Premise
In the year 2020, reality took a decisive turn.
It began with the people of the world. Pestilence drove them apart, into seclusion, and into condemnation of their fellows. But man was not made for living alone, caged by fear. Tragedy and loss rattled the population, and unrest suffused the globe, escalating into at-times violent opposition. Isolation and division severed the connections of the world, leaving many adrift and in despair. From the other side of the wall a song could be heard, dim and muffled, but as the cracks grew longer the tune became clearer. It was a song of otherness, of restlessness, its simple and beautiful suggestion that this tormented world couldn't possibly be real. Many lost touch with reality, sinking into the gloom that surrounded them, dreaming unsettling and incomprehensible dreams when they slept, and seeing a unfamiliar world that flashed and blurred when they could not, staring into their ceilings and computer screens. As the year got older, even the weather of the world grew aimlessly active. The people could feel it—that sensation of impending disaster, of teetering on a precipice and peering down into the bottomless pit below, and of wondering if what lay below could possibly be worse than what lay behind.
In December, the cracked wall, groaning under the weight of the song on the other side, gave way. For nineteen days and nights, reports came in across the globe of bizarre sightings, of colors that moved and danced, of water where none should be, of things that moved in strange ways in the corners and the shadows. Then the first Well opened, and the rest was history.
All over the world, Wells of bright blue water sprang forth where none should be. Within, no matter what lay there before, lay an infinite Deep. Some Wells came and went like riptides, divulging otherworldly things before sucking worldly things back in, and some came like earthquakes, changing the terrain where they erupted. Whether sanctioned as Divers by the governments of the world or not, people ventured into the Deep, and found an astral sea with no surface. Among all the inexplicable things the Divers saw down there was one discovery: the existence of other wells, like those they came through. And of other worlds beyond them.
For a long time there was chaos. Even as exploratory teams traveled through the helpful currents of the Deep to other worlds, establishing bases and giving them names, other things filtered through onto Earth from beyond. Some arrived subtly, others like explosions, changing the world irreparably. Chief among them was the Lucid Dream, taking over the great cities where multitudes of people lived their lives, clouding them in a tangible malaise, creating surreal doldrums that cultivated distortion. Countless people were changed, both on Earth and other worlds, giving rise to entire subspecies collectively falling under the classification 'More Than Human'--MTH for short, pronounced (and often spelled) 'myth'.
But that's old news. Twenty-eight years have passed, with weirdness becoming the new normal. A state of equilibrium was reached, allowing business to proceed more or less as usual, but the scars of those early years never faded. The Lucid Cities remain effectively lost to the outside world, their residents living unthinking lives on repeat. Gone is the security of the old world, making whole countries into frontiers.
It's in this changed world that you live, and not just as a civilian, no. You're a problem solver, the sort who can fend for yourself. And you or your employers have been contacted by the Interest. A shadowy organization extant principally in rumor and superstition, the Interest has requested your help in a raid on a base of the infamous Gilgamesh Co. Established in the early days of the Opening, as it came to be called, it sought to boost the economies and livelihoods of the world by abusing the resources of other dimensions, and abusing their employees -including the criminals, the purposeless, and the desperate- to get them. Though long since publicly denounced and dissolved, Gilgamesh continues to operate in secret around the globe, and the Interest seems eager to see this branch put down. To that end they're offering fabulous sums of money for professional help, and other things besides—they seem to know exactly what it is you need.
So, a raid on an evil corporation in a world changed by the Opening to other dimensions and peopled by those deemed More Than Human...are you in?
Other Dimensions
After the Opening, Wells emerge across the globe that offer access to the Deep, and through it access to other dimensions. Some wells only appear briefly, but others stay permanently, tinging the surrounding area with features of the nearest dimension. The trip can be made with conventional diving equipment or submarines, or even without as long as one gets really lucky with the currents. Still, travel is risky and inconvenient. Since this RP will be taking place on Earth, knowing the other dimensions isn't that important.
Subspecies
Though all technically human, various More Than Human (myth) subspecies exist in this world. Due to their newness, there aren't really separate cultures, though that hasn't stopped people from trying to establish them.
Some subspecies are uniformly deleterious to humanity and/or the world. These monster subspecies are considered kill-on-sight if threatening or outside of their home dimensions, and their escape into other dimensions are considered emergencies.
- Kin – a magic subspecies. Inhabitants of the Cave who've been mutated by exposure to the Haze. The mutations can be quite extreme and even highly debilitating depending on time in the Cave, and no two are quite alike. The only observable logic is that they appear to be warped by their desires. Long-term Kin carry Haze within themselves and can use it to cast illusions or glamours. They typically resist leaving the Cave strongly, but if forced out, they can be brought to their senses, typically at the cost of permanent depression.
- Deviant – a physical subspecies. A person either traveled to or born into the Cave with a resistance to the Haze. They develop minor mutation in the form of demonic or bestial features, but otherwise resist change. They're energetic, hardy of constitution, and tend toward aggressive personalities, putting them at odds with Kin society. If they don't leave the Cave, however, they will eventually succumb and become Kin.
- Bound – a magic subspecies. Someone who's formed a bond with a supernatural entity of the Grove. Difficult to cleanly catalog, they run the gamut in terms of traits and abilities, and even the method of bonds' establishment. Bonds can be made through heartfelt connections, contracts, and even possession. Successful possession physically alters the host, but other methods do not. Bound have limited access to their partners' abilities, only able to manifest and command them for brief periods unless they allow their partners to take over, which can result in possession of the entities don't give them up.
- Masque – a physical subspecies. Once in a while the cranes and machines of Morass dredge crews bring up odd sluglike creatures the size of rats, each bearing oddly human features. These Faces, acting with subtle intelligence, seek humans in isolation to form a parasitic bond. Once inside a human, they merge with the host and rapidly alter his or her internals, leaving only the exterior intact and human. The hosts maintain their personalities, aware of the changes as well as whatever physical abilities they gain as a result.
- Shepherd – a divine subspecies. Someone whose life of ascetic self-reflection in Horizon resulted in enlightenment, but gained the knowledge that he or she was chosen to remain behind. Able to fly freely through air and the Deep alike on flawless wings, they either remain in Horizon to guide others toward enlightenment, or journey beyond to evangelize in other dimensions. Most humans and other myths fear and avoid them to an extent, wary of their dedication to an unknown authority. Shepherds live simply and alone, or with one another, and travel often to meet new people. They exhibit kinesis, the ability to apply force to themselves and expel it outward, and can perform healing.
- Lost - a divine subspecies. Someone whose life of ascetic self-reflection in Horizon resulted in enlightenment, but upon ascending experienced rejection and fell back down with cursed wings and some degree of mental scarring. Outcasts in Horizon, they return to Earth or travel to other dimensions to try and live their lives. They possess the kinesis of the Shepherds to a stronger degree but have less control and range, so much so that they can force themselves to fly despite whatever's become of their wings.
- Blight – a physical monster subspecies. Someone infested and grotesquely deformed by malignant biological subsystems in Corpus. Most are little more than monsters driven by a need to consume and reproduce, bringing sickness wherever they go, although they maintain some shreds of their human minds. Some who aren't completely infested do maintain their minds, however. Killing them on sight is considered standard practice, if one is capable. They're very dangerous, and any that make it to other dimensions are considered emergency threats that must be dealt with.
- Clockers – a technological monster subspecies. If touched by the corruption found within Pendulum, a human will begin the process of clockwork conversion starting at the contact point and spreading inward before manifesting outward. Due to being contagious and not very self-aware they're not allowed to leave Pendulum or come near humans or other myths, instead forced to live in their own secluded societies. Clockers outside of Pendulum are typically considered kill-on-sight. Any outbreaks that appear outside are considered emergency threats.
- Elementals – a magical subspecies. A person who's been altered by consuming a fruit from an elemental oasis in Areia Grande. In small doses, a person can gain minor elemental powers (Elpo), but there's a fine line between that and elemental affliction (Elaf), which is the middle state. An Elaf has some power as a byproduct of the affliction that he or she suffers from, and may be classified as a monster subspecies depending on the severity of the affliction. Overdosing on fruit can result in a huge elemental monstrosity (Elmo) driven by an overriding need to destroy, and which are considered monster subspecies.
- Haunt - a mixed subspecies. Nowadays, even death isn't necessarily the end. Whether brought back by technology (physical), eldritch influence (divine) or dark magic (magical), a select few might return from beyond the grave. Some are mindless and destructive, easily fitting the bill for monster subspecies, some maintain their mental faculties. Haunts can be zombies, ghouls, even ghosts. But remember this: not all Haunts that come bearing a human likeness were ever human. There are shores more distant than even the afterlife.
- Other - many things are possible. What can you come up with and justify in this setting?
Playing a myth is not necessary. There's plenty of technology, both old and new, for humans to use. And it doesn't take a myth to practice distortion.
Dreaming Cities
The Opening was not an apocalypse, but for many it was the end. Out of the realm between worlds, or from worlds far beyond, swept the Lucid Dream. It spread like a plague through the night sky, tinting the night with odd swirls and colors that crept into the realm of sleep. People all across the world began to dream strange dreams, of distant realms and far-off planes, in incredible detail and color. And they could could remember. And some never woke up.
It happened quickly. Fog spread across the largest cities in the world, Tokyo, Shanghai, Delhi, New York, Beijing, Istanbul, Chicago, and more. Wherever the dreams of multitudes coincided. Afterward, research designated a terminal point for the population of any city: 8.5 million. After that, the inhabitants risked the Lucid Dream. These cities became permanently overcast, separated from the outside world by a barrier of fog, and the places within fell asleep. The people of those cities continued to go about their lives, but dully, numbly, as though sleepwalking. They were in a world where nothing had gone wrong, where everything still made sense. It was as if they chose to ignore the strangeness blossoming all around them, like weeds nobody wanted to prune, or mold nobody wanted to clean.
For from the cracks and corners came the nightmares. Things watching from the drains. Noises in the basements. Spiderwebs between buildings. Buses that run on millipede legs instead of tires. People in the stairwells. Eyes in the traffic lights. Don't look at the face of that man by the tracks. Don't follow those kids beckoning you to play. Don't look too closely at that shape on the building. Don't ask directions from people in hoods. If you pretend they aren't there, they won't come after you. The Dreaming Cities are where the monsters are.
Many Strangers and anomalous entities that come to Earth find their way to Dreaming Cities, some as predators, some just to get by. They are awake, but so too are some of the people. The watchful, the careful, the paranoid. And those who enter with a purpose in mind. Those who stay awake in a Dreaming City have a powerful weapon against the unknown: distortion. Sometimes things happen that aren't quite right, or don't quite make sense. Sometimes people can make them happen. Disappearing around a corner. Finding a lucky deadbolt in a hiding room on the run. A door where there wasn't one. Blending into a crowd, or a wall. Growing and shrinking. An extra magazine.
With some practice, anyone can pull off a few tricks to stay alive or get ahead. Someone with a lot of know-how can really shake things up. At the same time, causing distortions can get unwanted attention. Distortions, after all, are the tools of monsters, and they don't like people turning it against them.
With no authority, anything goes in the Dreaming Cities. That means a world of opportunity for some, so long as they don't provoke the wrong monster. People can be extracted from the Dream, although it takes time, treatment, and a good bit of therapy. There are even some companies that take advantage of and commercialize this strange segment of reality, but one should beware. Not all monsters stay inside city limits, and not all distortions, either.
Strangers
When wells opened the way between worlds, humanity found waterways leading through the Deep to a few new dimensions, but those are by no means the only worlds out there. Once in a while, things drift in from farther still—from beyond. Myriad in their natures, forms, and even existences, these 'strangers' sometimes wind up on earth or its neighboring dimensions and settle in. They can be virtually anything; a phantom circus performing across the globe in secluded places, attracting audiences and always open to recruits. An eldritch thunderstorm rolling through the desert, its touch animating the dead. A self-aware television show with no broadcaster. Strangers aren't available to be played as, but perhaps one factors into your character's backstory, responsible for affecting them or their surroundings in a formative way.
Sheet
Name: (Can be nickname, codename, etc)
Species: (Human or myth. If myth, name the type)
Job: (Something that describes your character's class or role, IE brawler, gunner, thief)
Appearance:
Personality:
Background: (No need to be exhaustive. Focus on formative events in your character's story, such as how your character became a myth, if applicable. If you're unsure of anything, want to run ideas by me, or want ideas period, please ask)
Talents: (Include physical, magical, divine, and technological abilities where applicable. This is also the spot for weapons and equipment. While definitely above street level, potentially quite so, we're not dealing with a team of superheroes here, so don't go too nuts with powers)
Other:
1x Thank
