#theprimusgame

I’ll be posting the chapters here as well from now on bc I want to make cute little mood boards. I’ve seen ones with WAY bigger word counts.

Second of all; Chapter One is coming soon, as in within the next few days. Mostly just edits now. So excited to share it! Opening passages below the cut. Here’s a few things you should know:

- This will either be a duology or a trilogy

- Rated M for canon typical violence, may get darker in later installments

- Written in first person progressive, alternating between Noa and Mae’s POV. This is a little experimental, may not be for everyone!

- the prose will also be different between POVs. The apes can speak a little more fluently but they speak a different dialect of english.

- This is a hunger games AU so expect parallels but nothing is 1:1 and later installments will deviate so expect the unexpected! You do not have to be familiar with THG to read.

I think that’s it? I’m going to commit to one chapter a week but I’d like to do more when I have time. Hope you enjoy my contribution to this community!

The first rule of ape english is that the rules are fluid. This is partially for realism and partially because I cannot be expected to keep up with all of these rules even though I created them. My mind is not big enough.

You will notice a slight discrepancy in the spoken dialogue of the apes and Noa’s inner monologue; there are some non-diegetic reasons for this that I’ll be covering, but in-universe it is still physically uncomfortable for the apes to speak for long periods of time, despite the fact they have an understanding of language just as complex as modern humans at this point. The workarounds are regional; Eagle Clan would supplement with sign language, but the Coastals will speak to the point of vocal injury I’m derailing nevermind

Limited physiology is the main thing that governs the conventions of ape english. So, this dialect prioritizes two things; brevity and precision, the latter being the more important, because having to repeat or explain yourself is worse than adding on a few additional words for clarity. With that in mind, let’s get into it.

Warning: this doesn’t actually make sense

- ‘Fourbounding’ is the term used for when apes propel themselves forward with their knuckles. This is considered low-class and regressive by the Coastals (and some of the higher ranking clans). ‘Knuckle-walker’ is a commonly used insult to refer to another perceived as slow-witted or uneducated.

- The apes speak a unique dialect of English with its own grammatical conventions, such as the lack of contractions and adverbs, as well as frequent article omissions. The use of sign language is regional; the preference for brevity in dialogue doesn’t come from a lack of understanding of complex language, but from the fact it is still physically difficult for apes to speak for long periods of time.

- All of Pacifica is in California. Eagle Clan (officially recognized as ‘Mining Clan’) is a valley in the Sierra Nevada. It’s important to note that the clans don’t necessarily originate in the areas that they currently reside in. When the Coastals sought to round up the ‘sundered’, they would’ve relocated them to the nearest natural resource that could be exploited. The borders were not so strictly defined before the Darkest Chapter (the rebellion). They are now fenced and sometimes patrolled.

- The Appia (aka the Pride of Pacifica) is named after the infamous Appian Way of Ancient Rome. It connects all the clans to the Coastal City, though inter-clan travel is barred save for officially sanctioned duties.

- The equivalent of a passenger train system is the ‘caravans’, salvaged Airstream campers pulled by mules and powered by rechargeable batteries. Each system has one car solely dedicated to preparing food and more than one dedicated to refueling supplies.

- The saltwater batteries are real! They can be made from the casings of regular batteries. They aren’t super efficient but are much less dangerous to manufacture.

- The radios are supplied (and required) by the state, but they’ve been altered to only pick a certain range/ frequency….hmm what was that beeping Mae noticed in chap 3 after Noa started screwing with the radio hghhdhhfhhhhphh.

- Proximus comes from a long line of divine-right rulers who claim not only to be descendants of Caesar but to embody him spiritually. Unlike the areligious Panem, Pacifica is highly faith/superstition based.

- The Coastal apes got into that vault at least a century prior the when the story takes place, hence why the society is much more technologically advanced than what we see in Kingdom.

- That mechanical looking water fountain mentioned in chap two is a clepsydra, or a ‘water clock’.

- In case you didn’t catch it, the dead echo that Noa encounters is the one Mae mentions committed suicide. He was a ‘breaker’, the strongest of the miners. Mae is a ‘fuser’, another class of miners who’s small size is utilized to place explosives in crowded tunnels.

AND some bonus character tidbits:

- Koro (Noa’s father) defeated an invading clan during the Darkest Chapter. The rebellion created a power vacuum that enabled some of the larger clans to overtake the smaller ones. Eagle Clan managed to stay neutral, not siding with the rebels (but they did attempt to enforce their sovereignty). Despite this, the Coastals perceived this defeat as a victory on their side and granted the House of Eagle Sun special privileges post-treaty-of-treason, though they are still subject to the same provisions as the ‘traitor’ clans. Koro is very troubled by his recognition as a war hero, especially since defeating said clan involved killing. He’s now dying of a curable disease called the ‘hectic’, hence all the coughing.

- Soona and Anaya are from a lower class than Noa’s family. As they age into adults this rift becomes more obvious (and uncomfortable). Noa recognizes the narrative transpiring between the two without him and this stirs some confusing feelings….(yeah I am on a soonaya kick they’re prolly gonna kiss on the mouth)

- Noa has dyspraxia. His clumsy-ness is alluded to in Kingdom but will become increasingly relevant in this story. From a young age he’s been prone to neurosis (the reoccurring nightmares, the desire to up and leave the clan) despite his relatively comfortable lifestyle. His emotional intelligence and empathy has allowed him to realize the full scope of the cruelty of the system he exists within, yet he has to actively resist these thoughts because he knows he’ll go mad. Sure hope this isn’t used against him…

- Raka’s partner has been dead for a long time, but Raka suppresses the urge to grow flanges by keeping a photograph of him by his side wherever he goes. He sleeps with it. :(

are we getting ‘true or not true’

My friend that’s the whole reason I wrote this fic! Had me pointing and kicking my feet in the theater screaming everlark everlark

The fact we have to wait to get to my mockingjay AU….that may encourage me to write faster. I’m writing Primus mainly by discovery but I have the ‘true or not true’ moment planned out so perfectly and in a way I don’t think anyone would expect I’m just