[hr][h2]|| Metahuman Information ||[/h2][hr] Mutants, Freaks, Overhumans, Gods themselves... Commonly called Meta-humans are normal humans that were afflicted with a strange condition that has given them powers that defied the laws of nature and physics. Men with super strength, women who can teleport, children who can control nature itself. These powers are extremely varied. These abilities stem from a strange energy that resides deep within them. A green flowing energy that is known as the Meta-human energy. A invisible energy that is extremely hard to detect through normal means. This energy inhabits a Meta-human's entire body, from their skin, to their bones, to their blood. The energy isn't detrimental to them, or the environment, not even in the slightest, it can even be called [i]beneficial[/i]. What is interesting is that scientists have observed that energy is the same, everyone has a slightly different form of the energy. Which is believed to be related to how no Meta-human has the same exact power. [list] [*]Meta-humans have been around for two centuries (Rumored longer). They lived in secret until they were revealed to the world by the President of the United States in 1952. [*]Powers take a toll on the body and mind. Using any powers will tire out the user. Excessive and unrestrained use would cause what could be described as physical overexertion. [*]When a Meta-human uses their power on the outside world, a small amount of the meta-human energy gets projected and focused in that area. Such as a Water-Elemental controlling a cup of water will get some of the energy projected into it, until they cease control and the energy will fade away. However, a faint amount of the energy will remain. [*]The power grows as the user does over years of usage and training. The user may discover new uses with it, or a brand new trait may develop. This is directly linked to the amount of the energy in a single Meta (The energy concentration will grow). [*]There's a particular connection between high-stress situations and the manisfestation and advancement of powers. Under high-stress situations, powers rapidly develop.   [*]There is no set age when powers develop. Some Meta-humans are born with their powers, while others won't develop until later into their lives. Powers received are sporadic at best. [*]There are powers passed from parents to the children, or simply run in the family. They are called Inherent powers, these are relatively uncommon, though. However, while inherent powers do exist, anyone will get a different version of a passed down power. In what ways vary. [*]There is a particular effect that is known as The Black Fall Effect. This has two main effects on the meta-human population. 1. All Meta-humans are subconsciously attracted to each other. So subtly that it's next to impossible to even notice. It causes the shyest people to head out and interact, or draws people to one particularly location. The more Meta-humans that are around, the stronger "flocking" effect. 2. Those who spend a lot of time around Meta-humans tend to develop powers themselves. It has to be years around Meta-humans for someone to develop powers. Which is why family members and close friends are extremely likely to get powers. [*]Meta-humans only use a fraction of their full power. High-stress situations allow Meta-humans to perform stronger feats - at the cost of putting more strain on the user. [*]Pushing powers beyond their limits would cause an effect known as "Ashing" - Which all Meta-humans fear. This is basically a deadly ailment where a Meta-human self destructs. Their powers shut off, and all their cells will die off at an alarmingly fast rate. Their cells will drop off their body like specs of ash, and this process will continue until there is absolutely nothing left of a Meta-human. This state is extremely deadly, and there's a mere 4% chance of survival. However, there are ways to stop ashing. [*]Technology that weakens powers exist. They produce a wavelength that weakens powers. Depending on the device it may temporarily severe the link between the body and power, or weaken powers. This technology is still in the development stage by the ISD, but NEST employs it in their power Suppressant Collars. [*]Ever since the reveal of Meta-humans to the world, the infant children of Meta-humans have been going missing... [/list] [h3]| Classes of Metahumans |[/h3][hr][hider] The NEST organization assigns every Meta-human a specific class based on their type of power. [list] [*][b]Cerebral:[/b] [i]The Mind.[/i] Powers that have to do with the minds of the user or others - or powers that gather information. These powers are rather common, but not as diverse as Super-System or Elemental types. Most Cerebral types either have information gathering abilities (Such as telepathy, precognition, etc), or have powers that make active changes to the mind (Memory/emotion manipulation, and so on). There are other powers that would be classified as Cerebral due to their mental nature. Such as Telekinesis, Astral Projection, and etc. [h3][/h3] [*][b]Super-System:[/b] [i]The Body.[/i] Super-System type Meta-humans have abilities related to the body of themselves or others. These powers are fairly diverse. Any power that changes (or enhances) the body in any way can be classified as a Super-System power. Powers such as Super-strength, flight, and Regeneration are prime Super-System abilities. But, powers such as animal transformation also count as a Super-System. So, technically, the Super-System class is rather diverse in terms of abilities. Thus they have been separated into subclasses by using terms such as Bestial (Relating to animals), Biological (Related to altering the normal biological structure), and Chemical (Relating to the body's chemicals). [h3][/h3] [*][b]Elemental:[/b] [i]The World.[/i] Where Cerebral types have to do with the mind, and Super-System types, the body - Elemental is the World. The basis behind their powers is that they have powers that alter the world around them in a variety of ways - usually specializing in a single element. Any power that affects the world can be called an Elemental power. A generic elemental type has the ability to move their specialized element, and alter its properties. Others can turn into their element (Sometimes crossing over to the Super-System), create it, and more. The Elemental class easily the most diverse and common type of Meta-human. Elemental-types can also have powers related to energy, chemicals, or the stars above them. However, an elemental type cannot control the human body - it would fall under the Super-System class then. [h3][/h3] [*][b]Power:[/b][i] The Essence.[/i] The rarest type of Meta-human out there. Opposed to altering the mind, body, or the world, Power-types alter the very essence of Superpowers; the Meta-human energy. For example they can alter it (On a large or small scale) to give themselves different powers (Power replication comes to mind), or enhance, or weaken, the powers of others. They can be fairly diverse, and extremely versatile. But easily the most feared. There are some Meta-humans under this class who can give or take away powers - there's even some who can manipulate powers themselves. [h3][/h3] [*][b]Other:[/b] Powers that simply don't fall under the above categories. [/list] [/hider] [h3]| Metahuman Hotspots |[/h3][hr][hider] [h3]Black Fall[/h3] [indent]The proclaimed "City of Freaks". Black Fall is famous because it has the most Metahumans congregated into one City (1% of all Metahumans live in Black Fall). Easily the most important location for Metahumans. The city went from a small fishing town to a major hub for gamblers, tourists, businessmen, and families, in the course of a few centuries. It contains people of almost every ethnic background. It is located in Pennsylvania, on the Delaware river, not too far away from Philadelphia. It is split down the middle by the river, with one part of the city on each side. Technically it is apart of New Jersey too, since one side of Black Fall is technically on the state of New Jeresy. The West side of the city is known as "Old World Black Fall" where the city started. It has most of the population centers and major buildings that have been there from the start. The East side of the city is known as "New Black Fall" which is much more commercialized. It contains most of the clubs, casinos, and mansions.[/indent] [h3]Verthaven[/h3] [indent]Located in California, Verthaven is a massive metropolis centered in Southern California. It is a coastal city that is Sandwiched between LA and San Francisco. It's known for it's miles of beaches, and sea trade. What it's also known for is how it's carved up by a network of rivers. The main river is known as the Cross River and splits the city up into four halves by a cross. With hundreds of smaller rivers branching off from that one. Which the city was built around, and have well integrated into the city's layout. Which gives Verthaven a feel of Venice mixed with New York. It is called a great place to go for a vacation. It has plenty of great views, restaurants, hangouts, and beautiful excursions. However, it is a very important part of the NEST organization. Verthaven contains the NEST National Headquarters. Where the directors meet up in times of crisis. It is credited for being the first NEST team, which isn't too shabby. They've keep order amongst the Metahumans of the city. Obviously, Verthaven has a large amount of Metahumans, not to the extent of Black Fall, however.[/indent] [h3]Stadium City[/h3] [indent]Created over the course of a few decades, with heavy Metahuman involvement, Stadium City stands in Ohio. Stadium City was ordered by the President to be created by Metahumans in order to help alleviate the Anti-Metahhuman hysteria and show that they are helpful. Stadium City, in design, doesn't appear too different from other cities. It has residential districts, a downtown, plenty of skyscrapers and more. It has plenty of Metahumans, however. After the construction of the city, many of the Metahumans that made it stayed in Stadium City and their descendants remained there. However, it was ridden with crime for decades. Over the years, the city began a hive for all sorts of Organized Crime, plenty of which involved Metahumans. Plenty of gangs and mafias made Stadium City their home. The Police and NEST had a hard time getting them out, as plenty of them were corrupt themselves. However, things changed once the Tyrants moved in and took over. Now, the underground crime belongs to the Tyrants, and the city is much better. Crime is at a low, and people feel safe again. Also, the ISD Headquarters is also situated in Stadium City.[/indent] [h3]Highroller Heights[/h3] [indent]Located near the borders of Arizona and Nevada, Highroller Heights is the bastard son of Las Vegas (Sometimes referred to as New Vegar). Massive, boiling hot, in the middle of an american desert, and gives you great reason to check your shoes every morning. Just without the class and style that movies and other media outlets build it up to be. It's run down, the people are bitter, and just about everyone wants to make a quick buck - At the expense of others of course. This city has tons of casinos, and other fancy places to make the place look good for the tourists (The main source of income of High-Roller heights). But when you see the city for what it really is, you'll reconsider. By day it's a sandy city, a pleasant place, if you know where to go. At night, the seven deadly sins take over. Sex workers, gangsters, drug dealers, rapists, and lunatics roam the streets. To say the least, crime is high here. Because corruption is rooted so deep, the crimes are brushed aside with a simple wad of cash. High-Roller Heights has racial diversity, so people of all colors are a common sight in this city, along with a high population. The city is located in the middle of an active desert. There is sand far as the eye can see, it's skin blistering hot, and since it's a desert; don't expect rain. Superhumans are a common sight here.[/indent] [h3]Mendel[/h3] [indent]Located in northern Louisiana on the border between Louisiana and Mississippi is Mendel, a city of about 200,000 people where 6,000 are meta-human. The city was once a manufacturing hotspot, but when the Corvo Family, a metahuman organized crime syndicate, moved in, everything changed. They began to pump money into the west side of the city, attracting more businesses and cleaning it up significantly despite weakening the east side. The city is divided in half by the Mississippi, similar to Black Fall. The east side is a poor city living around the few factories left operating, and the west side is a more modern metropolis with a lot of corporate buildings. The city is most famous, however, for its gangs; the Vanguard and the Skulls. The two rival gangs have a tremendous amount of influence on their perspective sides, and often clash with police and each other, much to the appeal of the media. About a year ago there was a gang war between the two sides which gained international attention and left parts of the city in complete ruin.[/indent] [/hider] [h3]| Organizations of Note |[/h3][hr] Note: All Organizations below are primarily situated in North America.[hider] [h3]NEST[/h3] [indent]With the oncoming rise of Meta-humans, an organization was deemed necessary to keep them in order. So shortly after Meta-humans became known to the world, the Government revealed their special police force: Code-named [i]NEST[/i]. NEST is a powerful organization trained and equipped to handle any and all Meta-human threats. Credited for saving cities, and even humanity at large, they are highly celebrated for their heroism. NEST is comprised of Agents that were selected from various military and police backgrounds and trains them to face off against Meta-humans. Though, they are very known for employing Metahumans of their own. However, NEST only accepts the best of the best. They need professional soldiers to face off against some of the most dangerous human beings on the planet. As expected, they are also armed to the teeth with the best weaponry and tools the Government can offer. NEST is known for employing power suppressant collars. They have teams and HQ's set up in every major city in America, and Canada - There has been talks to expand NEST to the major South and Central American countries. The NEST teams are well enough connected that should a significant enough threat show up; forces from other teams will be allocated. NEST as a whole does not discriminate against Meta-humans, there has been some incidents of bias agents, but their goal is also to maintain a balance between the two kinds of human being. While they have soldiers trained to take down Meta-humans, that is merely one side to this faction. NEST has another branch that handles civilian meta-humans, and enforces the many laws that keep them in check. They act as Superhuman social works, more or less, and they handle larger backlashes against Meta-humans. They strictly enforce the many rules and restrictions set on Meta-humans, while also keeping track of their development. They head the Meta-human restriction act; which means they keep track of any meta-humans, and make them go many tests to deem them safe to live with society. Any Meta-humans that do not meet this criteria will be sent off to a special base made to house Meta-humans too dangerous to be let run freely with society. Alternatively, they also have special prisons for Meta-Criminals. However, the NEST organization also approves, and works closely with, the Academy Program. The Academy Programs runs people through them and allows them to get their license and make NEST's job easier. If one doesn't wish to use their powers, then they are given a power suppressant collar and allowed to live their lives.[/indent] [h3]Intelligent System Defense (I.S.D)[/h3] [indent]There are many questions about Metahumans. What are they? Where did they get their powers from? What can we learn from them? The ISD are the people seeking to answer them. The head organization for Meta-human research and development, the ISD is an organization dedicated to continued research on the new Metahuman phenomenon at the request of NEST. In the many facilities across the US and Canada, The ISD have discovered everything known about Metahumans. The Metahuman energy and how it works, the Black Fall Effect, Ashing, and more. They have done this through a network of volunteer Meta-humans. They work very closely with NEST and the Saviors, however they choose to remain neutral on the Pro/Anti-Metahuman scale. Their objective is to learn about Metahumans and what can be done with the Metahuman energy. Any Metahuman can volunteer for some humane experiments. Recently, ISD has controversially started experimenting on ways to remove the Meta-human energy, "curing them".[/indent] [h3]The Savior Foundation[/h3] [indent]Often called "Saviors". The lead Anti-Metahuman organization, and the antithesis to many Pro-Metahuman organizations. They believe that Metahumans as a whole are far too dangerous, and must be removed if humanity is to survive. The Saviors were formed by the big pharmaceutical CEO Berlioz Auxiere, as a means to assist humans afflicted by Meta-human related incidents. The Saviors also invest in research towards a way to remove powers, and have pushed for NEST to remove rights from Metahumans. Naturally, the saviors are despised by a large number of Metahumans. However, they are not known for overt or violent acts against Meta-humans. They work towards their goals peacefully. Their objective is to help people. Whether they've been the victim of a Metahuman related incident, or afflicted with a detrimental superpower. Their secondardary goal is to find a way to "cure". Though, it is reported that a large number of the Saviors are extremely Metaphobic. It's also believed that the Saviors secretly fund the Meta hate group, the Pure.[/indent] [h3]The Tyrants[/h3] [indent]The most infamous and successful team of Supervillains ever to hit America. The Tyrants were a large group of Meta-humans that were responsible for countless crimes. Bank robberies, large heists and many more. They were infamous because of how well they covered their tracks and hit hard. They were known for their code of honor, never hurt innocent people, and chose their fights carefully. Which is how they lasted so long. Unlike other criminal fools, they didn't make enemies, so the need to hunt them down was low. However, when they did fight, they were known for their. What they are the most known for is how they took over Stadium City's crimeworld. Over the course of a few years, the Tyrants systematically destroyed every gang and other organized crime organization, and absorbed them into the Tyrants. Building up a massive army of gang members, and using them to destroy the larger organizations (Or run them out of Stadium City). Until they completely controlled the city's crimeworld, by eliminating the competition. They now stand at the top, controlling all drugs, guns, and more, that run in and out of the city. Ever since the takeover of Stadium city, they seemed content with maintaining their empire rather than going out on big jobs. Which was called a good thing. Since the Tyrants ignore civilians, and there aren't too many big organizations to exploit them anymore, Stadium City's crime has gone down to all time lows. Some small time crooks are too afraid to even run out. The Tyrants are ran by the powerful Queen Carmelita, and the elderly Barracuda. Queen Carmelita has a powerful tactile Telekinesis power, and the Barracuda can extend blades over a distance, and they can cut through anything.[/indent] [h3]The Pure[/h3] [indent]An extremist group, the Pure are dedicated to the complete annihilation of all Metahumans from the United States. The Pure are comprised of people from various backgrounds. Former-Soldiers, Police Officiers, and regular people, all with the goal of killing Metahumans. The Pure has taken credit for many deaths of Metahumans, and attacks on ISD, and NEST facilities. Despite their small numbers, they are surprisingly effective. Because of their numbers, they are incredibly organized. They often plan hits on the request of concerned civilians, and they carry them out with brutality. They usually plan traps, or surprise attacks. It doesn't matter if the Metahuman is a threat or not, they'll kill anyone with a superpower. Man, woman, or child, criminal or innocent, it never matters to them. It's believed that NEST and the Saviors have a hand in the Pure.[/indent] [h3]The Hands of Science[/h3] [indent]A shadowy group, no one knows what the Hands of Science are, or what they want. They've been called a more extreme version of the ISD. The Hands of Science are known for preforming experiments on Metahumans. Except, they have no concept of ethics or humanity. They kidnap Metahumans and forcibly preform experiments on them (Before killing or releasing them). Or they distribute devices, or drugs, that fiddle with powers in some way. All done by an extensive group of scientists. They have a large team of Agents that preform the field operations. People that distribute strange the aforementioned drugs and devices. Often lying and tricking Metahumans into using them. What their goals are is ambiguous. It's believed they want to find a way to create Metahumans so they can sell them to the highest bidder. The Hands of Science are believed to be responsible for plenty of Metahuman related incidents. NEST is working into investigating the Hands of Science. However, the Hands of Science know something about Metahumans that the world doesn't.[/indent] [h3]The Changeling Unit[/h3] [indent]Only a few people know of the terror that is the Changeling Unit, a baby kidnapping ring. As child of Metahumans are more likely to develop powers themselves, the Changeling Unit kidnap Metahuman babies all over the North American continent. To sell to the highest bidder (Most of their babies go to the Hands of Science). Nobody knows about the Changeling Unit, but they are feared. They keep a low profile by excising great stealth and subtly when they kidnap. To the point that nobody knows they were there until it's too late. However, they have slipped up a few times in the past.[/indent] [h3]The Ivory Deer Community[/h3] [indent]Founded by Wallace Melbrondt (for whom the estate is named after due to his stark white, antlered appearance) and several of his associates, the Ivory Deer Community is a collection of meta-humans who have suffered from physical alterations and birth defects that have caused most of them to be branded as, for lack of a better term, abominations. Located in a forest clearing not too far from the city of Black Fall, the gated community accepts any meta-humans who have been cast out due to their appearance, and offers them free shelter, sustenance, and entertainment. Melbrondt has made it clear many times that he does not accept meta-humans who still [i]look[/i] human, partway due to past altercations that have left him with a less-than-stellar opinion of them. The Ivory Deer Community keeps a bare minimum level of contact with NEST only because they are required to by law. If such weren’t the case, they’d ignore them entirely.[/indent] [/hider]