A. Setting Primer
In 1998 the Galatea space station explosion showered the Earth in strange radiation. Subsequently, a few rare persons around the globe developed unusual powers based on the quantum forces of the universe. At first these superhuman “Aberrants” used their powers to advance humanity. Fusion engines were developed, and Luna was colonized.
However, as the Aberrants grew in power their sanity diminished, and in 2049 they made war on humanity. The Aberrant War spanned 12 years, wreaking unprecedented devastation on the world. Among the great losses of the war: network computer technology was destroyed by Kuwasha’s Pulse, and most of America was irradiated by Wycoff’s Blast. The war ended in 2061, when China issued the Earth Strike Ultimatum. Faced with the threat of a global nuclear endgame, the Aberrants instead fled the Solar System.
The Aberrant War altered the world physically and politically. America, Russia, Europe, and the Middle East bore the brunt of the destruction, and have not yet recovered. Now China, Australia, Brazil, and the new African Union dominate world economy and culture. The decades that followed saw a slowly-recovering Earth, and a new impetus to colonize space. Space exploration was further driven by the development of artificial gravity, which made long-term settlement viable.
In 2104 the Aberrants returned to the Solar System, first attacking human colonies, then Earth itself. However, in secret, psionically Gifted humans had begun preparing for the Aberrants’ return. In 2106 these “Psions” revealed themselves to repel an Aberrant attack on the Sydney spaceport. The Psions used “subquantum” powers to counter and defeat the quantum powers of the Aberrants. These “Psi” powers would additionally provide a leap forward in human technology and development.
Through psionic Telepathy and Teleportation, true faster-than-light (FTL) communications and travel are now possible. Humanity has colonized extra-solar planets, and in 2107 made first contact with a sentient alien species, the Qin. Standard biotechnology has been rendered obsolete by psionically active biotechnology, which has advanced medicine and computing to undreamt heights.
Anyone might be a latent Psion. The Psi Orders frequently test human populations for psionic latency, and those who are discovered can take up the offer to become a Psion. (The Orders have diverse staffing needs, and hire plenty of non-psionic or “neutral” humans too). The process of becoming a Psion is mysterious, but involves a dunk in a tank-like biotech device called a Prometheus Chamber.
The year is 2114. In hopes of restoring some of its past economic prominence, Europe has recently launched the Esperanza orbital superstation.
B. On Psions and the Psi Orders
The Psions belong to eight Orders, each overseen by a Proxy, and drawn from cultures across the globe. The Legions are militaristic, telekinetic, and are based in Australia. The Aesculapians are psionic doctors who come out of the Montressor Clinic in Basel, Switzerland. The teleporters call themselves Upeo Wa Macho, and are based in Kenya. The Chinese government’s Ministry of Psionic Affairs specializes in Telepathy. The consortium called NORCA runs out of the Amazon, where they practice shapeshifting and develop new biotechnology. Similarly the psionic American company called Orgotech develops new technologies of all sorts, both biotech and hardtech. The clairsentient ISRA group meditates in the Luna colonies. And the Chitra Bhanu had previously been psionic scientists in Calcutta, India, but they were subverted by the Aberrants and destroyed in 2109.
C. Premise and Chargen Notes
You are all teenagers in a small French town called Chanon. Chanon is in the mountains in east-central France, and is unremarkable except for a small satellite campus of the Lyons Agricultural School. There is some tourism, but the mountains here are not very good for skiing. You can justify a variety of cultural backgrounds on the tourism, or on the Ag school (parents are visiting professors or adult students from far away, maybe). The year is 2114.
For character creation, your Origin is “enfant perdu.” Pick Nature and Attributes normally, put 13 points in Abilities, and take the starting 5 Willpower. Do not bother with Allegiance, Psi, Aptitude, Modes, Backgrounds, or Bonus Points quite yet. Do look over Merits and Flaws, and you can pick ones you want to use now and pay for them later, or you can pick them later when your characters get Bonus Points.