>> Threerivers - a city located somewhere on the European Plain, at the confluence of three rivers. You are walking along a high mountain viaduct that seems to stretch into the heavens. Ahead of you, in the distance and morning haze, lies a vast City. You cannot make out the details, but the general color palette of the city is white and gray. You walk along this enormous, deserted, mysteriously quiet viaduct. Every hundred meters along the roadside, behind crash barriers, you can see concrete staircases descending downwards—into the suburban forests somewhere. Occasionally, deep in the forest, you spot small settlements and large industrial structures. In the center of the city rises an elevation densely packed with houses, atop which stands something ancient. >> Home. — You have come home; this is perhaps your safest starting point. Here you can rest (rest in a dream, haha) and, having gathered your strength, go for a walk around the city. Your home is a fairly large apartment on the 9th floor of a wide 15-story building. The apartment is tastefully furnished in a minimalist style. Only your bags with belongings lie in the empty hallway, and a jacket hangs there. You haven't been here for a long time; a thin layer of dust covers the floors. In the main room, a large table is scattered with various papers describing plans and schematics of the City and everything connected to it. The window offers a beautiful view of a couple of blocks of small 5-story houses, beyond which a highway and a 30-story unfinished building shine with empty windows. Your home contains many artifacts and rarities obtained in the city. Uninvited guests may visit your home only when you're away for extended periods. For example, they could be cult members who build altar after. >> Courtyard. - a small, overgrown courtyard, an almost treeless clearing with rusty playgrounds somewhere on the periphery. The building where your Home is located has several entrances; some of them are not worth entering. There, "alien" levels of existence await inside—darkness and dampness, as well as a sense of fear. There are inhabitants there, appearing as flowing shapes that vaguely resemble humans in the light, but if you lose sight of them, they transform into something entirely different, something better not to look at. I’ll say only one thing: you’d better not choose the wrong door here. The basements of such entrances lead into the dungeons of gloom. >> City infrastructure. - although the city is almost empty, it offers many means of transportation and travel: trams, railways with trains and commuter trains, underground pedestrian tunnels, and rare unique modes of transport such as funiculars. >> Trams. Tram tracks run almost everywhere. Trams run regularly, almost on schedule, and have numerous routes traversing districts and the city outskirts. Trams are usually empty and operate on autopilot, though sometimes you may encounter other passengers or ticket inspectors. There are several "cursed" routes, where trams might take you somewhere you didn't intend to go. There are chaotic tram routes with hexadecimal numbers-such trams sometimes possess anomalous properties and do not run on schedule. They may appear randomly or after a series of ritual actions. For example, route B1AF leads to a "loop" location. Somewhere on the outskirts, the number of tracks expands into countless, seemingly infinite rows disappearing into the distant fog. On the horizon, through this haze, the outlines of a huge planet are visible. These tracks are the rings of that planet, unraveled like hair and penetrated into the city. After a while, the tram departed toward the sun and found itself back in familiar urban space. It was night, and crickets were chirping; this was the final stop. I got off and found myself in a small park with sparse lampposts. I wandered through this park for a long time until I reached the riverbank. Route AAF16 takes you to alternative factory outskirts; in the distance, you could see huge abstract megaliths, partially destroyed with traces of broken bricks and collapsed insulation. I didn't go there; my stop was earlier. Route B4BA leads to the southern part of the city, to the underground dungeon systems. There is a tram depot there, but this tram doesn't stop there—it passes through the workshops and continues toward old shipyards and a small town far beyond the city limits. This is the simplest way to get there. >> Districts. Threerivers has 7 districts. Each can be divided by its content, the difficulty of traveling there, and the risks involved. 1? Center. The main and fairly large district of the city. This is where the Home and most residential buildings are located. Several highways from the distant district pass through here, crossing the entire city. 2? Railway District. An area of railways, stations, and private houses. 3? River, Port District. The architecture here is older. Along the riverbank are many embankments from different time periods and styles, industrial ports served by a railway branch from the Railway District, and several street descents to the shore. Parts of the coastline are undeveloped, consisting of either thickets or beaches. 4? Border District. A hard-to-reach area in the south of the city due to the long journey through many unremarkable blocks and passages. This district contains dilapidated military bases and an extensive system of underground tunnels (both secret and accessible). There is also a high hill here (almost a mountain!), which is completely swallowed up by buildings, but at the top there is a dilapidated castle that stands out from the general background. 5? Industrial District. A distant district located beyond the railway. There are many factories here. The deeper one goes into this district, the more abstract the factories become. 6? Outskirts. The northern outskirts of the city, the highway leading to the city that continues beyond the river to the sky-high mountain viaduct (mentioned at the beginning). Houses become cleaner and brighter closer to the city limits, eventually transitioning into small cottages and private housing scattered among lakes and groves (where portals occasionally appear). Within all this, one can find small sectors of the outskirts containing mystical landmark structures. 7? Ultimate District. The most inaccessible region of the city. Almost abandoned. There is an unrealistic mountain range about 2,000 meters high, located in an alternate world and visible only from the Ultimate District. The main challenge of accessibility is the lack of means to get there. Ferries across the river haven't operated for a couple of thousand years, and swimming is dangerous. The only way is to travel on foot or by train to the bypass road on the other side of the river. 8? The Last District. (The last district :/) This is where the city ends. It is the final and most inaccessible frontier of Threerivers. Roads from the bypass do not reach here due to the mountain range and forests, and other routes are blocked by rivers. This district contains many tall buildings of unusual (sometimes almost futuristic) appearance and a huge pyramid of gold and glass. Previously, there was a dangerous bridge from the Border District leading here, but it was nearly destroyed (shattered by the powerful river current). >> Fauna. Inhabitants. . Mimicators. Absurd creatures capable of mimicking the city's inhabitants. They can imitate the activities of ordinary people or at least simulate memories of people. Their aggression is an exceptional case; if you start focusing your attention on them, they will begin to blur across the walls (which is quite eerie) and disappear from view into darkness or behind objects. The most accessible way to see a mimicator is to visit a "wrong" entrance. They are very rarely seen on the street. . Stalkers. These entities, as soon as they spot you in their territory, will initiate pursuit. Some of them are weak and operate within a limited space. Some are more "hardcore" and can pursue you across the entire city. If they catch you, you will be ejected from the dream in a cold sweat (they lose interest in you the following night). Types of pursuers: Common Stalker. The weakest. Can chase you within a specific space that "belongs to it" — this could be a room, a small building, or an abandoned bunker. Unlimited Pursuer. A different version of the original pursuer, capable of leaving its designated space and chasing you through the city as long as you remain within its line of sight. Quantum Stalker. It is powerful; it will follow you, seeping like mercury through space and matter. On its way to you, it can be glimpsed in reflections and from certain angles. Typically, it moves quite slowly (equal to the average speed of a running human) but confidently and will always manage to catch up. To encounter them, you need to make an effort. They can migrate from one location to another. (Usually, you will receive warnings before provoking them.) Alternative Stalker. These entities do not need to move through matter to catch you. They will do so in faster ways, conjuring a thick haze, pulling you into a vortex. Then they throw you into a confined space, such as a collapsed tunnel or any enclosed structure. From there, you are ejected from the dream. Encountering such pursuers is very difficult. . City Dwellers. The main population of the city. They are not mimicators. You can communicate and interact with them (as much as is possible in a dream). They are encountered in the city (streets and buildings) quite rarely, usually in transport. They lead calm, happy, melancholic lives in the city and beyond its limits. Most of them reside in safe districts and try not to enter hard-to-reach areas of the city. . Pathfinders. Occasionally appear in trams, appearing as a hazy human silhouette outlined in a random color. They accept tickets and change the tram's course according to them (if the vehicle has no other passengers). One can find a unique 16-character ticket and travel its route. . Cultists. Groups of city dwellers who have come to the Realization of Being. They travel through the city and its most dangerous places, building their altars in various hidden corners of the city, sometimes doing this in the Home (just for fun). They cannot be discovered by chance and are very difficult to find. Their goal is to reach the Core and open a path to alternative locations.