StarFall Universe
Setting Information
All information presented here is valid for the current StarFall Universe. As no new stories will be written in the original StarFall Universe, setting information for that universe will not be given.
The Reality Quake
The so-called Reality Quake of ten years ago is the result of what some physicists have called a "cosmic collision" in 11-dimensional physics. (Author's Note: I'm not even going to try to pretend that I know what is actually described at that level, as my knowledge of physics only extends into the four dimensions that we can measure on the macro scale.) While the quake was recorded by physicists the world over, the news media also recorded it - or, at the very least, they recorded its effects on the mundane world.
There wasn't any cosmic alignment of note. There was no special phase of the moon, no solstice or equinox, and no particular time-frame. It was the second Tuesday of August, at 2:18pm, Greenwich Mean Time, when the first effects were noticed. All of a sudden, reports were streaming in: tripodal machines that matched the description of Orson Well's Martians in New Jersey; superhuman battles between people straight out of the comic books in every major metropolis in the world; aliens matching those of the Grays landing in Roswell, New Mexico, asking for their crashed flying saucer back; things matching Cthulhu and other monsters straight out of Lovecraft; dinosaurs rampaging through the Great Plains, southern Siberia, and the Serengeti. All this and more happened for several hours, worldwide.
Then, just as suddenly as it started, it stopped. (The Grays never did get their saucer back, and one family in Nebraska mentioned they liked the taste of the Triceratops the father had shot with his great-grandfather's old lever-action Winchester.)
There were lingering effects from the quake, however. The laws of physics had been subtly altered. The field of parapsychology came into its own that day, as psionics and genetic mutations granting what could only be called "superhuman" powers became evident. Magic, once never taken seriously by the public, having been relegated to the fantasy genre and "New Age" bookstores selling worthless trinkets, also flared. Physicist Stephen Hawking even announced that he had come up with scientific formulae that enabled people to break the "light barrier"; engineers are still trying to figure out how to build a faster-than-light drive for space probes.
Psionics and Super-Powers
The most notable and publicly known consequence of the Reality Quake is the emergence of some individuals who have acquired what can only be classified as super-powers.
Powers are divided into psionic and physical powers. Psionic powers are those that stem from application so the mind: telepathy, psychokinesis, weather control, etc. Physical powers are those that derive from physical alterations to the body: size control, superhuman strength, superhuman durability, shapeshifting, etc.
Some powers may have abilities that can be both psionic and physical in nature. For instance, a super with "sand powers" may have a body composed entirely of sand, giving him superior durability, which would be a physical power, but also have the ability to control any sand he comes into contact with, which would be a psionic power.
Technological countermeasures have been developed to temporarily neutralize a super's powers. Rumors of a neutralizer powerful enough to permanently neutralize a person's powers have abounded since the temporary neutralizer was unveiled, but nothing has been confirmed. The truth is that a permanent neutralizer does exist, but only at the Tesla Institute (see "Mad and Weird Science", below). Some physical powers, such as those that are the result of major physiological changes (such as the super composed of sand in the above example) cannot be neutralized. Normally, the neutralizer takes the form of shackles which inhibit the super's control over the power; a weaponized neutralizer that fires a cone of anti-psions out to sixty feet is available to most big-city police departments' SWAT divisions.
Biotechnology
Biotechnology has advanced considerably since the Reality Quake, due in no small part to studying the emerging superhuman population. The main biotechnological areas are medical technology, elective biological modification (biomods), genetic engineering, and cloning.
Medical Technology:
The largest advances in medical technology are in the development of the diagnostic bed, the hibernation capsule, and numerous pharmaceuticals. Of the various new drugs available, several require special mention.
The first drug is best known by is street name, Sizzle. Sizzle, developed in secret by the United States Department of Defense, is designed to affect a super by turning his powers against him. In small doses, the effects are temporary, but incapacitating. Larger doses have resulted in a super permanently "burning out" his powers, and occasionally cardiac arrest. As can be expected, public reaction to the drug's existence has been mixed; however, at present, the drug's use has been restricted to require Presidential authorization. This has not prevented various anti-super factions from illegally obtaining their own stockpiles of it.
Another notable drug is 'Squelch'. Squelch was developed due to the reactions against Sizzle's harmful side-effects. It is used to suppress a super's powers without causing lasting damage. So far, its use has been restricted to hospitals, prisons, and SWAT-ASTF forces; the US FDA and similar agencies worldwide are debating whether to make it available by prescription to the general public. Long-term effects are unknown at present.
A third drug of note is known as Boost, but sometimes also called Crash; the latter name is taken from the near-incapacitating exhaustion that occurs after the drug wears off. It is a short-term steroid intended to give the recipient superhuman strength, durability, and reflexes. The effects are known to last about an hour if inhaled as a gas or injected as a liquid; while available in pill and powder forms, these take longer to "kick in", and aren't as popular. Boost users are often known as "boosters" or "crashers". Successive doses have diminishing returns on extending the duration of the effects, and increased duration of the following exhaustion.
Biological Modifications:
Biomod technology is still experimental, but many biomod test subjects go on to enter the supers game, either as a hero or a villain. It's estimated that about 5% of all supers are actually biomods, and hence not subject to technological or pharmaceutical countermeasures. The most common biomods are in superhuman strength and durability, although superhuman agility and animal features are also encountered in sizable numbers.
Biological modification through elective surgery is the most successful method. In the last year, a number of plastic surgery clinics in the United States, Europe, India, Hong Kong, and Japan have begun offering "anthromods" (a rather inccurate term) or "xenomods", grafting fur to skin (often made to match the subject's natural hair color), larger or pointed ears, and claws to hands and feet; many also have a dental surgeon on staff - sharp teeth are often part of the anthromod package. (Furries love this.) These biomods are not able to be inherited.
Less successful, but still encountered, are genetic biomods. Through the use of RNA retroviruses, changes can be made directly to the body at the genetic level. This process is still highly experimental, with an 89% fatality rate among volunteers - the body's own immune system rejects the changes. The fact the losses aren't closer to 99% is attributed to increased effectiveness in immunosuppressors.
Genetic Engineering:
The science of genetic engineering has progressed to the point where people - primarily the rich and famous - are able to specify which traits to give their children at or shortly after conception. Same-sex couples eagerly await the time when the procedure is inexpensive enough for everyone to benefit. Of all the new biotech now available, this has met the fiercest opposition from religious leaders around the world; ironically, this is one area where conservative Christians and radical Muslims are in agreement.
Genetic engineering has been banned in the United States for the past six years; those wishing for "customized" babies must travel to Europe for the procedure.
Cloning:
The science of cloning has become the "black sheep" of science following a proclamation by Pope Benedict XVI that clones do not have souls. Pressure from conservatives have led to a virtual ban on human cloning. Despite this, fast-growth tanks and the unexpected resolution of the telomere loss problem have enabled scientists to grow a clone to adulthood without the clone suffering from premature aging.
Mad and Weird Science
Nikola Tesla is back, and his ideas, thanks to the infusion of modern technology, while still considered "ahead of their time", are now becoming practical. (HOW Tesla returned is still a mystery; all he will confirm is that he took advantage of the Reality Quake. Even more mysterious is that he remembers his entire life up to his death in 1943, but only appears to be in his mid-40s at present.)
Tesla currently heads the Tesla Institute for Exploratory Sciences and Engineering, a research institute in the San Francisco Bay area which works to develop what has euphemistically been called "Mad Science" by its more conservative detractors. Despite objections from the Institute, several inventions have been impounded and declared classified by several United States government agencies. As such, the Tesla Institute has taken a rather adversarial position against governments in general, and the United States government in particular, although they've outwardly done nothing more than publicize their information.
In addition, there are rumors floating around that the US government - and likely other national governments - has opened up a warehouse to store and contain dangerous artifacts. These rumors have been fueled by a highly-publicized second FBI raid on the offices of Steve Jackson Games, confiscating all information on their announced More From Warehouse 23 supplement.
Tesla and his Institute are not the only people exploring "unconventional" science and engineering. Others around the world have been able to either build or otherwise obtain devices which operate by means that appear to defy the laws of physics. Not surprisingly, some of these devices only appear to work for their inventors.
Mythbusters is having a field day!
The Dark Arts
Magic can be defined as "The art, science, and practice of manipulating ambient energies that exist outside the realm of scientific knowledge."
First and foremost, magic is an Art. No two magicians practice their craft in exactly the same manner. Despite this, magic tends to take one of two forms: "path-working" and "will-working".
Path-working is the classic idea of magic, with the magician performing a ritual to achieve the desired effect; this is the most common form of magic encountered. These rituals could be subtle - a wave of a hand and the uttering of a single word - or elaborate - a dozen people dancing naked around an open bonfire while others chant in Creole and play drums.
Will-working, on the other hand, dispenses with the bells and whistles, the pomp and circumstance, of path-working in favor of focusing on manipulating magical energies through sheer force of will. Very few will-workers are known to exist; those searching for mystic knowledge are more likely to discover path-working instead.
One's use of either is strictly up to the magician and his training. Will-workers can use path-working for various effects; most will-workers will say that path-working is simply ritual to help focus one's will.
Everyone has the potential to use magic. However, most people do not believe in magic or are opposed to it on general principles. (The latter is usually a result of a strict religious - usually fundamentalist Christian - upbringing.) Because of this prejudice against their craft, the majority of magicians live and operate on the fringes of modern society.
SWAT-ASTF
"SWAT-ASTF" stands for "Special Weapons And Tactics - Anti-Super Task Force". These are police officers operating in the larger cities of the world trained in heavier weapons than the standard SWAT teams, weapons designed to help subdue superhuman opponents. They have access to military anti-material rifles, reloadable rocket launchers (for some reason, the Russian RPG-7 is a common sight, even for US SWAT teams), and power neutralizing restraints.
Despite the Reality Quake, current "mainstream" technology has proceeded at the same pace as our "Real World" tech. SWAT-ASTF teams, however, have access to slightly more advanced technology - when they can afford them.