Freedom League: Dallas
On September 11, 2001, the Islamist terrorist organization Al-Khayal (“the Shadow”) unleashed a hitherto unknown level of terror against New York and the United States when it crashed two passenger airliners into the world-famous World Trade Center. The crashes and the subsequent collapse of the twin towers caused not only thousands of deaths, but an even more profound transformation in the world.
Chaotic news reports talked about people displaying incredible powers in the face of the disaster, including a glowing young woman lifting tons of wreckage from people and healing their injuries, a young man zipping at super-speed through the streets, and even a mysterious cloaked “phantom” arising from the rubble where the towers stood, pulling survivors from the area and literally passing through concrete and steel like a ghost.
The reports were first attributed to panic or mass hysteria, perhaps even some kind of chemical nerve agent or hallucinogen, but later they were confirmed as true: something incredible was happening. What later become known as “the Breakout” spread from New York like ripples on a pond, but the city remained its epicenter. In the succeeding days and weeks, paranormal incidents cropped up all across the world, but nowhere more frequently than in New York. The US government eventually got a handle on the situation and, in addition to launching military strikes to root out Al-Khayal bases and training camps in the Middle East, unveiled America’s newest defenses against terrorism: AEGIS and the Freedom League!
Since the Breakout, the world has become a different place. Things people once considered impossible are almost commonplace, or at least accepted, since there are now dozens, perhaps hundreds, of paranormals able to do the impossible on a regular basis. The United States has become the paranormal “superpower” of the world, with New York at the summit, although paragons are known in all parts of the globe. More appear every day, with some wondering when, if ever, the process will end, and what the future of “normal” humanity will be in a world where gods and monsters walk the streets and soar through the skies. Given their association with a day of terrible death and disaster, more than a few wonder if paranormals are a blessing to the world, or a curse. Indeed, some paranormals wonder the same thing themselves.
