Brand New Animal-1

A world much like modern Earth, but where animal-people have lived alongside humanity throughout history. Currently battling discrimination and fighting for equality with humans, tensions are high between beastmen and humans.

Type: Blossom

Active Characters

Michiru Kagemori

Overview

    While superficially this world may resemble a modern, early 21st century Earth, it most definitely is not. Certainly, many of the same technologies exist... smartphones, the internet, cars, boats, planes, guns... all the usual matters. Some minor differences include a generally greater level of genetic engineering and pharmaceuticals, but poor documentation on historical events before a few hundred years ago. Many of the nations are even similar in both name and rough geographical area.

    But this is not Earth. While the broad strokes of history happened the same way, with many similar events, some of the details and names involved are much different. Two World Wars were fought, but the names of the leaders were not the same. The United States exists, but it is less involved in world affairs. History isn't quite the same, but it is recognizeable in many ways.

    The largest difference is the presence of the beastmen. Humanoid with animal features and instincts, their history with humanity has been rocky, at best. Sometimes living peacefully, sometimes discriminated against or attacked, they are currently largely at peace with humanity after a recent conflict for equality. However, equality hasn't been all that the beastmen imagined, and the clash of cultures still brings tension and misunderstandings. One of the greatest bastions of safety for beastmen, the sanctuary city of Anima City, has recently opened its doors to humanity as well in an attempt to foster understanding... and in turn opened it to visitors from the Tree.

Anima City

    In an attempt to make peace with the beastmen and their wildly different culture, the government of Japan granted a large island off the coast to become a home for the beastmen. Though originally a Japanese gift, the culture is a mixed bag heavily unrelated to Japanese culture, though they do speak the language there. A high-tech, developed city in its own right, Anima City was a beacon of hope to the rest of the beastmen in the world for many years, until it was learned that beastmen under stress could go feral and fight one another.

    While initially this revelation threatened to destroy all they had built, Mayor Rose managed to turn the situation around by offering Anima City as a place to welcome humans as well, allowing the two cultures to mingle and understand one another better. The world blossomed during these negotiations, leading to the current situation.

    Anima City is the hub of all things in the local pan-pacific region involving the World Tree. While Vines rarely set down directly in the city, new visitors are directed to Anima City to interact with those there and have it operate as a buffer zone between the rest of the Tree and this world. This has made it a hotbed of new ideas, odd new technological imports, and even magical artifacts that seem to have an easier time operating there compared to most tech-based worlds.

Beastmen

    In this world, many 'beastmen' exist, humanoids with animal features from a specific animal. Beastmen can appear human to most casual inspection when they wish to, though they often maintain subtle resemblances to their actual animal form, and transform into a humanoid version of their animal when threatened. This transformation often does not fully obey conservation of mass or energy, though local science has several theories on why. Typically these changes involve a small size change(gaining or losing up to 20% in height and up to 50% in mass), and features such as enhanced senses, thicker skin, horns, claws, greater physical abilities, or similar. They do not crossbreed into combined animals(so no mule or liger beastmen), only inheriting from one parent, and cannot normally change into a full animal form.

    Most beastmen have a problem that when under high stress, they suffer a less-controlled berserk transformation called Nirvasyl Syndrome. This transformation makes them even more animalistic and includes a massive increase in size and strength, but mostly uncontrollable bloodlust. There are a few things that can calm them down, but an easier solution is a recently-developed innoculation that prevents this loss of control. Many human governments still fear this happening, though it is largely kept secret from the population at large.

Integration

    As stated in the Anima City entry, the world at large has directed most visitors to various 'buffer zones' they have arranged, though that can't prevent random Vines from dropping people elsewhere. The world itself is not sure what to think of visitors from other worlds, with many cautious and preferring to be kept at a distance, while a few think this is the coolest thing ever.

    Before, anti-beastmen factions largely fought against racial equality, but now many of these pockets have morphed into full-fledged xenophobia, actively attacking and hunting down offworlders. This has pushed more moderate sorts to further encourage the use of buffer zones, though some question if this is a good solution. Often these anti-offworld factions will attempt to sabotage any attempt to foster goodwill, and many suspect that the Keepers are reinforcing and backing this behavior. It has caused rising tensions whenever heavy Vine activity flares up.

    One curious quirk of the world is that its people, though largely reason-based and relying upon science, are much more willing and ready to accept the idea of magic and other paranormal events. Though very little evidence for actual magic exists in this world, it does seem that artifacts running off of paranormal energies function for far longer in this world before breaking down, compared to most Age of Reason worlds in this stage of Blossoming.