Plot: In the year 2050, astronomers stared through their telescopes in concern. Only six light years away from Earth, a star was beginning to die. This star had been looked over many times; it was considered too small to create a supernova explosion. But astronomers across the world realized that they had been very wrong.

Six years later, the light from the supernova explosion reached Earth. People were astounded by the fantastic colors in the night sky, not understanding what this meant for them. Four years after that, particles from the explosion, traveling at nearly the speed of light, collided with the Earth. Most of the atmosphere was immediately blown away.

With the Ozone Layer gone, the Earth's surface was bombarded with radiation from space. This radiation had devastating effects on all life. Most organisms were wiped out within a short period of time.

Remarkably, a very small percentage of organisms were able to survive. It wasn't that these organisms were able to avoid the deadly radiation, but rather that it affected them in a different way. Instead of causing cancer, it gave them a peculiar mutation: red pigment. This red pigment within the surviving organisms' cells refracts the ultraviolet rays, keeping their DNA safe.

The mutations from the initial dose of radiation didn't end here for the more complex creatures, however. Many have gone through extreme physical changes that help them endure the harsh conditions, and some have even gained new abilities. The approximately 65,000 humans that have survived are taking advantage of this. They must make do with what few resources are left, and they might be forced to compete with animals and other people in order to get what they need.

Setting: A small town in the Northeastern United States. For reasons unknown, the survival rate of the people in this town was higher than normal. It's only been a year since the disaster, so the man-made structures of the town are relatively unchanged. The land is barren. The majority of plant species have died off, except for some red grasses and shrubs. Most people are only active at night because their skin and eyes can still be burned by the sun. There is a small amount of greenhouse gases left in the atmosphere, which keeps the air temperature just above freezing.

Rules:

1. You don't have to type up mini-novels every time you post, but try to be literate.
2. DO NOT QUIT THE ROLEPLAY WITHOUT TELLING ME. I can't even explain how much that annoys me.
3. Try not to flood people out.
4. If you're ever away for a while and we've moved far along, I will give you a summary. This doesn't mean I'll give people summaries all the time, though.
5. Your character can have ONE special power/ability. I'll leave this pretty open, but just nothing too ridiculous and nothing that makes your character all-powerful.
6. Other than this one ability, characters can have adaptions that help them deal with the harsh environment, as well as strange changes in appearance. Having reddish skin is mandatory.
7. This isn't supposed to be a happy-everybody-gets-along roleplay. There can be some positive relationships between characters, but there should also be some fighting to keep it interesting.

Character Sheet: Name: Age: Gender: Appearance: Ability: Special Adaptions: (optional) Other: (optional)

ooc; If you don't mind me asking, I'm very interested in joining, but I'm a bit confused on the abilities? Can you give some examples?

(By abilities, I really meant powers, as in increased strength or speed, control over elements, etc. Sorry that it wasn't clear.)

ooc; Thanks. (: I was just confused.

BIC;

Name: Willow Allaison

Age:19

Gender: Female

Appearance: Except with the obvious Redened skin

Ability: To manipulate Water in any form.

Special Adaptions: Her ears have become slightly slanted, to make her hearing almost inhuman. She also sweats very little, due to her ability.

Other: Willow is very quiet, and has been since the incident, and tries to keep to herself. She often is found wearing a loose shirt, with cargo jeans on her leg. She's become very agile and almost boy like. As stated before, she's very quiet, but once she warms up to you, it's going to take alot to shut her up.

(Alright. Here's mine. We can start after a few more people join.)

Name: Henry Age: 18 Gender: Male Appearance: He is thin-framed and fairly tall. He has short black hair that's spiked up towards the back of his head (similar to the "rebel" hairstyle for human avatars). It falls into bangs that cut diagonally across his face to one side. His eyes are neon yellow and slanted like a cat's. They glow when light shines on them. His skin is light reddish-brown, or rust colored. He normally wears a plain t-shirt with a gray sweater and a khaki colored jacket as well as two pairs of sweat pants layered on top of each other to keep himself warm. This makes him appear bulkier than he really is. Ability: He is able to increase the amount of electricity that his body produces naturally through nerve signals. He can produce so much of this electricity that the excess leaves his body and can be used to shock his opponent. If he is able to hold onto the offender long enough to deliver the shock, he can stop their heart from beating. This ability can only be used at close-range, however, as the electricity can only reach about a foot away from his body. Special Adaptions: He has night vision of the same clarity as a cat's because he has developed the same mirror-like eye part that many nocturnal animals have. This is why his eyes glow when exposed to light. Other: Soon after the disaster occurred, Henry found a young dog who he named Buck. He immediately adopted the German Shepherd puppy as his permanent companion. The dog is small for a German Shepherd. His white fur hides his bright red skin. His eyes are crimson, giving him an intimidating appearance. Despite this, he isn't very vicious or protective. He is actually rather timid, and he wouldn't attack a person unless they harmed him.

(ooc: May I join? :))

Name: Nekuya Kemisa

Age: 18

Gender: Female

Appearance:

Ability: Nekuya has the ability to bring plants back to life, as well as aid them in their development.

Special Adaptions: In the morning, her long tail is used to regulate her temperature, and keep it at a comfortable medium.

Other: Nefertiti's cat, Ebony, grew greatly in size. She know is 5 feet tall, and has thicker black fur.

(Yes, you can join. We can post intros now. Hopefully some more people will join later.)

"Come on, pooch," Henry called out as he trudged along the road. The white German Shepherd followed submissively a few feet behind him. In one hand, he carried a cloth grocery bag containing some non-perishable foods. In the other, he carried a metal pale filled with snow. He kicked open the door to his house and stepped into the main hallway. The only light that came in was from the moon, but it was enough for him to see. This was the house he had lived in with his parents before the supernova explosion. Everything about it was the same, except for the fact that there was no longer any heat or lighting.

He walked into his living room and set the bucket of snow a few inches away from the fireplace, which was filled with dry, reddish straw. He then set the straw on fire with a small burst of electricity from his finger. Except in hot springs, there was no longer any liquid fresh water on Earth due to the extreme drop in temperatures. Melting snow or ice was the only way to retrieve it. Snow became contaminated very easily, so fresh, clean snow was a precious resource. Henry had been in a fight more than once for it.

As the snow began to melt, he headed into the kitchen and retrieved a can opener, as well as a few utensils. He emptied the bag of groceries on the living room floor. There was a package of beef jerky, a can of green beans, a can of carrots and a box of dried rice. This would be his food supply for the next two days. All of the people living in this town took food from the local supermarket. It seemed that there would be enough food for several years at first, but after a year of the nearly 30 survivors getting their daily meals from the same market, the supply was beginning to dwindle. Henry was rationing himself greatly, and it was becoming apparent. He was beginning to grow skinny and weak, as well as Buck. The dog's ribs were visible even through his thick fur. But somehow, they still managed to survive.

Once the water was at a boil, he poured some of it into a separate pot and cooked the rice and vegetables in it. He opened the pack of beef jerky and began to share it with Buck. Fortunately these preserved food products hadn't been affected by the radiation. He sipped a cup of hot water and relaxed a bit as he felt a warm chill pass through his body. With his necessities taken care of for the night, he was able to let his mind wander. Like every other day that had passed since the disaster, he wondered why he was one of the few that survived.

Walking home, was Willow, whom lived a few houses down from Henry. In one hand was a large pail, almost as big as a cement bucket, full of snow. The snow looked okay, but she hadn't looked to be sure it wasn't contaminated. She didn't need to. She could bring the water out of it, unharmed. That was one of Willow's abilities. She could bring water out of wherever it was present, even in the smallest drop. Willow hadn't lived in this home when the Supernova hit, she lived a few towns over, but came here when learning there were others. This was her family's home though.

Willow didn't have to worry about getting food from the supermarket yet, her family being an overreactive one, had stocked up before the supernova hit. She still fed herslef little. She shivered as she continued to carry the bucket up the steps to her porch. She entered her home, and lit a candle with a match. She had bought plenty of candles and matches from a store before the Supernova. They seemed to relax her. Willow walked into her home's living room. She walked over to the fireplace that was used quite frequently now. She threw a match into the red grass, and sat infront of the fire. She felt herself warm up.

Willow stood and went into the kitchen, and grabbed a bullion cube. She ate this most of the time, because it was filling, and She had many. She walked back into her living room, and put her hand above the snow. She filtered the water, seeing it float in the air, and dropped it into another pot. She dropped the cube in and let it cook. Willow wrapped herself in a blanket, and waited for her dinner to be complete.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Nekuya grumbled as her alarm clock rang, it's cracked face letting the red light of the numbers leak into her eyes. "I need to fix that." she told herself, slamming her hand against the surface of the night table. Grasping the handle of a drawer, she slid it open. Several knickknacks were inside, along with an ancient portable gaming system.

Picking up a piece of string, she chuckled as she methodically wrapped it around her index finger. The bedroom door creaked open, a deep meow echoing into the room. Shutting the drower, she gazed ahead with a smile. "Hey, Ebony." she called happily, patting the space beside her. A large, tiger-like cat entered the room, it's intense green eyes locked on Nekuya. Jumping onto the bed, Nekuya laughed as the frame shook under the large cat's weight.

Grabbing a pair of pants and a shirt from a disheveled pile of clothing in the corner, she thew them on her bed haphazardly. Grasping her pants in her hands, she hummed as she slipped the jeans onto her legs. In another moment, she had her shirt over her head. With a sigh, she opened her eyes to glance around the room.

Her cloak was nowhere to be seen. "Aww, damn." she complained, patting her knees. Throwing around several pieces of clothing to the other side of the room, she frowned as she didn't see its familiar dark blue hue.

Ebony growled to get Nekya's attention. Spinning around, she huffed and asked, "What is it?" Her cat was holding her cloak tightly in her jaws. With an amused shake of her head, she playfully snatched it out her mouth. "I hope you didn't rip this." she added, throwing it over her body. With a nod to Ebony, she finally said, "Let's go."

Henry consumed half of his food and stored the rest in a safe place for tomorrow. He was suddenly feeling quite bored, so he left the house with Buck trailing close behind him. As he strolled down the street towards town, he glanced up at the moon. It was nearly as bright as the sun had been before the atmosphere was destroyed. Even now, long after the sun had set, he realized that he was being bathed in deadly ultraviolet radiation. But he had not gotten cancer like most other people, at least not yet.

His mind went back to one of his sophomore year biology classes. It was during the middle of the year, when they were beginning to explore the complex realm of DNA. "Ultraviolet radiation from the sun can have a devastating effect on DNA," his teacher explained. "Fortunately for us, the Ozone Layer blocks most of this radiation. However, there are some places where higher-than-average amounts of radiation reach the Earth's surface. In these areas, the only form of life that has been found is bacteria. These bacteria are all red. The red pigmentation has the remarkable ability to curve ultraviolet radiation away from DNA, so the bacteria are able to survive in this extreme environment."

Henry had concluded long ago that the rust-colored pigment in his skin was keeping him alive. Everyone and everything that was still alive was some shade of red- the people, the grass, the shrubs, even the squirrels. But he couldn't understand why his skin cells had mutated in this way rather than becoming cancerous. It was a mystery that constantly plagued his thoughts, but he was no scientist, and it was unlikely that he would ever find a scientist, so it would probably stay a mystery.

His thoughts were interrupted by a low growl from Buck. The dog began to pace back and forth with his ears flat against his head and his tail tucked between his legs. After walking a bit farther down the street, he realized what was upsetting him. In front of a house stood a girl about his age, and beside her, a massive house cat. This obviously intimidated Buck. Henry narrowed his eyes as he passed by the girl. He wasn't very friendly with her, but he knew her, considering how small his community had become. His dog stood frozen in the street, his deep red eyes wide with fear. "Move it, Buck," Henry grumbled, gripping the fur around the dog's neck and dragging him along.

(No, that's fine. Please post your intro whenever you can.)

ooc; Is this a flop?