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| The town of Ridgefield is a port city nestled on a the mouth of the Escanaba River. The town was founded in the early 1700s by the French, although they were not the areas first settlers. The Anishinabe people were the first who lived off the land. When the French arrived in the 17th century the Native Americans and Europeans began to interact, trading fur, which made the region a rich economic resource for the French and later the English. The French left in 1763 by the terms of the Treaty of Paris and were replaced by the English. During the American Revolution, the citizens of Ridgefield, who's English name was translated from the original French (Champ D'Arete), were relatively safe from the throws of war. However many were still loyal to the English throne and fought for England. The United States eventually took over the Old Northwest of which the Upper Peninsula was a part in 1797, after many Loyalists left the area for Great Britain. Through the first half of the 19th century the Americans continued to interact with the Native Americans around the fur trade. With the decline of the fur trade in the 1830s many turned to the fishing industry with the Native Americans as active participants. However, the American taste was not attracted to salted whitefish and many local fisheries went under. During the years prior to the 1840s missionaries ministering to the Native Americans were an important part of the story of Ridgefield. Many Jesuit missionaries came over with the French, but were not forced to leave in 1763. Not only did they minister to the Native Americans but they were chroniclers of the land and its people who have left their observations and comments in the Jesuit Relations. With the coming of the Americans came Protestant missionaries from New England who firmly established themselves in Ridgefield and the area surrounding it, which would soon be known as Delta County. The Catholics returned in the 1830s, who are still present in today. Later, with the coming of American settlers, these missionaries were torn between ministering to the Native Americans or the American settlers. After statehood in 1837, the State of Michigan had the Upper Peninsula surveyed linearly and geologically under the direction of Douglass Houghton and others. In the mid-1840s copper was discovered on the Keweenaw Peninsula and iron ore in the central Upper Peninsula inland west of Marquette. This began "copper fever" which attracted thousands of American and immigrants to the economic opportunities of this mining frontier. The California Gold Rush might be more famous but Michigan ultimately produced more mineral wealth. There are several abandoned mines in Ridgefield now, all of which have long been abandoned, but many teenagers like to go there as many have been rumored to be haunted by ghosts of miners who died there. It was iron and copper that brought the first great population boom to the region. The first immigrants to enter the Upper Peninsula were the Cornish with their centuries of mining knowledge followed by the Germans and Irish fleeing famine and political unrest in the Old Country, and French Canadians. In the late 19th century immigrants from Italy, Finland, Scandinavia, Poland, Russia, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Wales and Scotland and even from the Isle of Man and China. These people brought with them their ethnic traditions and foods. In 1917 a writer for the National Geographic Magazine could say that when you left Escanaba and traveled to Ridgefield or Gladstone some thirty to fourty miles away it was like entering a foreign land. Ethnic churches, newspapers, clubs, shops dominated Ridgefield where over 75% of the population was foreign-born. Similar conditions existed throughout the Upper Peninsula. This immigrant tradition has left the region with what dialectic folklore. The "Golden Age" of the Ridgefield as well as the Upper Peninsula was between 1880 and 1913. Economic opportunity attracted hundreds and then thousands of people. During the summer season ore boats sailed round the clock to get the ore to industrial centers. Today this tradition continues. Jobs could be found in the expanding timber industry where the rich white pine forests were quickly cut and then the hard woods were taken. Commercial fishing brought prosperity to Ridgefield and many other towns along Lake Michigan. Railroads crisscrossed the region and connected Delta County and Ridgefield with Detroit, Chicago, and Minneapolis, just an overnight trip to the south. The economy and increased population caused a demand for better education. Richmond High was founded in 1890, only originally it wasn't a high school. It served all grades and only had 5 rooms. Once more and more families moved to Ridgefield, it was clear that this certainly was not going to be sufficient. The local churches took up a collection and got enough to pay for the addition, expanding the building from 5 to 10 rooms. The Great Depression brought the "Golden Era" to an end. There was little demand for copper and iron, the two industries that brought the most people to Ridgefield. The mining industry closed down and unemployment rose. However at the same time, many residents who had left the region for jobs in the urban industrial centers in the 1920s returned to the Ridgefiel. They wanted to return to their roots, families and traditions. New Deal programs like the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) provided them with an income which kept them going through the hard times. Tourism, however, quickly became a new industry for Ridgefield, picking up where the mining industry left off. The area's heavy snowfall has allowed skiing to develop as a major industry. Throughout the year a variety of celebrations and festivals are celebrated throughout Delta County and Ridgefield, bringing in thousands of dollars in revenues for its residents. Today Ridgefield is a thriving city and community with a populatin varying between 40-50,000, depending on the season. Not too far away is the Hiawatha National Forest, which helps to preserve the Native American ways and made famous by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem about the young Native American. Winter or summer you will find the Upper Peninsula a pleasant place to visit, enjoy the natural beautiful, the colorful traditions, and the hospitality of the people. Richmond High |
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A Dark World Everyone has their secrets, so does the world Every city has its secrets, things that are hidden behind the surface, away from the view of the many. However none of these secrets compare to the darkness within. Welcome to Capitol City, Capital of the USA. The modern sprawl has been renovated over the last few years and is now one of the more modern cities in the US. With this renovation however came an influx of the supernatural, the true darkness within. Now a hot spot for the damned, vampires roam the streets using them as ample hunting grounds. The Pure Bloods have their own society hidden behind the everyday workings of mortals, owning their own business, making their own money and fighting their own war. For alongside them walk the turned, a plague amongst humanity. Their lives taken from them and replaced with a thirst, the horror of being a monster. The pure bloods fight to retain that which they have always known, to rid the world of the curse they caused whilst the Turned fight to survive. The war of the damned has threatened the very way that the mortals live without them truly knowing. Luckily they have unseen guardians, creatures whose soul purpose is to protect them, to protect nature. Werewolves stalk the streets, guarding the children of nature against the corruption of the damned. They fight the destruction of nature in all her forms, from humanity to the trees, werewolves will fight to the death to protect them. However they too fight a grave enemy, their own kin who became so overcome by the protection of nature that it warped them. Stalking the streets and the forests, raining destruction on humanity and its creations, the Savage fight their own war. Seeing all that is un-natural and all that threatens nature as their enemy the Savage seek to slaughter and destroy all in their path. Oblivious to this war mortals go through life never knowing. A shroud that was pulled over their eyes many thousands of years ago to protect them from the fear and disbelief. However in recent years some have come to see that which is in front of them, the true face of the supernatural becoming apparent. These individuals can slowly go crazy from the horrors they witness yet do not understand. Some turn to hunting them in hope of some release others research, trying to find out more. Which ever path they choose, once they gain this sight the Seers can never return to the normal life. They are not the only Mortals who are different however. There is a hidden energy surrounding everything, an unseen force that effects all living things in the slightest of ways. Some mortals grow to feel this energy flowing through them and it manifests in the form of magical. From pyromancy to telekinesis, these Magi harbour powers the likes of which were only heard of in stories. However they were never truly understood and slowly a fear grew with in them, within their blood. Where previously they were hunted by fanatical witch hunters they now hide in fear, harbouring their powers scared to use them for fear of a new witch hunt. Now they join in conclaves, seeking the safety of each other and protecting the world as best they can. There are few however who choose to walk alone, fighting the fear in true belief they can survive alone. With war and blood shed it is no surprise that mortals die often, collateral damage in a war they can never understand, a war they will never know. Some of these mortals however are not ready to leave, their souls having unfinished business to attend to. Maybe they wish for one last goodbye or too stop their family home being demolished, what ever their business their souls remain as a Shadow. Spirits in a realm adjacent to our own, they are the shiver up your spine, the whisper on the wind and the person behind you when there is no one there. Powerful in their own right but weak without their business the shadows are truly a dangerous enemy but they can be a powerful ally. What part will you play in this eternal struggle. Will you be the pure blood who spends her nights hunting down the turned who killed her family or the werewolf who believes strongly in protecting his mortal family. Maybe you will be the Shadow remaining behind to watch over your orphaned son or the mortal witch hunter devout to hunting down every last magi. Whoever you are this world is a testing one and no one knows if you can truly survive this dark world. Copyright© Richard Fitzharris, Plymouth, Devon, UK March 2006 |
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Crimson Future It’s the year 2075. The world has advanced through several degrees of technology before reaching its peak in 2055. Now everything you know, do, say or think will have some connection to technology. At the floor of this technological advance is the WWW (world wide web), by 2055 however it had become the IWIN (Integrated World Information Network) and is bigger than ever. No longer do people shop in huge supermarkets or department stores instead they enter small high street shops, plug in the PDA and buy as they please. If you want it then the IWIN will have it. However this world is no technological haven. During the early 30’s several corporations gained political influence on a global scale. This was thanks to the near apocalyptic destruction of mankind at the hands of a meteor. The Meteor was destroyed by a super weapon designed by America in conjunction with Caldor & Zulu and Crimson Mechanics. This however caused the creation of Cluso Canyon, the barren waste lands and the deaths of several million Europeans. This then turned into what has become know as the corporate 30’s. Because of this slowly governments fell and the corporations took hold. The power taken from such integration began to mould countries into one. The four world corporations following the mould were Caldor & Zulu, Crimson Mechanics, SSH (Sony Samurai Hiatsu) and GMWN (Global Media & World News). The biggest of these corporations, Caldor & Zulu, took what remained of Europe by storm and soon all that was once the European Union had become the Caldor & Zulu state. Gone were the days of government run police, fire and hospital services, instead the services were hired out to the highest bidder becoming private run companies. With all this corporate change the class system returned and with it came districts. The Caldor & Zulu state became split into Corporate, Yellow and Red Zones. Corporate zones are the life of luxury, all the mod cons and zero crime tolerance. Yellow Zones are the middle class, no mod cons just the bulk standard life that people worked for, a nice house, a car and a family. Red Zones are the lowest of the low, not maintained, heavily run down, the poor, the homeless and the criminals all placed in these crap holes. No surprise then that slowly the red zones fell to gang warfare. If you didn't conform then you were thrown from the city to the Barrens, home to every criminal under the sun: the post apocalyptic hell that the outside world had become. In the beginning, the little man had to do a lot to make his way to the top, now there is no place for the little man. With the class system meaning everything and crime on the rise in several districts you need to be rich to live a real life. If you don't have the money then you don't have the life, you spend your time in the Red Zones. Surrounded by poverty, ruin, death and disease, the post apocalyptic death camps. The only chance you might have is to work for the gangs, then either face death through gang warfare or live a fairly decent life. In the Red Zones, just like the Barrens, survival is everything. Welcome to the world of Crimson Future. Who will you be in this post apocalyptic age of technology where corporations rule from on high whilst private law enforcement agencies and criminal groups run their own territories in which ever way they wish? Will you be the doctor who is struggling to find the cure to please the corporate executives, or will you be the mercenary who doesn't care about anything other than getting cash? Maybe you will be a resistance fighter, from the Barrens, intent on bringing down the system one step at a time or a reporter who just wants to bring the real news from the Red Zones to the people of the Yellow & corporate zones. Who ever you are the, world of Crimson Future is a dangerous one. Not everyone will survive in this post apocalyptic, corporate ruled, world of survival. Copyright© Richard Fitzharris, Plymouth, Devon, UK March 2006 |
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Welcome to Our World Many secrets lie within Aurora Bridge. Along with a tragic history, great powers, and a curse. When you first enter the quiet town of Aurora Bridge, it is a seemingly normal town. It has a town park, great restaurants, schools, museums, libraries, and everything else a small, quiet town up in the mountains has. Little do most people know, that if you stay past midnight, the mystery of Aurora Bridge will begin to unravel. It all started long ago, when the world of the gifted lived with normal people in peace. These Gifted People, as they called them, had extraordinary powers. They could bend water, read people's minds, stop time, and much more. Yet, not all used their powers for good. The world of the Gifted was in danger. They ran from their troubles, hiding from what they could not defeat. So, that's when it all started. The town of Aurora Bridge was built, and it became home and hiding place to these people. That was when Hayden unleashed her all-powerful curse. She made it so that these people could never leave Aurora Bridge for more then four weeks. If you tried to escape forever, you would be drawn back by force. At first it was thought just to be for protection, and the spell had gone horribly wrong. Unfortunately for the inhabitants you could not leave Aurora Bridge at all, but instead if you stayed there past midnight you could not leave, no matter how hard you tried. The magic was permanent…or so they think. Yet many still have questions about what happened so long ago. One of them is: what really happened here more than a hundred years ago? What secrets does Aurora Bridge still hold? Why did Hayden unleash her curse on the innocent people of this town? Will the mystery finally be solved? For years, centuries even, this curse has been running, ruining the lives of innocent people. But what happens if these people aren’t so innocent after all? Old tales tell of reincarnations, which means that the soul of one is put into a variety of different things, people, or even animals. There’s a reason why some of the occupants of Aurora Bridge are there. If it was accidental or not, they are reincarnations of the people living there centuries ago. Back when Hayden cursed the town and it's people. Speaking of Hayden...How could one sorceress do this alone? The legend also states that Hayden had followers, worshipers, people with powers that helped her curse this town. Who knew if it was under one of her mind control tricks or they did it willingly? Thirteen certain occupants of Aurora Bridge are the reincarnations of the followers, or cult so to speak. One including Hayden's reincarnation. Each held a possession given to them by a loved one. Whether it was a necklace or a ring, it held a symbol of the followers, which was a circle with a simple dot in the middle. There were thirteen possessions; A locket that could not be opened without the key and inside a little symbol of their power, a ring on the inside of the bend was the symbol, earrings which were made to look like the symbol of their power, a pearl necklace with the symbol inscribed on one of the smaller pearls, a silver watch with the symbol on the back of the face, a toe ring with the symbol on the inside like the ring, an ankle bracelet made from shapes looking like the symbols, a belly button ring with the symbol as the jewel, a headband with the symbol printed onto it, sunglasses with the symbol inscribed behind the nose rest, a tattoo somewhere on their body of the symbol, another locket with the symbol on the back, and for Hayden's reincarnation... Well, this was a book full of spells with the symbol on the front. What happens when these thirteen people together, somehow, find the inscription of the symbol, and that triggers their memories? Small flashbacks occur of their pasts, such as birthdays, but then nightmares begin to surface, showing the curse that they helped with and what they did to help out. Killing people, killing themselves as sacrifices. Gruesome images, and them WHAM! the curse is brought across Aurora Bridge. Which side will the reincarnations choose? The evil side where they team up to try and worsen the curse... or the good side where they try to find the temple with the key to killing the curse forever? Decades have passed without any signs of the reincarnations. As time went by, the powers began to fade. The prophecy was forgotten. But now, in the twenty-first century, strange things are beginning to pick up again. Powers are being discovered. Secrets are being revealed. Who knows? Maybe Hayden might show her face again....? Meanwhile The Cliques The In-crowd When it comes to the In-crowd, only one thing is for sure. Any normal student would die to be a member. They're beutiful, rich, and popular. They all seem to have a great life. Hey, they even get their own table at lunch. But one thing about the populars is well...they aren't exactly the nicest people around. But hey, who doesn't want to bully the smart kid into doing your homework? The Jocks When it comes to sports, these guys and girls know what to do. They dominate the field in gym. Let's face it, they're all the sports lover's heros. The popular girls are all obsessed with the jock guys. And hey, what guy wouldn't want to date a girl who's won the State Championship three times in a row? The Emo Kids You know, Emo people aren't all that different then the rest of us. They just dress differently and all that stuff. Most of them are proud to be declared Emo. No, not all of them are suicidal. When it actually comes down to it, the Emo kids can be sort of cool. The Rebels These are the students that aren't quite emo, but still dress the same. The rebels are usually much more outgoing and aren't afraid to stand up for what they believe in. They're usually very stubborn and hate the In-crowd to death. Their greatest allies are the Emo's. Can they some how mange to over through the populars? The odds are against them. The Skaters Oh the wonderful world of skateboarding. These students love to dress in comfortable clothes, and basically pull pranks. They're what you would call...the third step down from Emo. But lately things between the Emo and the Skaters aren't going very well. What will happen next? The Preps Every school has their students that are labeled Preps. The ones who are smart, obsessed with themselves, etc, etc. Most of this group is made up of girls, but don't get me wrong, some boys can be preps too. The Geeks The geeks. Every school has 'em. Most of them are techno nerds, or are just plain ugly. They are always getting picked on by...well, everyone. But one thing they have that most of the others don't is brains. The Loners So this is what happens when you get thrown out of your clique? Wow. The Loners are basically all the students that are well...alone. They usually either get kicked out of their group for doing something extremely bad, or just never mad it into one. And if you can't even make it into the geeks, that's pretty sad. ------------------------------ Back at Aurora Bridge Boarding Academy, the prophecy is the least of their worries. The In-crowd continues to rule the school along with the jocks. Everything is a mess. The cliques are at war, the teachers are strict, etc. Just your normal high school drama. What will happen next? Are you ready to face the drama? Aurora Bridge |




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| Byrtwold enters stage right with a bone china cup and a newspaper. "Yes, friends, Terrible Mess is resurrecting itself from InvisionFree obscurity and we need your help. Please send 1 million dollars care of Byrt to the Twenty-Seventh Dunge..." *anvil drops* ... *muzac interlude* Byrtwold comes in looking rather disheveled and bashes the muzac speaker in with a baseball bat. "As I was saying, we need your....participation. Get involved and let us know what could make this site the best ever." The audience blinks in either confusion or dismay, it's not entirely clear which. "Alright, we'll just settle for active...." A rather plump and juicy lemon rolls onto stage, looking very sleepy and not all together pleased. "Whats this I hear about starting this mess up again! Haven't you been enjoying your vacation Byrt! I met so many hot peppers while i was gone!" "If you call 5 angry housewives, eighty pounds of lettuce and 2 spitting llamas enjoying my vacation...." Rubbing his eyes sleepily, the lemon shrugged, "Oh well, I guess I might meet some nice fruits here, though I am very disappointed in the amount of two-leggers, its becoming dangerous to be a citrus fruit around here!" Byrt looks slightly disgruntled, and appears to have nothing to say to that. Grunting, he exits stage left. Waving to the audience, or so it appears, Lemon winks at a jalepeno and rolls out the side exit to the hot salsa club down the street. Terrible Mess - Role Playing with a Sense of Humor // If we were not so lazy, we might make a banner for here, but we are so just pretend we made one // |
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I solve my problems and I see the light We gotta plug and think, we gotta feed it right There ain't no danger we can go to far We start believing now that we can be who we are They say high school is a sham. You go, you pretend to learn, and the only thing you really accomplish is wasting four good years on absolutely nothing. When has school ever been about studying? It's about relationships and the people you hang out with. It's about learning who you really are; it's about growing up. They think our love is just a growing pain Why don't they understand, It's just a crying shame Their lips are lying only real is real We start to find right now we got to be what we feel Back in the day life was pretty damn simple. School was only background noise to a bigger picture. The only thing that mattered was living life to the fullest. Anything else was just a passing fancy. It was a time of poodle skirts and sock hops; a time when being cool was everything. We take the pressure and we throw away Conventionality belongs to yesterday There is a chance that we can make it so far We start believing now that we can be who we are You had a clique and you stuck to them like glue, never venturing far from their reach. They were your friends, your life...your future. Without them you would be nothing but a picture in the year book. Grease is the word Grease is the word, is the word that you heard It's got groove it's got meaning Grease is the time, is the place is the motion Grease is the way we are feeling But sometimes things got complicated and you would find yourself wondering if life really was about art, school, or being cool. Back then it was easy to lose light of who you really were. Memories aren't always forever. They fade with the passage of time. The things that mattered back then never stay the same, but if anything else, the one thing you can never forget is that Grease is the Word. It always has been, and it always will be. Lyrics © Frankie Valli |

