Alexander Vulcanus: The Reach

Chapter 1 - Dirt

"The segregation which has tormented us for so long, the same segregation which is used as a way to suppress the truth which we speak, must end. It is with great determination, with great vigor and with great courage that I stand here before you to say: It is you who are the enemies of the world, not us. Those of you which suppress us, those of you which suppress the truth, to fuel your own needs, your own capitalistic and fascist goals, you are the enemies. If you cannot agree on this, if you cannot come to terms with your own greed which led to this point in history then it is you who must perish. We are tired of it, and we will not surrender until we are either dead or we are free. "

-Alexander V., 89 AD

The Reach is a huge zone in the center of the 5 Wings and generally regarded as the mixing pot of Rome. The Reach is the largest market on the whole planet. It is the center for the production of swords, shields, armor, bows, arrows, and other assorted items and attire in Rome. Alexander, however, is in a smaller region of Rome, north of The Reach, called Dirt. Dirt is a tiny section comparatively, 'reserved' for people who were born with magical powers. Wizards are generally frowned upon in Rome, and they are blamed for the many wars that had made the surface uninhabitable hundreds of years ago. Regular men used to fight regular wars on the surface long ago, with shields and swords, but as time went on wizards began to surface in places around the world, one by one. After a while, many wizards began to appear amongst the regular population, and they were accepted as regular civilians because they never showed an interest in fighting or causing harm to others. This would be one of the few times Humans didn't try to murder something new just because they didn't understand it.

Everything changed when the Romans began to recruit them for their military however, many wizards were against wars but a few, only the worst ones, fed on it. These wizards began to change the tide of the wars for the greedy Romans, swiftly destroying anyone who might stand in their path of destruction and chaos. Soon, the other major countries on the planet learned of the potential of the wizards and forced them into their militaries by persuasion and threats. Wizards began fighting each other and caused massive, unparalleled amounts of destruction across the planet. Finally, with the militaries that enlisted their help unable to stop them, they eventually destroyed the whole surface of the planet, turning against the regular humans. Conjuring up terrible beasts that hunted and killed anyone who got in their paths, humans and wizards alike.

With the underground being the only safe place for people to live, the Humans ran. Some wizards, the ones that hid amongst the population that went underground were safe, but once they were found out, they were chased into the smallest regions of their cities or killed. Many used their collective powers to create a permanent forcefield that only accepted people with magical powers into their sections. In Rome, they transformed the dirt and made a field around their living area that kept the dirt in place. Because of the way that the section was kept, poor, no walls, and only dirt to close them in, it was named Dirt. Lots of wizards have tried reasoning with the populations since the Great War, sadly it has never truly worked due to the controversial past of wizards. In 67 AD a wizard named Alexander Vulcanus was born to a poor family in the heart of Dirt, and this is the story of how he changed Rome.

While Alexander walked down the lonely, broken pathways of his town, he thought about the market. How would it be possible for someone to know he was a wizard just by looking at him? What would he be able to sell at the market without giving himself away as a wizard? How to hide his magic? Alexander finally decided on potions, he could probably mix them with magic and claim he was only a talented alchemist who had been in training for a long time. While Alexander pondered the market, and what potions he would make, his mother and father prepared a cart for him secretly. Only a few hours had passed since Alexander had gone on a walk in frustration, and yet his parents had already decided that it would be beneficial for him to head to the market and understand what it looked like outside the small shelter of Dirt, despite the danger.

Alexander began walking towards home to confront his parents about his proposition when his friend Fiona, who was by chance an abnormally lucky wizard who had a significant history in alchemy, shouted his name. Alexander turned around and to his surprise, Fiona was running up with a book of alchemy, a pure coincidence. The reason, however, was of no surprise to Alexander; he had known Fiona, and her tendency to appear just when the time is right, for many years. As Fiona caught up to Alexander, who was by now standing still, he inquired, "Why have you called my name?" In response Fiona replied,

"I had a suspicion that you might have an interest in alchemy for some reason. It just came to me, like a vision. Seeing you walk by while I had been studying made me think to come out here and talk to you. So is my vision correct?"