Ferroburg, PA

During the Industrial Revolution, towns and cities like Ferroburg built America from a rural former colony into a land of towering cities and powerful rail lines. For decades, the factories and foundries of “Steel City” turned out the metalwork that raised up a nation.   Now a part of the “Rust Belt” of the post-industrial economy, Ferroburg has been in decline ever since heavy manufacturing began moving overseas. The city’s population has shrunk to almost half of what it was at its height more than a half century ago, and virtually all of its factories are closed down and boarded over, slowly rusting away and forgotten.   Some of the “new economy” of information has taken hold in Ferroburg, with local tech-firm Delta Media providing new job opportunities and buying up some old properties. Still, urban decay and crime are rampant in Ferroburg, with citizens of the Heights keeping their gated communities closely guarded and people in the Glens afraid to move about after dark.   Recently, however, it is the criminals of Ferroburg who have reason to fear: rumors are flying about mysterious vigilantes operating in the city, providing leads to the police or simply going outside the law to do what the authorities cannot. One is the hacker known as “The Witness,” who has anonymously provided police and law enforcement with digital evidence and leads, as well as posting video online and stealing millions from criminal bank accounts for donation to charity to rebuild Ferroburg’s poorest neighborhoods.   There’s also the crime-fighter the press has dubbed “Blackjack” after his trademark of leaving a Jack of Spades to mark or warn his criminal targets. He’s apparently a masked fighter of considerable skill who uses a staff or baton-like weapon. Blackjack may or may not be working with the Witness (some even speculate they’re the same person), but their mutual activities have given hope to the people of Ferroburg and may be inspiring a new generation of heroes there.