We have finished the editing for Ruins Of Atlanta, by Jason Tondro, and are beginning the layout. This is a fantastic sourcebook, and we couldn’t be happier. Here’s a small sample to whet your appetite.
The Secret Of The CDC
When Paragon attacked the city of Atlanta, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were his first target. Although the state and federal government, as well as a few other organizations and individuals, have figured this out, it’s not entirely clear why the CDC earned this distinction. Moreover, because Paragon’s attack on Atlanta was the beginning of the nihilistic rampage that ended in his death, it’s possible that the CDC was somehow connected to Paragon’s fall in the first place.
Bulletproof Blues does not offer an official explanation for Paragon’s fall and his decision to target the CDC in Atlanta. Instead, we offer a half dozen potential reasons. As a GM, you can decide which, if any, of these is accurate, and you can use it to inform other aspects of the Kalos Comics setting. Investigating this secret might be a major plotline for players to pursue, or it might be irrelevant to current events, as you choose.
Existential Dread: Paragon learned that he, and possibly many other posthumans, are actually artificial beings grown in tanks housed deep in the CDC. His memories, and the memories of other posthumans who believe they have had normal lives, were constructed by powerful AI and then implanted into the clones. The realization that everything he thought he knew about himself was a lie drove Paragon into a fury, and once he began to massacre people he denied any remorse by insisting, “I’m not a real person, so how can I feel guilty?”
Ex-Terminated: Paragon had a vision of the future in which he saw a psychic alien life form arise out of the CDC and quickly absorb the minds of all it encountered. Atlanta’s million residents were consumed in minutes, and most of the rest of the world followed within days. Convinced that this future was inevitable and that 95% of humanity was certain to die, he went to drastic steps in an effort to destroy the creature and save what remained. Apparently, he was misled and that future wasn’t certain after all, because no trace of the psychic alien has (yet) been found.
“I Couldn’t Save Her!”: While investigating the breakout of a rare virus in central Africa, Paragon’s girlfriend, an investigative journalist, contracted the fever and died in the arms of CDC doctors. Paragon arrived moments later, but it was too late, and he snapped. The CDC was just the first victim of his uncontrollable grief and self-loathing.
Jailbreak Gone Bad: Paragon fell under the mental domination of Professor Petrie, a parasitic worm imbued with vast intelligence and psychic powers, but little common sense or experience in the world. Petrie summoned Paragon from across the country and commanded him to “use your powers to destroy this facility! Destroy! Destroy!” Which Paragon promptly did, obliterating the CDC where Petrie was housed, the rest of Atlanta, and (presumably) Petrie himself. With the mental command still bouncing around his head and no way to turn it off, Paragon continued his rampage until the Justifiers were forced to kill him.
The Last Straw: For decades Paragon had come to hold humanity in contempt, resenting both the pressure of being a hero and the constant criticism that comes with it. In an effort to bribe one of these critics, a scientist, into silence, he gave the man a sample of Isopteran technology. But with this, the scientist accidentally released the Burroughs Plague, a macabre linguistic virus which killed hundreds. CDC researchers called Paragon in to ask him some questions which he interpreted as accusations. He finally snapped, murdering all of them, ruining the city, and beginning his destructive rampage.
The Posthuman Plague: Paragon discovered that the federal government had developed a potential counter-measure to posthumanity, a deadly plague that can be carried and transmitted by, but which has no effect upon, ordinary people. This virus was stored at the CDC against the inevitable day that Paragon, or others like him, turned against mundane authority and decided to rule the world.
