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- Joined
- Apr 20, 2017
- Location
- In various dark corners of the world
Civil Twilight: An astronomical term describing the period after the setting of the sun up to the point the available light is no longer sufficient to travel or perform normal tasks The very edge of darkness
It has also been used by some to denote the decline and sunset of civility in human discourse, the edge of the unraveling of the niceties of civilization
About Me Older, experienced, inquisitive. Written many years, started RP with such PnP games as DnD, Traveler, Shadowrun, Marvel Super Heroes (the FASERIP one), and Spycraft, but has since moved on to more pure RP, as well as RP computer gaming (CRPG and MMORPG)
But to the point, I am all about a good story with strong , interesting characters.
About My Chars I have a lot of chars I play , others I make up extemporaneously. But most of my mains are going to be Dominant. They may also be Sadists, but that will depend on the role, my partner, and my mood.
I have some very basic notes on some of my chars here
About My Kinks/Turn ons Anything that involves typical BDSM is probably something I would enjoy. Not into scat. Not into playing with any chars under 18. I like women, not sexually interested in Males or Others.
When I am around to play I work too many hours. Often times I work in the middle of the night too, if there is an issue or a deployment. So my hours vary. Mostly I am around after work on weekdays and periodically on weekends. I live in the Eastern time zone but travel to many others. Sometimes when I travel, I have no or very little access.
How/where I play I need to keep my RP separate from other parts of my electronic footprint, so I play only on site. Generally PM, but getting into threads in some cases now , too.
New Stuff :
I have a new character who is a local mob boss, old school. A real bastard. His name is Quinn Maloney and he is decidedly not a nice guy. Not looking for any redemption here...
When Quinn likes a waitress or bartender, he buys the place they work and then gets more demanding, and if they had been rude at turning down his overtures previously, it will likely get... unpleasant. He has also been known to send uncooperative employees to work in one of his brothels, or worse, send them to Madame Zhu's who is known to be less than patient with new girls.
Plot Ideas I will likely have many more of these added as time goes on.
[img=500x250 align=left]https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CQ0oeyTWgAAEgZ1.jpg [/img] You Might Already Have Won!(Modern)
YC has won a trip to a remote resort near Aruba for 2 weeks of fun in the sun. In reality, they are being lured into slavery.
The Resort (Modern)
YC has been enjoying an amazing tropical resort complete with casino. But somehow between odd room charges and gambling losses, she has acrued 10s of thousands of dollars in debt.
The General Manager has had his eye on YC, and is only too happy to discuss the terms of YC repayment, so that you can avoid an unpleasant debtors prison.
Variations of this one could include a cruise ship, a far east setting, or a slave auction. The super wealthy of course will buy and sell the slaves , and use them as well, in any of the variations.
The Lottery (Alternate History)
The Nazis won WWII by developing the Nuclear Bomb years before the Allies. Now, generations later, there are no more undesirables to staff the labor camps. So the Lottery was startted, the "winners" get to serve as an indentured servant for 7 years.
YC has proof the lottery is fixed, which points to corruption in the entire Nazi hierarchy. But that knowledge might turn out to be deadly - and YC has just been invited to your boss's office for an interview by The Gestapo.
Inn of the Maiden's Harvest (Fantasy)[img=512x362 align=right]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/83/10/c4/8310c458d9cc6a01bff3e8f4f7f0be69.jpg[/img]
At the crossroads of the Maiden's Road - the road taken by the young maidens off to do the wash down at the river - and the Harvest Road sat a tavern known as the Maiden's Harvest. As it is close to the King's Road , many caravans choose to stay there, as well as numerous adventurers in the area. As of late there have been a spate of disappearance of the young washer maidens, as well as several female travelers.
YC is sent to investigate , they may want to talk to the Innkeeper , Max Kryger . The local constabulary has interviewed him and not found any evidence of anything untoward going on
In fact they have largely turned a a blind eye to the disappearances which is why YC's employer felt compelled to act.
YC may want to investigate overtly or covertly. Either way they will likely be drawn into the darkness in the warren of tunnels beneath the inn.
The Infernal Tower of the Ascendant. (Fantasy)
The communities in the quiet valley have been thrown into consternation by the overnight appearance of a black tower, made of glass-like rock reminiscent of volcanic rock, but there are no active volcanoes within a thousand miles of the place; and no eruptions were heard the night it appeared.
Since then, black and purple vines have crept from the tower, they choke the waterways and the roads as they come across them. They are resistant to both flame and blade. In their midst come hordes of the small nuisance beasts known as kobolds, as well as Bandits.
As the vines spread into a town or settlement, during the night, purple robed figures carrying a large staff will appear, and seek to have the town prostrate themselves to someone known as The Ascendant.
"All Hail the Ascendant. Hallowed is the Ascendant! The Ascendant shall Brook No Dishonor! Worship him or meet thy doom!"
These Heralds of the Ascendant generally disappear in a flash of sulfur if attacked, after spouting dire warnings if the attacker's path is not radically altered.
The King's Armies are busy on the far frontier with the invasion by the Orcs, and local militia and various town watches cobbled together have proven to be ineffective.
But one local sage believes they know who the ascendant is, and how to defeat them. Is your char brave enough to journey to the tower to face the Ascendant, his Heralds, and his other servants?
Wrath of the Klingons (SciFi/Trek)------------------------------------------
[img=400x267 align=left]http://i.imgur.com/roOCGtA.png[/img]
This is based off this rather NSFW Picture
A lot of possibilities. It really depends on what you might enjoy most.
Perhaps she was a spy, or perhaps she was on her way to a conference on a shuttle and strayed into disputed space?
Or perhaps her ship was involved in a battle with the Klingons. Or what if her ship were fleeing the Romulans , badly damaged, when they came upon the Klingons.
Or perhaps the Klingons are visiting Deep Space Nine, and she was captured trying to steal from their quarters.
Or perhaps it is Dr. Carol Marcus, and the Klingons have grabbed her while she was at a science station.
In any case, the Klingons will not let a human woman take their honor. The woman will pay. Looking for someone to play the female. I will play the Klingons.
[/tr][td]
Lair of the Archmage (Fantasy) [/td][td][/td][/tr]
Indebted to Killers. (Fantasy)
YC has fallen on hard times and ended up in the City of Slagport, a foul smelling port at the end of a long peninsula, full of mostly foul tempered people. Both the The Kings Road and Port have once again under blockade from the City of Seagate, to get out YC has fallen into debt in order to book passage on a smuggler's pinnance.
But the captain of the ship has sold YC's debt to two killer's known as Deathwind and Reaper.
Deathwind
The two of them have a proposition for YC, one they promise will be profitable for all parties. What would be more dangerous - to refuse them or to work with them?
Court Mandated Bitch (Modern).
YC is sent to a special Dog Rescue organization to do her community service. Once there she is shown some of the basic duties . She is told there is a special accelerated service option if she can clear her calandar for 2 weeks, during which she will be sent to the Rescue Farm. She can complete all 2000 hours during that time, though the interview and intake will take at least a week
The Return of Deathstroke (DC).[img=530x400 align=left]http://i.imgur.com/TT7vl4q.png[/img]
Slade Wilson had been out of commission for quite a while, and rumored to be dead. But rumors of his death may have been premature. Is he back for revenge, or is he looking for help? Or maybe he is here to help YC. But could he be trusted?
I am willing to use several different versions of Slade here , one more inspired by the Arrowverse or Young Justice being the main two
It WAS a Wonderful Life: Erased from History (Sci Fi ).
YC might have been someone powerful or lowly. The Controller promised YC the chance to wsee what the world would be like if she were never born. What he didn't explain was there was no going back. Now a captive of the Controller, and no one even knows YC is missing.
Roman Holiday (Modern/Espionage)
YC is a young professional on a Italian tour with friends, who doesn't know she knows something very dangerous. MC is the man determined to help her survive long enough to figure out what that something is.
Roundabout (Modern/Action/Espionage)
YC is a young woman on vacation in the UK. Probably a young professional, there with friends but on a different tour than them.
MC seems to rescue you from a car that nearly ran her over in the parking lot, with men then opening fire. MC takes YC on his motorcycle and flees the scene, but he hasn't told you that he was the one they were truly after.
Have Axe, Will Travel (Fantasy)
Voragg is a minotaur warrior, an axe for hire. But he prefers being paid in more than mere money, flesh goes a lot farther with him than coin, partly because as a minotaur it is hard to go to the bazaar or even get into a civilized town.
He plies his trade in the Darkvale, making his home near Nighthearth, a settlement made up of as many humanoids as humans; though all kept in line through foul enchantments, none wish to test the ire of the Blades of Nighhearth or their sorcerous backers.
Travel through this area is hazardous but can save an entire month on the trip between Rivermead and the Capital , and so many caravans try their luck. WHich is why mercenaries like Voragg are in demand, those who wish his protection had best be persuasive , and generous to boot.
Interdiction (Crime/Modern)
MC is DEA Supervisory Special Agent Dwight Copeland is known as Striker, because all he throws are strikes. Under a program devised and implemented by him, drug shipments along the I95 and I81 corridors on the eastern seaboard of the United States have nearly ground to a halt. Copeland coded a program that is said to rely on a complicated set of variables to determine which cars and trucks to stop, and to date he is almost never wrong.
YC could be a new agent shadowing him, or perhaps a reporter out to do a story on the hero cop. When YC learns a hint at a very dangerous secret the program works because of tips from a rival drug gang, one that is also very heavily in human trafficking. The entire program was devised to stop random drug busts from breaking up their human smuggling shipments accidentally.
.
The Clans of NOVA (Post Apocalyptic)
It is several generations since what they call the 3rd Day of Woe, or the Great Woe, happened. On this day , just ahead a massive Solar Flare storm, a group of terrorists who wished to return the world to essentially the Dark Ages set off a series of High altitude EMPS over major cities around the world.
What little of the electrical grid of the world remained was nearly destroyed by the Solar Flare storm. Essentially nearly everywhere was cut off from the trappings of civilization. Electricity of course, but of course mass communications, most of the Internet, but soon the water systems would fail
Many of the satellites were damaged in the solar flare, and meanwhile the normal repair and replacement cycles of the satellites would of course be over. Over 100 years later, very few of them remained, and seemingly further who even knew of their existence much less how to access them .
Water systems would break down as well, and law enforcement and the military were overwhelmed with the breakdown of civilization in many places. No longer were there warnings of disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes, massive responses to earthquakes. Highway maintenance was a thing of the past and most of the cars eventually sat where they had stopped when the EMPs came or when they ran out of gas, their tires began to dry rot. Nature began to reclaim it all, a little at a time, and there was death on a massive scale. The Great Dying was so awful, more people died in those 10 years than remained a live by a factor of 10. More than 90% of the world's population was gone; but even that was a ballpark estimate, based on incomplete information.
Here and there remained pockets of civilization. Some of them were strong communities, some ere places with strong law enforcement, still others where Organized Crime effectively became the government. And of course on a number of military installations, though even that was not universal .
This RP will be set in Northern Virginia, or as the clans call "the land of NOVA" MC will be known as Logan Wolf of Quantico, he is essentially the inheritor of generations of plans by groups of special forces operators to start trying to bring back civilization to the world, or at least to keep the story straight.
YC might be another member of the team or they might be a person from the clans, or someone else , unique. I am also considering doing this as a group play.
A short background story from the viewpoint of one those in the Clans in Northern Virginia - warning its a bit long winded.
It has also been used by some to denote the decline and sunset of civility in human discourse, the edge of the unraveling of the niceties of civilization
About Me Older, experienced, inquisitive. Written many years, started RP with such PnP games as DnD, Traveler, Shadowrun, Marvel Super Heroes (the FASERIP one), and Spycraft, but has since moved on to more pure RP, as well as RP computer gaming (CRPG and MMORPG)
But to the point, I am all about a good story with strong , interesting characters.
About My Chars I have a lot of chars I play , others I make up extemporaneously. But most of my mains are going to be Dominant. They may also be Sadists, but that will depend on the role, my partner, and my mood.
I have some very basic notes on some of my chars here
About My Kinks/Turn ons Anything that involves typical BDSM is probably something I would enjoy. Not into scat. Not into playing with any chars under 18. I like women, not sexually interested in Males or Others.
When I am around to play I work too many hours. Often times I work in the middle of the night too, if there is an issue or a deployment. So my hours vary. Mostly I am around after work on weekdays and periodically on weekends. I live in the Eastern time zone but travel to many others. Sometimes when I travel, I have no or very little access.
How/where I play I need to keep my RP separate from other parts of my electronic footprint, so I play only on site. Generally PM, but getting into threads in some cases now , too.
New Stuff :
I have a new character who is a local mob boss, old school. A real bastard. His name is Quinn Maloney and he is decidedly not a nice guy. Not looking for any redemption here...
When Quinn likes a waitress or bartender, he buys the place they work and then gets more demanding, and if they had been rude at turning down his overtures previously, it will likely get... unpleasant. He has also been known to send uncooperative employees to work in one of his brothels, or worse, send them to Madame Zhu's who is known to be less than patient with new girls.
Plot Ideas I will likely have many more of these added as time goes on.
[img=500x250 align=left]https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CQ0oeyTWgAAEgZ1.jpg [/img] You Might Already Have Won!(Modern)
YC has won a trip to a remote resort near Aruba for 2 weeks of fun in the sun. In reality, they are being lured into slavery.
The Resort (Modern)
YC has been enjoying an amazing tropical resort complete with casino. But somehow between odd room charges and gambling losses, she has acrued 10s of thousands of dollars in debt.
The General Manager has had his eye on YC, and is only too happy to discuss the terms of YC repayment, so that you can avoid an unpleasant debtors prison.
Variations of this one could include a cruise ship, a far east setting, or a slave auction. The super wealthy of course will buy and sell the slaves , and use them as well, in any of the variations.
The Nazis won WWII by developing the Nuclear Bomb years before the Allies. Now, generations later, there are no more undesirables to staff the labor camps. So the Lottery was startted, the "winners" get to serve as an indentured servant for 7 years.
YC has proof the lottery is fixed, which points to corruption in the entire Nazi hierarchy. But that knowledge might turn out to be deadly - and YC has just been invited to your boss's office for an interview by The Gestapo.
Inn of the Maiden's Harvest (Fantasy)[img=512x362 align=right]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/83/10/c4/8310c458d9cc6a01bff3e8f4f7f0be69.jpg[/img]
At the crossroads of the Maiden's Road - the road taken by the young maidens off to do the wash down at the river - and the Harvest Road sat a tavern known as the Maiden's Harvest. As it is close to the King's Road , many caravans choose to stay there, as well as numerous adventurers in the area. As of late there have been a spate of disappearance of the young washer maidens, as well as several female travelers.
YC is sent to investigate , they may want to talk to the Innkeeper , Max Kryger . The local constabulary has interviewed him and not found any evidence of anything untoward going on
In fact they have largely turned a a blind eye to the disappearances which is why YC's employer felt compelled to act.
YC may want to investigate overtly or covertly. Either way they will likely be drawn into the darkness in the warren of tunnels beneath the inn.
It may also be that YC's employer is behind much of the plot, and they sent you in order to capture you
The Infernal Tower of the Ascendant. (Fantasy)
The communities in the quiet valley have been thrown into consternation by the overnight appearance of a black tower, made of glass-like rock reminiscent of volcanic rock, but there are no active volcanoes within a thousand miles of the place; and no eruptions were heard the night it appeared.
Since then, black and purple vines have crept from the tower, they choke the waterways and the roads as they come across them. They are resistant to both flame and blade. In their midst come hordes of the small nuisance beasts known as kobolds, as well as Bandits.
As the vines spread into a town or settlement, during the night, purple robed figures carrying a large staff will appear, and seek to have the town prostrate themselves to someone known as The Ascendant.
"All Hail the Ascendant. Hallowed is the Ascendant! The Ascendant shall Brook No Dishonor! Worship him or meet thy doom!"
These Heralds of the Ascendant generally disappear in a flash of sulfur if attacked, after spouting dire warnings if the attacker's path is not radically altered.
The King's Armies are busy on the far frontier with the invasion by the Orcs, and local militia and various town watches cobbled together have proven to be ineffective.
But one local sage believes they know who the ascendant is, and how to defeat them. Is your char brave enough to journey to the tower to face the Ascendant, his Heralds, and his other servants?
Wrath of the Klingons (SciFi/Trek)------------------------------------------
[img=400x267 align=left]http://i.imgur.com/roOCGtA.png[/img]
This is based off this rather NSFW Picture
A lot of possibilities. It really depends on what you might enjoy most.
Perhaps she was a spy, or perhaps she was on her way to a conference on a shuttle and strayed into disputed space?
Or perhaps her ship was involved in a battle with the Klingons. Or what if her ship were fleeing the Romulans , badly damaged, when they came upon the Klingons.
Or perhaps the Klingons are visiting Deep Space Nine, and she was captured trying to steal from their quarters.
Or perhaps it is Dr. Carol Marcus, and the Klingons have grabbed her while she was at a science station.
In any case, the Klingons will not let a human woman take their honor. The woman will pay. Looking for someone to play the female. I will play the Klingons.
| Great magical power is yours for the taking, at least according to a reliable source. A great Archmage has a mighty fortress, the entrance to this place moves each night so as to confound his enemies. Amazing artifacts and antiquities abound! In particular, a magical circlet known as the Crown of the Abyss , that grants unimaginable power, including near total resistance to spells cast by enemies. Your source even has a key which will make it easier to gain access to this magnificent lair, because the best part is that the Archwizard is currently abroard dealing with a group of Dragons, and so not at home in his lair. The time is ripe to strike. Beyond the crown are reportedly treasures of jewels, gems, mounds of coins, chests and urns, full of who knows what, all of it valuable. There are dozens of staves, wands and rods, some mildly magical, some wildly so. Swords and shields, bows and daggers, items of all sort, said to be over a hundred such items, not including the hundreds of potions in his alchemical labs. Beyond that, there were many levels of libraries with thousands of valuable books many of them magical tomes. Each a fortune in their own right. And of course, it is also said the Archmage keeps many slaves, mostly for pleasure but also to experiment upon, these would also bring a pretty penny at the auction. Of course, those of conscious might even choose to free them rather than sell or keep the slaves. (Of course, YC is being sold a bill of goods, they intend to have you captured, and from there things go downhill. )
| [img=450x500]https://i.pinimg.com/736x/99/1e/74/991e74b827a1203f7cf9e49dfb4e5af0--year-old-hand-carved.jpg[/img] |
Lair of the Archmage (Fantasy) [/td][td][/td][/tr]
YC has fallen on hard times and ended up in the City of Slagport, a foul smelling port at the end of a long peninsula, full of mostly foul tempered people. Both the The Kings Road and Port have once again under blockade from the City of Seagate, to get out YC has fallen into debt in order to book passage on a smuggler's pinnance.
But the captain of the ship has sold YC's debt to two killer's known as Deathwind and Reaper.
Deathwind
The two of them have a proposition for YC, one they promise will be profitable for all parties. What would be more dangerous - to refuse them or to work with them?
Court Mandated Bitch (Modern).
YC is sent to a special Dog Rescue organization to do her community service. Once there she is shown some of the basic duties . She is told there is a special accelerated service option if she can clear her calandar for 2 weeks, during which she will be sent to the Rescue Farm. She can complete all 2000 hours during that time, though the interview and intake will take at least a week
The Return of Deathstroke (DC).[img=530x400 align=left]http://i.imgur.com/TT7vl4q.png[/img]
Slade Wilson had been out of commission for quite a while, and rumored to be dead. But rumors of his death may have been premature. Is he back for revenge, or is he looking for help? Or maybe he is here to help YC. But could he be trusted?
I am willing to use several different versions of Slade here , one more inspired by the Arrowverse or Young Justice being the main two
It WAS a Wonderful Life: Erased from History (Sci Fi ).
YC might have been someone powerful or lowly. The Controller promised YC the chance to wsee what the world would be like if she were never born. What he didn't explain was there was no going back. Now a captive of the Controller, and no one even knows YC is missing.
Roman Holiday (Modern/Espionage)
YC is a young professional on a Italian tour with friends, who doesn't know she knows something very dangerous. MC is the man determined to help her survive long enough to figure out what that something is.
Roundabout (Modern/Action/Espionage)
YC is a young woman on vacation in the UK. Probably a young professional, there with friends but on a different tour than them.
MC seems to rescue you from a car that nearly ran her over in the parking lot, with men then opening fire. MC takes YC on his motorcycle and flees the scene, but he hasn't told you that he was the one they were truly after.
Have Axe, Will Travel (Fantasy)
Voragg is a minotaur warrior, an axe for hire. But he prefers being paid in more than mere money, flesh goes a lot farther with him than coin, partly because as a minotaur it is hard to go to the bazaar or even get into a civilized town.
He plies his trade in the Darkvale, making his home near Nighthearth, a settlement made up of as many humanoids as humans; though all kept in line through foul enchantments, none wish to test the ire of the Blades of Nighhearth or their sorcerous backers.
Travel through this area is hazardous but can save an entire month on the trip between Rivermead and the Capital , and so many caravans try their luck. WHich is why mercenaries like Voragg are in demand, those who wish his protection had best be persuasive , and generous to boot.
Interdiction (Crime/Modern)
MC is DEA Supervisory Special Agent Dwight Copeland is known as Striker, because all he throws are strikes. Under a program devised and implemented by him, drug shipments along the I95 and I81 corridors on the eastern seaboard of the United States have nearly ground to a halt. Copeland coded a program that is said to rely on a complicated set of variables to determine which cars and trucks to stop, and to date he is almost never wrong.
YC could be a new agent shadowing him, or perhaps a reporter out to do a story on the hero cop. When YC learns a hint at a very dangerous secret the program works because of tips from a rival drug gang, one that is also very heavily in human trafficking. The entire program was devised to stop random drug busts from breaking up their human smuggling shipments accidentally.
.
The Clans of NOVA (Post Apocalyptic)
It is several generations since what they call the 3rd Day of Woe, or the Great Woe, happened. On this day , just ahead a massive Solar Flare storm, a group of terrorists who wished to return the world to essentially the Dark Ages set off a series of High altitude EMPS over major cities around the world.
What little of the electrical grid of the world remained was nearly destroyed by the Solar Flare storm. Essentially nearly everywhere was cut off from the trappings of civilization. Electricity of course, but of course mass communications, most of the Internet, but soon the water systems would fail
Many of the satellites were damaged in the solar flare, and meanwhile the normal repair and replacement cycles of the satellites would of course be over. Over 100 years later, very few of them remained, and seemingly further who even knew of their existence much less how to access them .
Water systems would break down as well, and law enforcement and the military were overwhelmed with the breakdown of civilization in many places. No longer were there warnings of disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes, massive responses to earthquakes. Highway maintenance was a thing of the past and most of the cars eventually sat where they had stopped when the EMPs came or when they ran out of gas, their tires began to dry rot. Nature began to reclaim it all, a little at a time, and there was death on a massive scale. The Great Dying was so awful, more people died in those 10 years than remained a live by a factor of 10. More than 90% of the world's population was gone; but even that was a ballpark estimate, based on incomplete information.
Here and there remained pockets of civilization. Some of them were strong communities, some ere places with strong law enforcement, still others where Organized Crime effectively became the government. And of course on a number of military installations, though even that was not universal .
This RP will be set in Northern Virginia, or as the clans call "the land of NOVA" MC will be known as Logan Wolf of Quantico, he is essentially the inheritor of generations of plans by groups of special forces operators to start trying to bring back civilization to the world, or at least to keep the story straight.
YC might be another member of the team or they might be a person from the clans, or someone else , unique. I am also considering doing this as a group play.
A short background story from the viewpoint of one those in the Clans in Northern Virginia - warning its a bit long winded.
The grey-haired fur clad chieftain walked out onto the wooden stage that served as a platform at the Meeting Place, and raised the Talking Stick. The crowds huddled around the numerous bonfires quickly fell silent, the sound fell to a murmur, but the Grey Chieftain remained silent , a look of annoyance creasing his weathered face . Then at the not-so gentle prodding of sharp elbows and head slaps here and there, the murmur fell to a dead silence, quiet except for the crackling of the fires and the natural din of the insects and the frogs, but they stayed far back from the crowd. .
Even the warriors removed their colorful helms so that they may hear- each emblazoned with logos from long ago. "Harley Davidson" painted on a close-faced helm on many of them. Most of the others had colorful icons, representing clans long ago lost. The names were still known today on account of the Chronicles, and on the Speaking of the Chronicles. Redskins, Cowboys, Saints, Raiders. The wearing of the colors as a group had been banned by the previous Chieftain a generation ago, there should be no connection greater than that to the Clan. And as to their spears and blades, those were each gathered by War Captain of each warband , each fire represented an individual band who worked and lived and moved together , like a large family
Today was a special day, for it was the Speaking of the 3rd Day of Woe, also known as The Great Woe. The small children were nearby but out of earshot, protected by a select few of the womenfolk, some of them warriors in their own right. Their ears were too tender to hear the tale. They had all gathered at the Meeting Place, the sign that read "MananasSuba" to hear Duncan of Warrenton , Clan Chief of the Warbands of Nova, and so now he began.
"We look around at a world of ruin. We see what was, and what is growing atop it. Crumbling dry rivers of strange rock, ruined and rusted metal boxes. Not to mention burned out and smashed buildings, those are plain enough, but for a multitude, far more numerous than all the tribes of the East. Fools will tell you that they were natural phenomena, that the rock came out of the ground, perhaps the metal fell from the sky . But I was hear at this Meeting Place when we first found them all, in the days before most of ye were born. The metal boxes, it turns out are chariots, but the wheels have gotten dryrot over the years. My father's grandfather called them "Cars". They were invented by someone named "Lightning McQueen" of the Clan McQueen, a clan lost to us over the years.
He stopped for a solemn pause, and then continued
"Any of us who have been a few leagues to the east can see where it began. And find the Halls of the Smith, the Place of the Chronicle , it's place marked by the Fallen Tower of Washing. From the chronicles, we learn that the Great Woe was actually two woes in one. The first woe came from the Sun itself. The Sun was angry, why , it is not known. But it had tried to warn them - It had blotted itself out twice within 7 years but the people did not heed the anger. And so it created something called the "Solar Flare Owen" to come and smite the Earth, which is what the world we know is called. Solar Flare Owen was named by someone known as the Great Cantore, a brave warrior who stood in the face of danger, wherever it might show itself - be it flood or storm or the blotting out of the sun!"
The crowd mumured in concern and then hushed once more when the Grey Chieftan paused . Many in the crowd thought that the Great Cantore sounded rather foolhardy considering there was nothing a man could do about a Sea Storm. What did he plan to do, jump into the sea and kill the sea-serpent responsible ? But order was restored and Duncan continued.
"The second part of the great woe is called the Emp. We believe that was an abbreviation of the word Emperor, our forebears were lazy and used many abbreviations. It is said that the people were busy taking pictures of themselves, though oddly, while we have found many photos of generations prior to them, few images of the people at the time of the Great Woe existed. Not even the landfills have answered the mystery of the lost pictures"
'There were extremists who were as angry as the sun. Perhaps they were sun worshipers, we have heard that they were indeed religious extremists. They were known as The G-hawds. They were from far to the east it is said, where they lived in sandcastles. They wished to destroy as much as possible. And heeding the words of the Great Cantore but turning them to vile intent, they set loose multiple emps in above cities all around the world, , mere hours before the Solar Flare Owen struck.
"Civilization never recovered, and a few of the Emps malfunctioned, destroying the cities in great fireballs instead of spreading the power of the Emp for a hundred leagues in every direction. There weren't enough spare parts, and no communication, they did not have the wisdom to use the Meeting Place. Many of the people who could fix it were killed in petty squabbles, or shot by roving death squads, or ran off and hid" The people nodded and looked at each other
"The time was a war of all against all. Old enmities flared anew. Death was quick and east because the ammunition for the boomsticks were still plenty in those days. And people did not know how to hunt, how to find or even grow food, how to make pine-bark tea to stave off the Scurv. Many of them knew not even how to COOK food! " a great consternation went up in the crowd at the foolishness of their forebears. How could they build so many things and know so little?
"They did not even know how to find clean water , they had great aqueducts that brought water to even the poorest of home, but these failed eventually. When the prisoners escaped, they knew not how to protect themselves. They thought it somehow enlightened to let prisoners live so close to them, the prisoners were quite appreciative of the womenfolk they took from the fools. We know today the best way to manage your prisoners is to stone them" A general murmur went up , it was obviously the only true justice.
"And so the trees and grasses grew up to claim what they once owned, the chariots smashed the roads ruined the buildings razed, the monuments fallen. All became as it once was. In the words of the Before Times poet Bob Segar , everything must have an end, like an ocean to a shore, like a river to a stream. This was their Famous Final Scene."
"The moral of this tale is that civilization is not automatic. We are not guaranteed anything but death some day hopefully far off. But I know mine draws close. I can only hope what I have taught you will be passed on through the generations coming , so that they have that knowing. " The crowd fell silent. Who would take up the Speaking of the chronicles? Who would be the next Great Chieftan?
There was one man who claimed to be able to read the Chronicles himself, but his ideas, they were strange. They were not the same as those spoken by the Grey Chief. This strange man was a great warrior with a dark beard, who had not one but two boomsticks - one on his belt and a larger one strapped on his back. He was known as Logan of Quantico. Little was known about the lands around his home, they seemed to be well guarded but its people kept to themselves.
What they did not know was the Logan was not alone. In ones and twos, his people were spreading out over the former East Coast of what was called the United States. Logan had never lived in the before time, but was raised in what was essentially a military reservation. He and his men had been raised from birth with a mission no less noble than the restoration of civilization itself.
Even the warriors removed their colorful helms so that they may hear- each emblazoned with logos from long ago. "Harley Davidson" painted on a close-faced helm on many of them. Most of the others had colorful icons, representing clans long ago lost. The names were still known today on account of the Chronicles, and on the Speaking of the Chronicles. Redskins, Cowboys, Saints, Raiders. The wearing of the colors as a group had been banned by the previous Chieftain a generation ago, there should be no connection greater than that to the Clan. And as to their spears and blades, those were each gathered by War Captain of each warband , each fire represented an individual band who worked and lived and moved together , like a large family
Today was a special day, for it was the Speaking of the 3rd Day of Woe, also known as The Great Woe. The small children were nearby but out of earshot, protected by a select few of the womenfolk, some of them warriors in their own right. Their ears were too tender to hear the tale. They had all gathered at the Meeting Place, the sign that read "MananasSuba" to hear Duncan of Warrenton , Clan Chief of the Warbands of Nova, and so now he began.
"We look around at a world of ruin. We see what was, and what is growing atop it. Crumbling dry rivers of strange rock, ruined and rusted metal boxes. Not to mention burned out and smashed buildings, those are plain enough, but for a multitude, far more numerous than all the tribes of the East. Fools will tell you that they were natural phenomena, that the rock came out of the ground, perhaps the metal fell from the sky . But I was hear at this Meeting Place when we first found them all, in the days before most of ye were born. The metal boxes, it turns out are chariots, but the wheels have gotten dryrot over the years. My father's grandfather called them "Cars". They were invented by someone named "Lightning McQueen" of the Clan McQueen, a clan lost to us over the years.
He stopped for a solemn pause, and then continued
"Any of us who have been a few leagues to the east can see where it began. And find the Halls of the Smith, the Place of the Chronicle , it's place marked by the Fallen Tower of Washing. From the chronicles, we learn that the Great Woe was actually two woes in one. The first woe came from the Sun itself. The Sun was angry, why , it is not known. But it had tried to warn them - It had blotted itself out twice within 7 years but the people did not heed the anger. And so it created something called the "Solar Flare Owen" to come and smite the Earth, which is what the world we know is called. Solar Flare Owen was named by someone known as the Great Cantore, a brave warrior who stood in the face of danger, wherever it might show itself - be it flood or storm or the blotting out of the sun!"
The crowd mumured in concern and then hushed once more when the Grey Chieftan paused . Many in the crowd thought that the Great Cantore sounded rather foolhardy considering there was nothing a man could do about a Sea Storm. What did he plan to do, jump into the sea and kill the sea-serpent responsible ? But order was restored and Duncan continued.
"The second part of the great woe is called the Emp. We believe that was an abbreviation of the word Emperor, our forebears were lazy and used many abbreviations. It is said that the people were busy taking pictures of themselves, though oddly, while we have found many photos of generations prior to them, few images of the people at the time of the Great Woe existed. Not even the landfills have answered the mystery of the lost pictures"
'There were extremists who were as angry as the sun. Perhaps they were sun worshipers, we have heard that they were indeed religious extremists. They were known as The G-hawds. They were from far to the east it is said, where they lived in sandcastles. They wished to destroy as much as possible. And heeding the words of the Great Cantore but turning them to vile intent, they set loose multiple emps in above cities all around the world, , mere hours before the Solar Flare Owen struck.
"Civilization never recovered, and a few of the Emps malfunctioned, destroying the cities in great fireballs instead of spreading the power of the Emp for a hundred leagues in every direction. There weren't enough spare parts, and no communication, they did not have the wisdom to use the Meeting Place. Many of the people who could fix it were killed in petty squabbles, or shot by roving death squads, or ran off and hid" The people nodded and looked at each other
"The time was a war of all against all. Old enmities flared anew. Death was quick and east because the ammunition for the boomsticks were still plenty in those days. And people did not know how to hunt, how to find or even grow food, how to make pine-bark tea to stave off the Scurv. Many of them knew not even how to COOK food! " a great consternation went up in the crowd at the foolishness of their forebears. How could they build so many things and know so little?
"They did not even know how to find clean water , they had great aqueducts that brought water to even the poorest of home, but these failed eventually. When the prisoners escaped, they knew not how to protect themselves. They thought it somehow enlightened to let prisoners live so close to them, the prisoners were quite appreciative of the womenfolk they took from the fools. We know today the best way to manage your prisoners is to stone them" A general murmur went up , it was obviously the only true justice.
"And so the trees and grasses grew up to claim what they once owned, the chariots smashed the roads ruined the buildings razed, the monuments fallen. All became as it once was. In the words of the Before Times poet Bob Segar , everything must have an end, like an ocean to a shore, like a river to a stream. This was their Famous Final Scene."
"The moral of this tale is that civilization is not automatic. We are not guaranteed anything but death some day hopefully far off. But I know mine draws close. I can only hope what I have taught you will be passed on through the generations coming , so that they have that knowing. " The crowd fell silent. Who would take up the Speaking of the chronicles? Who would be the next Great Chieftan?
There was one man who claimed to be able to read the Chronicles himself, but his ideas, they were strange. They were not the same as those spoken by the Grey Chief. This strange man was a great warrior with a dark beard, who had not one but two boomsticks - one on his belt and a larger one strapped on his back. He was known as Logan of Quantico. Little was known about the lands around his home, they seemed to be well guarded but its people kept to themselves.
What they did not know was the Logan was not alone. In ones and twos, his people were spreading out over the former East Coast of what was called the United States. Logan had never lived in the before time, but was raised in what was essentially a military reservation. He and his men had been raised from birth with a mission no less noble than the restoration of civilization itself.