SSM (Sovetzkaya Spetzialnaya Militzia)

Western scholarship on the existence of variance within pre-Soviet Russia and the early Soviet Union is sketchy at best. Given the nature of the early Soviet society, it is unlikely that any costumed adventurers of note existed within the USSR. Therefore variance, by the broad standards provided by variant historians, did not appear until the late 1920's or early 1930's. This corresponds to the appearance of distinctly super-human variants throughout the rest of the world. (This sweeping statement does not apply to "magical" variance, or instances of anachronistic or variant technology, which may well have existed at the same levels as in, say, the United States.)
     When actual verifiable super-human variants appeared in Soviet Russia, the Stalinist government was quick to act. Stalin took great pains to find variants as soon as their powers emerged, recruiting them immediately into training facilities where they were treated in the same fashion as skilled athletes— that is to say, both driven to perfection and given perks commensurate with their talents. The organization overseeing this was the SSM, or Soviet Special Military Police (sometimes translated as Soviet Variant Military Police, or Soviet Variant Armed Forces).
     The SSM variants were screened, trained and used as best the state could find for their peculiar talents, with one exception: ESPers were not tolerated. The government was adamant on this fact. Young soldiers with superhuman strength or flight, or the ability to fire blasts of force, were in the end still just young soldiers. Train them hard, give them a few extra perks, and they'll fall into line. People who can read thoughts and control minds were something else entirely. Upon discovery of such abilities, the ESPers were moved to "alternate facilities" for "special training," a lie fully believed by the main SSM members, who assumed their charges were being taken by the KGB or GRU. Once at the '"alternate facility," they were shot and their bodies burned.
     This culling left the Soviets with several Alpha to Beta powered variant soldiers with focuses in physical abilities and military training. This force was equivalent population-wise to the number of variant adventurers and villains playing "the Game" in the USA, or about two dozen. No power was deemed so inconsequential that it couldn't be used for the state, and variants actually volunteered, since there were the same perks for these Variant as there were for athletes.

World War II
When the war came these soldiers were used on the front lines against the Germans and suffered the same horrendous devastation as the American variants; while they were better trained, they were used more extensively. The only Gamma-level Russian variant during the war was Russalki, whose weather control powers helped drive back Hitler's over-stretched forced. She survived the war only to die in childbirth years later (her child vanished in the bureaucracy as a ward of the Government). The survivors of the war continued with the SSM, as opposed to retiring as they were in the USA.

The Cold War
During the Cold War the SSM continued to grow, and as its power base increased, individual generals and politicos became patrons for individual members or small groups. These groups were used in various ways a various times, the most noted being the Red Seven, who fought the Great Hunt on several occasions. Stalin occasionally purged the SSM, eliminating anyone who could pose a threat to him, which had the disadvantage of eliminating the ones more capable of covert surveillance in other countries. After Stalin's death in 1953, the fracturing of the SSM intensified, and splinter groups were pitted against one another in a short but bloody conflict between politicians. That, combined with Stalin's final purge in '52, left only a skeletal number of variants in the SSM in 1954.

The Quiet Years
As with the rest of the world, following 1954 there was a period of near total inactivity for variants in the USSR. No new ones appeared, the SSM was nearly depleted of variants, and none of the survivors of the purges were above beta level. The SSM limped on as best it could, with Soviet scientists focusing on ways to mechanically mimic or artificially generate the powers that once blossomed naturally.

Shtorm and the Rainfall Project
When Shtorm's variance emerged in 1965, the SSM was well and truly prepared for the situation; he had been tagged as one of a number of people considered to be at high risk of variance (a process started after Dolphin's emergence two yeas earlier), and as a result his variance remains the most scientifically catalogued on the planet. The SSM's efforts in Variant Induction coalesced and accelerated with his appearance, gaining the code name Pro'ect Doshz, or the Rainfall Project.
     While Shtorm was being groomed as a national hero and the counterpart to the USA's Stryker, the SSM was gearing back up, using its older surviving variants to teach the new wave. The SSM continues to this day, with excellent funding and a wide array of variant talents. The biggest change in policy has been the inclusion of ESPers in the modern SSM.
     There are variants that slip away from the government control, but they are not a significant force in Soviet society. The government is very sensitive to the possibility of variant teams plotting to overthrow the government, and move to stop them as quickly as possible. That, combined with the perks provided to SSM members, is enough of a carrot and stick to keep the threat of variant resistance to a minimum.
    

SSM Membership
While the full membership of the SSM over the ages is too extensive to list here, there are several members of the organization who have seen prominence in the international media or variant communities, and therefore deserve special attention. Those who are graduates of the Rainfall project are detailed in the entry for that organization, and the Red Seven are well known enough to have their own entry as well.

Shtorm
The foundation of the Rainfall project and the cornerstone of the modern SSM, Shtorm is a professional soldier and variant, who also happens to be a Russian. Shtorm has electrical powers that provide him with flight, variant strength and endurance, electrical defense, and powerful electrical blasts. He was never a slave to communist ideals, never an opportunist, but instead a hero. This made him stand out from the other SSM members, as did his sheer power level, and as a result he was and is seldom embroiled in the politics that surround SSM activities. He is a charter member of UNEarth.

Enigma
The first ESPer allowed into the SSM after Stalin's death, he is a Gamma level telepath whose powers revolve around his powerful astral form, which he can project at will. While nearly as experienced as Shtorm, Enigma works behind the scenes, and is usually at the center of SSM politics; he has gained the trust and ear of several generals, and uses that to shore up his own position. His powers make him an invaluable spy, as he can view conversations invisibly and intangibly half a world away, and read the inner thoughts of those present for the meeting.

Gepetto
The last survivor of the pre-quiet years SSM, Gepetto is on the surface a sweet old man with a charming power: he can build intricate clockwork automatons and animate them with the force of his will. How darling, how cute. Don't be fooled. Gepetto is perfectly happy as a 40 year veteran of the SSM, and has performed more wetworks and dirty jobs than his kindly face would suggest. His clockworks can be small and adorable or large and powerful, but rest assured that they are always dangerous. Gepetto is above all a survivor, and he didn't last this long by being a fool.

Centigrade
One of the great triumphs of the SSM, Centigrade was discovered in 1970, a collective farm worker with pyro/cryokinetic powers. He was taken in and while he excelled in the physical aspects of his training (bodybuilding, close combat, etc.), he was unable to intellectualize aspects of his powers. The SSM worked around this problem by outfitting him with advanced kevlar and ceramic body armor, that they assured him enhanced his abilities. When in the armor, Centigrade's ability to accelerate and slow molecular motion is ranked at high Gamma. Without, it is high Alpha.

Doppleganger
A terror in the Intelligence community, Doppleganger is an East German variant whose power is the ability to taken o the form and powers of other people. He can mimic form with a touch, but the power mimicry requires either extended preparation with access to the targets cell structure, or extensive pain—Doppleganger prefers the latter. He is a near perfect mole, skilled in maintaining character, memorizing cover stories and deflecting suspicion. He is also a trained Spetsnaz operative, putting him on par with American MEDUSA agents.

Siberian 'Tyger'
Tyger is a mystery to the Rainfall project. A mystically based variant, she is a beautiful Siberian girl infected with controlled felinathropy. She is permanently altered, increasing all of her physical abilities, senses and combat skills. Tyger also has an intense psionic bond with one particular siberian tiger, whom she calls Teddi, and brings with her into the field. She was found in '79 acting as an enforcer for the Russain Mafia, more animal than human, but has recovered with Enigma's assistance. She has no knowledge of her powers' origins, but she is devoutly loyal to the SSM and Enigma.

Skimmer
The offical liason between the SSM and the GRU, Skimmer is himself an SSM member whose powers, while not suited for combat, make him a formidable opponent regardless. Most notably, Skimmer is an excellent bureaucrat, diplomat and political animal, and is partially responsible for the SSM's budget and autonomy. His variant ability is low grade probability manipulation, as he 'skims' the best circumstances for himself out of any situation. This is exceptionally tiring, and its effects are limited (mid-Beta), but it gives him an edge and makes him almost impossible to outmaneuver.

The Next Generation
The SSM has several new members, most noted for their interactions with Section Eight, their American opposites. These include Desire (untrained Gamma level emotion manipulation), Red Wolf (high Beta kinetic energy absorption to strength and endurance) , Mouse (Beta level shrinking powers), Particle & Wave (twins with Rainfall Project-induced Beta level light powers) and Stealth (high Alpha flight and darkness powers). Given their youth, their ultimate powers and potential are unknown.

| Top |