core. The second way out of this slumland is to pass the S.T.A.T, The Science and Technology Aptitude Test, which leads down the road to Sector Four and a life of learning and discovery.
Despite The Core's imperssive size, it does not have any specific focus on any one particular industry. Rather is serves the purpose to buffer production margins, meaning The Core has a vast array of different industries. Also of note is the transfer station directly in the center of The Core, which also holds impound lots fo confiscated vehicles and repair workshops for the trains.
āOverview
The Poverty Hubs
āGray Wall
āHigh Town
āThe Exchange
āLow Town
āNeon
āThe Slums
An Are of the Core noted for it's concentration of administration related jobs. Gray Wall also holds the Syndustries Tower, and the President's Administration Offices, a massive walled in complex of two towering buildings, with a serious amount of security and connecting sky bridges.
āHigh Town
This district of The Core is where the highest members in slumland society reside, including and not limited to successful businessmen, ruthless gang leaders, and other kingpins. It's also the least croweded, the cleanest, and remains free of the parasitic building practices other areas of The Core employ.
āThe Exchange
Despite being a mixture of commercial and residential, this district gets its name from the large market that takes up at least a few entire blocks. It's also rumored to hold one of the entrances to The Underground, and many illicit products surface from this area.
āLow Town
Technically the middle-class of slumland, Low town isn't much different from the actual slums except people try to retain some shred of civility and culture here. There's also substantially less homeless here, though the area is usually plagued by racketeering outfits.
āNeon
The district where one goes to unwind, and generally just forget about their troubles. A long swathe of main road, and several offshoots, are devoted to the purposes of bars, dance clubs, brothels, and any other cheap pleasures of the flesh. It's also the easiest area to obtain drugs in, especially the dangerous and illegal ones. This area gets its name from the blinding amount of neon signs and show lights.
āThe Slums
Pretty much self explanatory, this is where the less fortunate and poverty stricken liveāThat is to say, those who have no money and no stable job. Here the unfortunate craft shelter from anything they can get their hands on, and those too weak to do so simply sleep in the filth. Trash is everywhere, and Sector Five can't keep up with the sheer amoun of trash The Core produces, so the Slums aren't even serviced anymore. Violent crimes run rampant here, and the only time a security force enters is likely to bust a high priority criminal.
ā Sector One ā
The WoodlandThe majority of sector one is covered in artificially cultivated forests, with only a few high mountains and a scattering of sizable lakes. The wealthy typically live in large manors on estates, beautiful mansions, or pricey penthouse suites. Many of the low and middle class workers earn meager livings, and live in housing that varies from cheap and cramped, to moderate suburban homes. The logging industry is the largest in sector one, though it does handle the cultivation of animal game: For sport hunting, or pricey meats and furs. Sector one also has two mining operations, which dig out some common metals, most of which is iron; Sector one also digs up core shards. Additionally, sector one holds the largest system of water recyclers, providing well over half of the usable water throughout Arkheus.
āAetherdale
The City of Clouds
The largest city in Arkheus, Aetherdale is second to none. Sector One is one of the most hospitable zones within the Ark, and citizens flock here given the chance. This population boom throughout the years has grown Aetherdale exponentially, and not all of it is for the good. The edge of the city holds suburbs, for the families that are well off financially, and works its way inwards with cramped living complexes and crowded streets. The center of the city is where its title derives from as a plethora of skyscrapers loom thousands of feet in the air. The city is surrounded by dense forests, and it also noted for its production of leisure items and animal game, specifically the expensive sport of hunting. Its southern districts are within sight of the public railway, and its northern end lets out of the woods and onto the miles large beaches surrounding the lakes.
āAmilton
The Rehabilitated Township
Amilton is a sizable town, and quite unique in its purpose. There are only two types of people who reside here; Security Officers, and criminals with such exemplary behavior that they have been given a second chance. Don't let that fool you though, Amilton is still very much a prison, just one with better food and housing. Modeled after pre-world suburbs, most of the houses are a single story and very homely, despite being shared dormitory style. The entire community mostly farms vegetables, and employs those with technical trades to remain self-sufficient as normal, law-abiding citizens are typically restricted to the visitor's center and are not allowed inside any further. Officers patrol the streets, and two story shiny, metal walls with sniper towers, that encircles the community. Just in case.
āBelmire
The Home of Rubble and Rock
Belmire is nearly a small city, and is the largest of the two mining operations in sector one. Which is to say, not very big at all. A labyrinth of tunnels runs through the mountain, navigated by foot, ladder, and elevator. Focusing mostly on the deposits of iron, core shards, and other metals within the mountain, the mining operation uses a system of tracks, and small hauling trucks to move ore from within the depths of the mine. The town itself sits against the mountain side, within walking distance to the mine entrance. Kind of shabby and not very homely, Belmire feels like it could have been put together over night and is maintained primarily with scrap and repurposed parts.
āBeneque
Loggington
Despite its given name, Beneque is usually just referred to as 'Loggington' or 'Log Town' because of it's focus around the foresting industry. The workers here have two primary jobs, the artificial cultivation of trees, and the process of cutting them down. Thanks to science, and the technological advancements Arkheus has given us, growing trees to full maturity is a process of months, rather than years. Loggginton employs a carefully designed pattern of cutting, to ensure the avoidance of pre-world clear cutting techniques. The town itself is really just a growing mass of mobile trailers and small pre-fabricated homes just stuck together. The roads are hastily cleared tracks of dirt. Log Town is too far from the public rail system, so the town is tasked with maintaining ground roads to Seremere, or Tolstein.
āCrest
The Sleepy Hollow
If you happen to live to the ripe old age of retirement, Crest is likely one of the places you'll end up. Primarily a retirement community for those who have fulfilled their duty to the people of Ark, there's not much to say about Crest. The majority of the population is the elderly, and those who take care of them. Most resources come from a train station near the Magrails, and is brought to the community in transport trucks. Full of clean streets, flourishing gardens, and cookie cutter houses with white picket fences out front; The people of Crest live a relatively simple life full of hobby crafts and other personal desires. Security is minimal here, but it does boast an impressive medical staff for obvious reasons.
āHobfell
Tuna Town
Hobfell is less of a town, and more like an enormous processing plant. Once a growing industrial site, Hobfell has been converted into a community through the use of barracks style housing for those who can't manage the travel times from other parts of the sector. Fortunately everyone here gets Saturdays and Sundays off to see their families. Hobfell started as a fishing hub, with access to the public rail system and and being relatively close to the four lakes. Since its growth, it's now picked up some of the processing for ores, lumber, and fabrics. Despite all of this, there is the noticeable smell of fish permeating the air at all hours. Massive spawning pools handle most of the artificial cultivation of sealife, and the only lakes Hobfell has no precidence over are those outside Crest, Aetherdale, and Seremere.
āIvorpoint
The Bueford Estate
What started as one man's dream has quickly grown into a small, prosperous town. Johanan Ivoran Bueford is one of the wealthiest men in Arkheus thanks to an aspiring dream he had in his early years; To bring the fine culture of wine back to the world. Discovering old recipes in buried archives, Johanan began with a grape orchard that quickly turned into a sprawling plantation. Johanan Wine is of the finest quality, and its price is quite high; A drink that is favored by the upper echelon of society. The bad news is that workers toil in the fields performing backbreaking labor for the bare minimum wage as set by the government; The good news is that just about anybody can get a job in the fields. Johanan plans to continue his rapid expansion, and has dreams of utilizing some of the vast space in Sector Two for his grape plantations. Additionally Ivorpoint exports jelly, candy, and raw grapes at more reasonable prices. The roadwork consists of simple dirt tracks, and the homes are cabins typically build by laborers, and are fully connected to the water and power grids, and the people here have quick access to the public magrails.
āLugrath
The Bluegrass Estate
Much like the story of Johanan Bueford, Arad Lugrath Bluegrass began with a small family farm and a license for genetically engineered dairy cows. Holding the only real farming operation in sector one, Arad was able to quickly climb through the economic ranks and now boasts an impressive range of farm stock; Including chickens, cows, pigs, turtles, sheep, and deer. There are also a few orchards, but not enough to be considered industrious, yet Arad has kept the costs for his products fairly low. The farmhands have a ritual of intensive labor, but it pays well. Not enough to rise from middle class, but enough to support a large family, if just barely. Worker housing consists of a range of farmhouses from two, to five bedroom, and include the full functionalities of a modern home. Workers and their families can obtain Bluegrass brand products for a discounted price. While lugrath doesn't have paved road, it does benefit from being next to the public magrails.
āMillford
The World's Largest Village
Millford's architecture and community reflect that of their neighboring communites; simple and homely. It comes off as a large district of suburbs, with rarely a house or building exceeding more than two stories. The communities here are family oriented, and consist of a wide variety of family friendly events, especially those that promote youth sports. It's a beautiful town, full of suburban gardens, parks, and playgrounds, only marred by large manufacturing plants and paper mills. Some of their more notable exports are clothing, furniture, in addition to some homemade goods from personal, and community gardens, as each house has a sizable yard. Millford is primarily geared towards the middle class, but does offer a few low cost housing on at the edges of town in the form of cheap, simple trailers with basic amenities.
āSeremere
The City of Splendor
Seremere is technically a city, but really caters to the public at the hottest vacation spot, with affordable accommodations that encompass even the lowest social classes, although you get what you pay for. If it's classified as a sport, leisure activity, or a brand of entertainment, Seremere has it. Hunting expeditions, for days to weeks at a time, hiking trips, arcades, boating racesāIf you could ever dream of doing it someone, somewhere in Seremere can make it happen. One of the hottest trends in Seremere is a "Virtual Reality Vacation", a personalized simulation that can range anything from a medieval adventure, to a sweet summer home by a lake in the mountains. You can also pay extra for a developer's kit to have in the simulated world, and change things as you please. Other activities of note are Seremere's dance clubs, bars, and some more provocative establishments. The industry here doesn't exactly have a strong sense of morals, even prostitution is legal, although heavily regulated. Another item of note is the strong presence of an underground market. The city is full of towering skyscrapers that shine in the light, and don't have much in the way of housing other than worker barracks and outrageously priced apartments.
Hotels exist on virtually every corner, along with core stations, both of which compete with an impressive amount of eateries and restaurants. Also of note is the fact the whereas illegal in other parts of Arkheus, there are some regulated drugs available in Seremere for recreational use. At night the city can be seen shining from miles away, a time in which the partying and fun only intensifies. Seremere also controls the sea life for the lake it sits on, and has precedence over the water recyclers. It's also of note that Seremere handles a lot of the entertainment industry, televisions broadcasts, recording and producing studios, and so forth.
Hotels exist on virtually every corner, along with core stations, both of which compete with an impressive amount of eateries and restaurants. Also of note is the fact the whereas illegal in other parts of Arkheus, there are some regulated drugs available in Seremere for recreational use. At night the city can be seen shining from miles away, a time in which the partying and fun only intensifies. Seremere also controls the sea life for the lake it sits on, and has precedence over the water recyclers. It's also of note that Seremere handles a lot of the entertainment industry, televisions broadcasts, recording and producing studios, and so forth.
āTolstein
The Encampment
At first glance, Tolstein might come off as an ancient concentration camp. A city of tents in all sizes, surrounded by simple chain link fencing with barbed wire, and well crafted wooden outlook towers. Hunters from all over gather here, usually as starting and ending points for their expeditions. A favored, cost-effective method for some is to simply slither beneath their vehicle and bundle up in a sleeping bag. The location has become such a hot spot for them that the governor of sector one installed some modernized utilities, most notably showers and restrooms. There are also a few fire pits, grilling stations, and gazebos around the area. Though despite all the camp-esque activities, the favored method of passing time here is of courseāDrinking, Smoking Habac, and telling wild stories of their ventures in the woods.
ā Sector Two ā
The Verdant PlainsSector Two is a wide expanse of grassy plaints and rolling hills. The industry here primarily focuses around farming, especially grains and vegetables, orchards, and roving flocks of animals typically tended to by herdsmen. The industry for mining and forestry here is very small, as most of the focus revolves around seeding the plains and ensuring the herds of animals don't go hungry. Many of the homes here have a country or farmhouse feel, and the low income families are usually crammed into apartments, or choose to board with other families and split the bills of a house. Those who are wealthier and prefer to lead homely lives can usually be found in manors scattered throughout the plains. Citizens here can obtain a homestead permit to build their own home out on a designated plot of land in sector two, and start their operation whether it be farming, growing orchards, or herding animals.
āBlank
Deadtown
No longer marked on the holomap, the original name for this town has been lost, somehow, throughout the years. Once a marvel of innovation, Blank is now a ghost town and hot spot for youths and believers of the paranormal. If you believe the stories, strange things happen in Blank and nobody knows why. Blank's history has been retold so often, nobody really knows what the true story behind the dead town is. Rumors cover everything from curses and voodoo, to ghosts, aliens, and government conspiracies. Blank is a dusty little town, with paved roads full of holes and rusted metal buildings, some of which remain unfinished. The area is also quite filthy, the victim of constant littering and illegal dumping.
āDubthain
The Weldon Estate
The Weldon Estate was originally founded by Barbatos Dubthain Weldon, and has since then been inherited by his daughter Aralin Weldon. Though she really has nothing to do with the town's day to day routine, Dubthain is really run by a board of directors, who kind of treat Aralin like a toddler they're forced to tolerate. Dubthain is a farming community, which produces a lot of vegetables and textiles at modest prices. There is onsite housing for the workers who'd rather stay during the work week and avoid the expense of constant traveling. The housing facilities onsite get cheaper the more working people you pack into them, and many of workers choose to split the bill of the two-story, country style homes. Also of note, Dubthain is famous for breeding small, domesticated animals like dogs and cats. Dubthain also manages its own small lake, and has boating and fishing activities available for a meager fee.
āGlokhallow
The Baking Capital
Glokhallow is a sprawling city famous for it's baked goods. The economy here is primary centered around the large fields of grain outside the city, including wheat, rice, and barley. Additionally Glokhallow produces a great quantity of orchard fruits, giving them all the capabilities to create delectable baked goods. Glokhallow Pies are among the top of their famous products, but everything from Glokhallow is "to die for", and comes at a very affordable price. The city is very urban, following the scheme of most cities on Arkheus. Suburbs lie scattered around the edges and population density increases the more you work towards the center; streets lined with large apartment complexes and towering skyscrapers. Most notable about the infrastructure its Glokhallow's use of avenues, the medians of which are usually planted with flourishing trees that blossom into bright, beautiful colors year round.
āKinehaben
Herdsman's Rest
About as centered as a city could get in the odd shapes of the sectors, Kinehaben's location is ideal for a launch point for herdsman. Built on a small lake, and encompassing three major rivers, it's a favorite for nomads who move their herds across the plains. The city has a rural feel, full of feed stores and businesses focused around the theme of these herders. Way stations dot the edges of the cities, complete with boarding for rent and pens for animals, for those that bring their herds in instead of camping outside of the city. It's not uncommon to see small flocks of animals moving through the crowded city streets, especially if one is heading towards the central market square. Almost anything can be found in Kinehaben in the huge market square directly in the center of the city. A multilevel affraid, the market is actually an enormous mall like structure, but instead of stores citizens can buy licenses to open a stall for a marked period of time. Kinehaben is the largest producer of animal related products, and is the largest supplier of meat and leather. Most people don't visit Kinehaben without leaving with some of their Jerky, or stopping by an eatery for a meat pie.
āNubbikham
The Command Center
Nubbikham dabbles a bit in everything from farming, to herding, to some production and even a little mining. The mines, albeit small, do provide a steady stream of core shards and a trickle of rarer metals such as gold, silver, platinum, and aluminum. However, Nubbikham, while it doesn't focus on any unique exports or famous goods, is the control center for sector two. It manages the forests, and ships out growers and loggers who work in the fields for weeks, to months at a time. They also manage most of the lakes, except for those at Dubthain and Kinehaben, and ensure that the artificial rivers remain clean and functional. They also use a team of "Seeders" who roam the plains, scattering millions of genetically engineered seeds to ensure the plains remain fertile, and bountiful. Nubbikham is more of a legislation and scientific community, holding not only governing establishments but the only real labs in sector two. Due to the extensive work they do however, the community has grown into a small city to support the number of people it needs for operating efficiency.
ā Sector Three ā
The Lava PitsSector Three is basically the end of the road for citizens of Arkheus. Rather, the entire sector serves as a prison. Sheer peaks and virulent pits of bubbling lava ensure that escape is nigh impossible without a heat absorption suit. Even then, Sector three holds the highest ratio of officers to personnel than anywhere else on the Ark. Now, whereas the other sectors typically have some sort of jailing facilities, Sector three is where repeat offenders, or those who've committed federal crimes wind upāIn nearly all cases, Permanently. Here the guilty and condemned spend the rest of their lives toiling away with intensive labor under conditions of high heat. The most likely causes of death are from Accidents, Heatstroke, Dehydration, or that fact that another convict found reason to murder you.
Regulations in the sector are high, only rivaled by the security measures in place. Typically convicts are chained, or otherwise locked to their assigned areas of working, or mining, and pat down thoroughly before and after their shift. Those that need to walk to and from areas are given a length of chain and put under supervised guard. Criminal records usually determine the level of security a person faces, and what kind of job they will be assigned. All of the work facilities, excluding the mines, are open air, and have catwalks for officers to patrol on and keep a bird's eye view over everyone. In addition to the over-watchers, officers are always present on the ground, ready to respond to anything. In the mines guards patrol in groups of four to eight, and the prisoners remained shackled to the mine walls in true chain-gang fashion. The cells, showering facilities, and common areas aren't much better, as their roofing consists of thick, bulletproof, and completely transparent glass with remote accessed vent holes just large enough to drop painful, nonlethal nerve gas canisters into.
Shipments are handled by law abiding citizens, several blast doors away from the prison itself. Guards move the shipments up the tracks leading to the top of tall towers built on the mountains of Sector Three, where transit staff load the shipments and unload arriving cargo onto flatbed and bucket carts that lead back into the facilityāAfter several security checks and scans. Food and water are provided, in bulk of course. Large crates that contain the day's water and food for each registered prisoner are lowered down into the common room, needless to say the strongest and most ruthless eat the best. Guards don't bother maintaining a ground present in the housing facilities, and instead just patrol the catwalks unless they need to quell a situation.
A few key points of Sector Three:
- Magrails lead to towers jutting from the peaks of mountains, with large platforms for loading and unloading the trains, and has parking areas for arriving vehicles or deliveries.
- A pair of blast doors separate the prison colony from the outside world. The hallway behind those doors is lined with the officer quarters, and the large hangar like area beyond that is the training grounds and defensive emplacements.
- Vektor is the only prison the utilizes the mining tunnels either by walking, or cart, to access the other facilities for maintenance and repair jobs; Only prisoners with low threat assessments exist here.
- Prisoners are locked to their workstations, or designated mining areas. Every tool is counted and logged before and after every shift, and prisoners are thoroughly pat down at the begin and end of their shifts.
āOverview
Welcome to the Prison Colonies
āCine
āClaxt
āCoeha
āKanur
āRithe
āSigma
āStohm
āVektor
Rock Crushing and Stone Shaping.
āClaxt
Ore Smelting and Processing.
āCoeha
Soldering, Brazing, and Welding.
āKanur
Metal Forging and Casting.
āRithe
Glass Production.
āSigma
Machining Factories.
āStohm
Mining and Hauling.
āVektor
Facility Maintenance.
ā Sector Four ā
The Frozen WasteSector Four is fairly straight forward, you see what you get. The eastern section of the sector is a frozen expanse of ice, sheer winds, and freezing temperatures. To the west the temperature remains the same, deadly low if you're exposed to it, but most of the wind is funneled through huge ice shelves and jagged cliff faces. What better area to isolate yourself and devote your life to science, than somewhere nearly inhospitable. There are four outposts residing within the ice shelves, each depending on supplies that come in from the other sectors. Here the only goal is science, technology, and the advancement of human knowledge. Citizens who show a healthy appreciation and some moderate skill, or talent, for the sciences are given the Scientific Aptitude Test; Should they pass then they are eligible to serve an internship of sorts in their respective field. They both study and learn under their peers and elders in the craft, and are passed only through recommendation. The good news is that pupils are given dormitory style quarters, usually sharing their room with another individual, and a common room that all the rooms use. Additionally these prospective scientists are given an allowance, for whatever they may need or desire.
The only other way into these institutions is through the form of menial labor. The brains devote all their time to their research and their studies, so somebody has to make their beds and cook their meals right. Staff is kept on hand to provide house keeping services, and cooks that provide high quality meals in large cafeterias that never close, as science can run to any point in the night. Additionally, each department has a head, a designated leader, and a budget with gets distributed through needs, wants, and wages. Above the heads is the director of the entire outpost. Pupils attend classes and workshops early in the morning, and spend their afternoons and evenings learning under a mentor. Once they graduate they are given a personal room, as all other scientists have.
The facility has specialized security, only those that pass rigorous mental and physical tests, as they only way to move through the facility is by using access cards. Personal rooms, areas of learning, laboratory, storage areas, loading docks, and so forth are all imprinted onto each person's person I.D card. Also of note is that there is basically a security camera in every hallway, and access to personal rooms is logged through the card scanner. Not many things remain unknown within the institutes. Each institute has a specific focus, despite the fact that many areas of science overlap. Knowledge is shared freely between the outposts, and members are known to travel back and forth and stay in other outposts for varying periods of time; to assist with these overlapping areas of science.
- Arkhean science refers to the study and discovery of the systems, architecture, and infrastructure of Arkheus, as the construct remains relatively mysterious and still holds many secrets.
- The outposts exist primarily underground, with similar structure styles to Sector Five, just shinier, sleeker, and generally "sciency".
āOverview
The Institutes of Science
āBishop
āRook
āQueen
āKing
Physical Sciences
āRook
Social Sciences and History
āQueen
Life Sciences
āKing
Arkhean Science
ā Sector Five ā
The Barren PeaksSector Five is a rocky, mountainous expanse that makes surface life incredibly difficult. All of the settlements are beneath ground, with towers jutting from the sides of the peaks connected to the magrails. Most settlements offer parking garages and train stations, and often don't count these areas as part of the actual facility levels, despite maintaining them. The sector is widely known as an industrious zone that focuses on mass production, with few exceptions. Additionally, beneath the sheer cliffs and jagged edges of the mountains lie a system of transit tunnels, utilizing the magnetic technology of the magrails, that connect to each settlement and are used to traverse much of the mines. Despite each facility being known for a specialization, the presence of some sort of mining operation exists with each, and as with all cities the people there do stray from the path of assumption and dabble in other business ventures. Despite the "Fallout Shelter" feel, Sector Five is a popular area, likely due to the fact that a job exists for just about anybody here.
- The levels of Sector Five are large areas, littered with hallways and open areas. For a rough comparison, the average floor level is the equivalent to of a small town.
āAencrad
Bouldertown
Most noted for its guild of stonemasons, Aencrad primarly handles the processing and utilization of raw stone. As with many other settlements in Sector Five, Aencard delves deep into the earth for its resources, and ships what it doesn't use to other areas. Despite the wide range of products that come from here, such a stone bricks, polished marble, and other crafts involving precious stones, Aencrad is famous for its exquisitely crafted sculptures. Factory workers and craftermen make decent wages, whereas miners are paid much more due to the dangers of the job. Collapsed tunnels and cave-ins are not uncommon here, and a sum negotiated through contract is paid to the families involved in any miners death. The facility is fourteen floors with the middles left open so that an intricate and vast system of pulleys and winches can move platforms of heavy loads up and down the levels. Foot traffic is typically restricted to stairwells and in some cases, ladders. Hover-boards are a popular method of movement among youths and young adults. The very bottom level holds the entrances to the mines, usually secured with chain-link gates during off hours.
āCalatrax
Power Town
Despite the title, Calatrax handles more than just power. It holds the largest concentration of utility producing machines, and has task forces that deploy all over Ark charged with maintenance, installation, and repair. Calatrax upholds the operating standards for Power, Water, Sewage, and Garbage. The facility is three large levels, enclosed and traversed by using elevators and stairwells. Beneath those levels, are three additional levels with respective areas of production. The fourth holds mammoth sized generators, running off a collection of large core chunks that output power for months at a time. Level five has an array of water recycling and filtration systems, second only to those beneath Seremere. Also on this level is the master drain, a pipe large enough for small crafts to traverse the sewers and deliver personal to perform onsite repairs. The master drain runs in a large circle around Arkheus, and branches inwards using smaller pipes and junctions. This does not remove the need to enter through drainage access points in other areas of Arkheus, as some areas are just inaccessible from the master drain. Garbage is collected on the final level, number six. Since the Ark is an enclosed space, landfills and incinerators are less than desirable options.
However, among the many secrets of the Ark is "The Chute". Seeming just a hole in the ground, with slanted sides a few feet in length, nobody is quite sure where this chute leads. Attempts at exploring the chute have proved pointless, as nobody as reached the bottom. Additionally, signals are distorted from within its metal walls, ruling out exploration through remotely operated devices. However, one thing is certain about "The Chute". It's never filled up, so it must take the trash somewhere. Besides dumping trash here, personnel also dump the toxins from recycled water, and other hazardous materials. It seems to be a bottomless void, and scientists have stayed up many nights trying to piece together its secrets. Some have even used methods to go down into it, but there's never been a report of anybody returning.
However, among the many secrets of the Ark is "The Chute". Seeming just a hole in the ground, with slanted sides a few feet in length, nobody is quite sure where this chute leads. Attempts at exploring the chute have proved pointless, as nobody as reached the bottom. Additionally, signals are distorted from within its metal walls, ruling out exploration through remotely operated devices. However, one thing is certain about "The Chute". It's never filled up, so it must take the trash somewhere. Besides dumping trash here, personnel also dump the toxins from recycled water, and other hazardous materials. It seems to be a bottomless void, and scientists have stayed up many nights trying to piece together its secrets. Some have even used methods to go down into it, but there's never been a report of anybody returning.
āEincrah
The Biodomes
Unique in it's purpose, Eincrah the agricultural center for Sector Five. Through the use of underground biodomes, linked with transit tunnels, it's able to produce a vast quantity of food through the use of genetic engineering and growth hormones. The quality of food produce this way is ensured to be within regulation, and is definitely not the cause for any abnormalities in child development or birth. However, it's enough to feed the Ark, and some of the domes specialize in the cultivation of exotic plant life. Still, others hold insect farms for their materials, such as silk from spiders and silkworms, and honey from bees, and so forth. The domes can average anywhere in diameter from three-hundred, to a thousand yards. Staff typically live in homes built into the connecting tunnels, all of which have access to the main tower that runs up above the mountain and to the magrail. A system of rails and small trains, or vehicles adapted to ride the rails move products below and above the surface. Eincrah itself is only five levels, and is primarily used as a sort of underground suburbia.
āHypreis
Home of the Textilleries
Following the theme of quick production in Sector Five, Hypreis is the largest supplier of textiles and fabrics. Importing shipments from Sector Two, and leasing a few of their own biodomes, the facility claims to have perfected the mass production method. Sure, the items may be of questionable quality, and the hyperlooms may take a finger here and there, but who can complain when their children have shirts on their backs at affordable prices, right? Hypreis follows the architecture of Aencrad, except the twenty-two floors are shaped to be concentric rings. Some areas of Hypreis specialize in much higher quality, and much more elegant items, with a price that reflects the effort involvedāA hell of a lot. Hypreis has also expanded its industry to encompass wood based furniture, with quick and easy upholstery.
āLume
Home of the Arts
Despite Aencrad having a hold on the sculpting aspects of art, Lume is noted for its products. The facility itself has a more homely town like feel, despite being buried deep beneath the earth and having cookie-cutter architecture, being concentric squares just like Aencrad, the people here have taken up the crafts. Most of the exports that leave Lume are handmade. Losing to Aencrad for statues and the like, Lume is famous for its paintings, some of which can cost thousands of credits. Some of which are simply ridiculously priced for their simplicity, but hell, that's art. Thirty-Two levels isn't much to work with, but Lume has managed to facilitate youth sports, family affairs, and even a movie hall. Lume also holds schools for the arts, including acting, where student films and professional movies trickle out.
āMiona
The Brewery
What world with human civilization doesn't have alcohol? Specializing in beer, malt liquors, and other spirits, Miona is quite a popular place, especially when drinking their vast variety of products. The facility itself is only six levels, but each one is expansive. The upper two floors are for workers, their families, and other small business and administrations. The bottom four floors are home to the distilling plants, where alcoholic drinks are mass produced. Miona also produces a variety of juices and other, normalized drinks, which follow the theme of Sector Five of being easy to make, exported in vast quantities, and available at a cheap price. Many of the workers in Miona hail from other settlements, and use the magrails, or the transit system to reach work.
āNiem
The Smithery
Niem is by far the largest settlement in Sector Five at One-Hundred and Eight levels. It also holds the finest productions of quality tools and equipment, choosing to achieve quality over quantity since competing with Sector Three is near impossible. Thousands of different tools, pieces, parts, and multitudes of other items are created here. Despite not really being famous for anything, Niem still upholds an impressive line of brand names. Most of the workshops, foundries, and smithies are located on the upper levels for easy ventilation of the heat that they produce. The middle section holds docking areas for the loading winches, and a two lane track designed specifically for small cargo trains runs up the concentric rings in Niem's circular architectural layout. Though, that proved not to be enough, Niem is also host to a series of large cargo elevators. Pedestrians have their own series of elevators, each of which only span about twelve floors to minimize wait times, yet sometimes the best option is to do with the stairs. Niem also has deticated vehicle assemblies, and produces the majority of personal vehicles and crafts.
āZumos
Home of the Woodweavers
Zumos is known for its creations using wood, some so intricate the technique is often referred to as wood weaving. Despite that, Zumos mass produces all range of furnitures and accessories. The facility is also noted for supplying amenities for home decor, appliances, and other living and furnishing needs. The settlement is is sixty floors, with a break at down on floor 51. The upper fifty are concentric, as the scheme of things go. Zumos also has leases on a few biodomes for exotic woods, and imports a lot of its raw materials from Sector One. They utilize the pulley and winch system that hangs suspended in the open areas of the upper floors, of which residential homes and commercial businesses are scattered throughout. The 51st floor is solid, and is host to a large market. The lower nine floors continue the concentric pattern, but at the homes of the wealthy who choose to live there. The lower nine live libes of leisure in large homes with vast gardens, beautiful parks, and bubbling canals and streams throughout.
ā Sector Six ā
The Golden SandsSector Six is a rolling expanse of golden dunes and warm sands. Because of the nature of sand, and its tendancy to shift often, the cities are built up on high plateaus accessible through the magrails. Additionally there are ground level elevators that lead to garages, usually holding personal Sand-skis, vehicles which have flat blades and an air, or coreshard propulsion system to navigate the dunesāRubber tires wouldn't make it two feet. The most popular two vehicles are the Sand Sharks, a slim lined vehicle that can seat two, and is modeled after the Jet Ski. Second to that is a transport truck with a canvas back held up by metal rings, with treads modeled after scoops and two flat blades underneath the cab of the truck. The weather in Sector Five is relatively warm, and the forecast is typically always "High Winds and Sandstorms". Fortunately, each of the three settlements are protected by a wall that encircles the plateau, and most people have the common sense to head indoors when a storm manages to blow over the city, albeit it isn't often that a storm reaches the sizes and intensity needed to engulf the plateaus.
āKeibara
The Cliff's Edge
Keibara lies on the western edge of Sector Six, and is the largest of the three cities here. A wall runs along the cliff's edge, and comes equipped with elevators leading to garages adjacent to the sand, and small ramps for vehicle wishing to traverse the harsh terrain. Keibara holds one of the largest chemical refining operations on Arkheus, using chemical compounds to produce a range of items from plastic, synthetic resins, and rubber, to cleaning supplies, and so forth. The buildings here utilize a lot of the stone coming from Aencrad, and build their houses in the adobe fashion, stacked together and linked with wooden bridges. Sector Six is quite warm, and the stone does a better job of keeping out the heat than the metal walls hidden inside, and using wooden bridges instead of metal ones ensures the rubber bottoms of your shoes don't melt. The community as a whole is more oriented around their own families, but the most popular form of getting together and having fun usually revolves around alcohol and food.
āRune
Candyland
As it's name implies, Rune's famous for it's delectable treats and assorted sugar candies. Utilizing biodome technology from Sector Five, Rune holds the only underground farms in Sector Six. Due to the small size of the plateau its built upon, the city was forced to begin expanding below ground. Though, it does a good job of maintaining a sizable population, following the building techniques of adobe houses with bridges and leaving their roads unpaved. So far Rune exists eleven levels below the surface, some levels stretch from edge to edge inside the rock. Despite being famous for candy, and producing large quantities of raw, and expensive sugar, Rune also sticks its hand into the movement industry. It's the home of the hoverboard, and picks up some of the manufacturing for magnetic shin splints, and custom ordered motorcycles for a hefty price.
āTiala
Motorcity
The second largest city in Sector Six, and also located on a plateau, Tiala is the home of the motor industry. Existing above ground in the typical, adobe house fashion, Tiala really shines below the loose soil and hard rock of the plateau. Seven levels spanning the entirety of the rock walls, and six of which are devoted to the craft and creation of vehicular transport. This includes cheap, cookie cutter vehicles, luxury cars, and fabrication of trains and their wagons. The lowest level, number seven, is a trainyard which leads directly out to the magrail. Since trains take such a long time to produce, they never really stop production until the yard is full of replacements and spares. In addition to their main production, Taila also utilizes it's above ground facilities in the refinement of crude oil, pumped from deep below the sands, and other oil based products; Such as cooking oil, lotions, skin and mineral oils, and so forth. Also of note, Tiala is famous for it's "Honey Habac", a popular item among smokers and available for a moderate price.
The Advent
An unholy infusion of man and machine, Advents are the primary product of the Stone Mistress program. The process of creating Advents uses specialized, experimental nanites to "reprogram" the human body to better serve Stone Mistress' self established purpose. The tiny robots hijack the hosts neural networks, and alter the host's form. The glowing teal lines on the Advents body is actually a viscous fluid the nanites use to preserve necessary organic structures. However, the Advent is neither living, nor dead, but a vessel intended to carry out a purpose. Although, due to the experimental nature of the nanites, it's not perfect.
Advents are about twice as strong as a normal person but their speed is about average. Their senses are poor as the body relies on the nanites for visual and audio. Advents only walk when there is no visible target, or when hunting a target that has been lost. When pursuing and attacking, the Advent sprints, and since it does not breath, it does not tire, it does not feel pain. The only reason Advents make noise in the first place is in an attempt to intimidate their prey, which they do with bloodthirsty, human like shrieks. The creature is fairly smart, and knows how to target weak points in armor, and to flip a vehicle. However, they lack the finesse of precision motor skills for guns. Melee weapons are also seen as inefficient compared to their spike-esque claws which are designed more for puncturing and less for tearing.
Advents are completely self sufficient, but are still linked to Stone Mistress. Advents can take damaged bodies and repair them, since they modify the integrity of the host anyways. However, nanites do not act as viruses. It takes time to modify and establish. Nanites are transferred orally, and once inside a new host they begin to encase the body in a fleshy cocoon. Fortunately, Advents do not need to take live targets, and are guaranteed to make a corpse before capturing a hostage. Advents are not created for climbing, but have capable pathing processes.
The best way to kill an Advent is to shoot it in the head, causing extensive damage to the core process and crashing the rest of the nanites. Damaging the heart will also crash the system, as it is still used to pump the preservation fluid through the body. Otherwise, the Advent can sustain any amount of damage until one of those two core functions are disabled. An Electro-Magnetic Pulses or anything that disrupts or absorbs core energy will temporarily shutdown Advents, until the nanites can bring themselves back online.
It should also be noted that Advent do not actively seek clothes, but will retain whatever they were wearing during the metamorphic process. Should those garments be lost, well, Advent don't have genitalia anyways. Also of note, All Advent avoid brightly lit areas, a downside to the prototype nanitesāBeing that the nanites seize up when directly exposed to light. It's speculated that this has something to do with core energy. Shining a light directly at the creature's face will blind it, yet it will continue to attack blindly. Flash bangs and flash concussive will stun the creatures, and well lit areas will deter the creatures from entering. Specifically an Advent caught beneath bright lights will being to short circuit, and die within about half a minute.
Slang References: Ados, Deados, Ferals, Aboms, Necros
Advent Hound
Much like the Advent, Advent Hounds only differ on the fact that they are created to seek and destroy. Although much weaker in strength, the Advent hounds have keener senses, and can track a target by scent alone. These hounds typically roam in packs of three to six, and remain linked to Stone Mistress. They have the same weaknesses as the Advent, but the hounds cannot create Advent. Hounds are not directly hosted into a body, as the humanoid Advent above. Instead, Hounds are derived from re-purposed genetic material from other animals. Anything larger than a medium dog is used as a source, and since the Hounds do not actively require a brain, larger sources can yield more hounds. Since the creature lacks a heart to manipulate in order to pump preservation fluid, Advent Hounds require nanites to actively circulate the liquid. This means that hounds take much longer to create than their humanoid variants.
Slang References: Hound, Ado Mutt, Ado Mongrel, Deado Dog, Hell Hound
Cipher
Ciphers are the eight foot tall staple soldier for Stone Mason. Made of of thick, nearly impenetrable armor, even one of these autonomous robots are extremely difficult to deal with. Albeit, this machine does not have a quick production style, and is far less numerable than The Advent. Ciphers have incredible raw strength, but move at less than average speeds. However, the advanced propulsion system on its shoulders allow it to fly, even then its top flight speed is about thirty miles per hour.
A solid wall of metal and machinery, Ciphers do not feature many weaknesses. There are the obvious ones, electro-magnetic pulses, and core energy disruptionsābut even those are temporary. It is completely invulnerable to regular ballistics, and proves heavily resistant to armor piercing rounds. Laser weaponry is slightly more effective, but one must spend a decent amount of time eating through its armor. Gauss weaponry is only a little better than that, but still require many rounds to puncture its exterior. The two best methods of fighting a Cipher are kinetic energy weapons, which will eventually puncture through through the armor without too much stimulation. Plasmatic-flame weapons take time to melt through the armor, but do work, and disrupt the Cipher's visual feeds due to the intensity of the heat generated by the flames. The best method of killing a walking tank, is with an anti-tank weapon, for obvious reasons.
Ciphers are quite advanced, but even their aiming scripts aren't perfect. Fortunately, Ciphers typically carry heavy variants of conventional weapons: Heavy assault rifles that function more like a machine gun; impressively large two gauge shotguns; and use heavier weapons with ease. All Ciphers typically carry a smaller secondary weapon on them as well, smaller meaning: .577 caliber pistols. Ciphers have great night vision optics and thermal optics.
The only known small arms weakness to A Cipher are their well covered joint areas, with gaps just wide enough to slip a blade into. However, miss timing such a feat is likely to get the weapon caught between the Cipher's armor plates. Timing and precision for such a take down must be excellent.
Slang References:
Juggernaut
When the earth shakes and the thunder calls, you may just have a Juggernaut on your hands. Hide your kids, and hide your wife, because this bad boy has one sole purposeāExtinction. Fifteen feet high, and another five for the missile pods, the Juggernaut cannot, and I repeat, cannot be stopped by conventional weaponry, gauss or not. With a staggering weight of 102 tons, the Juggernaut is a hulking mass of armor and weaponry. It holds two 152mm cannons, Which are the equivalent of a pre-Arkhean Howitzer Artillery Cannon; two dual-barrel 25mm machine guns, and four rocket pods holding ten HE missiles each. All of these weapons are mounted on the upper turret, which features full three-hundred and sixty degree rotation. In surviving texts, only a single Juggernaut was ever recorded. It's probably still there.
The down side is that the Juggernaut has an astounding speed of about 6-8 miles per hour, on level terrain, with no obstacles. Primary method of long distance transportation require Ciphers to break it down into smaller pieces, and reassemble it elsewhere. An electro-magnetic pulse, or core energy disruption can temporarily disable the Juggernaut, but either of these methods must be substantially powerful.
Slang References: Behemoth, Titan
Watchman
Arkhean PD typically use weapons that fire concentrated lasers, or kinetic energy bolts in the forms of pistols, sub-machine guns, and shotgunsāAnd in rare cases, Assault rifles. Their standard tech includes the inside of the helmet visor doubling as an interfacing display. Which includes scanning methods to identify targets, variable optic displays, database access, and most common features of personal computer systems such as GPS, messaging, recording, and so forth. Additionally their gloves and boots can toggle built in magnetism, allowing them to climb any metal building albeit the process is clunky at best. The boots of their armor also have mag-rail capabilities.
Slang References: Shrieks, Watchers, White Hats, Soldiers, Spooks
Patrol Drone
To help maintain the balance of power, The Arkhean Police Agency has employed the wide use of drones. The cranial structure is about the size of a human head, excluding the fins. These little bots are primarily used to patrol streets, scanning faces, A.I.C's, and quickly assessing criminal activity. Sky bots are also used in force to recon large areas of terrain. These machines contain no weapons, and since they are considered necessary they are exempt from the "Human Element" rule. Sky bots are fully automated, with built in overrides, manual control functions, kills switches, and for worst case scenario, a master shutdown switch.
Slang References: Eyes, Birds, Skybies, Zippers, Toasters
Assault Drone
Functioning much like their predecessors, the Patrol Drones, these bad boys come equipped with military grade armor plating and a small arsenal of functions. However, the key element is that these drones are manually operated using a master and slave system. A drone operator will control the master drone, and the slaves will only follow commands and run attack scripts given from the operator. If the master drone goes down, the operator can simply link up to another nearby slave drone, and that will become the master. These drones also contain the same built in safe measures as the Patrol Drones. To either side of the main body the drone has 9mm dual barrel, ballistic auto cannons, which can fire up to 180 rounds each before needing a resupply. Adjacent to those are a pair of incinerator cannons, which fire volatile bursts of kinetic energy which create a small explosion on contact. However these can only fire two shots apiece.. It's final piece of equipment comes in the form of a foldout, tail like attachment which acts as a plasma welder, able to cut through most metals.
Slang References: Gunnies, Swarm, "Pimp and his hoes", Wasps
Guardian
Considered the Elite, yet unofficial law keepers in Arkheas, Guardians stand for truth and justice, or so they say. Despite their presence throughout Arkheaus, and the heavier concentrations within the Core, guardians are both a tolerated vigilante police force and mercenaries for hire. Due to the size, and capabilities of the Guardians, it's believed that APD couldn't rid themselves of Syndustries Security even if they wanted to. However, the two forces work in tandem to uphold Arkhean laws. No real evidence of Guardians performing any illicit actions has ever surfaced, or remained long.
Equipped with state of the art gear, Guardians are only a step above the police force. Perhaps to lessen the tension between the two powers. They typically use weapons with laser systems or kinetic bolts derived from core shards, and follow standard APD protocool with their use; that being pistols, sub-machine guns, shotguns, and if the occasion calls for itāassault rifles. Their visors perform the same functionalities, except they do not link to the APD database, and rather have their own connection to extensive, private data banks. Guardians also come equipped with the same magnetic and mag-rail gear as APD, with the addition of rappelling and grappling lines and hooks. It should also be noted that Guardians posses heavy weapons, and will use them when needed. Syndustries can usually afford to pay for any necessary damages.
Slang References: Goons, Imps, Private Police, "Rent A' Cops"
Reaper
Like something out of a nightmare, the Syndurstries Reaper is not to be taken lightly. Reapers do not travel in squads, and rarely are two ever needed in the same location. If these guys have your name, it may be easier to just lay down and wait , because you're dead already. Equipped with variable optic goggles, they can easily switch between night, thermal, and normal vision. Additionally these helmets have variable zoom lenses, which pair well with their visor interface. The reaper can spot, and track a target from about a hundred yards. They typically come armed with pistols, and variable fire automatic rifles that function more than adequately as a long range rifle. These weapons utilize gauss firing systems to shoot projectiles with much higher penetration and distance than a laser weapon.
What makes them so deadly is years of intense training that they keep up on vigorously, and their terrifying demeanor. Their armor is the thing of nightmares, and is nearly impervious to all forms of non-gauss ballistic weapons. Lasers, while not ineffective, take a considerable amount to eat away the layers of armor, or deadly accuracy to continually drill the same spot. Gauss weapons are less of a threat due to their rarity, and are the only thing that can punch through in just a couple of hits, especially with higher calibers. Reapers also come equipped with magnetic systems akin to the Arkhean Police Force, except those provided by Syndustries are much stronger and allow the Reapers to quite literally run up metal surfaces. The armor also contains shock absorption, providing substantial protection from blasts, and falls from about three stories.
Slang References: Death Dealers, Soul Eaters, Grims, Cullers, Culls
The Anon
As with all societies, there's usually somebody who disagrees. In this case, we have The Liberata, or The Liberators, who feel the government is an oppressive militant dictatorship (and it might be) and pass themselves off as human rights activists. The only reoccurring themes among their soldiers is the need to remain anonymous. Their standard, a-typical gear is a cloak and helmet, with key features built in. Not only does the gear offer moderate protection, but also serves to completely obscure the identity of the wearer. Members usually receive most of their training in live exercises, and prefer easy to use weapons such as shotguns, automatics, and explosive launchersāThough most people prefer to carry a pistol just in case. Their tech comes and goes as different items are procured, however, the most essential item for an Anon Soldier is the "Static Box". A small, handheld device that can be set up with a touch of a button and attached to a surface via magnetic spike. The device interferes with drone signals, and makes it impossible for drones to pursue or transmit clear images.
Slang References: The Anonymous, The Liberators, Rebels, Terrorists, Anons, Libbies
"Gladiator" DigiCorp Security
DigiCorp is one of the leaders in cutting edge technology, and Syndustries biggest competitor. Also playing their hand at the private security industry, Digicorp has their own brand of protect and serve soldiers. Gladiators may not be as aesthetically advanced looking by comparison to APD or Syndustries forces, but that makes little difference. Gladiators utilize a similar targeting technology in their visors, but rely on wrist mounted interfacing devices, typically PDAs with holo-displays. Gladiators use whatever non-heavy weapon pleases them, and have a wide array of ordinance. From grenades, to signal jammers, rappelling gear, and so forth. As with all law enforcement and security types, Gladiators have mag-rail capabilities, but do not have magnetized gloves or boots for climbing.
They do however have "Smart Hooks", grappling hooks with tiny thrusters that can be controlled via wrist pad. In place of magnetized gloves and boots, Gladiators have their own set of thrusters, which can assist when rappelling up a building, and slow their fall from any height. However, the energy used to slow the velocity of a fall typically uses up the crystals, meaning the feat can be performed once per resupply.
Slang References: Digi Warriors, Binary Soldier, Rent a' Cops, The Vigilant, Glitter Suits
"Spartan" Shock Trooper
Classified as heavy "riot" infantry, Spartan are the literal wall of power. Inches of thick armor plating makes them nigh impervious to ballistics, resistant to lasers and plasma-fire weapons, and really only suffers against gauss based weaponry. Additionally, this shock troopers can be dropped from the air and onto the battlefield, usually breaking whatever they land on. Outfitted with "Gyro Velocity Dampeners"(tm) which heavily reduced the amount of force applied to the armor, and with a built-in exoskeleton, the wearer is protected from all types of falls. To be specific, the G.V.Ds convert velocity energy into heat energy and expel it through the spherical devices on the armor. The wearer also has incredible strength, and all the visor functionalities of APD or Syndustries Security.
What makes these guys such a wall is that they can emit a particle wall from their chest, a literal force field. However, only the far side of the wall acts as a shield, allowing the Spartan, and anybody behind them to shoot through the particle wall. However, Spartans may be somewhat of a walking tank, but they are slow, and cannot utilize the mag-rails. They typically use heavy kinetic weapons such as heavy machine guns, explosives launchers, and plasma-fire based weapons. They do have quite an extensive ammo capacity for weapons with feed systems (IE: Ammo Belt Machine Guns). Other suites that specialize for plasmatic fire based weapons are specifically built to carry liquid holding tanks, rather than ammo feeding systems. In practice, a Spartan that uses a heavy machine gun, will never hold the ammo for an incinerator cannon or plasma flamer, and vice versa.
Slang References: Block Heads, Roiders, Firewall, DigiWalls
"War Machine" E.H.S. MK.IV
Referred to as The War Machine, DigiCorp's Environmental Hazard Suit is a rare sight to behold. In fact, it's never been officially used. Passed off as a prototype with the intent of easily traversing rigid landscapes or chemical hazardous areas, the E.H.S is the invulnerable prodigal child. Leaked testing reports state that nothing can penetrate its armor effectively. It has bestial strength, and has to have specially designed weapons. It has a triple-barrel kinetic bolt launcher, the projectiles of which cause devastating explosions in a moderate area. Due to its incredible weight and slow speed, the War Machine has a back mounted jet pack to help it maneuver around, however, this neither allows the user to fly, nor dampens fallsāIts only use is in assisting lateral movement. It also does not contain mag-rail capabilities.
Slang References: N/A
Changelings
Sometimes people just aren't happy with the way they are. "Changing" is a popular trend among the younger, and more eccentric classes of citizens. The fad is also an enormous topic of controversy, which has been increasing in intensity over the last couple of years, to the point of near discriminatory hate. The process of changing is to add or change something that would otherwise conflict with human genetics. Popular items from the industry are the modifications of horns, ears, eyes, and tails. Especially in the categories of cute animals, trending higher among women, or demonic creatures, which trends higher in men. The process involved isn't terribly expensive, and prices for the operations have lowered due to the controversy its sparked. Operations are affordable, but assaults and other hate crimes are rising, and employment is difficult outside of the Neon District or Seremere, where this trend has become huge.
Slang References: Changers, Mutes, Mutie, Hybrid, Splicer, Deviant
The Augemented
Not all people are created equally, and neither are cybernetics. Getting replacement limbs aren't cheap, and for the poorer working class cybernetics are the best option. Cheap, and varying in all shapes, sizes, and uses. There's a social stigma that people with cybernetics are of a rougher nature, however untrue that may be. Often most pieces are clunky, and are prone to breakdowns. Additionally, there's less controversy around cybernetics than body modifications like the changers, however citizens with mechanical parts are often viewed as less than human. Likely something coming from the fact that humanity was nearly wiped out by mechanical beings.
Slang References: Cog, Gear Head, Augers, "Wire Junkies", Scrapper
Pyskers
Those who spend large amounts of time in Core Shard mining facilities have a rare chance to come down with "Core Sickness", a disease where the host literally begins to grow core shards from their skin. Core sickness has no cure, but can be weaponized. Typically once someone is found to have core sickness, they're just about guaranteed to disappear off the face of the Ark, or so it seems. The disease worsens over time, until the inevitable metamorphosis of the host. As the sickness progresses over time and the shards begin to take over more of the body, the host's psyche will begin to degrade, until there the only thing left is a wild, destructive creature dubbed the "Core Fiend".
Psykers are those who have been taken in by science, and taught how to control the raw energy of their shards. This results in the host's ability to manifest unique phenomena, albeit some subjects have shown similar powers. However, the color of the shard growths don't seem to have any effect or association with the subject phenomena, and appear merely aesthetic unless removed, to which they retain regular shard characteristics. Remove of shard growths seems to agitate the disease, causing it to expand its total mass. Continued removal results in substantially increased crystal growth, and ultimately a much shorter metamorphosis time.
As Pyskers use their powers, the growths on their body release a chemical into the blood stream, which takes times to reabsorb into the crystals themselves. The chemical, referred to as "Element C9" builds up are phenomena use continues, and begins to give the host side effects, as if warning them of their bodily limits. The early stages of overuse typically begins as fatigue and shortness of breath, from there it escalates to nausea, dizziness, headaches, blurry vision, numbness, or acute body pain. The final warnings, typically those that occur before death, is bleeding from the eyes, ears, nose, or mouth, temporary Hemtidrosis, Cardiac Arrest, or temporary blindness.
Culturally, Pyskers are often seen as abominations of nature. There is substantial, often violent discrimination towards them. Fortunately, depending on your view, Pyskers always have a personal bodyguard, called their "Handler". Most Pyskers are restrained to the labs, yet some are employed for official use, Pyskers cannot legally go anywhere without their handlers, and must be accompanied at all times. At all times. As an additional security measure, Pyskers a fitted with a collar made from Black Shards, that will disrupt any phenomena that comes into contact with it. It cannot be removed without a command from the program administration in Gray Wall. If the Pysker were to misbehave to try to run, Handlers and those in the proper departments in Gray Wall can send a powerful, crippling electric shock through the collar.
Slang References: Leashed Ones, The Damned, The Twisted, Wickers
This list only denotes the larger, known organizations. What the gangs are known for does not imply those are the only crimes they commit.
ā Knife Riders:
ā Dragonflies:
ā Sapphique:
ā Shadow Sect:
ā The Underground:
- Location: (The Core) Lowtown, The Exchange
- Influence: Moderate
- Known For: Racketeering, Arson, Murder
- Colors: Steel Grey and Black
- Insignia: Two Crossed Knives
- Location: (The Core) Neon, High Town, The Station
- Influence: Heavy
- Known For: Human Trafficking, Kidnapping, Murder, Arms Dealing, Drug Manufacturing and Distribution
- Colors: Orange, White, and Black
- Flag: A Dragonfly on a Lilypad
- Location: (The Core) Neon, The Slums, The Station, Low Town
- Influence: Very Heavy
- Known For: Basically Everything
- Colors: Navy Blue and Black
- Insignia: Round Cut Sapphire
- Location: Everywhere
- Influence: Moderate but Broad
- Known For: Killers-For-Hire, Robbery, Mugging, Murder, Arms Dealing
- Colors: Black, Darker Black, Abyssal Black
- Insignia: No Insignia, but a calling card depicting a Raven
- Location: Everywhere
- Influence: Heavy but Secretive
- Known For: Being a Blackmarket
- Colors: None
- Insignia: None
Population Estimates:
Sector One: 7.2 Million
Sector Two: 6.5 Million
Sector Three: 4.7 Million
Sector Four: 22,000
Sector Five: 3.1 Million
Sector Six: 4.3 Million
The Core: 105 Billion
Sector One: 7.2 Million
Sector Two: 6.5 Million
Sector Three: 4.7 Million
Sector Four: 22,000
Sector Five: 3.1 Million
Sector Six: 4.3 Million
The Core: 105 Billion
Total Estimate: 105,025,822,000
- Anabelle Harriette CEO and lead developer of "Aero Core", a company purposed to the research and development of aviation and hover technology.
- Arad Lugrath Bluegrass, founder of Lugrath and esteemed man of livestock, face of the Bluegrass brand.
- Aralin Weldon, heiress of the Weldon farming estate, face of the Weldon brand.
- Carter Wiles CEO of Peridot Incorporated, a leader in the automotive industry.
- Dr. Fairfield, lead developer and head researcher concerning bioengineering and Pyskers.
- Johanan Ivoran Bueford, founder of Ivorpoint and renown entrepreneur of Bueford Wine.
- Johnathan Rox, prestigious Arkhean dictator president.
- Lucias Caldera, Acclaimed Watchman and Head of Defense.
- Mikhael Severt, CEO of Syndustries, A leading corporation of innovative technologies and security systems.
- Tobias Calvin, CEO of Calvin Industries, a leader in top of the line weapons research and development.
- Vance Dewitt Racine CEO of DigiCorp, A pioneer of Digital Technologies.
Brought to you by Peridot Incorporated, the Mark I Spider-tank is lightly armored and fast on its feet. The Mark I is primarily sold to, well, whoever can afford one.
The Peridot comes equipped with a flare system, emergency pilot ejection, and a small automatic 7.62mm gun. It's primary asset is the 25mm chain driven autocannon, with a firerate of about 180rpm. Since the Mark I has no view port, there is a 360 degree rotating camera which feeds display to three monitors, effectively providing the pilot with a normal range of vision. The Peridot can use mag-rails.
APD, Syndustries, and DigiCorp are the largest sources of income for the "Hunchback", another creation from Peridot Incorporated. Featuring twin-barrel 20mm cannons, that fire explosive plasma energy bursts, and a twelve person, two driver capacity. What's not to love? Technically an armored personnel carrier, the Hunchback is also designed to traverse most terrains, excluding pools of lava, and can use the mag-rails.
The sole purpose of this vehicle, shown above in mag-rail mode, is to transport officers en masse to crime situations. It features no weapons, and is lightly armored. It does however have most technical accomidations a police vehicle would need, radio, gps, seat warmers, etc.
One of the few allowed flying vehicles due to the limited airspace on Ark, the APD Interceptor does have some firepower in the form of a rotating chin gunāThe equivalent to a chain gun and about the same firepower. It also features loud speakers, countermeasure flares, and those pretty flashy rave police lights.
A product of Aero, the Harrier Dropship is able to transport twenty four soldiers, excluding two pilots, and has a powerful, short range magnet underneath for carrying cargo, or vehicles. The "Harrier" is used by APD and the two major coorporations, Syndustries and DigiCorp. Despite limited airspace, both coorporations have obtained permits to fly during necessary events.
Teranis Two-Seater
Neon Cycle
Atlas Cargo Truck
Liquid Transport Freight Truck
Shipment Transport Freight Truck
Aero Two-seater
Public Transport Bus
Mag-rail Train
Neon Cycle
Atlas Cargo Truck
Liquid Transport Freight Truck
Shipment Transport Freight Truck
Aero Two-seater
Public Transport Bus
Mag-rail Train
Weapons and Gadgets still to come. See the Technological overview to get an idea of technology.
Orange Shards: Abundant, cheap, and quickly depleted. Provides energy, and multiplies energy currents.
Blue Shards: Common, cheap, long life, slower and consistent energy release.
Red Shards: Common, moderately inexpensive, quickly depleted, releases combustion energy bursts, can intensify currents.
Purple Shards: Uncommon, somewhat inexpensive, long life, stores energy.
Yellow Shards: Rare, pricey, long life, emits steady "sunlight" energy, glows.
Green Shards: Uncommon, expensive, long life, emits greater amounts of energy, multiplies energy currents efficiently.
Black Shards: Uncommon, moderately inexpensive, short life, emits energy disrupting shockwaves, can produce kinetic light energy.
White Shards: Uncommon, expensive, long life, focuses energy into concentrated beams, or refracts energy into widely spread beams.
Rainbow Shard: Only One Exists, Unknown Purpose, Unknown Location.
Blue Shards: Common, cheap, long life, slower and consistent energy release.
Red Shards: Common, moderately inexpensive, quickly depleted, releases combustion energy bursts, can intensify currents.
Purple Shards: Uncommon, somewhat inexpensive, long life, stores energy.
Yellow Shards: Rare, pricey, long life, emits steady "sunlight" energy, glows.
Green Shards: Uncommon, expensive, long life, emits greater amounts of energy, multiplies energy currents efficiently.
Black Shards: Uncommon, moderately inexpensive, short life, emits energy disrupting shockwaves, can produce kinetic light energy.
White Shards: Uncommon, expensive, long life, focuses energy into concentrated beams, or refracts energy into widely spread beams.
Rainbow Shard: Only One Exists, Unknown Purpose, Unknown Location.
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