First worldbuilding post! It's a long one, so I put it under a read more:
The setting of all of this is a place just called The City, which is a massive, continent sized city consisting of interlocking skyscrapers, that has been standing for the past 5,000 years. There are some sci-fi, futuristic, cyberpunk elements, along with some dystopian elements, too.
Notably, there is also a very firm class system, literally built upon the structure of the City itself. Most people in the City will never set foot on the ground in their lifetime, instead living in the upper floors of the skyscrapers. The people living at the very top, or the Upper, are called Uppers, the ones in the Middle are called Middleites, and the ones at the bottom, or the Lower, are called Lowers. Their wealth corresponds with their location– the wealthier a person is, generally, the higher up they live, even within the sections.
Along with the class system is a large amount of classism, as well. Uppers generally regard Lowers as being filthy and violent, and Lowers tend to regard Uppers as pretentious jackasses. The Middle tends to be less polarizing, but Uppers still look down on them for not being as rich as they are, and the Lowers see them as thinking that they’re better than them, or as Upper wannabes. Sometimes this is true, sometimes it isn’t.
The City is also split horizontally, not just vertically, into 21 different sectors and districts. Some of these are more worldbuilt than others, with some having fully fledged politics, while others are still essentially just names. It’s a work in progress!
Additionally, another very important element of this is that everyone in the City also has some superpower, of some type. It first activates around 10-12, depending on how powerful the power is. The stronger, the younger it kicks in. For my existing main characters, this power can range from telepathy, to astral projection, to sound deadening, to aerokinesis, to teleportation, and many, many more. I could make an entire post just about how powers work, and I might just do that, later.
Small, additional worldbuilding notes:
Sol is the god of this world, though generally isn’t very relevant. Mostly used as an exclamation to replace “oh god” with “oh sol,” because I felt like it damaged the immersion.
The Head of the State is the person in charge of a sector or district, and their Keys are their advisors.
Dating between an Upper and Lower is seen as taboo and could get both the Upper and Lower socially ostracized if their relationship was found out.
Lowers and sometimes Middleites will introduce themselves to strangers with a nickname, rather than their actual name, because unless you are willing to pay to have your private information kept private, it is very easy for someone to find it with just a name and appearance. Uppers can afford this privacy, Lowers and Middleites, not so much.
Transphobia, homophobia, etc, are very, very much less of a problem in the City than irl. I don’t want to have it in my story too much, and so I don’t.
Very basic description of some characters (Honestly, will probably be elaborated on more in a later post/through the writings):
Lucas: he/him, cis guy. Currently a Middleite, but was raised in the Upper. Dating Miro and Slate. Power is lesser astral projection, so while he can astral project, he can’t move anything around. Has made bad relationship decisions in the past, but is generally optimistic and upbeat. Lives with his dad, and has slowly started to adapt to the Middle. He tends to end up as more of a mediator, but he’s trying to stand up for himself more.
Miro: he/him, trans guy. Lower. Dating Lucas and Slate. Power is greater astral projection, so he can astral project and move things around some, like a poltergeist. Tends to be more mischievous and generally a little shit, but also fiercely protective of the people he cares about. Takes great pride in being a Lower, and while he isn’t the happiest about having to hide his class while in the Upper in order to date Slate, he’s willing to do it for him.
Slate: he/him, cis guy. Upper. Dating Lucas and Miro. Power is sound deadening, so when he focuses, he is able to make himself and anything he focuses on perfectly silent. He is the heir to Key, or an advisor for the Head of State. He’s apparently a little oblivious, but he’s smarter than he lets on, especially when it comes to politics. When it comes to street smarts, he is less knowledgeable, but he’s learning more from just being around Miro. He also has to hide his class when he’s in the Lower with Miro, but he doesn’t mind quite as much. It’s refreshing to him, really, to not be seen as anyone special.
