 10% of their number have elected to end "The Masquerade" and live publicly, with the approval of the Howard Foundation; but this process has backfired.The general public of Earth, once exposed to the Howards' lifespan, believes incorrectly that the Howards have discovered an anti-aging process that they are choosing to conceal, and come to resent them.Civil liberties applied to the Howards are suspended, and the entire membership of the Howard Families is detained, with the exception of Lazarus himself.