“As the world turns, so turns the cycle of life. We know of at least two turnings of the cycle— when the world was destroyed and then created anew. Our books of antiquity speak of ancient times when the oceans rose and drowned the earth. The wicked were destroyed and God restored harmony to the world.
Then darkness fell upon the land and the wicked returned. The end of the cycle had arrived. Hellfire washed over the land, consuming all evil. Only the Chosen Ones survived. We are descendants of the Chosen. God had chosen us to restore Eden to the world.”
— OccuLinus, Histories Volume 1, 763 A.B.
Background
The end of the world came in the year 2030. A sudden wave of fire and death washed over the Earth, hitting the northern hemisphere hardest. Only about 20 thousand people survived the initial cataclysm around the world. The survivors were mostly people who were underground or in the southern hemisphere at the time and could survive underground for several months. Many of the survivors had to eat bugs and rats to survive. Some resorted to cannibalism to survive.
The surface of the Earth was uninhabitable for years. Nearly all animals that lived above ground perished. Once supplies ran out for survivors, many of them took to wandering and scavenging. Some realized that most fish survived. Surviving communities lived near water and fished.
Slowly, the plants and wildlife began to regrow. Human communities grew bigger as some consolidated and others had children. People figured out how to build small contraptions with surviving scraps of technology, but for the most part there was no electricity or running water. Most families became hunter gatherers, while others had limited success farming the land.
My story takes place more than a thousand years after the cataclysm of 2030. The few survivors are rebuilding a new society over the ashes of the old. It’s a medieval society. Those who can read and interpret the ancient texts are wizards. Some groups have formed into countries and kingdoms. Others have devolved into violent and barbaric tribes.
The Age of Mammals is over. A new Age of Insects has come. Insects have become the dominant type of creature on Earth, and they are getting bigger and more intelligent as the years pass.
Society is medieval in technology and highly religious. The tallest buildings are reserved for churches. Some steel structures are still standing, but those aren’t all that safe anymore. Machines only work if they are reengineered. Even then, there is no gasoline or electricity. Some surviving technology can work if they can be reengineered with hand cranks.
Story Elements
Years ago, King Modius of the Kingdom of West came upon a new trove of ancient technology that survived the Hellfire. The discovery made his kingdom very powerful. He then declared himself Wizard Emperor of the World and set out to unite everyone under his rule.
The protagonist of the story, Queen Kaythen of the Queendom of Manhattan, would not kneel to the self-proclaimed Emperor. A war ensued and it turns out that King Modius can act quite brutally when he doesn’t get his way.
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