Starlight

((It's more likely than you think.

So I decided to take a crack at one of those 'CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE' (CYOA) things. This is something that entered my head somewhere between the hours of 2 and 4 AM-- as I fitfully attempted to gain something resembling sleep before getting up and jotting it all down. Any plotholes (Like why they don't simply fumble their way through the darkness) will be explained in the next few posts when I've had some more time to think about how to word them. Speaking of the darkness, the reason why is that it has been found to freeze anything that comes into contact with it instantly. Puts a rather large damper on any attempts to venture through it, eh?

Now, the format for this, in case some of you are unfamiliar with it, goes like this. You (The players) control one single character, the lot of you. Every choice this character makes-- what this character is-- will be determined entirely by your choices and by how you word things. As far as how decisions are made, it's the idea or suggestion that either has the most 'votes'-- that is, people supporting it, or the most similar sentiments in other posts (Say, one post suggests clubbing the guy in the head, another suggests clubbing him in the face, for instance) that will be taken and used for the next story post.

I will probably let the topic sit for a bit after each story post so that everyone who gives a crap can get their vote/suggestion in, or just because... you know, I'm me. The inspiration kind of runs dry at times. If this DOES work, well, I'll be happy. If not... well, back to the drawing board I guess? Please PM me if you notice any gigantic plotholes, or if you have some suggestions for the SETTING rather than the character's actions.

Now, without further ado...))

Starlight

Long ago, when the world of Spherica was younger, it was a grand, beautiful planet-- or so the stories go. The civilizations of the world flourished greatly, without poverty, strife, or war. It was a utopia. Technology for most practical purposes never advanced beyond the medieval era, though mankind had begun to tap into a new form of energy: Shine. Shine, as it was called by the few who knew of its' existence, was a mineral buried deep within the crust of Spherica, named for the bright glow it exerted, nearly blinding in its' brilliance.

Then tragedy struck the world of Spherica. As the sun loomed at its' highest point in the sky over the then-capital city of Darinal, its' beaming light seemed to falter. A dark shadow swept across the sun in the span of minutes. "Another eclipse", the people of the world assumed. Such a thing was not uncommon; Spherica's three moons often crossed with the path of their sun, Rola, and the ensuing eclipse was always a sight to behold, no matter how many times you had seen it.

The problem was that the light never came back.

What was once a beautiful, flourishing world was, in an instant, encroached upon by a piercing, all-consuming darkness. Unassailable by flame, and far too thick to resemble even the darkest of night, it quickly blanketed the world. Yet, in that same, single stroke of tragedy, there was one small hope for mankind. People in various cities around the world at the time of this cataclysm-- seemingly at random-- began to glow.

Later given the title of 'Wards', they possessed a unique power; that of casting a sphere of protective light around themselves and their nearby surroundings, the only thing capable of holding back the blackened tide of darkness. Several wards popped up at once within a few cities, though most only possessed one. The ones that did not possess any...



As time passed by, humanity learned several things about the Wards, and of their power:

-The power of a Ward is genetic, but not 100% certain. A Ward is, as trial-and-error has proven, far more likely to conceive a second Ward as their child... but anyone, even non-Wards, can produce a Ward offspring.

-When several Wards are in close enough proximity for their 'Light', the glowing sphere of, well, light, to touch, the size of their Lights grows exponentially. The largest cities have several Wards all living together in the center, their lights large enough to cover the entire city from there.

-Even a single Ward's power can be amplified by the Ward being in contact with Shine, and a Ward's power can be conveyed through large amounts of the material-- but the material in and of itself does not contain a Ward's power, and so far has proven unable to be 'charged' with it.

-And finally, a Ward's light is a suitable replacement for the sun, at least as far as plant growth is concerned. Wards themselves are always heavily-tanned, something that is a clear mark of what they are in a society that is otherwise near-albino in skin tone... and that's if they don't notice the glowing dome of light.

Because of these traits, many cities in the world revere their Wards, treating them as upper-class citizens, if not outright deities. The few cities that still survive are all self-sustaining, capable of providing food, shelter, and water for their residents... out of necessity.

It has been so long since the blackening (as it was called) now that it is unsure if any cities besides yours still even exist. With how protective your city is of its' Wards, and how unwilling they are to risk one or more in an attempt to contact another city, your hometown is the only world you have known for your entire life-- a world that you yourself help to sustain, as one of your city's 8 Wards. A world consisting of roughly 100 to 150 people-- give or take. The reason so few Wards have been able to support a town so large (And inevitably, so large a sphere) is because your town was home to one particular mine full of Shine...

Now... a few questions, if I may ask.

Let's start things off simply...

1: What gender are you?

2: What is the name of the city you and your fellow Wards protect?

1: I am of a male gender, but I do not care to reveal it to others.

2: This city of mine, it calls itself Yurenova.

1. I'm a female but most around do not know
2. I am a protector of the city of ShineVale

1. I am a lean male somewhat well-known, but that's as far as you'll get.
2. The city I am entrusted with goes by the name of Shinest.

1. I know that all the pictures, names, and the fact I lack any association of the male gender as long as I've been at this forum, I just want you to know that I'm indeed a gi-...I mean...boy.

2. I protect the city of Rosemary.

1. I am a female, who struggles to refuse her fate and job as a Ward

2. The city I have no choice but to reside is the City of Lonmerg

EDIT: BECAUSE TWI IS ANGRY OF OUR WILD IMAGINATION

1. Female

2. Lonmerg

1.Female
2.Thahros

1. Male.
............what, you expected something more?

2. Whogivesashitville

1. Male

2. Nihilismville

1. A male who's laid back style clashes brutally with his duties.

2. This light of mine blankets the city of Boatmur- *crunch* Er, Maliflulfilam.

You're a strapping young lad about the age of 23, tall-ish and decent-looking (Or so the women tell you, anyway).

As for the city you live in.. though it has been called by many names, most simply refer to it as what it is-- 'the city'. There's really little point to anything else when this is all the world any of you know or care about.

Most of your life you have grown up protected and at least somewhat pampered in the confines of the Wards' home near the center of the city. Boys will be boys, however-- even at a younger age you were prone to sneaking out of home at all hours of the day, and you did make several friends, although most were alienated from you by your very nature as a Ward.

One friend, however, did stick with you through all the long years, seeing past your Wardly abilities and treating you like a person rather than some sort of deity or god... your best friend up to this point, Joe Leinad.

Rather cocky and headstrong, Joe never really was the kind of person to take anything at face value, and over the years became a friend to several of the other Wards who grew tired of everyone treating them as more than they were.

Now, however, is not the time for recollection.

Now is the time... to wake up.

Wake up...

"Wake up!" Joe shouted, shaking you roughly. "Come on now, you've been asleep more than 10 hours!" Finally the man gave up on normal methods, and simply pushed you off the side of the bed.

You land on the stonework floor and whack your head against it as you do, waking you up. Your eyes snap open, letting you catch a glimpse of the ceiling as you bolt upright, rubbing the back of your head instinctively.

"Ah, you're alive." Joe says, snickering. "Now, let's check if he has any head injuries, shall we?" Joe says the last bit like he's talking to someone else, and then leans in close, and speaks as if talking to a child (Or a retard). "Whaaat... iiiiis... yoooooour... naaaaaame?"

((Apologies about this, this should be the last 'INPUT NAME HERE' for... pretty much always.

Oh yes, and since this is technically a response, you CAN include some snark on the end there if you feel like getting back at him.))

"It's Lelouch, Joe you maggot. Did you have to wake me up like that," you groan, rubbing the part of your head that hurts.

"My name... Daniel," you say as you rub your head gently while checking for injuries, "Daniel Eoj. Did you really have to wake me up like that?"

((FFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUU--

Yeah, okay, you got me with Joe's last name, Maar. >_>))

You look up at Joe's cheery face, as though he hasn't heard these exact same words before.

"My name is Von Dare! TIIIIIME TOOOOO HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAL!"

"Hu-huh? I guess it's Tilly Doll..." You're still drowsy, but you still get a firm image of Joe. Standing up straight, you looked at your childhood friend with a smile. "Umm...What's up?"

"Tch, yeah, get off me, Joe," you say with eyes rolled. When he doesn't comply to your request, you muster up your dignity and shout, "FINE! MY NAME IS ILUMINUS WRIGHT! GET OFF ME, LENIAD!"

Okay, you've used up your dignity for today.

"Iiiiiiiivvaaaaaan. And I may not be alive if you don't find a better way to wake me up..."

You answer Joe veeery slowly, so that his slow brain can understand: "Myyy naaaame iiiiis Iiiiiiiivvaaaaaan. And you should be careful, Joe. Keep waking me up like that and I might just not wake up one day."

Joe laughs a little nervously at that. "Aheh, well, that would put me in a bit of a rough spot with the rest of the city, wouldn't it?" he scratches the back of his head absently.

"Ah, right, all this commotion I forgot to tell you why I came in here. For once I'm not just waking you up for the heck of it." Joe explains, sniggering to himself. "Jenny wanted to see you for some reason... that and the 'Head Ward', as he calls himself, wanted to have a chat with you." He says the phrase 'Head Ward' with a thick layer of sarcasm-- he never did take Falon's (The aforementioned 'head ward') title seriously...

You pull yourself up from your flat-on-your-arse spot on the cold floor, and throw your blankets back over your bed. It's not perfect, but it's close enough. Just as you get ready to head out the door, Joe pipes up again.

"Oh, right. Before we get stuck in all the wonders of Wardiness, I heard a certain someone cooked up another cool way to use Shine down in the south part of town... you know, in case you should decide to ah... suddenly disappear from the Ward home for the morning... or the entire day..."

Yay, Shine Stew!