The Lost World
From Create Your Own Story
You wake, groggy from sleep but also eager to begin the day. It is March 4th, 1930. Today is your eighteenth birthday; the day that you truly become an adult in the eyes of your nation. You’ve been expected to take the responsibilities of an adult for some time now, of course, as is always the case with teenagers, but today, you finally have the legal status to accompany that. There’s more going on today than your birthday, though. One month ago, the Queen, an impressive but elderly woman much-loved by her nation, announced that as she had no successor, there was to be a competition to select one. The day of that competition is today.
On the bookshelf sits a pamphlet printed for international visitors who are unfamiliar with Damarcus’s unique way of life. It is well-thumbed; as a child you loved to reread it over and over, enthralled by the foreign description of what you knew as home. You thumb through it again now, losing over the nearly-memorized text:
Damarcus is a rich and fertile land: the soil is dark and dense, and plants grow well here. But Damarcus is not well-known for farming. The nation is one of rainforests and jungles, of mysteries unknown to the rest of the world. Homes here are built high in the tops of Damrcus’s immense trees, connected by a network of bridges and platforms, where they are not forced to contend with the frequent flooding that accompanies rainfall in this part of the world. Transportation is handled via simple aeroplanes and hang-gliders, which take advantage of the continuous gentle winds—children learn at the age of ten to operate a hang-glider, and at sixteen, are able to receive license to operate a simple, small aeroplane, capable of holding two persons no heavier than 180 lbs. each, made from durable woods and metals unique to Damarcus, with which they may travel distances greater than their hang-gliders could take them. The hang-glider and aeroplane are precious to Damarcan citizens; as it is their primary mode of transportation and of interacting with the world, they form a close bond with the machine.
The main exports of Damarcus are found, however, on the forest floors—precious animal furs, eautiful exotic woods, low-hanging fruit in every color of the rainbow. Below even the forest floor, mining operations are at work, harvesting all manner of minerals and gems unique to Damarcus. One might wonder why, if so much of Damarcus’s riches are to be found on or below the ground, the society itself exists so far removed from it. The answer is that with those extreme riches comes almost unimaginable danger. The animals native to Damarcus are extremely common and dangerous, and in the early days, before the natives of Damarcus chose to make their homes in the treetops, raids by the jungle’s creatures were frequent and devastating. These days, only a few specially-trained groups of individuals are given permission to venture to Damarcus’s surface.
The nation of Damarcus is a monarchy, ruled by a Queen. The first Queen was an explorer, the one who first discovered Darmacus. She founded a colony here, and over many decades, the colony achieved freedom and became the nation Damarcus. Damarcus has no King; the Queen rules alongside a Parliament that balances her power. She is aided by her children, who are given the title Lord or Lady, and the advice of her husband—should she choose to take one, and should she seek it. It is not necessary for a Queen to marry, or even to have children, and should she marry, her husband gains no title or power. If the Queen does not have children, she may choose a successor, or opt to hold a competition to choose one. The current Queen is Marie Taglia, born 1846, with no current successor.
Children born in Damarcus sometimes exhibit unique abilities unknown to most of the world; these are more common in female children, and seem to be amplified by exposure to certain elements found in the forbidden parts of Damarcan jungles. The royal family exhibits these abilities very strongly, and the Queen strongest of all. If more than one female child is born to a Queen, succession is based on strength of ability, not on age. Children exhibiting unique abilities are required to attend training for them in addition to their regular mandatory schooling.
The competition begins in four hours, in the capital of Almaput not a ten-minute aeroplane trip from your home. It will have many stages; the first, the one that begins today, is a challenge which should be familiar to any Damarcan child—an obstacle course on hang-glider. It is a dangerous competition; a fall from the hang-glider during it will almost certainly mean death. The first fifty girls aged ten through twenty-four to complete the course will proceed to the next stage in the competition, and only those who exhibit ability in Magicka—the unique ability some Damarcan children show—are permitted to enter. Fortunately, you have some ability in Magicka, although it is refined only to the extent of curing minor illnesses or healing small injuries.
As an eighteen-year-old, you must now decide which direction to take your life. You may enter the competition, hoping to win your place as the Queen’s successor (or at least postpone any other life-changing decision), apply to a scholarly house of Damarcus to pursue an academic field, or choose a trade. At this point in your life, it is mandatory that you follow some course of action; Damarcan law insists that at eighteen years of age, all youths submit a declaration of intention in some field. You have postponed the decision as long as possible.
What do you want to do?
- Enter the competition
- Apply to scholarly houses to pursue further academic work or scientific studies
- Apply for a permit as a trader pilot
- Join the Damarcan border military
- Join DMAGI, Damarcan Mineral and Gem Inc., the largest exporter of gems in Damarcus
- Join up with the Wildlife Protection Agency, which prevents poaching and protects restricted areas on the surface
- Get an apprenticeship with an artisan in Almaput
