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Bliss Stage MK
The Real World
The game takes place in the ruins of Milton Keynes. The cell have made their headquarters in the Xscape. They have rigged up a bunch of generators to provide the building with electricity, even going so far as to illuminate the outside of the building with dazzling white light to ward off the aliens, and have enough surplus that they trade it for food and medical supplies with other survivors. They also use the snowdome equipment to extract condensation from the atmosphere, providing a ready supply of clean water.
The proximity of the shopping centre and supermarkets makes it easy for them to trade with the gangs that control them. Not everyone in the gangs is well-disposed to the cell, though, as some of them believe that the aliens will leave them alone if they keep a low profile, and worry that the cell is rocking the boat.
Most of the green areas around the city centre have been converted into farmland, even the roundabouts and grass verges. These are controlled by the gangs of the centre.
The other main faction of survivors call themselves The Dons, taking their name from the MK Dons football stadium they use as their main base of operations. They are cargo cultists, in love with scavenged alien technology, using shamanistic rites to try to make themselves more like the aliens. Some of the people have mutated as a result of exposure, as has some surrounding wildlife.
There are a variety of emanations from the dream world present in Milton Keynes. Much of Bradwell lies under a cheese grater. The tree in the city centre has been replaced by a miniature Empire State building. South of the city centre is a giant doll's house, complete with dolls. Many inanimate objects move when you are not looking at them.
The Dream World
The dream world is made of every enclosed space in our world, all interconnected by passages and corridors. The spaces are dark, and filled with clutter, and everything -- the spaces and their contents -- is the wrong size. You can get lost inside a shoebox the size of the Grand Canyon, filled with giant toy soldiers, only to escape to a cathedral the size of a child's wendy house.
The Aliens
The aliens are like metal insects, small and fast, made of clockwork. They are iridescent and bejewelled, and move in swarms, combining into larger forms. They can be ponded into pieces, but they will reform afterwards.
When they project into the real world, they create giant golems out of whatever material is at hand at their point of entry.
The Authority Figure
Tic was a technician at the snowdome before the Bliss, maintaining the machinery that makes the snow. Once he realised that people were going to sleep and never waking up, he took drastic action to make sure this didn't happen to him. Armed with information about the structure of the brain that he found on the Internet, he used an electric drill, a mirror and an icepick to destroy the sleep centre of his own brain. This took three attempts, and Tic suffered some noticeable brain damage in the process, as well as leaving some hideous scars on his head.
Tic now only has the barest memories of what the world was like before the Bliss. He knows everything is wrong now, and that the world needs to be made better, but cannot remember what exactly he is fighting for. He can't even remember his own name. He also suffers from a variety of tics, both facial and bodily, hence his nickname.
Tic's cell is built from the children who have come to the Xscape for shelter. He is forgetful, emotionally distant and driven, but looks after them as best he can.
Pilots
Jessica Steel -- Eager young soldier
"I'm a pilot because the glittering ones are false prophets and I am prophesied to destroy them and ascend to godhood."
Jessica is an escapee from the Dons and still believes in their mysticism.
- Relationships
- Intimacy 4, Trust 1: Dominic(?)
- Intimacy 3, Trust 2: Poss Miranda, Kim
- Intimacy 2, Trust 3
- Intimacy 2, Trust 4: Poss Miranda
- Intimacy 2, Trust 1
- Intimacy 1, Trust 4
- Intimacy 1, Trust 2: Everyone Else
Miranda Summers-West -- Seasoned pilot
"I'm a pilot because I'm fighting for a better world for my son, and because who else will?"
- Relationships
- Intimacy 5, Trust 1: Son
- Intimacy 4, Trust 2: Dominic(?)
- Intimacy 3, Trust 3
- Intimacy 3, Trust 2: Poss Jessica, Kim
- Intimacy 3, Trust 1
- Intimacy 2, Trust 4
- Intimacy 1, Trust 2: Everyone Else
Description
Miranda is tall and slender, with blonde hair crudely hacked short. There was a time when she used to smile all the time, but now her expression seems frozen in a permanent frown.
Then
Miranda was always one of the popular kids. Adored by her friends, spoiled by her parents; she never wanted for anything in her whole coddled life. And then they came. It was a confusing, frightening time. She did some terrible things, but then who didn’t? All that mattered was surviving. Except it wasn’t. She wasn’t used to being on her own; on having to rely on her own wits and her own skills. She was lonely, and afraid, and wanted someone to look after her. That’s when Nathan came along. He wanted to look after her, and she wanted to let him: white knight and damsel in distress. Naturally, they fell in love. That was the easy part. Falling pregnant was a shock, but he promised her it would all be okay; that he would look after both of them. He promised, and she believed him. So she followed him when he joined the XScape gang. She followed him when he became a pilot, first as an anchor and then as a pilot herself. And then he died.
Now
When Nathan was killed, he left her with a child she never wanted and a calling she would never have found on her own. They’re all she has left of him. But it’s more than that. She wants to fight. Someone has to, so the next generation has a chance. So her son has a chance.
Dominic Evans -- Rising hero
"I'm good at video games, and piloting is just another game."
- Relationships
- Intimacy 4, Trust 2: Miranda(?)
- Intimacy 4, Trust 1: Jessica(?)
- Intimacy 3, Trust 1: Anchor
- Intimacy 2, Trust 2
- Intimacy 2, Trust 1: Kim(?)
- Intimacy 1, Trust 1
- Intimacy 1, Trust 3: Everyone Else
Kim -- Devoted lover
Wears a necklace of cogs taken from her older sister's corpse (her body turned to clockwork, like the material from which the aliens are made, when she died).
- Relationships
- Intimacy 5, Trust 3
- Intimacy 3, Trust 2: Poss Jessica, Miranda
- Intimacy 2, Trust 3: Poss Jessica
- Intimacy 2, Trust 3
- Intimacy 2, Trust 1: Dominic (?)
- Intimacy 1, Trust 3
- Intimacy 1, Trust 2: Everyone Else
Anchors
Russell, anchor to Kim
Russell is 15 years old, new to being an anchor, and has the special ability, "Driven". He became an anchor because he wanted to join the fight against the aliens, and he is in awe of the pilots. He is nervous and scared, still trying to learn how to manage the machinery and worries that he isn't very good at it.
He was a storyteller before becoming an anchor.
Fluke, anchor to Jessica
Fluke is 15 years old, and has the special ability, "Tempestuous". He is a massive anime and computer game geek, and tries to see being an anchor as an adventure. He always wears a gas mask, and affects a punky look. His attitude is rebellious, and he is an anarchist by inclination.
His former lover was a pilot, Petra Daniels, who is now in the Bliss and being kept in one of the storage units.
Joan Bowen, anchor to Miranda
Joan is 13 years old, has been an anchor for a year, and has the special ability, "Experienced". Her former pilot was the first one to serve, because of their relationship. He died about a month ago. The cell has lost a few pilots since then, and Tic has brought Joan back to try to stem the losses.
Julie Thomas, anchor to Dominic
Julie is 17 years old, and has the special ability "Driven". She is an anchor because she wants to take revenge on the aliens, but Tic says she is not good enough to be a pilot herself. She looks down on the pilots, thinking she could do a better job herself. Before becoming an anchor, she was a soldier and protector for the cell.
Other Characters
Daniel Walton
A small, wiry 10-year-old boy, who is driven by a fury and bloodlust that makes bigger kids afraid of him. He carries a large spanner wrapped with barbed wire.
Steven Paget
A 12-year-old techie who works in the plant room, and who regularly goes out scouting for fuel. He doesn't like people very much, but is good with machines. He doesn't speak very often, and has a tendency to go wandering off on his own.
Heather Mitchell
A 15-year-old girl, who serves as the cell's storyteller and entertainer. She also acts as a diplomat and negotiator with other factions, and there are rumours that she may use sexual favours as part of the negotiation process. She is bright, but easily led and a little too trusting, and is good with people.
Calum Steel
9 years old, and the cell's hunter/gatherer. He is Jessica's younger brother, and had been offered up as a sacrifice by the Dons before his sister saved him. He is fascinated by the shopping centre, but understands little of the world in general. He tends to get into trouble, and is slightly feral.
Hopes
- I hope we understand the aliens
- I hope we wake the sleepers
- I hope we raise a second generation