The People of Manticore by Calvin 'Sketchy' Theodore
By
Shannon Hearn
The characters of Dark Angel are owned by Twentieth Century Fox Television and Cameron Eglee productions. All other characters are of my creation.
This is an appendix of the information that I am using for my Dark Angel stories. Now some of the information listed here is tentative of certain characters, but it is also a reference of understanding how the Transgenic's society has evolved since Max and the other Oh' Niners escaped from Manticore all those years ago.
The lives of the Hidden Dangers and Crouching Cats of Terminal City:
The People of Manticore by Calvin 'Sketchy' Theodore
I hope that this helps you out in understanding their story and make them look more, Well I can say "Human". Oh, Aspen don't drop kick me in the head about the Gia's Stuff, you tend to creep people out with your powers.
Origins of the religion:
Since Manticore was an oppressive environment, these three religions formed "behind the walls" as a Transgenic historian called it. Being able to function for twenty hours awake, the mass formation of huge tunnels which were dug and carved throughout the walls so many of the "contraband goods" which were used to create their society were placed. These same tunnels allowed them to escape the night of the fire and thus have been a part of their focus of tying many of their faiths together. The heavy nocturnal activities of this society show up in their need to look at the night sky to navigate with as well as to hide from danger. I will focus upon the three major religions that I had discovered during my stay in Terminal City during what has become known as the "Siege of Terminal City" and the "Great Battle of the Freaks"
The Father belief and the Nomilies:
The Father Belief system started at Manticore by the younger Transgenics that Sandeman made during his early years at Manticore, mostly consisting of the ones called by the later Transgenics as Nomilies. Many of the older Nomilies believe that Sandeman is a divine individual whom they see as a surrogate father. Sandeman was known for his protecting of the younger Transgenics, who during his stay at Manticore earned a type of compassion that many of the older Transgenics saw as a means to survive that harshness of the environment they were raised. The members of the Father (Sandeman) patiently wait for his return so they can talk about their lives and the experiences that they have had.
The followers of the Father system have a strong belief in that being born without a barcode is seen as a sacred event. Part of this idea comes out of the birth of an X-series child named Elfie who was born during the events of the Jam Pony hostage incident. The appearance of no barcodes on the second-generation children is seen as a sign of freedom.
Many of these beliefs of the Father system shows up heavily in the symbolism of the Freak Nation Flag. The Colors of Black Representing the Darkness of the basement where most of the Nomilies were kept at Manticore, this ideal is also reflected in the darkness in which the X-series was kept. Barcode symbol on the flag represents the "brands" of which the Transgenic community was seen as animals. The absence of this symbol is seen as being "born free" as what Max (X-series X5-452) called it. The Color Red represents the Blood of the fallen of the Community as well as the blood that flows through all their veins. The third color of the Freak Nation Flag is white, which stands for the light for which all Transgenics dream of living in without persecution, and hatred. Light or being in the light is seen as a major event for the believers of this faith, for it brings forth life. The effect of these beliefs shows up with the Transgenic society mostly in their art and design layout of their social structure as being about letting the light in, they show an intuitive sense of who to trust and who not to trust.
The need to feel, to express oneself is a heavy symbol of this faith. The driving need of this faith is the protection of the "Pack" which consists of members of their unit or those who they consider friend. The effect of this system puts that killing should never be done, unless it is a last resort when all other options have failed as can be illustrated by Joshua (0.0) killing his brother Isaac so that he would stop murdering sector police, whose uniforms match the urban camouflage gear that the Manticore Guards wore.
The Blue Lady, Ames White and the X-Series:
The Blue lady religious movement started out of an encounter of an X-series child named Ben (X5-493) who received a drawing of the Virgin Mary from a Janitor at Manticore. This symbol was used to help guide the members of the X-Series who suffered from Seizures that incapacitated them. This faith mainly focuses upon the idea that there is a better place away from the repression of Manticore. The faith also demonstrates their fear of being sent to the Manticore basement where the flawed Transgenics were put. The imagery also includes information the need for being with a mother or even a surrogate mother figure to care for them. This imagery can be seen in the prayer that the believers of this faith say:
"Blessed by the Blue Lady.
The one that make the seizures go away.
The one that watches over us all.
The one that makes the monsters go away.
She who makes the darkness light,
The one that gives happiness.
The one that gave birth to us all.
The one that watches over the place were no one yells at you.
She who let's us play in the fields free."
The imagery of this symbolism shows the problems that many of the youth of Manticore desired to be like normal children. The need to seek out high places for being with her and placing their baby teeth into a bowl so that she can gain strength points out their desire of being willing to sacrifice much to protect those around them. Many of the faith use an interpretative form Catholicism behind their belief that mirrors the ideas of the "Lady of Guadalupe" from Mexico. This transformation of God and making him in their own image points out a desire to become part of society and life. They are drawn to tales of early Christianity where persecuted by the Romans, which mirrors their current struggle for acceptance, by "Ordinary" Human kind.
The appearance of the "Runes" on "Max's" skin, being put their creator Sandeman, the feeling that the writings and the symbols were a divine message of what was to come. A battle to stop the Apocalypse from a breeding cult called the Familiars. The "Runes" have more put a mystical spin into this belief system with the idea that if the runes appear on any other Transgenic, they have a destiny to fulfill.
There is also a fear among the younger Transgenics, since the death of the infamous Ames White the fear that he still haunts the streets of Seattle seeking out young Transgenics who he will cut their barcodes off of their necks and thus taking their life-force. Much of this belief comes out of Ames White capturing a transgenic and forcing him to collect the Barcodes off of several Transgenics. For the children who have been born since the Destruction of Manticore think of the story as a tale to keep them in line, though the modification of the story that White will "Mark" them and take their life away has transformed this infamous figure into a source of terror for many Transgenic children. Much of this reference comes out of the Jewish book of life which references the idea that the Transgenics, like the Golem are bound to the rules that the markings on their necks allow them to be alive. Thus with the birth of their children, they cannot have their life-force forcibly taken away by the removal of the mark due to them not possessing a Barcode.
The Gia's, Manticore's PsyOps and Language Specialists:
A tribal belief system that sprung up at Manticore, which is mainly dominated by members of the community with extraordinary mental powers and a talent for languages. The Gia's believe in the ideas of the spirit world drawing most of their beliefs off of Native American, Aboriginal, Polynesian, Wicca, and Voodoo religions. The Gia's believed in the idea that their "soul" consisted of various components that were both animal and human. By listening to these spirits, they were able to harness their "sixth sense" and use it to lead them to victory during their missions. These beliefs gave many of the followers the sense the capabilities to move between the world of Man and of Spirit. The Gia's beliefs provide a mysticism that they held dear to their hearts. They make a prayer to the spirits to guide and watch over those around them. The Gia's believe that when a sprit of a person needed to be found, they could be sought out if a member asked the spirits to locate the person and guide them.
The powers which the Gia's possess were demonstrated at their fullest during the night of the fire in which many of the followers had been able to avoid the ambush set up by the "infiltrators" only after thirty plus spirits of the dead Transgenics (ranging from Nomilies to X-12s) had come towards them and state that they were killed by people posing as Manticore personnel. The seeing of sprits had startled them to the point that it provided them the ability to escape the same fate as their fallen soldiers. The Gia's are perceived by other Transgenics as having the ability to harness the spirits to the point where they can resurrect the dead and send them after whomever they wish. Much of this fear of the Gia's was only appeased only after Aspen had said that they only used the sprits to communicate with the dead, not bring them back, was a short comfort for the other Transgenics.
The sprits which many of the followers had often seen since their childhood and the manner, which they came into contact with this imagery is mainly seen with an PsyOps transgenic named Aspen after she had an encounter with a Wiccian who had protected her from the disorientation caused by an earthquake in the local area. The effect of this Earthquake had accelerated the mental powers Aspen and several other Transgenics had become sensitive to the shifts in the magnetic field in the local area. The Wiccian priestess had been able to teach then to harness the spirits to protect them and shielded them from the unknown. Much of the magic that the Transgenics such as Aspen had learned was to listen to the spirit world and use it to guide them. During the missions that Aspen and others like her were on, they had the highest success rate than any unit ever created at Manticore. Though they did not have the highest scores at target shooting, Escape and Evade, combat training, or field medial skills, Colonel Lydecker considered them a force to be reckoned with as they used their powers to achieve the highest success rate for missions completed successively. The Gia's were seen as Manticore's equivalent of the World War Two Pacific Black Sheep squadron, which were the terror of the Pacific.
As a part of their advanced training, many of the Gia's have learned Navajo and several other languages and combined them together to create a dialect of their own. Because of this complex language, the code geeks in command were driven bonkers trying to figure out what the followers were saying. For this many of the Gia's are seen as the ultimate code makers and linguists through their use of Magic, talking with Sprits and the dead. They often use multiple statue symbols and figures during their worship ceremonies as they borrow heavily from multiple religions such as Voodoo with its spirit world, Native American faiths with the spirits, and witchcraft with its heavy character based symbolism and potions.
Transgenics, Sex, Babies and Families:
From all these religions and the various Transgenic series, I have found out that many of the members of the Transgenic community often tend to be very emotional as during their mating rights that when they find a mate. They will trust their mate explicitly, and when they seek to have a child, it is all that more important to them. So that is why that after Manitcore's breeding program many of the Transgenics who have lost their Mates, have sought out those who have also lost those they have cared about. As a result you have Nomailies and X-series starting to have families together so that they can get through the grief together and ensure that the children that were born to the females have at least two parents to help them grow up. So many of the parents in these mixed unions have allowed for the spreading of these Beliefs to a new generation.
My own Views of the events and my Friends:
In the end, the Transgenic community is one of the most unique social groups that I have come across in my life. In light of people saying they are not human, they are more human as us in that they accept responsibility for their actions and the problems. So, the information to this article is tentative, so in the future, I will add information to this over the years as I become more connected to the Transgenic community and they become more open with me.
Calvin 'Sketchy' Theodore, Reporter for the people.
Next week: Contact with Eyes Only, His informants and his views of the various global Conspiracies.
Seeking information about the Mermaids / Nymphs living in Seattle Harbor.
Contact through the New World Press.
Version 1.3