Magic Potential

Summer Camp 2026, Prompt 38: A congenital condition

Those with Magic Potential are, quite simply, those with the potential, but not necessarily the ability, to do Magic. The condition is congenital, and one is either born with or without the potential for Magic Manifestation, as it is called when one becomes capable of using Mana. All people with Magic Potential are capable of amassing Mana, but less than a quarter of people with Magic Potential ever undergo Magic Manifestation and become capable of using the Mana they have amassed to perform Magic.

Though Magic Potential has been known as a condition since before 1910, it is still unknown what truly causes the condition. It is not guaranteed to be passed down a family line (there are instances of two people with Magic Potential birthing children who have none, and even instances of people who have undergone Magic Manifestation having children with no potential), nor is it a guaranteed reaction to being exposed to any degree of mana in utero, as suggested by the research conducted throughout the 2000s and 2010s by Dr. John Eike and associates. Dr. Eike has proposed that Magic Potential may be a condition stemming from a combination of exposure to atmospheric mana in utero and a genetic predisposition, though this proposition is yet to be proven.

History

The first generation to have a relatively significant portion of people with Magic Potential was those who were born between the years of 1903 and 1908, though small numbers of people with Magic Potential had been discovered since early in 1884. It was in 1908 that many governments began recognizing that Magic Potential wasn't simply a random and extremely rare trait, though the world at large would only come to realize this fact in the 1970s. The population of people with Magic Potential has always been low, starting at 0.1% of the world in 1910, but quickly gaining more of a foothold until nearly 1% of the world's population has Magic Potential in 2032.

Type

Magical

Cycle

Chronic, Congenital

Rarity

Rare

Number Affected (2032)

Nearly 1% of Earth's population