Welcome one and all, take a seat and listen up, hear my tale of heroes! Today, we begin at the very start, with the day our heroes took the first step into the unknown and assumed the mantle of Champions. So, without further ado, let me begin.

The year: 2030

The location: Detroit, Michigan, at the intersection of I-96 and I-75

Sirens blare as two police cruisers speed past civilian vehicles, weaving in and out of traffic, in pursuit of an all but confirmed suspect. This criminal, instead of driving a car, was running down the highway at around 120 mph. This was made possible by the suit of armor he wears. It's an advanced power suit of his creation, capable of maintaining a high running speed for hours, loaded with missile launchers and even extendable wings. In the criminal underworld, he is known as The Phantom.

Using his enhanced speed and flight capabilities, the Phantom was able to evade capture and retreat to a nearby alleyway, where he planned on waiting for backup from his friend and co-syndicate leader, Cybron. As he sent a signal to said partner, Phantom heard are car door slam, causing him to look down the alley. At the end of the narrow path, a police officer stood, gun aimed right at The Phantom.

"It's the end of the line, Phantom. Nowhere left to run," the offer says with a gruff voice and strong tone as he loads large, specialized rounds into his gun.

"Please, you've tried this before; it didn't work last time. You know bullets don't work." The Phantom's electronically modified voice echoes down the alley. As he says this, a man in a suit similar to his, the biggest difference being that the suit has an additional pair of arms, jumps down from the rooftop. As this new armored individual falls, he fires multiple bullets out of his wrist.

"Cybron! We've talked about this. Don't kill this one!" The Phantom barks at the newcomer.

"I know, I know, chill man. I was just scaring him a little. You know, rattling the cage!" Cybron responds, words full of confidence.

The officer shifted his gun to target Cybron. Then he shifted it back to The Phantom.

"You criminals and the LL syndicate have caused too much harm in this city! It's time I take you down once and for all!" The officer spoke shakily, fear creeping up his throat, but he didn't back down.

"As I said before, you've tried bullets; they don't even make it through the first layer of my suit," Phantom replied, in a somewhat mocking tone.

"This is different from last time. Last time, we didn't have strong enough bullets. We've learned. The world has changed in the last few years; it's about time the police changed with it. This bullet will allow us to finally end your syndicate once and for all!" With those words, the officer fired his gun. The bullet pierced The Phantom's armor. There was a second of pain and then, suddenly, everything was dark.

9/11/2002

Today's set up to be a good day for Xavier Rue. He woke up early that morning, around 10, much earlier than normal, and he even ate breakfast. Xavier had multiple auditions for local bands. He's finally trying to do something with his life again. The sun shines on his pale face as he glides down the streets of the Nashville suburbs, guitar strapped tightly to his back. His red leather jacket kept the cool breeze away from his skin.

Xavier locked his bike in the bike rack outside the bar where his final audition was being held. The others went okay, but this one was going to be different, Xavier felt it in his bones.

"GET OFF THE STAGE!!! BOOOOOO!!!" A loud voice barked as Xavier entered. He was able to see the speaker, a tanned man in a tank top with spiked hair in a mohawk. "NEXT! Oy, it you that's up next, paley? You look like ya seen a ghost." The mohawked man chuckled as he directed his attention toward Xavier, and he gestured to the stage. " Wha' should we call ya, mate?"

"Riff. You can call me Riff." Xavier said, while attempting to quell the butterflies in his stomach. It's been a while since he's played so much in one day, especially in front of a crowd. She'd always helped him calm down before a show, but that's impossible now; he's on his own. Xavier drew in a deep breath and began playing his guitar.

Let's just say, by the end, everyone was on their feet, and a cascade of clapping erupted after he played the final note.

"That was... electric!" The mohawk man exclaimed as he clapped Xavier on the back. "You're hired!"

"Sick," Xavier said in his neutral, blank tone, hiding the small bit of excitement he felt. As he exited the bar and unhitched his bicycle from the rack, Xavier thought about how great his day had been. For the first time in years, he's actually had fun for more than a moment.

Xavier was whistling as he rode home. He reached a crosswalk, waited for his signal to go, and began to cross, moving merrily along, until, out of the corner of his eye, Xavier saw her. An invisible bystander standing firm in a crowd, almost hidden from sight, but never evading the eyes of Xavier. Time almost slowed in that moment.

"*sigh* And just as I was having a good day... You just had to show up. Please, just leave me alone." Xavier mutterred, stopping in his tracks. The only response he received was a cold, blank expression. They stared at each other for a moment, until *Hoooonk Hoooonk*, then *WHAM*, as Xavier was hit by a truck that had too little time to stop. The world began to darken around him. Then, complete darkness filled his vision.

"But I don't waanna go." Jeremy "Remy" Lane whined to his Grandmother. "Everyone there is so meeaan and stuck uuupp."

"They are not. Don't be so dramatic *cough*. It'll be fine. It may take some getting used to, but *cough* an imaginative 7-year-old-"

"7 and a half"

"Right, you're an imaginative 7 and a half year old, I'm sure you'll *cough* figure it out." The boy's Grandmother responded, somewhat weakly.

It's been a tough year for Remy. First, his mother passed away from a sudden illness, then his father died overseas on active duty, not long after that, his Grandfather died due to a heart attack. Now, the only family that he has left, his Grandmother, who is sick and not getting any better. Due to her failing condition, Remy's Grandmother, who is certainly in no trouble financially, is sending him to a fancy boarding school in the mountains of North Dakota.

The nurses and Jeremy's Grandmother try to be reassuring and cover up how bad her condition is, but Remy knows. His Grandmother just hasn't been the same lately, which, combined with the coughing, leads to a pretty solvable puzzle.

"Madam, the young sir's car is out front." A man in butler's attire said as he poked his head into the room.

"Thank you, Alistair. Jeremy will be down in a moment." Remy's Grandmother replied with a nod.

"Of course, Madam."

"Okay, Jeremy, it's time."

"But I don't wanna leave you. I'm fine here, I don't need to go." Jeremy said, sadness creeping into his voice. "Let me stay."

"Jeremy," His Grandmother spoke softly as she approached Remy, holding a blue zip-up jacket. She leans down and embraces him in a hug, whispering quietly in his ear, "I'm going to miss you too, but you have to go. *cough* I'm not able to take care of you at the moment, and the people at the school can. I know some of the teachers there; they'll help you more than I can." She pulled away from the hug and handed him his jacket. "Put this on, it's a gift from me. It'll keep you warm and remind you of me when I'm not there *cough*."

Jeremy wiped the tears out of his eyes and grabbed the jacket slowly, and he pulled it on over his button-up shirt and tie.

"Now, you be good. Can you do that for me?"

Jeremy nods, trying to hold back his tears and be brave, clutching his teddy bear tightly.

"Great. Now *cough* head downstairs, Alistair will take you to the car." Remy's Grandmother managed to choke out before breaking into a coughing fit. Alistair entered the room and began leading Remy downstairs, shutting the door quietly behind him. He led Jermey outside and into the car, then he got into the limo himself and drove off.

Rain fell hard outside the car window as Remy looked up the mountain at Hodgkins Preparatory Academy. They twisted up the mountain, the road slick with rain. Pools of water are forming on the edges of the concrete. Jeremy clung on tightly to his teddy bear, thinking about all the palaces he'd rather be than at this school. The limo screeched to a halt next to the school's gate. Alistair exited the vehicle, took out an umbrella, and opened Remy's door.

"Right this way, sir," Alistair said as he gestured toward the school. Jeremy slowly began to step out of the vehicle. His feet hit that muddy ground, and Remy completely lost his footing and *WHAM* his head hit against the limo's frame. His vision went completely black.

In the rolling fields of England, near the growing city of London, there lived a fox. This fox was quite curious indeed. Always exploring, always striving to learn. He often would sneak around the humans' homes to look at all of the interesting things that they had. The Foxes ' favorite thing that humans own are books; he loves books. All the knowledge he needs is contained in one him sized package. Although he does not know their language completely or the strange code they use in books, he does understand the pictures that the humans draw. His favorite books are the ones about nature, which have lots of pictures.

The Fox is careful to never get caught by the humans. He's learned what happens if they're messed with. He's witnessed his friends and family be hunted and killed. Because of this, the one thing he is never interested in investigating thoroughly is the instrument the humans use for these murders, guns. As much as The Fox loved books, he hated guns equally; they instilled a sense of fear in him, a powerlessness. No fox that he's met has been able to avoid the weapon.

Today, The Fox was enjoying a walk around his woods when he came across this large, fancy house. He noticed that the door into the home was open, and curiosity took over. The Fox entered into a huge library, bigger than he'd ever seen before, books lined shelves from floor to ceiling. He began exploring, but before he could get too far, he heard heavy footsteps coming from deeper into the house. The Fox scrambled to find a place to hide. He slid under a desk that stood in the corner of the room, across from the door he entered through. Because of his panic, The Fox slammed against the back of the desk by accident, knocking a book off the desk onto the floor in front of him.

There were rabbit diagrams, deer diagrams, and even diagrams of foxes. The Fox was enjoying it until he turned the page. Guns everywhere, of all shapes and sizes. The next page was even worse; it was a full drawing of a man hunting a family of foxes, with two already in a stack next to him. Although this sight frightened The Fox, it also fueled his curiosity; maybe this book could inform him on how to counter guns. Before he could ponder that thought, he heard fast-approaching footsteps and the rattle of a musket.

The Fox, seeing that if he stayed under the desk, he would be cornered easily, decided that he would need to dash towards the door if he wanted any chance of survival. So, he grabs the book in his mouth, slides out from behind the desk, and begins running towards the door. As he runs, The Fox turns his head to see a man approaching, loading a hunting musket.

*WHAM*

Because he was distracted, The Fox slams into a coat rack next to the door to the outside. The top hat that was hung on the rack falls, landing on his head, covering his eyes. Blinded and a little confused, The Fox shakes his head, readjusts, and sprints out the door, hat still restricting most of his vision.

He runs into the forest, weaving between the trees, the musket wielder giving chase, firing in his direction. The two run through the fields, over rivers, through the woods. Given his lack of vision, The Fox is relying on instinct and memory alone, and while that sufficed for a good amount of time, he did not anticipate a steep hill. The Fox began rolling, rolling, rolling, down the hill. His head slammed against a rock, and another. His vision started to fade completely as he slowly lost consciousness.

*Splash*

The hill deposited The Fox into a deep river. As he sank, he slipped more and more out of consciousness until his vision went completely dark.

This is the first post of a running series written about my current DnD Campaign. I hope to post each week (Although that may not happen, I'll try). Sorry that this week's post is so long. I plan for them not to be this long, for the most part. I hope you guys enjoyed it nonetheless. I'm looking forward to sharing about my campaign as it happens, and I hope you guys do as well!