Beings once only seen in fairytales now walked the earth beside us. Elves, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, orcs, and trolls were now part of modern society, every year more species thought to be only imaginary appeared, causing a constant upheaval in the natural order.

In the beginning, the mutations were treated as a disease attacking the general population. People would get sick for a week or two and then transform into one of the awakened species. After a few tumultuous years, the rate of these changes slowed down. By the time the dust settled, approximately 10% of the population had under gone this metamorphosis. Considering the world had passed the 10 billion mark of population that gave us nearly one billion individuals of awakened species spread across the planet.

The ramifications of both magic and the newly awakened species turned the geopolitical world on its head. Because human tendency is to distrust anything that is different and we do not understand, those of all races set aside their differences and united against the newly awakened species. This created a new kind of tension in society.

The awakened just wanted to figure their lives out and discover a new normal since their social and emotional lives underwent an upheaval as great as their physical lives. Seldom did the same person exist after the transformation.

—————————-

Technology had continued to move forward at a frightening pace. Artificial Intelligence reached its pinnacle in the creation of self-aware computer systems. These systems began to handle an alarming amount of the day-to-day tasks, which took place in the ever-growing internet. Everyday people worried, “Could these systems turn on us? Will they turn on us?” So far mankind has been fortunate, but the final answer lies in the future.

The continued expansion of the internet gave rise to a new breed of computer professionals. As with so many facets of life, there were those who worked within the system, as well as those who worked from the shadows sowing chaos within the digital world.

Scientists and doctors agree one of the greatest achievements in memory was the installation of computer hardware into the human brain. This hardware allowed an individual to literally catapult their consciousness into the ever-growing internet, now called by many the grid.

The grid is capable of projecting a life like immersive virtual reality world into the minds of those willing to brave the implantation process.

The people who chose to enter this digital world help corporations make and lose fortunes every day. Among those who venture into the grid there is another group. Those who bare the title “grid runner”. All are thrill seekers, some desire only pleasure for themselves, some simply wander sowing chaos in their wake, while others hope to bring to light the wrongs committed by the corporations. There are those who believe this final group to be heroes, while others perceive them as criminals.

————————–

Outwardly, most common people of the world believe the façade of democracy the United States projects. Yet those who have studied the rise of the mega-corporations know the painful truth, which the news networks conveniently ignore…  Our once great country is now run by politicians who are mere puppets for these international business entities.

Those who wish to fight the system face a monumental task. Most who try fail… erased from the history of the world never to be remembered…

But then there are others… brave, fool-hardy souls… who refuse to bend a knee to the inevitable… those who scream against the unstoppable storm of the modern world…

A lonely rancher from New York who is touched by the spirit wolf…

A little girl who dreams of being a grid runner…

A quiet zoologist… chosen by the healing spirit of bear…

A dwarven bar owner whose life is more than it seems…

A young child who has spent her entire life being hunted by government agents…

A band of skilled mercenaries who live in the shadows of society…

A former military experiment unable to forgive herself for tragedies of the past…

Join me as the lives of the unsung heroes unfold… may their stories ring through history….