The Frozen River of Babel

For thousands of years, witches lived in secret. Magic existed in every culture, hidden beneath folklore, religion, superstition, and family tradition. A witch could bend the world through sheer Will, but magic was never free. Push too far, and the body changed. Push further, and the mind began to disappear. These mutations became known as Scars, nature’s warning that there were limits even magic was never meant to cross. Then the witches revealed themselves. Almost overnight, the impossible became ordinary. Governments scrambled to regulate magic. Corporations hired witches. Old magical families stepped out of hiding and became some of the most powerful institutions on Earth. At the center of this new age sits Antarctica. Minerals recovered after humanity reached Jupiter have transformed the frozen continent into the most valuable frontier on Earth. Scientists, corporations, smugglers, witches, refugees, criminals, and fortune-seekers have all migrated south.