Ikebara
"Ike" Tower
In 2063 the Ikebara
Consortium, an international conglomerate of investors and visionaries,
announced plans to construct the Ikebara Tower Arcology, a theoretical mega
structure intended as "the next step in human civilization". The Ikebara
Consortium visualized the replacement of cities with arcologies, freeing up
land for farming and natural preserves. Though utopian, their vision seems
attainable for the first time in human history. The mega structure, designed to
stand nearly two miles high, is immediately scoffed at. Ikebara scientists
unveil their new materials and techniques, purported to be strong and light
enough to make such a structure thinkable. Their techniques make use of
cutting-edge developments in ceramics and nanotechnology, as well as newly
developed engineering theories. The tower is intended to serve as a vertical
city, houses upwards of 500,000 people, as well as factories and businesses.
The city would get all of its power through a combination of solar panels, wind
turbines, and a massive geothermal tap which doubles as an anchor. Industrial
needs would be met by modular fusion reactors placed as needed. The tower,
standing over 10,000 feet high, would be stabilized by massive flywheels and
computers, and would have AI driven emergency and police services. In theory,
the entire system, though unimaginable in its complexity, would be dynamic and
intelligent in response to changing conditions. Finally, the tower would be so
strong that nothing short of a nuclear weapon could destroy it.
Construction began in
2065, and tens of thousands of workers relocated to Southowilson to participate
in the project. It was one of the largest projects ever attempted, and
definitely the most audacious. Despite massive cost overruns, the structure was
completed in 2074, and the first tenants began moving in shortly after. The
massive effort expended permanently changed the shape of Southowilson. Hoping
to duplicate the success of the Southowilson tower, the Ikebara Consortium
began building similar towers in Khabarovsk, Singapore, Rio de Janeiro, and
Pretoria.
The "Big One", a
chain of deadly earthquakes, struck the West Coast in 2076. Large areas of
California were affected, and Southowilson suffered a catastrophic subsidence
of its southwest section. This area dropped 5-10 feet instantly, killing 32,000
people. Ikebara Tower, standing on the fringe of the devastated area, suffered
heavy structural damage. The sudden snap of the tremor caused the tower to whip
back and forth, throwing debris all over the city, and killing hundreds. By
some miracle, however, it remained standing. In later years, many would blame
the collapse of the south side on Ike Tower's mass. The Ikebara Consortium
suffered heavy losses in NorCal that combined with a massive financial scandal
the next year and allegations of dangerous cutting of corners in the Rio tower
project led to the dissolution of the Ikebara Foundation.
By 2078, Ike Tower was
officially abandoned and condemned. Too large and durable to demolish safely,
and too damaged to economically repair, the tower remained officially unused to
the present day. In reality, the increased crowding on Southowilson streets
drove people to seek housing in the tower. With a few short years, the lower
floors were filled with squatters and gray-market businesses. The residents
form an unorthodox community of thousands, most completely zeroed. A number of
interesting and powerful people make their homes in Ike Tower, and the city and
corporations have no power within its doors.
Structure Overview:
The most distinctive feature
of Ike Tower is without a doubt its height. The structure stands approximately
10,750 feet high from base to top, and stands atop a base platform nearly 3000
feet on a side. From a great distance, it looks like many other skyscrapers. It
is roughly square in cross section, and colored primarily black and gray. The
original decorative scheme was art-deco futurism, with swooping clean lines.
Time has made it more sinister. The lines are broken up by scaffolding, exposed
structural frames, and the ravages of time. The composite materials used to
build the tower have turned a matte black with age, losing all of their color
but none of their strength. Against the night sky, Ike Tower is a black void.
The 150ft tall statues of various ideals such as "Justice",
"Freedom", and "Harmony", which flanked the entrances to
the tower have decayed and eroded. Now they are menacing, featureless black
human figures.
Combined with its size,
Ike's oppressive appearance has a definite negative effect on the human psyche.
Even worse, some researchers believe that the frame itself resonates with the
wind and tides, generating harmonics which can disrupt the human nervous
system. These researchers blame Ike Tower for the increasing crime rate of
Southowilson, as well as the irrationality of Ike Tower's permanent residents.
Running throughout the tower are a system of roadways, elevators, and access
tunnels which were intended to serve the tower's community. Today they are an
unmapped maze, hundreds of miles of black tunnels. Rumors abound about the
denizens of the upper floors. Many claim the tunnels house monsters, cannibals,
and other such mythic beasts. In any case, the upper levels are dangerous and
unknown, forming a vertical frontier.
Notables NPC’s of Ike Tower
Elevator Max – Owner and operator of “Ikebara
Vertical”, the elevator system at Ike Tower. Elevator Max is a revolting,
morbidly obese man who has managed to monopolize the elevator systems of the
central spine, enforcing his whim, rules, and iron will with an army of equally
unsavory goons. His prices are outrageous for non-Ike residents, but the
alternative is to walk, and the stairs are nearly all dangerous above the first
tier. Elevator Max is believed by many to have been one of the original
engineers of Ike Tower, and may in fact possess accurate maps and plans to the
upper levels. Elevator Max resembles the “Collector” from “Beyond Thunderdome”.
Tex the Tech – Ike Tower’s resident demigod, nobody
really knows the true origin of the being known as Tex the Tech. Nothing about
him seems to be human, certainly nothing seems particularly Texan. Nevertheless
he is one of the finest technical minds in the world. Tex the Tech occupies
almost the entire floor of Northwest-13, changing the floorplan to suit his
needs. Tex has never been seen away from his home, preferring to deal with
intermediaries, cutouts, and “Tex’s Children” – an endless disposable army of
pre-teen zombies sporting crude cybernetic enhancements and heavy firepower.
Nobody knows where these children come from, and nobody really wants to know. Tex
the Tech most resembles the Borg Collective in all ways that matter, except
that he has little or no desire to assimilate anyone.
McNally’s Pawn (by Jason Spivey): Run by Jason McNally (47, white male), this
business caters to the e scavengers and scroungers of the upper floors.
Everything he has to sell is of middling quality at best, but his resell of
choice items to other fences and merchants is where he makes his real money.
Jason is a real scumbag, being somewhat fat and oily (like the pawn shop owner
in the movie "The Crow."), and always has some goons on employ as
security. People come to him only because he's close (15N) and doesn't ask
questions upon where or how something was acquired.
The Godly Clan of Ellis (by
Jason Spivey): This extended family of "Freedom Baptists" moved in to
the Tower to escape from the tyrannical NorCal governments imposition of
charging them taxes, preventing them from spanking their children, and making
their children learn about evolution, sex ed. and other liberal policies. The
men of the Clan live my growing mushrooms and catfish, and often serve as guardians.
The women work upon trade crafts when not looking after their families, and
every Halloween they host a "Craft Show," which is a big help in
bringing in some additional wealth to the Clan. For the most part, they are
typical Ike Tower inhabitants, except for the singing on Sundays and Wednesday
nights. Mrs. Elizabeth Ellis is the leader (and Pastor) of the Clan. The Godly
Clan of Ellis controls most of 9 West, insisting on proper behavior from those
who would visit them.
Hector (by Jason Spivey):
Known only as Hector, this Hispanic man lives outside the Tower, but runs a
man-portable breakfast taco stand during the day in the Tower. This is
basically a backpack fridge/microwave combination that just cooks and resells
frozen breakfast food. Hector is a young, strong and energetic man of 22 years
who has proven his brawling abilities and skill with a shotgun pistol to
protect himself and his cash over the last year and a half. He runs a regular
route, and is quite popular among those who are getting sick of “all you have
to eat catfish”. He is mostly famous because he knows most of his customers and
is highly attuned to changes in the local environment. He does not know why,
but Tex the Tech has taken a personal interest in him – one of Tex’s Children
seems to always be within line of sight, never interfering or speaking to him.