WORLDBUILDING: Humans are the only race. The name of the country is Tamai, and there are four provinces: Vrisko, Oneiro, Thavma, and Meraki. Vrisko is known for its mountainous climate and abundant, snow-filled clouds. Oneiro, on the opposite coast of Tamai, is known for its clear skies and wide, hilly meadows. Thavma has thick evergreen forests with rivers and rain. Meraki has airy woods with morning fog and sunny afternoons. They each have several wizarding academies (some large and prestigious, some small and unassuming). Tamai has only a few holidays celebrated by the entire population. In early spring, there’s the Celebration of Life, where lovers, friends, and neighbors exchange gifts and display their magic and abilities. In late autumn, there’s the Harvest. School and work are temporarily shut down so people can enjoy dinner with friends and family. Then, in the middle of winter, is the Winter Festival, or Kryo. Kryo is celebrated with the exchange of gifts, the watching of stars, and dancing. Tamai is a presidency. Once every half-decade, they elect a new president with almost full power–except for the people, who can vote to have them removed or replaced. MYTHOLOGY: There are two major gods: twins, named Kleos and Doxa. They were born to the Great Paradox at the beginning of Time, and for many years they were satisfied with just each other. Then, something changed. It happened many centuries after they were born, but they were still young and lacking in wisdom (they were, however, full of competition). Doxa decided she wanted to create a world–so she did. Kleos wanted to outshine her, so he created little things much smaller than they were–plants, animals, and humans. Doxa continued to play the game, placing little stars in the sky. Kleos took her stars a step further, making spinning planets and distant galaxies. For a long time, this stumped Doxa. She shape-shifted into a human, and lived among them for quite some time. That was when it dawned on her. The humans had been alive for almost two centuries. What if they stopped living? So Doxa created death. This made Kleos quite angry, so he gave his beloved creations the means to stay alive–magic. It was at this point that the Great Paradox spoke to them for the first time in many, many eons. It created two realms, separate from that of the humans. One was for Kleos; it glittered with gold and marble pillars, and it was called Panta. The Great Paradox told Kleos, “It is here that the creatures who did good in their lives may go to rest after death.” The other was for Doxa, with its obsidian walls and amethyst throne, and it was called Lypi. The Great Paradox told Doxa, “It is here that the creatures who did bad during their lives may go to be punished.” Doxa looked at Kleos and his gleaming palace and eternal smile, and she knew she had no choice but to remain where she was. Seething with her anger, she took it out on the wicked souls. She cared not for the spirits of lowly mortals. Then, one day, it occurred to her that there may yet be a mortal capable of holy greatness. So she created a great darkness, and locked it in a box with seven locks deep within the earth. She took the seven keys and hid them across Tamai behind riddles and layers of legends. She spread whispers among the humans, saying that whoever found each of the seven keys and united them with the sacrifice of an innocent, the box would rise up from the depths of earth, and the darkness would be unleashed upon their enemies, and they would become a god. By chance and trickery, Doxa managed to hide her plan from Kleos and return to Lypi, where she waits for the holder of keys and the liberator of darkness. Very few people worship Doxa, and the vast majority of people worship Kleos.
MAGIC: There are three magic types: wizards, witches, and warlocks. Each division is classified by the nature of their magic and how the magic is channeled. Wizard magic is channeled through a staff or scepter. Wizard magic is a bit similar to science–it’s an exact art, learned in huge academies from books and chalkboard lessons. While most wizarding spells can be cast with an incantation, there are some that require runes–this is why most learned wizards carry around a piece of chalk or other writing utensils. Witch magic is channeled through a wand. Witch magic is also a bit like science, but only in the potions aspect–the measurements have to be precise, or it won’t have the proper effects. The spells cast by witches are fairly simple and often don’t require an incantation, especially if the witch is well-learned. Witches do have spellbooks and potion books, but they are less like textbooks and more like recipes handed down between generations. Witches do not go to schools like wizards, but are instead taught by another witch (whether it be a relative or neighbor) in what’s called an apprenticeship. Witches rarely take on more than one apprentice. Warlock magic is not channeled through any particular instrument; instead, warlocks need only their hands and natural body parts to cast spells. However, this ability, while convenient, is not preferable, for warlock magic is hard to control and even harder to master, and it often explodes out of the user when strong emotions are felt. Warlock spells do not require incantations, and sometimes they don’t even require hand movements. There are significantly less warlocks than witches or wizards, but they are believed to be more powerful. Then, of course, there are the people who do not possess magic of any kind. They are not very common (their percent of the population is just a little less than that of the warlocks), and even if they purchase a wand or staff, they will never be able to cast even the simplest of spells. Most non-magic folk admire the spell-casters, but there will always be people who envy or despise them. However, although there are quite a few people who are unable to do magic, almost half of those perceived to be non-magic are actually wizards and witches who couldn’t afford a wand, staff, or other supplies. Many peasants have fallen to destructive sickness that overtakes those whose magic falls into disuse. The magic within any spell-caster is discovered around the age of ten. With warlocks, the magic will do as it will always do–something out of control prompted by intense emotions. The most common initial manifestation of witch magic occurs when the young witch or someone close to them is injured, and the injury is healed; however, it can also appear in the increased growth of plants, the summoning of wind or fire, or other unique occurrences. Most often, witches are sensed by older witches–the same goes for wizards. Wizard magic can make its first appearance by a young wizard accidentally writing a rune (and henceforth casting a spell) that they possess no true knowledge of, or perhaps in the reading of books when time slows down (please note that other than in manifestations, time is not yet able to be bent, slowed, or paused). The most common way for children who possess magic to be discovered (and then able to be bought the necessary supplies for their magical pursuits) is through testing. Once a year, professionals come through each settlement, no matter how small, to evaluate the children ages ten and up who have not yet been tested for magic. This seems to be a rather foolproof method, although some particularly poverty-struck spell-casters will always be passed over for lack of ability to pay the minuscule fee.
