Mystic Missouri

Note: A work in progress, this may be subject to change.

A near-copy of the state of Missouri, which for unknown reasons, got bounced off into its own pocket dimension. In actuality, the state was copied over on a conceptual level, but the original is still back on Earth. Everyone inside the state was likewise copied, as was all flora and fauna. No one on Earth is aware that anything happened at all, while those within the pocket dimension know only that three years ago, the state of Missouri was suddenly sealed off by a mysterious and deadly mist.

The land is accosted by mutants and monsters created by the Mist Wall. However, the rise of superhumans has been a boon to keeping civilization going, both to defend against supernatural threats, as well as provide ways to compensate for the lack of resources and failing technologies.

After the first chaotic year of this event, civilization has stabilized for the most part. The country holds a total population of about 4 million. Unfortunately, the only resources available to the survivors are those that were within the state when the Mist Wall appeared, meaning that resources are now incredibly scarce.

LOCATIONS

THE MIST WALL

The apparent source of all the supernatural phenomenon affecting the state, this strange, pale white mist forms an impenetrable wall around all of Missouri. The Mist Wall inexplicably conforms almost exactly to the borders of the state of Missouri. Likewise, the mist seals off the sky about five miles above the median surface level, creating a perpetual overcast. However, the mist itself is suffused with a constant glow, which casts a perpetual light on the land. The hazy light is akin to a cloudy day at noon. Actual clouds that form below the mist cast dark shadows on the land. Likewise, the mist also encompasses the ground. Once a person attempts to dig farther than 2000 feet below ground, they encounter the mist seeping out through the dirt.

Attempts to pass through it have always led to negative results. Once inside, the mist becomes so thick that you can barely see your hand in front of your face, even when illuminated by full daylight. Sound is also heavily dampened. While within the mist, all sense of direction is lost. Compasses stop working, radar stops working, even things like metal detectors cease properly functioning. Flashlights and lamps are all but useless.

While few have been able to directly confirm it, there is a space warping effect to the mist. Even if one were to walk in a perfectly straight line through the mist, with no deviation to throw someone off track, they could walk forever and never exit. Within one hundred feet of the mists border, space just stops, though there is no discernible evidence to this. A person can continue to walk and seem to keep covering ground, as they continue stepping over land. However, they never actually get any farther than one hundred feet deep. Upon turning around, they go back out of the mist after backtracking another hundred feet. This effect maintains even if one attempts to leave by digging underground, swimming through water, or flying through the air.

Attempting to test the boundary for long is not wise, however, as the mist has a transformative effect on people who stay within it for longer than about five minutes. Almost all people who do so are warped into hideously deformed mutants or unhinged lunatics, often both. Any city or town located along the state borders have been subject to infestations of these humanoid monsters. Unfortunately, nearly a third of the Missouri population was lost to either transformation or attacks by savage mutant gangs.

Mutation will continue for as long as the person remains inside the mist on their initial exposure. At some point, this will prove fatal, as they will mutate until they can no longer biologically function. However, once a transformed person leaves the mist, their form will set, for lack of a better word, and then that person can enter and leave the mist at will without suffering further mutating effects.

Other life forms are not immune to this effect either, though animal and plant species at least seem to be more consistent with their results. In fact, after the first few weeks, a great amount of the Mist Wall was itself bordered by lethal flora and fauna that act as a further deterrent from attempting to cross it. Some rare species of creatures even mutated to perfectly adapt to life within the mist instead of being outright destroyed, and now an unknown number of monstrous species prowl within its narrow band, an entire hidden ecosystem that devours all attempted crossings.

There is an exception to the mists transformative effects, however. It seems that on rare occasions, a person, instead of mutating and going insane, retains their human form and mind, but gains some kind of superhuman power. Once this power settles into place, the person then becomes immune to the mist, even if they remain within it on their initial exposure for an extended period.

The Mist's perpetual glow does disrupt people's sense of time, as there is no day or night cycle to judge by. Fortunately, the land maintains a generally pleasant spring weather with occasional light rains and gentle breezes. There is no telling where the water and wind moving in from, but the calm weather indicates that the land is indeed sealed off from the outside world.

The only good thing about the mist barrier is its rigid stability. The mist softly waves and wafts within its set area, never expanding or deforming inward, apparently immune to the effects of weather or other exterior forces. The people of Missouri don’t question this fortune.

SAINT LOUIS

The former Gateway to the West has lost its importance as an iconic metropolis. Existing right up against the mist barrier, the city is heavily infested with mutants and dangerous urban wildlife. Vicious street wars mark the borders of mutant gang territories, and the city right up to its borders has become a veritable no-man’s land. The gangs within survive through hunting the monsters and other mutants for food, and using the Mississippi River for water, despite the risks (while the river is now largely clean of pollutants, the mists begin half way across, meaning most of the fauna of the river has been turned monstrous). Notable mutant strongholds include former tourist attractions such as the Botanical Gardens, Forest Park (mainly the Zoo), and the Dome at America’s Center. These areas are held by gangs with superhuman or mutant members that take advantage of the natural resources, such as plant-manipulating supers fortifying the Gardens.

Thanks to the Aevir, a huge trench was cut into the earth around the city’s borders, sealing the city off from the rest of the land, although this doesn’t always stop threats from occasionally crossing it and terrorizing the suburbs beyond.

Cardinal has arranged a deal with the super-mutant Big Ben, who has brought to heel several of the stronger mutant gangs. In exchange for allowing him his kingdom of ruins, Big Ben’s forces act as a first line of defense against the monstrous incursions that seem particularly concentrated on the St. Louis border. This arrangement, however, means that anyone caught in the city is forfeited to the mutant forces.

The functional society of St. Louis has moved into the outermost suburbs of St. Louis County, with Highway-270 forming an unofficial boundary line, leaving a no man’s land of abandoned civilization between the Highway and the city limits. People scavenge this region for resources, but do so at their peril, for the suburbs are slowly being infested by wandering mutants or savage monsters.

KANSAS CITY

Like Saint Louis, Kansas City was decimated by its proximity to the mist border, and has many of the same problems with mutant and monster infestation. There is notably a much smaller amount of mutant gang activity, however, as Blue Jay has taken a much more aggressive stance on clearing out the dangerous elements. Like Saint Louis, the city a is cut off by a massive trench, while the survivors and refugees have vacated to the outermost suburbs.

THE BOOTHEEL

The southeastern-most corner of Missouri forms a “peninsula” of land bordered tightly by the Mist Wall. Because of this, the small region has become a veritable hell hole of mutants, monsters, and unusual weather phenomenon; for example, this is the only place known to still receive tornados. Even the land itself seems warped and twisted, with unnatural formations rising form the Earth, and water flowing in strange ways. As with the major cities, a series of trenches and barriers was formed by the Aevir to shut the region away from the rest of the state.

There is a thus far unsubstantiated, but increasingly popular rumor that the Bootheel may be the key to escaping back to Earth. If one could somehow brave the blasted and warped lands and its savage inhabitants, one might be able to escape across the southernmost border and reach Arkansas or Tennessee. No one has been able to confirm this, however.

This doesn’t stop people from trying, though. The town of Poplar Bluff is the base of an “adventurer’s guild” called the Seekers who, despite their very dubious reputation, will help guide people through the lands of the Bootheel in search of this legendary escape route. Failing that, they’ll act as guides in hunting down monsters or searching for lost resources.

This area ostensibly falls under the protection of Shrike, but he remains a mysterious figure who would prefer to be hands off, appearing publicly only when forced to handle a particularly dangerous threat coming from the depths of the Bootheel.

COLUMBIA

Columbia, being near the center of the state, has been greatly spared the destructive forces of the Mist Wall. Because of its location, this has made it the most influential of all cities in the state. Most of its population is intact, its central location makes it the major hub city (particularly between Kansas City and Saint Louis), it is well situated to hold direct influence over the surrounding farmland and warehouse distribution centers, and it was already in the midst of expanding prior to Missouri’s formation. As such, many of the wealthiest families and business executives in the state have relocated to Columbia. Surrounding towns have likewise seen a boost from many families fleeing the borders of Missouri.

The University of Missouri is now the major center of learning for all of Missouri, though it has converted a good amount of its programs to account for trades and more practical skill learning. Because of this, it maintains a level of political influence over the city, due to the money it brings for local businesses and its influence over the students who will shape Missouri’s future. Because of this, the University has almost become its own city-within-a-city, as the Governor is willing to look the other way when certain professors and scientists use the campus to conduct questionable experiments (including sending teams of “volunteers” to be transformed by the Wall, hoping to gain superhumans whose powers can assist their efforts). The higher staff of the University and certain tenured professors are given a level protection on par with the wealthier merchants and politicians of the city, though this protection does not extend beyond the city of Columbia itself.

Columbia does not tolerate the presence of superhuman vigilantes; those superhumans who dwell in the city must be registered with the government, if not almost always directly employed by them, and the use of their powers are more strictly regulated.

Notably, most superhumans who display powers of high intellect and technological themes have migrated here, helping to bolster the local industry and better protect the city from potential threats. Ironically, such individuals would be much more helpful in cities like Saint Louis and Kansas City, something the government of Columbia is well aware of, and not shy about taking advantage of.

JEFFERSON CITY

The former capital of Missouri has been effectively subsumed by Columbia both politically and economically. The governing body of the state has relocated to Columbia, and now Jefferson City serves mostly as an offshoot for its businesses, becoming almost a “suburb” of its neighboring city for those willing to make the commute.

THE GREAT OZARK LAKE

A massive battle between the Aevir and a huge mutant fish monster wrecked the landscape enough that much of the Ozarks was reduced to lowlands. The monster had the power to generate copious amounts of water, and thus the battle also flooded this shattered landscape, causing the formation of a new Great Lake. The newly formed Ozark Lake stretches in a rough triangle from Clinton to Osage Beach to Greenfield, swallowing up the previous lakes located within that range. Towns destroyed by the battle and the flood were mostly evacuated, and new settlements have formed around the shores of this lake from the survivors.

The formation of this inner sea has since proven to be a bounty of resources, as fish populations have surged within, and a type of fresh-water kelp has appeared near the shore. The towns around the sea’s edges now benefit from a hearty fishing industry. Unfortunately, the occasional monster has been known to crawl out of the sea; while the bottom doesn’t appear to reach farther than 1500 feet, it is possible that small holes and tunnels may lead far enough down to reach Mist Wall, and thus some aquatic life may fall into it, mutate, and crawl back out with mutated forms.

ROLLA

A small town that has likewise experienced much growth due to an influx of refugees from the borders. Rolla’s Institute of Science and Technology has been mostly subsumed and gutted of its staff and equipment by the University in Columbia.

SPRINGFIELD

Springfield is the second most populous and prosperous city in Missouri, being a second major center of learning, benefiting from proximity to the Ozark Sea, and the influx of talents from the now lost city of Branson. Springfield has adapted itself to become the entertainment capital of the country. As recording technology for videos and music are rapidly used up, a few troupes of comedians and musicians form “talent caravans” to bring entertainment to the people who can’t make the trips to Springfield on their own. The arrival of these caravans about twice a year becomes cause for local festivals to help ease the troubles of Missouri’s citizens.

Springfield is also where Kestrel makes her home, largely concerned with halting threats emerging from Branson and the Ozark Sea.

BRANSON

Branson has been completely overrun by monsters and mutants from the Mist Wall. An entire society of deformed and savage humanoids have taken over the Marvel Cave system, while the city itself has become dominated by enormous spider-like creatures call the Thryth. Numerous other super-predators stalk the city and countryside. This is the third major location to have been cut off by the Aevir using a deep trench, but the creatures within aren’t much hindered. For now, Kestrel is content to let them consume each other, but always has an eye to appraise to situation should a pre-emptive strike be required.

MERAMEC TERRITORY

Meramec has become the home of a Nature Commune calling themselves the Meramec Tribe. Considered by many to be a crazy cult, this group of people have convinced themselves that the formation of Missouri was some kind of act of punishment against humanity, and that the key to saving their souls is to return to a simpler lifestyle. The Tribe lives in simple wooden cabins and live by farming in small plots and hunting.

Although the land is considered to be stolen by the Saint Louis government, the Tribe is protected by a trio of powerful superhumans who have managed to hold the territory against conventional authorities. Cardinal believes that while he and his team could defeat them in a fight, the protracted battle would damage the forest too much to make it worth taking back. As such, Cardinal has arranged a truce between Saint Louis and the Meramec, allowing the Tribe to live in peace so long as they do not attempt to expand beyond the borders of the park.

THE BREAD BASKET

Much of the land north of Columbia has been converted into farmland, with the aid of superhumans to speed the process along and ensure greater productivity. Towns along this stretch of territory have become vital hubs of agricultural trade. While there are no stand-out threats in the region, it is nonetheless patrolled and guarded by a militia that defends the vital territory. This militia is headed by Egret.

THE BLASTED ZONE

The northeastern corner of the state, from Quincy to Edina to Memphis, has been scorched black and rendered totally inhospitable to supporting any sort of life. At the end of the first year of Missouri’s existence, the Aevir struggled to halt a massive influx of ravenous creatures, a species of rapidly reproducing, dog-sized bipeds that looked halfway between wolves and lizards, and were omnivorous. Their last ditch attempt to spare the country from being eaten into extinction required cutting them off by scorching the land of all food and shelter. Despite their rapid reproduction cycle, the creatures also had an accelerated metabolism that required frequent consumption. The plan succeeded, resulting in a huge swath of land composed mostly of blackened soil, sand, and the bones of the creatures.

THE SUPERNATURAL

MUTANTS

Mutants generally refers to any humans who have undergone monstrous transformations and loss of sanity due to exposure to the Mist Wall. 99% of humans exposed will become mutants after at least five minutes of exposure, and the longer the time within, the more mutated they become, until they either escape or die.

Almost all mutants are body-horror mockeries of the human form, each distinct from the rest. Many have elongated or swollen body parts, extra limbs or orifices, radically asymmetrical forms, vaguely bestial features, or any combination there of. Many mutants are also insane, feral, or possess inhuman thinking, and are not above resorting to cannibalism to survive. Many possess an enhanced degree of strength or reflexes, and many have natural weapons such as claws, fangs, or horns.

Some mutations may be ultimately beneficial, creating people with great physical prowess who retain a mostly human form and manage to retain their intellect. Very few such people can find a place in normal society and are forced to live amongst the savages of their kind.

MONSTERS

Monsters are also a form of mutant, but refer to animals, plants, and fungus that have been transformed by the Mist Wall. Strangely, animals tend to be much more consistent in their mutations, with members of the same species demonstrating mostly similar mutations. For example, most rabbits consistently become larger and gain gnarled horns and spines, whereas rose bushes consistently become mobile with their flowers turning into toothy mouths.

Monsters tend to be universally more aggressive and vicious than their natural brethren, where even herbivores will readily kill an intruder or predator before trying to run from it. Otherwise, monsters tend to follow their original natural instincts.

In rare cases, an animal may instead or also obtain a super power, and there are rumors that some animals may even be mentally changed to have higher intelligence.

SUPERHUMANS

Superhumans are those people who, instead of mutating, where granted some kind of exotic superhuman power after exposure to the Mist Wall. Many of these powers resemble the physics-defying magical feats of comic book superheroes. No one is really certain how these powers work, or what separates someone from becoming a superhuman instead of a mutant. Some believe it may be due to a certain genetic make-up, or maybe the Mist Wall actually does change something about the person that happens to let them access supernatural energies not detectable by science.

On very rare occasions, a mutant has been seen to possess a superpower as well as being mutated, though perhaps these may be more a case of a superhuman being mutated due to an aspect of their power.

All powers appear to operate by some kind of direct energy manipulation, even if that energy is of an ethereal type science has not yet discovered. This can account for a huge variety of effects, but the important thing to note is that the powers are not tied to the physical body of the individual. A person who fires lightning bolts does not appear to generate electricity from their body, the electricity seems to just fly off their body, as though the person seems to just will the energy into existence by pure thought. Likewise, a person with superhuman strength does not appear to be using their actual muscles when they lift something incredibly heavy, rather they appear to be using a sort of touch-range telekinesis.

This is in stark contrast to the Mutants and most Monsters, whose physical abilities still seem limited somewhat by their biology, even if said biology has been rendered strange and alien.

CURIOS

Occasionally, someone may find a random everyday object that has been imbued with magical properties. These objects can range from tools to toys to clothing to vehicles to weapons, and can be wielded by anyone who can get their hands on them. Dozens of such objects have appeared across the country.

Curios are useful tools for people who lack powers themselves, but unfortunately have a few drawbacks. One is that there is no telling what magical properties the object possesses until they are tested out. Some curios may have no real practical use, or can be outright dangerous to the user to activate. Two is that curios come with a limited amount of energy, meaning they can only be used for a short period of time, or only have so many limited charges. Once used up, the fetish reverts to a normal object once more.

ORGANIZATIONS

THE AEVIR

The Aevir are the primary team of superhuman defenders for the country. Originally composed of seven members, two of their number died in battle in separate circumstances. The unifying theme of the Aevir is that they are all named and color-coded after a bird species native to Missouri.

Compared to most other superhumans, the Aevir are phenomenally powerful and are noteworthy in that they possess identical powers, though each seems to be a little stronger in a certain apsect. Despite working for the common good of the citizenry, they are very secretive about themselves and their origins. This has led to them being regarded with suspicion, despite their good deeds. Some think they are supernatural beings that were never human, and that they have some ulterior motive to their actions. Others blame them for the appearance of the Mist Wall. Still others think they may be tools of a shadowy organization. However, just as many see the Aevir as guardian angels or even gods who have come to aid them in their time of need.

Each of the Aevir possesses vast superhuman strength, speed, and durability, flight, and the ability to project powerful energy blasts and force fields. At one time, they also appeared to possessed powers of shape shifting and telepathy, but they seem to have lost these abilities.

The Aevir have spread themselves out across the state, and have a support network of several experts or superhumans whose abilities can assist them in a crisis in ways their own powers can’t cover. Members include Cardinal, Blue Jay, Kestrel, Egret, and Shrike. Deceased members include Peacock (killed in the Great Ozark Lake battle) and Rail (killed in the Blasted Zone event).

THE UNIVERSITY

When Columbia became the central haven for most of the state’s businessmen, politicians, and intellects, the University of Missouri offered to house and supply any and all scientists and engineers who could put their talents towards finding solutions to Missouri’s problems. The University has thus become the primary source for adjusted technologies, resource management, and skill training that the rest of the country is depending on to survive. Financially backed by what remains of the business sector, endorsed by the hastily reconfigured government, and bolstered as a source of hope by the media, the University has become the most powerful organization in the country.

This status was not intended, but it has been taken full advantage of. The University does not directly or publicly influence policies, but they know that everyone has hedged their bets on them. As such, members of the University staff have acquired a level of prestige that affords them social and financial privileges. When someone says they work for, or in the interests of, “the University”, people listen. This also means that the University is given more leeway to secretly perform ethically questionable experiments in the search for answers to Missouri’s current circumstances.

MUTANT GANGS

In the major cities of St. Louis, Kansas City, and Branson, gangs of mutants carve out territories among the ruins and battle each other for control and limited resources. These gangs are lead by warlords who have the blessed combination of great physical prowess, nearly-intact sanity, and the charisma or intimidation factor to rally troops. Some gangs may even be lead or bolster by a superhuman member or two, or tamed monsters.

The Branson Mutants have been largely routed into caves and kept suppressed by the spider-like Thryth. Thus the gangs have been reduced to feral tribes, as no leaders can really gain a foothold on any meaningful territory.

Due to Blue Jay’s relentless offensive against the mutant threat, Kansas City gangs remain small and scattered, the survivors allowed to live as long as they don’t try to expand beyond the city limits. Conflict is mostly just border skirmishes with no gang growing large enough to dominate the rest.

St. Louis is the most populous and dangerous of the mutant cities. Several powerful gangs exist here, in part due to Cardinal’s reluctance to commit mass slaughter, and because he knows the larger gangs do wonders to halt the advance of monsters concentrated on the St. Louis border. However, one gang in particular, lead by an incredibly powerful super-mutant named Big Ben, has grown to dominate much of the city. Aside from taking over weaker gangs, he also captured normal people trapped within the city and those along its borders and forced them into the Mist Wall to bolster his ranks. Given any more leeway, and his forces could grow large enough to make a success push to expand beyond the city limits.

SCAVENGERS

Not an organization in itself, but an occupation performed by myriad freelancers. These individuals or small groups scour border towns looking for lost resources, such as valuable metals, fuel, computers, preserved food, vehicles, and objects of sentimental value, to be sold for scrap or refurbishing in the inner towns. The University is a frequent patron of their efforts, always eager for equipment and power sources to keep their facilities functioning.

There are a number of superhumans among the Scavengers, but most have abilities that are more practical to the job, such as self-sufficient long-distance travel or superhuman senses.

DAILY LIFE IN MISSOURI

Civilization has managed to bounce back somewhat from the initial chaos of the first year, with populations settling down after fleeing the border towns and cities, and falling into a routine of surviving in a land with limited resources.

OCCUPATIONS

The majority of Missourians work blue collar jobs, many dedicated to construction/ reconstruction, machine repair, and agriculture. Missouri lacked functional factories or mining facilities for the construction of new technologies, and thus, no new cars or tractors or computers can be built from scratch. Repairing such devices requires scrounging for and cobbling together what’s already on hand, combining the working parts of two broken machines to try and make one functional machine.

There are still plenty of white-color jobs, such as bankers, merchants, entertainers, scientists, lawyers, and town mayors, but gone are the days of credit cards, cell plans, large corporations, franchises, frivolous lawsuits, and welfare checks. By and large, only a handful of companies operate across the state, while most businesses are locally owned, and few have the money to throw around on excess luxury, even in Springfield and Columbia.

There are effectively no unwilling homeless or unemployed throughout the country, because the manpower required to keep society running as technology fails means that there are enough jobs to go around for everyone. Even the most incompetent worker can make a subsistence living doing basic labor. Even skilled positions struggle to fill to gaps sometimes. Unfortunately, another reason there are virtually no homeless and more than enough jobs is that most such individuals were collected around the big cities, and thus, many fell victim to the monstrous incursions from the Mist Wall.

TECHNOLOGY

At present, with only three years since the Mist Wall appeared, most technology is still capable of functioning. Unfortunately, even the most pristine machines are worthless if there is no way to power them.

The government horded up as much fuel as possible, depriving most people of fuel for their cars well before it would eventually degrade. In the cities, fuel was rationed out to public transport vehicles, while in the countryside, people started relying on bicycles and horses to get around once more. Battery-powered radios are beginning to supplement, if not replace, the use of phones, as even landlines are being sacrificed to save power in some areas.

Columbia continues to horde power resources, and thus far have rarely dealt with power outages. However, other cities must deal with increasing brown-outs and black-outs, and many towns are forced to make do with only sporadic bursts of electricity. Missouri is quite fortunate that the weather remains relatively pleasant all year round, at least sparing people from freezing in winter or suffering heat stroke in summer.

One of the largest problems is the hit to the medical industry. There are no facilities for making new medicines, either prescription or over the counter, and no facilities for the construction of new medical equipment. Frequent repairs, making equipment reusable instead of disposable, and the construction of ad hoc devices are mostly what keep hospitals going. To supplement dwindling medical supplies, some doctors are forced to rely on illegal narcotics, adjusted to be as safe as possible, but still not as safe or efficient as factory produced pills. In this case, superhumans with healing powers have become the most valuable people in the country.

ENERGY RESOURCES

Missouri, being a major hub of transport for goods across the United States, had little need to invest in its own fossil fuel production. Although the state has some reserves of oil and coal, the veins and reservoirs were too thin and tapping them too costly to be worth the investment in the long term. As such, though many of the state’s power plants depend on coal to function, there are no active coal mines to replenish them. There are likewise extremely few extraction facilities to obtain crude oil or natural gas.

But even if Missouri had vast facilities and massive reservoirs, it wouldn’t have mattered. The subterranean boundary of Missouri has cut off access to virtually all fossil fuels. All surface coal mines have been stripped. Unfortunately, even bio-fuel crops are not an option, because the limited farmland must be reserved for food production.

Alternate energy sources are few and far between. Only a handful of wind-power facilities exist, most of which are now stranded in the dangerous northwestern corner of the country. Many of the state’s hydroelectric dams were destroyed in the disaster that formed the Great Ozark Lake. Missouri’s single nuclear power plant in Callaway is quickly burning through its fuel reserves. Only a small amount of solar power technology existed in the state, and there is no way to create more on a mass scale. Stores of gasoline degrade after about a year, two at best, in storage.

As more and more technology fails, people turn to the services of superhumans and the more reliable curios to compensate. A town here or there might have access to curios that act like batteries, but have to use them very sparingly, lacking a way to recharge them. Some superhumans possess energy-generating powers and some have employed themselves to provide electricity for towns as living generators. Likewise, a few even have chemical based powers that let them essentially create their own fossil fuels, allowing them to sell a limited number of barrels and tankers of self-made crude oil or gas. However, these superhumans are stretched thin just serving a small portion of the population.

For the most part, most Missourians have thus been forced to become increasingly less dependent on electricity and technology than most are comfortable with.