Prologue - The Arrival

"As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be...A hero."

James "Jimmy Legs" DeSantis

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PROLOGUE: THE ARRIVAL

~ Outskirts of New Reiswald, June 1948 ~

It was the middle of the night when the deathly silence of the forest was interrupted by a large "Boom". A trail of smoke could be seen rising high in the sky from a nest of burnt, toppled trees. The city centre was miles away, but several farming communities lay nearby.

Shortly after midnight, a pick-up parked itself along the trail leading through the woods. Two plaid-shirt & overall-sporting gentlemen stepped out, each holding double-barreled shotguns and flashlights.

"Alright," said the older man, "I'm gon' go check out what that noise was, you stay and keep an eye on this here truck."

"But pa," said the younger man, "It's dark 'n' spooky in there. Why can't we come back tomorrow mornin'?"

"Boy, quit your whinin' and park your ass near this truck! Holler if you see anything, mkay?"

The young man nodded slowly as his father made his way through the thick trees. After several minutes, he noticed something slithering along the ground not too far from him. The young man pointed his flashlight at the substance and found it resembled black tar.

"What in the heck is that?" he wondered.

Opting to get a closer look, the young man approached the substance and knelt down. It was as though someone in the woods had spilled molasses and it was now oozing its way along. The young man carelessly dipped his fingers into the substance and brought it to his nose. Whatever it was, it had no smell.

As the young man inspected the slime, he failed to noticed the shadowy figure rising from the ground behind him. By the time he turned to look behind him, the figure was standing mere inches away. Petrified with fear, the young man slowly reached for his shotgun...

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Meanwhile, in the woods, the farmer had finally reached the impact site; it was an enormous crater in the ground surrounded by toppled trees. In the centre of the crater lay the meteor, which was roughly the size of a football.

"Huh," he said, shining his flashlight, "What's all this here, now?"

The crater was filled with more slime, but it did not move. It appeared as though the slime was splattered across the impact site when the meteor struck. After inspecting the area for a moment, the farmer heard his son yell.

"Son?" he called out, "That you, boy?"

This was followed up by another blood-curdling scream. The man immediately bolted through the woods in the direction of his pick-up. When he returned, however, there was no one in sight.

"What in the..."

When the man turned back toward the woods, he saw a silhouette. He aimed the flashlight at the figure, revealing his son.

"Now don't you scare me like that again, boy!" he snapped, "Just what in the heck do ya think you're doin'?"

The young man said nothing; instead, he turned around and slowly approached his father while dragging his feet and twitching his fingers.

"Son?"

Without warning, the young man let out an inhuman roar, then charged at his father. A gunshot echoed throughout the woods, followed by the sound of the farmer screaming.