InsaneJournal

(US-centric; possible plans for Canadian, German, English, and/or Russian time lines if a need arises. Have a question? Ask!)

• (1945) Augmentation was initially caused/created through the development of chemical and biological weapons, both at home and abroad, after the end of WWII (domestically, via the U.S. Army Chemical Corps).


• (1949) The first known American augmentation; an Army Captain developing an advanced healing factor.


• (1950-1952) In an attempt to duplicate the mutation in the form of a vaccine, volunteers were selected from the military branches to study factors affecting augmentation. The first batch of 'vaccine-induced' augmentations happen.


• (1952-1957) 'Vaccinated' military personnel are kept under close watch, and removed from the public eye when 'unstable' (read: new) augmentations start to appear. Blame is placed largely on the Red Scare.


• (1961-1965) Even more test subjects are 'relocated' as their offspring start exhibiting signs of augmentation during the onset of puberty. Draft-dodging is publicly blamed; conspiracies of underhanded draft policies and secret government testing begin to circulate. Development of an internal medical division of the CDC, in cooperation with the military and the CIA, created to study and track the 'Augmented' is formed-- the Organization for Augmented Health.


• (1970s) Augmentation continues to spread through the descendants of these first two generations, with the genetic mutation taking on recessive qualities in individuals the further removed from the Vaccinated generation. An internally perpetuated 'support group' for known Augmented both in and outside the government is formed, to discuss Augment-related issues and other life problems of the day. Organization of the Augmented into a collective is noted, and frowned upon, but never prevented by the government.


• (1981) With the onset of the AIDS pandemic, efforts in genetics once again redouble, with multiple countries running concurrent studies into the recombinant nature of the virus and possible retrovirals and vaccinations. Attention once again falls to the development (and, now, genealogy) of the 'Vaccinated', as the genetic mutation responsible for Augmentation seemed to bolster the immune system, presumably to stabilize the host body for the developing Augmentation.


• (1983-1990s) Vaccines are developed and tested on high-risk civilians 'volunteers' through clinical trials at major hospitals, this time by the private sector (major pharmaceutical companies). By the early 1990s, an optional vaccination panel, reported to be a precursor to a soon-standard HPV vaccine, is offered to schoolchildren and immigrating adults alike. The vaccination is actually a form of the augment-mutation, and appears to cause the triggering of the recessive augmented gene in pubescent young adults with a 45% success rate, along with a spontaneous mutation in 15% of the non-carrier population. Figures, along with the actual purpose of the vaccine, are kept from public knowledge by unknown means.


• (1990s-2000s) The internet age ushers in a new level of transparency, bringing previously disparate communities and ideas together. Those with abilities, like many other subcultures, find the means to network and share amongst one another-- but not without drawing the attention of both the government, and the Factions that have removed themselves from the governmental (but not political) sphere. The PATRIOT Act of 2001 expanded to include the surveillance of known and suspected Augmented individuals, under the blanket 'threat to homeland security' designation.


• (2005) By the beginning of the year, governments around the globe succumb to growing pressure from their constituents and begin discussing the Augmented; behind a blanket of indecipherable medical and political jargon, neither fault nor accountability are claimed by any government, although measures are proposes to "research" the causes and manifestations of Augmentation, and come up with civil, social, and criminal statutes to account for the new level of human ability. The OAH is publicly introduced, as a joint task force between the CDC and NSA. At this time, a group called The Council present themselves as an out and proud Augmented (and ally) group, focusing on lobbying for equal rights for Augmented Americans. Shortly after, what is believed to be a retaliatory group begins a crime wave in major cities around the globe, seeming to operate under the blanket designation of 'the Sovereign'.


• (2007) Talks begin about an Augmented American Registration Act, that would consolidate the CDC and NSA's files on Augmented individuals and facilitate their 'treatment'. Controversy immediately follows, and rages for years.


• (2011) Present day. Heated debates keep an emotionally-charged Washington and many media outlets constantly talking. Rumored "cures" and "drugs" for those seeking to rid themselves of Augmentation-- or develop it-- litter the streets. In reaction, a bill is flying through Senate to promote registration of all augmented humans, for their protection and the protection of others. Tensions are on the rise, but for better or worse, life goes on.