It is the year 132 of the New Earth calender, humans are a slowly dying species among the stars who have been forced into their existence on their world ship,The Muphy-Turtletaub, by a combination of factors both their own mistakes as well as outside interference.
Roughly 150 years before the current time,2075, mankind's technology hit another of what the general populace has come to refer to as "speed-rails", a period of development that rarely spans more than a handful of years, if that long, and during this time was when Gunter Turtletaub, an aerospace engineer working for a contractor in the employ of the world space organization, first drew up his plans for a ship that could carry a substantial amount of the world's population as a side project, a distraction for his tedious work-days more than anything. Although not actually plausible at that point in time, he finished them. Although no one is sure of how they got into the government's hands, everyone is thankful they did. Theories range from a late day to work and mistaking them for his project, to actually presenting them and the plans being confiscated or stored for "possible later use". What is important is that they were found in time to begin construction and launch.
During the speed-rail of 2075, other breakthroughs were made as well, specifically in the field of human genetic manipulation, cybernetics, and computer intelligence(note that this is not AI, but a separate field of study, at least in this setting.) This led to the current day implants used by every single human aboard the Turtletaub.
These implants brought into human testing barely two years before were now regular equipment issued to military personnel signed up for life, or those that were promoted to special service and the like. These implants ranged from a simple fully functional limb replacement to complete overhauls of the human body and things only previously seen in science-fiction and comics. In addition, a synthetic material was created and while it was not biological in any sense, rapidly evolved to the environment surrounding it. Though its official name is NatCell, it has been given a nickname by the people aboard the ship as Alpha. But we can get to that later, history is more important right now.
In 2077, a splinter faction of a splinter faction, a militant organization known now only as the Anarchists attempted to usurp power simultaneously around the globe, and had varying degrees of success. Most of the world governments that faced the Atlantic were lost in the first hour, the rest followed. The Pacific and landlocked countries around the world were able to fight them off however, and the world returned to a state of relative peace, though war and revolution were inevitable. Barely six months into the new regime, the remaining countries around the world initiated an attack on the Anarchists to reinstate the old order. They retaliated and the Cold War became a War spanning the globe. The troops with the new implants were sent in first, while the Anarchists relied on their "Humanity" and implant-free bodies. Needless to say, they were overpowered easily, but not before they launched every missile, both nuclear and not in all of their silos. And while most of them were able to be destroyed, disabled, etc. before full activation and impact, the thousands launched around the world were bound to have a handful slip through the world's defenses. And a handful did. Roughly a quarter of the world's population was either left dead, homeless, poisoned, or all of the above. This has since been known as the Great Eradication. It was then that Mankind was shown that it was not alone in the universe. Things can always get worse.
A species of alien on their last legs made contact with the Earth in 2080, just as the world had gotten back on its feet from the GrEr. The information gleaned from their hard-copies and after being translated as best we can after over a century of interaction with them is little more than their mission directives and why it was initiated in the first place. The exact words translated say:Planet............destroyed.....................new Planet needed...... The aliens have never been seen outside of the exoskeletons they use to interact on their ships, even if anatomy charts looking to be many evolutions out of date make them appear to be similarly humanoid, though with a few variations leading many scientists to believe they come from a mostly water planet, as webbing between the fingers is extensive to say the least, and their bodies were at some point covered in some kind of scales or at least some kind of natural armor.
These aliens, simply known as Webbers arrived more or less peacefully, and set up a base of sorts in the South Pacific, using the mainland of Australia, since abandoned from the Eradication, as their new land, very inclusive and there were few enough people that wanted to even get that close to them. Humanity, still recovering from the scars of the insurrections of the recent years, began calling for the booting of the Webbers from Earth. Eventually the governments began the construction of the worldship, though it was originally going to be used as a massive flying fortress to engage their ships should they attempt to retaliate. The Murphy-Turtletaub was completed in 2084, and was sent to forcibly remove the alien presence. However, the implanted soldiers were not as effective this time around, the exoskeletons beat them back easily and again the world population was cut down a significant amount. It was then that an ultimatum was delivered by an edited video from multiple media sources, basically boiling down to:"GET OUT. You have three days to comply."
Murphy-Turtletaub was recommissioned to get as many people off as possible, and three days was not a whole lot of time to get everyone to safety. Though the governements had prepared for the worst, many of them being superstitious at the least, or worse. Everything of cultural worth was uploaded to the computers, though not everything was able to be saved. Roughly half of the world was able to be taken aboard, all of them coming from all walks of life, save prisoners, before the three day limit was reached. They were escorted to the edge of the moon and sent on their way. Nothing can really be said for what happened to the people left behind, and nothing is definitive. However, that is no longer a concern for the people of Murphy-Turtletaub, where six generations have lived out their lives, searching for a new world, just as the Webbers had.
Humans have since been forced to change with the times, every single person aboard Turtletaub has been given implants from birth. By the age of sixteen, all of their organs have been replaced with bio-mechanical replacements that can withstand the harshest of punishment, all except for the brain, the one thing kept intact throughout "life". These are supplemented and enhanced by the injection of Alpha into the body, allowing one to regenerate the gravest of wounds and "Evolve" with their implants to best suit their needs and work.
While there were less than a dozen made in the first testing they formed into what is now known today as Alpha, a gray, semi-liquid giant that covers the interior of Turtletaub, protecting the people inside from the majority of space(debris,radiation,etc.) that can't be blocked by the hull. Alpha continues to grow and is repeatedly needed to be cut back annually, although it is required for the creation of Turtletaub's Vanguards. Although on Earth there were a multitude of religions and ideologies, they have since been formed into the Alpha Religion(though some of the ones that hold onto their roots hardest call it a cult). It is easily the largest religion on the world ship, accounting for almost the entire percentage, and it is a rare sight indeed to see people of the faiths of Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Shinto, etc. walking around nowadays.
Roughly 150 years before the current time,2075, mankind's technology hit another of what the general populace has come to refer to as "speed-rails", a period of development that rarely spans more than a handful of years, if that long, and during this time was when Gunter Turtletaub, an aerospace engineer working for a contractor in the employ of the world space organization, first drew up his plans for a ship that could carry a substantial amount of the world's population as a side project, a distraction for his tedious work-days more than anything. Although not actually plausible at that point in time, he finished them. Although no one is sure of how they got into the government's hands, everyone is thankful they did. Theories range from a late day to work and mistaking them for his project, to actually presenting them and the plans being confiscated or stored for "possible later use". What is important is that they were found in time to begin construction and launch.
During the speed-rail of 2075, other breakthroughs were made as well, specifically in the field of human genetic manipulation, cybernetics, and computer intelligence(note that this is not AI, but a separate field of study, at least in this setting.) This led to the current day implants used by every single human aboard the Turtletaub.
These implants brought into human testing barely two years before were now regular equipment issued to military personnel signed up for life, or those that were promoted to special service and the like. These implants ranged from a simple fully functional limb replacement to complete overhauls of the human body and things only previously seen in science-fiction and comics. In addition, a synthetic material was created and while it was not biological in any sense, rapidly evolved to the environment surrounding it. Though its official name is NatCell, it has been given a nickname by the people aboard the ship as Alpha. But we can get to that later, history is more important right now.
In 2077, a splinter faction of a splinter faction, a militant organization known now only as the Anarchists attempted to usurp power simultaneously around the globe, and had varying degrees of success. Most of the world governments that faced the Atlantic were lost in the first hour, the rest followed. The Pacific and landlocked countries around the world were able to fight them off however, and the world returned to a state of relative peace, though war and revolution were inevitable. Barely six months into the new regime, the remaining countries around the world initiated an attack on the Anarchists to reinstate the old order. They retaliated and the Cold War became a War spanning the globe. The troops with the new implants were sent in first, while the Anarchists relied on their "Humanity" and implant-free bodies. Needless to say, they were overpowered easily, but not before they launched every missile, both nuclear and not in all of their silos. And while most of them were able to be destroyed, disabled, etc. before full activation and impact, the thousands launched around the world were bound to have a handful slip through the world's defenses. And a handful did. Roughly a quarter of the world's population was either left dead, homeless, poisoned, or all of the above. This has since been known as the Great Eradication. It was then that Mankind was shown that it was not alone in the universe. Things can always get worse.
A species of alien on their last legs made contact with the Earth in 2080, just as the world had gotten back on its feet from the GrEr. The information gleaned from their hard-copies and after being translated as best we can after over a century of interaction with them is little more than their mission directives and why it was initiated in the first place. The exact words translated say:Planet............destroyed.....................new Planet needed...... The aliens have never been seen outside of the exoskeletons they use to interact on their ships, even if anatomy charts looking to be many evolutions out of date make them appear to be similarly humanoid, though with a few variations leading many scientists to believe they come from a mostly water planet, as webbing between the fingers is extensive to say the least, and their bodies were at some point covered in some kind of scales or at least some kind of natural armor.
These aliens, simply known as Webbers arrived more or less peacefully, and set up a base of sorts in the South Pacific, using the mainland of Australia, since abandoned from the Eradication, as their new land, very inclusive and there were few enough people that wanted to even get that close to them. Humanity, still recovering from the scars of the insurrections of the recent years, began calling for the booting of the Webbers from Earth. Eventually the governments began the construction of the worldship, though it was originally going to be used as a massive flying fortress to engage their ships should they attempt to retaliate. The Murphy-Turtletaub was completed in 2084, and was sent to forcibly remove the alien presence. However, the implanted soldiers were not as effective this time around, the exoskeletons beat them back easily and again the world population was cut down a significant amount. It was then that an ultimatum was delivered by an edited video from multiple media sources, basically boiling down to:"GET OUT. You have three days to comply."
Murphy-Turtletaub was recommissioned to get as many people off as possible, and three days was not a whole lot of time to get everyone to safety. Though the governements had prepared for the worst, many of them being superstitious at the least, or worse. Everything of cultural worth was uploaded to the computers, though not everything was able to be saved. Roughly half of the world was able to be taken aboard, all of them coming from all walks of life, save prisoners, before the three day limit was reached. They were escorted to the edge of the moon and sent on their way. Nothing can really be said for what happened to the people left behind, and nothing is definitive. However, that is no longer a concern for the people of Murphy-Turtletaub, where six generations have lived out their lives, searching for a new world, just as the Webbers had.
Humans have since been forced to change with the times, every single person aboard Turtletaub has been given implants from birth. By the age of sixteen, all of their organs have been replaced with bio-mechanical replacements that can withstand the harshest of punishment, all except for the brain, the one thing kept intact throughout "life". These are supplemented and enhanced by the injection of Alpha into the body, allowing one to regenerate the gravest of wounds and "Evolve" with their implants to best suit their needs and work.
While there were less than a dozen made in the first testing they formed into what is now known today as Alpha, a gray, semi-liquid giant that covers the interior of Turtletaub, protecting the people inside from the majority of space(debris,radiation,etc.) that can't be blocked by the hull. Alpha continues to grow and is repeatedly needed to be cut back annually, although it is required for the creation of Turtletaub's Vanguards. Although on Earth there were a multitude of religions and ideologies, they have since been formed into the Alpha Religion(though some of the ones that hold onto their roots hardest call it a cult). It is easily the largest religion on the world ship, accounting for almost the entire percentage, and it is a rare sight indeed to see people of the faiths of Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Shinto, etc. walking around nowadays.
The worldship is gigantic, estimated to be the size of modern-day Asia, it was constructed and outfitted to be a massive fortress-city, and has since seen numerous repairs and construction done to make it even moreso a world of it's own. Massive raillines connect the world-ship, run by both computer intelligence and actual humans. The ship is able to make wormholes of a sort, for long travel across space, and the engines run at the nearest they have been able to get them to light speed. They rely on the engines more than the Space Fold Generator, or SpacGen for short, as they must often takes stops to mine, refill food stocks, etc.
Limitations have been enforced to keep the population at a stable maximum, therefore only one child per family is able to be kept. Should that child die, they are allowed to reproduce again, but should twins,triplets,etc. be born, only one is chosen, either by the family or the world-ship government, to be allowed to stay with the family. The others are given to the service of the people, and make up the majority of the Vanguard corps.
There are thirteen "cities" in the world ship, each holding around 2 million people. They are arranged in a circle around an area called the Wildlands, the unurbanized areas of the ship, where food is grown and harvested. Take into account that there's still new TV and Movies out, there's even a ship internet of sorts, so this isn't a completely feudal age society in a spaceship.We are not a part of Pern.
The Religion of Alpha, as stated before, accounts for the largest amount of believers, and as such, see Alpha as both protector and destroyer, as It must be cut back each year and harvested, both for the continued survival of the humans aboard as well as to keep it from engulfing the Murphy-Turtletaub.
There have been many attempts to colonize occupied planets throughout the history of the ship, though each has somehow met with unforeseen consequences, leading the Alpha Cult to believe even more fervently that they will be led to a perfect planet somewhere in the vastness of the universe, and that their punishment for attempting genocide on the Webbers is to wander until they find said uninhabited planet.
Limitations have been enforced to keep the population at a stable maximum, therefore only one child per family is able to be kept. Should that child die, they are allowed to reproduce again, but should twins,triplets,etc. be born, only one is chosen, either by the family or the world-ship government, to be allowed to stay with the family. The others are given to the service of the people, and make up the majority of the Vanguard corps.
There are thirteen "cities" in the world ship, each holding around 2 million people. They are arranged in a circle around an area called the Wildlands, the unurbanized areas of the ship, where food is grown and harvested. Take into account that there's still new TV and Movies out, there's even a ship internet of sorts, so this isn't a completely feudal age society in a spaceship.We are not a part of Pern.
The Religion of Alpha, as stated before, accounts for the largest amount of believers, and as such, see Alpha as both protector and destroyer, as It must be cut back each year and harvested, both for the continued survival of the humans aboard as well as to keep it from engulfing the Murphy-Turtletaub.
There have been many attempts to colonize occupied planets throughout the history of the ship, though each has somehow met with unforeseen consequences, leading the Alpha Cult to believe even more fervently that they will be led to a perfect planet somewhere in the vastness of the universe, and that their punishment for attempting genocide on the Webbers is to wander until they find said uninhabited planet.
The Vanguard corps is the best trained, implanted, and equipped military organization aboard the Turtletaub. Taken from birth to be inducted, they are the forward scouts, the first line of defense should they be attacked, and the last, though that situation has never had to have been forced. They are injected with the largest amount of Alpha of any human being, given weapons in their bodies, with options as they grow in skill, rank, and Stage. The Vanguards are trained to take into account the people aboard, and have it drilled into them that the people of the Turtletaub come first and foremost. Though there have been exceptions to the rule, many in fact. They are more than just people, they are the living weapons of Turtletaub. Each is easily twice the strength of any normal person, though there are workers who have evolved their implants to surpass the strength of the average Vanguard, though few things encountered have been able to stand up to one of the twenty Stage Five "Sleepers" once they are awoken. Each Vanguard is given a code identifying them, and at Stage Two, are either given or take a Codename, just for added security. In essence, they are the spiritual, if not biological, descendents of the original implanted soldiers that attempted to take the continent of Australia back from the Webbers. There are currently only 10,000 Vanguard aboard Turtletaub.
Stage One: Your standard recruit, outfitted with a projectile launcher in their dominant hand, little more than a modern pistol, though it is enough to get the job done for the most part of any situation. In the other arm is an implanted blade, though it comes in three different styles, one simply extending out from the forearm and acting as a literal extension of a person's arm, a set of three serrated and slightly curved blades that extend 40 centimeters out from the forearm, and a spike extending out again 40 centimeters from the wrist. Each has a body armor implant, just beneath the surface of their skin, this allows them to take a massive amount of punishment, and the extra Alpha in their systems allows them to recover from grievous injury in a week at most. However, you are not, and never will be, able to survive in true space for long. At this point, you're little more than a "regular" human, stronger, faster, tougher, yes, but you still go pop,bang,boom,suffocation,etc.etc. outside of the ship. This is also referred to the first part of the Cyborg Stage. The code they are given is a six digit numerical code identifying them as a member of the Vanguard Corps. Only they know their number, and so refer to themselves by their real names at this point. They have yet to be allowed off-ship at this point. In fact, these are most often children, aging between 8 and 14 most of the time, thought not unheard of for twenty and older to still be at this stage, though quite rare.
Stage Two: The majority of the Vanguard corps is at this stage,part two of Cyborg Stage, and is where Alpha truly kicks in. Stage Twos begin evolving, both from their experiences on missions, as well as getting access to more implants. If you haven't figured out already, this is where you all are at, so you're free to think of whatever you want to, within reason of course. TO accommodate for the vast number of implants that most Vanguard get at this stage, most are twice the size of a normal human now, standing at around nine feet, and the lowest weighing Vanguard known was still a hundred kilograms. Codenames are issued at this point as well, and they are the first to be allowed off-ship and sent on missions. Referring to each other off-ship by their true names is a punishable offense. Though it is light the first time(community service type stuff), the second time sees them grounded for a month, and the third is punishable by an undetermined amount of time as a Sentinel.(The standard police onboard the ship, who have their own ways of dealing with trouble makers.)Ages are normally 15 to 20
Stage Three: Considered the most painful of the Five stages, this is the Hybrid form of a Vanguard. This is the final chance for almost all to get new implants, as they start their path onto becoming Sleepers, if they reach that far at all. Each are twelve feet tall at the least, and weigh in at around two hundred kilograms. The body armor implants they received as Stage Ones has begun to envelop their real bodies at this point, making it quite painful since it can often break through the skin at strange times, causing a cycle of regeneration and skin break to constantly be happening. This is also the final point at which a Vanguard can have children, should they wish them. They also stop growing at this point, no longer needing to accommodate for extra implants and the like.Ages can be anywhere from 15 to 90 from here on out. Alpha is not completely predictable.
Stage Four: This is when the body armor has fully enveloped the skin it protects, turning the Vanguard into a living Mech. Each weigh around 250 kilograms and are around fifteen feet tall. The extra width, weight, and height they put on is completely the body armor covering their living bodies beneath. At this point, they become entirely self-sufficient, as Alpha has taken control of their systems, no longer needing to sleep, eat, drink, or anything of the sort. They still have feelings and thoughts of their own, as Alpha has been unable to make contact and evolve the brain for unknown reasons.
Stage Five: The final stage in a Vanguard's life. Only a precious Twenty-two have ever made it to this point, of which twenty are still among the "living". They are called Sleepers as they have become almost completely sedentary. Each of them has found a place to sleep, awakening once a year to "fight back" Alpha or in times of dire emergencies to act as the true guardians of Turtletaub. Each is connected to the ship in a way the rest of the ship is unable to. While Sleeping, they are able to move their consciousness between Alpha and the ship functions, so in a way they are also the ones in charge of the ship, while the ship government is simply the people's protectors and administrators.
Note that Stage DOES NOT EQUAL RANK. The stages come quickly for some and slow for others, it has to do with Alpha's process of evolution. However, Stage Ones are always considered recruits, they may not advance beyond that rank until reaching Stage Two.
Stage Two: The majority of the Vanguard corps is at this stage,part two of Cyborg Stage, and is where Alpha truly kicks in. Stage Twos begin evolving, both from their experiences on missions, as well as getting access to more implants. If you haven't figured out already, this is where you all are at, so you're free to think of whatever you want to, within reason of course. TO accommodate for the vast number of implants that most Vanguard get at this stage, most are twice the size of a normal human now, standing at around nine feet, and the lowest weighing Vanguard known was still a hundred kilograms. Codenames are issued at this point as well, and they are the first to be allowed off-ship and sent on missions. Referring to each other off-ship by their true names is a punishable offense. Though it is light the first time(community service type stuff), the second time sees them grounded for a month, and the third is punishable by an undetermined amount of time as a Sentinel.(The standard police onboard the ship, who have their own ways of dealing with trouble makers.)Ages are normally 15 to 20
Stage Three: Considered the most painful of the Five stages, this is the Hybrid form of a Vanguard. This is the final chance for almost all to get new implants, as they start their path onto becoming Sleepers, if they reach that far at all. Each are twelve feet tall at the least, and weigh in at around two hundred kilograms. The body armor implants they received as Stage Ones has begun to envelop their real bodies at this point, making it quite painful since it can often break through the skin at strange times, causing a cycle of regeneration and skin break to constantly be happening. This is also the final point at which a Vanguard can have children, should they wish them. They also stop growing at this point, no longer needing to accommodate for extra implants and the like.Ages can be anywhere from 15 to 90 from here on out. Alpha is not completely predictable.
Stage Four: This is when the body armor has fully enveloped the skin it protects, turning the Vanguard into a living Mech. Each weigh around 250 kilograms and are around fifteen feet tall. The extra width, weight, and height they put on is completely the body armor covering their living bodies beneath. At this point, they become entirely self-sufficient, as Alpha has taken control of their systems, no longer needing to sleep, eat, drink, or anything of the sort. They still have feelings and thoughts of their own, as Alpha has been unable to make contact and evolve the brain for unknown reasons.
Stage Five: The final stage in a Vanguard's life. Only a precious Twenty-two have ever made it to this point, of which twenty are still among the "living". They are called Sleepers as they have become almost completely sedentary. Each of them has found a place to sleep, awakening once a year to "fight back" Alpha or in times of dire emergencies to act as the true guardians of Turtletaub. Each is connected to the ship in a way the rest of the ship is unable to. While Sleeping, they are able to move their consciousness between Alpha and the ship functions, so in a way they are also the ones in charge of the ship, while the ship government is simply the people's protectors and administrators.
Note that Stage DOES NOT EQUAL RANK. The stages come quickly for some and slow for others, it has to do with Alpha's process of evolution. However, Stage Ones are always considered recruits, they may not advance beyond that rank until reaching Stage Two.
Name:Your real name.
Codename:what you are called by your Squad/Cabal/etc.
Age:Not too important, anything from 13 to 30 is open,
Stage: Not really important right now, you're all Stage Twos, but I plan on updating the sheets as time goes on, if time goes on
Appearance:How many mirrors does the Vanguard corps have to replace daily with you walking by them?
Implants:You are free to go kinda wild here, you want a machine gun in your arm? Go right on ahead, Rocket launchers, however? Save that for stage three, your weapons evolve with you to a certain extent, so you don't have to completely rip out everything and stick something new in each time you grow up.
Religion:Completely optional, but could do some interesting character stuff if, and only if you want to bring possible questions of religion into the mix. So long as it doesn't consume the OOC chat afterwards or before.
Background:You all received the same training, so don't really go into too much detail on that. You had a few years with your real family, but were taken around the age of 8 to start your training and full implants almost a decade before the rest of the ship kids. And also, you aren't all trained to be super-ninja-assassin-pirate-monster-mechs-of-deathly-death, diplomacy is needed as well, since there's the fact that you haven't run into an uninhabited habitable planet yet. You can grow most of what you need to survive, but that's not always the best thing there is, trade is needed, sometimes for both sides. Although very few alien species have been allowed inside Turtletaub, it is a rare occurrence indeed and reserved for only the most honored guests or ones that the ship REALLY needs what the planet has to offer. Also, this is a fully human vessel, no aliens have been allowed to stay and live with the rest of the ship.
Codename:what you are called by your Squad/Cabal/etc.
Age:Not too important, anything from 13 to 30 is open,
Stage: Not really important right now, you're all Stage Twos, but I plan on updating the sheets as time goes on, if time goes on
Appearance:How many mirrors does the Vanguard corps have to replace daily with you walking by them?
Implants:You are free to go kinda wild here, you want a machine gun in your arm? Go right on ahead, Rocket launchers, however? Save that for stage three, your weapons evolve with you to a certain extent, so you don't have to completely rip out everything and stick something new in each time you grow up.
Religion:Completely optional, but could do some interesting character stuff if, and only if you want to bring possible questions of religion into the mix. So long as it doesn't consume the OOC chat afterwards or before.
Background:You all received the same training, so don't really go into too much detail on that. You had a few years with your real family, but were taken around the age of 8 to start your training and full implants almost a decade before the rest of the ship kids. And also, you aren't all trained to be super-ninja-assassin-pirate-monster-mechs-of-deathly-death, diplomacy is needed as well, since there's the fact that you haven't run into an uninhabited habitable planet yet. You can grow most of what you need to survive, but that's not always the best thing there is, trade is needed, sometimes for both sides. Although very few alien species have been allowed inside Turtletaub, it is a rare occurrence indeed and reserved for only the most honored guests or ones that the ship REALLY needs what the planet has to offer. Also, this is a fully human vessel, no aliens have been allowed to stay and live with the rest of the ship.
If you want to talk about copying, we can talk all day about it ripping the guts out of Synnibar, stuffing it underwater and adding in a story so easy to predict I quit playing half an hour through. Now that that's out of the way, onto more pleasant things.