The story is set in the distant future, past a bleak apocalyptic event that no one quite remembers. Some say it was nuclear war. Some say it was an asteroid. But the facts of the destruction of Earth are buried in the dim reaches of time. Now, there is only Avalon.
Avalon is the only city in the entire world - home to the last, surviving nuclear reactor. Coal and oil are things of legend, spoken about as if they were mythical substances. Surviving beyond the borders of Avalon is a lesson in futility. But what separates the City from the barbaric wastelands of the world is its nuclear reactor - a thing of magic.
Not many understand atomics - considering it too abstract and esoteric. Thus, only a select few are allowed inside the Temple of the Core. These high priests are the only ones capable of understanding the reactor and its workings. They help the Core provide power to the people of the City, and they are revered as deities.
The City is ruled by the Mayor. A deceivingly simple title for a powerful position. The title of Mayor is hereditary, and it brings with it all the trappings of a royal life - from indulgent harems to plotting senators. The Mayor constantly struggles to keep the balance of power in his/her favor and has to contend with the Patriarch of the Temple at all times. The Patriarch is a powerful symbol to the people of the City - the man who personally attends to the Core. The Mayor cannot be raised without the consent and presence of the Patriarch.
The City faces numerous troubles. Power is a luxury, handed out to a select few. While traditional computing and engineering technology has deteriorated, huge advances have been made in biologics. Faced with the challenge of meagre sources of food, the priests of the temple have developed microfarms to feed the populace. Every child, at the age of 11, goes through a genetic test. Based on the results of the test, the government assigns a value to the child's life. The higher the value, the more the City benefits from that individuals. 'Undesirable' valued children are either euthanized or cast out. The really high value children are either adopted by senator families or sent to study with the priests.
Life exists outside the City too. But little is known of it. Some of the lookouts have observed bands of men and women trekking through the harsh, bleak wilderness. They call them the Outsiders. What these bands call themselves, no one knows. Nor of how they survive.
The story begins when the City is at a crucial point in its history. It is about to discover that the Core is not inexhaustible - that the End Times may be near. It is also about to discover how vastly it has underestimated these 'outsiders', and how grossly they miscalculated the 'value' of the ones they cast out. Even the hallowed senators and the Mayor, living in their opulent apartments towering over the rest - even they are going to feel the shockwaves of change that will sweep through their lives.
[Naturally, I have drawn my inspiration from great works like Dune and Foundation. If enough people are interested, I can flesh out the setting a lot more, especially everyday life of the City, the nature of the Outsiders, and the technology and 'magic' at use.]
Avalon is the only city in the entire world - home to the last, surviving nuclear reactor. Coal and oil are things of legend, spoken about as if they were mythical substances. Surviving beyond the borders of Avalon is a lesson in futility. But what separates the City from the barbaric wastelands of the world is its nuclear reactor - a thing of magic.
Not many understand atomics - considering it too abstract and esoteric. Thus, only a select few are allowed inside the Temple of the Core. These high priests are the only ones capable of understanding the reactor and its workings. They help the Core provide power to the people of the City, and they are revered as deities.
The City is ruled by the Mayor. A deceivingly simple title for a powerful position. The title of Mayor is hereditary, and it brings with it all the trappings of a royal life - from indulgent harems to plotting senators. The Mayor constantly struggles to keep the balance of power in his/her favor and has to contend with the Patriarch of the Temple at all times. The Patriarch is a powerful symbol to the people of the City - the man who personally attends to the Core. The Mayor cannot be raised without the consent and presence of the Patriarch.
The City faces numerous troubles. Power is a luxury, handed out to a select few. While traditional computing and engineering technology has deteriorated, huge advances have been made in biologics. Faced with the challenge of meagre sources of food, the priests of the temple have developed microfarms to feed the populace. Every child, at the age of 11, goes through a genetic test. Based on the results of the test, the government assigns a value to the child's life. The higher the value, the more the City benefits from that individuals. 'Undesirable' valued children are either euthanized or cast out. The really high value children are either adopted by senator families or sent to study with the priests.
Life exists outside the City too. But little is known of it. Some of the lookouts have observed bands of men and women trekking through the harsh, bleak wilderness. They call them the Outsiders. What these bands call themselves, no one knows. Nor of how they survive.
The story begins when the City is at a crucial point in its history. It is about to discover that the Core is not inexhaustible - that the End Times may be near. It is also about to discover how vastly it has underestimated these 'outsiders', and how grossly they miscalculated the 'value' of the ones they cast out. Even the hallowed senators and the Mayor, living in their opulent apartments towering over the rest - even they are going to feel the shockwaves of change that will sweep through their lives.
[Naturally, I have drawn my inspiration from great works like Dune and Foundation. If enough people are interested, I can flesh out the setting a lot more, especially everyday life of the City, the nature of the Outsiders, and the technology and 'magic' at use.]
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