Transcendence

Transcendence

Foreward Note
This roleplay was originally inspired by a dream I had that I named “Transcendence.” However, I have modified it slightly so that it may work as a roleplay and be fun and interesting.

Introduction to the Dream
I feel it would make much more sense to you if I relay a few major concepts of the dream in order to explain and build upon a concept for a workable roleplay. I specifically named the dream, and consequently the roleplay, “transcendence” after the inciting incident of my dream. I started out as a middle school aged child (ages 11-13) in a school casually going to my next class when a large, restricted yet unguarded staircase that I had passed by all the time suddenly caught my interest. Peering up to the top, I noticed a rectangular threshold. Instead of going to class, I ascended the steps (gradually growing up to around late teens-early twenties and shedding the school bag) and entered into a very small, unimpressive room and when I crossed into the middle of it, I changed. I hadn’t known it immediately, but I gained powers I didn’t have before. I had enhanced endurance, strength, and speed. I could make illusions and shape shift, and I had one special unique power (that alas I have forgotten what it was).
This act of “transcending” earns me being on the wanted list of an unknown group for unknown reasons. I join up with a few other renegade transcended, who are on the run from the same people for the same reasons. Eventually we’re not hunted by normal humans anymore, but my mercenary transcended.

That’s about all that needs to be said before I go further into the roleplay idea.

Main Idea
The main idea of this roleplay is that we are middle school children that, for some reason, are drawn out of our “normal lives” to ascend a large staircase in our school that is restricted. The staircase, although you’re not supposed to go up it, is always unguarded. When you ascend the stairs and cross into the middle of the room at the top, you can enhanced endurance, speed, strength, and one special, unique power. But you’re not invincible, and your enhancements aren’t superhero-magnitude.

Need-to-Know Information
When you climb the stairs and transcend, you also (unknowingly) pass into the dream world. Your real body falls into a comatose state (but you don’t know that and you’re not supposed to know that until the end of the roleplay), doctors unable to explain why.
When your transcended self dies, you awaken from your coma. Except that your coma lasted years (even if you spent a short time in the dream world), and your body is the same age of your transcended self. Alternatively, if your family decides that you’re not going to wake up and they pull the plug early, your transcended self automatically dies.

The Sides
A secret organization monitors the staircase and all those that transcend, and you’re supposed to be selected and given the priveledge to transcend by these people. All those that illegally transcend, become the hunted. It’s all in secrecy, since the only people that are supposed to know about transcendence are the agency members and their selected people. Therefore, also, legal transcended are not allowed to speak of the truth of transcendence to the illegals (they’re not even supposed to be on friendly terms; strictly shoot-to-kill type arrangement; if you’re a legal transcended and you’re found out to have been anything but hostile to illegals, you’re eliminated).
The illegal transcended stumble into an unknown world where they can miraculously do all sorts of new, inhuman things. They’re clueless, unknowing, and mostly instinctive because they can tell their being hunted.

Setting
The real world is our starting place, and we’ll be attending the same middle school. The dream world setting is a fairly large monstrous, industrial city. Remember that the dream world is a dream, so please try and make it seem like that. Dreams do not always make sense, and laws can be bent and broken. Nothing over the top, because we think we’re in the real world or some moderately real world, but be creative. One building in my dream that is a good example of what I mean was tall, many many story's high, and filled with everything you’d find in a town (but in the same building). The building had its own poor, middle-class, and rich levels (and you can tell by the condition of the rooms, the people in and about it, etc.), even poor homeless people wandering around and living in the hallways.
Again; be creative.
Oh and, if I hadn’t made it clear, we’re sharing the same dream and dream world.

The Don’ts
Don’t make a cliché character, and don’t make your character superior to everyone. The illegal transcended are going to use their powers for running away mostly, and defending themselves. Not to stage an all out offensive against the legal transcended and the transcendence agency. Illegal transcended characters are supposed to be uninformed, and therefore not even conscious of their potential or even how to use their powers correctly. Legal transcended will be far more skilled.

Also, don’t overdo the illusion and shape shifting abilities. The basic illusion skill everyone gets is the ability to change or hide their appearance, not trap another person in an illusionary world. The basic shape shifting is small forms of beasts to mislead your pursuers/victims.

In dreams, often times you just know something without ever being told or hinted to it. While you’re allowed to implement this, don’t go any farther than knowing that people are out to kill you or small things that don’t alter your character’s status to superiorly omniscient.

Casting
I’m not sure how many people will be interested, or how many people have time these days. At a maximum I will allow a few illegal and a few legal transcended characters. I’d prefer characters to be illegal instead of legal, and if we’re short members then I will make a second character.
Illegals- Your goal is simple; survive.
Legals- You must eliminate the illegals, and do it swiftly.

Allowances
You are allowed to play a legal transcended that warms up to the illegals or even help them, but remember that you run the risk of being eliminated yourself.
Everyone must have a unique power, meaning once it’s claimed no one else can have it. Also, please choose one of the three enhancements to be your character’s strongest (endurance, strength, or speed).
You’re allowed, if you believe you have the ability, to write in a cleverly and intelligent obscure way to give the reader a feeling of a dream; that includes suddenly being somewhere, events and logics that do not necessarily make sense in the conscious state, yet is accepted as normal, and other anomalies we know to be rampant in dreams. Only if you feel you are capable of doing this and still achieve a coherent, strong, well written post that clearly has a point and you don’t over do it.

You’re allowed to make a transcended character appear much different from their real-world self (expectedly to some degree since they will be older). You can also make their transcended self the opposite gender from their real-world self. The transcended self can also have no gender, both genders, or alternate genders subconsciously (ie no one notices a change, it’s accepted that in one scene you’re a girl and in another scene you’re a boy).

Your transcended self can have weapons, though I wouldn’t prefer it, but nothing over the top. Only legal transcended may have sophisticated weapons like katanas. No firearms.

Your transcended self can have alternating outfits, but it might be easier just to have one.

Powers
Your unique power can be anything, but do be creative. I can tolerate telekinesis and maybe fire manipulation, but I’d be much happier if you had a power I didn’t expect (and you didn’t get it from wikipedia’s superhero abilities page).
Also, instead of a unique ability, you can have an intensely strong magnitude of the basic powers every transcended gets (superior shape shifting, for example).

Take Powers:

* Master of Illusion
* Gravity Manipulation
* Portal Creation
* Weapon Converting (converting a shirt into any kind of bladed weapon)
* Mesmerizing Aura (Hypnotic/Alluring aura)


Character Sheets

Character Name:
Nickname(s):

Starting Real-world Character:
Age:
Gender:
Grade: (6th- age 11, 7th-age 12, 8th-age 13)
Physical Description:
Clothing:
Anything else: (Nationality? Pets? Quirks? Etc.)

Transcended Character:
Age:
Gender:
Affiliation: (Legal or illegal)
Stance: (Legal only; sympathetic to illegal, pure business, following orders, etc. Basically; how do you feel about/towards the illegals?)
Physical Appearance:
Clothing:
Personality:
Strong point: (Speed, strength, or endurance)
Unique power:
Anything else:

The Truth
So... How does one simply move from the real world into a dream in one fluid motion without noticing a change from conscious to subconscious? How do these transcendence agency members exist in both realms? What happens to the bodies of the legal transcended? Are they in a coma too, or do they exist in both realms as well?

That will remain a mystery
You can make up your own theories, conclusions, hypothesis... But I won’t publish a reason. Maybe I will if I ever make this a story and write a sequel.

Also
If you're going to be an ex-legal, don't tell any genuine illegals what's going on. Not anytime near the beginning at least, because that sort of ruins the whole atmosphere that I'm aiming for with the illegals.

Also, I'd prefer if you'd pick one specific unique power instead of a general category.

Illegals: You can make up anything for your own introduction, whether it be ascending the stairs or recalling what it was like when you ascended the stairs. In other words, you don't necessarily need to transcend after my character (though it's perfectly okay to write your post of transcending, but actually have done it before my character did), or use transcending as the first event of your intro. Be creative But if you have any question, don't be shy to ask.

here's the map of this https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v393/RikuDrak/others/Dreamworld.jpg

Make up buildings, facilities, houses, neighborhoods, etc. as you see fit. You are also free to populate the dreamworld as you please, a lot of times people in dreams reflect the dreamer's personality or conflicts. A nifty thing to keep in mind.