Line #136 Literature/ShadowOps


1	[[quoteright:278:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/shadowops_6017.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:278:"''ComicBook/XMen'' [[JustForFun/XMeetsY meets]] ''Film/BlackHawkDown''"]]
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4	''Shadow Ops'' is a MilitaryScienceFiction[=/=]UrbanFantasy series that debuted in 2012, written by [[http://mykecole.com/ Myke Cole]]. The series is set TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture where humans are suddenly manifesting inexplicable magical powers, and deals with the military and political response to people suddenly gaining the ability to shoot fire or animate the dead, as well as supernatural entities from another reality intruding into Earth.
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6	The series currently consists of two trilogies, the first one focusing on Oscar Britton, an Army Reserve pilot who manifests prohibited powers and his escape from the corrupt military Supernatural Operations Corps well into the events of the Great Awakening, and the second, the ''Gemeni Cell'' trilogy, is a prequel series dealing with Jim Schwietzer, a US Navy SEAL who is killed in battle and then reanimated by the government early into the events of the Great Awakening. In order of publication, the books are:
7	* ''Control Point'' (2012)
8	* ''Fortress Frontier'' (2013)
9	* ''Breach Point'' (2014)
10	* ''Gemini Cell'' (2015)
11	* ''Javelin Rain'' (2016)
12	* ''Siege Line'' (2017)
13
14	The series provides a uniquely realistic and military spin on the traditional UrbanFantasy setting with abundant GrayAndGreyMorality. While there are political undercurrents, they are largely background elements. It has been described as "''ComicBook/XMen'' [[JustForFun/XMeetsY meets]] ''Film/BlackHawkDown''" due to its combination of themes of metahuman superpowers and military fiction.
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16	----
17	!!Tropes featured:
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19	* AffablyEvil: Scylla. In ''Fortress Frontier'' is is revealed that [[spoiler:she was actually a corporate executive, right up until her powers Manifested and she was taken down by a SOC unit.]]
20	* AntiMagic:
21	** Any Latent can [[PowerNullifier Suppress]] another Latent, assuming their magic is strong enough to counter the other's. [[spoiler:Scylla's magic is so powerful it can't be Suppressed by any single Latent]].
22	** It turns out that [[spoiler: Bookbinder's school]] gives him the ability to [[spoiler:literally pull the magic out of another Latent and put it into a nearby object, effectively letting him "enchant" things.]]
23	* AntimagicalFaction: The European Caliphate is firmly against any magic use except for Suppression, due to their version of ''sharia'' law.
24	* AntiVillain:
25	** SOC in general. Unregulated Latents, AKA "Selfers", can do horrifying amounts of damage without even trying. When they ''do'' try they can kill dozens of people in minutes. Organized ones have held the Southwest for ''years.'' However, their method of handling the situation is essentially enslaving and brainwashing children to kill people they don't like.
26	** The Goblin "Defender" tribes are simply reacting violently to an invasion by the technologically more-advanced humans. Later on it is revealed that they actually consider humans to be "dead" because they were believed to have separated from the Source in prehistoric times, and that the Defenders consider current humans to be "walking dead."
27	** The Native American tribes of the Southwest had a statistically greater number of Latents, and were thus marked for conscription. Instead, they chose to revolt en masse. When SOC formed, their superior skills threatened to win the day, resulting in them [[DealWithTheDevil allying with the Black Mountain Gods, or Gahe.]]
28	** In the final confrontation of ''Control Point'', Britton [[spoiler:has to fight the rest of Shadow Coven as well as Harlequin and a number of SOC redshirts.]]
29	** Scylla. [[spoiler: Was naturally a good person, but beta-testing the dangerous Limbic Dampener prototype drove her insane, and her imprisonment left her both insane and with a massive chip on her shoulder.]]
30	* ArcWords: "Skill Beats Will." Latents with SOC training are better killers than Selfers. Interestingly, the author himself disagrees with this; [[http://www.blackgate.com/2012/05/08/playing-favorites-a-talk-with-myke-cole/ in his words]],
31	-->'''Myke Cole''': ''The key to any kind of unarmed combat is commitment. If you see two people squaring off to fight, watch them closely. The person backing up is more than likely going to lose. [[TheDeterminator The person advancing is more than likely going to win.]] There’s also a principle of “explosive violence,” which I learned here (it’s one of the bigger schools where security contractors are trained before deploying). It’s funny, one of the mottos I have in the SHADOW OPS universe is “Skill beats Will.” That works for magic, but in real life, it’s the opposite. Explosive violence is a low skill, high will approach.''
32	** [[spoiler:And in the end, he justifies this with the true capabilities of Limbic Dampener - when it is given to otherwise untrained Latents, they immediately gain control and power comparable to the SOC's "Sorcerors". "Skill beats Will" only applies because the government monopolizes Limbic Dampener.]]
33	* ArtisticLicenseReligion: The series takes... ''liberties'' regarding depicting Apache religions, depicting them as worshipping the ''gahe'' shadowy demon-like creatures. Hinduism is also treated inaccurately with Hindus worshipping nagas, and apparently having Sikhs worshipping the same beings (which would be akin to having a Christian or Muslim worshipping Odin).
34	* AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: Scylla convinces [[spoiler:the ''Gahe'']] to work for her by essentially kicking the crap out of them herself.
35	* TheAtoner: Britton spends much of ''Fortress Frontier'' trying to make amends for his mistakes in ''Control Point''. Harlequin spends much of ''Breach Zone'' trying to make up for his own actions in ''Fortress Frontier''.
36	* AttemptedRape:
37	** A group of sentries who jump Britton and Downer attempt to rape her. One of them, a Pyromancer, sets himself partially ablaze as he takes off his belt. [[spoiler:Britton manages to push through the Suppression, PortalCut the sentry suppressing Downer's powers, and she [[HoistByHisOwnPetard makes fire elementals out of the flames forming around the would-be rapist's crotch]].]]
38	** Therese was nearly raped at one point, but that was when her Physiomancy manifested, and she used Rending to tear her attacker apart.
39	* AxCrazy: Scylla. ''Breach Zone'' eventually reveals that [[spoiler:early versions of Limbic Dampener caused mental degradation, and she was pretty much mainlining that at six times the regular dosage to hide her magic. It ultimately was responsible for her snapping when she was arrested and killing hundreds of people]].
40	* BadPowersBadPeople:
41	** Scylla is completely batshit insane, and her powers of Negramancy are some of the most powerful and terrifying in the ''entire series'', capable of instantly destroying any object known, killing any living thing and even [[spoiler:rotting holes in reality itself]].
42	** Fitzy is a general asshole to everyone, even before he starts getting drunk. He also wields powerful fire magic.
43	* BadPowersGoodPeople:
44	** Britton's powers are considered a prohibited school because of their destructive potential, but ultimately he's a good guy at heart.
45	** Truelove is a Necromancer, and one of the nicest and friendliest guys you'll meet.
46	** Therese technically counts, as she used a "bad" application of Physiomancy in the form of rending, but is otherwise a kind person who just wants to heal people.
47	** Before she became [[spoiler:Scylla]], [[spoiler:Grace Lyons]] was a perfectly benign person who [[spoiler:used her wealth to fund many humanitarian projects and research, and was planning on using Limbic Dampener help mankind.]] And she also [[spoiler:had the power of Negramancy]].
48	* TheBeastmaster: "Whispering," an illegal application of terramancy, allows for control of animals. This control is also very extreme, overriding the animal's natural instincts and thoughts and turning them into remote-controlled killing machines. Taken to horrifying levels in ''Breach Zone'', where a group of goblin Terramancers [[spoiler:unleash ''all'' of the rats and pigeons in New York City on the human defenders]].
49	* BeautyEqualsGoodness: Therese is described as one of the most beautiful women that Britton has ever met, and she also happens to be one of the kindest and gentlest. She also has healing powers on top of that.
50	* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: At the end of ''Breach Zone'', [[spoiler: Scylla]] opts to commit suicide when the massive combined force overwhelms the invading army.
51	* BigBad: Several:
52	** Scylla, the lunatic Negramancer who, by the time of ''Fortress Frontier'', has [[spoiler:taken control of the ''Gahe'' which are backing both the Mescalero rebellion and the Goblin Defenders]]. By ''Breach Zone'' she's fully taken over as the BigBad.
53	** President Walsh for ''Fortress Frontier'' and serves as a background villain for ''Control Point'', as he's behind much of the most severe anti-Latent policies and pretty much responsible for the invasion of the Source and the other, more brutal SOC actions. [[spoiler: Walsh is removed entirely from the story by ''Breach Zone'']].
54	** [[MegaCorp Entertech]], however, is ''the'' BigBad, as [[spoiler: they're pretty much responsible for establishing the laws - through paid politicians - that caused the violent social conflict between Selfers and the government to begin with, all because they recognized the power of magic and how much money could be made by controlling Latents, as well as the power of Limbic Dampener and the limitless resources of the Source. Of course, these laws end up backfiring spectacularly, taking over Channel Corporation ended up creating Scylla in the first place, and invading the Source just pissed off ''everything that lived there'', and let Scylla build an army out of the furious denizens of that plane]].
55	* BigDamnHeroes: Britton's gate magic lets him specialize in this, and at the climax of ''Fortress Frontier'', he gates in [[spoiler: an entire National Guard rapid-response unit to save FOB Frontier]], and then turns around and [[spoiler: gates in Marty's entire Goblin tribe to save the National Guard]].
56	** In ''Breach Zone'', Britton does it again, by saving [[spoiler: Harlequin]] from Scylla by [[spoiler: gating in a small army of ''Limpiados'']].
57	* {{Biomanipulation}}: Physiomancers can heal themselves or others with a touch or even at range. They can also do things like boost their musculature and bone density to Liefeldian degrees and manifest huge bone spikes (as seen in ''Gemini Cell'') or warp themselves into a BlobMonster as seen in ''Control Point''.
58	* BlackMagic: Referred to as Negramancy, which is the power of [[MakeThemRot entropy and rot]].
59	* BlobMonster: The Physiomancer inside the subway tunnels below New York City manifests as this. its only through some quick thinking by Britton and creative use of necromancy and gate magic that they stop it.
60	* BodyHorror: Physiomancy allows one to shape flesh to heal. It also allows one to engage in "Rending" which involves shaping flesh and living tissue to harm or kill. Late in ''Control Point'', Shadow Coven has to fight a Physiomancer who does this to her own body, making a nearly unkillable BlobMonster.
61	** One Selfer gang, the Mexican-based ''Limpiados'', deliberately do this to themselves, giving them skull-like faces and twisted bodies.
62	** The physiomancer that Schwietzer fights in ''Gemini Cell'' does things like turning his arm into a giant bone blade, use his own ribs as impaling tools and extend his neck tenfold.
63	* BoxingLessonsForSuperman: Britton is trained in gate-based martial arts, which is essentially {{Teleport Spam}}ming.
64	* TheBrigadier: Brigadier General Bookbinder becomes both this and a FourStarBadass in ''Breach Zone'', after his promotion from being ColonelBadass in the previous book.
65	* BunnyEarsLawyer: The members of Shadow Coven are only permitted to ''live'' because their prohibited powers are extremely rare and powerful. Scylla, despite being a psychotic lunatic convinced that magic-users are superior to regular humans and who can kill hundreds without much effort, is kept alive and contained because her powers are just that valuable. Britton eventually learns that [[spoiler:the SOC intends to lobotomize her to make her controllable.]]
66	** Britton takes advantage of this during the final confrontation with Harlequin. Harlequin is trying to subdue Britton without killing him because they want his gate-forming powers. This lets Britton lure him into a trap when he jumps off the side of a building.
67	* ChekhovsGunman: The teenage girl at the start of the book who summons elementals shows up later on at the SOC base in the Source as a part of Shadow Coven.
68	* CivilWar: The USA is experiencing one in the American Southwest between the federal government and Native American tribes, which appears to be backed by some kind of demonic entities from within the Source. The Caliphate is experiencing one between normal humans and the "djiin-born."
69	* ColonelBadass: Colonel Alan Bookbinder earns the Badass part during the course of ''Fortress Frontier''. His promotion between books leads to him being a FourStarBadass in ''Breach Zone'', albeit with only one star.
70	* ConflictKiller: [[spoiler:Scylla]] to the Selfer/SOC conflict. [[spoiler:Her invasion of New York proves to the powers-that-be that the Awakening has brought with it threats that ''only'' Latents can solve, so they have to provide them with freedom and equal rights or fall to those threats]].
71	* CurbstompBattle: Britton leading his team against [[spoiler:Scylla and her ''Gahe'' minions]] early on in ''Fortress Frontier''. It doesn't end well for them.
72	* CuttingTheKnot: When conducting a hostage-rescue mission, Britton is confronted with an enemy who is willing to use a bomb vest to kill the hostages, and said bomb vest has a deadman's switch. How does Britton deal with it? [[spoiler:He uses a PortalCut to sever the wire connecting the detonator to the vest.]]
73	* TheDarkArts: Any of the four Prohibited Schools: Negramancy, Portamancy, Necromancy, and Sentient Elemental Conjuration. There's also Rending (the use of Physiomancy to kill) and Whispering (use of Terramancy to control animals). [[spoiler: Actually, "prohibited" just means "so valuable that the military will break the rules to get their hands on you."]]
74	* DecadentCourt: The Naga Raajya is a more subdued example, but they're still an example of this based simply on the opulence of their palace and how they treat their rulers and humans.
75	* DeathWorld: The Source. Legions of hostile goblins, giant birds, casowary-analogues that shoot massive sonic-booms, and demonic, violent horses that imitate the cries of their victims right before killing them are just the start. There's also titantic multilegged river crocodiles, actual ''dragons'', the Agni Danav - a hostile race of burning, demonic bull-headed beasts who lay claim to regions by erupting volcanoes over their territory - and the ''Gahe'' smoke demon creatures. And this is just a small sampling of the monsters roaming the Source.
76	* DepletedPhlebotinumShells: One of Bookbinder's tricks, allowing him to [[spoiler: pull the magic out of Latents and infuse bullets with that element]]. This later proves essential to defeating the ''Gahe'' in ''Breach Zone''.
77	* DistractedByTheSexy: Scylla's first escape attempt involved her distracting the guard assigned to Suppress her this way. She only needed a moment of freedom to start wreaking havoc.
78	* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: At least one SOC screed is little more than a fascist declaration that anyone with magic ''must'' sacrifice themselves for the good of the state and society.
79	** Scylla says that there are obvious parallels between the SOC invasion of the Source and the European invasion of the Americas, which is why the Gahe support the Native American tribes in the Civil War in the American Southwest.
80	* DoubleStandard: In-universe, how a Latent is treated depends on who they are. Ordinary people who turn up Latent are conscripted or hunted. Rich people, professional sports players, famous actors, or the children of Senators? They get completely different treatment.
81	* DifferentlyPoweredIndividual: Humans who can use magic are called "Latents". Latents who manifest in one of the Prohibited schools are called "Probes". Any Latent who refuses to surrender to the military is termed a "Selfer."
82	* DrillSergeantNasty: Chief Warrant Officer Fitzsimmons, aka "Fitzy", is one of the nastier sorts.
83	* ElementalPowers: Four of the five legal schools fall under the classical elements.
84	** [[PlayingWithFire Pyromancy]]: Shoot, create, and controlling fire. The only real use this power has is creating flames, unlike the other elements. Allows for the creation of fire elementals.
85	** [[MakingASplash Hydromancy]]: Controlling water and other liquids. Hydromancers can also remove or add heat to water, generating steam or ice. Allows for the creation of water or ice elementals.
86	** [[DishingOutDirt Terramancy]]: Controlling earth, dirt, rocks, etc. Also allows the terramancer to control plants and animals (although the latter use is Prohibited). Allows for the creation of earth elementals.
87	** [[BlowYouAway Aeromancy]]: Allows for flight, generation of wind, and [[ShockAndAwe creation of lightning]]. Skilled Aeromancers can control the weather and create lightning and air elementals.
88	* EnemyMine: The climax of ''Breach Zone'' involves [[spoiler: a massive combined force of Selfers united behind Oscar Britton and US military, NYPD, and SOC Sorcerers united behind Harlequin, all supported by a legion of undead summoned by Truelove and even a small army of ''Los Zetas'' cartel Selfers and a bunch of angry New Yorkers]] all teaming up to bring the fight to Scylla. Even ''Entertech'', the MegaCorp directly responsible for much of the legislation that caused the whole thing to begin with, gets in on the action by [[spoiler: supplying Britton's Selfers with Limbic Dampener to make them as effective as the SOC]].
89	* EntropyAndChaosMagic: Scylla's Negramancy essentially causes mass entropy in ''anything''. [[spoiler: Even the barriers between realities.]]
90	* [[EvenEvilHasStandards Even Sociopathic Soldiers Have Standards]]: Harlequin is an eager SOC hardliner who genuinely enjoys hazing recalcitrant trainees, killing rebel magic users [[spoiler:as well as any mundanes who dare to aid them]], and combat in general. However, when [[spoiler:President Walsh orders him to abandon FOB Frontier to die, he frees Bookbinder and Britton with no strings attached and ''begs'' them to help rescue the base - despite the inevitable political fallout that could almost certainly lead to civil war.]] ''Breach Zone'' is largely from his perspective, and it shows how far he's come with regards to those standards, especially when he looks at soldiers who hide behind the excuse of having to follow orders.
91	* ExplosiveLeash: An Asset Tracking/Termination Device is planted in Britton's heart to force him to cooperate.
92	* FallenHero: [[spoiler:Grace Lyons, AKA Scylla]].
93	* FantasticDrug: Limbic Dampener, which is used to control emotions and let magic-users control their powers more effectively. Britton notes that if Dampener were to be released to the general public, it would greatly reduce the threat of out-of-control Latents, and uses this as one his many reasons to despise the SOC. Grace Lyons, the drug's original developer, actually planned this very same thing, until [[spoiler: her Negramancy was revealed, and her corporation and the Dampener itself was taken over by Entertech, who sold it exclusively to SOC. When a large cache of Dampener is freely distributed to an ad hoc Selfer militia during ''Breach Zone,'' it reveals that the SOC's training(at least in magic) is merely a placebo/brainwashing program - they ''immediately'' begin performing acts before only seen by SOC "Sorcerors".]]
94	* FantasticRacism: Normal humans toward Latents, humans and Latents toward Probes, and humans in general toward Goblins.
95	** The Caliphate, a fundamentalist Islamic superstate that sprung up in the Middle East and Europe, takes this to extremes: ''all'' Latents, no matter who they are, are to be killed on sight due to the Caliphate's strict interpretation of the Qur'an. This leads to frequent and violent riots and fighting between Caliphate military-police and Latents who call themselves the "djiin-born''.
96	** The goblin Defenders believe ''all'' humans are "walking dead" and equate them with zombies, because they are separated from the Source. Thus they have no qualms with killing every non-Latent human they see.
97	* FatalFlaw: Britton will do ''anything'' to protect his allies. Including monumentally stupid acts like [[spoiler:freeing an insane Latent-supremacist with the power to rust and rot everything within her line of sight.]]
98	* FreudianExcuse: The {{Big Bad}}s of both ''Control Point'' and ''Breach Zone''.
99	** Harlequin was once [[spoiler:in love with Grace, who was MaddenIntoMisanthropy and became Scylla. As a result, he went into full-on MyCountryRightOrWrong until Walsh tried to abandon FOB Frontier to save his own ass.]]
100	** Scylla was once [[spoiler:a Richard Branson-like [[UnclePennybags Aunt Pennybags]] who secretly triggered in a prohibited school and spent billions developing Limbic Dampener, which she intended to [[HonestCorporateExecutive distribute at cost]]. Entertech exposed her so they could steal it from her, along with her {{Fiction 500}} company, as part of their ongoing plans to turn Latents into a slave race. This, along with her abuse of the drug to hide her abilities, turned her into a Latent-supremacist who believed that "normals" would only treat her fairly if she ''forced'' them to.]]
101	* FunctionalMagic: Pretty much one of the fundamental cornerstones of the series. Magic follows strict, understandable rules, even when its something totally new, like Bookbinder's powers.
102	* {{Golem}}: Elemental Latents can create these (called "elementals") out of their respective elements, though they are little more than extensions of their creator. Sentient Elemental Conjurers can create self-aware elemental golems assuming the elemental material is available.
103	* GoodPowersBadPeople: Any physiomancer using Rending, like the lunatic loose in the NYC sewers. There's also the head SOC medic, who is only a doctor in the most technical terms, as he spends most of his time cutting up bodies in the labs and administering lobotomies to Latents who don't behave, and is generally an entitled jackass who has to be bribed to use his physiomancy powers to actually ''heal'' someone.
104	* GrayAndGreyMorality: Everywhere. The Selfers are individuals with little or no control over their powers and cause widespread destruction. The Indian uprisings are more organized but even more violent, with the bonus of practicing ''human sacrifice'' to enhance their powers. The SOC that fights both of them is necessary to prevent widescale destruction, but they are also essentially a death squad staffed by StockholmSyndrome slaves - and because they have the best training, they're the best killers. Exemplified in the final confrontation, where [[spoiler:Britton ends up fighting most of his own Shadow Coven, and killing one of them and severely wounding the rest, after he goes rogue.]]
105	* GroinAttack: When a Pyromancer tries to rape Downer and sets his crotch on fire, she [[spoiler: creates fire elementals from it.]] ''Ow.'' On a lesser note, Fitzy seems really fond of doing this to Britton.
106	* HealingHands:
107	** Healing Physiomancy involves this. Most of the time it is painless, but when the physiomancer is asked to do something very complex [[spoiler: like extract the ExplosiveLeash from Britton's heart]] the pain involved can be lethal by itself.
108	** Hydromancy is nowhere as effective as physiomancy, but it does allow a hydromancer to treat burn victims, which are quite common injuries where the SOC is involved.
109	* HeelFaceTurn: Harlequin in ''Fortress Frontier'', once he realizes how corrupt and self-serving President Walsh is.
110	* HeroicBSOD:
111	** Britton, once he realizes just how deep his MoralMyopia goes, and also after he [[spoiler: releases Scylla]].
112	** The NYPD SWATTeam captain who accompanies Shadow Coven into the subway tunnels completely loses it after the battle is over. But [[BodyHorror considering what he witnessed]], there's a damned good reason for it.
113	** Bookbinder, multiple times, as TheChainsOfCommanding keep weighing him down.
114	* HonestCorporateExecutive: Grace Lyons, humanitarian billionaire who seeks to [[spoiler: end the Selfer problem]] by developing and distributing Limbic Dampener at cost. [[spoiler: and also a Negramancer who eventually becomes Scylla]].
115	* HotBlooded: Britton generally makes his decisions in the heat of the moment, out of fear for himself or his allies. This is his biggest flaw, and results in a lot of the damage he accidentally inflicts on everyone around him. At the same time, it also leads to some of his most spectacular moments of heroism, such as holding off an entire fortress of Goblins by himself to save the crew of his helicopter.
116	* {{Hypocrite}}: ''Everywhere'', and very deliberate.
117	** Harlequin in particular and the SOC in general. Harlequin says that the law is immutable and that it gives him and the SOC the authority to carry out his killings of Selfers and Probes, but he and the SOC are all too swift to snap up any Probes they can because of how useful their powers are, up to an including a PersonOfMassDestruction like Scylla.
118	** The SOC's hypocrisy is half the reason why [[spoiler: President Walsh refuses to rescue FOB Frontier. The only way to save the base would require a massive evacuation effort that would demand a Portamancer, which is a Prohibited talent that the SOC has repeatedly denied they use, and they'd have no way to hide that they were using one during such a massive evacuation.]]
119	** Ultimately, the entire system of prosecuting Latents is shown to be one of these, with one quote in ''Breach Zone'' [[WhatTheHellHero calling out America on its hypocrisy.]]
120	-->''Let's get this straight. You build an entire legal framework dedicated to persecuting and punishing those who deign to use magic outside your arbitrary guidelines. Then, you're surprised when the pariahs you've created make war on you? The only Selfer threat is the one you made for yourself. America is a nation choking on its own hypocrisy.''
121	** One quote notes that magic is considered ''haram'' in Islamic society and Saudi Arabia bans it completely... except that mysterious storms keep consistently dispersing protests in that country....
122	-->''Let’s apply Occam’s razor here. Is almighty God intervening on behalf of the king? Or is there an Aeromancer tucked away in the Mabahith building, telling himself he bears a heavy burden to keep his country safe?''
123	* IfYouKillHimYouWillBeJustLikeHim: Pretty much Britton's argument when he talks [[spoiler:Swift out of [[ThouShaltNotKill killing a helpless]] Harlequin for executing his pregnant girlfriend.]] Selfers kill for power, and the SOC does the same. Britton wants to be [[BandOfBrothers something better.]]
124	* ImmuneToBullets: ''Gahe'' are completely immune to conventional firearms. Only magic, or [[spoiler: magically-infused bullets like the kind Bookbinder can make]] can harm them.
125	* InhumanableAlienRights: The [=McGrauer-Linden=] Act effectively makes Latents into legal slaves beholden to work for the US government, and choosing to not serve the government is considered a crime akin to reckless endangerment, leading to these Latents being labeled "Selfers" because they choose themselves over the greater good of the country. The real legality of this is discussed in the books, and Supreme Court cases are ongoing regarding it (brought up by families of Latents because the Latents themselves are in no position to sue) but it is generally accepted by the government in spite of the fact that it blatantly violates the Constitution, because Entertech and the military greatly benefit from a ready supply of superpowered slaves and indoctrinated superpowered soldiers.
126	* {{Jerkass}}: Fitzy is pretty much a titanic asshole, and gets violent when drunk.
127	* JustFollowingOrders:
128	** A particularly interesting examination of it, as it is pointed out that following orders is ''[[IFightForTheStrongestSide easier]]'' than defiance - an attempt to [[NeverMyFault refuse responsibility]] for actions one takes on behalf of authority.
129	-->'''Harlequin''': I don’t have the power to offer...\
130	'''Britton''': Which is what government ''always'' says, and why nobody ever trusts it. It’s not my job. I don’t have the authority. I can’t. Policy says. I don’t write the laws. It all comes out to the same thing: No.
131	** ''Gemini Cell'' defends the idea at one point, when Schweitzer says that the same person can't be both the blade and the hand that wields it, because that's how you get juntas and military coups. Of course, this is said in a FlashBack to a conversation Schweitzer had with his wife [[spoiler:just before the mission where he was ''[[TheUriahGambit purposefully sent to die]]'' so he could be resurrected as a zombie supersoldier; refusing responsibility for one's life means others will do as they please with it -- including [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness throwing it away if they see no more use for it]]..]].
132	-->...he couldn’t be the scalpel anymore. That shining instrument had been sucked from his side, spinning away into the maelstrom of the screaming lost, the price of his return. Now he had to know, now he had to think.
133	* KickTheDog: When [[spoiler: Scylla escapes]], the first thing she does is [[spoiler: kill Salamander, then dozens of other SOC soldiers nearby.]]
134	* KillItWithFire: How Britton manages to take out [[spoiler: the BlobMonster Physiomancer in the New York sewers. He essentially opens a gate to the SASS, and has one of the most powerful pyromancers cut loose through the gate to burn it down.]]
135	* KnightTemplar: Fitzy believes that he has to treat Shadow Coven like dangerous, living nuclear weapons because they're too dangerous for regular society.
136	* LethalHarmlessPowers: Whispering lets the magic user control animals. Getting swarmed by thousands of enraged rats, spiders, and other tiny animals is ''very'' lethal.
137	* LetNoCrisisGoToWaste: The Awakening brought chaos to the world, and every nation has expanded their authority to PoliceState levels to "protect" the {{Muggles}}.
138	--> '''Grace Lyons''': ''That’s what’s so tricky about these systems. You’re right, of course, but that doesn’t change the fact that you use being right to seize and hoard power. And when you concentrate that power in the hands of a few bureaucrats, they get stingy with it.''
139	* LibertyOverProsperity: The central theme of the series; [[LetNoCrisisGoToWaste in times of crisis]], the majority of people ''will'' surrender freedom for security... and discover all too late that they've made themselves defenseless before a government that now has absolute power.
140	-->Forcing children into military service has been the hallmark of failed states around the world, and a tragedy that the UN and a slew of [=NGOs=] has worked tirelessly to combat. In the Ivory Coast, Uganda, Rwanda, Kurdistan, the cry of outrage is heard at each new report of children forced to go to war. Except in the United States. Here, Latent children are routinely indoctrinated into the SOC in the name of national security, and the voices of outrage are suddenly silent, quietly grateful that someone is dealing with the problem.
141	* MageKiller: One of the SOC's primary roles.
142	* MagicIsAMonsterMagnet: Gates to the Source have a tendency to attract hostile beasts.
143	* TheMagicVersusTechnologyWar: The conflict between the SOC inside the Source and the Goblin "Defender" tribes. The Caliphate is engaged in a magic vs. technology ''civil'' war because their interpretation of Islamic law holds that anyone with magical abilities is to be executed immediately, resulting in constant running battles between government military-police and the "djiin-born" rebels.
144	** Becomes a full-on urban war in ''Breach Zone'' when Scylla leads her army into Manhattan itself.
145	* MajorlyAwesome: Major Jan Thorsson aka Harlequin. Even Britton, who dislikes him, admits he is impressive.
146	* MakeThemRot: The book series has random people manifesting powerful magical powers. On rare occasions one of these powers is Negramancy, the power to accelerate entropy. When it is used, objects crumble to dust in seconds and living things start to rot and decay. The power is casually called Witchcraft or Black Magic and its use is prohibited under the penalty of death.
147	* TheManBehindTheMan: The black-skinned demonic entities known as ''Gahe'' (or Black Mountain Gods) who appear to be behind both the suddenly-violent magic-wielding Native American rebels in the US southwest, and also seem to be backing the more violent Goblin Defender tribes. Their precise motivations and purpose are unclear up until ''Breach Zone'', where it is revealed that they consider the various Native American tribes to be their "children" and are fighting to protect them.
148	* MeetTheNewBoss: When [[spoiler: President Walsh is impeached for the use of illegal magic, his Vice President ''immediately'' commits to keeping the old mage-control system in place. This is what convinces Britton that the only answer is forcing SOC to support what amounts to a military coup; the rule of law isn't going to get him anywhere.]]
149	* MegaCorp: Entertech, the Halliburton/Blackwater FictionalCounterpart which "employs" the "contractors" of SOC. In ''Breach Zone'', [[spoiler:it's revealed that they are essentially the BigBad of the entire series. Originally thrown together by opportunistic politicians from both parties to exploit loopholes in the SuperRegistrationAct, they became the most powerful corporation in the world by exposing humanitarian billionaire Grace Lyons as a Negramancer and stealing her company - along with the sole rights to produce Limbic Dampener, which she originally planned to distribute at cost. In the process they turn Grace into Scylla.]]
150	* MiddleEasternCoalition: Played with. There's a Caliphate, but it's in an Islamized Europe.
151	* MightMakesRight: The only difference between SOC and the Selfers. The SOC has mind-stabilizing drugs, state-of-the-art weapons, and most importantly, the US Armed Forces' tried-and-true methods of turning teenage dropouts into skilled killers. "[[ArcWords Skill Beats Will.]]" [[spoiler:And the drugs were stolen by the SOC explicitly to enforce Might Makes Right - see Mega Corp above.]]
152	* MildlyMilitary: The SOC has a very... ''lax'' definition of the idea of military discipline. SOC troops are allowed to drink on base and in combat zones, their officers will frequently hesitate to immediately follow orders, they show a lack of respect for upper echelons of command, and one unfortunate fellow tried to sleep with one of their on-base prisoners (who happened to be Scylla. It ended ''poorly''). This is, of course, just minor compared with the nastier things they get up to, including abusing indigenous goblin workers, Fitzy's drunken assaults on his own subordinates, and outright torture and execution of prisoners of war.
153	* MilitaryCoup: [[spoiler: In the climax of ''Breach Zone'', Harlequin is forced to agree to turn the SOC against the US government and force them to agree to grant rights to Latents, in exchange for Britton finally agreeing to lead Shadow Coven and the Selfer militias against Scylla.]]
154	* MilitaryMage: Any person who "manifests" (i.e. gains magic powers) is required by law to join the SOC, a branch of the United States military. Those that manifest in a forbidden school of magic end up as military contractors.
155	* MilitarySuperhero: Britton is probably the only person in the SOC who might be considered one, as the rest are violent {{Punch Clock Villain}}s at best and sociopaths at worst.
156	* MistreatmentInducedBetrayal: When [[spoiler: Downer returns to the SOC voluntarily, the SOC respond by treating her brutally, like a dog where they don't know whether it's rabid or not. This rather neatly breaks her StockholmSyndrome and her crush on Harlequin, causing her to turn Selfer first chance she gets.]]
157	* TheMole: [[spoiler: Wavesign]] in ''Control Point''. [[spoiler: Big Bear]] in ''Fortress Frontier''.
158	* MoralMyopia: Initially, Britton condemns the SOC for treating Latents as threats to be shot on sight instead of people, but when he manifests a proscribed ability he proceeds to freak out and run, [[spoiler:in the process killing two people by ''accident'' - one of them being his own father.]] At this point he has a breakdown over his myopia.
159	* MoralEventHorizon: In-universe, Britton agrees with Swift that [[spoiler:Harlequin's murder of Swift's (''non-latent!'') pregnant girlfriend is unforgivable. Unfortunately, Britton can't let Swift [[ThouShaltNotKill kill Harlequin while he's helpless]].]]
160	* MugglePower: Half the terrible things in the series are the result of a mix of fear and greed convincing the US Government and corporate interests that magic must be strictly controlled, no matter the cost.
161	* MugglesDoItBetter: The Goblins have numbers, large amounts of Sorcerers, dragons, massive rocs, giants, and the backing of the ''Gahe''. Humans have machineguns, tanks, Strykers, Apache helicopters, and A-10 Warthogs. The only reason that [[spoiler: FOB Frontier is overrun]] is because [[spoiler: half the base was leveled by Scylla and they were cut off from resupply when the SOC's only Portamancer was killed.]] Also, mundane bullets are useless against ''Gahe''. So it's kind of a ZigZaggingTrope: Muggle weapons are more powerful in a straight war, but there are situations where you really need magic, and there are magical beings that have the power of a nuke and the operational flexibility of a SEAL.
162	* {{Mutants}}: Deliberately done by ''los Limpiados'', who were forced into the sewers of Mexico. Many of the tribe adopted nonhuman attributes and mutations (chiefly pale skin and skin-altered tattoos, but a lot of others as well) through Physiomancy, embracing a sort of [[Literature/TheTimeMachine Morlock]] aesthetic.
163	* {{Muggles}}: Nonmagical humans, which make up the majority of the human population. Scylla views them as little more than cattle and slaves to Latents. [[spoiler:Understandable and perhaps even justified, given how she spent the first years of the Awakening attempting to solve the problem scientifically only for mundane government to rob her blind and make her a slave]].
164	* MundaneUtility: Countless examples. Hydromancy is used to treat burn wounds and heat up cold showers, Terramancy gets used to clean mud-splattered clothes, and Whispering is used to get animals to clean up.
165	** It turns out that magic is being misused by the United States; the SuperRegistrationAct practiced by the United States forces all Latents to join the military or go under permanent suppression. China, however, allows Latents to work for various engineering companies, allowing them to pull off construction projects at incredible speed and with minimal expense.
166	** Even in combat, magic gets used for surprisingly mundane tasks. Hydromancy, for example, is used during an assault to freeze locks to make them brittle so they can be quietly cut, or to weaken a metal door so that it can be smashed down quickly without needing a battering ram.
167	** MundaneUtility turns out to be so useful that its ultimately [[spoiler:part of the root cause of the entire conflict over the series. The monetary gain from what magic could do, especially with control over the weather to do things like grow crops in perfect conditions or protect shipping from storms was so immense that Entertech and Washington politicians tried to pretty much turn Latents into slave labor. This, coupled with widespread fear of magic, made it easy to pass the laws to control Latents.]]
168	* MutantDraftBoard: All Latents who manifest are required to report in and given the choice of imprisonment or military service. Latents who run, or Probes (anyone who manifests in a Prohibited School or uses a legal school in a prohibited way) are killed. [[spoiler: [[FirstEpisodeTwist Okay, that's not right.]] Probes are recruited, end of story. They aren't allowed to accept imprisonment ''or'' to be killed; those who are too recalcitrant are lobotomized and forced into service anyway. Latents who run get the same treatment if capturing them is possible; SOC doesn't kill Latents unless they have no other choice.]]
169	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Britton's reaction when he [[spoiler:thinks he's killed his father]] and later when [[spoiler: he lets Scylla loose]]. Harlequin goes through this over the course of ''Breach Zone''.
170	* MyMasterRightOrWrong: Harlequin's opinion on the SOC. But when President Walsh essentially [[spoiler: orders that there be no rescue attempt for FOB Frontier until after the next election (''in eight months!'') to avoid the horrible press that would result]], Harlequin decides that he's had enough.
171	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Britton tends to cause as much trouble as he fixes, starting with accidentally [[spoiler:dumping his father and a police officer into the Source, getting the latter killed]] with uncontrolled gates, and culminating in [[spoiler: letting Scylla loose]].
172	* NobleBigot: Jawid isn't a bad guy, but he has a very skewed view of relationships between men and women. Having had sex with Dadou, he thinks that she's his wife, and thus his property to have sex with as he pleases. [[spoiler: This mistake gets him killed.]]
173	* NoOneGetsLeftBehind: Britton refusing to leave anyone behind during the botched recon mission to one of the Goblin camps. Fitzsimmons gets infuriated when Britton risks his life to save him, because Britton is too valuable - not just as a weapon, but as one of the only two people who can open portals back to Earth. Especially since the other is a lobotomized teenager.
174	* NotQuiteTheRightThing: Yes, Scylla was imprisoned wrongfully and unjustly, and she was about to face worse from the SOC, but by the time of the book she had gone completely insane. When Britton freed her, the first thing she started doing was killing people, including innocent soldiers. There wasn't a ''good'' option in this case, but Britton definitely chose the ''wrong'' one. [[spoiler: It worked out in his favor in the end, but he hadn't planned that.]]
175	* NotSoDifferentRemark: In the end, Britton realizes that this is the case with the Selfers and the SOC - both kill to enforce their will, neither have any care for innocent people caught in the crossfire, and the SOC are simply [[MightMakesRight better killers]].
176	* ObfuscatingStupidity: [[spoiler: Wavesign]].
177	* OneManArmy: Shadow Coven is explicitly described as being made up of magic users who fill this role. Downer can create countless elementals that act on their own, Truelove can animate any dead body, Richards can control entire legions of animals, and Britton's gate abilities give him incredible destructive potential and mobility.
178	** Downer in ''Breach Zone'' practically holds entire barricades from whole armies of monsters singlehandedly with her elementals.
179	* OnePersonOnePower: One person can only manifest a single school, except for the fact that everyone with powers can ''also'' [[PowerNullifier suppress]] the powers of others if they bother to learn how.
180	* OriginStory: ''Control Point'' comes off as this for Britton and his companions in general. ''Fortress Frontier'' is one for Bookbinder.
181	* OurMonstersAreDifferent:
182	** OurDemonsAreDifferent: Two known types: the ''Gahe'', which are demonic beings revered by the Mescalero rebels as "Black Mountain Gods" who can FlashStep and are apparently made of icy-cold smoke. The second type are the Agni Danav, which are huge, flaming bull-like creatures who mark their territory by creating erupting volcanoes around it.
183	** OurDragonsAreDifferent: Dragons form mounts for Goblin defenders, though they only seem to be large flying reptiles, with no BreathWeapon.
184	** OurGiantsAreBigger: The Goblin Defenders have some kind of massive variant of Goblin that tower a dozen feet tall, and are strong enough they grab Blackhawks or Abrams tank turrets and use them as clubs.
185	** OurGoblinsAreDifferent: Goblins are natives of the Source who are far more likely to turn up Latent. They resemble small humanoids with enormous heads, pointy ears, and long noses. They are split between Defender tribes which react violently to human incursion, and Embracer tribes, which welcome humans.
186	** SnakePeople: The naga, which appear as enormous creatures with snake-like lower bodies, humanoid torsos, [[MultiArmedAndDangerous many humanlike arms]], and multiple snake heads. They're a particularly arrogant lot, viewing humans as children who need to be governed properly.
187	* OurPresidentsAreDifferent: President Walsh, the current US President, is a combination of President Corrupt and President Jerkass. In his brief scene with Harlequin in ''Fortress Frontier'', he makes it clear that he believes that the corrupt, hypocritical, and brutal treatment of magic by the SOC is the only way to properly control magic users, and also essentially condemns [[spoiler: FOB Frontier to being overrun by Goblins because a rescue attempt would result in a massive secrecy breach about FOB Frontier and the use of Probes, which would all but doom his reelection chances.]] On top of that, he issues a not-so-subtle order to Harlequin to execute Bookbinder if he doesn't cooperate. Needless to say, Harlequin takes all of this...[[HeelFaceTurn poorly]]. And as of ''Breach Point'', [[spoiler: Walsh has been impeached and is on trial for his actions relating to Shadow Coven and FOB Frontier]].
188	* PersonOfMassDestruction:
189	** Scylla. When others are talking about her, they say that she killed about twenty or thirty people the last time she got loose. When [[spoiler:Britton]] sets her free, she [[spoiler: destroys the entire FOB perimeter defenses, killing hundreds of people, with about as much trouble as crushing ants]]. Later on, she reveals that she can [[spoiler: apply her Negramancy to the barriers between dimensions, allowing her to make gates from Earth to the Source.]]
190	** Britton is one as well, once he fully understands how to use his powers. Between instant teleportation to wherever he wants to go, the ease by which he can PortalCut (see below), insane mobility, and the ability to use his gates as shields and means to attack from unexpected directions, he can cause tremendous destruction with just a bit of creativity.
191	** Most Probes in general, as Whispering, Necromancy, and Elemental Conjuration effectively allow them to field entire armies at the drop of a hat. Which is why they are Prohibited schools in the first place.
192	** When discussing just what he is, the zombified Schweitzer points to himself and says "new nuke." When he goes rogue, the incident is classified as "Javelin Rain," the in-universe codename for what we call an EmptyQuiver.
193	* PetTheDog: Scylla won't hesitate to massacre her captors, but when [[spoiler: she escapes from her Suppression and starts slaughtering the SOC guards around the SASS compound, she deliberately avoids harming any of the Latent students/prisoners because she cares about them.]]
194	* PortalCut: Britton's gates instantly sever any solid material if they manifest over it, or if something is halfway through the gate. This makes him insanely deadly once he knows how to use it.
195	* PostModernMagic: When you're manifesting magical gates in order to throw Black Hawk helicopters at people, you know you're in this genre.
196	* PowerIncontinence: Newly-manifesting Latents cannot control their powers, and if their emotions get out of control they can cause massive destruction. Drawing too much magical power can cause a magic-user to "go nova" and kill themselves.
197	** One of the worst examples is Wavesign, who can't control his hydromancy. [[spoiler: Subverted. He's fully in control, he's just hiding it as an SOC plant inside the SASS]].
198	* PowerNullifier:
199	** Suppression is a skill available to any Latent that allows them to cut off the magic of other Latents. The US Marines use what are referred to as "Suppression Lances" which are squads of Latents whose sole job is to Suppress enemy magic-users so they can be taken down with conventional weapons.
200	** Bookbinder's power is [[spoiler: the ability to not simply Suppress someone's magic, but actually rip it out and bind it to an object.]]
201	* PrivateMilitaryContractors: All the members of Shadow coven are ''technically'' mercenary contractors working for a corporation called Entertech. In reality, they're effectively conscripts who only get to remain relatively free as long as they work for the SOC.
202	* PsychicSurgery: Physiomancy is essentially this.
203	* PsychoForHire: The Sculptor, a SOC Physiomancer who has no issues with using Rending to torture information out of people.
204	* PsychoSerum: The early versions of Limbic Dampener crippled emotions and empathy with repeated use. [[spoiler:This is a major part of what turned Grace Lyons into Scylla.]]
205	* RescueRomance: One-sided; Downer has a major crush on Harlequin because she feels he "rescued" her after the high school rampage at the beginning.
206	** However, this also applies in that [[spoiler:[[FullCircleRevolution the new President is no different from Walsh]]. As a fellow investor in Entertech, he refuses to change ''anything.'']]
207	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Captain Salamander, head of the SASS, which is essentially a prison/school to hold captured Latents in an effort to educate them in controlling their powers and to join the SOC.
208	* RedshirtArmy: Regular Army troops, SOC assault troops, and NYPD {{SWAT Team}}s all get this treatment. Harlequin even explicitly describes Britton's Army unit as something that will "just get in my way" at the beginning.
209	* {{Retcon}}: The Caliphate mentioned in ''Control Point'' appears to have mysteriously vanished as of ''Breach Zone'', with Harlequin even explicitly stating that the only country in the world with harsher laws against Latents than the US is Saudi Arabia.
210	* RetiredBadass: Stanley Britton, Oscar's father. Former Marine Force Recon, [[ColonelBadass retired Colonel]], and [[spoiler: fully capable of surviving on his own for months in the Source without anything more than the clothes on his back.]]
211	* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: His Highness Vasuki-Kai, Naga envoy from the Naga Raajya, a prince of one of the major kingdoms in the Source, is an arrogant, pompous royal. But when Bookbinder needs to get the Raajya's help, he doesn't hesitate to guide the team across thousands of miles of harsh Source landscape, leaps into combat without an ounce of fear and wielding [[MultiarmedAndDangerous a whole lot of weaponry]], and stands watch every night thanks to his unusual naga biology.
212	* TheScapegoat: [[spoiler: President Walsh is impeached for running a system of illegal magic use, so that Entertech's system can continue to function exactly as it had under his administration.]]
213	* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: A running theme in the third book is that you can't have a functioning rule of law if the government has been subverted by a MegaCorp, and attempts to bring about reform within the system will be squashed by people with vested interests. It takes [[spoiler: Britton forcing the SOC to illegally commit to supporting reform, which essentially amounts to a ''coup d'etat'', to bring about a new system]].
214	* ShameIfSomethingHappened: Britton is given a look at the only other living portomancer, Billy, who was "uncooperative" but deemed useful. The SOC lobotomized him, turning him into a childlike retard who they could use to create gates at will. Though not stated outright, the threat to Britton is made clear.
215	* ShootTheDog: SOC's job regarding Latents who don't surrender. At the end of ''Control Point'', Britton has to kill [[spoiler: Billy, the lobotomized Portamancer being used by the SOC so that he and the rest of the escapees can be free.]]
216	* SociopathicSoldier: Harlequin, the SOV Aeromancer who pursues Britton through the first parts of ''Control Point'' is a textbook Type 1; [[PatrioticFervor deeply patriotic]], [[WellIntentionedExtremist convinced of the necessity of his work]], and genuinely sure that [[YouRebelScum unregulated Latents are scum]] who deserve whatever he does to them for running. However, he also [[AxCrazy genuinely enjoys his work]], whether it be killing Selfers or even just hazing reluctant SOC trainees. [[spoiler:And neither he nor his superiors have any problem with killing mundanes who give aid and comfort to Selfers: case in point, he killed Swift's pregnant girlfriend without blinking while arresting him and never thought about it again.]]
217	** His viewpoint scenes in ''Fortress Frontier'' show Harlequin to be much more sympathetic than Britton's comparatively limited perspective. He does deeply care about his fellow Americans, especially the close-knit group of SOC Sorcerers, and when FOB Frontier is cut off, he comes close to risking his career trying to get help to them. He also starts to question the administration he served so loyally when he learns [[spoiler: President Walsh is going to let Frontier rot until after the election because he doesn't want to risk the terrible press that a rescue operation involving a Portamancer would inflict on him]].
218	*** In ''Breach Zone'', his FreudianExcuse is detailed, finally fully humanizing him; [[spoiler:He became Grace Lyons' lover while she was developing Limbic Dampener, learned she was a Negramancer, and turned on her at the critical moment, driving her insane, turning her into Scylla, and giving both her and the Dampener monopoly to Entertech. Afterwards, as long as he kept killing and enslaving Latents for the SOC, [[TheDarkSideWillMakeYouForget he didn't have to admit to himself]] that he [[MoralEventHorizon committed a monstrous betrayal]]. Only when Walsh told him to do something ''even worse'' - leave hundreds of skilled and dedicated soldiers to die to protect his lie - that he balked. And it still took an [[WithUsOrAgainstUs ultimatum]] from Britton for him to go the distance]].
219	* SoldierVsWarrior:
220	** Part of the "Skill Beats Will" theme is that trained SOC Sorcerers will easily take down wild-and-free Selfers with their training and military precision. [[spoiler: Actually, this is a false dichotomy. What allows the Selfers to be the soldiers here is the Limbic Dampener drug. With access to the drug's control, Selfers are every bit as capable and dangerous as Sorcerers.]]
221	** Explored heavily in ''Gemini Cell'', as Schweitzer (a trained SEAL operator and soldier) is psychically linked to the ghost of an ancient Mesopotamian warrior. Ninip is constantly amazed at how well "footmen" can kill, and repeatedly has to take lessons from the trained Operator in how to most effectively remove obstacles and threats.
222	* SpiritWorld: The Source, which is an alternate reality where all sorts of monsters come from.
223	* SpiritualAntithesis: To TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}. In the RPG, when TheMagicComesBack, Indian tribes drive the government off their ancestral lands with magic and {{Mega Corp}}s are able to seize power from national governments in the chaos. In Shadow Ops, the military is the first to refine magical power to a fine edge, the US military is among the best in the world, and quickly increase government power by means of "[[MightMakesRight Skill Beats Will]]." Therefore, the tribes are in an ongoing war to keep the territory, and only holding on due to their willingness to use BlackMagic. Corporations have been denied Latent assets at SOC-point - in ''Fortress Frontier'', Scylla is revealed to be a Fortune 500 [=CEO=] the SOC snatched up as legally as a loose penny [[spoiler:along with her invention, [[FantasticDrug Limbic Dampener]], as part of a conspiracy to enslave all Latents.]] As for [[JapanTakesOverTheWorld Japanese ascendance?]] They're dependent on American assets for defense, so they probably have to surrender their Latents to the American SOC. ''China'' has a healthier economy than America in Shadow Ops because their government shares Latent assets with their corporations.
224	-->'''[=MykeCole=]''': [=@PrinceJvstin=] #sffwrtcht ''Shadowrun was definitely an influence, as was [[TabletopGame/{{Warhammer40000}} Warhammer 40k]]. Surprised more people don’t bring that up.'' ([[http://bryanthomasschmidt.net/sffwrtcht/2012/02/22/transcript-sffwrtcht-22212-with-myke-cole/ Thu Feb 23 02:45:03 +0000 2012]])
225	* TheSquad: Shadow Coven eventually develops into this.
226	* StockholmSyndrome: SOC's preferred method of recruiting Latents. Hold out too long and they'll lobotomize you. Britton ''almost'' succumbs to it due to his pre-Latency life as a US soldier, but breaks free easily once he realizes that the similarities between the SOC and the Army are superficial - where the Army's purpose is to protect the defenseless, SOC's purpose is to turn Latents into [[JustFollowingOrders obedient killing machines]].
227	** Therese and Swift actively resist the Stockholm treatment, and while Swift never joins SOC, Therese eventually breaks down when the SOC convinces her to help treat wounded in the base's infirmary, which shows her just how much good she can do with her powers.
228	** Downer is hit by this so hard that by the time of ''Fortress Frontier'', she [[spoiler: willingly goes back to the SOC when given the chance.]] And then it gets inverted in ''Breach Zone'' when [[spoiler: her treatment while in SOC custody is rough enough that she outright punches Harlequin in the face when she meets him, and pretty much refuses to go back into their custody]].
229	* SummonMagic: Gates can bring hostile, uncontrolled creatures into the Home Plane. Sentient Elemental Conjuration allows a Latent to create active elementals out of local materials or energy that act on their own.
230	* SupernaturalSensitivity: Latents can sense magic in each other.
231	* SuperRegistrationAct: A core element of the story is how the laws surrounding use of magic affects people, and how just/unjust the legal oppression/conscription of magic-users is. Britton doubts whether it is justified, and steadily shifts to opposing it outright, while Harlequin strongly believes in the necessity of the SOC and controlling magic-users, despite the flaws in the system.
232	* SwitchingPOV: Introduced in ''Frontier Fortress''.
233	* TakeAThirdOption: [[spoiler:Britton]] eventually does this after realizing Selfers and SOC aren't that different - both kill to enforce their will, the SOC are just [[MightMakesRight better killers]]. His solution is [[spoiler:a return to his original ethics as a [[BandOfBrothers non-magical soldier]] - the first step being [[ThouShaltNotKill "Don't Kill If You Don't Have To"]]; convincing Swift to spare a helpless Harlequin.]]
234	-->'''Britton''': ''We came here to escape. We've done that. Killing more people won't accomplish anything. That's what Selfers do. We're not Selfers, Swift. We're not SOC. We're the real good guys, and it's time we started acting like it. I'm through with magic as a bludgeon. It stops here.
235	* TakingYouWithMe: One of the Native American rebels tries to use an explosive vest to kill several hostages when Britton and a rescue team come after them. Britton simply [[spoiler: uses a gate to cut the cord connecting the detonator to the vest.]]
236	* ThereAreNoTherapists: The Covens are a DysfunctionJunction of ShellShockedVeteran ''{{Child Soldier}}s''. A few good therapists could have prevented the entire plot. Problem is, a therapist could do absolutely bupkis under SOC operational standards - psychological stability and chattel slavery are pretty much mutually exclusive.
237	* ThinkingUpPortals: Britton's specialty.
238	* TookALevelInBadass: In ''Fortress Frontier'', Bookbinder goes from being a [=J1=] admin officer who never fired a weapon in his life at the start of the book to pretty much being ''Patton'' reincarnated by the end, even managing to kill [[spoiler: a ''Gahe'']] with nothing but a spear and some stolen magic.
239	* TortureTechnician: The Sculptor's Physiomancy makes him an expert in this.
240	* TragicVillain: [[spoiler: It's not Scylla's fault that she's a psychopathic Selfer supremacist, but she does have to be taken down for the good of everyone who isn't part of her Selfer gang.]]
241	* TrueCompanions: A naga and its ''Bandhav'' form this sort of bond, with the ''Bandhav'' being a chosen human companion serving roughly somewhere between a child and a sibling. Harming a naga's ''Bandhav'' is considered as much an affront as harming the naga itself, and the naga will go to great lengths to protect the ''Bandhav'', even shielding them with their own bodies.
242	* TheUnmasquedWorld: While magic is publically known, what's really going on (i.e. US military use of Probes, the nature of the Source, the existence of FOB Frontier) is kept hidden...up until Britton [[spoiler: gates onto the White House lawn with the surviving SOC troops]] at the end of ''Control Point''. While the government hurries to do damage control over this, the climax of ''Fortress Frontier'' involves [[spoiler: Britton and Bookbinder gating ''all'' of FOB Frontier's troops - a division-sized force - plus a National Guard quick-reaction force directly in front of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in full public view, while fighting Goblins]]. Bookbinder notes that President Walsh will have a terrific time trying to explain all of ''that'' away.
243	* ViciousCycle: An underlying theme. Uncontrolled Latents cause widespread destruction through their wild and violent powers. Laws are passed to strictly and harshly regulate them to protect society. Selfers oppressed by these laws and terrified of what might be done to them run or fight back, necessitating harsher laws and more heavy-handed military policing to control them, which pushes the Selfers to greater acts of desperate violence to escape what is essentially a choice between slavery or execution....the process continues until someone like Britton chooses to break the system.
244	* VillainHasAPoint: Scylla was completely correct that the government wouldn't voluntarily allow Latents their freedom. She was equally correct that they would never change the laws as Britton demanded, as the government was firmly in Entertech's pocket. Attempting to take over America with an army of genocidal goblins, ''Gahe'' and Selfers isn't really much better, but [[spoiler:the threat she poses forces Entertech to surrender its Limbic Dampener stockpiles and eventually permit the government to play ball with Britton and his rebels. [[ConflictKiller Without the threat of Scylla to bring them to the table, the military-industrial complex would have never let Latents be free]].]]
245	* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Good Physiomancers can manage this. Untrained one can become horrific blob monsters, while skilled ones can alter their appearance. Extremely capable ones, like the Sculptor, can imitate specific people.
246	* {{Whatevermancy}}: All magical schools except Sentient Elemental Conjuration are named this way.
247	* WhatTheHellHero: Britton gets this from ''everyone'' in ''Fortress Frontier''. The first couple of chapters involving him deal almost entirely with him dealing with the reality of the aftermath of his [[spoiler: rebellion against the SOC and the destruction of both part of FOB Frontier by releasing Scylla and the killing of Billy]].
248	* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: Scylla possesses tremendously dangerous and powerful Negramancy, and is completely batshit crazy too. She's so powerful that [[spoiler: it takes multiple Latents to even attempt to Suppress her.]] And later on, she [[spoiler: uses her powers to rot away the barriers between Earth and the Source itself.]]
249	* WithUsOrAgainstUs: Britton's ultimatum to Harlequin and Bookbinder in ''Breach Zone'' - Scylla's ''Gahe'' army is tearing New York to pieces, conventional forces are unable to stop them, and she's called on every Selfer to become part of her new nation. Britton states that he will ''never'' run down American civilians again - if the SOC wants him to denounce Scylla, the SOC will have to show good faith ''first''; state that the organization will go "Selfer" rather than enforce the [[SuperRegistrationAct McGauer-Linden Act]] any longer.
250	-->'''Britton''': Selfer is a label the government sticks on Latent people who don’t toe their line. They are Latent, just like you are. Scylla is offering them a community of self-rule. You offer them second-class digs at the feet of people who are terrified of them. ...You hedged your bets when [[spoiler:we saved the FOB]]. You plugged right back into the system you bucked as soon as you realized that popular opinion would keep it from punishing you. Now, you have to be ready to break ranks for real. You have to be willing to put Porter in a chicken wing and hold him there. No matter what happens. You have to pick a side.
251	* YouAreInCommandNow: the basic plot of ''Fortress Frontier'', for both Britton (leading a small group of rogue Probes on the run from SOC) and Bookbinder (an admin officer forced into command of FOB Frontier).

Context Literature / ShadowOps