Possessive Behavior

[Excerpt from video: Draped in Ideology - Politics in Caped society ]

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Part 2: Villains

Now we get to the part that I'm sure most of you clicked on this video for. For the villains, I will mostly go with the same criteria I established for the heroes. 3 groups, and no small-time heavily localized teams. It is true that there are plenty of small-time political villains that would be interesting to explore, but I feel it wouldn't fit within the scope of this video. I'm trying to explain political villainy in a broad sense, and for that, it makes sense to focus on the large-scale organizations that have, or at least claim to have, taken up a cause. 2 of the groups in this section work as a sort of dark mirror to 2 of the hero teams I discussed in Part 1.

And for those of you who skipped to this section: Like I said in Part 1, this is just a basic rundown of the group in question. I will go into a lot more detail on each of these groups and how they intermingle in Part 4. This is just to establish a knowledge base for you to work off of.

Alright, alright, enough stalling. Let's dig a bit deeper into the darker side of Cape politics.

Group 1: The Society of Power

Let's revisit our friends, the Hero Team Power to the People for a moment. I mentioned that despite the amount of progress the group had made pushing for Empowered rights, some of their members felt that they weren't changing things fast enough. This is a typical conflict within organizations like these, and as it did so often in the past it ultimately ended in a schism that split the members into two factions.

One day, an influential figure among the more radical-minded folks named Herman Maxwell Schulz, decided enough was enough, took whatever followers he could gather, and disappeared into the night. And I mean that quite literally. Neither he nor his friends were seen again for 2 whole years. I don't know if I can adequately describe what a big deal this mass disappearance was at the time. Almost 30 Heroes suddenly vanished overnight, it was national news for weeks. Was it a secret villain ambush? Mass kidnapping? A magical phenomenon that was a danger to us all? Speculation as far as the ear could hear.

But no. As it turned out it was none of these. And that was made abundantly clear when Herman Schulz, widely known as the hero trainer Powerbreaker, made his reappearance 2 years later as the head of the SOP.

Now what is it exactly that the Society of Power wants? Well, in essence, it is very similar to the goals that Power to the People has. Better treatment for the Empowered. Where the two differ is that while PttP is mostly just after getting rid of all the existing regulation around the use of Powers and people deemed "naturally dangerous", the SoP wants to rewrite the entire system.

4 years ago an ex-member leaked a document to the public that pretty succinctly explains the ways they'd change things if they were in charge. An Empowered democracy, where only those with a Power can vote or hold office. Deeper research into the nature of Powers with the main goal being the development of a procedure that would guarantee that a child would be born Empowered. The implementation of this procedure as mandatory for all citizens. And the immediate revocation of any and all regulations on Power usage. All in all, a pretty simple goal.

What makes the Society of Power so popular? I think that's pretty easy to explain. Most Empowered would like to be able to use the gifts they were given with impunity, and believe it or not, there are also a huge number of Non-Empowered who think the world would be a better place if everyone had a Power. Couple that with the fact that they usually only kill those who attacked them first and you have a recipe for widespread popularity.

Don't get me wrong, most people are still not that into them, but their support keeps rising, especially among the young.

And speaking of young, how about we move on for now. I hear the Circus is in town.

Group 2: Freakshow

What can be said about the Freakshow that hasn't already? I bet some of you are even wondering why they are on this list at all. The reason is simple. While I do agree that they aren't really all that political, they use "politics" as a justification for their actions a lot. And I mean politics in the loosest sense. Some cells are more prone to this than others, the Manchester and D.C. Freakshows for example, but the entire group dabbles in it from time to time. They are also by far the oldest and most widespread of the 9 organizations discussed in this video.

The basics of Freakshow's origins are widely known. I'm sure even those of you who aren't terminally online have heard them called "France's biggest export" at some point. But most don't know the details. For example, the original villain team that spawned the modern Freakshow wasn't called Freakshow at all.

The earliest documented mention of this original group of villains comes from a roughly 160-year-old flyer from Paris, France. It advertises a traveling carnival of wonders and entertainment called "Cirque du Freak". Entry free of charge.

While we don't know a whole lot about that group, we do know that its founder, an immigrant to France named Boris, gathered the most weird, hideous, unsettling, and disgusting Empowered he could find, mostly those who had no control over the more repulsive aspect of their Powers and were subsequently shunned, and united them under one banner. We also know that he treated them well and that they saw each other more as a family than anything else.

Eventually, after being active in France for about 12 years they decided it was time to take their show abroad. Their first stop? Where else but the good ol' US of A. And this is where the Freakshow as we know them today came into being. Wherever they went they tried to recruit more and more Empowered like them, and that recruitment drive was scarily effective. So much so that they reached their limit 3 cities into their US tour. In New York City.

We don't know how it was discussed and what exactly the plan was, but shortly before they moved on Boris left about 15 of his crew behind to grow their influence there, including one of his many children, who acted as that group's leader. And because this new group wasn't really traveling around like a circus, they felt the need to rebrand. Hence, Freakshow.

This pattern was repeated in every major and even some minor cities that the Circus traveled through. And when they eventually moved on to the next country they kept that habit up. If you ever wondered why Freakshow has cells in pretty much every country worldwide, this is your answer.

The Freakshow uses a lot of political rhetoric, frequently speaking about the unjust oppression of the ugly and strange and how society leaves them no choice but to become villains, but in my opinion, a lot of that is just hot air. They make most of their money through extortion, robbery, and murder and they couldn't be more gleeful about it. There is also the famous Vendetta Cards. Whenever someone personally slights a member of Freakshow, they may be sent a colorful little playing card in the mail. Within 7 days of the card's arrival, that person will be targeted and murdered, most of the time in a brutally horrific way. No matter how you spin it, that is nothing but a petty hissy fit that benefits no one but the member of Freakshow who sent that card.

What makes Freakshow so popular? Their fanbase online is immense, but IRL you rarely hear people talk about them positively. That tells us that a lot of their supporters know that their actions are too reprehensible to defend publically, but they stand behind them anyway. Why is that? I think all of us can relate at least a little bit to feeling like an outcast. And the fantasy of hanging around with like-minded people, doing and taking what you want, and damn everyone else can be tempting, especially for people who already feel rejected by society.

Then there is the fact that they do their best to leave other outcasts alive and well wherever they go. They once robbed a Prion Magiteck warehouse, slaughtering all of the innocent workers but 2. As it turned out, these 2 had been the victims of severe bullying by their colleagues, and despite neither being Empowered Freakshow left them alone. What they did was horrific, but actions like these are probably the main reason they are so well-regarded online. They also have a strange sense of honor. A Vendetta lasts 7 days, and if you somehow manage to survive until day 8 you're good to go. They'ĺl leave you alone from now on.

But enough of the Circus. After all that excitement I could really use something to eat.

Group 3: EATR

Moving on from a group vaguely using political rhetoric as a justification for their actions, to one so deeply drenched in politics that it's basically buried in the sea floor.

23 years ago the body of famous industrialist Edgar Howard, known for running a tech company with near 0 environmental pollution, was found in a hotel, dead. It seemed like he had been gruesomely tortured and kept alive for hours as his fingers, toes, eyelids, lips, and part of his ribs were slowly and meticulously cut off. 3 days later the same would happen to the rest of his family. His wife and both his oldest son and daughter, 24 and 21 respectively, were found in a similar condition to their husband and father, while the three youngest kids, 11, 6, and 2 years old, vanished without a trace. On the wall of the master bedroom painted in big red letters were the words "Eat All The Rich".

This was the debut of the infamous cannibal serial killer group known as EATR. Just one week after the incident the perpetrator posted a video claiming full responsibility, and ensuring us that this was only the beginning.

The group was founded by a semi-famous political internet personality called Red Action. The channel was run by the young Native American communist Takoda Howahkan, who had made quite a name for himself as a seriously charismatic debater and video essayist. He advocated for IRL political engagement and demanding what is right from the ones in charge. And while the organization denies it it is pretty clear that one of the main reasons the Red Youth grew so big over the last 30 years in America was due to his glowing endorsement and urging his fans to sign up. He was also famous for not monetizing his content at all, even rejecting direct donations and recommending other places to donate to instead.

While he had always been a radical, his fall from grace would come with Dakotagate. For all of you born before the rise of EATR, Dakotagate was a massive scandal that broke 24 years ago when a whistleblower reported on the real reason that Shardwave factories, the firm owned by Edgar Howard, were so low on emissions. He had used his massive fortune to hire powerful Warlocks to magic away his problems. Warlocks were the only mages that had access to spells that were efficient and cheap enough to be affordable for a permanent indefinite 24/ 7 cycle.

The problem with Warlocks is that they can only use Curses. And the problem with Curses is that they need a designated victim to work. If he wanted to keep the area around his factories pollution-free, he needed another area to take it in instead. And due to the nature of Curses, the spell would be more effective if the area he chose was populated. And as it turned out the places he decided on were the Yankton, Standing Rock, Lake Traverse, Flandreau Santee Sioux, and Crow Creek reservations in South Dakota.

And while this was horrible, it was not what led Takoda to murder. It was the main topic of his channel after it became public knowledge, but he was not quite gone yet. The straw that broke the camel's back was the verdict of Edgar Howard's trial. He had to pay a large amount of money to the reservations he had polluted, and that was it. The Warlocks who cursed the land were arrested and put in jail, but the big man himself got a slap on the wrist. And that was just too much to take for the young activist.

But why cannibalism? In his video taking credit for the Howard family's death he explained that his goal was to make the rich bastards that never had to face consequences for their actions well and truly fear him. And to do that he modeled his new persona after the most horrifying creature he knew. Red Action became Red Wendigo. He also explained that he was not alone and had loyal comrades who truly believed in the cause. Furthermore, he revealed that the three youngest Howards were safe and sound with them. The video sparked a lot of outrage, but also a huge wave of mostly anonymous support.

So how has EATR developed over the years? Their M.O. is pretty much the same. They target rich families, mostly politicians and CEOs, as well as large gatherings of rich people and kill and eat the adults and take the children. That only happens very rarely though, and that is for a reason. EATR is by far the most heavily sought-after criminal organization, period. They are under constant scrutiny and only occasionally have the chance to actually act. That's why they're limited to going on a feeding frenzy only once or twice a year.

All three of the Howard children are high-ranking officers of the group nowadays, and they seem to be fiercely loyal. Red Wendigo is still the boss and he still uploads at least one video to his old channel every six months from wherever he is currently hiding.

What makes Eat All The Rich so popular? Everyone hates rich people. Almost everyone. And Takoda himself remains to this day a very sympathetic figure in many people's eyes, even though there are a lot who hate him too. I don't think it's hard to understand the appeal, whether you agree with them or not.

But enough of villains and heroes for now. Let's introduce our final three groups before we go more in-depth on all 9 of them. Let's take off our black shirts and search for something nice and grey because it's time for.....

Part 3: Vigilantes

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