The History of Malum

Present Date: 2032


By the turn of the century, the world’s nations were constituted of three major superpowers known as Laurasia, Gondwana, and the Congo craton. Laurasia was formed between the two Americas. The majority of Europe, Asia, and Indonesia comprised the boarders of Gondwana. The Congo craton was made from the remainder of Europe and Africa. Australia would remain an independent state under legislature passed by the three superpowers. Due to the sheer size of the nations and the aptness each of their defences, Laurasia surrounded by two massive oceans, Gondwana protected by the natural mountainous terrain, and the Congo craton’s impervious industrial centres, it was near impossible for any one nation to overtake the other two (aside from a few minor movements along the European fronts).

A remarkable peace was brought about by the unwinnable war, also known as the Total-War. This peace was obstructed by a brutal assault against the Laurasian Embassy by the Gondwanian Prime Minister, Hao-Lin Cho, and the Congo craton’s Secretary of State, Vladimir Gobrov. Utilizing leaked Laurasian technology that had been perfected in 1984, the two politicians were able to obliterate more than three square kilometres of Laurasian soil. The device used for this attack was known as Project F.I.N.A.L. (Field Implosion Nucleus Anti-strongpoint Limiter), a warhead capable of obliterating all matter within a five-kilometre radius due to the creation of antimatter particles (positrons).

The attack led the way for countless assaults from every superpower against the others using variations of the nuclear warhead. The weapon was able to completely destroy various major cities, including Washington D.C., Ottawa, England, Paris, Moscow, Beijing, London, and New York City. Despite the acclaimed unique trait of the warhead, utilizing a mega-collapse effect in order to prevent radiation from exiting the radioactive core, the malfunction of one of the primary sequencers resulted in the release of high-energy particles into the surrounding area upon detonation. These particle waves were classified into two major categories known as Brønsted- rays and Lowry-rays and would change the lives of Earth’s inhabitants forever.

The heavily ionizing and exceedingly dangerous Brønsted-rays only traveled a short distance from the detonation site due to the particle’s high mass; however, its high charge meant that the particle’s nucleus would continue to decay for sometime after formation. The rays resulted in intense radiation burns and caused a type an alteration in the neurological behaviour of organisms exposed to the particles resulting in unceasing aggravation, paranoia, dementia, a depleting ability to reason.

Lowry-rays were far less dangerous; however, due to their massless and highly penetrating nature, they were able to travel incredible distances, while only lasting for a short amount of time. The radiation released from the Lowry-particles caused unusual changes in the human genome, as well as in the actual organisms. The particles targeted two major groups, the basal ganglion, and liver cells. The liver cells began to produce fat-soluble chemicals with similar properties to the particles, making them impossible to remove from the body completely. Nevertheless, the damage done to the basal ganglion was responsible for the most remarkable change.

People began to exhibit new skills and abilities that were beyond the normal human capacity. These powers were dubbed Crafts and those that used them… Malum. This change in the human race would spark struggles, conflicts, innovations, and miracles never seen before. The rest is up for you to decide.

Please note that the backstory was inspired by some of my favourite animes/books, including Code Geass, Full Metal Panic!, and 1984.