Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Any similarity to any person, living, dead, undead, or otherwise occupied, except for the purpose of entertainment, is purely coincidental
Ancient Prehistory
One billion BC to 500 million BC: The Rise and Fall of the Ancient Ones.
The first intelligent life arises in the Milky Way Galaxy. The Ancient Ones are a xenophobic race, dull-witted but with infallible memories. They prosper in the absence of competing intelligent species. Their technology advances, and they colonize space with sub-light starships. They sterilize any planet they find, seeding it with life from their homeworld. Over a half a billion years, they spread throughout the Galaxy. At the height of their civilization, they discover that some of the life forms they have sown have begun to evolve intelligence.
The Ancient ones divide into two camps. The first believes this development is an opportunity. Heretofore, lobotomized criminals were the primary source of slaves, a scarce resource. The new intelligent species are suitable as slaves - a valuable resource. The other faction declares the sentient newcomers insidiously dangerous — extermination is the only safe option. Each faction declares the other to be dangerous subversives (criminals by definition) and thus subject to lobotomization. This immediately relieves the slave shortage. A Galaxy-wide civil war erupts. A possibility the Ancient ones hadn't considered was that the war could destroy both sides. In the end, the war was so lengthy and depleted so much of the Ancient ones' resources, that the victors reverted to stone-age technology and eventually died out.
500 million BC to 250 million BC: The Progenitors.
Evolved from the life forms seeded by the Ancient Ones, the Progenitors develop an advanced civilization. The Progenitors, as enlightened and culturally advanced as the Ancient Ones were brutal and depraved, discover evidence of the Galactic War. The Progenitors mistakenly assume that two ancient star-faring races fought each other to extinction. Appalled by this possibility, they vow to prevent the extinction of an intelligent race from ever happening again.
As new intelligent species evolve, the Progenitors use their technological superiority to prevent others from developing space flight. The Progenitors initiate a benevolent dictatorship over the "lesser" species, taking responsibility for their well-being and "education," as well as keeping them out of contact with one another. According to their theories of social dynamics, these steps should prevent any race from becoming sufficiently advanced to threaten the survival of others. The possibility that anyone might resent such interference does not occur to them.
250 million BC to 100 million BC: The Extinction of the Dinosaurs.
The error of the Progenitors' plan appears when they try to "pacify" the intelligent Saurian inhabitants of Sol III (Earth). The Saurians had developed space flight, establishing colonies on Sol IV and V. When the Progenitors attempt to persuade the Saurians to abandon space travel for the "benefits" of peaceful servitude, the Saurians clandestinely begin constructing weapons with which to defend themselves.
One such weapon is an anti-matter bomb. Developed by the Sol V colony, the weapon proves far more powerful than expected. When used against the Progenitors' spacecraft orbiting Sol V, the resulting explosion destroys the planet and its unfortunate inhabitants, creating the Asteroid Belt. Most of the Martian (Sol IV) atmosphere is blown away by the shockwave. Meteors from the exploded planet shower the Earth, causing a drastic climactic shift, swiftly ending the Age of Reptiles on Earth.
Many Progenitors go insane or become suicidal. The disaster their entire culture devotes itself to preventing has happened - and they caused it! The entire culture goes into hiding and ends the policy of intervention. The Progenitors divert their efforts to remotely monitoring other intelligent life forms. They record every possible detail of about the observed culture and daily existence. This insures that, should it become extinct, an intelligent species' culture and history is preserved for posterity. Due to the Solar incident, the Progenitors lose faith in their ability to wisely interfere with other races. They withdraw from all interaction with aliens.
The tachyonic shockwave produced by the bomb that destroyed Sol V also converts much of the iron in the solar system to hyper-ferrite. Hyper-ferrite is a form of iron with part of its subatomic structure partially extended into hyperspace. This is undetectable without highly advanced scientific equipment. Hyper-ferrite is an essential metal for the construction of hyperdrives and is normally only produced by the explosion of a supernova. All four of the remaining inner planets in the Solar system have an iron core. The Solar system is now the richest source of hyper-ferrite in the Galaxy, except for the Galactic core.
Some Saurians escape the disaster in sub-light starships, hoping to colonize distant star systems. Unaware that the Progenitors have abandoned conquest, the Saurians believe that their planet is now a colony of the "hated ones," vowing to someday return and regain the Homeworld.
Fearing discovery, the Saurians avoid contact with other species and do not establish colonies on planetary surfaces. Instead, they mine the Oort belts surrounding the various star systems for the resources they need, and construct bases in deep interstellar space. There they gather resources, plan, and wait.
100 million BC to 50 million BC: The Rise of Empires.
With the disappearance of the Progenitors, many worlds begin to develop space travel. Eventually, many encounter other sapient species, forming alliances or making enemies as circumstances dictate.
The remaining text is concerned mainly with the Earth of the campaign world. When a paragraph discusses events which take place elsewhere, it will be boxed, like this one.
50 million BC to 1 million BC: The Age of Mammals.
The extinction of the dinosaurs empties many ecological niches. Mammals quickly evolve from shrew-like creatures into a myriad of sizes and shapes, becoming the dominant large life-form on the planet.
1 million BC to 20,000 BC: The Rise of Humanity.
Of the several hominid species native to Earth, Homo Sapiens becomes the predominant intelligent life form. Other hominids die off or are assimilated through interbreeding.
Circa 20,000 BC to 10,000 BC: The Age of Magic.
The subspace distortions caused by high levels of hyper-ferrite in the Solar system cause a high rate of paranormal mutation in the human population.
The most common paranormal ability is a form of atomic-scale telekinesis. Directed by the subconscious mind and aided by the vast computing capacity of the unused portions of the brain, this ability edits the subject's genetic code atom by atom, transforming him physically and mentally. Occasionally, this transformation is harmful or even fatal, but usually not. While the transformation itself is a permanent genetic change, the only ability that a mutant parent is certain to pass on to its offspring is the potential for paranormal mutation.
This transformation is directed entitrely by the mutant’s subconscious mind, resulting in an unpredictably wide variety of strange abilities and altered forms. Some of these mutations trigger apparently magical abilities. For example, a person who subconsciously desired to control the weather might find himself able to do so. Another with an abnormal fascination with fire might find himself able to create or extinguish fire, although he might also become especially vulnerable to extinguishing attacks. Some of these "metahumans" are feared as monsters or demons. Others are worshipped as divine beings.
Near the end of this period, the great civilizations of Atlantis (in what is now the mid-Atlantic ocean) and the Rama Empire (on the Indian subcontinent) arise. Over hundreds of years, each of these ancient nations develops magic-based technology superior to the mundane technology of the late 20th century. These include aviation, space flight, and weapons of mass destruction superior to the atom bomb.
When these aggressive superpowers clash, they unleash every kind of weapon they can devise. The last and most destructive is a virus that enters the brain via the respiratory tract and sinuses. There, it reverses the telekinetic process that grants super powers, undoing the genetic modification. The mere threat of such a weapon should force the opposing side into capitulation. Of course, neither side expected the "metavirus" to actually be used.
Unfortunately, a sample of active virus escaped from one of the experimental laboratories (it doesn’t matter which, now). The metavirus proves uncontrollable. By the time Atlantis and the Rama Empire finally pool their efforts to combat the uncontrolled viruses, it is too late: the viruse has mutated and resists all treatment. Eventually the viruse infects all humans. Some people escape the viruses by fleeing to pocket universes such as Asgard, Olympus, or "the land of Fey." Such pocket dimensions are safe so long as the it remains isolated from the outer world. Others use magical means to escape to the stars, hoping to find an untainted world where they can begin anew.
The civilizations that depend upon magical technology collapse. The Atlantean archipelago had been sinking, only prevented from doing so by powerful spells. As wizards capable of sustaining such magic lose their abilities, the islands subside into the ocean. A few wizard who are particularly resistant to the virus manage to save a few Atlanteans by permanently adapting them to life under water.
Without the magic that sustained its military might, the Rama Empire collapses. The fierce neighboring cultures repeatedly invade and loot the fallen empire.
Most of the building materials used during the Age of Magic were natural objects altered by magic. As the magic fades, they revert to their natural state. The only evidence of the Age of Magic is legends. The Vedic Texts, a collection of books transcribed into Sanskrit, are rumored to be a written record of the conflict that ended this age. Possibly, they contain clues to the vast powers at the command of the combatants. Occasionally, fragments of copies are found, but if the originals or an intact copy exists, they are well hidden.
10,000 BC to 2,000 BC: The Beginnings of Mundane Technology.
Humanity, after regressing to stone-age levels, begins anew. The discovery of mundane farming techniques makes permanent settlements again possible. New civilizations arise.
Circa 5,000 BC:
An insane Progenitor captures samples of several promising Earth species, including humans. He transports them to a nearby planetary system, where he experiments with modifying human genes to create new sentient life forms. What he intended to do next remains unknown — other Progenitors discover and halt his activities. The newly-created sentient species are left to develop on their own.
2,000 BC to 1880 AD: A Mundane Existence.
The metavirus virtually eliminates paranormal abilities in humans. Recorded history is not very different from our own universe's. However, there are a few exceptions...
Circa 2,000 BC:
In ancient Egypt, the metavirus mutates. Instead of suppressing the victim's meta-ability, it copies the transformation process, modifying subsequent victims' genomes with the same meta-abilities as the original Egyptian metahuman (a vampire). The "vampire retrovirus" activates the same telekinetic ability that creates metahumans, but grants the similar powers (and vulnerabilities) to the victims. Fortunately, this new form of the metavirus can’t live outside a human host, and is fairly susceptible to the human immune system.
Circa 1,000 BC:
The vampire metavirus mutates, creating a new form of "undead," the Ghoul.
Circa 30 BC:
Two Gaelic Alchemists discover what they believe to be an elixir of strength. In actuality, the elixir temporarily reverses the effects of the metaviruses, allowing their latent paranormal abilities to manifest for a few hours at a time. It only works for the alchemists, who use their powers to harass the invading Romans.
Circa 500 AD:
Shortly after the collapse of the Roman Empire, Arthur Pendragon unites the British Kingdoms, aided by the wizard Merlin. Merlin may possibly be a time traveller, and has been credited with many fairly accurate predictions of the future.
Late 1300s:
Vlad Dracul, Prince of Walachia, falls in combat against the Ottoman Turks. After the battle, his body disappears. Tales of the Vampire Dracula appear soon afterward.
Early 1400s:
Werewolf attacks are reported in Central and Eastern Europe. The vampire metavirus has mutated again, possibly due to interaction with another potential metahuman's metabolism, creating a new form of monster.
Early 1700s (Earth calendar):
The Humanoid creations of the Mad Progenitor suddenly realize they have no explanation for their origin. They have not evolved from any life-form on their home planet, and can discover no evidence of how they got there in the first place. They initiate an intensive space exploration program and begin to search nearby star systems for clues to their origins. It isn't long before they discover other space-faring races, not all of whom are friendly. Over the next 200 years, the Interstellar Community of Species (ICS) becomes the second most powerful of the interstellar political units in the Local Arm of the Galaxy, after the Cygnan Empire.
Late 1700s:
The court of French King Louis XVI welcomes Count Saint-Germain, reputedly a noble from a small Eastern kingdom. Claiming to be an alchemist, Saint-Germain frequently presents his friends with gifts of large gems. Of mysterious origin, wild rumors circulate about Saint-Germain. He disappears shortly before the French Revolution in 1789, but is reportedly seen at least 30 years later by an acquaintance. The man claims that although Saint-Germain ought to be in his seventies by this time, he only appears to be in his mid-forties and is as healthy and strong as ever. Sightings of a man fitting the description of Saint-Germain persist into the early 1900s.
Dr. Viktor Von Frankenstein experiments with creating artificial life at his schloss in Austria. Mary Shelly fictionalizes his efforts in the novel: "Frankenstein, the Modern Prometheus".
Mid 1800s:
The Independent Dominion (ID) secedes from the the Interstellar Community of Species (ICS), embroiling it in civil war. Founded upon the belief that the strong should rule the weak, the ID receives covert support from the Cygnan Empire. At the war's end, the ID has carved out a territory equal to one-fifth of the ICS's volume. Both sides, depleted by 20 years of war, agree to an armistice.
1880:
Dr. John Watson solves his first case as a consulting detective. Fearing that his position in the medical community might be threatened by such an unconventional sideline, he invents the fictional character of Sherlock Holmes. Demand for this consulting detective prompts Dr. Watson to hire a fading Shakespearian actor (Reginald Kinkaid) to portray Holmes in the flesh. The fictionalized accounts of their adventures are published in The Strand weekly magazine by Aurther Conan Doyle.
1899-1900:
Experimenting with wireless power transmission, scientist Nicole Tesla unknowingly triggers massive pulses of subspace energy from the hyper-ferrite core of the Earth, momentarily turning the planet into a powerful subspace beacon.
The Sun's close proximity amplifies the signals immensely. The surrounding empires attempt to acknowledge receipt of the signals, but gain no response. Puzzled that such an apparently powerful race ignores subspace signals beamed at them, some races want to send a diplomatic mission to the "Beacon" system. Others pack their bags and leave before the "Beacon" system natives decide to get hostile.
The diplomacy faction faces a problem: the Solar system lies within a neutral zone 15 light years in radius, surrounded by five powerful star-faring races known as the "Five Empires." All claim the neutral zone, but have been unwilling to risk war for it. The Five Empires immediately begin negotiating with each other to permit exploring within the neutral zone. Meanwhile, many empires mount clandestine missions to discover the origin of the beacon from Sol.
The Five Empires consist of the following groups:
The Cygnan Empire, a race of metahumans descended from refugees from ancient Earth. Knowledge of the Earth has vanished over the centuries, but their mastery of mystical technology has given them an edge over most of their neighbors. Cygnans are almost indistinguishable from humans, except that hair, skin and eye color can vary throughout the spectrum. The Skyhome Clan tends to exhibit blue or turquoise hair, lemon yellow irises, and pale tan skin. The Nightwing Clan tends to exhibit gray or white hair, jet black skin, and blood red irises. The Cygnan Empire also includes several near-human and non-human subject races.
The Amakung Commercial Cooperative Is populated mainly by a trader race, the Amakung. The Amaking are short, warm-blooded monotremes (imagine Howard the Duck with fur instead of feathers). The Amakung "duck bill" is not a rigid mandible, but a flexible mouth, rather like extended, prehensile lips. Other non-human races occupy the Amakung Commercial Cooperative, but the entire political system is held together by the economic interdependence fostered by the Amakung.
The Komanii Imperium is populated by large, humanoid felines. The Komanii are warlike, agressive, and adhere to a rigid warrior’s code of ethics somewhat similar to that of the medeival samurai. Although the Komanii possess space flight and advanced weaponry, their desire for glory in battle prevents them from adhering to a battle plan for long. Individually, however, the Komanii are possibly the most dangerous sentient creatures in this arm of the galaxy. The only non-Komanii sentients within the Komanii Imperium are subject races, beings who serve as slaves (and sometimes food) for their Komanii Masters.
The Keltan Hegemony is populated by the Keltans. Keltans are small, dog-like humanoids. Although Keltans are small, their home planet is a high-gravity environment with a thin atmosphere. A 4½ foot tall keltan is as strong as a six-foot human, and possesses remarkable stamina. Keltans are social, territorial creatures, tend to live in family groups, and, unlike the Komanii, naturally adopt cooperative strategies against an adversary.
The Interstellar Confederation of Species consists of about 15 species, each of which resembles a humanoid version of a common Earth animal. Their quest to discover their origins is temporarily on hold while they deal with the consequences of the recently-ended civil war. The ICS species, along with the Cygnans, possess the most "human" psychological profiles of the alien races. Surprisingly, the genetic "fingerprint" of an ICS person is closer to Earth human than that of a Cygnan.
The intense bursts of subspace energy have one last, very important effect: they severely weaken the metaviruses. The virus, indistinguishable from the common cold, is no longer 100% effective at suppressing the meta-genes, however, genetic drift has also altered the human meta-genes. It now takes a high level of mental, psychic, or physical trauma to trigger a paranormal transformation.
1908:
Jun.: A mysterious celestial object streaks down and explodes over Tunguska Siberia, knocking down trees in a fifty-mile radius. Detected worldwide, the resulting shockwaves and seismic tremors are misinterpreted as volcanic activity. A scientific investigation team will not be dispatched until the mid-1930s.
The celestial object is actually a Cygnan probe disguised as a cometary fragment. On its way into the solar system, it observes all the planets, passively scanning radio and subspace bands for signs of a technologically advanced race. When the probe is certain that no such race inhabits the system, it transmits this information to the Cygnans. It then zeroes in on the planet that clearly harbors life, transmitting and updating details all the way in to a collision. This gives the appearance of a perfectly natural, albeit small, cometary strike, while utterly destroying any evidence of the probe.
Examining the reports, the Cygnans are baffled to discover that the Earth is populated by billions of Cygnan-like beings. In fact, the planet’s population is not only more than any other known inhabited planet, but Earth’s population is more than half that of any of the Five Empires.
When Cygnan scientists determine that the average technology level of the Earth is just past the stone age, they decide to place the Earth under "protective custody" on the grounds that these "lost Cygnans" are defenseless against the surrounding non-Cygnan empires. The fact that Earthlings are equally "defenseless" against the Cygnans is a large factor in the Cygnan decision.The remaining four of the Five Empires each take a different position regarding the Cygnan claim on the neutral zone.
The Amakung Commercial Cooperative is indifferent so long as they are allowed free access to the zone for trading purposes.
The Komanii Imperium decides to challenge the Cygnans, and declare war.
The Keltan Hegemony is inclined to respect the Cygnan territorial claim, but wants exploration rights.
The Interstellar Confederation of Species has serious internal disputes to settle, and is willing to let the others have their way so long as no military ventures blunder into ICS space.
1914:
World War One begins. Two metahumans become widely known during this conflict. The first, "Der Fledermaus" (The Bat) is a German soldier with large, bat-like wings. He can fly and possesses uncanny night vision. Der Fledermaus destroys several Allied ammunition dumps early in the war, but is captured and shot in late 1917. The second, an otherwise normal French soldier with the power of invisibility, performs valuable reconnaissance work for the Allies until he is lost and presumed killed in action.
1918:
November 11: The Armistice ending WW I is signed. Under its terms, Germany is held responsible for the entire war. Allied troops occupy the west bank of the Rhine.
1920-1929:
Prohibition takes effect in the US. The Volstead Act renders illegal the manufacture, importation, and exportation of alcoholic beverage in the US and its territories. Criminal gangs, formerly fragmented and ineffectual, organize and cooperate to meet the demand for alcohol. Importing known brands from abroad brings the highest profits.
A scientific paper published in "The Lancet" speculates on the causes of human mutation. Metahumans are classified in three different categories. The first, "Paranormals", includes all metahumans with acquired abilities that normal humans do not possess, but not to any useful degree. Paranormals are the most numerous type of metahuman, and often succeed in concealing their differentness.
The second classification is "Superhuman". A superhuman possesses abilities beyond the "normal" human range, such as great stamina (the most common superhuman ability) or flight.
The last classification is "Mutant". A mutant possesses distinctive abnormal physical traits that may or may not be beneficial (green hair, for instance). A mutant may also possess paranormal or superhuman abilities. Many mutants, owing to the Freudian origin of their transformation, possess physical traits of animals with significant (though often subconscious) meaning to the mutant.
War reparations exhaust the German treasury. To pay its employees, the Wiemar Republic prints more money. Runaway inflation strikes Germany.
Edale, Derbyshire, England is terrorized by evidence of a werewolf. The incidents precipitate a wave of anti-mutant paranoia.
The United States begins screening all immigrants for mutant characteristics at ports-of-entry. Most European nations follow suit. The percentage of mutants within any population is largely unaffected.
New Jersey: Dr. Goddard fires the first liquid-fueled rocket.
Charles A. Lindbergh flies non-stop between NYC and Paris - the first solo non-stop crossing of any ocean.
Oct. 24, 1929: The great stock market crash -- Stock values plummet. The Great Depression begins.
Peter Kurten, the infamous "Vampire of Dusselldorf," a serial killer and child molester, terrorizes the city. Police efforts to capture him disrupt Dusseldorf's criminal element. The gangs organize to capture and try Kurten before a "criminal court" . They then deliver the body to Dusseldorf Police Headquarters, decapitated and with a wooden stake driven through its heart.
1930-1940:
Scores die and 300 are stricken by a poisonous fog in Belgium.
Adolf Hitler is elected Chancellor of Germany.
Prohibition is repealed.
The dirigible Hindenberg narrowly avoids exploding at Lakehurst, New Jersey, when an incendiary device is discovered and hurled overboard seconds before it explodes. The U.S. and Germany secretly agree to withhold details of this event from the press. The U.S. suspects Germany attempted to frame the U.S. for "blowing up" the Hindenberg, and that the plot somehow failed. The Germans don’t really know what happened either.
Germany annexes Austria.
Germany occupies the section of Czechoslovakia known as the Sudetenland without opposition from the Czechs.
Alien spaceships of unknown origin land at Grover's Mill, New Jersey. An informal team of Metahumans, the "Jersey Devils," halts the invasion attempt. The US government, in an attempt to prevent mass hysteria, enlists the aid of radio personality and playwright Orson Welles to assist in the "white-out." His (previously non-existent) radio drama "The War of the Worlds" is blamed for the hysteria of that October 30th. Orson Welles apologizes on national radio, but is never asked to offer any other amends for the havoc his play supposedly caused.
The alien spaceships were, in fact, the first Cygnan attempt at subjugating the Earth. The humans were judged to be a naive, simple people who would easily believe that advanced visitors from the sky were "gods". The Cygnans were supposed to land, display their superiority to the "simple" natives, then graciously accept the Earthlings’ worshipful surrender.
Instead, an alert farmer called the police when these strangers set fire to his barn, and actually shot one full of rock salt before they could subdue him. The Cygnans were completely unaware that the Earth already possessed beings with powers far beyond mortal men until the Jersey Devils arrived and beat the heck out of them.
The aliens were transported to a secure facility somewhere in Colorado for interrogation. The wreckage of their spacecraft was transported to Patterson Field for analysis, and the farmer, the police, and the Jersey Devils were sworn to secrecy.
The German term "Ubermann," denoting a superior human, is Americanized to "superman," and is used to refer to Superhumans.
Dr. Paul Schimmelhorn, a metahuman genius and philanthropist, founds the National Association for Mutant Emancipation (NAME) to counter anti-metahuman prejudice.
Germany invades Poland. The Second World War begins.
Germany conquers France only two weeks after German soldiers enter French territory.
1941-1945:
The US sets up its first ever peacetime draft. Mutants are exempt from the draft, on the grounds that their appearance would disrupt normal military routine.
The Japanese attack Pearl Harbor, and the US declares war on Japan.
Even before the war began, the Axis used superhuman spies and saboteurs in the US. While rich in metahumans, the US delayed enlisting their aid until after Pearl Harbor. Most US superhumans are used to counter Axis agents. Effective in this role, few are assigned to combat units.
Mutants, on the other hand, are widely utilized, mostly as menial labor. The popular, though incorrect perception of mutants is that they lack the necessary courage for combat assignments. Many mutants, desiring to aid their country in any capacity, volunteer for service in the mutants' auxiliary of their preferred service branch. This frees normal humans for combat duty.
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