[POWERS] The Rise of the Metahumans

Fifteen years ago, the world designated as POWERS in the multiversal index was a rather ordinary one. In fact, it was identical to world PRIME in almost every single way - sure, there were certain minor differences (businesses that exist on one world but not on the other, small differences in celebrities and pop culture, etc), but for the most part a citizen of PRIME could be transported to POWERS in their sleep and be none the wiser in the morning.

Everything changed on January 1st, 2000, with the birth of the very first metahuman.

Tyler Jacobson was the fourth child of an African American family living in Chicago, and at first it didn't seem like anything differentiated him from his siblings. That misconception was quickly thrown out the window when one day his mother came home to find her baby levitating around the room, seemingly of his own free will. It seemed completely impossible, and yet there Tyler was, the baby that could fly like a bird. After consulting with her family, Mrs. Jacobson decided to hide Tyler's abilities from the world, fearing that he would be kidnapped and experimented on by the government, or perhaps killed by people fearing his potential. Tyler grew up believing that he was unique - a real life superhero, just like in the comic books. Just like Clark Kent or Peter Parker, the young boy kept his powers hidden, but loved using them when no one was watching, flying around the rooms of his family's small apartment and sometimes even outside when it was dark enough. For a good portion of his life, he believed that he was unique - the sole superhero of a very normal world. But he couldn't have been more wrong.

When he was seven years old, Tyler saw a news report about a four year old girl who could control wind currents at a whim. Then another report came in about a pair of twins, one of which could control fire while the other was completely immune to burns. Then a young boy who could breathe underwater. A girl who could change her shape and imitate other people. A boy that could absorb information by touching people who possessed it. Every day, more and more children all across the globe were discovered who possessed amazing abilities. By this point, there were so many children with powers that the various governments of the world didn't even need to kidnap any of them for experimentation - all they had to do was dangle some cash in front of them, and the next day they got dozens of volunteers from lower class households.

Multiple laboratories collaborated, determined to make their country the first one to crack the Metahuman code and find out what was allowing these children to have the abilities they possessed. They found... Absolutely nothing. No biological changes, no DNA mutations, no ancient artifacts stuck in their bodies, nothing. Biologically speaking, the children were perfectly normal humans. Hell, some of their powers even defied the basic laws of the universe - the shapeshifter girl could easily turn into people much smaller or larger than her in frame, completely disregarding the law of preservation of mass. For Tyler himself, things like "gravity" and "friction" were really more like suggestions than actual laws. As far as the scientists could tell, what was giving those children (by now commonly referred to as either Metahumans - Metas for short - or Powers) was nothing short of magic. There was no way to understand these powers, to take them away or to give them to someone who didn't possess them. The world just had to accept that they existed.

In 2014, the world finally saw the first Metahuman who used their power for their own gain. A young girl calling herself Prophet stormed into the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago backed up by a small group of PMC mercenaries, fully intending to rob it. Prophet's powers and true identity are unknown, but it's speculated that she has a form of hyper-awareness that allows her to receive a constant stream of information about what's going on in a certain area around her (the size of which is of yet undetermined). She used that power, and her intelligence, to outmaneuver the police at every turn, completely beating them in the grand game of chess that the robbery quickly turned into. Soon, it became obvious that she would actually be able to pull it off... And that's when Tyler appeared. Dressed in a self-made superhero costume, Tyler was the variable in Prophet's plan. He used his flight powers to quickly dispatch of the mercenaries one by one, flying faster than Prophet could warn them of his attacks. Eventually, the young man managed to take care of most of the soldiers, making his way into the bank and confronting Prophet. But the girl had seen Tyler coming and lured him into a trap where her remaining soldiers managed to shoot him down. Still, that was too little, too late, and soon afterwards Prophet and her soldiers were arrested. The day was saved, but at a cost - fourteen year old Tyler Jacobson, the world's first Power - was gone.

That incident made two things very, very clear to the world - first, that Metahumans, when left unchecked, posed a great danger to peace and the safety of the people. Prophet may have been the first to use her powers for crime, but she certainly wouldn't have been the last. And second - Metas had the potential to become spectacular soldiers, fighting on a scale unlike any other in history. To combat both problems, the US government founded the Tyler Jacobson Academy - a school mandatory for all Powers where they would be taught how to use their abilities effectively and responsibly. The teachers they picked were former soldiers, doctors and psychologists who would not only teach the children essential skills (even some that aren't related to their abilities, such as first aid or negotiation), but would also watch out for any students who have the potential of misusing their powers and attempt to nip this behavior in the bud. While many schools like it have since appeared worldwide, the Tyler Jacobson Academy remains the first and, currently, the largest one.