The S7 Continuity refers the a fictional variant of Earth created by Soberguy. Although existing primarily as a vehicle for the superhero team, S7, the continuity has been left open for other creators to add their own creations and storylines.
History[]
Pre-1930s[]
The history of Earth in the S7 continuity roughly follows that of our own up until the 1930s. The only notable differences are that there are an increased number of costumed adventurers dotted throughout history. Instead of characters such as Zorro, The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Lone Ranger being relegated solely to fiction, actual men and women were known to take up the cause of heroism or villainy under a number of colourful guises. Although the vast majority were not assumed to have any superhuman powers, over time rumours of human beings with unnatural abilities became more widespread.
World War II[]
The first officially recognized superhuman was a German by the name of Sturmbannführer Sieg, the codename given to a Nazi SS officer with the ability to move objects with his mind. Although dismissed as propaganda by many initially, it became clear to those in military intelligence that he was real and posed a new and unique threat. As World War II developed, more and more costumed heroes – some with super-powers – began to emerge on both sides, as the public became more and more convinced of the reality of the newsreels and reports.
It wasn’t until 1940, however, that the idea of the super-powered superhero exploded into the world consciousness. A widowed farmer and former World War One officer by the name of John Taft was struck by a meteor in Iowa, yet survived. After weeks in a coma, he awoke with fantastic superhuman powers. Rushed to a secret military base, he would eventually emerge early in WWII as Old Glory, patriotic defender of America. His true history would not be revealed publicly until many years later.
Old Glory immediately set about gathering super-powered beings to assist the Allied war effort as a unified military unit. This unit, dubbed the Sentinels of Liberty and Justice (usually referred to simply as ‘The Sentinels’) were a major factor in the Allied victory in Europe and Japan, although the war was ultimately ended by the atomic bombing of Japan.
After the War[]
During peacetime, Old Glory continued to be a patriotic symbol of America. He continued his efforts to find and train superhumans to help defend America from new threats posed by those who would use their powers for evil. The Sentinels were granted powers equivalent to those of federal agents, and although their identities were often top secret, all were registered with the US Department of Defence. Over time, the Sentinel project became a nationwide organization, with individual teams assigned to large cities or regions of the country.
Not all superhumans, however, relished the idea of working for the government. A number of individuals and teams popped up across the country, fighting crime and doing good deeds independently. Initially, police organizations – faced with rising crime rates and a dramatic increase in supervillainous crime – turned a blind eye to vigilantism, and even assisted superheroes covertly. The Sentinels and independents defended citizens from wave after wave of supervillains throughout the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s.
This period also saw an explosion in the number of superhumans to emerge. While still only a tiny fraction of the human population, the numbers increased exponentially after the end of WWII. Some theorized that the worldwide increase in nuclear testing may have been to blame, but as the presumed genetic link causing superhuman abilities continued to elude the scientific community, no real consensus was ever reached.
The 1980s[]
The tide began to turn in the 1980s, however. A number of legal battles involving independent hero teams resulted in the prosecution of some heroes and the release of many criminals whom they had captured. Vigilante heroes began to lose the trust of the average citizen, and those whom they captured were difficult to prosecute because so few heroes would come forward to testify against them under their real names. Eventually, the US government passed a series of laws specifically banning vigilantism, and granted special legal concessions to members of the Sentinels to aid in prosecution. The aim was not to ban superheroes, but to have them act as lawful agents of the US government. Amnesty was granted to most existing independents of good standing on the condition that they retire from active duty or join the Sentinels program. Old Glory lobbied to have all superhumans forced by law to register – as citizens would a gun – but this was denied due to constitutional concerns.
The result of these laws was the expansion of the Sentinels as a truly national police force, and a vast reduction in the number of independents. Although seldom hunted down and prosecuted, any independents of note to emerge would be aggressively recruited by the Sentinels. The model began to be adopted worldwide, with national forces arising in countries all across the globe.
The 1990s[]
A spike in superhuman criminal activity and accidental deaths involving superpowers in the mid-90s renewed calls for a nationwide mandatory registry of superhuman beings. After a long and divisive debate, a national registry was created in the US, though citizens were allowed to opt out on the condition that they never used their powers. Although fiercely protested by some at the time, the stiff penalties for unauthorized use of powers by unregistered superhumans and the sharp decline in accidents silenced most of the naysayers by the end of the decade.
The Looking Glass Incident[]
The Sentinels, who had operated without significant controversy for decades under the leadership of the ageless Old Glory, finally met serious resistance in 2005 after what is now known as The Looking Glass Incident. The local Sentinels team was attempting to apprehend an unregistered superhuman named Michael Riis in Looking Glass, Michigan. The Sentinels have claimed that he had the ability to travel through time, had terrorist ties and posed a serious threat to National Security. Associates claim that he was a loving single father and community activist. Details of the incident are conflicting, but what is known is that their attempt to capture Riis led to the occurrence of a tremendously destructive anomaly. With a flash of light but no explosion, an entire section of the city was instantly gone –leaving a perfectly round crater 300 feet in diameter.
Initially, Riis was cited as the instigator of the destruction and the Sentinels team members were publicly absolved and nationally mourned. Soon after the incident, however, a digital photo circulated on the Internet, supposedly emailed from a camera phone during the apprehension. It depicted Riis being roughly pinned to the ground and apparently beaten by Sentinels team member Crow Foot. More shockingly the photo showed that Riis’ two young children, Madelyn and Jovan, were present during the arrest. Although denied by the Sentinels as a hoax, the image of the terrified children watching their father beaten by a superhero left a lasting impression on the shaken city of Looking Glass.
Canon Restrictions[]
The S7 Continuity is open to input by other writers, but a number of restrictions have been set to ensure that the universes canon is respected. These include:
- No time travel of any sort.
- No aliens or contact with alien worlds.
- No magic. Superhuman characters may present themselves as having magical abilities, but in actuality no magic exists. This includes magical items or artifacts.
- Limited precognition. Seeing into the future is only possible for the next three years once the continuity timeline begins. Beyond this point, there exists what has been called "The Veil" - a fog through which no seer has yet to penetrate.