Prologue

A History of Masked Heroes in Our Society, Preceding and Following the Khaos Storm

Dr. Hellena Fernandez

Presented at the Conferance on Khaotics in Our Society, 2030

         Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the fifteenth annual conference on Khaotics in our Society.

         For those of you who don't know me, I am Dr. Hellena Fernandez, M.D., and PHd in Khaotic Physiology. It is my job to treat the Paragons who are injured in the line of duty, and to deal with the special medical crises that arise from a metabolism mutated by the effects of Khaos Particles.

         As most of you know, Khaotics, both Paragons and Diabolics have been with us for a bit over eighty years now. The phenomenon of the masked defender, however, has been with us for much much longer. Ancient myth and folklore abound with stories of of mysterious strangers saving a terrified populace from a rampaging monster or a blood thirsty tyrant. It is interesting that the heroes were often gifted with powers beyond those of the people they rescued, the kings had magic on their side, and the monsters are like nothing we see living today. Is it possible that there have been previous Khaos Storms? Many ancient cycles of myth have an early event where the world is flooded by great rain that destroys civilization. Perhaps a simplified version of a Khaos Storm? Difficult to say.

         The old west also has its share of men with no name who ride in to town to clean out the bandits and desperadoes, often with skills that surpass the greatest gunfighters of the time.

         Even today, we have stories of miraculous feats. A crash victim is pulled from a burning car by a man who tears the door off with his bare hands. A girl falls down a well and is rescued by an angel. These and many other stories have all become part of our modern mythology. On New Years Day, 1970, however, a new chapter of our mythology of the masked hero began.

         Starting at midnight, January 1st, 1970 GMT, a shower of glowing green particles fell from the sky. At first there was a panic. The particles did not appear to obey the normal laws of matter, as many of them fell into and through buildings, objects, and people. While most passed, seemingly harmlessly, through those things they struck, some never came out the other side. Once one of the particles disappeared from view, it could not be detected by any means available at the time. The storm lasted for ten minutes and then everything returned to normal, more or less. Because of the panic it caused, the event was dubbed the Khaos Storm, and the green motes, Khaos Particles.

         The true nature, and the ultimate effects, of the storm were not even guessed at until years later. Beginning in the early 1980's new varieties of plants and animals were discovered with alarming regularity. Most of these life forms were mutations of more typical life that bred true. Some of the mutations were nothing short of astounding.

         It began on June 28, 1981, when a young penguin in the Stanley Park Aquarium, in Vancouver, flew away from its handlers. In 1983, a swarm of ants, each measuring approximately three inches in length, infested a California town. In 1984, a patch of grass in Central Park, New York, was discovered to have razor sharp fronds. In 1987, a pigeon flew into Trafalgar Square, burst into flame, and burned several people eating lunch. The Pigeon was unhurt.

         All of these reports, and many more, shared a common denominator. Every mutated specimen had been born after the Khaos storm. Many scientists, and more media personalities began to ask, "Will humans be affected, and how?" The answer came in the Summer of 1990.

         A young woman and her recent husband entered a bank in Downtown Chicago. It was her 19th birthday and they had big plans. While waiting in line, a group of masked gunmen entered and ordered everyone to the floor. Not everyone complied fast enough, and shots were fired. The young woman's husband was hit in the chest and fell. Shortly after, one of the masked men approached the woman, presumably to make more demands of her. In a rage, she hit him. The force of the blow sent him through the window at the front, across the street and through the display window of the store on the other side. In the panic that ensued, the woman was shot repeatedly, but none of the bullets penetrated. When it was over, four of the robbers were in severe condition and two were dead.

         The woman was tried, but found not guilty. The defense of self defense was accepted, as lethal force was used against her and could have been used against other bank patrons. The judge was also impressed with her behavior in the holding cell. She could have torn open the wall at any time, but chose to await trail. After the trial, the woman voluntarily committed herself to a research facility newly designed to examine the mutations that had been plaguing the world for the last ten years. She also had her name legally changed to Paragon and waged a (temporarily) one woman war against criminals.

         Partly thanks to Paragon's presence at the new Institute for Khaos Study, our understanding of Khaos effects has increased dramatically. Over the years, we have developed the Khaos Scanner, which detects energy emanations from the Khaos particles embedded in the DNA of every Khaotic mutation. The scanner also allowed us to harness the mineral mutations which make many technological miracles possible, such as the now standard issue Police Stunner.

         While many questions remain, we have learned a great deal about Khaos mutation. Khaos particles seem to bond with the DNA of living beings. When it bonds with a developing organism, it can cause radical mutation. In humans, the mutations typically manifest between the ages of 10 and 30, although exceptions have been reported. The particles can also remain latent through out a lifespan, but continue to pass on to the children.

         In plants, Khaos mutations seem to be stable. One generation of mutated plants will breed a second generation with the same mutation. In animals, the mutations seem to be much more unstable. For example, the flying penguin did not father a flying child. One of its offspring was able to breath fire, however. Generally, a Khaotic born of one Khaotic and one mundane parent has about a 25% chance of inheriting a mutation. On the other hand, 50% of the children do have detectable traces of Khaos particles. We are not sure why half the children do not manifest mutations.

         The mutations vary widely from individual to individual. Some Khaotics have powers no more impressive than the ability to change channels and open garage doors without a remote. Others display a wide and impressive array of abilities. What is certain is that the amount of Khaos particle present at birth seems to determine power level within a wide range. To put it simply, a child of two Khaotics will generally be more powerful than a child of only one. The bands are so broad, however, that many exceptions do exist.

         There still exists a group of Khaotics that were present during the Khaos Storm itself. Those few who were struck by Khaos Particles which lodged within them seem to be a breed apart. They are generally more powerful than other Khaotics, sometimes significantly so. They are also sterile with other Khaotics and mundanes. There have been no known cases of interbreeding among these Khaotics, however.

         These Khaotics, whom we have dubbed Primals, are among the most powerful of their kind. The nature of their powers varies as much as other Khaotics, but some commonalities have been discovered. First, they possess an amazing rate of cellular regeneration. While they can be killed by traumas (generally), it takes much more to finish them off before they can heal. They appear to be immune to most diseases, and they do not age at any where near the rate typical of the rest of us. Paragon, one of the most powerful of the first generation Khaotics, is now almost seventy and showing it. The Alchemist, one of the most famous of the Primals, is about the same age, but still looks in his early twenties.

         As is typical of these conferences, we will be presenting the latest in Khaos research. We will also examine issues of Khaotic rights and responsibilities and look at the growing Diabolic criminal problem. I hope you find the conference as enlightening this year as in the past.

         Thank you all.
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Now that you have read some background information, please enjoy the story.

"Chapter 1" 

If you would like to read some information about the various khaotics involved in the story, have a look at "Khaotic Data Files" .