The Twilight Fortune: Roleplay

Prologue

Centuries ago, mankind was experiencing a new age of technological advancement. An age of miracles had ignited the imaginations and spirits of humanity as they sought to achieve their dreams and to create a brighter future for all mankind. Problems that have plagued humanity such as simple requirements such as food and water, to power and adequate living space were solved. Some other problems, such as overpopulation and healthcare were combated furiously. Planetary colonization programs were starting to be pieced together, artificial intelligences were born, and mankind was brought together for a single burning purpose unlike anything that has ever been seen.

Then one day, it all went to hell.

The Great Collapse signified the end of this prosperous age. Within three weeks, 95% of humanity was wiped out in a sudden and devastating move as billions upon billions of people suddenly died. While mankind did survive this collapse, they were pushed back the 19th century where they have remained since then. Although some relics of the old world survived, such as trains, mankind was forced to begin again.

Story and Setting

The year is 2512, and society has become very different since the Collapse.

No more than five million people live in what remains of the United States of America, now made up of hundreds of different societies and factions that leave peacefully or fight for dominance for the country. Society ranges from law abiding citizen to savage barbarian warlords, to even post-apocalyptic bandit and raider gangs that prowl on travelers between settlements. All and all, life isn't chaos anymore and humanity has begun to get back on track.

You live in the American Southwest. Life is mostly peaceful between the small isolated settlements that are dotted around the landscape if it wasn’t for the tremendous bounty that has just risen in the area. Although bounties in this part of the world are fairly small, this one particular bounty has taken your fancy. Unlike the other ones, the reward of this bounty promises wealth and fame beyond anybody’s dreams. However, the story behind this bounty goes far deeper then anybody would have thought, the results possibly changing all of America either for the better or for the worse.

Exactly....what would you do?

 

Meanwhile

Across the vast desert landscapes of Arizona and across the American southwest, bounties were a common aspect of life that has arisen from the end of the Collapse. especially for those seeking fortune or fame and anything in between. Of course, they actually had to have the guts or the skills to perform these dangerous jobs. It certainly wasn't for the faint of heart.

In one of the larger settlements to come out from the collapse in Arizona, another bounty was placed on the bulletin board in the centre of town. A poster that was placed on the end of the board, alongside the rest of the posters.

Harold "Hollywood" Evans
Wanted for murder, theft and kidnapping
Dead: $1000
Alive:$250

Bernadine "Black Widow" Burson
Wanted Bank and Train Robber
Dead: $5000
Alive: $15,000

Raymond Palmer "The Damned"
Wanted for mass murder.
Dead: $0
Alive: $20,000

Bounties usually appeared on these sorts of boards all across America. However, the newest bounty that has appeared blew the rewards out of the water. Since the Collapse, $20,000 is quite a large sum of money($800,000 in modern money). The new poster featured a new bounty, a photo of a very handsome man that was very heavily tattooed on his arms and back looked menacingly at the imaginary viewer.

Vincent Knight "The Last Emperor"
Wanted for mass murder, train robbery and various crimes against humanity
Dead or Alive: $50 million ($1 Billion)

The newest bounty quickly drew attention across the entire American Southwest. The bounty promised fame and fortune beyond anybody's wildest dreams.

 

(I was about to write that Motorcycles are actually a thing in this RP, although they require almost constant maintenance and are actually very rare due to the technology that has become available since then being, at it's peak with some rare old-world examples such as Desert Ranger armor and some trains, at the late 19th century (About 1880-1899) . Since the Collapse, transportation has either reverted back to horse travel or simply walking long distance. I'll explain more when I create an OCC for this.)

Moses Vanstone was no stranger to being a Bounty Hunter. He has been a veteran in the business for almost thirty years and has been known for a long time for either capturing or putting down plenty of bounties across his many years of experience. He rode an old black chopper which he acquired from an old bounty almost eight years ago, riding across the desert performing good whenever he could due to being raised and trained as a Desert Ranger. Life was always hard out in the Southwest, especially with the present Bandit problems and the isolation between settlements. The largest settlements he could think of was inside California and some areas of Texas, the largest settlement having around 50,000 inside the old ruins of Los Angeles, now known as Angel City. Arizona was surprisingly underpopulated in comparison to some of the other states, especially since California was the second hardest American state that was hit during the Collapse. Arizona almost seemed safe in comparison, but it was hit nonetheless.

Moses rode his motorcycle into the center of a small town, sending awe amongst plenty of the townsfolk who are only used to seeing horses. It was time to collect another bounty, and he was damn good at his job. None of them seemed particularly interesting....except the most recent one, where dozens of people were crowded around in shock. The crowd soon noticed Moses and cleared a path, a Ranger always made waves across the town. When the man noticed the wanted poster, and it's generous reward, Moses felt that this was his ticket out into a happy retirement.

 

The Sheriff went outside where he noticed a group of people. "Sheriff White, pleasure to meet you. I'm assuming this is about the bounty?"

 

"Welp, this bounty isn't the only place that has been displayed. Virtually the entire West Coast has posters in each town, with the East likely catching wind of this soon if they took a minute to stop fighting. This is actually the biggest bounty since the Collapse, and we have no idea who is giving out the reward." Sheriff White responded, knowing that people were likely listening from the outside. "Although, I'm guessing it's those rich fellas up in Tower Bay (Seattle). Either way, we are talking about Vincent Knight here, the most wanted man in America. If you know why...then, you'd understand what we are dealing with."

Moses listened from the background, although he kinda stuck out like a sore thumb due to his larger physique and armour. He waited until somebody made a move to take the bounty. If children are considering taking up the bounty against Knight, then this job was either way beyond their league or the promise of a better life was too much of a temptation to pass on.