A Tempestuous Introduction

                For many years, She has kept watch over the island of Argier as its dutiful guardian.

                There is a tale passed down from generation to generation in Argier—the legend of the Manjiku. The Manjiku was a monstrous thing, gargantuan in size. It was said to emerge from the ocean’s depths every 200 years to feed on the island’s inhabitants. This was widely regarded as nothing but a myth among the current residents of the island; a fantastic story of centuries past, told to children as a bedtime story. Forgotten to the people of Argier, however, was the very real and looming threat the Manjiku posed to the island, for it was no myth—it was prophecy, created by the first generation of Argierians after encountering it themselves.

                Argier is a small island located near the center of what cartographers call the Bermuda Triangle. The people of Argier were different compared to those hailing from other countries. For they had a special connection with the island, and from that connection were mystical and unknown powers bestowed upon them. They called these powers Essence. Users of Essence can shape it into different forms and techniques called Abilities. Abilities can fall into one of 2 different attributes: Manipulative and Destructive. Those whose Abilities fall into the Manipulative attribute can use their Essence to alter matter to create, while those with Destructive Abilities can destroy matter. The scale and effectiveness of these Abilities is entirely dependent on the individual’s amount of Essence. The more a person develops and reinforces their connection with the island, the deeper their well of Essence becomes.

                Sycorax was a freak of nature to the people of her village, born possessing more Essence than even her seniors, who had strengthened and honed their connections to the island tirelessly for years just to boost their Essence by a moderate amount. Given the amount of Essence that Sycorax possessed, it was clear that her Abilities would be powerful, unlike anything ever seen before. Her Essence continued to grow as she did, and the people grew to fear her boundless potential. She would often be mocked and harassed by the other children for being “different”. She maintained a calm composure, and was compassionate and caring towards her peers, despite this torment and mockery.

                Sycorax was out gathering berries and other ingredients when the Manjiku resurfaced. The people were entirely ill-equipped and unprepared. After all, they lived in peace, free from strife and conflict, not even warring among themselves, so they had not the need for warriors. In an effort to buy time for the people to escape, the island’s most powerful Essence wielders stepped up to confront the legendary beast. Despite having spent years strengthening their connection to the island and honing their Abilities, they were destroyed with but a single strike from the terrifying abomination towering over them. With the island’s defense efforts having failed, Manjiku wasted no time in feeding on the villagers, moving hastily from village to village, leaving only destruction and ruin in its wake.

                Sycorax returned to her own village, only to find it actively under siege from Manjiku. She watched as it demolished the houses and dined on those who she cared most about. Something inside her snapped, and her cool, calm composure diminished. Now, there was only rage, her fury comparable in size to Manjiku itself. The full scope of her Essence power revealed itself. A wind kicked up, surrounding both her and Manjiku, growing.

“Larger… Faster…”, she whispered.

The strength of the storm paralleled the intensity of her fury. The wind began to rotate, both around them and under her, lifting her higher.

“Faster… Higher… Stronger”

The swirling storm around them grew in both strength and size, transforming into first a cyclone, before becoming an unruly, violent tempest, now surrounding the entire island of Argier. The rotation continued to increase in speed.

“Faster…”

The tempest spun at speeds high enough to pull and carry the water away from the shores, essentially parting the sea around them.

“Higher…”

She was now at eye level with Manjiku. For a split second, she could see the sheer terror and fear in its pupils. Manjiku was scared.

“Perish.”

The sky flashed brighter than the sun, before dropping a wicked bolt of lightning upon the monster, its heat rivaling that of the hottest fires of Hell. The still rampaging winds carried what ashes remained of Manjiku back out to sea, before dissipating as Sycorax’s rage was quelled, her thirst for blood quenched.

                Over 60% of the Argierian population was wiped out that day. Those who survived called her the Guardian of Argier. The next few years were dedicated to rebuilding the island. With Manjiku gone, the prophecy had finally been fulfilled. The people thought that they would be able to return to a time of peace. They were wrong.

                During the battle with Manjiku, the tempest created by Sycorax extended to the farthest reaches of the island. Unbeknownst to neither Sycorax nor the Argierians, a small ship carrying pioneers from a far away country landed just off of the southern coast of the island. When the impossibly fast winds reached the vessel, both it and all but one member of its crew were destroyed. The remaining member was found washed up on the shore by Sycorax. She brought him into the village, where his wounds were tended to by those whose Abilities used Essence to heal others. The Argierians were surprised to discover that people with a skin color other than theirs existed.

                His name was William, and he lived among the Argierians and learned about the secrets of the island, and even more so about Essence. He later married one of the villagers, and produced a son, Ariel, whose skin was a smooth caramel color, as a result of the stark contrast between his father’s milky-white color and his mother’s dark, chocolate color. As a hybrid, while still having some amount of Essence, Ariel’s potential capacity for it was still considerably weaker than his pure-blooded brethren.

                A few years later, a second vessel from the far away country landed on Algier, with orders to investigate what happened to the crew that should have landed several years prior. They discovered Sycorax’s village, and more importantly, William. He was taken back to the far away country and interrogated about his experiences on Argier. Upon learning about Essence, he perceived the island of Argier as an exploitable resource, and the Argierians as a threat. He immediately dispatched multiple ships to the island, with the intent to take it over.

                William had developed a weak connection to the island during his stay, and developed a Manipulation attribute Ability, which allowed him to recreate the ripples in the air created by sound over long distances. Having learned of the kings plan, he used this Ability to relay a message to the Argierians. Upon receiving the message, Sycorax kept watch over the seas, using her Ability to defend the island from the invaders. However, due to her being unable to tell the difference between the enemy and a passing vessel, every so often a cargo vessel or fishing boat would be sunk. The odd disappearance of ships around this area of Bermuda led to the worldwide belief of the Bermuda Triangle being cursed.

                Despite her immense power, Sycorax’s defense of the island was unsuccessful. The defense had failed before it had even begun, for William had carried an “Ability” of his own separate from the one he had developed on the island: Disease. While nothing more than a moderate cough for him, to the Algierians it was akin to a bioweapon, as they had never been exposed to it before. The Great Extinction, as it was called, decimated the Algierian population in mere weeks. Believing that the Disease is caused by those with the light skin, Sycorax turned to Ariel and, in an effort to cut off what she believed to be a potential source, began to transform Ariel into a great tree.   “I’m sorry, but this is the only way.” she said, as the boy’s face became a thick bark. Sycorax wept, for she had failed as the Guardian of Argier.

Only a handful of Argierians remained…

15…

10…

3…

Then there were two: Sycorax, and a small child she had found while scouting the island for any remaining survivors. He was disfigured, strange… he was a “freak”, like her. Unlike her, however, he did not seem to possess any amount of Essence. “How odd.” she remarked. She adopted him and named him Dulé, which means “People”, because to her, “freaks” are just as much of a person as anyone else. He would not remember this name, however, there would be no one left to call him by it.

                Sycorax was dying from the Disease. That was inevitable. Using her Essence to both protect the island from outsiders and prolong her life by using the creation attribute to replace the ones destroyed by the Disease took a large toll on her, and she couldn’t replenish the Essence at the same rate it was being consumed. In an attempt to prevent Dulé from contracting the Disease, she used up all of the remaining Essence in her body to destroy herself, along with the Disease. In her dying breath, she whispered: “You are the last one… Protect… this… place…”.

                For many years, Sycorax has kept watch over the island as its dutiful guardian. But that was then—now Dulé is its protector, its guardian.

                With Sycorax dead, the technique of Essence wielding is lost, and the island of Argier is no longer safe from outsiders. Dulé, still a child, with no Essence to defend himself with, watches the sea from atop a large rock, and as the ships land one by one, prepares himself for what is to come…

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT STATEMENT

I HERBY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THIS PROJECT WAS CREATED ON LANDS THAT ARE THE TERRITORY OF THE FOLLOWING TRIBES:

CHICORA

WACCAMAW

CATAWBA