The Backstory of The Independents' Universe - WHY NOONE HAS SUPER POWERS IN THE REAL WORLD
A faction within the highest eschelon of the medieval church has been responsible for systematic elimination and cover-up of all evidence of superhumans and the paranormal. They have gone to all this trouble for centuries in order to keep their miracles miraculous (it would become another thing that a future Pope can apologize for) This cabal may contain people with powers - possibly an immortal or 2 who have visited papal or royal chambers as in the guise of a "holy vision" - we could trace most evil acts committed by the church throughout history to the manipulations of these immortals.They are the true Eschelon I wanted to figure out why there was no concrete evidence of superhumans and the paranormal in this world, and decided that the power was always there just hidden and suppressed rather than there being some sort of inexplicable empowering event that hits everyone at the same time.
The Multitude (AKA The Independents - see Voice) began in a world that looked much like our own. It was the year 1998. Superhuman abilities were something out of comic books, monsters belonged in fiction, and most gods seemed to live only on paper in ancient texts rather than in the hearts much less worlds of their followers. Just because no one believed in these stories doesn't mean there was no truth in them. For centuries there have been powerful men and women who strategically suppressed anything that fell outside their accepted concept of reality. Stories of miraculous powers became the type of talk people kept to themselves. Many of those leading The Eschelon's movement often destroyed the unusual beings they found, others enslaved or embraced the them and kept their power for themselves. Those that were lucky enough to get away with their lives usually kept their powers hidden after their escape.
The Eschelon had kept the paranormal limited to fiction. No one believed in anything outside what was considered to be the normal realm of the explained. In many parts of the world people with documented powers simply disappeared. Depending on who found them they became beholden covert operatives or if they were lucky, corpses. Different organizations and individuals throughout the globe have been in competition for control over the world's hidden superhuman community. There are many predatory agencies, but (it appears) no current defenders or alliances of these persecuted superhumans. When heroes had organized before, they lost. In the more idealistic days of the 50s and early 60s there would certainly have been alliances between such beings, but they could not withstand their enemies. (There was a team of superhippies back then and they got their collective asses kicked by The Eschelon)
People who survive undetected with special abilities hid them, use them in ways subtle enough to avoid exposure, or use technology or FX to cover-up their powers. The concept of costumed heroes is one that has no past or present reference outside of fiction. Which is exactly what The Eschelon wants. Their eyes and ears are everywhere and end up with copies of any governmental agency's documented material referencing someone exhibiting unusual abilities as well as the internal documents from many civilian operations.
The last thing they wanted was proof of powers beyond that of mortal men. They fear that could lead to the uncovering of their years of lies and manipulation. If the public sees superhumans out in the light, they will eventually start looking for things that go bump in the night. Once The Multitude are exposed there will be those who had enjoyed the privacy that being fiction allowed them. They won't be happy, and in the limelight we'd be a target.
The ultimate goal of The Eschelon is to perpetuate the status quo of ignorance they have fostered. All but the very top of each branch of a faction of their organization actually believe their actions are intended to shield an unprepared humanity from the knowledge that gods and monsters walk among them. In a world where no one believes in superhumans, magic or alien tech, those who have knowledge and access to these miracles will always come out ahead. Some of these people have abilities of their own, others are merely well connected powerful humans. Many of their families have been manipulating and covering up paranormal events and evidence for generations. They have no formal organization and no one member has ever been face to face with another. They are contacted in secret by a female silhouette who appears in private as a shadow on a wall and tells them their part in the grand design. She acts as if she is the messenger but in truth she is The Message. In the end she claims no master. She says the words ands deeds were hers alone.
Most members of The Multitude have escaped run-ins with The Eschelon or other less civilized organizations with interests in superbeings. They have joined together for support, strength and to ensure that no one is writing memos about them accidentally boiling the all fish in the coy pond in the office lobby. Until the late 90's and the advent of the internet culture there was no way for so many diverse yet like minded beings to come in contact. But the web and Angry Monkey allows the The Multitude the means to make their way in the world as well as the cover to use their abilities to the fullest without fear of reprisal, and communicate with individuals gifted with special abilities in a chat/newsgroup section disguised as comic book fan fiction that lets the gifted talk to others like themselves about having powers. Download built a member registration form into the chat section of the site that let us kept track of the most promising of the potentially gifted who visited regularly. From that database the roster of The Multitude continues to expand.
The members of The Multitude use their abilities behind the scenes to fight the plots and schemes of many of the organizations and individuals that seek to set themselves up with money or power that is not theirs. The personal motivations of the members of The Multitude are as diverse as their powers. The price of membership is heroism, and was set by The Founders who started The Multitude after they teamed up to escape death at the hands of an inhuman corporation that had enslaved them. They vowed to give others like them a chance to avoid such unpleasantness. They believe with enough force at their side the world order can change. Once The Multitude has enough members to take on the Eschelon, they plan an attack and after a major battle, stand victorious. Or are they? The organization has so many heads that it will survive even the death of the Message. It would have required a corruption of the message's words to kill the organization from within. But the Independents had no way of knowing that. They think they have won the war they were created to fight. But there are generals who haven't yet set foot on the field of battle.
In the world in which The Multitude exist, many miracles have recently been revealed. Mankind has just been told that Gods, Monsters, Aliens, Sorcerers, and Time Traveling warriors are far more than the subjects of fiction. That such beings might be their friends and neighbors is a new and frightening thought for many. But it becomes a source of inspiration for others - (maybe we develop a cult following). Following the high profile battle that left the Message dead (or did it? How does one kill a shadow?) the world media was watching as The Multitude emerged from the fiery ruin with rescued test subjects and enough computer data, photos, and microfilm to document the last 100 years of one faction of the Eschelon. They are thrust into the spotlight as living proof of superhumans. But after the battle all they want is to go back to work.
The powerful no longer cower, they have come into the sun, and some are feeling a bit too powerful without the Eschelon hunters to take them down. They don't care who sees them and don't really fear police. Some members of The Multitude feel since it was our decision to change the world, the new renegades are our responsibility. Others feel we've done our part and want humanity to shepherd itself from the wolves. It seems like someone has started to take care of the problem. A freelance peacekeeping mercenary organization has billed itself as the final solution to the problem, but the renegades they take down do not end up in custody of any known law enforcement agency, they disappear. Are they incarcerating the rogues themselves as they claim? Are they murdering them? Or are they selling them to the highest bidder? And who is the highest bidder? Once The Multitude asks themselves these questions, they realize they must find the answers whether they like the answer or not.
One group of individuals who is the angered by our exposure of The Eschelon's disinformation is a group of immortals that manipulated the long-lived organization. And now they are rebuilding another super powered army.
Below are links to stories that happen in The Multitude's history...
First Official News Footage of The Multitude