Futuristic UNTIL [LORE]

[Cratersbeneathmyeyes]

It isn't easy trying to exterminate hordes of the unknown, or trying to stay out of the way and maintain semblance of a normal life while others fight for the survival of your race.

Here you will find everything you need to know about those you may need to stay away from, and those you should probably make nice with.

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• Humans
• Puppet Masters
• Dolls
• Creatures

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  Among the last survivors of the human race by luck, cleverness, or both. They are villagers, tavern owners, tradepost frequenters, nomads, prostitutes, the discarded, the protected, the loved and the hated. Out of courtesy no one asks strangers about the time Before, mainly because no one but the obsessed really know how many years have passed since the Creatures first attacked. Of course even in the After there are religious zealots who believe God is punishing the human race for their misdeeds, and both scientists and Paganists in the early days of the After who knew with certainty that it's the earth's last ditch attempt to rid itself of parasites. While some may come with their own set of skills--it's how they've survived this long, duh--there is nothing supernatural about them. They simply wish to well...live.
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  Pulling the strings of the world's most dangerously effective weapons takes a lot of gumption and for some, eccentricism. They are Doll handlers, chosen in the early days of the After from the world's elite military personnel. There were those who worked within guilds harboring the most talented minds they could find, hacked into the military databases to discover how to steal and build their own. Others happened upon their patronage and duty by complete accident, inherited or discovered the weapons that were to be the other half of their dynamic duo. Not all are kind, their sudden life of power a way to fulfill their homicidal needs while they treat their Dolls as a tool or extension of their own hands. On the opposing end there are Puppet Masters who treat their Dolls as if they were their own children. Simply not surprising given how truly in sync one needs to be with their Doll to be successful. Sometimes literally.
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  Machines. Mystics. Freaks of nature. Punishers. There are as many types of Dolls as there are ways to kill. The early days of the After saw a resurgence in a Beta program funded and launched by a collective of the world's most lucrative companies. They wanted to protect their investments, of course...but there is no such thing as copyright when it comes to saving humanity, and it wasn't long before these weapons were discovered. News of them flooded every available channel of communication. The earlier models were created with the latest breakthroughs in merging AI technology with human experimentation. (Military personnel and others who had signed contracts for debt forgiveness, money, or time off their prison sentences.) Field tests found that the human component that allowed for passion and patriotism made for some...costly results. So came the new program and with it the elimination of every component of the Beta program that could be located. Now empty, devoid of emotion and every inch of them designed to be even more effective killers. The results...deadly.
  
  This is why depending on the landscape, entire camps will evacuate upon discovering a Doll in their midst, though they are never far from their masters. On occasion they are welcomed like royalty, given the best lodgings and pleasures as can be offered to those who don't feel emotion or need to eat. (Or don't they?) It is always the best policy to be cautious, no matter who you are.
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  Reputations are hard to escape. Without a doubt it was in the midst of war that reports of murderous beings of an unknown origin an indiscriminate in their killing began to invade major cities. It was later when those who inhabited the cities flocked to the outer edges of civilization that they discovered they were not the first to be hit. Entire farmlands in an unholy baptism of blood. Animal. Man. Woman. Child. No one who came in contact with them survived, and the wide range of causes of death made it difficult to know just what the world was now dealing with. Was the old lore true? Those that went bump in the night, moved between the human world and the next, cursed by gods or gifted with ungodly power...could they be real? Many have tales to tell of what currently plagues the Earth despite some never having seen one up close, but the need to extinguish them has prevented the human race from knowing just how lucid and exactly why these beings seek to wipe them out.

Consort with yourself and decide whose mission most aligns with your own and get to work. No one can say who the victors will be...

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[Cratersbeneathmyeyes]

Terms To Know:
*Subject to change*
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PILOTING: A strategy used by a Puppet Master to see every move their Doll makes, sometimes looking through their eyes, or by remotely taking control of their bodies.

STRINGS: The mechanism used by Puppet Masters to control their Dolls, whether it be a program they've installed, dominance training they've put their Doll through to make sure they obey, brainwashing, a contract they may have had them sign, bribes, etc.

NEST: When a location has been deemed a site with a heavy concentration of Creatures. These areas are usually off limits to humans for obvious reasons, and often times more than one Puppet Master is contacted when one is discovered.

HEAD: When a price is put on a particular Human, Doll, Puppet Master, or Nest location.

EXTERMINATION: What Humans call the business of destroying Creatures, which makes Puppet Masters and their Marionettes EXTERMINATORS.

CENTURIES: The main proprietors of major villages. They keep their ears to the ground and know pretty much whose in their city and why. They post Heads, secure supplies, provide sanctuary, send out scouting parties and get together on occasion to plot how best to keep things running for the sake of humanity. Like mayors, commissioners, and governors all in one...but with more power.

FLARE: Equivalent to an S.O.S. as a signal or beacon built into all military grade Dolls. Except they draw both other Dolls and Creatures within a certain mile radius nearer and are difficult to deactivate. Meaning that those with Dolls can never rest for long.

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[Cratersbeneathmyeyes]

As I begin to think of major outposts and cities (probably based on the sort of characters proposed) this will be reserved for the lore surrounding those places.

Some of them safe havens and others considered forbidden for the likelihood that should anyone other than a Creature enter there, they'll die.

Spoiler: SETTLEMENTS

Red Light District of Noire

Spoiler: SETTLEMENTS

Century: Roulette

Encompassing what used to be a high end gated community and half a town centre, this site has been reclaimed and branded as home to all the pleasures and vices that could be thought of. If you have something of equal value to trade you can get almost anything here; there's a rumor that there are self built Dolls on hand for more...carnal things. It sits on top of a hill with an outpost on roof of the pavilion building which is at its heart. If you wish to gain entry you must use the intercom at the front gate and be taken to Roulette. Nothing goes unnoticed or cataloged here, and it's the reason it's been one of the most peaceful settlements of the new world. Depending on who you are the homes to the West of the Pavilion are off-limits, while the homes to the East are free for anyone. In the Town Centre can be found a bar, a motel for Dolls and their masters, one for humans, and one for well...anyone. A brothel [city hall], a restaurant [old diner], a store [reclaimed library] to stock up on supplies, and the Pavilion is home to Roulette and his particular set of needs. Including a swimming pool. There is only one rule: leave your weapons at the gate, and your Dolls must be in Leisure mode.