check below for a cool little intro to the mines.
RISE ABOVE
(another fantasy RP)
Josho, Caldyre 2104
(another fantasy RP)
Josho, Caldyre 2104
"Wakey wakey!" the captain of the ship shouted. No one had said a word for a long time in fear of the ship capsizing in the storm. Aside from the occasional cough, the loud creaks of the ship, and the fury of the storm outside, the captain was the first to utter a word. His shaved head was poking out from the top of the hatch. "Sorry to disturb meditation hour, but I, the glorious Captain Ringo, have a very special announcement for you!" he spoke with delight.
Captain Ringo clearly enjoyed his job. Even though he spoke so cheerfully, he was an evil man. Contrary to the strict protocols which stated he couldn't harm any of the slaves, he occasionally broke it and passed it off as 'preventing escapes'. The Captain tossed a man overboard while chained to a rock; the victim wouldn't stop begging to be let loose. During another instance, someone from the crew, a girl, was trying to release the slaves when she was caught. Her hands were chopped off in front of the slaves by the ship-master himself, who claimed to be hurt by her betrayal. The girl was a relative of some sort, but she was never seen again.
"As much as I and my crew have enjoyed your company~you ungrateful, hungry bastards~today is the day that you finally get to be free." Ringo chimed, his mouth breaking into a wide smile. He waited for a response, initially, but went on when none come. "So welcome to Josho, where you will be free to work until you fucking die!" the slaver sang, "so say farewell to whatever hope you maggots clung to, because you're never escaping here! Nope! No chance whatever!" The slaver climbed down a rope ladder attached to the hatch's hinges, but halfways he jumped down to the floor. Several of the slaves' eyes hatefully burned into him as he casually approached the iron bars imprisoning them. Had it not been there, he would would almost certainly been mauled to death. Another form of protection ensured his safety: the special bands which were locked onto the slaves arms and prevented any use of magical abilities.
"Any moment, the big doors above you are going to open and a group of my pals are going to fetch you from my care. You're all leaving my vessel to lead the charge into a new life, and none of you are saying good-bye!" the captain lamented. He looked away and feigned sorrow. "But guess what?" he suddenly asked vigorously, whipping his face toward the slaves. "I only gouged out a total of two eyes from your lot for looking away when I talked!"
Captain Ringo laundered back to the ladder. He placed a foot on one of its rungs before he turned back to the slaves. "And as always, safe journey, friends!" he bowed slowly and put a hand over his heart. "I'll forever cherish the memories we made during our journey together.." Then suddenly, he broke into a wicked laugh. "Fucking maggots! This is where hell truly begins." The Captain climbed back up through the hatch.
~~~~~~~~~~
The howling, powerful winds sent white-capped waves crashing against the hulls of the ships harbouring in Josho's northern ports. Lightning flashes consistently lit the up the ominous, wooden ships fasted to the docks. There were no distinctive markings aside from the words "Sylphid Co." that were stitched onto the ships' masts and printed on the side of their hulls.
A tall woman silently observed a line of chained slaves ambling past her. "Anyone caught bogging the line will be killed." her booming voice announced. The hooded, leather coat she wore covered her from the cold, wet rain. It was buttoned up to her neck. Later on, she would be known as the "Mad Master" to the slaves, though her real name was Madeline Vonnes and preferred to be called "Ms. Vonnes". She was the one in charge of making sure the slaves acted orderly and didn't escape. As any other of the slave's new owners, she was cold-hearted and saw her charges as animals. Madeline Vonnes ordered executions without hesitation and often conducted them in places where the slaves would see it happen. Every time a new batch of slaves arrived to work, she was there to lay down the rules: don't escape, don't defy the authorities, don't slack-off, and don't disobey.
A male slave had caught her attention as he passed Vonnes, who slowly unbuttoned the centre of her coat. His weakness had created a gap between him and the person in front of him--Vonnes didn't like that. People behind him were urgently whispering to him, trying to get him to move faster. The man looked half-dead and on the edge of giving up. Suddenly, a loud bang pierced through the storm and everyone looked toward Vonnes. She had pointed a gun at the male slave's head and fired, killing him instantly.
"Chop off his hands so the line can keep going. Make sure his body is cremated like the rest that die." she ordered without a hint of remorse. She holstered her gun back onto the belt underneath her coat and strode along the docks toward the mines. As she walked, Vonnes began to button up her coat.
The Not-As-Cool Info Section
Setting:
The story unfolds within the city of Josho, a rapidly-developing, Caldyren port snuggly surrounded by an evergreen forest on one side and a cold sea on the other. Governed by a questionable city council and mayor, Josho has a rather corrupt atmosphere due to their greed. The year will be 2104 and the story will occur in the winter months. I have yet to decide whether this will be a modern, steampunk, or futuristic to some degree.
The locations the plot will take our characters won't be constricted to the mines~they'll go through the other districts of Josho. Perhaps there may even be more places which are outside of the city.
Plot summary:
Following their sudden, unwelcome capture by slavers, a group of people from a small fishing town on an underdeveloped, archipelago country, are thrust into the underground world of slavery and forced labour. Working against their will in one of the mines that helped bring Josho into sudden prosperity, they will witness the dark side of a growing, thriving empire that claims to stand for justice. They must find a way to break free and escape the hand of their ruthless masters. In their quest for freedom, they will learn of a far sinister plan.. or maybe not. Still developing.
tl;dr: People are captured by slavers. They are brought to a mine to work. They must escape. Still developing more.
About Josho:
Surveyors from the Sylphid Corporation discover large pockets of valuable minerals with magic-based properties (also known as magicka) beneath the northern district of Josho. After the eviction of countless residents, the district is cleared and a mining operation begins. Despite the immense amounts of controversy and backlash due to a lack of compensation, city officials decide to move on anyway and start mining. Within a decade, Josho grows immensely. However, the mines have been walled off and city officials have made it illegal for any unauthorized personnel from entering the northern district. They're hiding the slaves from the public eye and are building something, albeit the walling off of an entire district itself raises some suspicion. With the sudden increase in wealth, Josho's city government has become corrupt due to their greed.
About Caldyre:
Caldyre is similar to Canada in terms of climate. It is half in size of Australia and is connected to a larger mainland by a strip of land. There are no other countries in Caldyre, as the land is itself one big country. It is ruled by a monarchical hierarchy with a royal family at the top. Many of Caldyre's resource development projects are run by the Sylphid Corporation. The country is known as a popular fishing spot and its generation of ocean oils. Just recently, there was a discovery of very large pockets of magicka beneath the port city of Josho. This thrust the city into prosperity, but the country as a whole benefited most from the discovery. Caldyre has a history of being a powerful empire with territory across the globe, but past wars with rival nations crippled the nation's power. There is a fierce sense of nationalistic pride which only grew stronger with the country's newly-found wealth.
Why I Think My Idea is Different and the Slavery:
I don't see many other role-play themes of slavery directly involved with the plot. Or maybe I'm just blind and stupid. But when this idea came to me, I thought it was cool and had potential. I thought it might even be a new, bold idea, as not only men will be working in the mines beneath Josho, but women and possibly children, too. But that doesn't matter to the corrupt powers in the high places of the city since they're heartless.
I didn't want to include the slave-thing just for some cheap shock factor. It'll have some literary value to the plot. This whole thing won't be some big sitcom about who is in the 'collar'. I will say this: because of this theme, you're going to see some pretty mean (but hopefully interesting/developed) villains.
Post expectations and About Me:
Put in your best effort to give meaty posts so that a reply can have something to go on. I'm not asking for page worth of detail, but I'm not exactly saying I'm fine with one liners. In fact, if I ever do such a thing, point it out! I'm no sissy and I have a really mellow temper. I won't banish you just for pointing out my wrongs! My background as a role-player consists of somewhat beginner-to-moderate levels and the environment in which I RP'd in wasn't like this site. One-liners and un-detailed posts were far too common, and I want to move past that so I can grow and 'hone my skills'. I like to do things that aren't common and I'm pretty much a hipster aspiring to do RPs that are different. I like to do things I haven't done before, too. I'm also pretty wordy--maybe too wordy, honestly. I'm a fairly relaxed guy and I find large lists of rules distasteful. This is probably a bad thing. Or maybe not. Either way, the grammar in this post is a bad thing and I hope I can be forgiven for that. :I In short: give it your best shot. This section is probably annoying ramble to you guys, and if so, I'm sorry, friends.
tl;dr: Do your best. I'm forgiving and relaxed.
Not sure if you're interested or would take part? Do you have any concerns? Do you hate the idea altogether? Whatever it is, it's worth mentioning I'm a pretty understanding guy and I can take criticism calmly. So shoot those questions at me. I'll give you honest answers about what I have right now for the plot/RP/etc. I mean, without spoiling it completely, of course. But anything could change if I think it'll be good. (:
Keep in mind, though, that this idea is not complete and through a series of edits, I ''beauty'd-up'' this interest check. I also realize there could still potentially be holes in this post, but hopefully I ironed them out over the edits. ;l Before I go even deeper into developing this world and fleshing everything out, I'd like to see how much interest there is in an idea such as this.
Also, I wouldn't mind having some help with the plot. Much of the time, I get these pretty cool (or decent) ideas, but I find myself needing help in the execution (or wishing I could have another person's mind to build with and 'proofread'). If you believe you have what it takes, reply or PM me! Woah! An offer like no other! It could also help me cut the time it'll take to get this role-play rolling.
*edited to include more explanation and not let humour have so much prominence.
*edited to take this interest check more seriously and have more wordy articulation.
*edited for more refining. Possibly more pointless rambling.
*edited for more things. I'm done for now.
After any possible response or lack-of, I will make the decision whether or not if I want to continue developing the role-play.
