Jadis en la terre de Bretagne prospère
Naquit un enfant doué du pouvoir sur le fer.
Erik est son prénom, et pour Shaw l'Enchanteur,
Il doit mener les Doués et laver leur honneur.
Elevé par Emma, blanche Dame du Lac,
Et aidé de Charles, le vertueux monarque,
Il part à l'aventure, en quête du Saint Graal,
Pour conjurer le sort, atteindre un idéal,
Et libérer les Doués du joug de ces messires.
Mais est-ce vraiment là son ultime désir ? (translation in the end notes)
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It was a time of ignorance and fear for Britain. It was a time of monsters and magic.
But that time was nearing the end. And the Mighty Wizard Shaw had a role to play.
Shaw was still a little boy when he discovered he had a gift.
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He lived alone with his poor mother in a small house at the end of the village, and did not know who his father was. No one knew. When someone asked his mother, she would tell a story about a demon who took her in her sleep and left her with a baby boy. They would laugh and leave; sometimes a mean peasant would even slap her and tell her to stop lying.
Now, years later, he believed her.
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His mother and he were despised in the village because of their situation. So when Shaw was outside playing alone, a group of older boys would often join him, and soon they were beating him. But it never hurt. He could not let them know, but the fists punching his face and his back caused no pain, no wound. On the contrary, they gave him strength. Each time one of the bully let his hand fall, he could feel a surge of power inside of him, burning his core, clearing his sight. He felt like he would soon explode.
It never happened though. He would lie there, crying fake tears, while the snickering group was dissolving. When he was finally alone, he would sneak in the forest and break as many trees as he could with his little fists, until his strength left him. Villagers thought there was a terrible bear in the forest. No one could know about his gift, not even his mother.
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One day – he was twelve – his mother was smacked again, and this time a huge purple bruise marred her tired face. He knelt before her.
"Mother, I promise I will change the world for you and you will never be beaten again."
"You silly boy," she sighed. A smile peeked through her tear-stained face. She took him in her arms and hugged him fiercely.
But he made the same promise to himself: he would use his gift and make the world better for his mother.
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When she died, two years later, he lost his purpose.
He was already old when he joined King Xavier's court. Grey strands of hair were showing on his temples and years had drawn deep crevices on his face. He was still handsome enough to charm anyone into agreeing with his schemes.
Once in front of the King, he showed his gift. He asked to confront the best warrior of the King's court, and reduced him to pulp after the first blow with a simple punch in his face. His strength still at its top, Shaw broke the man's sword with bare hands in a flash of lightning. He was rewarded with the title of Great Wizard.
It was not a selfless act though. The King needed his help to seduce a married woman, Duchess Sharon. Xavier was good looking and good natured, and his position as King of Britain was enticing, but the Duchess was faithful.
Shaw's power was useless in this case and he did not know how to succeed.
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He wandered in the forest, lost in his thoughts, until he reached a lake. The glittering still surface reflected the sky above and the green leaves of the trees around. It was quiet. Shaw sat on a stone, thoughtful.
He started when a hand touched his shoulder. He turned around and met with a beautiful lady. She was dressed in pure white cloth and her blonde hair was shining under the summer sun. She looked like an angel.
"Thank you, but I am very much human." Her radiant smile brightened her delicate features.
"Who are you, unearthly creature?" Shaw asked.
'I told you I am no angel, Shaw,' he heard in his head. It was impossible. How could she do that? How did she know his name?
"I am like you," she answered aloud. "I have a gift." And she turned into a crystal ghost, sparkling more than the surface of the lake.
"It is diamond, dear." She smiled and added: "We are not the only ones, Shaw. I saw Gifted everywhere."
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They talked a lot. Emma – that was her name – told him about her encounters with other gifted people. Some of them had a very physical gift and served as monsters in mazes or destroyed entire villages, bringing the wrath of humans on them, even when they were ordered by other humans. Others were deemed magical and became wizards or sorceresses, like Shaw. A few Gifted lived as hermits, afraid of their gift or of humans' reaction to it.
But in each and every case, they were lesser human beings. Even powerful magicians were only advisors for Kings and Dukes. When one of them proclaimed himself independent, soon a horde of knights would come and defeat him.
Shaw's blood was boiling. He had promised to change the world for his mother; he could still do it for himself and the other Gifted. But he had one problem to solve first.
"I have to help King Xavier in seducing Duchess Sharon, but I cannot use my gift to make it happen," he complained.
"I can help you," Emma said. "I can give the King the likeness of Sharon's husband, Duke Marko. And Xavier would not even know I was there with you."
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Shaw thanked her exceedingly.
They did as they had said. King Xavier shared the bed of Duchess Sharon.
That night, Charles Xavier was conceived.
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When Shaw went back to the lake with Emma, she locked him up in an invisible tower where she would keep him until the end of time. The Mighty Wizard Shaw had become the prisoner of the Lady of the Lake.