#SET Population Geography

[geographicbook]

Population Policies in Developed and Developing Countries

Introduction Population policies play a critical role in shaping the demographic landscape of nations, influencing various aspects of socioeconomic development, resource allocation, and environmental sustainability. With disparities in economic development, cultural norms, and political structures, the approaches to population policies differ significantly between developed and developing…

[maniculum]

A post of mine from several months ago about the Perlesvaus self-rearranging forest just wandered across my dash again and made me think about it some more, so I wanted to talk about it a bit.

Perlesvaus, for those who don’t know, is a 13th-century French Arthurian romance. It’s intended to be a continuation of Chretien de Troyes’s Perceval, but it’s mostly known for being completely batshit when it’s known at all. (There’s an old book on Arthurian texts that dedicates a chapter to Perlesvaus and repeatedly speculates that the anonymous author had Something Wrong With Him. This is the longest scholarly treatment of Perlesvaus I’ve been able to find & read.)

Anyway, there’s an odd worldbuilding detail in the text. See, it’s a Thing in chivalric romances that the questing knights happen upon castles & lords & damsels & such that are unfamiliar to them and have to be explained. You know, “this is the Castle of Such-and-Such, where the local custom is as follows. It’s ruled by Lady So-and-So, whose character I shall now describe to you.”

This is a genre convention that largely goes unquestioned, but it’s a bit odd if you think about it. All these knights are at least minor nobility. They don’t know the other nobles in their region? They don’t know what castles are where? Don’t they have, like, diplomatic relations with these people or at least attend the same tournaments? Even if they’re all fully committed to the knight-errant lifestyle and don’t really engage in courtly diplomacy, you’d think they would share information with each other and get the lay of the land. But instead, to use TTRPG terminology, it’s like they’re all on a hexcrawl that was randomly generated just for them to have these adventures.

The author of Perlesvaus decides to address this. In what’s kind of a throwaway paragraph late in the text, he explains that God moves things around so knights always have new quests to do (and, presumably, is also making sure they always arrive at the right narratively-significant moment). So the reason they’re always encountering people & places they have no knowledge of is because those people & places really weren’t there yesterday. They didn’t know about the Castle of Such-and-Such because it’s normally a thousand miles away and the forest path they followed to get there used to lead somewhere else.

And I think that would be a really interesting thing to stick into a novel or a TTRPG or something. When a knight rides into the forest with the intent of Going On A Quest, at some point they go around a bend in the path, cross an invisible barrier, and wind up in the Forest of Narrative. This is a vast forest with no set geography, filled with winding paths and populated almost entirely with questing knights, damsels in search of questing knights, friendly hermits, strange creatures, and allegorical set-pieces. Then, at the narratively-appropriate time, they cross back over the invisible barrier back into the regular world, and find themselves wherever the Narrative has decided they need to be. This could be a different country, a different continent, or a different world entirely.

Whether anyone involved is actually aware that this is how it works is… optional, really. Though if it’s not a Known Phenomenon, the people whose jobs it is to handle trade & diplomacy & god forbid, maps, are going to end up tearing their hair out in frustration.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Worldbuilding

Worldbuilding - the part of the writing process that sets up where your story takes place, gives your story structure and somewhere real to live, and helps you establish the rules, culture, etc.

Review the list below to determine which aspects of worldbuilding you need to make decisions about for your story.

Worldbuilding Decisions

Time: Past, present, or future

Location: The real world or one of your own creation

Population: Humans, aliens, fairies, vampires, etc.

History: Backstory, wars, enemies, etc.

Power: Leaders & rulers, systems of oppression, and governing systems

Rules: Laws, procedures

Magic: Types, uses, & rules

Daily life: Activities, jobs, education systems, etc.

Sentiment: How the characters feel about their world

Religion: Which religions, if any, and their impact on the world

Environment: Weather, landscapes, animals, etc.

Culture: Beliefs, languages, myths, customs, rituals, food, fashion, etc.

Worldbuilding Categories

Time period

Geography

Climate

Flora & Fauna

Towns, cities, and countries

Architecture

Occupations

Governments & Laws

Fashion

Weapons

Characters

Culture

Magic

Source ⚜ Writing Notes & References

[olis-inkwell-symposium]

How do you make your fantasy world feel lived-in?

Making a world feel lived-in requires more than just describing the landscape or architecture—it’s about creating the sense that the world has a history, a heartbeat, and its own rhythms of life. Here’s how I approach it:

Layered History: Every city, village, and ruin in my world has a past. I try to tie in subtle references to historical events, old conflicts, and forgotten legends that shape how people live today. By letting the remnants of the past—such as crumbling statues, faded murals, or cultural taboos—linger in the background, I create the impression that the world has been evolving long before the story begins.

Daily Life and Rituals: I focus on the small details of everyday life—what people eat, the music they listen to, how they celebrate and mourn. By showing the rhythm of daily activities, from bustling marketplaces to quiet moments in a temple, I give readers a glimpse into the culture and traditions of the world. These details make it feel like people are living their everyday lives outside the main plot, even if the protagonist isn’t there to see it.

Architecture and Geography: The physical layout of the world matters—how cities are built around rivers, mountains, or deserts, and how architecture reflects the culture and resources available. I like to create buildings and cities that tell stories themselves, with intricate designs, magical defenses, or decaying remnants of a once-glorious era. The way people interact with their environment adds depth to the world.

Senses: I try to engage all the senses when describing a setting—the smell of the sea, the taste of the air before a storm, the grit underfoot on a well-worn path. These sensory details make the world tangible, giving readers something they can feel, not just visualize.

The Mundane and the Magical: In a fantasy world, magic and the supernatural are often present, but I balance that by showing how the mundane aspects of life coexist with the extraordinary. Maybe magic is used casually, like enchanted brooms sweeping the streets, or it’s feared and tightly controlled. Either way, showing how the mystical fits into the everyday helps make the world feel more real.

Economy and Trade: Who trades with whom? What resources are valuable, and how do people get by in different regions? By grounding the world in economics—whether through thriving markets or resource scarcity—I give the setting a practical edge. These systems help define the way people interact, where power resides, and what drives the tensions in the world.

Flawed Systems: No world is perfect, and by including corrupt governments, failing infrastructures, or struggling populations, I show that this world isn’t static—it’s evolving, sometimes deteriorating. Conflict isn’t always about the grand battles; it’s also about the slow decay of a once-great city or the quiet resistance of a village against an oppressive regime.

By combining these elements, I make my worlds feel like places that exist beyond the plot—places with their own stories, lives, and rhythms that readers can immerse themselves in fully.

[theresattrpgforthat]

Ello'. I'm looking for a game that can simulate city living v. well, with the focus on the city itself while still leaving room for like, adventure stories and such. Thank you, and I hope you have a good evening- thanks for all you do.

Theme: City Living.

Hello, I don't have much to add onto this one so let's just get to it!

A City of Shining Stars, by ehronlime.

This is a game about a City. It’s also a game about superheroes and villains and extraordinary people dealing with dangers no normal human could face on their own. At its heart though, it’s about a City. And the thing to remember about a City, is that more than its geography or its history, what really makes a City is its people.

If you want a game that builds a city for a superhero setting, then you might want to check out A City of Shining Stars. This game is a gm-less, card-based came that primarily resolves around a deck of cards to provide questions that your group will have to answer every turn, including questions about residents, locations, and social and cultural landscapes. I think that if you like games like The Quiet Year, this game is definitely in your wheelhouse.

Polis, by Black Armada Games.

Here is a settlement. It is unique and filled with potential. And from this settlement you are going to grow a city.

This is a game about the rise and evolution of a city. You will start with a simple map of a settlement, with its surrounding terrain and a some starting details. Over time you spark its growth, and watch it grow and change over time into a full-fledged city. You will populate it with vibrant cultures, build beautiful buildings and neighbourhoods. You will shape your city with festivals and monuments, wars and revolutions, bounties and catastrophes. With each change, the city will evolve and respond until you have something truly unique.

Polis has a number of elements that you’ll be filling out and keeping track of as you play. This includes the Cast (social groups of NPCs), the Timeline (the list of events that play out), the Almanac (a series of conditions that may affect the city), and the Map (the geography of the city, likely drawn as you play).

I don’t own this game so I’m not sure what the gameplay looks like, but Black Armada Games has a number of games that really hit it out of the park, so I expect Polis to be just as hard-hitting and satisfying to play.

City Planning Department, by Kaelan DM.

By opening this binder, scroll or digital thought-form you have taken the first crucial step to planning your next city. Working for the City Planning Department is at once a deeply rewarding and gruesomely punishing task. But with the help of this simple guide, in no time you'll know all the ins and outs to making a place whose inhabitants can thrive.

Now, a city is only a city because of the order imposed on it by whoever is in charge. You, the city council, are those people. Were you elected? Appointed? Summoned? Who cares? You're here now and you're ready to do some local government!

A game about city management and its problems, City Planning Department evolves around a map that each player takes turns adding to - or at least, attempting to add to. On your turn, you will have a chance to propose a new addition to the city. However, other players can dispute your addition, which, if there is enough agreement, can waste your entire turn. On the other hand, if the dispute is not seconded, then the person who brought up the dispute loses their right to dispute in any future turns. Each player also has a role on the council; either chaotic, neutral or orderly. These roles can inform your character goals, and change the trajectory of the city as a result. I think this game can really replicate the difficulty and frustration of attempting to get something done in a bureaucratic setting.

City Planning Department is also setting agnostic, so if you want to run a cyberpunk city or a faerie council, you can do both of these things!

They Call This The City, by HB.

There is no one way to see a city. In fact, the multidimensional and complex nature of cities has made the idea of the City an eternally fascinating subject of art, science and engineering alike. A city definitionally contains literal and metaphorical multitudes, a hyperobject that, as it happens, also makes for a hell of a game if approached playfully.

This is the aim of They Call This The City, a GMless, character-free game for one or more players about fooling around with graphs.

This is the first time I’ve seen a game that uses graphs and charts as a central game mechanic for play, and I think it could be very educational in teaching people both how to read data and how to chart it. As you play, you will create graphs to represent different aspects of the city, such as how many of a certain feature there are, who has access to certain resources, what average occupations look like, etc. There’s also optional info-graphics that you can use to illustrate inequalities in the city, and the ways the civic infrastructure disenfranchise some of your residents. Finally, there’s a stage at which the players will have to declare one of the graphs to be incorrect, and then describe how it doesn’t accurately portray information.

Overall I think this game is very unique and can work as both a city-building tool as well as an educational experience to talk about how we portray information.

Together in the Ancient City, by Takuma Okada

A tabletop roleplaying game about exploring the many districts of a vast and ancient city. Uses a standard 52 card deck and a six-sided die. For 2 players.

This game is a duet enhancement of the game Alone in the Ancient City.

Together in the Ancient City is a great way to play a city-building game as only two players. Each player will take up a specific role every time you visit a new district, but you can switch between the roles when you move on. You use a d6 and a pack of playing cards to generate new districts, but I think you still get to determine details about each district you visit.

Overall, I think this game feels a bit like you are a pair of tourists exploring a city together, so if you want something lighthearted and exploratory, you might like Together in the Ancient City.

the city begins to exist, by kay w.

the city begins to exist is a two person city building conversation. In this game, two players build a city together by asking and answering questions, switching roles from the person asking questions to the person answering them as you go. Each person will, in each of these roles, help build and expand the idea of a city based around a single theme.

This game can take a variable amount of time, as it ends when the players feel ready to end it. It could take as little as an hour. It could take several hours, or be extended across several play sessions. It is suited for in person or digital play, as players either pass a notebook back and forth or work together in a collaborative document like Google Docs.

Using a tarot deck and a d4, the city begins to exist allows two players to switch between two roles through every turn, with themes and questions prompted using different tarot cards. The game also comes with a Google Docs template, so I have a feeling that as long as you have a way to share a tarot deck, you should also be able to play this game online!

Foretold: The Mayor of Elphame, by Groundhoggoth.

Every big city has districts with their own character, where the immigrant population settled and made a place like home. Whether it’s Chinatown, Little Italy, the French Quarter or somewhere else, it’s a little piece of here that feels like there.

Elphame is something like that, a place where fairytale beings and their descendants have settled, making a home for themselves in the world of mortals. Their magic is weak or atrophied, but they still carry themselves with pride and wear their differences like medals. Times are changing though, as the city grows and prospers on all sides, providing new and unfamiliar opportunities to the younger generation. The community looks for guidance in these troubled times; will you be the one to take the wheel and steer Elphame safely into the future?

This game zoomed in on one neighbourhood of a city, a neighbourhood full of fantastical characters. The Mayor of Elphame revolves around prompts drawn randomly and answered, with each answer meant to represent a story about something that happened in the neighbourhood. Players can choose to leave threads hanging or answer only part of the question if they want to give other players a thread to pick up later in the game.

If you want you might even be able to play this game multiple times, building a different neighbourhood each time!

Also For Your Consideration...

A City Upon A Hill, by Hunter J Allen.

I’m sorry did you say street magic, by Caro Ascercion.

A Traveller in the City, by Palleon Press.

Aurora, by World Champ Game Co.

Station: A Game of City Building, by Tin Star Games.

Explorers of the Forever City, by Sam Robson.

My Town-Builders Recommendation Post.

My Map-Making Recommendation Post

[marypickfords]

The Stalls of Barchester (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1971) A Warning to the Curious (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1972) Lost Hearts (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1973) The Treasure of Abbot Thomas (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1974) The Ash Tree (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1975)

“For all five of these adaptations, Gordon Clark worked with cinematographer John McGlashan and sound recordist Dick Manton, who he credits with establishing the gloomy look that would be the hallmark of the series (as well as editor Roger Waugh who edited all the original series’ James adaptations save 1973’s ‘Lost Hearts’). Central to that aesthetic were the authentic East Anglian locations that have been the inspiration for many a terror tale, even aside from those of M.R. James.

‘James lived in East Anglia—the region that encompasses Norfolk and Suffolk—for most of his life,’ explains Helen Wheatley, citing this as one reason James set many of his stories there. ‘However, there is also a broader sense of the region as being rather out on a limb, a relative hinterland, which lends itself to ghost story telling,’ she continues. ‘In James’ stories, and their television adaptations, the geography and landscape of the region—expanses of flat land, the whispering grasses of the East Anglian coast line, sparsely populated agricultural land—has a particularly haunting quality.’

This landscape is key to the series’ hauntological appeal. Scholar Derek Johnston has an extensive catalogue of writing that examines nostalgia in relation to the Christmas ghost story—and the A Ghost Story for Christmas series in particular—and notes that the Victorian middle class idealization of rural life was subverted by James’ stories, which presented the country as peaceful on the surface but a place of dark, tumultuous secrets. He also points out that East Anglia is a land of invaders and colonizers, writing in his essay ‘Season, Landscape and Identity in the BBC Ghost Story for Christmas’ that ‘The connection to the local soil and landscape runs generations deep, but it has also been built upon the remains of earlier populations, with earlier connections to that landscape, overrun by the incomers...the landscape may encourage identification with the nation, but it also emphasises how the landscape is interpreted through the history of human action upon it.’” — Kier-La Janisse, from Yuletide Terror: Christmas Horror on Film and Television (2017).

[bambiiboop]

After watching the season finale, I’m just imagining domestic din 🥲🥲 i can imagine him falling for grogus teacher, at the school he goes to when he’s not on missions with din. especially seeing how nurturing and caring she is with him. And they live happily together as a clan of three ( maybe more 👀)

Yessss oml how cute ???

He doesn’t expect much to come out of sending the kid to school, but he’s not so arrogant as to think he can teach him everything.

Sure, he can teach Grogu how to be a Mandalorian. How to fight, how to navigate, how to negotiate. He can tell him stories and legends from their culture, but at the end of the day, he’s probably not the best one to teach the kid how to read, write, and do math.

Not like he can’t, but he just doesn’t have the patience. Besides, it’ll be good for the kid to go to school. Make some friends. He’s still only learning how to talk, but maybe that’ll come with socialising with someone besides Din, who, let’s be honest, isn’t the most talkative of people.

Navarro has a school. Two, in fact, with the population increase. One for the younger kids, one for the older. The younger kids learn their letters, how to read, math, geography. They play sport in the courtyard and make wooden swords to play with in arts class. The older kids study history, maps, languages. Some take apprenticeships as blacksmiths or mechanics.

Honestly, Din isn’t sure what to make of it. His own education was spotty, taught by older members of the clan. He never had a formal education as such, so he doesn’t know what to expect of someone who makes educating younglings their profession.

He certainly doesn’t expect someone like you, who’s so patient and kind. While taken aback at first, he finds himself watching you. Noticing little things. How you don’t chastise the children who are a little louder, a little different. How you make time for each and every child under your care, treating them all as though they’re special, all equal.

Maybe he was a little worried Grogu wouldn’t receive that same kindness. He knows his son is different, in a variety of ways.

It doesn’t seem to bother you; you find a way to communicate, to understand the kid even though it’s difficult. Once he’s worked out his letters, you give him a little datapad to input words into, and it speaks for him. It’s limited - Grogu can only learn so fast, and he’s still very young - but basic phrases are still giant leaps.

With the help of his data pad, Grogu can introduce himself, say yes, no, please and thank you. The other kids stop being wary of him and invite him to play with them. It’s kind of cute, actually, watching a group of five year old human kids and Grogu playing some sort of ball game. One day Din shows up to collect him and they’re finger painting together, Grogu and a little boy and a little girl.

You just smile at him as he walks in, put their picture on the wall to dry.

“We learned a new word today.” You tell him, and Grogu taps his datapad.

“Hello, dad.” The artificial voice says.

While he’s still wearing his helmet, behind it, Din smiles.

It’s almost inevitable that he falls for you. Inevitable that you reciprocate. You’re bonded by caring for the same small, strange child who endears everyone to him.

When he asks you to live with them, he’s nervous. Expects you to refuse. Is elated when you say yes.

Once you’ve moved into the little house, the walls decorated with paintings Grogu has done with his friends, you’re standing outside together, watching the kid play in the shallow water nearby.

When he turns to you, hands on your waist, and you in turn go to hesitantly remove his helmet, he doesn’t stop you. He lets you, lets you set it aside before he leans in and presses a gentle kiss to your lips.

What was once a clan of two officially becomes a clan of three, and honestly? He’s never been happier.

[script-a-world]

Submitted via Google Form:

How did ancient people know that they can cross vast oceans and find land and also be able to support themselves with food properly. I can definitely buy that they learn to navigate with stars and things. I mean, we know most about when Europeans went out to sea in the near modern age - they were hit by all kinds of medical problems - scurvy etc... So how did people 100,000 years ago do better at sea? I'm planning on building a more or less primitive world of ancient people just learning to navigate their world and they'll be crossing great oceans and stuff. But I can't help but wonder exactly how they learned all that so long ago or knew they could cross oceans or ever knew if there was anything out there?

Tex: The frequent method to accumulating knowledge as a society and as a culture is to indulge one’s curiosity and deal with the results of finding out what they were looking for. Over time, if something is considered a worthwhile source of amusement or satisfaction, more resources will be pooled together to achieve larger and more significant results. (This is often how science works, as well.)

“Primitive” is a misnomer, as well as a convenient label that early anthropologists liked to apply to cultures that existed before their concept of religion. Because of this, there’s many anthropologists re-examining what we know on the subject and attempting to course correct disproven ideas, methods, and rationales.

A boat is, more or less, still going to be a boat. The issue is not necessarily its seaworthiness, but the seaworthiness of its crew. Will the crew be hungry for the duration of the voyage? Will they suffer from malnutrition? What about injuries, or inclement weather? What about damage to the boat that could sink it? The boat, itself, is irrelevant - once it has been constructed and proven to float, many other details and worries quickly emerge, and typically discovered and solved through trial and error.

Another thing to consider is the need for sailing at all. Curiosity is one thing, sure, but a lot of trade is either done over land or over sea (rather than ocean) - the modern day has moved to either air or cargo ship, but much of it is still by land via train. A lot of this travel is for trade goods, and consequently most people hardly travel such great distances at all if it isn’t done for their employment.

Licorice: In human geography we speak of “pull” and “push” factors driving human migration. As you can tell by the terms used, human beings can be “pushed” out of the place where they were born for all sorts of reasons; persecution, natural disasters, insufficient resources for a growing population, and so on. They can also be “pulled” to migrate by things such as the curiosity Tex mentioned, by a desire to improve their lot in their life, to rejoin family members who migrated earlier, and so on. 

This being the case, if human beings have the means, they will migrate. 

If we think about the Portuguese in the 15th-16th centuries,  we can see that a number of factors 

contributed to their success as long-distance navigators . First of all, Portugal has a long Atlantic coastline; over countless generations of reliance on the sea for food, they acquired an intimate understanding of the ocean and its moods and patterns, and had a tradition as skilful sailors. They knew how to survive long periods out at sea. Secondly, their government pursued a policy of supporting navigation, exploration and trade and set up a college to foster research in these areas. They were constantly improving their ship designs. Thirdly, they progressed in stages, establishing the safest route to Point A before they explored the route from Point A to Point B. 

We shouldn’t forget, of course, the most famous voyage of all - Christopher Columbus, which only happened because he miscalculated the size of the earth and thought “Japan” was much closer to Spain than it really was. His skills as a captain and his crews skills as mariners enabled them to cross the Atlantic, but if an unknown continent hadn’t been in the way they would all have died of starvation before they reached Asia. 

It’s very likely that the successes of the long-distance voyagers of times past stand on the shoulders of similar experiments and miscalculations: expeditions that set off, from Norway or from Papua New Guinea, with plans to follow X star map, and were never heard from again, leading everyone to conclude that the X star map plan was a bad idea; or serendipitous miscalculations, finding land where no land was expected. 

If you look at a map of the history of Polynesian migrations, you’ll see that it took place over thousands of years. This quotation summarising their methods comes from Malaysia’s Institute for Scientific Advancement:

“The islands scattered along the north shore of New Guinea first drew these canoe people eastwards into the ocean. By 1500 B.C., these voyagers began moving east beyond New Guinea, first along the Solomon Island chain, and then to the Banks and Vanuatu Archipelagos. As the gaps between islands grew from tens of miles at the edge of the western Pacific to hundreds of miles along the way to Polynesia, and then to thousands of miles in the case of voyages to the far corners of the Polynesian triangle, these oceanic colonizers developed great double-hulled vessels capable of carrying colonists as well as all their supplies, domesticated animals, and planting materials. As the voyages became longer, they developed a highly sophisticated navigation system based on observations of the stars, the ocean swells, the flight patterns of birds and other natural signs to find their way over the open ocean. And, as they moved farther away from the biotic centers of Southeast Asia and New Guinea, finding the flora and fauna increasingly diminished, they developed a portable agricultural system, whereby the domesticated plants and animals were carried in their canoes for transplantation on the islands they found.”

[goldenashes-if]

I know things have been changing with the revamp, so i wanted to ask some general worldbuilding questions to orient myself in your dragon universe 😄

So what is this kingdom? Where are we? Is this a large country? What's the geography situation for the dragon people

Are there other countries with non-dragon people and other species?? Or are all the sapient species worldwide dragon-ish just like us 🤔

there's a king and a regent, so I'm assuming a Noble class is a thing. But how important is the concept of bloodline, shifters, and nobility here? What is the percentage of nobility in the population?

Any class conflicts in society? Is us romancing Zaphia scandalous?? What other social classes are there and how do they live and interact with each other?

And (if its not too spoilery) what's the political climate like? King's sick 👀 that always makes a country feel a bit unsteady - are people getting particularly nervous about anything?

Ohh worldbuilding❤ lore dump time!

Very very honestly, it is a kingdom which is vaguely inspired by the United Kingdom, but not really. It has no geographical ties save for being a huge island separated from the mainland.

It has vast spaces for dragons to roam free, some big cities, like the one where the game is set (the capital) but outside those, there is the countryside, where dragons exist amongst humans as either pets, working animals, or companions, and then there are the mountains, caves and some other places that are inaccessible to humans where dragons can go nest and live a wilder life.

As far as the game is concerned, any other country does not exist, and so I'm going to focus on the country where the story is set (meaning, I haven't bothered to spend energy on worldbuilding that I won't use).

The country/world is basically inhabited by

Humans, who have some draconic traits (scales, sometimes eyes that resemble dragons) and most of them can shift into dragons at will

Humans that are called "true shifters" (MC) who can shift fully into a powerful dragon form, but that in their human form have many draconic traits (scales, horns, forked tongue, tail, claws...)

Domesticated dragons, who live alongside humans, can be very tiny or medium sized. Usually are considered pets

Wild, or at least non domisticated dragons, who are often a bit bigger than the domesticated ones. They tend to live in big, communal nests. (Think of dogs vs wolves)

(Note: dragons have the intelligence of smart dogs. But they have still animal behaviours and level of intellect)

POLITICAL SITUATION

In this world, there are commoners, middle class, and then the noble families. Above all, there is the Monarch, who rules with the council of the head of each noble family.

Currently, the situation is atypical as the King has fallen ill years ago and the Regent, his husband and also a true shifter, has taken his duties. He is quite reserved, and so leaves the noble families to their parties, and involves himself only with politics.

The noble families usually have a residence in the countryside, where they stay for half the year, and then they all move to the major city close to them for the Season (where the political meetings take place). Seasons are also an opportunity for single people seeking a spouse to find a good suitable bachelor (gn).

Marriages need to take into account the social standing of the other person so yes, MC and Zaphia would be quite scandalous. More than even Sekh' and MC. Instead, MC would be considered an unworthy party for Cherena.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive

By Rob Wallace

From summer into fall, SARS-CoV-2, the COVID-19 virus, ran up another epidemiological spike just as the feds sunset their pandemic control program.

While the virus continues along a loop of boom and bust repeatedly reset by its capacity for evolutionary escape, putting people in the hospital and out of work at a steady clip, U.S. officials and well-connected epidemiologists have abandoned public health in both practice and concept.

Alongside entrapping millions of Americans in a Long COVID vortex, such dereliction of duty places the U.S. in danger should other diseases arise, including, but not limited to, an avian influenza strain that even now is moving beyond cow herds and poultry flocks and beginning to spread in humans.

The COVID-19 pandemic that some of our most august epidemiologists pretend is over portends a broader decline in the very notion of the public commons upon which any functional society depends.

The State of the COVID Nation What’s the present state of the U.S.’s COVID-19 outbreak?

The National Wastewater Surveillance System (NWSS) reports a large majority of its data set of viral load in sewage plants tracked from September 9 to 23 to be in the orange and red zone of 60 percent or more of all the samples taken nationally since December 2021. That is, all those hot points on the NWSS map tell us the viral load in populations across the U.S. is now as high (and widespread) as any previous COVID peak.

On the other hand, the more acute NWSS measure of changes in SARS-2 sewage loads over the 15 days leading up to September 23 shows a mosaic of declines and increases, indicating differences at the sewershed level we still don’t understand.

NWSS tracks only 1,479 of the 16,000 publicly owned wastewater plants, which together serve at best 80 percent of the U.S. population. So, consider the NWSS map of SARS-CoV-2 loads just a snapshot.

The Walgreens COVID-19 Index of national test positivity covers both rapid tests and the more gold-standard polymerase chain reaction tests little available at this point. As of September 29, we see a decline to 21.8 percent of all tests Walgreens processes nationally from 40 percent earlier in the summer, but still as high as most points in the pandemic. The number of tests remains comparatively high, which at this late date in the pandemic may in itself serve as a measure of incidence. People are getting tested because they’re feeling sick.

There’s a geography to this. For late September, we see increases in test positivity in order of sizes of increase, in New Hampshire, Idaho, Oklahoma, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, among other states, with New York presently hovering at 35.9 percent positive. These numbers were once available down to the county level until the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) abandoned such mapping.

Syndromic surveillance offers another view of the pandemic. We see from Epic Research hospital reports of ICD-10 codes mapped between August 25 and September 7 for COVID infections per 100,000 hospital tests, states in the South and Appalachia are getting hit relatively hard, with the national hospital positivity rate at 16 percent. Hospitals across the U.S. were once required to report in such incidences on a weekly basis. Now only a few voluntarily report.

With such reporting now blacked out, infectious disease modeler J.P. Weiland is using wastewater data from Biobot Analytics and available CDC seropositivities to project COVID cases per day in the U.S. He reports we were at over 589,000 new COVID infections for the single day of September 19.

This summer’s peak isn’t the 5 million infections a day of the first Omicron wave that Weiland estimated in late 2021, but nearly a million infections a day in early August is well within the range of nearly every other COVID peak so far. COVID isn’t tailing off one peak to the next.

Weiland hasn’t released a detailed methodology, which makes the projection’s validity unconfirmed, although the general gestalt of his time series is probably on point. If these estimates are anywhere close to reality, much more forgiving global and U.S. data should now be rated “junk” and the pandemic considered still at strength — especially, as we previously described, as the virus has been given the public health green light to continue to explore its evolutionary possibilities.

Indeed, we see the outbreak stateside continuing to evolve, with a broad mix of 22 sublineages in play, and, as projected September 28, varieties of global variant of concern KP.3 and LB.1 leading the way.

Molecular biologist Raj Rajnarayanan’s 30-day mosaic shows all the genetic sequences of detected sublineages in the U.S. as of September 27, including their geographic origins. We see the near entirety of the country hosting variant JN and its infectious FLiRT offspring, the LBs and KPs 1, 2 and 3. We see the arrival of yet another new lineage, the highly transmissible XEC.

The Real Damage of Long COVID Remains A pandemic’s outcome is a matter of pathogen and host alike. So, while we see the SARS-CoV-2 virus still chugging along, the host population it infects has largely chosen to drop out of the pandemic fight.

While COVID death rates aren’t approaching those of 2020, we are nowhere near a 2019 world as the near entirety of the U.S. establishment pretends. The Swiss Re Institute reports U.S. and U.K. excess mortality rates still at 3 percent and 2.5 percent above pre-pandemic levels.

But here we have both U.S. political parties — and both presidential candidates — placing the ongoing pandemic behind us for good, save for scoring electoral points. The feds are sunsetting bridge funding for COVID antivirals and vaccines, the latter suddenly costing $200 for the uninsured. No wonder, as Science Communications Director Lucky Tran posts, half the Americans in a recent Ipsos poll incredibly expect never to get infected again.

The mass leap away from the reality of a still deadly infection is more from a push from a government that ostensibly holds the monopoly on national health intervention. The U.S. population would likely respond otherwise if signaled so from its elected leadership. Tran reminds us that a 2022 CDC report showed people are more likely to mask when alerted about local outbreaks by public health authorities. Without alerts, on the other hand, Americans are erring on the side of little to no masking.

The resulting health toll continues to beat up the population. Health analyst Mike Hoerger of the Pandemic Mitigation Collaborative — whose models for daily COVID incidences typically run hotter than Weiland’s at 669,000 as of September 30 — projects 1 million to 4 million new Long COVID cases coming out of infections this past month alone.

Previous work showed and estimated that between 5 percent and 30 percent of people infected enter the whirlpool of a Long COVID syndrome for which few tests are available for diagnosis, and there are few prophylaxes available or in development to treat current patients.

A Patient-Led Collaborative Group preprint reporting the results of a survey of 3,300 participants found that increasing the number of SARS-CoV-2 infections a person gets increases the risks of Long COVID, worse Long COVID symptoms and greater overall impairment. Reinfections also appear to diminish the protective effects that vaccination may offer against Long COVID. Few of the surveyed reported Long COVID remission.

The damage extends beyond bodily health. The Wall Street Journal, focusing on the professional-managerial class, ran a story headlined “Long Covid Knocked a Million Americans Off Their Career Paths.”

Understandably, the article was widely retweeted by professionals who lamented their previous 60-hour work weeks and personal bests and marked how far they had fallen. Their work ethic proved no prevention against Long COVID’s siege of microclots, brain damage, cognitive collapse and post-exertional malaise that made some unable to get out of bed for weeks.

Long COVID also impacts many on the other end of the socioeconomic spectrum. A new survey of 7,000-plus adults found low-income Long COVID patients suffered greater food insecurity, especially those who didn’t participate in public food assistance programs.

It isn’t just adults suffering. New research out of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) RECOVER program found similar but distinguishable differences in symptoms between children and adolescents among the 5,300 youth it studied, leading RECOVER to declare Long COVID “a public health crisis” for a population some epidemiologists expediently presented as little affected by the infection.

Acknowledging Failures to Keep Them Going Noting that recent COVID deaths in the U.S. were double those of last spring, this New York Times piece from August took a meta view of the failure to see, observing that we no longer observe: “We Have Largely Moved on From Covid, but Covid Isn’t Done With Us” reads the print edition.

But such a gesture at the gap in reality that the newspaper itself helped condition offers the ruling class that effectively ended the COVID campaign permission to continue to ignore the duly noted failure.

The Times interviewed epidemiologists at the highest professional levels about the gap:

"Michael Osterholm, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said the newfound complacency can as much be attributed to confusion as to fatigue. The virus remains remarkably unpredictable: Covid variants are still evolving much faster than influenza variants, and officials who want to “pigeonhole” Covid into having a well-defined seasonality will be unnerved to discover that the 10 surges in the United States so far have been evenly distributed throughout all four seasons, he said. Those factors, combined with waning immunity, point to a virus that still evades our collective understanding — in the context of a collective psychology that is ready to move on. Even at a meeting of 200 infectious disease experts in Washington earlier this month — a number of whom were over 65 and had not been vaccinated in four to six months — hardly anybody donned a mask."

And how did officials and the public arrive at such a confusion? After all, other scientists and practitioners standing outside the establishment’s umbrella of respectability debunked the notion that all was well and repeatedly alerted the world to the broader system’s complicit silence.

I wrote in August 2022 that Osterholm himself helped inculcate the confusion:

"Mike Osterholm, who the Times failed to identify as part of the administration’s COVID Advisory Board, converged on this courageous line: “I think [the CDC] are attempting to meet up with the reality that everyone in the public is pretty much done with this pandemic.” A reality the administration worked hard to help manufacture by deft incompetence."

The Times also interviewed epidemiologist Bill Hanage to the effect scientists were themselves confused and that allowed him the freedom of an argument by ex falso quodlibet, a principle from which any proposition can be derived from a contradiction:

"Epidemiologists have long predicted that Covid would eventually become an endemic disease, rather than a pandemic. “If you ask six epidemiologists what ‘endemic’ means, exactly, you’ll probably get about 12 answers,” said Bill Hanage, associate director of the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. “But it certainly has a sort of social definition – a virus that’s around us all the time – and if you want to take that one, then we’re definitely there.”"

Ugly sophistry. In actuality, the time series of COVID outbreaks stateside in no way represent the kind of evolutionarily predictable seasonal variants we find in endemic influenza.

And the “socially defined” endemicity to which Hanage alludes was in part of his own making. In one CNN report, we find Hanage alongside Osterholm providing Biden’s CDC cover for dropping recommendations for quarantining at home and testing people without symptoms, brandishing another fallacy:

"Bill Hanage, an epidemiologist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, agrees that the new guidance shows that the CDC is trying to meet people where they are. “I think that this is a point where you actually have to sort of get real and start giving people tools they can use to do something or not. Because otherwise, people will just not take you seriously,” Hanage said."

An appeal to popularity is no epidemiological principle on which to base a response to a pandemic that’s killed anywhere from 1.2 to 1.5 million Americans.

Public Health Rebellion From Below In other words, Osterholm and Hanage and others aren’t the neutral observers they pretend to be, along with the Times.

Rather, they track disease only up to the point the political class can bear, helping bury the problem when it’s inconvenient. Liberals who are upset that science is met with public distrust might ask whether anyone concerned about outbreaks would listen to these brilliant scientists without suspicions they’re catering to other (well-funded) objectives.

How many times will these “men who stare at vaccines” ask us to run into our epidemiological walls — to reference the George Clooney movie about the Pentagon’s First Earth Battalion — as if our reductionist atoms can just pass through those of SARS-CoV-2, avian influenza, mpox, and the queue of other pathogens emerging out of an alienated nature and expropriated circuits of global production?

Vaccines are always only a part of any public health campaign, and their successful deployment depends on the very nonpharmaceutical interventions and structural changes the feds have insisted we abandon.

Figures of authority across local jurisdictions have similarly blanched. Political leaders — turning now to punishing people who continue to mask — are feeding their own health into the COVID maw held agape by establishment epidemiologists.

The best way to contact the dead in the data, these scientist “seancists” signal, is to help usher a public of biased optimists they’ve cultivated to their graves. The CDC continue to invite Americans “just this way, please,” once again adjusting down its color code scheme for its maps to imply we’re in less danger than we are.

Bipartisan rounds of strategic obfuscation follow each new COVID wave as if set as an algorithm. At this end of the U.S. cycle of accumulation, when capital cashes out and disinvests from the public commons, it’s only such manipulation that’s now endemic.

As the Pandemic ThinkTank described early in the pandemic, abandoned by the feds, we need to pursue a revolt from below. Community groups and local public health departments need to work together to reconstruct our public commons to handle the diseases and other disasters already here or on their way.

This article is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), and you are free to share and republish under the terms of the license.

[geographicbook]

Demographic Transition

Introduction Demographic transition refers to the process of change in a society’s population from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates, usually as a result of economic development, improved living standards, and education. This phenomenon has significant implications for various aspects of society, including economics, healthcare, and social welfare. Understanding…

[so-many-ocs]

Let's Talk: Worldbuilding Small Towns & Cities

this is a request from instagram!

Research!

pick a couple of real-life small towns or non-major cities and look into them!

how, when, and why did they form? some towns or cities form around bodies of water, are created for a specific industry (such as mining or lumber), or grow in close proximity to more major cities. what is the population makeup and density? how do people make a living there?

Essentials!

there are a couple of things that your town or city will need in order to function:

housing, shop(s) for food/clothing, some kind of food source such as a farm or garden, some kind of nearby water source such as a well or river, and a place for medical supplies or treatment.

depending on how modern the setting or how small the settlement, some of these may be located outside of your town/city.

Time Period!

more modern settings may have additional locations: laundromats, auto repair shops, restaurants and cafes, libraries, hardware stores, city halls, post offices, emergency services, waste management services, etc.

a lot of it depends on how big and how current your town or city is. less essential spots may be cut or merged based on these factors. for instance, a very small town might have furniture, groceries, convenience, and a pharmacy all in one building or “store.”

Naming!

for small town/city names, keep it simple! a lot of these places are named after relevant people/cultures, geography, or descriptors; think “Littletown,” “Fairhill,” “Fresh Springs,” or “Jefferson.” some small towns or cities are named after larger towns or cities, like any one of the half dozen places called “Ithaca” in the U.S.

if you’ve built or are using another language, the same naming conventions usually apply.

Questions!

what era is this setting in? agricultural, pre-industrial, industrial, post-industrial, etc? what level of technological advancement does this setting have?

what does trade look like there? what do they import and export? how close are they to major trade routes?

what major cultures, political affiliations, and religions influence this setting? how and when did these influences come about?

what is the geographical location? island, mountain, plains, etc?

what is stopping this location from growing into a major town or city?

Stealing!

when in doubt, steal like an artist!

find an existing (or historical) small city or cities that fit the rough vibe you’re going for and swap out necessary details.

if you use multiple inspiration sources, try and keep it consistent! most things are the way they are for a reason. take climate, geography, and general location into account!

-----------------

that's all! happy writing :)

buy me a ko-fi || what's radio apocalypse?

[matan4il]

Hello. This is a rather mundane question considering all the things, but I got curious. Does Hebrew have accents? How do they vary in and out of Israel?

I understand if you choose not to reply as this is a difficult time for you. In any case, take care🩷🩷🩷

Hi Nonnie! No, don't worry, all questions that are truly interested in Jewish culture are welcome! ^u^

TBH, something to remember about Hebrew is that it has quite a unique history. To the best of my knowledge, it is the only language that was used on a daily basis as the lived in language of a native population, then "died" as a result of Jews being exiled. As they found themselves in other countries, they had to speak the local language. They didn't abandon Hebrew, but it stopped being the langauge in which they lived their daily lives. Hebrew became the language of prayer, of scripture study, and terms from it bled into the local languages Jews spoke, creating Jewish versions of these languages (Yiddish being the Jewish version of German, Ladino being the Jewish version of Spanish, Yevanik being the Jewish version of Greek, and there are also Jewish versions of Arabic and other languages, too), so Hebrew still had an impact on Jews, and they were still connected to it... but it was no longer a "living" language. It was closer to what Latin is today. A language in which religious ceremonies are conducted, that theologians study, but not a language that anyone conducts their daily life in.

Then, as a part of the project of reclaiming and reviving the Jewish native life in Israel that came to be known as Zionism, people set out to revive our native language, too. There was a realization that it had to be adapted to modern life, give it terms for things that didn't exist 2,000 years ago, so it would be useful for people who wanted to conduct their daily lives in Hebrew again. And that's how the last of the Canaanite languages became the only "dead" language to be revived, and return to be the lived in language of its native people.

I mention this unique history, because modern Hebrew isn't the same as biblical Hebrew (though about 60% of modern Hebrew IS biblical). It means if there were different Hebrew accents during biblical times, we don't know it for sure.

At the same time, the fact that Jews were spread out in the diaspora, and their pronunciation of Hebrew (as a dead language) came to be influenced by the local languages they spoke while in exile. So a Jew who returned to Israel from the diaspora in Germany, a Jew who returned to Israel from the diaspora in Argentina, and a Jew who returned to Israel from the diaspora in Yemen do not have the same accent when speaking Hebrew.

But these are not considered regional accents of Hebrew in the same way that you can find different regional accents of English when traveling across England... If we put aside the accents of Jews returning to Israel, and instead we look at the accents of Jews born in Israel, the ones born into speaking modern Hebrew, there's a myth of a Jerusalem accent. I say myth, because you'll hear all over Israel people swearing, that Jerusalemites pronounce a few words differently. The most common example is the word 'mataim' (which means two hundred), and many Israelis insist Jerusalemites pronounce it ma'ataim, with the first vowel prolonged and emphasized. I have lived in Jerusalem since 2002 and I have never heard it. I think in this sense, regional accents are usually, at least in part, a product of geography. It determines how far apart people live, how much they interact, how much they hear others speaking the same language as they do. The smaller a country, and the easier travel in it is, the fewer accents it's likely to produce. And I think that's the main reason why there aren't really accents in Israel (other than those of people who came to speak Hebrew as a second language), because it's a very small country, and because today, it's pretty easy to travel in it (you can cross it from the most northern point to the most southern one in slightly over 5 hours).

I hope that kind of answers it? Thank you for the kind words, I hope you're well, too! xoxox

[literaryvein-reblogs]

A 7-Part Worldbuilding Template

PART 1: The Basics

What is your world called?

Estimate its population:

In one sentence, describe your world:

Is it set on: Earth; Alternate Earth; Not Earth / Another planet

PART 2: Geography

THE NATURAL WORLD Flora & Fauna; Creatures; Landscape; Diseases

How was the world created? How long ago was it created?

How do the laws of physics work?

How does the solar system move? What celestial beings exist (suns, stars, moons, etc.) and how do they relate to the world?

Flora & Fauna

How does the flora differ from region to region?

Do any plants have special or magical properties? Are any dangerous?

Creatures

What kind of wildlife roams which parts of your world? Where are they most commonly found?

How did the wildlife evolve?

Do mythical creatures such as dragons exist? How do they fit into the ecosystem?

Landscape

Where are the mountain ranges? Rivers? Forests? Deserts? Seas?

How does the terrain interact with its inhabitants?

Are there any “natural wonders” in your world? How were they formed?

Diseases

What natural diseases have evolved over time?

How are they transmitted?

How has this affected population growth?

LOCATIONS OF SIGNIFICANCE Capital City; Flags & Symbols

What are the major cities in your world? Ports? Most populated metropolises?

Is your world split geographically? (e.g. rural and urban, north and south, etc.) If so, how?

Capital City

What is the capital city of the world?

Why is it the capital?

Flags & Symbols

How does each city choose to represent itself (crest, flags, signature colors)?

WEATHER

What are the processes of your world that drive weather and ocean patterns?

Are certain regions more vulnerable to certain weather conditions?

Climate

How does the climate differ in each region?

What are the seasons like in your world? How many seasons are there?

PART 3: People

RACES & SPECIES Physical Build; Mannerisms & Etiquette; Customs & Rituals; Festivals

What intelligent species or races populate your world? Dwarves? Elves? Xenomorphs? Other? How did they come to exist?

How does each race or species perceive each other? How do they co-exist?

Physical Build

What do the inhabitants of your world look like? Do they have any distinguishing features?

What is the societal standard for beauty? How might this differ in each region of the world?

Mannerisms & Etiquette

What is the code of conduct between people of different ranks or classes? People of different cities or regions? Elders?

How do people in your world convey non-verbal boredom? Disbelief? Happiness? Respect?

What would be a gesture that is universally insulting in your world?

What etiquette exists in different parts of your world?

Customs & Rituals

Are there any rites of passages in your world? “Coming of age” celebrations? If so, what age marks the transition from child to adult?

What traditions surround death and burial? What about engagements and proposals of marriage?

Festivals

What are the important festivals of your world?

Why are they celebrated?

LANGUAGES Sayings; Accents; Greetings

How many languages exist in your world? How did they originate?

Which language is spoken most? Is there a universal language?

How do naming conventions differ in each region?

Sayings

What are common sayings? Idioms? Insults? “Untranslatable” words that only a certain group of people would understand?

Accents

If different languages exist, how does this affect the accents in your world? What do the accents say about the person (place of origin, social class, level of education, etc.)?

Greetings

How do people of the same race greet each other? How do people of different races greet one another?

Is there an informal and formal way to greet others depending on the level of familiarity (i.e. friends, acquaintances, elders, superiors, etc.)? What are the proper forms of address?

SOCIAL FRAMEWORKS Class or Caste Systems; Family Structure; Marriage

What social frameworks underlie the communities in your world?

What are the social taboos? What would one need to do in order to be kicked out of society?

Class or Caste Systems

Is there a class system? If so, how much emphasis does society place on it?

What are the tell-tale signs that a person belongs to a certain class?

How does class affect professions and trades in your world? Can anyone become a priest or a wizard, for example — or is it a privilege restricted to certain members of the hierarchy?

Family Structure

What is the normal family unit?

What is the social system within a family unit in your world? Patriarchal? Matriarchal?

What constitutes a good father? A good mother? A good child?

Marriage

How is marriage defined in your world? Is marriage a civil or religious institution?

Do people marry for love? If not, why do they marry?

PART 4: Civilization

HISTORY

How did civilization begin?

When was the earliest known record of history?

What were the significant wars that have taken place on your world’s soil? How have they shaped the present?

Can your world’s history be divided into significant eras (e.g. Georgian, Victorian, Edwardian, etc.)?

Myths

What myths exist in your world to explain the cosmos? How might this have in turn shaped religion?

How were stories passed through generations?

CULTURE Literature, Art & Music; Clothing; Cuisine

Is national culture and history a source of pride or shame in your world? How is it preserved?

What are some things that define each culture? What would a person from a certain city, region, or country be proudest of?

Literature, Art & Music

What is the role of the arts in your world’s culture? How is it perceived by society and how has it evolved?

Who are some celebrated or noted artists in history? What they known for?

How might the arts have changed as a result of outside influences (from other regions, cities, races, etc.)?

Are any of the arts taboo? If so, why?

Clothing

What is the customary dress? Is it gendered? If so, how?

What is considered fashionable and how does this differ from region to region?

How does the clothing one wears reflect status?

What is the dress code for each profession? How strictly followed must it be?

Cuisine

What are the regional dishes? How might this differ depending on the climate and environment?

Is there a difference between what the poor and the rich eat? What is considered a luxurious food? What is considered a staple food?

How are mealtimes approached? Is there a set hour to be at the table? Are there traditions that precede or follow a meal?

RELIGION Gods & Deities; Holy Texts; Significant Prophets

How do people worship in your world?

When and where do people worship?

Gods & Deities

Who are the major and minor gods that people worship?

What function do the gods serve in society?

Holy Texts

What (if any) holy texts exist?

How well-known are the scriptures? Would people of all ages be able to recite them on the spot if asked ?

Significant Prophets

Who are the important religious figures in the world?

For what reason are they significant?

EDUCATION

Does formal education exist? If so, who can access it? The rich? The clergy? Everyone in the general population?

If magic exists in your world, how is it studied? Do schools exist to train it?

What are literacy rates among the general population? How does this affect communication and the distribution of information?

LEISURE

How do people spend their leisure time in your world? What forms of entertainment are most common?

Are there any organized sports in your world? How might its rules and regulations differ from the ordinary?

PART 5: Technology, Magic & Weapons

MAGIC SYSTEMS Rules of Magic; Practitioning Magicians

For what purpose is magic used in your world? Who can use it?

What limits are there to its power? What are the consequences of using it?

What is the history of magic and magicians in your world?

How does society view magic? Positively? Negatively? As the Other?

Rules of Magic

How does magic work in your world? Where does it come from?

Is there a language that’s needed in order to call forth magic? If so, what are its roots?

Is magic regulated in any way? What is the governing body?

Practitioning Magicians

What are magicians’ status in society? Are they trusted advisors of kings or charlatans on the road?

How many magicians exist in your world? How do they perceive one another?

TECHNOLOGY

How advanced is the technology in your world? How does it work?

How does technology impact the different parts of society? Transportation? Communication? Medicine?

How does magic and technology interact and co-exist? Is it a rivalry? A co-op? Are there rules and regulations?

WEAPONRY Signature Weapons; Common Weapons

What weapons are predominant in your world (ranged, combat, anti-gravity, etc.) and why?

Who makes the weapons? How do they work? Is it easy to obtain them?

Signature Weapons

Are there special weapons (e.g. Thor’s Hammer)?

How are they made? How many of them exist in the world?

Common Weapons

Are there professions that necessitate the bearing of weapons?

What about religions?

PART 6: Economy

ECONOMICS

On which economic system does your world operate? A market economy? Feudalism? Socialism?

Is there a central bank?

How does the government regulate businesses?

TRADE & COMMERCE Currency; Major Imports & Exports; Natural Resources

How is trade facilitated? Is it carried out by traveling merchants? By a guild? Are there auctions?

What cities, countries, or regions are allies? Trade partners? How has this changed throughout history?

How is the soft power of a region, city, or country determined?

Currency

Is there a universal currency? If not, what are the regional currencies? What is the valuation?

How is the currency circulated and what are the denominations?

Can the currency be broken down into units (dollars, cents, dimes, quarters)?

Major Imports & Exports

What are the major exports of the region or city? Imports? How might this have evolved throughout history?

Does a particular region specialize in particular trade (i.e. livestock, weaponry, etc.)? Why?

Natural Resources

What resources are natural in each part of your world?

How does this affect trade and trade relationships?

TRANSPORTATION

How easy it is to travel within a city and outside of a city? What modes of transportation exist (horse, anti-gravity car, etc.)?

How is information disseminated all over your world (ink and paper, owl, newspaper, messenger)?

BUSINESS

What crafts or trades are highly valued in your world?

Are some professions considered more elite or respectable than others? How so?

How do people advance in their fields? Are there apprenticeships? How easy is social mobility?

What is the normal work schedule for the average person? What is the average income?

PART 7: Politics

GOVERNMENT

What is the form of government? Is it a monarchy? Republic? Empire? Theocracy?

What are the responsibilities of the government? How far does the government’s sphere of influence spread (magic, religion, etc.)?

How is the government perceived? Is it trusted by the people or is there tension?

LAW Justice Systems; War Systems

What is the rule of law in your world? How is law enforced? What are the most important laws?

What are the punishments for breaking the law?

Justice Systems

What is the legal process in your world? How are people tried?

How does magic fit into the legal system? Is it above the law?

War Systems

How is war declared? Is there a formal process that a country must go through in order to engage in war?

What is the command structure of the army?

How big is the army? Is it composed of humans? Non-humans? Both?

Source ⚜ More: Writing Worksheets & Templates Writing References: Plot ⚜ Character ⚜ Worldbuilding

[preet-01]

blinking my big wet eyes at you what are your maxiel political au ideas

Anything for you ☺️ so this au is set in the US because that’s the election process/political system/geography I know best. Max is a Senator from New York and his family doesn’t have any political background. Daniel is from a very prominent political family (think Kennedys, Roosevelts, the Bush family) and his dad is the former governor of California. Daniel met Sebastian at either Yale when he was doing his undergraduate degree or at Georgetown when he was getting his JD. At the start of the story, Daniel is a constitutional lawyer.

Ideally, the story would go from about 3 years before the campaign trail to announcing a reelection bid. Here’s a bit from the campaign trail

“Why does the campaign trail always have to start in bumfuck, USA?” Daniel groans as they’re driven from the airport to the hotel they’re staying in. Their bus is filled with campaign staff, but Daniel, Max, and Sebastian are sat in the back. They should be going over a plan or the schedule of events. But Daniel had found a new hate of Iowa’s endless farms and corn. God he missed DC, hell even New Haven had been better than this, California and New York even better.

Iowa is not on the list of states that Daniel would like to visit. Like what even is in Iowa?? He’s never found out, nor does he particularly care to find out. But their country seems to be beholden to the whims of Iowa when it comes to the campaign trail.

Despite not being representative of the country’s population, the Iowa caucus remains the first campaign event. So much so that it’s written into law or something like that they remain the first event of the trail — one of his professors at Yale had grumbled about it a lot from what he remembers.

“It’s a longstanding tradition, Daniel,” Max says, unlike Daniel, he’s got a file in hand filled with important information about Iowa and its goddamned corn. “Did you know that Iowa’s eastern and western borders are made almost entirely of rivers? They are the only state where this is so,” Max says. With a quick glance at the file in Max’s hand, Daniel realizes that this is not a fact that is written out, but one that Max just knows.

“I did not know that, Maxy,” Daniel replies because what else is he to say to that?

“Don’t be so glum about being in the middle of nowhere, Iowa is the ice cream capital of the world. So you get to eat all the ice cream you want at most of the campaign events in Iowa,” Seb kindly informs him. Well that’s something to look forward to, he supposes.

After a while, Seb leaves them in the back and goes towards the front where the press secretary is.

Bored of the endless corn that makes up his view, Daniel turns his attention to his dear husband. In their DC and New York brownstones, they’d kept separate bedrooms despite being ‘married’ for almost three years now. But on the campaign trail, Seb had told them that they would need to share a bedroom. Lest the opposition or press find out that the Senator from New York does not have the picture perfect marriage that most people are jealous of.

“You should fuck me tonight,” Daniel states with no preamble. And as expected, Max sputters.

“What??” His precious file is completely forgotten as he looks at Daniel with his big blue eyes and yeah Daniel wants to get fucked tonight. Specifically by his husband — it had been much too long since the last time it happened in his opinion.

[shewasverynice]

Fandoms: 呪術廻戦 | Jujutsu Kaisen (Manga)呪術廻戦 | Jujutsu Kaisen (Anime)  MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

Rating: Explicit 

Major Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con 

Content Warnings: Dubious Consent, Prostitution, Drug Use, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Blood and Violence

Categories: F/M, Multi, F/F 

Relationships: Gojo Satoru/Original Female Character(s), Nanami Kento/Original Female Character(s), Getou Suguru/Original Female Character(s), Ieiri Shoko & Iori Utahime 

Major Characters: Original Characters, Gojo Satoru, Getou Suguru, Nanami Kento, Okkotsu Yuuta, Toudou Aoi, Zenin Naobito, Zenin Jinichi, Zenin, Zenin Ougi, Fushiguro Megumi, Kamo Clan, Nitta Akari, Inumaki Toge, Ieiri Shoko, Iori Utahime, Kusakabe Atsuya, Muta Kokichi, Itadori Yuuji, Hakari Kinji 

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ Chapter 1 ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

"100 species of insects were collected, the larger ones were snakes, the smaller ones were lice, Place them inside, let them eat each other, and keep what is left of the last species." - Geography of the Suishu

In the heart of Tokyo, darkness intertwines with the vibrant glow of neon lights. As dusk descends, the streets come alive with a cacophony of sounds: the pulsating beats of music from the clubs, the raucous laughter of patrons, and the occasional distant sirens signaling trouble just out of sight. The neon signs flicker and dance, casting an eerie glow over the throngs of people who wander the labyrinthine streets while dark alleys snake through the district like veins, cloaked in shadows that seem to swallow the unwary whole.

The district pulses with life, a magnet for thrill-seekers and hedonists, drawn to the promise of excitement and forbidden delights. The streets are crowded with a kaleidoscope of humanity – tourists with wide-eyed wonder, locals shuffling one foot after the other with their gazes firmly set on the ground, and those who exist on the fringes of society, seeking refuge in the shadows. It's a place where the rules of society bend, where one can lose themselves in the neon-lit frenzy and forget the troubles that plague the outside world. It's a place where the line between pleasure and peril blurs, and where the thrill of the unknown beckons with irresistible allure.

The year 1939 marked the beginning of World War II. With fear gripping the human population, Sorcerers found it increasingly difficult to control the rising number of curses. The situation escalated further in 1940 when Japan formally entered the war, putting additional strain on the already struggling Sorcerers. However, the most devastating blow came in 1945 with the dropping of the atomic bombs.

Both humanity and sorcery were crippled, causing a massive influx of curses that spiraled out of control. The creatures emerged more and more humanoid in the wake, the fear compounding on itself and forcing an evolution into something more akin to humans themselves. Retaining their horns, multiple eyes, colorful skin, or other oddities, curses were still easily distinguished from humans but their existence had become undeniable to the population. The ability to see curses became more prominent, a necessity for survival.

In 1949, the Japanese government officially acknowledged Curses as a distinct sentient species. This decision faced strong opposition from the Sorcerers, who were still in the process of rebuilding their numbers post-war. However, misunderstandings led to exorcisms being mistaken for acts of murder by humanity. The blame for the anger in the dark hearts of Curses was placed on inequality, with people arguing that it was unfair to kill them before they had committed any crimes. Sorcerers were viewed as rogue vigilantes at best and terrorists at worst, driven off the streets and treated as if they were criminals.

Sorcerers, in the face of contempt and animosity, were compelled to abide by the regulations put in place to safeguard Japan's latest inhabitants. They were obliged to don masks, rendering them readily recognizable to ordinary individuals. A formal record was created, and once a Sorcerer's power awakened, they were acknowledged and recorded in the database. 

This had no effect in suppressing the animosity, leading to Sorcerers being singled out despite their persistent attempts to banish malevolent curses. Regardless of the proof provided, regardless of the reality, society had already made up its mind and deemed Sorcery as a criminal act. The deceitful cry of injustice by the curses had triumphed over the humans, compelling Sorcerers to conceal their deeds once more.

Naturally, this gave rise to varying viewpoints, leading Sorcerers to establish their own factions. Certain groups opted to honor their initial pledge of safeguarding humanity, while others decided to abandon their unappreciative responsibilities. Additionally, some made the choice to pledge loyalty to the highest bidder. As time passed, this division would slowly solidify and deteriorate, transforming into a distorted manifestation of the original purpose of Sorcery.

In 2018, the neon lit streets of Tokyo now obeyed a different set of rules. Those set by the government and those set by the ones who'd always been its silent guardians. 

━─┉┈◈❖◈┈┉─━

The elaborately carved wooden door burst open, the brass handle slamming into the wall with a loud thud. The man responsible barged through the building, his expression contorted with anger. The red mark from the slap on his cheek burned, the ring of his attacker leaving a shallow cut on his skin. Following closely behind him was a petite woman in a sleek black suit, her short blonde hair bouncing as she struggled to keep up with his long strides.

"Sir, you need to calm down." The woman urged, "Customers aren't allowed past this door."

"I want to talk to the owner." He gritted, "That girl is out of control and I want her fired!"

"Sir, you broke the contact rules stated in the contract you signed. The girl in question is within her right to--"

"She slapped me with a ring on!" He roared, shoving past another door, "This better not scar! I'll sue you for--" He froze, finding exactly one of the women he was looking for. 

With one leg crossed over the other, she remained focused on the papers in her hand without lifting her gaze. Wearing a white top with long flowing sleeves and a high collar, her back and shoulders were openly exposed. Her sharp forest green eyes moved methodically across the pages, while her foot tapped impatiently on the floor. A strand of her lengthy dark amber hair slipped down from behind her ear as she tilted her head, briefly glancing up at the customer.

Next to her, a massive man loomed with his arms folded. His sleek black hair was pulled back into a neat bun, his broad chest exposed showcasing his intricate tattoos. The menacing snarl of the crimson Oni half-mask he sported added to his intimidating look, his intense gaze piercing. The man's strong biceps bulged, his fingers gripping onto his well-defined muscles.

"You!" The customer huffed, storming over to the woman, "You'd better have an apology ready because I'm not--"

"Have a seat." She said calmly, "Let's work this out, hmm?"

The man's stance faltered as the blond woman placed a wooden chair behind him. His lips were parted, ready to unleash a verbal assault when he spotted a light blue oni mask on the table beside the woman. He swallowed thickly as she placed her other foot on the ground and held up the papers she had been reading.

"Mr. Kato," she began, "According to this contract that you signed you agreed to a no touching rule with Himiko, is that correct?"

Kato swallowed again, "Ah, yes I did but--"

"And from what I can assume," she continued, "Is that you just decided not to follow the rule that you'd agreed upon before signing?"

He cleared his throat before muttering, "Ah, well it was a simple touch on--"

"Todo." The woman said, her eyes trained on the customer, "Would you please move me closer? I can't hear him properly."

In a swift motion, the goliath of a man lifted the heavy chair with the woman still seated in it. He carried it over and placed it gently in front of the customer then took a step back. She looked up at him with an appreciative smile, then turned back to Kato.

"What was that? I couldn't quite catch it."

At the same time, a different woman walked confidently on the ground level, her flowing dark hair moving in sync with her skirt that reached her calves. The sound of her charcoal heels echoed on the marble floor, while the kimono-style sleeves of her top added a touch of sophistication to her appearance amidst the luxurious surroundings. A porcelain doll-like mask concealed the lower part of her face, and her serene caramel eyes maintained a composed demeanor.

Walking beside her was a young man, his half mask matching Todo's but painted in cerulean. His dark hair fell just past his chin, partially covering his eyes, which showed signs of weariness. His white top was loose, but tucked into fitted black trousers. Resting his hand on the long katana at his hip, the pair strolled across the bridge spanning the shallow river in the atrium.

A resounding crack echoed through the building and the woman's eyes flicked up towards the room where she knew her partner had been dealing with the disgruntled customer. Her gaze moved down to the man beside her, her eyes crinkling to reveal a soft smile hidden beneath her mask.

"Yuta," she said, "Would you mind scheduling the carpenter to come and see about making us a new door?"

"Yes, ma'am." Yuta said with a nod.

Deeper in the establishment, the woman walked with Yuta until they reached one of the VIP lounges. Her expression quickly soured when she saw the state of the room and its sole inhabitant.

"Boe." She said harshly, raising her eyebrow at the third member of her trio laid lazily amid the discarded bottles on the stained red carpet, "Get up."

The woman lying on the ground let out a groan, her arm covering her face. Her vibrant lavender crop top was loosely tied, exposing one of her breasts, while her black shorts were hiked up. She had bare feet and her purple dyed hair fanned out around her head on the carpet. Boe flashed a smile as she fixed her top, then got up and leaned against the corner of the oversized couch.

"Mornin' Rin." She grunted, "What's up? Something going on?"

"You can't use these rooms like this." Rin sighed, "We'll need to have it cleaned for our guests tonight."

"Hey hey hey!" Boe grinned with a wave of her hand, "I was entertaining our guests! They just happened to leave before I did."

"Partying with Gojo until he gets bored is hardly what I'd call "entertaining our guests"," Rin said, "And where is your mask?"

"Eh?" Boe looked over and around her shoulders then on the square table in the center of the room, "It's here. Right here, hold your horses."

"Gonna need a new door." The woman from the office huffed as she joined her partners, adjusting her black sneakers, "I went overboard, sorry. That guy just really pissed me off."

"Oh shit!" Boe chuckled, "Did you get all spooky on him?"

"I did." She grinned, "Busted out the longsword for it."

"Sarah," Todo said, hurrying in after, "Ma'am, you forgot your mask." 

"Damn, thanks Todo." Sarah said with a nod, taking the light blue mask and tying the strings before letting it hang loosely around her neck, "What's going on down here? Boe, did you sleep in here again?"

"The carpet was nice." Boe shrugged.

"Well, in any case we need this room cleared." Rin sighed, "Tonight Yaga and his lieutenants plan on meeting here. We need to make sure everything is prepped." 

"Right, cool." Sarah nodded, "I'll let their favorite girls know." She glanced up at Todo, "C'mon big guy. Let's go."

Rin watched her companion leave, then looked back at Boe, "Get the cleaning team together and have them prep the room." She said, "And clean yourself up. They'll expect to see us tonight."

"Cool, yeah no prob." Boe said with a wide yawn, "I'll take care of it."

━─┉┈◈❖◈┈┉─━

"Fuck." Gojo groaned, pulling down his eyelid while looking in the mirror with his bright blue eyes, "I went way too hard last night." The whites of his eyes were bloodshot, evidence of his excessive binge.

"You go too hard every night." Geto chuckled, combing through his sleek black hair, "I have eye drops in the top drawer. They burn, so be aware."

Pulling out the drawer, Gojo shoved various bottles and tins out of the way until he found the eye drops. Tipping his head back, he held his eyelids open as he dropped two drops in one eye before screaming and punching his fist into the bathroom door with his eyes squeezed shut.

"Holy fuck!" He hissed through his teeth, tipping his head back to get the other eye, "Jesus Christ man these are a fucking nightmare!"

Geto straightened the collar of his crimson dress shirt, smoothing it down against the lapel of his well-tailored ivory suit. Shifting slightly as he admired his reflection, he made the choice to unfasten a couple more of the pristine buttons, revealing his chiseled chest and showcasing the vibrant tattoos adorning his pectoral muscles. Giving a satisfied nod, he ran his fingers through his hair one final time, effortlessly taming his bangs into their desired position.

In the meantime, Gojo effortlessly slipped into his sleek black jacket, which he wore over a vibrant yellow leopard print silk shirt. His leather pants left little to the imagination, while his luxurious Italian shoes made a distinct clicking sound on the floor as he made his way towards the mirror. Running his fingers through his hair, he smoothly slicked it back, revealing the stylish undercut beneath the fluffy white top. With a flick of his wrist, he opened the arm of his round sunglasses and effortlessly slid them onto his face, taking a moment to appreciate his own reflection.

"Are you two quite finished with your preening?" Nanami grunted, appearing in the doorway, "This evening isn't about meeting women."

"Every evening is about meeting women." Geto said with a coy smile, "They're always watching, you know."

Nanami scoffed, yet he had also bothered to dress up in a black turtleneck paired with a tan blazer. The loose-fitting marching pants and well-polished brown shoes completed his ensemble. As he tilted his head back and clicked his tongue, his round yellow glasses gleamed, before he turned away, allowing the birds to carry on admiring their own reflections.

"Sir." Nanami said giving a quick bow as Yaga turned the corner into the hall, "We're almost ready."

Yaga acknowledged Nanami with a nod, undoing the golden buttons on his crimson blazer sleeves and rolling them up to his elbows. His emerald floral silk shirt was neatly tucked into his ebony trousers, and the rings on his fingers shimmered in the subdued lighting. The scent of Yaga's preferred cologne wafted through the air, causing Nanami to inwardly sigh as he realized that not even his superior was immune to the captivating charm of the brothel's women.

The four men gathered in the hallway and Yaga looked at each of his lieutenants, "Tonight we'll be meeting with the Zen'in and Kamo groups." Gojo immediately groaned, but was silenced when Yaga held up a hand. "I expect respectful behavior, despite our feelings on the Zen'in. Is this understood?"

Geto and Nanami agreed immediately but Gojo just clicked his tongue and looked away. Yaga's arm snapped forward, gripping Gojo's collar hard and pulling the younger man forward roughly.

"I said, do you understand?" He growled.

Gojo grumbled, fixing his sunglasses back into place, "Yeah, yeah I get it."

Releasing the white haired man, Yaga stood up straighter and adjusted Gojo's collar back into place. "Good. Let's go."

They all donned their assigned Sorcerer masks, crafted meticulously from wood and fashioned in the likeness of Oni half-masks. Each mask boasted its own distinct design, yet shared common motifs that united them as a collective. Nanami's mask shimmered in gold, Gojo's in cobalt, Geto's in carmine, and Yaga's in a mesmerizing deep onyx. The golden fangs of each mask sparkled under the neon lights as they confidently made their way through the streets towards Tenjiku. 

The facade of the establishment exuded opulence, living up to the grandeur suggested by its name. A magnificent, glowing neon sign spanned across the main pathway leading to the entrance. Lining the walkway were meticulously arranged wisteria trees, their intoxicating purple blossoms serving as both an enchanting invitation and a subtle caution. Crossing over a sprawling koi pond, the path converged with pristine white marble steps that ascended towards a majestic palace. Adorned with towering crimson pillars and intricate golden embellishments, the entire edifice exuded a sense of ostentatious luxury. Undoubtedly, its reputation for extravagance was well-deserved.

Upon entering through the grand front doors, one is greeted by a luxurious entryway featuring a sleek black marble floor adorned with a lavish red carpet. The hall beyond is flanked by four majestic red pillars on either side, embellished with cascading flowering vines. The ceiling exudes a radiant light reminiscent of sunshine, with wisteria flowers hanging delicately like a chandelier, their petals gracefully suspended in mid-air, never touching the ground.

Just inside the hostess smiled brightly at the four of them with a deep bow, "Good evening, Gentleman. Shall I lead you to the VIP lounge?"

Yaga nodded, lifting his dark sunglasses to wink at the young woman, "Please, if you wouldn't mind."

She delicately concealed her enchanting smile behind her dainty hand, assuming an air of mystery as she gracefully nodded and took the lead, guiding them through the grand atrium. The opulent floor beneath their feet boasted a mesmerizing display of black marble, while at its heart, a resplendent red marble floor with exquisite carvings and adorned with a lavish seating arrangement. Encircling this regal seating area, a shallow square river meandered, its tranquil waters caressed by the presence of two magnificent bridges, exuding elegance and charm. With an air of confidence, women strode through this magnificent space, at times accompanied by patrons, and at times, embracing their own independent grace.

An abundance of doors encircled the grand atrium, serving as the rendezvous points for the ladies and their esteemed patrons. Beyond the discreet back entrance lay the expansive bar and the resplendent dance floor. Ascending to the upper level, one would discover yet another array of doors, while the pinnacle of luxury awaited on the third floor, where the exclusive VIP chambers and primary gathering spaces resided.

As Geto and Gojo strolled along, they exuded an air of confidence, relishing in the attention and admiration they received from the women who eagerly sought their affection. Meanwhile, Nanami maintained a stern expression, his gaze fixed straight ahead. Yaga, on the other hand, wore a charming smile and graciously acknowledged the greetings from the women they encountered. The fact that the leader and his lieutenants were all present in Tenjiku at once was a rare occurrence, and the women of the brothel couldn't help but anticipate an intriguing evening ahead.

With a graceful bow, the woman guiding them wished them a pleasant evening and headed towards the exit after they had arrived at the expansive VIP lounge. Just as she was about to leave, Yaga gently tapped her shoulder and slyly passed her a small stack of bills, accompanied by a wink and a half-smile. The woman blushed, concealing her smile once more before shutting the door behind them.

Gojo swiftly settled on the edge of the expansive square sofa that adorned the room, his gaze fixated on the door while his arms found solace on his knees. Geto and Nanami patiently lingered until Yaga had claimed his seat before opting to join their leader. With a hint of amusement, Geto playfully tapped his fist against Gojo's back.

"Relax, the Zen'in wouldn't be foolish enough to try something here." Geto said with a chuckle.

"I don't give a shit about the Zen'in right now." Gojo said with a smirk, not even looking away from the door for even a moment, "I wanna see her."

Geto, Nanami, and Yaga synchronized their eye rolls, knowing this situation was bound to go south. It always did.

The doors opened and Gojo immediately got excitedly to his feet only to grumble and sit back down when it was Naobito Zen'in who entered the lounge. With a grunting bark of a laugh, the old man strode past Gojo with his own three lieutenants in tow.

Naobito and Ogi, being brothers, possessed a striking resemblance with their sharp, pointed chins and slender figures. Their long gray hair was elegantly tied into sleek low ponytails. On the other hand, Jinichi stood out with his broader build and muscular physique, allowing his wild black hair to flow freely. The rough stubble on his face only enhanced his rugged appearance. As for the youngest lieutenant, Megumi Zen'in, who was merely sixteen years old, had attempted to slick back his deep black hair, but it seemed to have backfired, making him appear even more out of place. Despite their differences, all four of them shared the same piercing, cold dark eyes, each expression exuding a chilling malevolence.

Shortly after, Kamo arrived accompanied by his two lieutenants. Kamo had always opted to conceal his identity behind his mask, but Hizumi and Araki had no qualms about revealing themselves. Hizumi, tall with a long, thin face and short blonde hair, looked even taller in his well-tailored pinstripe suit. On the other hand, Araki appeared quite unassuming, with his ordinary features and quickly combed dark hair, resembling the typical businessman. 

Behind them, a small group of women entered the room. They were all dressed in slacks and white dress shirts, black vests with red trim over top and little black bow ties. They brought in bottles of alcohol, specifically chosen for each of the men's specific tastes and began to serve them their drinks.

"Where are our esteemed owners?" Kamo chuckled as he received his drink, "It's unlike them to be tardy."

"Probably had a job elsewhere." Naobito grunted, giving a lingering gaze to the woman in front of him as she poured his sake.

"Still, it's unlike them to not be the first in their own establishment." Kamo said, nodding thanks to the woman who handed him his whiskey.

All gazes shifted towards the door as it swung open once more, prompting every man to rise and welcome the trio of women who entered the room. Rin took the lead, offering a warm smile to each man she encountered, followed by Boe who casually waved at them. Lastly, Sarah stepped in, but before she could utter a word, Gojo swiftly moved in on her, catching her off guard.

"Hey sweet stuff." With a seductive tone, he murmured, running his fingers through his hair and tilting his head to the side as he stood tall above her. "Long time no see," he whispered. His hand boldly glided over her shoulder and down her spine, gently tracing the crimson scar that extended across her back from her shoulder to her hip.

"Hands off, shit stain." She growled, "I didn't come here to see you."

He flashed a wide smile as she brushed past him, paying no attention to her attitude, and eagerly trailed behind her. Sporting a mischievous grin, he settled down beside her on the sofa. When one of the ladies approached to prepare their drinks, he swiftly gestured for her to leave and concocted a beverage for her himself. 

She let out a deep sigh and reluctantly took a sip of the drink. "Not bad," she muttered, and he nodded enthusiastically. He leaned in close again, his lips parted to likely whisper some kind of lewd invitation to her before Rin cleared her throat, shutting down that conversation before it quickly spiraled out of control.

"Good evening, gentlemen," she greeted, gracefully taking off her mask and delicately setting it on the tables. "May I inquire about the reason we find ourselves welcoming so many of our distinguished guests to Tenjiku tonight?" Following suit, all of the sorcerers either removed their masks or chose to place them on the table anyway as an olive branch of sorts. 

"We needed to come together to chat about the curse problem." Naobito said, jutting his head towards the woman who'd poured his sake. When she approached with the bottle, he snatched it from her hands and waved her off, choosing to drink directly from the bottle.

"There's been quite the rise in the curse population, lately." Yaga explained, "We wanted to get together and discuss the current state of the city and how it's been handling the increase."

"Oh true," Boe said, flicking the straw in her drink, "We have seen a lot more of those creeps coming in here lately."

"You serve curses too?" Megumi asked suddenly, chiming in.

"We serve anyone," Sarah said, "Well anyone of age anyway." She raised her eyebrow at the cup in his hand, "That better not be alcoholic, kid. I don't want to pay that fine."

"I'll cover it if it comes up." Naobito chuckled, patting his great nephew on the back, "Don't you worry your pretty little head."

"If I may ask," Kamo asked, "The curses that have been visiting, were they the latest group of humanoid types?"

Rin nodded, "Yes, they were. We had one of our women unexpectedly injured after being chosen by a curse for an evening. Their new forms can be quite deceptive for the rare human who can't see the cursed energy."

"We took measures to put more advanced surveillance around." Sarah added, "They won't be able to sneak up on us again."

"As for our end," Yaga spoke up, "Our businesses have also been experiencing theft and attempts at fraud." He glanced over at Nanami who continued.

"Within the last month we've seen an increase in specifically food and alcohol theft." The blonde man explained, "Even an attempt at a large scale scam involving intercepting out shipments and swapping the liquids."

Kamo nodded, then added, "We too have seen the increase. And you Zen'in? A similar issue, I assume?"

"No." Naobito said with a twisted grin, "But we don't serve curses in our establishments so I'm not surprised they're too afraid to steal from us."

"What should we do then?" Boe asked, "Like, we can just keep letting them do whatever they want right?"

"If we just exorcize then it won't be an issue." Naobito huffed after taking a long swig of his sake, "

"If it were that simple, we'd have done it a long time ago, old man." Gojo gritted, propping his arms up on the backrest of the couch behind him, "Can't just do that anymore, though I'm sure you keep forgetting it's not still the good ol' days, huh?"

"Gojo!" Yaga snapped, only for Naobito to wave his hand dismissively as he laughed.

"Let him bark. We all know the Gojo clan's prized puppy won't bite in here." Naobito sneered.

Gojo stood up, slamming his drink on the glass table, "You think you have a shot against me, old man?" He roared. 

Naobito sat still, tilting his head back defiantly, "You wouldn't dare challenge me here, especially not in front of your favorite whore."

"You mothefuc--"

"Zen'in." Sarah snapped, stepping in front of Gojo, "Talk about me like that again and you'll regret it. We don't use that word here."

Naobito placed the vacant sake bottle gently on the table, a wide grin spreading across his face. The three women had stood up simultaneously, Rin revealing her extended claws and sharp teeth, Boe holding her bloodied knives firmly in her hands, and Sarah swiftly unsheathing a sword from the scar on her back. Naobito couldn't contain his amusement and let out a hearty laugh before settling back into his seat.

"My apologies, ladies." He said lazily, "I meant no disrespect. The sake was talking for me."

The three women reluctantly calmed down, though the hatred was still searing in their eyes. Taking their seats again, Gojo still remained standing with his hands balled into fists. He gritted his teeth before sitting down with a huff. 

The discussion picked up again after the tense moment with Geto stepping in to smooth it over.

"Well, perhaps the Zen'in are on to something." Geto said, "It wouldn't be against the law to exorcize curses who are committing a crime. Perhaps we could work with the law enforcement on this particular case?"

"Not a bad idea." Yaga agreed, rubbing his goatee with his fingers, "That would set the stage for us to exorcize any curses on our properties after hours."

"That seems agreeable to me." Kamo nodded, "And as long as we all follow that particular thought process we should have no trouble with the law."

"Or at least right away." Naobito grunted, "I'm sure the curse sympathisers will find a reason to make it a noble cause."

"They will always find a reason." Yaga agreed, "But hopefully we can put a stop to their thievery before that happens. I think a collaborative effort in this case is a good idea."

"A toast then? To a temporary truce?" Kamo said, holding up his glass, "To yet another reason to do what we were born to do."

All the guests raised their crystal glasses, savoring each sip of their exquisite libations. In due time, the ladies of the establishment were gracefully escorted into the exclusive VIP area. Greeted with affectionate, intoxicated grins, the favorite companions of the night arrived to charm and ensure the festivities, beverages, and most importantly, the cash, continued to flow effortlessly.

In the heart of the city's underbelly, where neon lights flicker like promises unkept, lies the red light district. It's a place where shadows dance to the rhythm of desire, and the air is thick with anticipation. As the moon ascends, the streets come alive with a cacophony of laughter, music, and the clinking of glasses. 

Sultry sirens beckon from dimly lit doorways, their eyes flashing with mischief. Every alleyway is a labyrinth of temptation, each corner hiding secrets waiting to be discovered. The bars overflow with the lost souls of the night, drowning their sorrows in rivers of alcohol. The scent of whiskey hangs heavy in the air, mingling with the smoke of a thousand cigarettes. 

In this city of sin, time is a concept forgotten, and consequences are but distant whispers. It's a place where the line between pleasure and pain blurs into oblivion, and the only rule is to indulge in the moment.

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