If Lady Gotham exists do the other major cities in DC also have spirit ghosts?
I haven't heard anything about other city ghosts. I'm pretty sure Lady Gotham is a fandom OC like Wes. I gave her a different interpretation for the Lady and the Wolf, so she's my twist on it, but I'm not sure if she's canon.
In the Lady and the Wolf, I do have other city ghosts like Metropolis, who is a male spirit, though he's not an aristocratic one. He's also not nearly as powerful. The reason is that Gotham is much older, and the land on which Gotham was built is much more spiritual in nature. It's why the curses in Gotham are also so powerful.
In my Au, not all cities have a City Ghost. Bludhaven, Star City, and Coast City don't have them, while Fawcett City and Central City do. Fawcett, because of the presence of The Wizard looking for a Captain Marvel primarily from that point ( made up for my au since I needed an epicenter), and Central, because of how close the Speed Force is due to the Flash (Central is the youngest and newest city ghost)
There are other aristocratic City Ghosts like Gotham. Atlantis and Themyscira are both ranked higher than Lady Gotham and are much more powerful. Lady Gotham would be the equivalent of a Countess, while Atlantis and Themyscira are a marquess/marchioness.
What governs their ranks is the type of ectoplasm from which their cores were created. The more natural, spiritually powered ectoplasm, the higher the rank. To have a City Ghost, there needs to be a large deposit of ectoplasm, which can form if enough living creatures gather in one spot, but it's not as potent as a natural deposit that comes from the Earth's core and ripples into other worlds.
City Ghosts are also heavily influenced by the living creatures who inhabit their cities. They grow sentiment after a large gathering of souls particles- i like to imagine a soul is like a glowing flickering flame and embers fall off as they live until thier live ends. The embers are the soul particles that gather.
It's actually really rare for soul particles to gather, though, which is why, despite so many people dying all the time, only a few become ghosts, as it's their personal ectoplasm- the kind their bodies produce- was higher than normal. The ghosts Danny fights in Canon are all from different eras because they were the only ones in their time who met the requirements.
Behind the Fic: Canon and Beyond - Calendar System
A friendly reminder that none of this is canon in the actual Twisted-Wonderland game, this is built for the Our Precious Treasure Universe fics.
If anyone wants to borrow this system, be sure to give proper credit because I worked so hard on this.
Special thanks to @curlyhairednerd and @firaloveatea who listened through my rambles and helped me in making this.
In Our Precious Treasure Universe, time works differently than our Earth. They still have the same four season (Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter), but has different calendar system. Instead of the usual 12-months system, OPTU has 9-months system with each month having 30 days (like the regular moon rotation). In addition, the cycle is constant with rare disturbance. Summer and winter will always have 67 days. Spring and autumn will always have 68 days.
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World Calendar
Each month is named after precious stone (in Italian), more specifically the gems that appears in Kilala Princess with two additions to match with the last two princesses from Kingdom Hearts’ Princesses of Heart.
Month 1 = Rubino
A full winter season month
Italian for 'ruby', Snow White’s gem in Kilala Princess' magic tiara
Month 2 = Ambra
First week pancaroba (transition from winter to spring), followed by three weeks of Spring
Italian for 'amber', Belle gem in Kilala Princess' magic tiara
School semester starts on "the day when the first flower blooms", which is the first day of the pancaroba week
Month 3 = Smeraldo
A full spring season month
Italian for 'emerald', Kilala's gem in Kilala Princess' magic tiara
Month 4 = Opale
One week of spring, followed by one week of pancaroba (transition from spring to summer), and continues to two weeks of summer
Italian for 'opal', gem set for Alice who is a Princess of Heart in Kingdom Hearts
Month 5 = Ametista
A full summer season month
Italian for 'amethys', Jasmine's gem in Kilala Princess' magic tiara
Month 6 = Lapis
Two weeks of summer, followed by one week of pancaroba (transition from summer to autumn), and continues to one week of summer
Italian for 'lapis' (lapis lazuli), gem set for Kairi who is a Princess of Heart in Kingdom Hearts
School semester starts on "the day when the first leaf falls", which is the first day of the pancaroba week
Month 7 = Acquamarina
A full autumn season month
Italian for 'aquamarine', Ariel's gem in Kilala Princess' magic tiara
Month 8 = Diamante
Three weeks of autumn, followed by one week of pancaroba (transition from autumn to winter)
Italian for 'diamond', Cinderella's gem in Kilala Princess' magic tiara
Month 9 = Quarzorosa
A full winter season month
Italian for 'rose quartz', Aurora's gem in Kilala Princess' magic tiara
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Converting Regular Calendar to OPT Calendar
If you want to play around with this calendar system, you can use this formula and follow the steps:
1. Find the day number of your chosen date.
Example:
Your birthday in on February 23rd. So it’s the 54th day of the year (January has 31 days, add it with 23).
2. Times the day number with 270, divided it with 356, and round it upward (adding 1). It’ll be the day number in OTPU.
Example:
3. Divided the number with 30 to find the date and month. To find the month, find the non-reminder result and add 1 to it. To find the date, find the reminder. If there’s no reminder, then convert it to the 1st of the next month.
Example:
So, your birthday, according to OPTU calendar, is on the 10th of the second (1+1) month, which is Ambra 10th.
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Bonus Round: TWST Boys Birthday but it OPTU Calendar System
So, now that we have the formula, you can count your TWST characters or OCs with this calendar system. I actually did it for the boys. While birthday isn’t a big plotpoint in the fic (there’s only one birthday celebration), it’s always fun to celebrate something.
So, here’s the TWST boys’ birthday according to the OPTU Calendar System:
Behind the Fic: Canon and Beyond - ‘Our Precious Treasure’ Rewritten Magic System
A friendly reminder that none of this is canon in the actual Twisted-Wonderland game, this is built for the Our Precious Treasure Universe fics.
If anyone wants to borrow this system, be sure to give proper credit because I worked so hard on this.
Special thanks to @curlyhairednerd and @firaloveatea who listened through my rambles and helped me in making this.
Our Precious Treasure Universe has a special magic system. That’s it. That’s the post.
Background story first, the biggest reason why I want to make a simple magic system for OPT is because of the battle scenes. I suck at creating and picking spells, so the easiest solution is elemental battles ala Avatar the Last Airbender. That’s where the whole elemental magic comes from. This is also a tie to the actual game mechanic with the fire/grass/water/cosmos card elements. Later, the whole magic is separated into three: void, element, and unique (as explained in-fic in Chapter 77). Mostly to connect it with canon’s separation between regular magic and unique magic.
Now that I decided to just ram canon to the ground and remake OPT in the future, the magic system needs to be revamped. Take this as an upgraded version of the old magic system. There isn’t much change in the basic ATLA base (because writing battle scenes is hard), some are just clarification and setting more weaknesses (one of the realizations when writing is that I didn’t set a proper weakness/limitation for the magic system).
So, without further ado, here's the newly developed magic system of Our Precious Treasure Universe.
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The Nature of Magic in Twisted Wonderland
Have you heard the term “Ze sweet caress of twilight; There's magic everywhere”? That saying is true in Our Precious Treasure Universe. The world is created by The Great Storyteller, Puang Palapa, with the stroke of Xyr ink and quill. Thus, everything is blessed with that fairytale magic. It exists in the air that we breathe, the water that we drink, and the land that we step on. Nature provides magic, thus magicians harvest them to conduct fantastical spectacles. Nature itself is separated into six elements: aether (and time, space, molecules, sound), water (and ice), earth (and sand, metal), plant, wind (and lightning), and fire (and light).
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Those who are Born with Magic and those who aren’t
Those who are called ‘magicians’ are those who are able to harvest and conduct the magic of the world. Similar to an orchestra conductor who leads in the performance of beautiful music, a magician uses their talent to manipulate the elements and perform spells. No matter what race you are, as long as you can manipulate nature, you are a magician.
But what makes one person a ‘magician’? Just like how everything is created from Puang Palapa’s ink, said ink can be found inside magicians. Inside the body, there’s a small organ called ‘ink sack’, located near the heart. It works alongside the heart, like its name, pumping ink through the blood. When they die or are near death, most of the liquid in their body will turn into ink. People born with ink sacks are what are called ‘highborn magicians’ or ‘high-magi’.
Is there a possibility for someone to be born without an ink sack? It is possible. In fact, 60% of Twisted-Wonderland are people who can’t use magic. They are called ‘nonborn magicians’ or ‘non-magi’.
Can a non-magi become a high-magi? They can but they are not called that. Instead, they are called ‘shiftborn magicians’ or ‘shift-magi’. Previously, it is mentioned that a magician is someone who can manipulate nature and in order to do that, you’ll need the ink sack. For a non-magi to be able to perform spells, they need the ink in their blood.
There are two ways to do this: (1) Through legal injection. It is possible to inject ink into the bloodstream and let them be carried alongside the oxygen. However, in some period of time, the ink will run out and they must get another dose of injection; (2) A transplant of a permanent high-magi organ. Because a high-magi body is filled with ink, when they die, their organ will be filled with ink. Through donation after death, non-magi can get a transplant and that organ will be their ink sack. However, this way is more expensive. In both ways, this can be a painful process because the body needs to get used to the ink. It is recommended to train the mind and body before getting the injection or transplant.
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“The Patch to the World” - How Magician do Magic?
As mentioned earlier, the nature of Twisted Wonderland is filled with magic. There's magic in the air to be harvested. Magicians, in their nature, in order to do spells, take this nature magic by force. In other words, magicians are stealing magic from the world whether they realized it or not. However, mother nature is scary. Those who steal will be punished. Thus, because of the unfiltered intensity, this can lead to a very dangerous state where it can kill a magician.
The only way to prevent the high chance of death is by making a patch with the world. By the time a child awakens their magical ability (usually characterized by having a fever for nearly a week because the body needs to get used to the newly developed ink inside of them), parents must introduce the patch to them. This way, both nature and the magician shall work together to perform spells through chants and conduct magic of the world.
An illustration: imagine you want to use someone else's art for a profile picture. The patch is the DM chats between you and the artist. Basically, you gain permission from the world to use their magical asset. Mother nature is way nicer if you ask nicely. After the patch is formed (when you get permission from the artist), you can use the nature’s power for your need (use the art for a profile picture). However, credit the artist. That's where the chanting comes in. A magic user uses short chants to conjure one hit spell, thus it would take a longer chant to control the element.
To form a patch with the world, a ritual needed to be done: The Patching Ritual. After drawing the magic circle for the patch, they must prepare five things to represent five out of the six elements: water (e.g. a bowl of water), earth (e.g. a rock or a spoonful of dirt), fire (e.g. a light-up candle), plants (e.g. a single grass or leaf), and air (e.g. a feather). The magic circle itself is the representation of aether. Once prepared, they can start the prayer:
Hail to the magic that resides in the holy plains, the beautiful forest, and the spiritual tree. Hail to the divine protection that dwells in Heaven and Earth from day till night. With great dedication, from this deprivation, I am your servant who summons forth your graceful gift. Like the harvested sprouts of grass, like the tides that come and go, like the winds that blow and go. I plead, that my patch may be accepted and our bidding can be done with the nature’s blessing.
If nature favors you, then the patch will be formed. The sign is the magic circle will evaporate and peace shall fall upon you. In addition, as mentioned above, there are the other five elements. If one or more of the things you prepared disappeared along with the magic circle, then you’ve made a patch with the corresponding element. However, this is not always.
This patch forming is also taught in school, usually on the first day of any practical magic class. When the Patching Ritual is performed for the first time, the first element to be connected is aether, because it’s the base of any magic. If someone wants to make a patch with other elements, you still need to do the ritual and the prayer, however, you only need to prepare the ingredient for the element you want.
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Limitation
As mentioned above, magicians conduct the magic. In other words, a magician can only manipulate or bend the elements that they had made a patch with. Unfortunately, magic cannot create something from nothing. For example, you can manipulate the speed of a growing apple tree to harvest the fruit or teleport an apple from your kitchen to your hand, however, you can’t summon an apple out of nowhere.
Because of the nature of element bending, this also means that you need said elements to be available for you to bend. For example, you can control the wind and fire easily because air is everywhere and light can be obtained easily. However, water might not always be available, thus magician who made a patch with the water element might often seen carrying a water bottle. Thus, it’s better to always carry things that are related to your element so you can manipulate them.
There is another downside to magic. Just like how we let out carbon dioxide every time we inhale oxygen, a magician will produce waste for every magical spell or nature manipulation. There are two wastes that a magician produces: scent and blot. Scent is a distinctive smell from one’s power as if it is a beacon of a magician’s presence. Every magician has a different scent from each other. There is a way to lessen the smell, whether from medication or scent blockers. Blot are the extra excess of ink that was used for spell casting. It’s harder to detect when one has a high cumulative blot, thus it’s better to prevent the worst. This can easily to keep-in-check by having enough rest and food.
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Bonus Round: TWST Boys Magical Scent
As mentioned, when a magician uses magic, they will let out a scent. So, here’s the TWST boys’ magical scent according to the OPTU Magic System:
Riddle: Strong rose scent
Ace: A fresh breeze after a storm. When using Joker Snatch, his scent copies the stolen user's magic scent and Ace’s scent will lingers on the target until he returns the target’s magic.
Deuce: Fresh sweat after a workout. When using Bet the Limit, his scent copies the reflected user's magic scent
Trey: Bread baking in the oven
Cater: Burning wood or charcoal to powers a steam engine
Leona: Warm sand
Jack: A wet dog
Ruggie: Fresh clothes after being washed. When he uses Laugh With Me, his scent will lingers on the target until he let it go
Azul: Fresh parchment and ink
Jade: The beach in a sunny day
Floyd: The beach in a stormy day
Kalim: Fresh water
Jamil: A scent of warm leather. When he uses Snake Whisper, his scent will lingers on the target until they snap out of the hypnotic state
Vil: Expensive cosmetic. When using Fairest One of All, his scent will lingers until the condition is fulfilled
Epel: Cool crisp ice
Rook: Very faint smell of the forest
Idia: Fresh dirt
Ortho: Metal and oil
Malleus: Forest fire
Lilia: Damp cave
Silver: Fresh meadow at the height of spring
Sebek: Ozone
Crowley: A very ancient smell, really out of the world, making you feel uneasy
Crewel: A burning spiritus lamp
Trein: Old leather and books
Vargas: Overpowering cologne
Sam: A dusty antique shop
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Special Case: “Spira” - The Red String of One’s Soul
Spira is the unsaid seventh element. The reason why it is not categorized as a ‘nature element’ is because it’s humans themselves. It is related to the body, memories, life, and soul of a human being. Thus, manipulation of a human is considered taboo, like hypnotism, torture spells, and forced memory erasure.
However, similar to how drugs are used for medical procedures and yet it is illegal without the proper prescription, manipulation of spira is allowed in medical procedures, like potion-medicine making and healing spells. However, as explained in the previous section, magic cannot grow new limbs, thus amputation and transplant are still needed.
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Special Case: “Unique Magic” - The Manifestation of One’s Self
Related to spira and similar to a magician’s scent, unique magic is a magician’s signature magic of a magician that is distinct from one to another, but there are some whose unique magic is hereditary. To get a unique magic, a magician doesn’t need an additional element to manipulate, but It is developed subconsciously and used on instinct the first time. Though there is a theory that one can appear at a magician’s most desperate time. While magical ability usually develops during your tween years, unique magic can takes ages to develop. Some people even don’t have one until they die.
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Special Case: “Overblot” - The Punishment of One’s Greed
As mentioned above, a patch is used to control magic they take. Without the patch, magician can take too many magic and will lead to an overblot. Overblot is a state where a magician used to much magic, thus cumulate a high amount of blot, and with the addition of unstable emotion, may lead to an in-body ink corruption and death. However, making a patch doesn’t guarantee that a magician won’t get the overblot state. Those who takes and takes from nature, whether because of their unstable mental state or consciously being greedy will reach the overblot state quicker.
Returning to our previous example: you think that just because you get one permission to an art that means that you can use any of the artist’s art from now on with that one disclaimer. So, you keep using the arts without credits after the first one. If it goes like this, the artist might get offended. In the same way, if a magician keep taking non-stop, mother magical nature would be angry. They provided you with the power and now you want to take more than you can chew? Overblot in this scenario is a punishment for being greedy. The artist can block you and report you, mother magical nature can bend the patch and gave you the previous unfiltered intensity (almost equal to a patchless magic) that can lead to overblot.
But unlike humans with their limited patience, mother magical nature is forgiving because post-overblot, a magic user can renew their patch.
- The Guardian was chosen first because the initial video was PSTL's first attempt at "What if X talked", it also had less than 5 minutes of content to analyze which made it easier to finish and gain momentum into this project
- I choose the name Gilbert/Gill because I found it kinda funny that a fire based hero had aquatic themed name for his secret identity
- Would have loved to have seen how PSTL would have developed the Guardian passed the introduction of the game, but this being undeveloped character does at least give me more freedom to choose the direction of his arc (if I hypothetically did start writing for my own Hero AU fic)
- When figuring out how the Guardians as a whole would fit into the Hero AU I was debating between having them a part of an earth military as a specialized unit or program testing the power provided by the Traveler (Based on the Guardian's ties to the Vanguard in the base game), or a separate group of highly trained warriors that fight on the behalf of the Traveler's light. I eventually mash the two ideas with the Guardian being an "Legacy" Hero group that works with the Earth Space Marines to focus on defending the world from intergalactic threats
- I decided while writing the notes for the Guardian that there're different realms from what to draw power/magic, with the 3 current ones being:
Aether/The Heavens (where holy/light based powers stem from, channeled either through a pact/devotion to a higher god, or through manifestations of its light like the Traveler)
The Hells/Nether (where demonic/dark based powers stem from, channeled either through a pact/devotion to a demon/devil of significant power, or through manifestations of the will of the damned, which I don't have an example of yet)
The Void/End (a place in-between realms that can possess creatures of multiple realm, covers pocket dimensions within realms, the void typically harbors beings dark/psychic capabilities that occasionally provide powers of transportation throughout realms, Endy's realm being under the void)
- The Guardian bird/ghost companion being an Australian black kite hawk came from them having the nickname of firebird because of their observed tendency to start fires to possibly lure insects and other creatures to trap a quick meal (gotta recheck sources to see if this is a confirmed behavior)
- Things that inspired me to have the Guardian to be a firebird warlock:
My previous hyper fixation on Agent Phoenix from IEYTD (I expect you to die)
This song by JT Music: https://youtu.be/yiTPgqhiUGo?si=S8G4R2j6wai7nM3S
Even humans see multiple generations of human !!!! that's what grandchildren and great grandchildren are!!!!! imagine meeting someone who knew your great grandparents growing up??? their parents??? your Great Great Great Great grandparents as Children? that's INSANE. I think traditional fantasy can really fuck with your perception of time that way. "oh elves live for thousands of years" that's too long i think. 200 years is just human enough, but easily old enough to have seen shit and remember things humans have forgotten. Especially if they have a keen interest in record keeping - not even as a species, just a few fuckers in a library somewhere. Could you imagine?
Nano technology plays a big part in the story because it comprises almost every element of technology in the Supernovas universe. Almost nothing functions without nanites and they exist nearly everywhere humans do, in endless capacities. I don’t know whether or not it’s a cheap answer to the question of How Do The Things Work? but the answer is - nano robots. Nanites do everything. I took a lot of inspiration from Stargate SG1’s use of nanites to basically explain whatever needed to be explained, although in the Supernovas universe, they’re an integral part of human life in space and what makes it even possible.
Nano robots play a big part in ship technology, mainly in a maintenance and upkeep capacity. Nanites keep things running smoothly, clean and maintain ship systems and basically do all the upkeep that helps the complex machinery and drivers inside a ship functioning. Nanites clean and repair interiors as well, removing dust, dirt, and rust, and filtering and cleaning the circulating air and water. On small ships without running water, nanites can even remove human waste and dirt, and perform hygienic functions. (Rayleen's FNCH ship has running water and a full bathroom, though.)
Nanites also have extensive medical and surgical applications, and that's probably their biggest use that we see in the story. Practically anything can be accomplished by nanites that would before have taken medication or procedures. Rayleen's facial alterations are an easy (albeit expensive) task - nanites have the capability to reprogram cells at a molecular level, so changing the shape of her lips and the hair follicles for her eyebrows might be a procedure that can be done in a couple of hours. Nova's tattoos and facial scar are both easy fixes, too, he's just too stubborn to let Rayleen pay to have it done. The tattoos could be removed simply by nanites reviving the skin cells that are inked, and forcing the ink through the surface - basically the same way laser tattoo removal is done now, but with subdermal nanites. The burn scars would be a little harder to fix only because they're old and already beginning to fade naturally, and would involve cutting away the scarred skin and regrowing it, but growing and mending skin cells is a simple task for nanites. The whole procedure would probably take a day, but would be outpatient, with minimal risk. A fresh wound would be even easier, as the nanites can stimulate cells that are already healing naturally to improve and speed up he process.
Medical nanotechnology is extremely accessible and widely available, even to people who live well outside the law, like Rayleen and Nova. Injectable, intradermal or topical nanites are able to repair injuries at the cellular level, and can stimulate rapid new cell growth in order to heal or grow new tissue or bone. Medi-patches designed to heal and repair superficial skin wounds come in a range of sizes and applicative functions, customized for different injury types (burns, scrapes, cuts, piercings, etc.). Something like medical superglue would be used for deeper or wider lacerations, and would hold the skin together while it heals quickly, in most cases within a day. Infections can be easily cured by nanites delivering antibiotics directly to the site of infection within the body. Hereditary or chronic medical conditions would be pretty rare too, because clans provide healthcare to their members and so the only people without access to healthcare would probably be criminals and outcasts (even then, easy and safe medical care can be found if you know where to look, but it's gonna cost you.)
Almost all information is synced and controlled through the LINE network, operated by a handful of the top biggest clans. Adults are required to register under LINE once they reach the age of majority, but minors can (and most do) also have access. A basic LINE account covers basic contact and life information, but can be synced with any number of social media types. Almost all types of social media are subsidiaries of LINE. Clans usually have private LINE networks for clan members but there's a lot of freedom - much like modern day internet.
Rayleen, with ninetails, is not Super into social media and doesn't really get the point of it. She has a bot account that posts things at intervals based on her location - "just arrived at B376 site! Does it ever stop raining here?" Stupid fluff posts. There are of course any number of fake Rayleen Crawley accounts out there.
LINE has lots of types of social media sites, the most popular being chattr, something like twitter, a simple interface for brief posts. When Rayleen and Nova join Allseeing they both become more active on the clan chattr. Rayleen never really gets it but she makes an effort to post regularly, although her updates are always mundane life things ("bean sprouts in the canteen today weren't very fresh. I should have gone with the greens." "Yesterday I bought a black umbrella. They had black and green but I prefer black.") but people fucking love it and she has tons of followers. Nova doesn't update very much and isn't that interested in it but will go on sometimes just to engage in long and ultimately pointless comment debates, usually with Rayleen about stupid things.
Crenna probably posts pretty infrequently, mostly vague posts about things people do that specifically annoy them (but they're pretty obviously about Neel.). Crenna probably has aesthetic/inspiration blogs dedicated to fashion and decor.
Neel probably enjoys social media but does it really sporadically, making a ton of updates all at once and then none for a long time. He probably posts about machines and technical garbage that most of his followers are totally lost.
LINE isn't just for social media - any and all types of digital information can be synced to a LINE account if needed. Medical information, bank accounts, even down to coupon/savings programs can all be connected into one account. That way all information is available digitally to any device a person might have on them. A physical LINE chip card is also available for a small fee, which many people choose to carry as a safeguard. The chip card would be biometrically encoded to the owner to prevent fraud, and could be as simple as a finger touch or as complex as an entire hand print. Of course, some people choose to keep all their accounts separate, and would likely have individual cards for each one.
Clans typically have private net servers, and the clan members social media could be public or private - for instance, Rayleen and the gangs chattr accounts are only available on the clan net, meaning it's open to clan members to see but not outside that.
The Network is the 31st century version of internet - a wireless network of information and media that extends across almost the entire galaxy (there are dead spots, however.) Net signals are powered by Stuff and use Unspace to cross interstellar distances. Because Stuff is everywhere, the only spots where net reception might be bad is where it's being blocked by something - radiation, other types of interference. When Rayleen gets near the Ganz home colony, her signal is intentionally blocked to prevent her calling for help. The technology it takes to block net signals would be very advanced.
