Alright, let's begin. Welcome to... Kintsugi: The Breakening Or, the one where the earth breaks apart Some basic rules: 1. Characters can have powers, within reason. No one is allowed to be God. Some people might seem to get near that level, but the "everything gun" is off-limits. 2. You are you, with almost no exceptions. Don't try to take control of another Kintsugijin, ever. You are still you, and your character is you. You can make changes to yourself, but not ones that would make you nonhuman. (Try to keep most changes about appearance, with one notable exception: if you don't want your character to have a specific aspect of you (for example, if you didn't want your character to have autism, or if you want your character to be the gender that you identify with), then it is 100% OK to take that out. For the sake of our community, please do not give your characters disorders that you do not have.) 3. "Yes, and..." When someone takes an action of any kind, you are not allowed to say "no, you didn't." It's like an improv game. 4. Don't be a dick. No chaotic evil here. You don't have to be 100% good but don't go around destroying stuff for the fun of it. If you do, then people are allowed to argue against you taking that action, and if enough people feel like that, then it may be rescinded by the community. 5. If it feels like it should be a rule, then don't do it. Use common sense here. With that out of the way, welcome! Some plot and world-building: -An event causes the Earth to shatter into millions of Shards. (This event is often called the Shattering, or simply the Event.) These shards range from a couple meters in size to around a kilometer. -Shards are movable if enough force is exerted on them. -The Event caused these shards to launch millions of meters into space, into the Van Allen radiation belt. Instead of killing the entire species, this caused humanity to mutate into beings with incredible powers. The closer to the center of the belt, the stronger the radiation, and the stronger the mutation. -Most Shards have oxygen and gravity on them. However, Shards launched too high do not have enough oxygen to hold life, and Shards much lower mostly consist of the planet's mantle, too hot and pressurized to sustain life. -The Internet was knocked out, but radio is able to broadcast astronomically longer distances without the interference of the atmosphere. -Electricity is only available where a method of generating it is available (e.g. solar panels, turbines, jury-rigged bicycle thing, etc.). -Cell towers did not survive the Event. Most electronics were also fried, due to the high levels of radiation. -There is no petroleum oil anywhere. Renewable energy is needed. -Each Shard that had people on it during the Event has survival equipment, including a water purifier, a hoe, and some seeds. -The Kintsugijin are all in the same sort of region of space. -The oceans are like ribbons that connect different levels of Shards. -Shards that have access to fresh water (like a river or stream) still have a water cycle. -When 2 shards are bridged together, the shards begin to move together and share atmospheres. The bridge can't be broken unless one of the people who lives on one of the shards intentionally breaks it. -Radios are common. Everyone has one. But only a few people have transmitters, such as the people on Shard Zero (formerly the White House), on shards where radio transmitters already presided (like a station), or if people built ones themselves. (If you aren't good at engineering, you probably can't build one. Sorry.) Let's go!
Everyone remembers where they were when the Event happened. The whole world was Ground Zero. And now there's zero ground. I remember a wall of magma shooting up around me, and then the noise as the ground below my feet was propelled into the sky... I shake my head. The Event is over. We need to focus on the future. I grimace and keep turning the bolt. I'm glad that I was home during the Event; my family wasn't, though, and that makes me sad. I wonder if I'll ever see them again. As I think about it, my hands seem to get a mind of their own. The bolt seems to almost tighten itself, and I look over my work. Not too shabby. Since the Shard with my house on it entered the radiation belt, I've been able to build things. Things I've only seen the plans for once before, long ago. If I have the plans anywhere in my mind and the materials, I can create it. I step back from the transmitter I've made out of the old receiver. I'll test it later. In the meantime, I know that I need to grow food; we have a small garden behind the house, and most of the plants in it fared surprisingly well. I scratch my head and notice two small nubs sticking out of it. I prod them and they spring upwards. Cat ears. Those are new. I'm distracted from this development by the squawking of the transmitter. It's probably not up to FCC code, but it doesn't really matter, does it? I doubt the FCC is going to come knocking when there isn't any way to get here. The makeshift antenna I've set up on the roof seems to be working for now. It won't work long-term, but for getting into contact with those nearby, it will do. Maybe someone else will have a transmitter and we can talk. Maybe.
Spoiler: DATALOG 1 <<LOG OF EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM ACTIVATION>> <<ACTIVATION CODE: ZCZC-EAN-EAN-000000-2400-343-1055-WHTHOUSE>> An Emergency Alert Notification has been issued for the following states: United States, Canada, U.S. Territories. Please stand by for a message from the President of the United States. <<PLEASE STAND BY>> [The president appears on the screen. He appears to have only just woken up. Someone off-camera hands him a script.] President: *coughs* Ladies and gentlemen of the United States. It is my solemn duty to inform you that in a matter of moments, the planet will be no more. *Pause.* Wait, what?! [The president turns to someone off screen and starts yelling. The feed cuts off, and returns to the Emergency Alert. Moments later, the president comes back on, eyes puffy.] President: La-ladies and gentlemen *sniff* of the United St-States. It is my… [The president begins sobbing. The feed cuts off again, for a much longer period. When it reappears, the President appears to have collected himself.] President: Ladies and gentlemen. The Earth is on the brink of collapse. I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it appears as though the crust of the planet has become unstable in a way that will cause the continents to shatter. We will bring you more information as it comes i-- [A rumbling noise from behind the president cuts him off, and the lights flicker. From outside, spews of magma are pushing pieces of Washington, D.C. out of their places, flinging them into high orbit around the Earth. Moments later, the shard that holds the White House is flung, and the feed cuts off immediately afterwards.] <<CARRIER SIGNAL LOST -- PLEASE STAND BY>> [The video feed comes back on. But it’s clearly pre-recorded. On it, a waving American flag appears, while the Star-Spangled Banner plays in the background. The video zooms out from the flag to show a marching band below it. The feed begins to stutter, and static becomes more prevalent than parts without. Eventually, the video is completely static, and a test pattern appears in its place.] <<CARRIER SIGNAL LOST -- PLEASE STAND BY>> <<SEARCHING FOR BACKUP SIGNAL>> <<ERROR NOT FOUND>> <<DISCONNECTING EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM>> <<TERMINATION CODE: NNNN-EOM>> Spoiler: DATALOG 2 <<LOG OF EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM ACTIVATION>> <<ACTIVATION CODE: ZCZC-EAN-EAN-000000-2400-343-1155-WHTHOUSE>> [Television stations are offline. This is a transcript of a radio-broadcast EAN.] AUTOMATED VOICE: We interrupt our programming; this is a national emergency. [Header tone and alert tones play.] AUTOMATED VOICE: This is an Emergency Action Notification requested by the White House. All EAS participants will follow activation procedures in the EAS Operating Handbook for a national level emergency. The President of the United States or his representative will shortly deliver a message over the Emergency Alert System. [Alert tone plays again.] AUTOMATED VOICE: This is an Emergency Action Notification. All broadcast stations and cable systems shall transmit this Emergency Action Notification Message. This station has interrupted its regular programming at the request of the White House to participate in the Emergency Alert System. During this emergency, most stations will remain on the air providing news and information to the public in assigned areas. This is <<indecipherable>>. We will continue to serve the <<indecipherable>> area. If you are not in this Local Area, you should tune to stations providing news and information for your Local Area. You are listening to the Emergency Alert System serving the <<indecipherable>> area. Do not use your telephone. The telephone lines should be kept open for emergency use. [Alert tones play again.] ?????: Is it working? [Static.] ?????: I think it is. Check the radio to see if -- [More static] ?????: He-hello? Is there anyone out there? Did anyone survive that? [Silence, excepting some interference. The sounds of a backup generator can also be heard.] ?????: I think it’s on. Well, if there’s anyone out there, then you know what’s happened. The Earth’s crust broke and the pressure of the magma pushed us all out into space. I’m one of the last people here in the part that had the White House on it. The computers are still up, so I can push out an EAN. This might be the last radio broadcast ever made. [Static cuts through the broadcast.] ?????: If you’re out there, try to re-establish contact with whoever you can. Humans aren’t going to die out yet. Somehow these...shards...are still habitable, and the planet is still causing some gravity. We’re just not on it anymore. So, to anyone who can hear this...go on living. Make a new home for yourself. *Pause.* For clarity, this is not the president, nor the vice president, not even the president’s secretary. They’re all dead or dying. I’m just the head of the FCC. I’ll try to keep up a radio broadcast from here as soon as I get a stable antenna. If anyone else is still alive, try to stay that way. Good luck to you all. *muttering* Now, where’s the deactivation proced-- AUTOMATED VOICE: This concludes operations under the Emergency Alert System. Normal programming will shortly resume, at the discretion of the operator. <<TERMINATION CODE: NNNN>> Spoiler: DATALOG 3 [Audio transcript from STATION:<ERROR 503: Station database not available>] ?????: 2...1… Are the panels oriented correctly? [Murmurs from farther away.] ?????: Great. So anyone with a radio can tune here. Ehm...hello again. It’s...I never said my name during that EAN, did I? It doesn’t really matter, but it’s Marcus. I’m the head of what was the FCC on Earth. *Brief pause.* So I know that at least some people survived the event. I can see them on the shards around me. And there were a couple people on mine as well. So don’t give up hope! There are still people out there! These shards are bigger than you think. It’s safe to go outside, at least where I am. If you’re near any kind of hazard, like a nuclear plant, maybe don’t. If you don’t, then go try to figure out where yours ends. This one consists of the White House, the garden, and roughly a kilometer around it in a circle. So we have food, some water, and some nutjob’s-- [A sharp thwack is heard.] Marcus: *off to the side* Ow, that hurt! I-I mean a, um very nice doomsday prepper came to help us. He had some seeds and a water purifier. How convenient! If you didn’t prepare for the end of the world, like most regular people wouldn’t-- [Another thwack.] Marcus: *to side* Dude, stop it or I’ll revoke your broadca--ehh...never mind. If you didn’t prepare for the apocalypse, try to conserve water as much as possible. We don’t know where the oceans are right now, but anyone who lives near fresh water should try to connect with those who do not as soon as possible, to ensure as many people live as possible. [A brief silence, apart from the rumbling of the backup generator.] Marcus: *quietly* My back hurts a lot. It’s like -- [The sound of tearing cloth and a yelp from Marcus is audible. A smash, possibly from a light, can also be heard.] Marcus: *whispering* Holy shit. [END OF TRANSCRIPT] Spoiler: DATALOG 4 [Audio transcript from STATION:<ERROR 503: Maintenance>] Marcus: Hi...Hi everyone. [He is breathing heavily. Beeping can be heard.] Marcus: *to side* Can you hand me the sheet? [Papers rustle] Marcus: So here’s something interesting. Whatever force pushed us out here did it with quite some force. Some of them are only around a thousand kilometers above the surface, but apparently the one I’m on is nearly 20 thousand. Meaning that most of the shards that I can see are currently inside the Van Allen radiation belt. [A brief pause; some papers rustle.] Marcus: Meaning that every second, every shard is being bombarded with...a very scary amount of radiation. Normally, we would all be dead from this. But for some reason, we aren’t. But our DNA is still being rewritten by this radiation. Mutation, if you will. And I found this out because… [A ruffling noise, like feathers, can be heard. Marcus breathes in sharply, like he’s stifling a squeal.] Marcus: It gave me wings. [Several seconds of silence follow.] Marcus: Now, this shard is quite close to the center of the belt, where the ionizing radiation is the strongest. It probably won’t give most of you wings. But there will be changes. Whatever is holding the atmospheres on the shards is also protecting us from the lethal radiation, and I think that this might just mark not the end of us, but the beginning of something new. [Brief pause.] Marcus: This is radio High Flyer, signing off. And remember: even if these changes make you different from your neighbor, we’re all human beings. Be kind. Share. Let’s build a community out here among the stars. [END OF TRANSCRIPT]
Spoiler: Radio Broadcast 09-0AE [Audio transcript from STATION:HFLR::0] [Metadata for this station is not available.] Marcus: Good morning, everyone! This is Radio High-Flyer. I'm Marcus, coming to you from Shard Zero. We're trying a new system for date counting: in the format of days-years since the Event. So today would be 09-0AE, since it's been 9 days since the Event and, obviously, zero years. We'll try this system for now, and if it doesn't work, then we'll revert to the Gregorian calendar. If it works, we'll use it for record-keeping and administrative uses. [Ruffling papers and a chair squeaking] Marcus: Right, now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's get onto our main topic. It's critical that you find as many people as possible and try to get together. Several people have come here, to Shard Zero, saying that they have found that they don't need as much oxygen as before, and can traverse space between Shards without gear. If you're one of those people, who can breathe less than normal, you should go and try to get people to build radio receivers and transmitters. Because just because we're split apart doesn't mean we shouldn't be connected. [Brief pause] Marcus: That's all for today. We will be playing music for those who want to listen. Tune in next time. This is Marcus, signing off. [END TRANSCRIPT]
