Jewelskye
Literotica Guru
- Joined
- Oct 12, 2005
- Posts
- 1,385
House of Cards
Its late, and the streets are mostly empty, a light fog rolling in through the buildings from outside the boundaries of the city. The lamplights do little but add an eerie glow to the already unsettlingly quiet scene, and one would swear if they strained hard enough, they'd be able to hear a scream in the distance. A couple “professionals” walk by, their skirts too short and their heels too high to be just out for a midnight stroll. A bum sleeps over a grate, the steam and heat rising from the underground providing him heat, but also opening him up to illness. Some poor fool is getting mugged in an alleyway for the money he foolishly let show in the bar.
Just another night in the big city...
The setting is this: Its the year 2517, most of the world governments we know now have fallen, becoming little more than history. For the past two hundred years, following a large-scale war that was fought on both US and European soils, The United Countries Federation has ruled over what was once the United States, with the new world Chinese government holding part of what was once California.
The United Countries Federation, when it was started, was made up of what remained of the United States government as well as a collection of other, smaller governments such as the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and France. In an effort to keep from destroying what little they all had, they called a truce and eventually formed an alliance, putting all their resources together to create what has simply become known as “The U.C.'s”. Despite this however, and despite that all things considered, many areas have prospered rather well, the greater majority of the world still lays a no man's land, what remains of the population having fled to live in the cities and other congested areas, where the conditions are more bearable.
The UC rules through sheer military might now, having grown from something along the lines of a democracy to a complete stratocracy. It exercises it's power through military strength, often taking extreme measures in keeping order, where it chooses to keep said order. While there are police factions that are employed by the military to help keep order, they do not hold nearly as much power and in many places, the big cities especially, are not widely respected.
The two other factions that have risen to power, though are not identified as government, are The Mob and a faction known as The Masks. The Mob is an organized crime ring that began back in the early 1900s and developed throughout the ages, now incorporating all ethnicities into their web, from Italian to Russian to Irish, anyone who managed to be one of the few to be born into the lifestyle.
The Masks began as a gang centered in New York City, and as the wars ravaged the world, their numbers and ranks grew, springing up in nearly every major city in what was left of the US. The gang grew in power and wealth and members, and eventually began to wield an unusual amount of power in the cities themselves, especially in the downtown areas, where those that are typically called “bottom dwellers” live and reside. The identifying mark of someone who is a member of the Masks, is a tattoo on the underside of their right wrist.
We will be beginning our game in a major city that sprang up after the end of the wars. It's greatly congested and crime is a norm in the lower end of the city, while the “uptown” area is home to the city's wealthy and powerful. The city makes its money in a number of ways, quite a few of them illegal. Otherwise, it does have a rather large docks area, and from the docks, goods are shipped in an out, some bound for the city itself, others shipped in only to be driven to another destination.
Gambling has been made illegal by the military, as has drinking/alcohol, but many places still promote both activities, as well as others of an even more sordid nature.
I invite you to join me in this new, darker world setting.
