An archive of the world, systems, and history behind Degradus.
Microplastic accumulation became detectable in human organs at scale. Environmental agencies reported rising contamination levels, but regulatory response was minimal due to industrial lobbying. The rates of cancers and unknown illnesses skyrocketed.
The widespread biological contamination event accelerated. Synthetic waste breakdown began affecting air and water systems globally. Early illness clusters appeared in major urban centers.
Half the global population died from conditions linked to microplastic build up in the body. Healthcare systems collapsed under strain. Governments lost centralized control.
Cureon Corporation consolidated resources and influence. Internal research programs began targeting synthetic breakdown solutions. Dr. Ella Thorn’s idea for Degradus Plastivorus began to evolve, but was refused funding by the government. Cureon approached Dr. Thorn and made her an offer she could not refuse.
Degradus Plastivorus (DegP) was deployed after Dr. Thorn and Cureon worked together on the project. Temporary stabilization began across select regions. Societal reconstruction efforts restarted under fragmented authority structures.
Despite early recovery, systems failed again. Unexpected side-effects of the DegP vaccine hit society hard. Black markets for plastic emerged. Infrastructure decay accelerated, and regional conflicts increased over remaining resources.
A global biological contamination event caused by synthetic waste breakdown and corporate interference. Microplastics in the environment broke down to smaller and smaller pieces. They spread through air, water, and food systems over the course of years. Suddenly half the population died from sicknesses associated with plastics from 2025-2026. Microplastics had infested everything, causing human organs to fail. People grew angry when they realized the "solutions" sold to them, ie. reducing, reusing, and recycling, were simply successful propaganda campaigns that continued the production of plastics.
Once the population had realized the impact of the plastics industry, they took to the streets enmasse. Groups across the world reacted with diverse tactics, from peaceful protests to riots and destruction of corporate property. Many protesters were imprisoned or killed. Environmental fascist groups faced off against other protest groups. Violence ensued between differing ideological groups, police, and military.
One of the primary companies in the U.S. responsible for plastic and chemical pollution, this pharmaceutical company had a hand in creating the base ingredients for plastic production. Cureon invested millions into anti-environmental policies, pro-plastics lobbying, and propaganda. Claire Donovan, Chief Technology Officer at Cureon, made many decisions which influenced the spread of microplastics, especially in impoverished communities. She started a program to combat the Plastic Problem after her husband died, and the company began investing in strategies to solve the crisis. This resulted in Claire reaching out to Dr. Ella Thorn to develop Degradus Plastivorus, or DegP. Cureon employees remained relatively privileged during the multiple phases of crises, kept safe in the headquarters surrounded by armed guards.
Governments still existed, but authority was fragmented and underfunded. Production of plastic was made illegal. Corporate systems, local militias, and independent zones began to compete for resources. After the secondary collapse, plastic became an in-demand resource in a country where it was illegal to produce, causing the development of violent black-markets. Power plants, public transportation, farms, and hospitals, among other important infrastructure, fell to the wayside due to lack of workers and funding. Once DegP was released, society seemed to be rebuilding. It wasn't long until that hope, too, crumbled, and the secondary collapse hit.