User:Sj/Archive/Thamesis

City of Thamesis (or Thamesis for short) was a digital animated series created by Ashram J Pure and produced by Ash Pure Studios Ltd. of Dalston, London in 2007. The Flash-based series introduced the main players, locations, technology and history of the alternate reality fiction, which can can now only be found on New Grounds flash portal. As of November 2009 Ash Pure deleted the site including the six episodes and all surrounding deep content. His reasons for doing this are not known.

Story and key concepts

Backstory

File:Map thamesis.gif

Thamesis

Welcome to the city of Thamesis, capital to a kingdom divided....

The Thamesis series takes place in and around the eponymous city, a fictionalized but recognizable analogue to London. Thamesis is the capital of the kingdom of Albion (analogous to the United Kingdom, but apparently including all of Ireland, Brittany and part of Denmark). The new geography of the map of Albion, altered to include all of Britain's historic and mythic territories (The Viking Kings of Denmark; Cnut etc. to the Medieval Romance of Brittany), illustrates the alternate, quasi-mythic reality of the Thamesis universe. As in Tolkien's Middle-earth the universe of Thamesis, Albion and Pangaea (the Earth) could be the setting for a potential Mythopoeia or legendarium. The Thamesis universe, although having been given fairly substantial depth via the technology, history and location sections of the original City of Thamesis web site is currently lacking in the exhaustive depth of content and research provided by Tolkien and his peers.

The time setting of the story is difficult to determine, as the timeline diverges significantly from that of history (as illustrated by the continents having formed in a way that is both strange and familiar), but technological evidence suggests that the story is set in the latter half of the twentieth century or equivalent, approximately sixty years after a long and devastating Great War (analogous to world war i and world war ii combined).

The war, fought on several continents against an adversary referred to only as "The Leader", stretched on for more than a quarter of a century. Albion's monarch at the time, Queen Eleanor of the Rose (seemingly a combination of Queens Victoria and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, the Queen Mother), proved a strong and competent leader for Albion during the conflict, even when defeat seemed inevitable. Almost immediately (a few days) after the close of the conflict, Queen Eleanor abdicated in favour of her son, Richard, and as her final decree, granted powers of governance and state to the Britomart Corporation, headed by Dr Gwydion Jones, and charged with the task of rebuilding the kingdom utilising newly discovered psychic technology.

Since then, the Britomart Corporation has grown ever more pervasive and powerful, such that its influence now rivals that of the monarchy. This influence comes about through the seductive psychic technologies that Britomart distributes and controls and the quasi-transcendent and eutopic society that they have built in the Shining City. This influence is also highly divisive, such that people must choose either to be a citizen of Britomart, a subject of the Crown or risk the lawlessness of the Dirty City.

The City of Thamesis

Thamesis is the capital city of the kingdom of Albion and is located in the South East region on the shores of a majestic river. The city is officially sectioned off into 4 Wards: North, East, South & West. The city is not heavily populated and much of the outlying areas remain in various states of disrepair. It is home to the Britomart Corporation and the Royal House of the Rose. Unofficially the city is divided into 3 distinct zones, or sub-cities: The Shining City, Royal City & Dirty City.

The White City is the name given to the areas of Thamesis reclaimed by the Britomart Corporation, aptly named because of its gleaming glass & steel towers, interconnecting walkways and lush, manicured gardens. It is home to Britomart Citizens and offers a quality of life unsurpassed anywhere else in Thamesis. All transport passes and credit cards are activated by the aura of the citizen meaning there is no paper money in Britomart and no one who is not a citizen can experience the benefits offered. All media is virtual, delivered via the Knetwork. Citizens are constantly updated to current affairs by a live psychic news feed.

The Black City is home to the Royal Palace and all property owned by the current monarchy, the House of The Rose. This zone is populated mostly by noble members of the Court and an older generation who remain loyal to the monarchy and a more traditional way of life that is slowly disappearing from Thamesis. The Crown still coins and prints money (Sovereigns and Sterling) via the White Tower and news papers at the old presses in The Temple.

The Red City grows out of the areas neglected by the Britomart during the rebuilding of Thamesis after the Great War and decaying parts of the former Royal City. Over the years it has become home for the marginalised inhabitants of Thamesis, especially gangs of youths who roam the streets powered up on illegal pirate patches. It is perceived as a totally lawless place by the inhabitants of the other two Cities and vilified by the media. The inhabitants of the Dirty City communicate via their own pirate patch broadcasting system and travel using the incredibly vast but now defunct railways and canals that dissect the city.

Techgnosis

Techgnosis is a psychic technology discovered by two professors at Hermes college, Oxena (Oxford) University. When the synthesis of extracts from rare psychotropic plants found in Amazonia were combined with an electro-magnetic charge they were found to increase the psychic ability of any normal human being. A state of heightened physical and mental capability is also achieved. How long the effect lasts depends on the quality & quantity of this charge.

Queen Eleanor of the Rose commissioned the first steam powered Techgnosis generator to be built in Thamesis over a hundred years before the start of the story. The first demonstrations proved hugely popular amongst a fascinated public. News of the phenomenon spread fast and dignitaries and royalty from every Kingdom across Pangaea come to see the wonders of this technological miracle.

This prototype machine, constructed by technicians from the Royal Society, took 3 years to finish and filled a converted concert hall. Requiring huge amounts of energy to power its revolving electro-magnetic inductors, the generator was driven by massive steam turbines. Despite this resource, even the best operators (who sat strapped to a chair inches from spinning metal plates!) could only levitate small household objects from a distance of a few feet.

Techgnosis and the Great War Initially intended to facilitate psychic transmissions across the continent of Europa ,towering psychotronic beacons were secretly used as instruments of mind control by the Dictator to suppress his enemies and assemble an army in the lead up to the Great War. Using receivers planted in his soldier’s helmets he was then able to deliver psychic instructions remotely, ensuring great tactical manoeuvrability and unquestionable loyalty.

Post war Techgnosis After the Great War, the newly founded Britomart Corporation pledged to rebuild a shattered nation using only the beneficial gifts of Techgnosis. During this period the role of psychotronic technologies becomes a political and social hot potato, polarising sceptics who could not forget the tragedies of the Great War and revisionists who saw the potential to aid development of civilised society. Despite debate, it is not long before psychotronic technology is being integrated into the workspace, increasing productivity and efficiency exponentially across the board.

Techgnosis in the home Two decades later, thanks to the progress of Britomart’s research labs, psychotronics begin to appear in the home for the first time. The pseudo-mystical connotations once associated with the origins of Techgnosis begin to fade from the public consciousness and psychotronics, now known as ‘psy-tech’, is seen more and more as an indispensable everyday tool. These developments mark the beginning of the age of personal psychotronics.

Techgnosis Pods Advancements in synthetic neuronic circuitry allowed for the successful miniaturisation of psy-tech so that every component is made to fit into a small pod connected to a set of patches, which are worn directly in contact with the skin. These pod and patch sets, sold as Britomart Brands, become the ultimate lifestyle accessory due to their ‘on the go’ functionality and affordable pricing.

Brands

Current epidermal Osmotic Transfer Swatches (literally meaning ‘passing through the skin patch’ - describing the manner in which the technology delivers its psychotronic charge) or "Brands" as referred to by Britomart, "Patches" in common parlance, have become even smaller and more efficient, delivering a wider range of previously unimaginable physical and mental enhancements and upgrades to the subscriber. Users can go about their everyday lives knowing they are working in peak physical and mental condition, with a psychic operating system providing an interface for consciousness and access to the sub and meta conscious. With access to a comprehensive communications, information & entertainment network also facilitated through Britomart Brands, which are now regarded as essential for modern living. The Brand-tech boom is regarded as the birth of the modern age of Techgnosis. Britomart has patented this Brand technology, in order to monopolise its production and limit its distribution to citizens.

The Knetwork

The Britomart Knetwork is a psycho-technological mycelium equivalent in function to the Internet, but utilising psychic and telepathic phenomena to improve reliability and security and to achieve infinite bandwidth. The Knetwork boasts the ability to seamlessly and instantly provide communications and streaming data services, but most importantly, claims to tap a "collective consciousness", allowing telepathic social networking comparible to but far in advance of services provided by the likes of MySpace or Facebook. As more people become Britomart Citizens and uplink to the Knetwork, its overall intelligence increases. Like a living organism the Knetwork is constantly evolving and becoming more complex. Every Britomart Citizen represents a node on the Knetwork and everyone's individual Aura contributes to the collective consciousness. The Knetwork exists in the "Aurasphere" (analogous to a spiritualistic luminiferous æther). The Aurasphere surrounds and is created by all living beings, existing above the biosphere but below the threshold of everyday human perception.

Pirate Patches

Britomart does not monopolise Techgnosis. "Pirate" Patches are essentially Brands which have been hacked by unlicensed technicians in the Dirty City. Many Pirate Patches have had their safety controls removed, increasing their potency but making them very dangerous to use.

Factions and Characters

The House of the Rose

Queen Eleanor of the Rose (abdicated)

Queen Eleanor of the House of the Rose ruled Albion during the great war against "The Dictator", which ravaged the kingdom prior to the events of the main story. She abdicated shortly after the war, allowing her son, Richard, to ascend the throne. She also commissioned the formation of the Britomart Corporation, granted it powers of state, and tasked it with the rebuilding of post-war Albion.

King Richard of the Rose

Son of Queen Eleanor, father of Prince Jonathan, and reigning monarch at the outset of the prologue. While his mother is portrayed as a monarch of the people and bulwark of her nation, Richard appears to be a much more weak and distant king. It is believed that his inaction ("stoicism" as he puts it) is what has allowed the power of the monarchy to wane in the face of the increasingly popular and powerful Britomart Corporation. At the beginning of the prologue, King Richard is on his deathbed with an unknown illness, but dies from poisoning at the hands of Malkolm of the Raven, leaving the kingdom in the care of his son, Jonathan.

Prince (later King) Jonathan of the Rose

Son of King Richard and grandson of Queen Eleanor. Assumed the throne upon the death of his father (mid-way through the prologue). Initially presented as something of a callow youth, Jonathan is determined to prove his worth as king by freeing his nation from the scourge of patch-crime.

The Royal Court

The Royal Court is made up of all the Royal houses of the old 'Kingdoms of The Isles' Once individual monarchical states now united as the Kingdom of Albion. The Royal houses include The Red Dragon of Chymru, The White Lion of Erin, The Griffin of Mercia and The Unicorn of Alba.

Malkolm the Raven

Weaselly, Machiavellian fop, and chamberlain in the service of the House of the Rose, Malkolm Weiko of the House of the Raven is directly responsible for the murder of King Richard by poison. It is known that he also works for the Britomart corporation as their "man inside the palace", though it is unclear if he killed the King in this capacity. It is also not yet clear whether he is a Britomart employee, or merely their stooge. He represents the most out and out villain of the piece. The character the audience can instantly dislike, boo at, and applaud if or when he dies.

The Yeo Guard

The Yeo Guard are the official royal bodyguard for the Monarchy. Their base of operations is the White Tower. At times of war the Yeo Guard also act as an elite division of the armed forces.

Defenders of the Realm

An ancient order of royal protectors; "Knights of the crown, defenders of the realm, keepers of the King's peace". The order was deemed defunct with the exile of Lord Lion II after Queen Dalili's death.

The Lion (Lord Lion II)

Son of Lion I, the Royal engineer and co-founder of Techgnosis. A hero of the Great War and former royal bodyguard The Lion is famously impervious to psychic attack, and physically nigh on indestructible. Lord Lion was exiled by King Richard for his involvement in the death of Richard's queen Dalili. Rumors of an affair between Lion and Dalili had been circulated in the tabloid press but very Little is known of the exact details of this incident other than that it seems to have been the defining moment in the lives of both Richard, Jonathan and The Lion. The Lion's reinstatement by Jonathan at the end of the prequel series may provide him with his last chance to redeem himself and prove his worth to his nation once more. The Lion represents the 'broken ego' of the story. He is fiery and masculine. He is also the one with the most interesting back story and the best lines in the story and is the most popular character (as voted for by members of the CityOfThamesis.com forum)

The Unicorn (Vanessa Blanchflower)

Growing up in the Northern Fifedom of Alba, her natural psychic ability was spotted at an early age. Given a scholarship to one of the best Britomart academies in the Kingdom she then started training to join the Yeo Guard PSYOPS division at the New Royal Academy (set up by the Britomart and the Crown). Here she caught the eye of the then Prince Jonathan. Despite being top of her class she was shocked to find herself sanctioned for active duty in the Yeo Guard as the King's personal protector. The Unicorn represents the cool feminine aspect, she is light and magical. She is the antithesis of The K.I.D.'s character but is similar to him in seemingly not yet having found her own voice yet (she was voted the least popular character in the members forum).

The Britomart Corporation

The Britomart Corporation's "Do Right' mentality is founded in the principles of Transhumanism. The core belief is that people can use Brand Technology to transcend the limitations of their mind & bodies and become "Homo Illuminatus". Citizens are appraised on characteristics such as health, physical beauty, manual dexterity, athletic ability, intelligence and general psychic ability. Britomart is represented in the prequel series and web site as a New age, technology and lifestyle-centric multinational; One part Scientology, one part Apple Mac, one part Virgin Group. They are faceless and amorphous, they are the 'they', the authority and 'anti-ego' of the story.

Doctor Gwydion Jones

Commissioned by Queen Eleanor to head the Corporation at its creation, immediately after the war. He is so far the only individual within the Britomart Corporation to be mentioned by name.

Technopractors and the Pirate Patch Culture

Kendrick Garvey

Kendrick is a distributor of so-called "Pirate Patches", operating from The Compound in the North Ward of Thamesis. Dishonourably discharged from the Yeo Guard, he is now reputed to produce the strongest patches in Thamesis, and notorious for his ruthlessness. Kendrick is the second most overtly villainous character in the piece, yet his stature and style make him less instantly dislikable than Malkolm.

The K.I.D, TK (Tyler K. Watts)

TK is a patch runner, sigil maker (tagger), and general rude boy, originating from The Arch Way (Archway), in the North Ward. He currently spends most of his time skipping the Crown funded school (rather than Britomart academy)to serve in the employ of Kendrick Garvey, who pays him in high-grade patch to deliver his product to all parts of Thamesis. He distributes these spoils amongst his Clan (gang) The S.S.G. for them to in the semi organised, highly dangerous street game of patch jousting. TK represents the ego of the story, he is rebellious, anti-hero untamed by and indifferent to either ruling faction. He is so far one of the least developed characters. Whilst having a decent amount of screen time he perhaps has not quite yet found his voice and come into his own.

The Clans of Thamesis and Albion

Thamesis is not the only urban metropolis in the Isles of Albion, and while it has the worst patch crime problem other cities have their fair share of clan related violence too.
Top Clans of Albion include
The A.S.B.O. (The Anti Social Behaviour Order) - City of Breme, Fifedom of Mercia
Black Rose - City of Thamesis, North Ward
Common Boys - City of Thamesis, South Ward
Daughters of Albion - Tor Town, Fifedom of Domonia
The Firm - City of Thamesis, East Ward
Levellers - Bright Town, Fifedom of Domonia.
Picts - Stirlin City, Fifedom of Alba.
Tuatha De Danann - Ceide Fields, Fifedom of Eirean

External links

TheLionandTheUnicorn.net, New official site, under construction
Interview with people behind Thamesis, flashmagazine.com
KID's journal (last update July 2007)
New Grounds flash portal, The only place to find all the episodes of the rare Thamesis Volume 0
Pure on Deviant Art New art for the forthcoming The Lion and The Unicorn series

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[[Category:Animated internet series]]
[[Category:Flash cartoons]]
[[Category:Dystopian fiction]]