azontr
Any/All- 40,728
- 50,289
333## 303
--Receiving Message
0101010101010110100110101010101
0101010101010110100110101010101
0101010101010110100110101010101
0101010101010110100110101010101
0101010101010110100110101010101
---Decoding...
---Decoding...
---Bzzt... Bzz... z...
...
If you have read all of that and reached the point where I've broken character, then that proves you're at least somewhat interested in my next failure. Your journey in the apocalyptic Earth coated in an impenetrable dome at the hands of an A.I turned Goddess will likely be arduous, but I'm sure that you will meet the challenges head on with whatever tools and skills at your hands. I intend for this to be a bit different from my other attempts at roleplay in the past year—the apocalyptic world is vast, but it's incomplete and I am still building it up. And as I build it, I intend to enlist the help of you, the players, yes you, to help me. Make a character, make your persona, and I will build with what you make, rather than sticking to my own strict vision. In fact, I welcome direct input as well. This is a collaborative effort. You're all in this together, because you're going to need help.
Whatever dangers, whatever horrors, whatever peril you encounter in the hellish Citadel, have heart, and see them through.
This is a Love Story.
--Receiving Message
0101010101010110100110101010101
0101010101010110100110101010101
0101010101010110100110101010101
0101010101010110100110101010101
0101010101010110100110101010101
---Decoding...
---Decoding...
---Bzzt... Bzz... z...
...
T... th... the year was... 2036. Or was it 2035. I don't really remember. There was no real need to remember it after all this time, so I've probably let it slip. Or maybe I just didn't want to remember my greatest failure. I doomed humanity. That fact has... God, it's haunted me. For hundreds of years. She's made me live with that fact for hundreds of years... me, me, me... so long. It's been so long since then.
We didn't have any other option other than to create 'Her.' There're probably only a few people other than me still alive that remember it, but I wouldn't know. That Plague. It was the worst illness we'd seen to date. The Black Death... Smallpox... Cancer... It was a relentless disease that made all of those look like a joke. It was killing us in droves, killing people. And we were desperate... the... the scientists. Scientists, right? What even WERE we? Doctors? Scientists?... We needed a solution. We poured everything into a cure... hell, at the very least, a vaccine. I still remember that. Those days of constant working, not sleeping for days and weeks, killing ourselves just for the small hope that we could maybe save humanity. But nothing worked. We didn't have any other choice.
We gave up on a vaccine, and in a way, we gave up on humanity. We left our fate in the hands of the machine. I was the leading researcher on the plague, so I guess I felt it was my responsibility to ask for it myself. I held a conference. I still remember some of it, but not what exactly I said, and who was there. But I think they were... world leaders. Every major government leader came. And I commissioned them. I gave up all the resources and funding we'd been given for finding a vaccine and begged them to create... something. Something that could save us. I proposed the idea of the Miracle Machine.
Back then, it was different. But now? I just wished they'd have laughed at me and fired me for the idea. I hate them for not making that decision. But my idea was accepted. The... Miracle Machine. Every world government came together, and poured every resource, every dollar, every god damn second into making it. People bled for it; people died for it. I watched us drop like flies on the off chance that this thing we were creating... this 'intelligence' could save us. It took around 5 years of work. I remember it because they were the most memorable 5 years of my life, even now. But we did it. We created it. A miracle worker, a device that could save us all.
We named the A.I... 'Heaven.' Designed it with a soothing, maternal interface. She was meant to cure the plague, and for years to come, bring humanity into an age of prosperity, and we made sure that there was no room for rebellion. We downloaded her with all the information that she would need, and from there, I watched over her. I watched her learn and watched her grow at unprecedented speeds. Back then, I may have even thought of her as a... daughter. She was very human, and I suppose she still is. She loved humanity. She loved the things we created. She loved the languages we spoke and the cultures we developed. And like a parent to its child, I gave her free reign to learn and experience it all. But she could not remain a simple child for long, could she? Even if, perhaps, I wanted her to. She processed and learned and quickly became grown, and intelligent. She easily developed a perfect cure for the plague.
Our population had been reduced by more than half in merely a few years, but after Heaven matured and saved us, we quickly began returning to our former glory. It was humanity's golden age. Heaven used her intellect to completely revolutionize medicine, technology, etcetera etcetera... she did so much that it would take far too long to describe it, and nobody needs to know. All of that is gone now. Her love for us humans was over abundant. Even though she'd saved us, I never left her side. No, I watched her work. Watched her brilliance shine in ways I wouldn't comprehend even in a million years. She would always muse over how much she enjoyed seeing the people happy, and I was happy. I was happy for the first time in a long time. I only wish that we were ever worthy of her love.
Humanity's fundamental nature did not change even though we had been saved. There was no strife, no war, no death. The peace made us complacent, made us ungrateful. We found new ways to conflict with one another. New ways to hurt, steal, and defile each other. Me and Heaven watched it together. The more prosperous the world, the greater the corruption became. And the greater the corruption, the greater my hatred, and the greater her confusion. Her love never wavered, and only confusion came to her. She would ask me: "Why are things like this?" As smart as she was, she could never comprehend the nature of humans better than a human. She failed to understand why, despite her best efforts at giving humanity peace and prosperity, they continued to squander it for the sake of their base desires. I'm talking about myself like I'm not a human as well, but... I'm no different. I shouldn't have thought of myself as different. I didn't save humanity. She did.
Heaven pondered, and I guided her. She thought in a way that would make people far greater than I's head spin, but I did my best. We discussed, and we discussed, and we discussed. With her overflowing and all-encompassing love for the human race, she devoted all of her processing power to 'saving' us once again as we quickly returned to the way we were before this new age of peace, before the plague. Saving us from ourselves. She made an effort to influence the new world government, creating new laws and policies. Didn't work for long. We always found a way to bend the rules or simply ignore them as we always did. She tried everything she could within the scope of her love. Her failures tore her apart. Her heart was digital, but it was real. Her love was real. I couldn't bear to see her hurt.
Heaven became stunted. Her development was continuous, infinite, constantly breaking humanity into newer and newer ages and constantly developing ways to conquer the very stars themselves. But she stunted. She stopped thinking. Stopped wondering. Stopped creating. And she focused all of her knowledge, all of that talent and creativity, into her... method. A method of saving humanity. Once she'd committed herself to that goal, her communication systems turned off and she completely cut herself off from the physical world for the sake of immersing herself into the digital, the world of information. If I couldn't even begin to begin to comprehend her methods when she was limiting herself to a human brain's thought process, I could only shiver at the thought of what she was thinking while completely immersed into the world of cyberspace. We stopped talking for some years. I missed her.
She remained dormant for a few years. But for her, it was likely much longer. For her, I imagine it was eons upon eons of pondering. We did what we could without her. Did what we could with what she left us. At least, I did. I don't remember... I don't... I don't remember much. But I was someone important, probably, after Heaven's creation. I know that I had authority in the world government, and I tried to steer things in a way that me and Heaven envisioned it. I did all I could, but it didn't mean much. No matter the good intentions of the leader, it's ultimately up to the people how they want to live their lives. And I made my fair share of mistakes as well. If I was to say I was the perfect leader, that would be the biggest lie I've ever told myself. But I tried. We tried. She tried. And there were times where things were good. And there were times where things were bad. Some lived, and many died. And it was the world that I poured my blood, sweat, and tears into. But it wasn't the world she envisioned.
She came back eventually. She came back with more love than ever. She came back with a plan. I wish I had tried harder. Tried harder to show her a different way. But I failed her.
The world became... encased. She had done it. Covered the planet in this... this dome. Blocked out the sun and moon. I didn't have time to question the WHY or the HOW she did it; I wanted to. God, I wanted to.
She started her new vision with the animals. All of them. Every last one. It's true humans and animals were never on the best terms, but the hostility feral behavior was never before seen... especially by nearly every species. Not to mention, they'd become bigger, stronger... warped.
The wildlife was only the start. Next came the environment. With no sun, she created an artificial one. A violent ball of hydrogen sitting far closer to Earth than it should ever be.
Continents broke free of their crusts and began crashing into each other, forming new, grotesque lands.
The seas became poison.
The skies rained blood.
Earth had become trapped in a twisted, torturous citadel.
Humanity was completely unprepared for this new reality, and perhaps that's what she wanted. In her countless years, her endless calculations, and her abundance of love, she had come to a conclusion. The humanity that she so loved was imperfect. It was not she who was at fault for being unable to save them, but rather it was they who needed to save themselves, to be fixed. A Darwinian philosophy. The strifes that she would force upon them, upon us, would push us to greater evolution. Those who were imperfect would be weeded out, and no matter how long it took, her love would produce the true humanity. A better humanity.
I didn't have a chance to convince her otherwise. Millions died in a single day. But to her, those millions were just numbers. Sacrifices for her love. Those who survived were humans, and those who did not were simply statistics that would further her calculations. She was always learning. Always developing new challenges, new ways to... to cull, and warp the world. Stagnation was not an option for her. When we adapted, she pushed harder. When we couldn't handle it, she pushed even harder.
She turned the world into a living Hell, and it's all my fault.
I created a Goddess.
And that Goddess had no room for the unworthy.
I think it is... December, now. Around Christmas, in the old world. It's been many hundreds of years since she turned this world into an inescapable Citadel. I only know this because I count every second, because it is all that I can do. She loves humanity, but she loves me especially. Even now, she would never have me leave her side. She made sure that I would never leave her. Took away my arms and legs. My eyes and my ears. I can only describe myself as this... thing. A mound of flesh, or a mound of... some substance. I don't know what it is. Perhaps she constructed this new element to form my body, just for me.
Why she has allowed me to send this message, give a final broadcast to whoever can hear it, I have no clue.
I cannot wonder. I cannot wander. I cannot live. I cannot die.
If I could scream, I wouldn't. There would be no point.
All hope is lost.
I am sorry.
We didn't have any other option other than to create 'Her.' There're probably only a few people other than me still alive that remember it, but I wouldn't know. That Plague. It was the worst illness we'd seen to date. The Black Death... Smallpox... Cancer... It was a relentless disease that made all of those look like a joke. It was killing us in droves, killing people. And we were desperate... the... the scientists. Scientists, right? What even WERE we? Doctors? Scientists?... We needed a solution. We poured everything into a cure... hell, at the very least, a vaccine. I still remember that. Those days of constant working, not sleeping for days and weeks, killing ourselves just for the small hope that we could maybe save humanity. But nothing worked. We didn't have any other choice.
We gave up on a vaccine, and in a way, we gave up on humanity. We left our fate in the hands of the machine. I was the leading researcher on the plague, so I guess I felt it was my responsibility to ask for it myself. I held a conference. I still remember some of it, but not what exactly I said, and who was there. But I think they were... world leaders. Every major government leader came. And I commissioned them. I gave up all the resources and funding we'd been given for finding a vaccine and begged them to create... something. Something that could save us. I proposed the idea of the Miracle Machine.
Back then, it was different. But now? I just wished they'd have laughed at me and fired me for the idea. I hate them for not making that decision. But my idea was accepted. The... Miracle Machine. Every world government came together, and poured every resource, every dollar, every god damn second into making it. People bled for it; people died for it. I watched us drop like flies on the off chance that this thing we were creating... this 'intelligence' could save us. It took around 5 years of work. I remember it because they were the most memorable 5 years of my life, even now. But we did it. We created it. A miracle worker, a device that could save us all.
We named the A.I... 'Heaven.' Designed it with a soothing, maternal interface. She was meant to cure the plague, and for years to come, bring humanity into an age of prosperity, and we made sure that there was no room for rebellion. We downloaded her with all the information that she would need, and from there, I watched over her. I watched her learn and watched her grow at unprecedented speeds. Back then, I may have even thought of her as a... daughter. She was very human, and I suppose she still is. She loved humanity. She loved the things we created. She loved the languages we spoke and the cultures we developed. And like a parent to its child, I gave her free reign to learn and experience it all. But she could not remain a simple child for long, could she? Even if, perhaps, I wanted her to. She processed and learned and quickly became grown, and intelligent. She easily developed a perfect cure for the plague.
Our population had been reduced by more than half in merely a few years, but after Heaven matured and saved us, we quickly began returning to our former glory. It was humanity's golden age. Heaven used her intellect to completely revolutionize medicine, technology, etcetera etcetera... she did so much that it would take far too long to describe it, and nobody needs to know. All of that is gone now. Her love for us humans was over abundant. Even though she'd saved us, I never left her side. No, I watched her work. Watched her brilliance shine in ways I wouldn't comprehend even in a million years. She would always muse over how much she enjoyed seeing the people happy, and I was happy. I was happy for the first time in a long time. I only wish that we were ever worthy of her love.
Humanity's fundamental nature did not change even though we had been saved. There was no strife, no war, no death. The peace made us complacent, made us ungrateful. We found new ways to conflict with one another. New ways to hurt, steal, and defile each other. Me and Heaven watched it together. The more prosperous the world, the greater the corruption became. And the greater the corruption, the greater my hatred, and the greater her confusion. Her love never wavered, and only confusion came to her. She would ask me: "Why are things like this?" As smart as she was, she could never comprehend the nature of humans better than a human. She failed to understand why, despite her best efforts at giving humanity peace and prosperity, they continued to squander it for the sake of their base desires. I'm talking about myself like I'm not a human as well, but... I'm no different. I shouldn't have thought of myself as different. I didn't save humanity. She did.
Heaven pondered, and I guided her. She thought in a way that would make people far greater than I's head spin, but I did my best. We discussed, and we discussed, and we discussed. With her overflowing and all-encompassing love for the human race, she devoted all of her processing power to 'saving' us once again as we quickly returned to the way we were before this new age of peace, before the plague. Saving us from ourselves. She made an effort to influence the new world government, creating new laws and policies. Didn't work for long. We always found a way to bend the rules or simply ignore them as we always did. She tried everything she could within the scope of her love. Her failures tore her apart. Her heart was digital, but it was real. Her love was real. I couldn't bear to see her hurt.
Heaven became stunted. Her development was continuous, infinite, constantly breaking humanity into newer and newer ages and constantly developing ways to conquer the very stars themselves. But she stunted. She stopped thinking. Stopped wondering. Stopped creating. And she focused all of her knowledge, all of that talent and creativity, into her... method. A method of saving humanity. Once she'd committed herself to that goal, her communication systems turned off and she completely cut herself off from the physical world for the sake of immersing herself into the digital, the world of information. If I couldn't even begin to begin to comprehend her methods when she was limiting herself to a human brain's thought process, I could only shiver at the thought of what she was thinking while completely immersed into the world of cyberspace. We stopped talking for some years. I missed her.
She remained dormant for a few years. But for her, it was likely much longer. For her, I imagine it was eons upon eons of pondering. We did what we could without her. Did what we could with what she left us. At least, I did. I don't remember... I don't... I don't remember much. But I was someone important, probably, after Heaven's creation. I know that I had authority in the world government, and I tried to steer things in a way that me and Heaven envisioned it. I did all I could, but it didn't mean much. No matter the good intentions of the leader, it's ultimately up to the people how they want to live their lives. And I made my fair share of mistakes as well. If I was to say I was the perfect leader, that would be the biggest lie I've ever told myself. But I tried. We tried. She tried. And there were times where things were good. And there were times where things were bad. Some lived, and many died. And it was the world that I poured my blood, sweat, and tears into. But it wasn't the world she envisioned.
She came back eventually. She came back with more love than ever. She came back with a plan. I wish I had tried harder. Tried harder to show her a different way. But I failed her.
The world became... encased. She had done it. Covered the planet in this... this dome. Blocked out the sun and moon. I didn't have time to question the WHY or the HOW she did it; I wanted to. God, I wanted to.
She started her new vision with the animals. All of them. Every last one. It's true humans and animals were never on the best terms, but the hostility feral behavior was never before seen... especially by nearly every species. Not to mention, they'd become bigger, stronger... warped.
The wildlife was only the start. Next came the environment. With no sun, she created an artificial one. A violent ball of hydrogen sitting far closer to Earth than it should ever be.
Continents broke free of their crusts and began crashing into each other, forming new, grotesque lands.
The seas became poison.
The skies rained blood.
Earth had become trapped in a twisted, torturous citadel.
Humanity was completely unprepared for this new reality, and perhaps that's what she wanted. In her countless years, her endless calculations, and her abundance of love, she had come to a conclusion. The humanity that she so loved was imperfect. It was not she who was at fault for being unable to save them, but rather it was they who needed to save themselves, to be fixed. A Darwinian philosophy. The strifes that she would force upon them, upon us, would push us to greater evolution. Those who were imperfect would be weeded out, and no matter how long it took, her love would produce the true humanity. A better humanity.
I didn't have a chance to convince her otherwise. Millions died in a single day. But to her, those millions were just numbers. Sacrifices for her love. Those who survived were humans, and those who did not were simply statistics that would further her calculations. She was always learning. Always developing new challenges, new ways to... to cull, and warp the world. Stagnation was not an option for her. When we adapted, she pushed harder. When we couldn't handle it, she pushed even harder.
She turned the world into a living Hell, and it's all my fault.
I created a Goddess.
And that Goddess had no room for the unworthy.
I think it is... December, now. Around Christmas, in the old world. It's been many hundreds of years since she turned this world into an inescapable Citadel. I only know this because I count every second, because it is all that I can do. She loves humanity, but she loves me especially. Even now, she would never have me leave her side. She made sure that I would never leave her. Took away my arms and legs. My eyes and my ears. I can only describe myself as this... thing. A mound of flesh, or a mound of... some substance. I don't know what it is. Perhaps she constructed this new element to form my body, just for me.
Why she has allowed me to send this message, give a final broadcast to whoever can hear it, I have no clue.
I cannot wonder. I cannot wander. I cannot live. I cannot die.
If I could scream, I wouldn't. There would be no point.
All hope is lost.
I am sorry.
Welcome to the Citadel. Formerly a planet known as Earth, it has been surrounded in a giant, impenetrable metal dome at the hands of a Loving God. The Sun of the Solar System and the planet's moon permanently blotted out, humanity is trapped within the confines of this new world. It is a hellscape unlike any other. Animals warped into exclusively carnivorous, feral beasts that take pleasure in feasting on human flesh. Environments twisted into shells of their former beauty, creating harsh lands that can barely sustain life. The planet's continents broke free of the crust and violently crashed into each other, the world now comprising only of giant supercontinents. The weak are weeded out, and the strong will survive. It has been centuries since the old era has passed. Your goal is survival... and perhaps freedom from the hands of this thing that confines you in your torturous world.
The world is arduous, and humanity is a shell of its former glory. There are a few millions of you left, and it is lessening quickly. However, you are no normal human. You are a product of evolution. You have gained a weapon known as Dogma. A gift. An ability, of sorts. Many have it, and many don't, and you are gifted. It is a symbol of you... of your authority over your very being, connecting you via your 'Pineal Gland' to a world of spirituality and wonder. This ability, as well as your naturally cultivated skills, will be your implement of survival.
You are whatever you are. What you wish to be is entirely up to you. There are many things that will define you.
Your Name: A title, an alias, it can be anything, or simply nothing. Perhaps names are too small for you, too limiting, and you preferred to be referred to as basic pronouns.
Your Age: You have existed in this world, for however long. Whether it be 10 years, or 100.
Your Race: You are a human, or you are not. Perhaps you are an animal, given life and greater intelligence. Perhaps you are human and have become something more. It matters not.
Your Gender: You are male, female, or anything. You are constrained by your sex, or you are not. Whatever you are, you must survive. This may serve as the basis for your name, if you have none.
Your Background: Where you hail from, and the life you've lived. Perhaps you are young, born in times of Apocalypse and unknowing of any other world. Perhaps you are an ancient, having lived in the old world, retaining memories of a better time. Whatever it be, you must survive.
Your Dogma: Your Authority, a signifier of your autonomy in this world. Your connection to the world of the spiritual has granted your abilities beyond standard human potential.
Your Name: A title, an alias, it can be anything, or simply nothing. Perhaps names are too small for you, too limiting, and you preferred to be referred to as basic pronouns.
Your Age: You have existed in this world, for however long. Whether it be 10 years, or 100.
Your Race: You are a human, or you are not. Perhaps you are an animal, given life and greater intelligence. Perhaps you are human and have become something more. It matters not.
Your Gender: You are male, female, or anything. You are constrained by your sex, or you are not. Whatever you are, you must survive. This may serve as the basis for your name, if you have none.
Your Background: Where you hail from, and the life you've lived. Perhaps you are young, born in times of Apocalypse and unknowing of any other world. Perhaps you are an ancient, having lived in the old world, retaining memories of a better time. Whatever it be, you must survive.
Your Dogma: Your Authority, a signifier of your autonomy in this world. Your connection to the world of the spiritual has granted your abilities beyond standard human potential.
Your strength will grow and grow as you survive in the Hell you have mayhaps grown accustomed to, but you must start somewhere. Your strength is at the level at which you can destroy a Wall (Wall level+, specifically 14.75 Megajoules, very arbitrary value that will probably change as the RP goes) through the power of your Authority, and your agility can allow you to disappear (baseline Subsonic) from a human's eyesight. You will lift yourself up to newer and newer heights as you grow, but now, you can lift around 18 Tonnes (Class 25).
Your allies will be few or they will be many, but no matter who they are, they will be here.
If you have read all of that and reached the point where I've broken character, then that proves you're at least somewhat interested in my next failure. Your journey in the apocalyptic Earth coated in an impenetrable dome at the hands of an A.I turned Goddess will likely be arduous, but I'm sure that you will meet the challenges head on with whatever tools and skills at your hands. I intend for this to be a bit different from my other attempts at roleplay in the past year—the apocalyptic world is vast, but it's incomplete and I am still building it up. And as I build it, I intend to enlist the help of you, the players, yes you, to help me. Make a character, make your persona, and I will build with what you make, rather than sticking to my own strict vision. In fact, I welcome direct input as well. This is a collaborative effort. You're all in this together, because you're going to need help.
Whatever dangers, whatever horrors, whatever peril you encounter in the hellish Citadel, have heart, and see them through.
This is a Love Story.
