1 Chapter 1: A World of Mana
The world was always ruled by Mana–
—a statement that wasn't always true.
Mana was an energy that came from space a hundred million years ago– a bundle of energy that wiped out almost all the inhabitants of the planet it landed on. This energy, however, was ineffective against a type of animal, a mammal.
Not only were the mammals not affected by the sudden energy that rained down from space, but it also enhanced them. The mammals started absorbing this foreign energy, giving rise to new colorful breeds of creatures.
The ones that ruled the planet; dinosaurs, reptiles, avians– brought to the brink of existence as their biology could not adapt to Mana. They, who were once the predators of the world, became the prey.
How could they not be, when even the smallest of mammals could suddenly break their skull in half and bite off their limbs like they were twigs?
And so, millions and millions of years have passed and this Mana brought forth and giveth birth to the creature that would be known as the most intelligent and powerful of all– it gave birth to the Humans.
A species that was not only able to use Mana, but harness it and make it into something even more extraordinary– once again tilting the ecological balance of the planet.
The world was always ruled by Mana– a statement that was always true, but is now the biblical fact by which all creatures lived.
After millions and millions of years when it landed, everything revolved around it.
Mana is God, God is Mana.
Every mammal has and should have Mana in them.
But there are, of course, Deviants–
–Those who were born without Mana in their blood; they, however, die within seconds of their birth as their bodies were not able to breathe in the Mana contained in the air. Those who were fortunate enough to be alive, however, were not truly fortunate.
The Deviants are considered to be a bad omen; if a child were to be found without Mana, then that child would be hunted down by his or her own tribe… that is if he or she was not killed by their own mother first.
This was how civilization was created– by culling the weak. The humans continued on to be the rulers of the planet. Their tribes soon grew to become cities as their use of Mana grew even more diverse.
Their wooden tools, now becoming weapons of iron. And soon, they learned to inject Mana in their weapons– even those who had little Mana in their bodies were able to harness the strength of those that were abundantly blessed by them…
…leading to war.
This war, however, did not last long as it gave birth to something that changed the world forever. With an abundance of Mana collected in one place, the humans that took part in the war experienced the most horrendous part of human history.
The Mana Calamity.
The Mana that once brought them blessings seemed to turn on them, creating beasts that were made of pure Mana, the Hounds– eating the weapons they have created… and those that wield them.
Swords, Shields, Arrows imbued with Mana– only useful to an extent.
The humans have experienced fighting Mana Beasts, of course, as every mammal had Mana. But without the weapons that they have learned to rely on, the humans proved to be the lesser being. But of course, in times of tragedies… Heroes are born.
Heroes, no. Magicians that relied only on the raw power of the Mana contained in them. Within these Magicians, 7 stood out; and within these 7, one stood on the top.
Ragnar the Norseman.
A towering figure of a man that stood almost 8 ft; his stature, only matched by his foul mouth. The mana contained in a single finger of his was said to be equal to the Mana of an entire army. His hands, capable of ripping Hounds and Mana Beasts alike as if they were bread.
His strength literally paved the way for the humans to finally fight back.
And along with the help of the 6 other Heroes, the Mana Calamity ended, paving the way for the future. One might think that people would start fearing him for his strength and betray him in the end, but no.
Ragnar was treated like the King of the World. The people still feared him, yes; and they feared him great– but they respected him more.
So much so that when it came to the time of his death as an old man, the whole world kneeled for him. With his death, however, came another war for power.
His children, all vying for his legacy– trying to gain the strength of their father. But before this war could go on any further, they stopped it; learning their lesson from history.
But still, the strength of Ragnar the Norseman was known to men even hundreds of years later; with people trying to uncover the secrets of his strength. But not much is known about Ragnar before the war; his lineage, completely blank.
And soon, people just stopped. And the strength that Ragnar held just became a stuff for legends–
—not knowing that his strength was something they truly could not achieve; not because they did not look or train hard enough… but because they were creatures of Mana.
Ragnar the Norseman was born without Mana; lucky enough to be loved despite… but not lucky enough to escape the prejudice that came along with it. But still he survived– he survived as he discovered the greatest secret of the world.
And that secret, he brought with him to the grave…
...or perhaps maybe not?
512 AMC, 512 years after the Mana Calamity– Another Manaless Magician was born.
"What in Odin's fuck!? Unhand me, you big-titted giant! Do you not know who I am!?"
"Oh, is my little Marcus trying to say something? Are you hungry?"
Or maybe perhaps not, as Ragnar once again finds himself alive and well; his face… about to be suffocated by perhaps the biggest bosom he had ever seen.
"What… what is happening!?"
