Civilizations

Hi All! This first chapter is mainly going to focus on building the Who/What/When/Where/Why/How and setting the stage for the rest of the story. This is meant to be treated kind of like if you were a student and received a letter of admission answering some of the FAQs of the school beforehand, but is written more to address the readers rather than the Students from a POV perspective.

Who/Characters:

The main two characters of this story are going to be named by default Lucas and Emily. If you choose to be a Male Character, you will be “Lucas”, and a Female Character you will be “Emily”. You will have the option to change the names, or just leave them alone as I wrote them, up to you. If you choose to be Lucas, Emily will be the main female character, and if you choose to be Emily, Lucas will be the main male character. This will 1- Make it easier for me to do the customizable names feature for both possible gender paths, and 2- With me having previously developed my OCs over several unpublished stories and years of writing, allow me to write like I normally do using their names in both possible gender paths.

Brief rundown on both characters is that they’re first year students who are entering their Freshman year as 18 year olds at Cielisium University as most of the recurring student characters in this story will be. Without going too deep into spoilers and things, they both share some common or similar experiences and backgrounds. In this particular format, I don’t want to expand too much on the character details in case some of you want to read this through as if it were yourself or a friend or a character of your own, but I still think it’s worth providing a rough baseline just to get started.

What/CLASSES:

The school teaches 10 Different Subjects that vary based on plot, however initial ideas include the following: Math, Science, Literature, Art, Music, Theater, History, Geography, Writing and Athletics. There are also clubs that are attached to each of these 10 areas of study and will allow for further growth in the areas as well. Students will have some classes divided by Gender, Civilization, Year, and other potential scheduling factors. Students take 5 classes per year, which will be chosen for them based on their knowledge of different subjects, their clubs and interests, as well as areas they need to improve in and learn more about. The schedules will be made for the Students by the Professors of their Civilizations and years for every year after the first year. The first year will be assigned technologically by the school’s computer/technology system based on the introductory student questionnaire after Civilizations are assigned.

When/Rough Timeline of Events In School Year:

1/1-Next Friday: New Student Introductions and Selection Ceremony. During this time, only new students will attend “classes” with professors from their Civilizations while class assignments for the remainder of the year are being worked out for every student in the school. Students who are in Years 2+ will be on break until the Following Monday when they will receive their assigned classes and resume with the start of their years.

End of January: 1st Month Review. Students will meet with Teachers and review their current level of knowledge in each class so that the professors know how strong or weak each student is in the subject and will be able to assist them as needed from that level onwards to ensure they meet the standard needed on the end of the year Exams. Additionally, Winter Sports begin seasons that will last through March.

February: 1st School Dance, typically around Valentines Day. This theme is centered around friendships, relationships and the end of Winter and start of Spring as things begin to move back outdoors. Students should start feeling more comfortable with their classes and teachers and start to begin some outdoor activities.

March: End of Quarter 1 Exams and Break the Last Week of the Month. End of Spring Sports Competition (Practicing and Coaching for all sports will be available year round).

April: Start of Quarter 2 and Summer Sports. Most clubs, activities and hobbies are now fully operational and those which have competitions begin competing between Civilizations (such as Debate).

May: Civilization Capital Room Parties. School Spirit Month. Students are encouraged to represent their Civilizations strongly this month, and the Civilization Stores all have sales, specifically for warm weather attire. Some professors award double Copper Cup Points. Month of celebration and spirit before the Mid Year Exams and studying in June. School Dance #2 is this month, centered around transition to Summer and celebrating all of the Warm Weather Activities.

June: Mid Year Exams, End of Quarter 2/1st Half, End of Summer Sports. Quarter 2 Break Final Week of the Month. A month where studying and academics are prioritized by many students in addition to those who play Summer Sports wrapping up competitions. Clubs go on temporary breaks to encourage studying for the month and club competitions halt.

July: Second Half of Year Begins with Reviews of First Half material when/where needed, and student-professor meetings to go over progress made in first half and areas of improvement in second half. Fall Sports begin. Most students re-energized after break. Clubs resume competitions, etc. and focus returns to finding balance rather than grinding academics specifically.

August: School Dance #3 is this month, with a focus on celebrating final months outside before indoor and cold weather activities become prevalent and the transition to that. Fall Sports and Club Competitions in full session.

September: Fall Sports and Quarter 3 Conclude with Exams and Quarter Break at the end of the month. Most warm weather activities and clubs start to end in preparation for Winter, making this a spirited month.

October: Quarter 4 and Winter Sports begin. As with other starts of quarters, professor and student meetings take place to help prepare for end of year exams, review progress, and areas of improvement, and students are typically re energized after the break. Warm Weather Clubs and Activities largely come to an end.

November: At the end of the month, clubs and non-Winter sports shut down for December, meaning all competitive events and clubs aside from Copper Cup and Winter Athletics end and Civilization Winners and Most Valuable Competitor awards are given out, making November a particularly competitive and spirited month. School Stores go on sale, specifically for cold weather clothing items. Month ends with each Civilization holding a Pep Rally to celebrate Civilization Accomplishments the first 11 months and encourage a strong finish to the end of the year, good Final Exam performances and Winter Athletics Performances in December.

December: The most important month of the year. End of Year Exams, End of Winter Sports, and the Copper Cup winner is Determined. Academics are prioritized heavily and students grind hard during the cold winter month to ensure as much success as they can on their End of Year Exams. Student Leader elections are held for the following year as well. Class Schedules begin being worked out for following year. 2 Week Break at end of the Month/start of January following End of Years while professors re organize for new students/classes, and everything resets for the new year. Celebrations abound and student spirit is at the yearly high/peak as competition academically, winter sports athletics, Copper Cup, and in leaders elections for Civs, Clubs and Sports the next year is high. Additionally, Christmas is celebrated as is the New Year with parties as well.

Where/Setting:

Present Day/Modern Era. 2020’s but potential for some future/unrealistic technology, knowledge, etc.

Seasons/Time Of Year will be changed as the story progresses, with January 1st being beginning of year, December 31st the End of Year unlike normal US schools cycle. Seasons match those of North America, but are more pronounced, with November-January being Winter, February-April being Spring, May-July being Summer, and August-October being Autumn, with about a month or so possible for variance in weather patterns depending on the year.

Cielisium is A fictional place, that has a very developed inner city around the school for necessary shopping, a trade hub, etc. that leads into the main body of water, the *Veponero* (Greek words for Water) Ocean. There is also Lake Ilmnylacos on the school campus as well more inland. The overall “city” area is massive and, while there is no Population that has no affiliation to the school and obviously no Tourism industry, the Port still conducts trade and allows for the use of shipping to help promote industry and allows for the area to be sustained not just on it’s own resources but can get anything from anywhere in the world it’s needed from quickly. This also can be done by air in some cases as well, as an Airport does exist in the main city in an effort to assist/supplement water based trade during winter time when the water freezes into ice.

Cielisium is essentially a pseudo island of sorts, however Natural Disasters rarely occur here and its architecture is incredibly stable and there are many safe spaces to quickly access in case of any earthquake, flooding, hurricane, tornado, or any other potential natural disaster that may (very rarely) arise. However, even being surrounded by ocean, no Hurricanes, Tornadoes or Earthquakes have affected the island in at least 50-100 years.

The climate is fairly seasonal, with Winters getting fairly cold (equivalent to a low of like 0 Celsius on the coldest days of the year) while the Summers can get fairly hot (equivalent to a low of like 30 Celsius) on the warmer days. Fall and Spring seasons which take up about 8 months of the year generally hang somewhere between 10 and 20 degrees Celsius with around a 15 degree average.

The vegetation is not exactly Tropical, nor dry, and it can be very humid but not necessarily “muggy”. Vegetation of many types grow here, and the School-Run Environmental Clubs do a great job of maintaining grounds that can be used for Agriculture and Forestation of any to all typing as wanted or needed both on the city outskirts and in the school zone.

The actual main central area of the city is mainly a shopping district, while the Northern District is mainly for Agriculture, the Southern District is mainly for Trade and Transportation (Airport and Port among other things), the West District is mainly for Industry and Production related activities, while the East district is the Entertainment Hub. The School (and along with it all of it’s major population) is to the West of the main developed city area, which means all students will travel East frequently to enter the city.

The city itself has a few major notable policies. The city obviously has no National or Political Affiliation, etc. and has no ties to any other cultures or group of existing people. While the primary spoken language is English, French and Spanish are also spoken languages as well for those who come from those regions and may be used at times as well. Additionally, outside of the school zone, magic can not be used, and the wands only become “alive” and useable on school grounds. This applies to all other magical related items and objects as well.

The school and residential areas are, of course, massive. Each “civilization” (equivalent to Potter “Houses”) takes up roughly 100 Perimeter Kilometers, plus another 250 Perimeter Kilometers for the actual school grounds and related areas as well. This is about 850 Perimeter Kilometers. The city area is about 150 Perimeter Kilometers, while about 500 Perimeter Kilometers are Beaches, Waterways (rivers, lakes, etc.) and Forestation, making the entire land area on which Cielisium resides, about 1500 Perimeter Kilometers. The entire area is *around* 100,000 Kilometers Squared.

Each Civilization’s main lobby/congregating area will be further known as the Capital Rooms, which some students will refer to as their Base for short. Each Capital Room will be very unique and different from the others, and will be only accessible to students of that Civilization. For example, the Cardinal Capital Room will feature Cardinal themed items, insignia, themes and colorations, and be influenced by the Air element. Each Capital Room will also feature the Civilization’s prized item as well, and will be the central point between all the dorm rooms with a secret entrance related to each particular Civilization.

Why/Athletics/Clubs/Competitions:

Athletic Seasons will run one month ahead of the real season calendar and will match the school’s quarterly calendar instead. The Cielisium campus will have teams broken down by Civilization and the 4 Civilizations will compete against the other 3 once per month in general, allowing for a study week/week off from athletic events each month.

Spring Sports will be January/February/March and will include (but not limited to) Boys and Girls Basketball.

Summer Sports will be April/May/June and will include (but not limited to) Boys Baseball and Girls Softball.

Fall Sports will be July/August/September and will include (but not limited to) Boys Football and Girls Soccer.

Winter Sports will be October/November/December and will include (but not limited to) Boys Hockey and Girls Gymnastics.

How/COPPER CUP COMPETITION:

Civilizations will have to compete against each other in a number of different ways- Academically and Athletically- to try and win the Trophy of Best Civilization that year. On the other hand, the Civilizations also have to work together as partners, allies and develop friendships around the school as well to ensure they can learn all they need to, have the full school experience, and develop as people as well, including some classes where they will only receive points for working with others.

The Points/Scoring system for the Civilization Trophy (further known as the Copper Cup) is very broad and unspecific, subjective to how each individual advisor wishes for how to manage points. The general idea is benefitting the school, community, Civilization, or city will reward positive points, while a negative impact on any of those groups will remove points. Up to 10 points can be awarded positively or negatively at any time, with stricter advisors only granting 1 positive point at a time, while more generous ones are more likely to grant 10 (or 10 negative points for stricter, 1 negative for looser advisors).

Civilizations may ally themselves with other Civilizations around the school, declare rivalries, or in some cases even both. A Civ can ally with another Civ on a specific school subject such as Performance, but make them a rival in another such as Athletics where they may be more competitive or both want to finish in the top spot in that given area. These will be declared together by the “Leaders” of each Civ, which will be voted on by the students of each Civ, and/or decided by the advisor/with the advisor’s help.

The most common way for points to be earned and Civs to maximize their chances of winning are through tests and competitions, which occur at least every month and at most every week in any given subject area. Civs who have the top finisher or finishers in a subject are likely to be awarded more points than those who finish near the bottom, including those who fail potentially costing their team points as well.

How/The Civilization Selection Show Process:

The Selection Show process will occur on the day students arrive at the school, and will be done as students arrive. As in the first student to arrive in line will be the first student to be placed. Students will be shown to the Selection Room upon their arrival, and will enter one at a time before being assigned to their Civilization.

The Selection Show room will have 10 people- 1 Professor from each Civ, the Student Leader of each Civ, the Chair of the Board (a.k.a the Boss of the Professors who is in charge of oversight of the school) and the Student. The selection room will feature the logos for all 4 Civilizations, and will act as a gateway to all of the entrances for the Civilization Capital Rooms depending on where the student is placed. For example, if a Student is assigned to the Cardinals, they will be teleported through a portal after standing underneath the Cardinal Logo and arrive just outside the entrance where they will then be able to enter after passing through the security protocols.

SPOILERS:

A few spoilers for those who want to know about the future path and progression of where I plan on taking the story as I write this-

The main idea here is that I’m planning on there being 5 different pathways, with each pathway being available from the very first decision made and each choice starting with the first one being a factor in terms of the end progression of the story.

Here are the 5 Major Pathways I’m Planning at the moment:

Path A- Femdom Pathway

Path B- Maledom Pathway

Path C- Toxic/Chaotic Pathway (Nothing Violent by any means tho just Drama/Negativity/Sadness

Path D- Balanced/Neutral/Traditional Pathway

Path E- Rejected/Friend Zoned Pathway.

Eventually if you go down a certain pathway enough, you will start to notice potentially fewer choices available, choices from other pathways starting to still shift more towards one pathway (as in you can have a Female Dominant choice but it may be one that takes you down that path less if you’re further down the Male Dominant path already, etc.) while some major choices in particular can shift the entire trajectory of the story quickly depending on how far down a certain path you have gotten. Some situations dictated by previous choices may limit certain pathways being available in the future, etc. so do keep in mind the potential future impact of your selections down the line.

Ultimately though, every choice will matter, and every decision you make at the end of every chapter will take you further down or further away from one of the 5 pathways at the end game stage. Some pathways will be updated more frequently than others, some pathways may be much shorter, etc. I have no idea how that all is going to work yet bc mood will play a heavy role into that. Still though, it should be fun for me to write and this is a fun way of keeping it organized for myself at least.

Note that to limit predictability and things like that, I may change the order of the choices for the different options (as in the Maledom path might be the first option in Choice 3 but the 4th option in choice 4, etc.) and also some chapters may be restricted as well (for example a Cardinals Only chapter) however I don’t see that being a particularly major issue anyways as the story will shift pretty dramatically starting with the Elemental Choice and open/close certain doors and opportunities immediately.

Also, while the Setting is heavily influenced by Hogwarts and there’s obviously other things that are influenced by it as well (the 4 Civs vs 4 Houses for instance) this is far from a HP World Fic and it’s my own created/unique universe. I also took some inspiration from a bunch of other places (Avatar Last Airbender is another one for example with the elements idea).

So yeah, with that below you can choose whether to start the plot centric portion of this story as a male or female character. Good luck to you, and enjoy your time in the universe of Cielisium :)