K
K. El-Amrani
Guest
Original poster
So yes, I have another Music Masters plot idea, but this one is not of the one on one nature and actually needs four people by myself.
For those who have no idea what Music Masters are, and are wondering what the hell this is all about, read the first spoiler, then the second. They'll tell you everything you need to know.
[SPOILI]In the M-Verse, a Music Master is any human being with the ability to Harmonize with a piece of music, or song. The M-Verse is an alternate version of our universe, and is almost exactly the same in every way, save for the existence of Music Masters. The term "Harmonizing" or the process of "Harmonization" refers to the act of intense visualization that a Music Master undergoes the moment a song enters his ears. This visualization creates a link between his mind and the song, and this link can be formed within a half-second to a few seconds, depending on the experience of said Music Master.
The point of the Harmonization process is to produce what Music Masters call "song effects." Song effects are the physical manifestations of a song, and because they are rooted in human imagination, the exact purpose and appearance of any song effect can be absolutely anything imaginable. These effects last from the completion of the Harmonization process to the end of the song, and if at any time the song is shut off, interrupted or paused while a song effect is active, that song effect will fade out of existence in an instant. Song effects are not something a Music Master can predict, they are always random to the Music Masters in question and must be tested out before they can be effectively used.
Song effects can be anything from a flaming monster that guards its Music Master with heavy chains, to turquoise energy that a Music Master can use to heal wounds, to an effect that enhances a Music Master's body, granting him added strength or speed. Song effects are unique enough that they can't really be compared to another. In fact, no two Music Masters can ever have the same song effect. A Music Master's effect when he's Harmonized with a specific song is completely unique to him.
The only song effects that can be compared to one another are those of the Sentinel variety. These song effects tend to create some sort of bodyguard or creature, made of pure Harmonizeo, that serves its Music Master. These Sentinels vary greatly in appearance, size and intelligence, but they all serve their Music Masters with unquestioning loyalty.
Music Masters achieve these song effects because they can tap into Harmonizeo, an intangible energy source that originates from another dimension. This dimension is known to all Music Masters as the Soundscape, and its existence is only supported by a few Music Masters who have been said to have entered its recesses. Harmonizeo is the catalyst for all song effects, but during the normal Harmonization process, Music Masters use its unfiltered, impure form. Pure Harmonizeo can be tapped into using voice or instruments. Singing or instrument playing must be absolutely perfect for this process to work, but a Music Master who can achieve this will quickly learn that Pure Harmonizeo produces enhanced song effects when compared to its impure counterpart.
Pure Harmonizeo can also be utilized in another way, though it is one that most Music Masters cannot achieve voluntarily. Perfect Beat is a state where a Music Master's mind and body is overtaken by Pure Harmonizeo, which is completely black in color. This effectively turns a Music Master into a silhouette, with the only visible part of their body being their eyes, which glow in a color unique to them. Their headphone wires also glow with this color under the effects of Perfect Beat. The state of Perfect Beat increases the power of a Music Master's song effects to the highest level they could ever possibly perceive. A simple fireball will become a firestorm, while a small Sentinel will grow to titanic sizes. These increases in power are capped by a psychological limit however, and do not truly represent a song effects true potential. Perfect Beat also changes a Music Master's mindset, and sometimes this change can have a disastrous effect on a Music Master's personality.
Track Masters, who are Music Masters recognized for great power and skill, are the few Music Masters who can voluntarily enter Perfect Beat. Otherwise, the process tends to be a fail-safe for most Music Masters, and not something they can usually control. It is rumored that those who enter the Soundscape can activate Perfect Beat voluntarily when inside it, but these rumors have yet to be substantiated.
Unlike a normal person, a Music Master's brain has developed the ability to separate sounds. A Music Master can focus on a song, listen to the ambiance of birds in the trees, and hear his friend calling him from down the street, all at the same time and without any chaotic mixing. Music Masters collectively refer to this ability as "Multi-Hearing."
Music Masters organize themselves in organizations called Circles. These Circles operate based on familial ties, music tastes, and other trivial things, and often fight amongst each other over petty squabbles and disagreements.
Above all these Circles is Zero Beat, an organization of Music Masters that could be compared to the FBI. They are ruthless in the act of keeping their kind secret from the modern world, and often resort to bribery, lethal force and memory manipulation to achieve their goals. Though they see themselves a police force for their kind, other Music Masters seem them as an oppressive force. Zero Beat maintains shaky alliances with most major world governments, which allows them to silence most witnesses with ease and keep their kind under better watch. They are also deeply involved in the real world music industry, so their funds and influence are vast.
One of the most notable conflicts in Music Master history happened in the year 1979, and involved a man named Highlord Funk staging what Zero Beat today calls "a violent uprising." At the end of this bloody conflict, disco music was stigmatized as a genre, Highlord Funk and most of his supporters were dead, and Zero Beat had been dealt a grievous blow to their numbers. But they managed to keep on, and they continue to exert control over their kind to this day, though with considerably less restraint.
[/SPOILI]
[SPOILI]Music Masters have been around since the early 50's, and conflict has always been a common problem for them. Music Masters, despite being mostly sane human beings at heart, have their prejudices, their hatreds, and their preferences for music. So it's no surprise that something had to be done once Music Masters began to realize how much destruction and death their constant and petty battles caused. A group, known as the Zero Coalition, had already approached the United States government about the plight of their kind, offering their services and powers in exchange for help.
When the year 1955 came around, the Zero Coalition, formed by a few powerful Track Masters, decided that it made sense to create something akin to a police force for their kind. They would monitor the conflicts of Music Masters, and serve as intermediaries when potential wars needed to be resolved. When it was absolutely necessary, they would deliver justice to Music Masters who crossed lines, as well as punish those Music Masters who used their powers in public.
Thus, Zero Beat was born, and at first, many Music Masters flocked to join it, hoping to gain some sort of semblance of power over their own kind by doing so. But it only took a year for Zero Beat to form its own recruitment policies, and being invited to join Zero Beat soon became the fleeting dream of many a Music Master.
Unfortunately, as the years passed, Zero Beat's role involving Music Masters changed drastically. The Music Masters within it started a trend of using bribery, lethal force, and memory manipulation to keep their fellow Music Masters, as well as any unfortunate normal witnesses, in line. On top of the events of "Last Record" in 1979, which caused the fall of the Circle DanceDown and disco music, along with Zero Beat's considerable unpopularity in the '80's and '90's, it's no surprise that the organization became little more than an oppressor to Music Master when the new millennium came around.
Today, Zero Beat functions officially as a mixture of the FBI, CIA and MIB. Their activities are almost always top-secret, and their members are assigned a number upon induction. These numbers are used when any member of Zero Beat attempts to enter a Symphon, which is the name for any base of operations Zero Beat has built in a given area. Symphons are often disguised as clubs or discotheques, with the 5 Records skyscraper being the largest and most complex in the United States. In additon to this number-based security, entry into Symphons also requires that a Music Master be forced to listen to a chaotic mixture of songs that members of Zero Beat have been conditioned to withstand. For a regular Music Master, the pressure of trying to Harmonize with this chaos of sound often causes them to lose sense of reality and pass out.
Zero Beat's members are separated by four ranks. These ranks are First Beat, Second Beat, Third Beat, and Fourth Beat. Each rank has a distinctive colored trench coat uniform, and it's no surprise the lower number ranks are often bullied by the higher numbered ones.
First Beats are the grunts of Zero Beat, sent to do menial tanks such as delivering threats or keeping weaker Music Masters in line. They are considered "expendable" for the most part, and as such they have little to no power in Zero Beat. First Beats are stronger than the average Music Master, as they are forced to undergo intense training with songs assigned to them as part of their induction into Zero Beat. First Beats wear stark white trench coats, and are given a pair of Z-Phones upon induction. Z-Phones are orb-shaped headphones, colored to match their user's rank, and they are incredibly durable and resistant to temperature extremes. They employ suction pads to remain on a Music Master's ears, making them incredibly hard to break as well as pull off.
Second Beats are tasked with groups of First Beats, and are the ones who usually tend to the Symphons and are often stuck training First Beats. Though not viewed as cannon fodder like the First Beats are, Second Beats still have little power when compared to Third Beats and Fourth Beats. Second Beats wear silver trench coats, and their Z-Phones are colored similarly.
Third Beat is the rank where some true power in Zero Beat lies. Third Beats oversee an entire Symphon on their own, keeping tabs and monitoring the activities of the Second Beats and First Beats operating within it. Third Beats tend to be experienced Music Masters, and many of them masquerade as musicians or producers in the real world music industry. Third Beats almost never rank up, and the few times where such a thing has happened usually involves the "death" of a well-known Fourth Beat who is eventually replaced by a willing "successor."
Fourth Beat is the final and highest rank of Zero Beat. Fourth Beats are all Track Masters in their own right, powerful and in control over a specific branch of Zero Beat. In the US, one Fourth Beat may have jurisdiction over the Tristate area, while another may have control over branches in Maine and Vermont. It is unknown how many Fourth Beats there are, but the number is rumored to be no more than thirty. All the Fourth Beats have extensive riches and influence from their many connections within the music industry and the various world governments. Fourth Beats wear emerald trench coats, but most of them actually opt away with the standard Zero Beat uniform entirely.
In addition to these four ranks, Zero Beat employs something that could be compared to a "special forces" team of sorts. Since 1955, Zero Beat has funded and backed a group of five Music Masters known throughout the years as the Pop 5.
The Pop 5 is a group that changes every decade, made up of teenage Music Masters who show potential in the eyes of Zero Beat. These Music Masters are pampered and allowed to live in the splendor of the 5 Penthouse, located in the 5 Records skyscraper in New York City. The Pop 5 undergo special training that allow them to gain greater control over their song effects at an accelerated rate, and they are assigned songs based on popular artists of the decade. Each member is given a single musician, and is expected to use only that artist's music during their time in the Pop 5.
The Pop 5 operates for a full decade, and at the beginning of each new decade their ranks are disbanded to make way for a new generation of Music Masters. The members usually go their separate ways, but they are always expected to stay within Zero Beat as Third Beats, and if some show considerable potential, as possible Fourth Beats. At the start of the year 2010, the newly inducted Pop 5 was assigned to use the artists Kanye West, Lady GaGa, The Beatles, Blink-182 and Michael Jackson.
For the most part, Zero Beat seeks to quell most conflicts rather than start them. However, as a way to celebrate the induction of a new Pop 5, Zero Beat holds an event known as Audio Supremacy. This is a worldwide tournament of sorts, where Music Masters are invited to compete for an object known as the Platinum Record. Though it looks like little more than a shining platinum vinyl disc, the Platinum Record is considered to be a powerful status symbol and a priceless object among Music Masters. In addition, a winner of the Platinum Record can choose to take a place in Zero Beat as a Third Beat, something which many Music Masters could only dream of. Competitors for Audio Supremacy are said to be chosen randomly by Zero Beat, but it is rumored that many are chosen for specific reasons, and some even bribe Zero Beat to be allowed into the competition in the first place.
In recent years, since the events of "Last Record", there has been noticeable suspicion and hostility from Zero Beat against Music Masters who use music from the genres of funk, soul or disco. So far, Zero Beat hasn't done anything serious yet about this issue, but to many Music Masters, it's becoming more and more obvious that they are going to be doing drastic soon enough...[/SPOILI]
Basically, in this plot, I'd like to do a story for the 2000-2010 era of the The Pop 5, which I never delved into or even thought about. Thus, I will need four other people besides myself, who will be playing four particularly flawed characters who are part of this group and become involved in their own major plots and such. I think this could be really good and really fun, because I've never delved into a Music Masters RP from the perspective of Zero Beat or the Pop 5. It's always been random Music Masters who are unrelated to them.
Change is good, I think.
For those who have no idea what Music Masters are, and are wondering what the hell this is all about, read the first spoiler, then the second. They'll tell you everything you need to know.
[SPOILI]In the M-Verse, a Music Master is any human being with the ability to Harmonize with a piece of music, or song. The M-Verse is an alternate version of our universe, and is almost exactly the same in every way, save for the existence of Music Masters. The term "Harmonizing" or the process of "Harmonization" refers to the act of intense visualization that a Music Master undergoes the moment a song enters his ears. This visualization creates a link between his mind and the song, and this link can be formed within a half-second to a few seconds, depending on the experience of said Music Master.
The point of the Harmonization process is to produce what Music Masters call "song effects." Song effects are the physical manifestations of a song, and because they are rooted in human imagination, the exact purpose and appearance of any song effect can be absolutely anything imaginable. These effects last from the completion of the Harmonization process to the end of the song, and if at any time the song is shut off, interrupted or paused while a song effect is active, that song effect will fade out of existence in an instant. Song effects are not something a Music Master can predict, they are always random to the Music Masters in question and must be tested out before they can be effectively used.
Song effects can be anything from a flaming monster that guards its Music Master with heavy chains, to turquoise energy that a Music Master can use to heal wounds, to an effect that enhances a Music Master's body, granting him added strength or speed. Song effects are unique enough that they can't really be compared to another. In fact, no two Music Masters can ever have the same song effect. A Music Master's effect when he's Harmonized with a specific song is completely unique to him.
The only song effects that can be compared to one another are those of the Sentinel variety. These song effects tend to create some sort of bodyguard or creature, made of pure Harmonizeo, that serves its Music Master. These Sentinels vary greatly in appearance, size and intelligence, but they all serve their Music Masters with unquestioning loyalty.
Music Masters achieve these song effects because they can tap into Harmonizeo, an intangible energy source that originates from another dimension. This dimension is known to all Music Masters as the Soundscape, and its existence is only supported by a few Music Masters who have been said to have entered its recesses. Harmonizeo is the catalyst for all song effects, but during the normal Harmonization process, Music Masters use its unfiltered, impure form. Pure Harmonizeo can be tapped into using voice or instruments. Singing or instrument playing must be absolutely perfect for this process to work, but a Music Master who can achieve this will quickly learn that Pure Harmonizeo produces enhanced song effects when compared to its impure counterpart.
Pure Harmonizeo can also be utilized in another way, though it is one that most Music Masters cannot achieve voluntarily. Perfect Beat is a state where a Music Master's mind and body is overtaken by Pure Harmonizeo, which is completely black in color. This effectively turns a Music Master into a silhouette, with the only visible part of their body being their eyes, which glow in a color unique to them. Their headphone wires also glow with this color under the effects of Perfect Beat. The state of Perfect Beat increases the power of a Music Master's song effects to the highest level they could ever possibly perceive. A simple fireball will become a firestorm, while a small Sentinel will grow to titanic sizes. These increases in power are capped by a psychological limit however, and do not truly represent a song effects true potential. Perfect Beat also changes a Music Master's mindset, and sometimes this change can have a disastrous effect on a Music Master's personality.
Track Masters, who are Music Masters recognized for great power and skill, are the few Music Masters who can voluntarily enter Perfect Beat. Otherwise, the process tends to be a fail-safe for most Music Masters, and not something they can usually control. It is rumored that those who enter the Soundscape can activate Perfect Beat voluntarily when inside it, but these rumors have yet to be substantiated.
Unlike a normal person, a Music Master's brain has developed the ability to separate sounds. A Music Master can focus on a song, listen to the ambiance of birds in the trees, and hear his friend calling him from down the street, all at the same time and without any chaotic mixing. Music Masters collectively refer to this ability as "Multi-Hearing."
Music Masters organize themselves in organizations called Circles. These Circles operate based on familial ties, music tastes, and other trivial things, and often fight amongst each other over petty squabbles and disagreements.
Above all these Circles is Zero Beat, an organization of Music Masters that could be compared to the FBI. They are ruthless in the act of keeping their kind secret from the modern world, and often resort to bribery, lethal force and memory manipulation to achieve their goals. Though they see themselves a police force for their kind, other Music Masters seem them as an oppressive force. Zero Beat maintains shaky alliances with most major world governments, which allows them to silence most witnesses with ease and keep their kind under better watch. They are also deeply involved in the real world music industry, so their funds and influence are vast.
One of the most notable conflicts in Music Master history happened in the year 1979, and involved a man named Highlord Funk staging what Zero Beat today calls "a violent uprising." At the end of this bloody conflict, disco music was stigmatized as a genre, Highlord Funk and most of his supporters were dead, and Zero Beat had been dealt a grievous blow to their numbers. But they managed to keep on, and they continue to exert control over their kind to this day, though with considerably less restraint.
[/SPOILI]
[SPOILI]Music Masters have been around since the early 50's, and conflict has always been a common problem for them. Music Masters, despite being mostly sane human beings at heart, have their prejudices, their hatreds, and their preferences for music. So it's no surprise that something had to be done once Music Masters began to realize how much destruction and death their constant and petty battles caused. A group, known as the Zero Coalition, had already approached the United States government about the plight of their kind, offering their services and powers in exchange for help.
When the year 1955 came around, the Zero Coalition, formed by a few powerful Track Masters, decided that it made sense to create something akin to a police force for their kind. They would monitor the conflicts of Music Masters, and serve as intermediaries when potential wars needed to be resolved. When it was absolutely necessary, they would deliver justice to Music Masters who crossed lines, as well as punish those Music Masters who used their powers in public.
Thus, Zero Beat was born, and at first, many Music Masters flocked to join it, hoping to gain some sort of semblance of power over their own kind by doing so. But it only took a year for Zero Beat to form its own recruitment policies, and being invited to join Zero Beat soon became the fleeting dream of many a Music Master.
Unfortunately, as the years passed, Zero Beat's role involving Music Masters changed drastically. The Music Masters within it started a trend of using bribery, lethal force, and memory manipulation to keep their fellow Music Masters, as well as any unfortunate normal witnesses, in line. On top of the events of "Last Record" in 1979, which caused the fall of the Circle DanceDown and disco music, along with Zero Beat's considerable unpopularity in the '80's and '90's, it's no surprise that the organization became little more than an oppressor to Music Master when the new millennium came around.
Today, Zero Beat functions officially as a mixture of the FBI, CIA and MIB. Their activities are almost always top-secret, and their members are assigned a number upon induction. These numbers are used when any member of Zero Beat attempts to enter a Symphon, which is the name for any base of operations Zero Beat has built in a given area. Symphons are often disguised as clubs or discotheques, with the 5 Records skyscraper being the largest and most complex in the United States. In additon to this number-based security, entry into Symphons also requires that a Music Master be forced to listen to a chaotic mixture of songs that members of Zero Beat have been conditioned to withstand. For a regular Music Master, the pressure of trying to Harmonize with this chaos of sound often causes them to lose sense of reality and pass out.
Zero Beat's members are separated by four ranks. These ranks are First Beat, Second Beat, Third Beat, and Fourth Beat. Each rank has a distinctive colored trench coat uniform, and it's no surprise the lower number ranks are often bullied by the higher numbered ones.
First Beats are the grunts of Zero Beat, sent to do menial tanks such as delivering threats or keeping weaker Music Masters in line. They are considered "expendable" for the most part, and as such they have little to no power in Zero Beat. First Beats are stronger than the average Music Master, as they are forced to undergo intense training with songs assigned to them as part of their induction into Zero Beat. First Beats wear stark white trench coats, and are given a pair of Z-Phones upon induction. Z-Phones are orb-shaped headphones, colored to match their user's rank, and they are incredibly durable and resistant to temperature extremes. They employ suction pads to remain on a Music Master's ears, making them incredibly hard to break as well as pull off.
Second Beats are tasked with groups of First Beats, and are the ones who usually tend to the Symphons and are often stuck training First Beats. Though not viewed as cannon fodder like the First Beats are, Second Beats still have little power when compared to Third Beats and Fourth Beats. Second Beats wear silver trench coats, and their Z-Phones are colored similarly.
Third Beat is the rank where some true power in Zero Beat lies. Third Beats oversee an entire Symphon on their own, keeping tabs and monitoring the activities of the Second Beats and First Beats operating within it. Third Beats tend to be experienced Music Masters, and many of them masquerade as musicians or producers in the real world music industry. Third Beats almost never rank up, and the few times where such a thing has happened usually involves the "death" of a well-known Fourth Beat who is eventually replaced by a willing "successor."
Fourth Beat is the final and highest rank of Zero Beat. Fourth Beats are all Track Masters in their own right, powerful and in control over a specific branch of Zero Beat. In the US, one Fourth Beat may have jurisdiction over the Tristate area, while another may have control over branches in Maine and Vermont. It is unknown how many Fourth Beats there are, but the number is rumored to be no more than thirty. All the Fourth Beats have extensive riches and influence from their many connections within the music industry and the various world governments. Fourth Beats wear emerald trench coats, but most of them actually opt away with the standard Zero Beat uniform entirely.
In addition to these four ranks, Zero Beat employs something that could be compared to a "special forces" team of sorts. Since 1955, Zero Beat has funded and backed a group of five Music Masters known throughout the years as the Pop 5.
The Pop 5 is a group that changes every decade, made up of teenage Music Masters who show potential in the eyes of Zero Beat. These Music Masters are pampered and allowed to live in the splendor of the 5 Penthouse, located in the 5 Records skyscraper in New York City. The Pop 5 undergo special training that allow them to gain greater control over their song effects at an accelerated rate, and they are assigned songs based on popular artists of the decade. Each member is given a single musician, and is expected to use only that artist's music during their time in the Pop 5.
The Pop 5 operates for a full decade, and at the beginning of each new decade their ranks are disbanded to make way for a new generation of Music Masters. The members usually go their separate ways, but they are always expected to stay within Zero Beat as Third Beats, and if some show considerable potential, as possible Fourth Beats. At the start of the year 2010, the newly inducted Pop 5 was assigned to use the artists Kanye West, Lady GaGa, The Beatles, Blink-182 and Michael Jackson.
For the most part, Zero Beat seeks to quell most conflicts rather than start them. However, as a way to celebrate the induction of a new Pop 5, Zero Beat holds an event known as Audio Supremacy. This is a worldwide tournament of sorts, where Music Masters are invited to compete for an object known as the Platinum Record. Though it looks like little more than a shining platinum vinyl disc, the Platinum Record is considered to be a powerful status symbol and a priceless object among Music Masters. In addition, a winner of the Platinum Record can choose to take a place in Zero Beat as a Third Beat, something which many Music Masters could only dream of. Competitors for Audio Supremacy are said to be chosen randomly by Zero Beat, but it is rumored that many are chosen for specific reasons, and some even bribe Zero Beat to be allowed into the competition in the first place.
In recent years, since the events of "Last Record", there has been noticeable suspicion and hostility from Zero Beat against Music Masters who use music from the genres of funk, soul or disco. So far, Zero Beat hasn't done anything serious yet about this issue, but to many Music Masters, it's becoming more and more obvious that they are going to be doing drastic soon enough...[/SPOILI]
Basically, in this plot, I'd like to do a story for the 2000-2010 era of the The Pop 5, which I never delved into or even thought about. Thus, I will need four other people besides myself, who will be playing four particularly flawed characters who are part of this group and become involved in their own major plots and such. I think this could be really good and really fun, because I've never delved into a Music Masters RP from the perspective of Zero Beat or the Pop 5. It's always been random Music Masters who are unrelated to them.
Change is good, I think.