UNIVERSE 697

Universe 697 is an alternative universe that largely mirrors the historical events of the traditional X-Men continuity, though many details may differ. Throughout history, Mutantkind has existed in secret, behind fear, suppression, and disbelief. As the X-Gene spread across humanity, incidents involving mutants became increasingly common. Governments and other agencies are quick to analyze what many believe to be the next stage of human evolution. While most of the public originally dismissed mutants as conspiracy theories or isolated anomalies, institutions and powers in place understood the truth long before society was ready to accept it.  At the center of modern mutant history stood a man named Theodor Xavier, a renowned telepath, geneticist, and humanitarian who dedicated his life to preventing an inevitable conflict between human and mutant kind, with his belief of a future where mutants and humans could coexist leading to the establishment of the Xavier Institute, a secluded academy built to shelter young mutants who struggled to control or understand their abilities and gifts. Publicly, the Xavier Institute operates as an elite private school, but for those who work, live, and study there, it's a sanctuary for a group of people rejected by the outside world, and the birthplace of the X-Men, a small group trained not to conquer humanity, but to protect both species from the growing hatred surrounding them.

Despite Xavier's efforts, mutant-human relations have been extremely turbulent, ranging from very good to severely unstable over the past few years. As mutant abilities and features became more visible, fear spread across the globe, resulting in the rise of anti-mutant groups and organizations, governments creating containment and response policies, and violent incidents involving both humans and mutants, causing tensions to further escalate. While some mutants fought for peaceful coexistence, others lost their faith in humanity completely, believing that conflict between the two groups was a guarantee, no matter what.  Over time, leading to the present day, the world entered what is being dubbed the "Genesis Era", a period of growing and rapid uncertainty due to political division, societal collapses, and mutants becoming a bigger part of global society. Nations struggled to adapt to these changing factors, while extremist groups have only continued to grow due to modern technologies allowing for near instant communication at levels never seen previously.  By the beginning of Genesis's timeline, Universe 697 exists in a fragile state where coexistence remains possible, but becomes increasingly uncertain with each day.