[center][color=#008AE6]The most painful state of being is remembering the future, particularly the one you'll never have.[/color] -Søren Kierkegaard [img]http://i.imgur.com/znTSv4S.jpg[/img] [/Center] [hider=TL;DR][h2]TL;DR[/h2] [list] [*]Alternate Contemporary Reality, year 2020. [*]Your soul is reincarnated into a new body and identity. You retain the memories of your previous life, but no one in your previous life will recognize you. You are also rendered completely unable to give out your former identity to anyone other than the other reborn. [*]Your new life is given to you by a mysterious being who calls himself Thanatos. Thanatos provides you with missions as plot points to guide the story. [*]Your character will be referred to as a reborn regardless of their gender, race, or species. You are brandished by an outer black circle around your pupils that can only be seen by the supernatural. The art of your rebirth is near flawless, as your new body is immortal. Necromancers tend to see you as a possible source of knowledge, as no one has ever been capable of reincarnating an individual as Thanatos has. [*]You learn of the existence of supernatural entities. They have no specific alignment. Some are good, some are neutral, some are bad. Perhaps your new body is of a supernatural species. [*]There exists a group that only call themselves "The Core" that Thanatos himself despises. Whether The Core is your character's antagonist or Thanatos is your antagonist is up to you to decide. More will be divulged as the plot progresses. [*]Rules are fairly casual, allowing you to come and go as you please. The only prerequisite for leaving is making sure you finish the mission or plot line you started. In other words, tie loose ends before taking leave unless it is absolutely urgent. You are more than welcome to come back with the same character(s) or a new one(s). [/list][/Hider] [h2]Plot[/h2] In a contemporary alternate reality in the city of Aldred, you have died on February 18. It is now one week after your death, February 25th, and you awaken in a hotel with a completely new identity. Your memories are intact, but your name, your physical appearance and attributes have all changed. You even have newfound knowledge in certain fields that you did not have in your previous life. On the bedside table is a wallet with your new identity along with a cellphone and a set of keys for your hotel and vehicle (if your character is of age to drive). Upon waking, a message is waiting on your cellphone from an unknown number that simply says "Welcome back from the dead". A man who simply refers to himself as Thanatos explains to you that you have been resurrected to do his bidding. He may command you to steal, to save, or to kill. If you do not, your physical body experiences stigmata and you die with the exact same wounds and symptoms as your first death, and your soul is sent to oblivion. He also opens your eyes to the darker side of the world where creatures of lore lurk and hide in shadows, masquerading as humans. Not much is known about his true plans or his history other than what he divulges. This RP seeks to dive into the topic of how one would face life after their death. Every character has spent a majority of their lives in Aldred, and because they are technically reborn as a new person, they have the chance to interact with those they knew in their previous life. This also presents you with the opportunity to answer the question "what would it be like going to my own funeral?" [h2]Missions[/h2] Missions will be posted here. Each mission has a timeframe and duration and will be cycled through each time Thanatos makes an appearance. Thanatos will be our indicator for what the date will be. As for now, it is currently February 25 and the first mission is a collaborative effort. While your character may not take the entire duration posted on the mission list, they will be unable to start any other missions until the duration has completed. This insures that your character can only do a limited number of missions. For example, if Mission "A"'s expiration date is on the 15th of march and you started mission "B" on the 12th of march with a duration of 4 days, Mission "A" is no longer accessible. However, you can start a mission if the duration is longer than the expiration date. [color=#FF3333]Necromancer Hunting[/color] [list] [*]Duration: 7 days [*]Expiration Date: March 5. [*]Mission: A group of necromancers known as the Phoenix Brotherhood is out to steal Thanatos' reincarnation spell. Your job is to hunt them down and kill them. There are a total of twelve targets. You are all to work together to hunt them down. [/List] [h2]Setting[/h2] The entire setting will be in Aldred and the subcommunities and districts are still a work in progress. Technology is slightly more advanced, with greater achievements in prosthetics, mechanics, and computer engineering. [list] [*][B]Aldred[/B]: An umbrella term for the massive metroplex surrounding the city of Aldred. Aldred itself is a burgeoning urban city that, over the years, has grown despite the economic recession. I give you free rein on creating your own places for your characters to go to, but there are some established neighborhoods. [*][B]Hotel Lazarus[/B]: Located at the heart of Aldred on 606 Rue Street. The main setting and where you will meet up and find your missions. To the public, it is a simple hotel among many, but in truth, it is a place for the supernatural to reside. [*][B]Makers District [/B]: To the public, it's an esoteric part of town where one can find just about anything. However, it is also where most of the supernatural reside. One can find just about any sort of supernatural trinket here if they know the right door to go through. [/list] [h2]Character Sheet[/H2] Moved to Characters Tab. Post your character there upon completion! Thanks [hider=NPCs] [h2]Non Playable Characters[/h2] [Center] [url=http://i.imgur.com/PyQHQpw.jpg][img]http://i.imgur.com/PyQHQpwm.jpg[/img][/url] [B]Thanatos[/B] [/Center] Description: At the turn of the century, an unnamed wealthy billionaire came to the city of Aldred and purchased the twenty story building on 606 Rue Street and turned it into one of the most prestigious hotels in the city. Despite the economic recession, the hotel thrived and gained notoriety for its lavish interior and exceptional service. While many thought that the owner would turn this new hotel, Hotel Lazarus, into a franchise, the owner never made any public appearances. In fact, the public eye had never heard mention of the name of the owner. Only a handful of individuals knew the man, and they called him Thanatos. An unaging being whose history and age still remain unknown, Thanatos has been speculated to be a being of high order. Many assume that he is in fact death personified. Thanatos turned the hotel into a refuge for the supernatural. Despite his twenty years in Aldred, he had never allied with himself with any industry or policy, maintaining a stance of neutrality in Aldred’s supernatural underground. Regardless of the internal struggles, any supernatural being could seek refuge in Lazarus Hotel without fear of persecution. In the year 2010, a small gang of vampires had attempted to kill a witch who sought refuge there, and on that same day the attempt was made, the entire gang was eliminated without anyone hearing so much as a drop of blood fall to the floor. Such was the power of Thanatos. Other factions maintained a safe distance, often using his hotel for their own benefits, knowing full well that Thanatos would not interfere. However, on the eve of February 18, 2020, the denizens of Aldred’s supernatural underworld felt an immense power rising from the Lazarus Hotel. It engulfed the entire city in an unfamiliar aura for a brief moment before dissipating. No one knew why Thanatos had suddenly made a move, despite twenty years of neutrality, but they did know that something was coming. [Center][url=http://i.imgur.com/ql2syGC.jpg][img]http://i.imgur.com/ql2syGCm.jpg[/img][/url] [B]Adeline Sharp[/B][/Center] Description: The face of hotel Lazarus and Thanatos’ right hand woman - Adeline is responsible for all the public affairs as well as coordinating with the reborn when Thanatos is unavailable. Adeline is a 27 year old woman with extraordinary telepathic and empathic powers. Some have claimed her to be a demon as she has on the occasion purchased souls for wishes, but her tact for words and public relations has allowed her to quell such rumors to mere whispers. Adeline is also the one responsible for keeping the reborn from ever divulging their former life to anyone else. She has placed a powerful spell that keeps the reborn from uttering their old name to anyone other than the other reborn. [Center][url=http://imgur.com/lcNccKf][img]http://i.imgur.com/lcNccKfm.jpg[/img][/url] [B]Mark Eldredge[/B][/Center] Description: Head concierge at Hotel Lazarus and your go-to guy for just about anything in the hotel. He is an ordinary 30 year old male whose greatest strength is his confidentiality. However, Eldredge has been given some leniency in regards to telling the reborn the whereabouts of any visitor of the hotel as well as other general information about the supernatural underground. In short, he's your go-to guy if you ever need help finding a start for any mission. [Center][url=http://imgur.com/W4l6TeP][img]http://i.imgur.com/W4l6TePm.jpg[/img][/url] [B]Arya LeCiel[/B][/Center] Desciption: A three hundred year old witch said to have been one of the founders of the Makers District. Arya LeCiel is known for collecting all manner of knowledge and information. She was once known as the queen of Aldred, but has since renounced her title after the death of her beloved. She remains a recluse in a library on Makers District, where some claim that she is but a specter of a ghost dwelling in its halls. Requesting for her presence is not a simple task, but given the opportunity, one may find the answers they seek. [/hider] [H2]Glossary[/h2] [List] [*] [*][i]The Origin[/i]: A metaphysical realm where all events and phenomena of the past, present and future have been recorded. The origin is also the place where souls reside and return after death, and is the source of all magic. To date, no one has been able to fully tap into The Origin, as it contains the fundamental root of the universe. When a soul resides in The Origin, it is returned to the collective energy and the soul has no awareness of its own existence. [*][i]Reaper[/i]: When a reborn completely depletes their soul and faces soul death, Thanatos grants them autonomy, but they lose all sense of personal identity and they become a reaper. [*][i]Reborn[/i]: Artificially reincarnated beings by Thanatos. Their strength and agility are twice that of a healthy adult and their senses are heightened just slightly above their species' maximum potential. They also gain the ability to sense supernatural phenomena. An ordinary human can only feel very strong supernatural phenomena, but a reborn can sense if and when a supernatural phenomena is within their immediate surroundings. [*][i]Reincarnation[/i]: The process of the soul passing the veil and to the origin, then returning to the corporeal realm while retaining its former identity and memories. While the memories may not manifest themselves unless triggered, the identity of the soul remains intact. Reincarnation occurs naturally. Only Thanatos has managed to find a way to artificially reincarnate someone. [*][i]Soul[/i]: A being's essence that comprises their identity and their raison d'etre. As a soul ages in corporeal form, it grows with memories. [*][i]Soul Death[/i]: The passing of one's soul to the veil while their physical vessel remains alive. This renders their physical vessel vulnerable to manipulation. [*][i]Soul Relic:[/i] An item that was crafted from part of a reborn's soul. It contains an immense amount of power and can only be broken by another soul relic. If a soul relic is broken, the essence returns to the main soul. [*][i]Specter:[/i] Souls that have not passed the veil and have no corporeal body. [*[i]]Stigmata[/i]: Wounds corresponding to a reborn's death and appear when Thanatos punishes a reborn for insubordination, or if a reborn loses a part of their soul (ie, using their soul relic's secondary function). [*][i]Vampire:[/i] An undead being who lives off the blood of others to survive. Their soul is encapsulated and gradually corrodes into something unnatural, thus rendering them incapable of tapping into the origin and practicing magic. Sunlight, burning, silver and/or a stake to the heart, and decapitation are all lethal to a vampire. Older vampires (those who are at least a thousand years old) have a higher tolerance to sunlight, wood stakes and silver, but will die when decapitated or burned to dust. When they die, their soul cannot dwell in the corporeal realm and immediately passes through the veil. [*][i]The Veil[/i]: Refers to the boundary that souls must pass through from this realm to The Origin and vice versa. When a soul dies, it returns to the veil. A being is considered dead once their soul passes through the veil. [/list] TBC [h2]Rules[/h2] [List] [*]You can come and go as you please so long as you finish your character's plotline. I don't necessarily mean that they have to ride through an entire main plot. Real life issues can get in the way of things, and I want you to have the freedom to take a leave if necessary. [*]You are more than welcome to create more than one character as long as you can commit to fleshing them out and giving them a plotline [*]I highly encourage collaboration, but you are always more than welcome to go along with your own plot. I will come up with enough missions that any number of players can join in. [/List] Of course, I expect proper grammar and respect for other people's ideas, but I feel like this is a given on any RP.