- Motto
- Intellego, praeveni, et contra. (Understand, prevent, and counteract.)
Initiated during the Cold War, "The Contingency Plan," commonly known as "The Contingency," is deeply embedded within the U.S. Government, particularly in Homeland Security and military sectors. Its inception was based on research suggesting the viability of certain mythological aspects. As a U.S.-led operation, The Contingency extends its authority globally through clandestine treaties and agreements with foreign governments, corporations, and private entities. This expansion, particularly since the early 2000s, grants them exceptional global jurisdiction, often transcending standard international boundaries and government oversight. Primarily focused on identifying, understanding, and controlling "supernormal" artifacts and entities, including supernatural creatures, paranormal activities, and magical artifacts, The Contingency operates with the overarching aim of protecting humanity from undisclosed dangers. Its reach permeates various governmental structures worldwide, leveraging U.S.-led initiatives and military divisions to enforce its mandate, often operating beyond the purview of conventional governmental scrutiny. This widespread network of allies and divisions signifies its entrenched influence and operational scope.
Operation
Since its inception in the 1950s, the group has significantly evolved, now deploying agents across every major government and corporate sphere worldwide as of 2020. Their fundamental belief is that the arcane knowledge of magic, psionics, and the supernatural realm is too perilous for public disclosure. Engaged in a delicate, sometimes paradoxical dance, they simultaneously collaborate with, employ, and combat elements of the supernatural community. This complex relationship is akin to a devil's bargain, where they harness the unique capabilities of supernaturals and magic/psionic users for their ends, all while orchestrating a widespread concealment of such phenomena and operations. Driven by a doctrine that wields power under the guise of humanity's "greater good," they navigate a precarious path of alliance and opposition within this enigmatic world.
Divisions
Within The Contingency Plan, a stringent protocol of secrecy and compartmentalization is paramount. Each division—be it Prevention, Understanding, or Counteracting—operates under the guise of a specific government department, with its members often unaware of their affiliation with The Contingency. Except for individuals in high-ranking positions, personnel are kept in the dark about the broader objectives and operations of The Contingency. This structure ensures that each division remains focused on its immediate responsibilities, oblivious to the larger, interconnected strategies at play, thus preserving the overarching secrecy and integrity of the entire operation.
| Name | Division of Gov. | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Supernormal Abilities & Psionic Research | Department of Health and Human Services | Merges the study of supernormal abilities with psionic research, focusing on understanding and control. |
| Mythos Analysis Unit | Central Intelligence Agency | Analyzes myths, legends, and folklore for potential real-world applications and threats. |
| Paranormal Containment Bureau | Department of Homeland Security | Tasked with containing and neutralizing paranormal threats to national security. |
| Occult Investigations Office | Federal Bureau of Investigation | Investigates crimes and incidents involving magic, the supernatural, and occult practices. |
| Artifact Retrieval Corps | National Security Agency | Specializes in locating, securing, and analyzing magical and supernormal artifacts. |
| Supernatural Diplomacy Division | Department of State | Manages relations with entities and groups from the supernatural world. |
| Cryptid Surveillance Network | Department of the Interior | Monitors and researches cryptids and other unknown creatures inhabiting remote areas. |
| Transmundane Integration Project | National Institutes of Health | Develops hybrid technologies and methods integrating supernatural elements with conventional science. |
| Shadow Operations Division | Department of Defense | Engages in combat and strategic operations against threats involving supernatural elements. |
Understanding
The divisions under Understanding, including the Supernormal Abilities & Psionic Research at the Department of Health and Human Services, the Mythos Analysis Unit of the CIA, the Supernatural Diplomacy Division of the State Department, and the Transmundane Integration Project of the National Institutes of Health, focus on gaining insights into the supernormal realm.
Additionally, the military continues to conduct numerous projects aimed at utilizing supernormal DNA to augment or create superior soldiers characterized by enhanced loyalty and controllability. These endeavors have yielded mixed results. Successful projects have generated assets that are superior, loyal, and controllable. However, many trials have not met these criteria, leading to the transfer of these less successful outcomes to the Ad Undas base near Los Angeles, operated by the US Navy. This facility serves as a containment and research center for those affected by these military experiments, providing a secure environment for further study and management.
Prevention
The Occult Investigations Office of the FBI and the Shadow Operations Division of the Department of Defense are not only involved in averting supernatural incidents but also frequently encounter supernormal artifacts. These artifacts are typically delivered to the Artifact Retrieval Corps for secure storage and analysis. Additionally, these divisions maintain their own small stockpiles of less dangerous supernormal artifacts and plant life. These items, often tied to active cases, are retained until they can be safely transferred to the appropriate department for further study or containment.
Counteracting
The Counteracting division, encompassed by the Paranormal Containment Bureau under the Department of Homeland Security, is dedicated to neutralizing paranormal threats, thereby safeguarding national security. Complementing this, the Artifact Retrieval Corps of the National Security Agency focuses on the acquisition and securement of magical and supernormal artifacts.
These divisions also excel in preemptive strategies, where containment serves as a means to prevent future threats. By securing and studying dangerous artifacts and entities, they harness potential offensive and defensive applications, converting risks into resources. This proactive and strategic approach enables The Contingency Plan to effectively manage and utilize supernatural phenomena, reinforcing their capability to counteract supernormal challenges.
History
The group began as a simple research arm during the cold war, attempting to discover if folklore and mythology about supernormal abilities could be at least somewhat accurate. In 1949 the group was given broad orders to determine if there was more possible to the human condition, particularly the mind, than was previously thought possible. To this end the group would study common accounts from various mythologies across different cultures and attempt to come up with a "framework of the possible".
Project Superman
This framework would serve as a bible for the future of the organization then only called Project Superman. Working out of the United States Army Office of Special Projects. When the project coordinators submitted their findings of what could be possible to the Office of Special Projects for evaluation, their research implied that supernormal abilities could be possible based on shared myths and legends across multiple races. At the time the project was centered around the simple idea of what could humans really do? Project Superman was terminated on August 9th 1951 and all funding was cut. Project members were ordered to surrender any and all materials relating to the project and informed that they were prohibited from talking about the project to anyone. The Army was concerned that if the public found out that a Army project was found to be researching myths and legends it would undermine the faith in the military at a time when the Cold War was well underway.
The Framework
On August 10th 1951 the project supervisors received an anonymous invite to attend a meeting at a little known warehouse just outside of DC. This small warehouse was used by the CIA Office of Policy Coordination as a covert meeting place. The supervisors of Project Superman indeed did show up to this meeting. At the time the CIA was preparing to escalate their efforts in Korea, behind the scenes many of the CIA's middle management had serious concerns about these efforts and were desperate to latch onto any possibility of advantage they could find. By the end of August, the project supervisors, most of the lead researchers, and other staff who worked for Project Superman as a research project now worked for the Central Intelligence Agency's Office of Policy Coordination.
The new project was simply called The Framework and the research project focused on myths and legends was now tasked with figuring out how to turn legends into reality. Through the rest of 1951 the Framework was largely disorganized and unsettled leading to the replacement of most of the leadership with CIA operatives. The Office of Policy Coordination called upon Framework supervisors to submit reports as to how to _activate_ latent supernormal abilities in operatives being sent into Korea to then be sent into communist China in 1952. The Framework had no details on how to do this but under new management from the CIA it didn't matter, the Framework put together a list of chemical drug cocktails related to altered states of being and mind. These drugs could be condensed and given to operatives in pill form, many being sent into China were simply told that they need only take this pill and they would become all but invincible. They were wrong.
The failures of the effort in Korea to gather information about China helped to hide what the Framework had done. The key effort in the Framework at this point was being lead by Ret. Army Major William "Billy" Jenson. Unlike many of his fellow CIA officers who had very little, if any, experience at leadership and even less scruples Jenson in fact had both. Once a true believer that the CIA was an unstoppable juggernaut, the deaths in Korea hit him hard and he felt personally responsible. Jenson had a realization that the CIA was going to be doomed to failure and thus the United States would also be doomed to failure if they could not accept and learn from their mistakes.
In December of 1953 Jenson brought a plan to the attention of Frank Wisner to reshape CIA operational protocol. This plan was rejected and Wisner threatened Jenson if he continued to "rock the boat". With this in mind, Jenson worked hard to put safeguards in place to ensure he could run the Framework as he saw fit, without outside interference. Jenson put into place a protocol of research, review, fact checking, reporting, and testing which was all organized under the premise that every failure was acceptable so long as one learned from it. This idea was key to the future of the Framework.
Revelation
Over the next decade the Framework was able to operate under two directions. The first was their core purpose; finding out how to bring out latent supernormal abilities in human assets. This was slow going work and Jenson knew that the CIA would not allow this work to continue if results could not be had. The second direction was in the use of drug cocktails to alter the bodies natural responses to stress and pain. This portion was quickly successful, branded by the Framework as a way to get closer and closer to the hidden potential of the human body the Office of Policy Coordination was able to use these drug cocktails on agents to make them run faster, take more injuries, and last longer than others in the field. Due to the nature of how the CIA reported failures and consequences (or lack thereof) the Framework was lauded as a success.
Meanwhile the real research began, Jenson fully believed that there was more to the human mind and by extension the body. The drugs were habit forming, harmful to the body, and often left deep physical and emotional scars. Jenson felt that the Framework could unlock hidden potentials without the side effects. He envisioned an army of supernormal agents which could operate with impunity because no one would believe what they saw.
Operating largely outside the CIA Jenson applied rigorous research techniques to how to alter the state of the human mind to unlock and access new abilities. On April 3rd, 1963 the Framework had its first true success. Through a carefully managed treatment program of mind altering substances and training exercises the group produced a true success, dubbed Agent Zero. Agent Zero spent 9 weeks undergoing experimental treatment which left him with the ability to enter the dreams of anyone with whom he had contact. At first it was only physical contact but later Agent Zero was able to enter the dreams of others from up to 100 feet away so long as he had line of sight, without the need for additional drugs of any kind.
The Plan
Building off of this success Jenson instituted a project to turn as many people into what her termed as Dream Walkers after what the Native Americans called such activity. All in all the team produced 57 such walkers, with a success rate of just 32%. The Framework began to investigate why the treatment did not produce results in 2/3 of "applicants". What they found would change the group forever.
The research team found that a specific series of brain formations formed an additional, but latent, pathway in the brains of those people who were effectively turned into Dream Walkers. This pathway was simply missing from about 2/3 of the population. This pathway was found to be essential in being able to Dream Walk but it also was found to have other uses. The Framework had unlocked the first tangible proof of psychic abilities. Not just Dream Walking but all forms of psychic abilities were locked inside this pathway. Since 1/3 of the population had this pathway they were called latents and posed a significant threat, as a latent who was awakened had an unstoppable advantage over most humans.
Jenson was nearing retirement age and grappling with his own mortality. He formulated a plan, the idea was that God never intended for humans to achieve such a thing. These latents were abominations. Jenson formed a kind of contingency plan that were two simple steps -- find anyone who could be a latent and make sure they never found out what they could do. To this end Jenson began to organize his contacts within the military industrial complex -- no one must ever find out that psychic abilities were real. Further no one must ever experiment with unlocking such abilities again.
The Contingency
After Jenson retired in 1981 the Framework required new leadership. Over the next decades the Framework found several branches of myth and legend which had practical applications; psionics and magic were the two primary ones. The Framework also began to see evidence of other myths which could also be true. The Framework had several directors, all from the CIA, who were mostly happy with what had already been done and directed the Framework to continue this same work. In 1992 the Framework got a new leader, it's third in the last 11 years. This new leader had a different idea on how to execute the plan of everyday Americans being protected from the supernormal.
Since Agent Zero some 1274 people had been brought into the Framework as Dream Walkers, Psychics, Empaths, and Mages. Working for the very organization which saw them as a threat, most fully believed that working in this capacity would protect them from the wrath of the Framework should there ever be one. These agents were also very useful to the CIA, NSC, NSA, and all branches of the military. They were valuable assets now in place protecting America.
In 1994 the Framework obtained its very first live sample of the Vx Virus. It was now confirmed, for all intents and purposes Vampires existed. Moreover their network of agents throughout the country's military had started to get noticed by the very creatures which they were about to discover. It seemed that in the 1990's the vampires, shape shifters, were creatures, and even demons would come out of the woodwork. They were absolutely everywhere.
The evolution of The Contingency Plan reflected a strategic shift in perspective and operations. Initially focused on the potential threat of latents, historical developments prompted a broader remit. By 1997, The Contingency, now fully operational, began to recognize the nuanced role of supernormal entities and artifacts, not just as threats but also as potential allies and resources. This realization led to a dual approach: employing and protecting certain elements of the supernatural community while simultaneously seeking to understand, control, and, if necessary, combat other aspects. This complex interplay between utilization and safeguarding marked a significant policy shift. The United States Government, through The Contingency, embarked on a clandestine campaign to both harness and regulate the supernormal, extending its reach globally via covert agreements. These operations, often beyond standard governmental oversight, involved a wide array of tactics, from research and experimentation to suppression of information, all aimed at navigating and managing the delicate balance between the known and the unknown, the natural and the supernatural.