Once Before the Sunrise
❝ A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life. ❞
― Charles DarwinDown past spires darkening the consistently gray skies, below windows shuttered tight to hold secrets best spoken behind closed doors, beneath clotheslines hung with whites holding suspicious stains, there is the dirty and corrupt streets of a city known as The Barrows. Compared with other British cities, this one is seemingly an average rough-and-tumble place one might choose to stay away from on principle. But there's something rather... different... about this place, one that attracts people both low and high.
For in this city, money is no object and you can acquire whatever your heart desires for something you won't even notice missing. Time. How they do it is a mystery nobody understands, but the mysterious Time Keepers who crawled out of the city's underbelly are able to take seconds, minutes, or even years from a person's life and transfer them to another. Once accepted into the city, a surgery you can never quite recall is performed and you're given a clock which tells you exactly how long you have to live. This is distressing for many, however if you barter your time right, you can continually increase what's on your clock by earning more time.
But what of organs, you might ask? Do they not age and decay with time? And what of accidents such as being struck by an automobile or shot by a wayward gun? For the mysterious Time Keepers, replacing organs is nothing miraculous or even difficult. Even things such as the heart and brain can be replaced with minimal effect and no rejection, as if these things were grown particularly for the people they're being replaced in. Skin is just another organ, and so aging is a thing of the past when you come to The Barrows.
Accidents, however - where you've passed on before your time is up - unfortunately cannot be reversed. When you pass before your time is up, the Time Keepers take your clock back and keep the time you had left for their own use, or give it to someone if you specified in a will who it should go to. It is explicitly forbidden for anyone other than the Time Keepers to take the time of the dead, and the consequences to such actions should prove dire to anyone who attempts it. This helps to mitigate all those who would kill others in pursuit of the kind of 'immortality' one could obtain from stealing time from others.
While murder isn't a large presence in this city, other crimes run rampant and the children who hover in damp doorways often cling to their parents for comfort against the aura they feel but can't perceive. While time can't be stolen in the most technical way possible when a patron of it is still alive, all it takes for it to pass hands is consent. Consent can be given under pressure, at gunpoint, in exchange for a ransom when one holds your family hostage... Truthfully, there are a great many ways to get it.
The worst side of this city is those who are terrified of death and so sell their soul into a life of indentured servitude in exchange for 'immortality.' They work their hands to the bone, develop hollow eyes and cheeks, grow something haunted all about their person, but continue on to escape the clutch of the inevitable if only for a few more years. The corrupt officials who skim minutes from people every month in 'tax' oftentimes have at least two of these people to follow them, forcing these people to live out monotonous purposes that always seem to wear them down.
It's an odd predicament, when you think about it. If Time Keepers have the ability to continuously replace organs, why would anyone need a clock? Would everyone not be able to achieve immortality without having to barter their time? It's a questions many who reside outside the city ask, however those in the city have seen what happens when a person's clock runs out. The light leaving their eyes, their posture going limp, whatever words they'd been saying dying on their lips... Whatever the clock can measure - be it something tangible or something in the soul - it's always right.
As for the life of the city itself...
While medicinal knowledge has advanced to a degree much greater than we're used to, the city appears like one out of an old Victorian age. Style has tripped backwards, and men dress with class while women sport dresses made of enough fabric for five people. There are no computers or phones or televisions, and the most 'technologically advanced' thing in this city is the fairly new automobiles that run on a substance no one but the Time Keepers understand. Secrets are traded by candlelight while taboo things are mentioned behind gloved hands, and knowledge of what's going on around the city comes from a singular newspaper which holds too much bias to be taken seriously by anyone with a brain.
Those who are cheerful are often those at the top, and you can tell at a glance who has time and who doesn't. Many of the 'first families' who lived in The Barrows when the Time Keepers appeared have enough on their clocks to live for ages - when the patriarch or matriarch of the family grew tired of living, they would simply give everything they had to their child and pass on at their own desire. The majority of 'new families' who come to the city are tempted there due to fear of death rather than wanting to come to the city for its own sake, so they're the ones who end up indentured after growing nervous watching their clocks tick down. For this reason, there is little to no middle-class in the city, making half of it look like a slum camp with ramshackle wooden houses and the other half beautiful with intricate stonework and wrought-iron fences.
Even in the most beautiful of mansions, however, there is still a sinister undercurrent that all residents can feel as they try to talk over it with their newly-shined silverware and pristinely bleached handkerchiefs. Beyond servitude, theft, and the smell of fear, something is always just slightly off about the place... As if it's a living, breathing city that will soon cease tolerating its inhabitants.
"There’s something brittle in me that will break before it bends."
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Once Before the Sunrise
In a city where social mores are the key to getting ahead, Miss Deidre Beckett is an anomaly. She's blunt, entranced with logic above all else, and has little time for pity or sympathy. Where other women use their wit and charms to rise to the place they want to be, Deidre cares little for her status and would rather spend her time arguing circles around a corrupt governor than playing along with their word games. It isn't that she's stupid - far from it, she could be considered academically incredible - but when it comes to socialization, she simply doesn't understand the need for excess.Deidre Adelaide Beckett
Since politics bore her and she has a burning need to be intellectually stimulated at all times, her career path took her a way very few women in the city decided to go. She became a consultant detective for the city's law enforcement office since she breezed through all types of education and had a knowledge base very few others have. There's never been a case she couldn't solve when she got involved, however the majority of law enforcement officers have come to resent her due to the fact that she comes off as an insufferable know-it-all to them. She may not actively believe herself arrogant, but the eye-rolls and snorts she offers when someone says something she doesn't agree with leave much to be desired.
Fortunately for her, the Beckett family was one of the 'first families' in the city, and so she doesn't have to worry about time. She grew up in a beautiful mansion with barely a moment's consideration for death, feelings neutral on the subject since she was present when her grandparents decided to go and pass their time on to her parents. It was a peaceful, easy affair that affected her only so far as making her decide she'd like to go the same way. Her younger brother, however, was affected much differently and has struggled with his feelings on the matter since. The contrast between the way they took the deaths has caused a constant rift in their relationship that neither sibling is quite ready to fix.
In Deidre's eyes, she has more strengths than flaws. She is more capable than most in the city, brilliant when it comes to deduction, stubborn when pursuing a lead, and not one of the 'bad guys.' This arrogance is a particular downfall of hers, along with her lack of social intellect, her rationality coming off as cold, her inability to maintain any sort of relationship, and her apparent disregard for human life since not a single crime scene or victim has been able to shock her. In polite terms, she's something of a sociopath, and there's more than one eye on her at all times in case she falls onto the wrong side of the law.
In terms of appearance, Deidre may be considered plain when compared to other women. She has no use for makeup and prefers to dress in trousers whenever she can get away with it. When she can't, the dresses in her closet are mostly stiff black things that are made for practicality rather than showing off the curves of her body. Small in stature and build, the majority of people are taller than her and she has problems trying to be intimidating since she has to crane her neck upwards a lot of the time. With a head of dark red curls and brown eyes, there's nothing overly bright or noticeable about her, but if one looks long enough there's no denying the glimmer of intelligence that resides within her.
As the protagonist of the story, Deidre will be investigating a murder that drags her much deeper into questions of morality and humanity than she's ever gone before. She's always managed to maintain an emotional distance from everything, but this particular case will hit close to home and leave her questioning whether or not remaining fiercely independent and generally isolated from other people is a good thing. She'll be the main consultant and will have to work closer with the law enforcement agency than ever before, which means she essentially has to interact with people. This will lead to her beginning to understand that life can be much easier when you show a bit of kindness, even though she's always believed logic to be the main driving force in the world.
Through the story, Deidre will gain more humanity because she will begin to recognize something of herself in the antagonist, and the people closest to her will need to help pull her back from going over the edge. As soon as she starts noticing the injustice behind indentured servitude and time-sharing, she won't be able to stop and things will snowball until her emotions become a confused wreck. For someone who's never relied on emotion or given it much thought, having feelings of guilt and anger towards the system will be particularly distressing and Deidre will need all the help she can get to try and understand just what makes her so upset.
Though she'll start out with very few connections and even fewer friends, as things progress she'll begin to see the benefits in having people care about her as well as her caring about others. Her younger brother in particular will be a big part of this, since outwardly they don't care for each other but inwardly both would die for the other. Since he's the complete opposite of her - all emotion, logic be damned - he'll be one of the turning points for her character to be more like him while he in turn becomes more like her to also aid in solving the murder.
The friends she makes along the way will also serve to reinforce what her brother teaches her, and at times they'll be placed in peril which she is powerless to do anything about on her own. This will act as the guiding force towards her learning how to ask for help, since up until now she's been too proud to admit when she's needed it.
"There’s something brittle in me that will break before it bends."
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Once Before the Sunrise
I.PART ONE
The introduction of the protagonist. Deidre is in the middle of one of her odder hobbies when she's called upon to come down and investigate a high-profile murder the police are planning to keep hush-hush. At the scene of the crime she meets up with many people who don't like her and the only man on the force who does - the old chief, Charles Lunley, who's a family friend and thinks of her as a daughter. During the preliminary investigation, Deidre finds this killer is much smarter than previous ones she's dealt with.
II.
On her way back from the crime scene, Deidre meets up with Ruth Taggart, an investigative journalist determined to start up her own newspaper that tells the truth. She attempts to get some information but is quickly shut down by Deidre's blunt personality. They part with Ruth unperturbed and still determined she will get something, giving Deidre her address. Afterwards, Deidre stops in at her favourite bakery and speaks with a man she's known since childhood - Malcolm Copeland. He informs her he saw something the previous night and lends a new insight into the murder.
III.
Deidre needs to visit the body again so her travels take her to a mortician who doubles as a scientist. This man also happens to be her younger brother, William, and after some tension the law enforcement chief shows up and they discuss the case. Deidre speaks about what she learned while her brother offers new insights from his autopsy. The three decide to think things over and see if they can gain a new perspective. Deidre investigates further, however a couple of nights later another body is found.
IV.
Law enforcement doesn't want to say serial killer, however that's what Deidre believes. It was almost certainly the same person even if the new victim is seemingly not connected in any way to the first. This time, however, the killer has left a message to Deidre. Ruth shows up and Deidre calls her out, troubled that the killer is aware she's on the case. Ruth claims she only told a few people but it probably spread because news spreads fast in the area. Deidre and Charles grab a list from her and investigate. Afterwards they head over to the funeral home, where William delivers some troubling news.
V.
Deidre stops in to see Malcolm to get her head straight. She gives him some pieces of the investigation, and since he can see she's troubled he invites her out on a date the next week. Unsure of what it means, she decides to go. For the rest of the week she continues her investigation and begins meeting with Ruth since the woman has fresh ideas. They find commonalities with one man and a new break in the case leads to an arrest. Thinking it all over, Deidre relaxes slightly and tells Ruth about Malcolm, leading to the woman helping her get ready. She leaves unsure but her and Malcolm end up having a wonderful time. Unfortunately, at the end of night, they stumble across a third body with a very clear message to Deidre that turns her world upside down.
VI.PART TWO
Deciding against telling law enforcement and swearing Malcolm to secrecy, a paranoid Deidre erases all traces of the message to her before contacting law enforcement. Charles attempts to figure out what's shaken her but she won't tell him. They continue with the investigation and discover more questions than answers, looking in different places around the city but not finding anything significant. When going back to question the man they originally arrested, Charles is horrified to find the man has seemingly hung himself in jail.
VII.
William's autopsy tells a different story about the jailed man, and paranoia begins to run high in the law enforcement office. It's clear to everyone that Deidre is hiding something but no one can understand what. William attempt to speak with her but they end up in a bitter fight, and she pushes Ruth away too when the reporter comes to her as a friend instead of a journalist. In the end, the only person she talks to is Malcolm, who encourages her to speak to her friends. She agrees, but doesn't go through with it.
VIII.
Another murder leads to tensions running higher than ever with both the people and law enforcement. Charles attempts to protect Deidre but there's nothing she can say for herself without giving away secrets she doesn't want to give. She reluctantly reveals a pattern in the killings that set law enforcement on the right path. Political figures continue to push people on due to the upcoming election, and Deidre begins an investigation into the Time Keepers.
IX.
Deidre's investigations take her to dangerous places, and she eventually has to swallow her pride and ask Ruth for help. The woman happily agrees, old anger forgotten, and they get into no small amount of trouble digging deeper than anyone has before. When they're caught, Deidre is jailed and people try to begin placing the blame on her. Ruth, William, Charles, and Malcolm fight to get her out, but she's only interested in the investigation. She tells Ruth to publish her first issue of the new paper and gives her a lie sure to frustrate the killer.
X.
As everyone works to get Deidre out of jail and create a case for her upcoming court date, William comes to visit her. They share a heartfelt moment and he vows to do whatever he can to get his sister out of jail, explaining that he has an idea and leaving before sharing it. Ruth visits next to say the next issue of the paper is out, and after a couple more visitors Malcolm comes to make her laugh. Telling her he's happy she's lightened up, he leaves and promises to read Ruth's new newspaper to support their friend. Despite the jailing, things seem okay, until Charles comes in to tell her William has gone missing.
XI.PART THREE
Worried about her younger brother and fed up with the whole city, Deidre breaks out of jail with the help of Ruth. Going into hiding because breaking out was like an admission of guilt, Deidre investigates the facts and where her brother could be. Although at first she thinks it's the Time Keepers, a new body discovered just hours after she breaks out has a message directed straight to her. The killer has William, and she's to meet the killer if she wants to see her brother alive.
XII.
Telling Ruth and Charles she won't do anything rash, Deidre begins saying her goodbyes. She admits that Ruth is a good friend, Charles is like a father, and Malcolm is something more. She shares a tender moment with Malcolm and tells him she won't go to the killer, but in the end she slips away and goes to save her brother. At the meeting place, the killer is finally revealed.
XIII.
Emotions run high as Deidre and the killer argue and bargain. While she doesn't necessarily agree with murder, Deidre begins to see the killer's point and becomes frustrated with herself since it makes logical sense. The killer has a plan and Deidre hesitantly decides to take part in it to save William. Following the killer, the two brilliant minds make a play against the Time Keepers and find out secrets best left buried.
XIV.
With everything exposed and out in the open, Deidre has to make a choice on whether she will give up and turn her back on the city or try and forge a new life out of the darkness. She alone makes the choice, the killer allowing her to decide, and when she's finished she's still unsure whether it was the right one or not.
XV.
Morally and physically tired, Deidre still has another choice to make about what to do with the killer. Knowing what she chooses will affect her relationship with everyone and how she's perceived in the city, she chooses a way no one would've imagined anyways. Law enforcement shows up and Deidre has to deal with the consequences of her actions.
The main conflicts in the story are over one way or another, and it's been a few months since. This is a peek into the lives of the characters and what they're up to after everything, some of them happy and some of them not. It's an ending, but whether or not it's the ending remains to be seen.EPILOGUE
"There’s something brittle in me that will break before it bends."
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Once Before the Sunrise
OUTLINE:
I. Beginning
In the beginning the Labour Party is ahead by many a vote due to the fact that they've been the original party for so long and the rich always vote for them. This year the party is more popular than ever because a genuine Time Keeper is the lead representative and people are in awe of them since they have incredible technology. Though the People's Action Party (PAP) caters to those who have a sense of justice, they don't have the same funding as the Labour Party (LP) which makes it hard for them to get ahead.
II. Middle
After the murders start occurring, a large divide develops between those voting for the LP and those voting for the PAP. Many people believe the murders are a political statement (which isn't helped by the newspaper falsely reporting it's confirmed that they're being carried out but the PAP to ruin the LP members), and they turn to the LP. Conversely, those who theorize against Time Keepers and the LP are convinced the LP is carrying out the murders to make the PAP look bad. With all of this at play, money and campaigns are no longer important because the voters begin looking at the personal side of things instead of the business. This gives the PAP a boost and the preliminary votes are a deadlock with a near complete tie between the LP and the PAP.
III. End
Around the time Deidre discovers the secrets of the Time Keepers, there's approximately a week left before the election. It's at the point where it could go either way and Deidre holds the key to tipping it to either side by how much she reveals. She makes her decision and in the end the side who wins ultimately gets ahead by the actions she chooses.
OUTLINE:
I. Beginning
It's been a year since Malcolm's returned and Deidre is a regular at his bakery. Every morning she goes in to eat one of his famous 'puzzle pastries' where you have to unwrap a multi-layered puzzle box to get a small delicious cupcake. She often sits at the counter and they speak about how the puzzle design could be improved upon while enjoying a cup of tea and testing some new baking creation he's come up with. Everyone and anyone who stops by can tell Malcolm is absolutely smitten with the woman, however Deidre is clueless due to the fact that she's always had issues forming/maintaining human relationships.
II. Middle
As nervous as Malcolm is about the situation, he finally works up the courage to ask Deidre out. She's absolutely shocked but accepts before she has time to think it through as she considers him one of the only people she's close to. There's a lot going on in her life between the murders, her brother, and now this, however she finds herself oddly excited over the whole thing. The two of them make a good match regardless of difference in personalities because - past his charming, youthful face - Malcolm is quite the intellect who excels in riddles and puzzles.
With some nudging from her friend Ruth, Deidre dresses up and the two go out to have a fantastic time. Malcolm plans riddles that lead Deidre from one place to another until they reach their final destination, and the amount of thought behind it all leads Deidre to the realization that the man behind her favourite bakery might like her as more than a friend. Before they can have that conversation, however, they're interrupted by a morbid event. Things escalate in the main plot and everyone is emotionally exhausted as Deidre is locked away and they're all forced to fight. No one is more upset than Malcolm, and this is the final piece in the puzzle that leads Deidre to understand his feelings.
With time in jail to think, she also comes to terms with her own feelings and the fact that she may have shared some of his all along. After the big escape and before she goes to meet the murderer, her and Malcolm confess their feelings and spend the night together.
III. End
Naturally, Malcolm is rather upset when Deidre chooses to go after the murderer instead of remain with him. It drives a wedge between them that will likely be hard to overcome, even if he understands where her choice is coming from. Her choice in the end will be the deciding factor in how the relationship between her and her childhood friend continues.
"There’s something brittle in me that will break before it bends."
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Once Before the Sunrise
A relatively quiet young man who spends much of his time deep in thought, William is the beloved younger brother of Deidre. He's one of the more empathetic citizens in the city and puts up a fierce opposition against anything involving indenturing people. He shows up for what protests he can and is constantly writing letters to the government, however he prefers solitude and is considered an extreme introvert by everyone who knows him. When he's not out in the protests waving a sign as high as he dares, he's often in the basement of Beckett's Funeral Home preparing a body for a viewing.William Beckett
Since death is so rare in the city, he dual functions as a medical examiner and a funeral director. He's one of the few people who still has respect for the dead and sees bodies as more than containers for the soul. After seeing his grandparents treat the dying process with so little gravity or respect, he also severed connections with his parents and worked hard to open his own funeral home to give him a source of time income. Though he's no longer on speaking terms with any other members of the Beckett family and often gets into moral squabbles with Deidre, he loves his sister and the two would die for each other.
Beyond her, he's well-liked by the small amount of people who get to know him. While awkward, he's the opposite of Deidre in that he wears his heart on his sleeve and isn't afraid of his emotions. On one hand, this is a good trait in a funeral director since it allow him to talk to the families of deceased loved ones in a sensitive matter, but on the other he often gets too emotional to be taken seriously in arguments.
Ruth Taggart is a chain-smoking bona fide badass who gives no fucks. She's a self-made woman who originally became incredibly rich on the outside by opening her own newspaper that went after the truth with a voracious appetite. It didn't matter which large politician or popular celebrity it was, Ruth went after them headfirst with little to no regard for anything but giving the people the information to make an informed decision. As an investigative journalist for her own paper - since even after becoming wealthy she couldn't give up the adrenaline rush of chasing down a lead - she couldn't resist the lure of the mystery about the Barrows.Ruth Taggart
Trading her wealth in for time, Ruth became a relatively newer resident of the city and pursues leads with the same vigour she did on the outside. In the city, however, secrets are kept much better and she finds herself too-often running into a wall that even wealth can't tear down. What's worse; even when she does find something out that she figures everyone should know, there's nowhere to spread the word since there's one single newspaper and it refuses to publish anything beyond bland optimism or Time Keeper agendas. Since this is the case, her current goal is to start up her own newspaper to combat the blatant propaganda being pushed by the main media.
Brutally honest and unafraid of anything, Ruth is one of the few people who finds Deidre's bluntness more charming than annoying. When the redhead inadvertently insults someone, Ruth is the first to break out into peals of laughter. She's still not quite used to the 'old fashion-ness' of the Barrows and finds many of their customs stupid, yet no one holds it against her. In fact, many find her a breath of fresh air and to the common people she's a popular lady they all clamour to impress.
The nearly-retired police commissioner of the city, Charles is the one who runs the murder investigations and brings Deidre in for particularly tough cases. He's well respected by the force and people for his high rate of solving crime, however there are a couple who resent the fact that he brings someone like Deidre in when they think it should be restricted to people who have genuine emotions.Charles Lunley
On the outside Charles is pleasant enough and has quick smiles for everyone - he's known for being the best one to deliver bad news to victim's families. While many believe this comes from him having a heart of gold, William and Deidre know the truth behind his sincere and memorable deliveries of messages. During his third year on the force, Charles's wife and daughter were killed in a rare tragic automobile accident that left a dark mark on him. Behind closed doors he's a haunted man with a penchant for indulging in substances best left in the deepest part of a liquor cabinet.
Directly tied into his pain in a complex, tragic relationship is the Beckett family. William and Deidre's parents were the ones who hit his family on a reckless joyride through the city. With the amount of money and influence they had, they were easily able to cover it up and pay people off to receive no punishment in return. Charles spent five years relentlessly pursuing them until finally giving up after seeing that he wasn't hurting their reputation, only their children. Finding this out was one of the other reasons William split from the family, and he actively tried to nail his family for some of their frivolous crimes as well.
Nothing ever came of it beyond squabbles with his sister, however he grew closer with Charles and the man in turn ended up liking both Beckett children. After realizing how brilliant Deidre was and working with her for a while, she became like a surrogate daughter to Charles and William became a surrogate son. The three are now an odd little family unit after even Deidre fought with her parents, but somehow it works.
"There’s something brittle in me that will break before it bends."
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8
Fearless | Poison Resistance
STA - 7, EV - 5, STR - 1, WIS - 9, ARC - 10, ACC - 8