The Dark Plane

The discovery of the Dark Plane profoundly altered the course of human civilization - altered for the worse. The Plane exists separate from our own, having virtually no interaction with our own reality. Theorized in the late 21st century as the residence of dark matter and dark energy, the Plane's existence was confirmed when a rift was opened in a laboratory deep under the Badlands of South Dakota.

At that infinitesimal point in an infinite universe, the two planes had been merged, tearing a Rift in reality. Dark energy immediately spilled forth, corrupting all it touched, and a malevolent being of pure energy emerged. Bathed in the energies of its own plane, the being stalked the lab, exploring the alien environment and casually slaying the creatures of flesh that it found.

Thus began the inexorable mixing of the two dimensions. Real matter corrupted by dark energy, dark matter infused with the energy of our reality, the result was matter and energy existing in both planes simultaneously. The very presence of such material has a corrupting effect on all around it, further coupling the two planes. The laws of physics as understood by humanity cease to apply where the planes are coupled, yielding unpredictable effects both spectacular and horrifying.

Rifts

The first use of such Dark Weaponry occurred in Tehran - a crude Rift generator was delivered via ballistic missile, tearing a massive hole between planes and unleashing a torrent of Dark Energy. The Rift was modulated such that the initial burst of Dark energy affected a key regulatory hormone in humans, swiftly killing the majority of the city's population, while leaving other matter largely intact. However, instead of stabilizing as expected, the Rift grew until it swallowed a city block.

The weapon had severely weakened the boundary between planes, allowing the first Rift to expand uncontrolled, and causing spontaneous Rifts at other weak points across the globe. Many smaller openings appeared for miles around the city, growing fewer as the distance from the detonation increased. Scattered Rifts opened as far away as Brazil and eastern China.

The Zones

Nearly every nation on the planet was faced with at least one Rift, pouring forth corrupting energies and matter and forming deadly, uninhabitable Zones. Those unfortunate enough to be caught in a Zone, or those sent in to assess damage later, encountered unexplainable anomalies. Physics in the Zones had been changed, ranging from floating rubble or creeping phosphorescent jelly to areas that aged a century in a day. Those closest to the Rift experienced bizarre effects as periodic Events rang out from the holes in reality: timequakes and hellfire storms, space distortions and terrifying hallucinations. Many who lingered too long in the Zone died; those who survived were mutated into grotesque, barbaric creatures. Worst were what became known as the Demons, shadowy and apparently sentient beings of flickering Dark matter that emerged and withdrew along with the tides of emanating energy.

These early Zones were largely sealed off, with military forces deploying to keep Dark monstrosities in and the curious out. Some measure of order was reestablished in most nations, and an effort was made by the world community to police and explore the deadly and mysterious Zones. But as new uses for the physical anomalies of the Zone were discovered, exploitation increased, and fighting began over disputed Zone territory. International monitoring of the Zones quickly broke down as a new arms race began, the Long War that still goes on to this day.