The island that the Conglomerate occupied was, in essence, largely man-made. The main island where the tournaments and challenges took place were the only naturally occurring land for a couple hundred miles.

Around it had sprung up a man-made island that was bankrolled by the Conglomerate. Officially known to the rest of the Seas as the “Motu ‘oe otu Tu’i”, the island had begun it’s life as a small meeting place for fabled warriors. Around it, and the Tu’i, grew this man-made island that slowly spread itself out over the surrounding void-ocean. Using currently available mana techniques the island had slowly expanded in response to the growing population that was collected.

The Conglomerate, as it is colloquially known to most, had been established not long after the first Tu’i appeared. At the core were the Faifekau, the witnesses who were either offered to the Conglomerate or were chosen from the surviving challengers of the Tu’i. At the top were the Kāinga, a collection of the most experienced Faifekau who were tasked with overseeing the members and the upkeep of the organization. Seniority within the organization was determined based on how many challenges a Faifekau had witnessed.

Outside of the Faifekau were the various support staff that assisted with the running of such a large organization. Many of the support staff were either failed candidates or various inhabitants of the Seas who had joined the Conglomerate.

Due to the Conglomerates enigmatic nature the island was treated as its own city-state, beholden to none of the existing nations or alliances that were currently in power across the Seas. Located in a remote region of the void-sea, the island was accessible only by specialized ships. Access is strictly controlled by the Conglomerate. Everything on the island belonged to the Conglomerate and all who lived on the island were considered members.

On the scale of political power, the Conglomerate held much more power than a majority of the smaller nations. Many nations offered candidates, both for the tournaments and for training as a Faifekau or a member of the organization. These nations believed this would win them favor with the group. They all remained blissfully unaware of the true nature of the island.

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Nima stepped out of the shadowy entrance to the main arena and was followed by Rua. The two made their way down towards the common quarters.

The various members they passed paid them no attention. Even though they were essentially gods most of the Tu’i were relatively unknown to the general populace, of the island and the Seas at large.

This was due to Nima. He hated unnecessary attention and actively sought to make sure that his true identity remained unknown to the world at large. He had the Kāinga ensure that any information about them was kept secret.

While he didn’t forbid any of the other Tu’i from making themselves known, most of them followed his example and remained reclusive. A few had chosen to make themselves publicly known, but only as representatives of the Conglomerate. They guarded their identity as a Tu’i vehemently but enjoyed the acclaim and benefits of identifying themselves as a member.

Their destination wasn’t too far from the entrance to the arena. Down along one of the man made beaches was a closed off area that served as a gathering spot for many of the members.

As they approached one of the members noticed Nima and waved at him. “Main, been a while.”

Main was the name Nima used when he’d leave the Domain. He wasn’t very imaginative. Being a man of very few words he spent very little time deliberating simple issues. Naming conventions were one of the things he rarely gave any thought.

“Adi, good to see you.” the member said as he handed the two Tu’i cups that had been made from the halves of a coconut. Adi was Rua’s name before she had become a Tu’i and she continued to use it outside as well. Despite her gruff exterior Rua was very sentimental and still held on to many of the connections from her previous life.

Nima gave a slight smile as he accepted the cup and held it out so it could be filled with the dirt brown concoction that the member was stirring.

“Been busy in the arenas eh?” asked the member as he filled both cups. Like most members, he assumed that the two were workers in the arena. The only members who came down from the arena were those who worked as support staff there or were Faifekau. And the Faifekau rarely mingled with lower members.

“Mm, they had a challenge.” was Nima’s curt reply as he quickly downed the muddy liquid.

Drinking kava was one of the few things Nima still partook in that had any connection to his previous life. He didn’t even like the stuff, it was mostly for the sake of nostalgia. While he never felt the need to make up excuses for what he was up to, he preferred to have a reason.

“I heard. The Tu’i let loose a bit didn’t they?” The member asked, chuckling a little as he refilled Nima’s cup. “I’d love to watch them one of these days. I’ve heard the stories. We felt the shift, some of the Builders claim a new area cropped up during the challenge.” He motioned his ladle to Rua who politely declined.

“I wonder what they look like. Have you ever seen any of them?”

Smirking, Nima downed his cup and shook his head, both at the question and the bitter drink that sloshed down his throat. “Nah, they never let me.”

Rua chuckled a little after having just downed her own cup. She enjoyed seeing the leader relaxed and away from the Domain.

The member gave a hearty chuckle as he took both cups and refilled them. “Hah I’d be surprised if any of us meet one.”

Nima and Rua continued to smile as they began to get settled, the root water slowly beginning to take effect.

On the horizon the sun began to set, casting a long shadow over the parts of the island it couldn’t see anymore.

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The Domain is a space that only the Tu’i can access and freely enter and exit. This privilege is granted to all the Tu’i once they’re accepted into the fold. As a location it exists between worlds, not wholly being of the physical or the spiritual world.

The Domain itself is a formless area where all the Tu’i spend most of their time, sequestered away until called forth by Nima to accept challenges. When in the area all of them can choose whether they want to take their physical forms or whether they want to assimilate into the domain.

Each of the Tu’i have carved out their own areas within the Domain. Within these personal spaces they are given free reign and complete control.

In a corner away from the main area, ‘Ekolu had his area.

He had conjured images of his childhood home. A small, cozy, grassy plateau ringed by tropical trees. On the plateau sat a small raised hut, built in a way that would protect it from any flooding by having the foundation raised. Jutting out and away from the small entrance was a little overhanging area that he liked to use as a porch.

Because of the amorphous qualities of the Domain the interior of ‘Ekolu’s little corner reflected whatever he wanted. His room was cast in a perpetual twilight, a beautiful setting sun bouncing it’s incandescent rays off of a darkening sea serving as his backdrop.

‘Ekolu sat on the porch, his huge frame nearly dwarfing the small hut. He breathed heavily as he wiped himself down with his hands.

Slowly his form began to deflate as his body released the pent up pressure. The air around him sizzled as he rapidly shrank in size. He continued to deflate until his appearance changed to that of a child. A heavily tattooed child who had a little too much muscular definition.

Due to the compression of his form his legs went from being firmly planted on the ground to dangling off the edge of the porch. When he finally stopped shrinking he let out a long, shaky sigh before breaking into an ugly fit of crying.

The formerly large man was now rolling around in the body of a child, bawling. He yelled and screamed and let all his frustration out. Streams of mucus flowed out of his nose and mingled with his tears. The mixture was flung around, staining the exterior of the hut as his voice crescendoed in the shrill wails of a child.

Contrary to his usual appearance ‘Ekolu was given the nickname “Cry Baby” by Nima after the huge man had become a Tu’i. As a candidate ‘Ekolu had made it all the way to the final showdown by himself. He had ripped through the tournament without any help, taking down groups of candidates at a time. His Advent had been one of the easiest to date.

And yet when the man lost to Nima he had devolved into a fit of crying that had thrown everyone off. This amused Nima to no end and the offer was made.

As he began to calm down he slowly began to regain his usual form. Regaining control over his emotions, the Tu’i slowly sat up and wiped his face. After taking some deep breaths the large man let out some shaky breaths before standing up.

He let out a formidable roar as he stood, flexing his impressive muscles before settling down and regaining his composure.

Out of the hut poked Wha’s head, smirking as she asked “You finally done? Big baby.” She mockingly pouted as she stuck her tongue at him. “Hurry up.”

The big man entered the hut that he could barely fit in after discarding his malo.

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Located not too far from the arena were the ports. With mana ships arriving and departing daily there was a constant flow of travelers. Most were candidates arriving to prepare for the next tournament. New groups arrived daily, some arriving as sponsored candidates who were supported by either outside groups or the Conglomerate.

One of the sponsored groups was currently disembarking. A group of strange foreigners who had heard about the enigmatic Tu’i.

These men were of the cloth and were here as emissaries of the One Church. They had come to the Seas to spread their beliefs and to turn the heathen masses away from their blasphemous ways.

So far they had found the task nearly impossible. Many of the nations in the Seas had many gods and had mocked them in their attempts to claim that their single god could be more powerful than the many that the natives worshipped.

During their travels they had converted a few natives here and there and these natives now served as translators. Through them the foreigners had heard about the Tu’i and the Conglomerate. The foreigners saw a chance. They believed that if they were able to convince this enigmatic corporation to join their religion then they would be able to make headway with spreading their beliefs.

After getting into contact with the Conglomerate they were surprised when they were invited and offered a sponsorship for the next tournament. They greedily accepted the offer, feeling that they could dominate any fighting force that could be mustered by the savages.