welcome to ARIA
//somewhere out there...
≫some number of light-years away, a planet named aria floats silently through space, orbiting a binary set of stars. the planet's inhabitants, called ariata, have called this planet home for an untold number of years, and are currently in an age of prosperity. technology is booming, cities are populated, and researchers are discovering more than ever about the world around them.
//what is aria?
≫aria is the world that most of my ocs exist within. its sort of a worldbuilding project i started semi-accidentally! it's definitely not amazing or anything but i like it :) it draws inspiration from various aesthetics, ideas, and even music i like. main inspirations include solarpunk, cyberpunk, and just like. porter robinson's nurture album in general. below you'll find some general info about the planets, and in the other aria-related links are various characters, and eventually a comic! (...when i get to it)
//the planet
≫aria is fairly earth-like, with a few major differences, the most obvious one at first glance being its rings. these rings are visible to the naked eye from the ground, and paired with the binary suns (the other major difference), makes for one hell of a sunset. less obvious at first glance is aria's different seasons. orbiting two suns changes how seasons work, resulting more seasons for varied periods of time. aria cycles between hot and cold, with brief periods of temperate weather between. these transitional periods are when most ariata spend time outside more often. during the cold and hot seasons, (which depend largely on how many suns are visible in the sky) ariata spend most of their time indoors.
//ariata life
≫most ariata live in urban areas, which are designed with walkability in mind. culture on aria, like on earth, varies between different regions.
≫one consistent thing though, is advanced science and technology. ai and robotics are far more advanced than our own, and are used to create synthetic life forms which serve various purposes (more on that later). a lot of these advancements were helped along by contact with extraariata, who shared their own technology and culture with aria. interplanetary space travel is in its fairly early stages, not quite commercial just yet- it's expensive, only really available for those who can afford it. holotech (hologram technology) is common and cheap to produce, and is used in many areas of life where a screen might have been used today. mirrors, tvs, keyboards, monitors, you name it. phones are a bit of a mixed bag though, because some are less comfortable with the decreased privacy of a hologram over a traditional glass-screen smartphone.
≫first contact with aliens was made roughly 40 years prior to the current day, and with them came a cultural and technological boom. since then, they've become an integrated part of ariata society. like all other life on aria, aliens come in all shapes and sizes.
//synthetics
≫synthetic life forms, or synthetics, are robotic life forms made for a specific purpose, like construction, food service, companionship, et cetera. all synthetics have some degree of sentience to help them better fulfil their created purpose. some synthetics, however, reject their purpose and go "rogue," running off to live life on their terms. synthetics have a unspoken, unwritten culture. while a lot is different between different pockets of synthetic residences culture varies but one thing stays consistent: a strong emphasis on individualism. many will help their own, but otherwise will stubbornly refuse help, even when it would be in their best interest to accept it. (also miku and other vocaloids are canon because of synthetics because i said so)
//the supernatural
≫the world of aria is teeming with magic, with magic life and abilities. many ariata have some minor sensitivity to magic, but not enough to have any real control over this force. some, however, are able to utilize it (voluntarily or otherwise) in various ways. these abilities range from flight, to mind reading, to even shapeshifting. anything is really possible, but some powers are understanably rarer than others.
≫supernatural life on aria includes dragons, angels, and demons. dragons are thought to be immortal, but no one's really been able to confirm-- they can most certanly die, but it's unclear if they can die of old age. all dragons have some connection to an element of the universe, which can influence their personality to some extent. there are some features that are also common among dragons, including horns, a furry mane, and nonstandard eyes (nonstandard in this case meaning colored sclerae, unusual pupil shapes, glowing eyes, etc.). all dragons have a hoarding instinct that can be very stressful for them to suppress. hoards can be anything, from plush animals to the traditional gold to even intangible things like knowledge! some dragons have been known to be walking encyclopedias and work in places like libraries to take in as much knowledge as they possibly can.
≫angels and demons, however, are something older than dragons. all have power over the magic force flowing through aria, and their magic is considerably stronger than the usual mortal's magic. angels and demons are capable of choosing the phsyical form they take, with angels usually taking on forms that are made to not frighten mortals. demons however, are less concerned with this and are more likely to just do whatever they think would be fun-- even if it's at mortals' expense. both races have rich and storied cultures, which have been at odds with each other longer than any can remember. they both have their own spoken and written language, which can be dangerous to mortal ears. mortals can learn a safe simplified version however, which sounds a bit like a broken form of their language to angels and demons.
