The Story Keepers mixed with the Legion of Superheroes.

Disclaimer: The Legion of Superheroes and any other DC characters I use in this belong to Warner Brothers, DC Comics, and their respective creators while the Story Keepers belong to Focus on the Family Entertainment. I own nothing.

On Earth, during the year 3064 AD, the galactic emperor Brainiac unleashed his fury on the Christians for the crime of proclaiming a king higher than Brainiac.

Setting the city of New Metropolis on fire, Brainiac placed the blame on the Christians and launched a new campaign to wipe them out. Families were separated and children were left homeless as thousands were sold into slavery or worse, thrown to the lions.

Escaping the panic of the fire and dodging the advancing soldiers, a group of children found shelter in the gentle care of Clark and Lois Kent, a local farmer and his wife.

There, the children discovered an amazing, secret network of daring men and women who risked their lives to help one another and to tell the stories of the great story teller. The one called Jesus.

So awaiting the day when their parents would return, Imra, Dick, Garth, and Ayla embarked on the adventure of a lifetime. Their mission was to keep the stories of Jesus, from over 3000 years ago, alive.

This is their story. They are…

The Legion of Story Keepers

Breakout Part 1: Dick Grayson

If the torch still burns,

We will make it through the darkness…

Mrs. Ranzz sent her children Garth and Ayla off with their newly found friend, Imra, as several soldiers arrived. She prayed to God that they would see each other again. Her husband and oldest son, Mekt, had already been sold into slavery just a few days ago.

We will keep our voices strong.

We will be heard…

Garth, Ayla, and Imra rushed through the streets as Garth noticed some guards and pulled the two girls back. Garth had bright blue eyes with red hair and a birthmark over his right eye shaped like a lightning bolt. His five-year-old sister, Ayla, had the same hair and eye color but also possessed perfect, unbroken skin. Imra had pink eyes and blond hair. Garth hoped that they could find a safe place before the soldiers found them.

Now it's up to us to tell…

The stories…

Now it's up to us,

To carry on his word…

As the children rushed off, they arrived at a farm outside of New Metropolis as a man with black hair, blue eyes, and glasses looked out.

"Imra, any idea who that guy is?" Garth asked.

"Uh-uh." Imra said. "I'll read his mind to see."

As a former inhabitant of Titan, Saturn's largest moon, Imra could naturally read minds, but she was shocked when the man turned to her.

"You know young lady; it's very rude to read people's minds without their permission." The man said.

"Uh-oh." All three children said as the man knelt down, but to their relief, he smiled.

"My name is Kal-El, but it was changed to Clark Kent when my family came to Earth. Where are your parents?" Clark asked.

"Our parents were taken to be slaves." Garth said as Ayla hugged a stuffed monkey she'd brought with her.

"Mine were still in the house when Brainiac's soldiers set New Metropolis on fire." Imra said sadly.

"Well I'm sure they're all gonna be okay." Clark said. "Until we find them, you can stay here."

We'll march on and on,

And proudly keep the stories.

We will hold the torch,

And keep its burning flame!

And we'll pass on all the truths

And the glories!

Inside Clark's house, they met a woman with black hair and blue eyes who walked up to Clark and a younger boy, about twenty, who looked the same as Clark, but with longer hair and green eyes.

"Who are these three?" The woman asked.

"They're children who got separated from their families." Clark explained. "I promised they could stay here until we could find them."

"And you believe them, Kal?" The boy asked.

"Kell." Clark said. "They're just children, and they need a home."

"Clark's right." The woman said as she bent down. "Hello. I'm Clark's wife, Lois."

"Hi." Ayla said.

"Kell-El." Kell said with a sigh. "I also go by Karl Kent, but I prefer Kell."

"Good to know." Garth said. "So… Anything we should be aware of now we're here?"

"Yes." Clark said. "We're Christians."

"Oh, like Mommy and Daddy." Ayla said.

"Right." Lois said. "In fact, Clark's been preparing to tell a story at one of our meetings."

"About who?" Ayla asked.

"About Jesus." Clark said. "I'll give you guys a sneak preview since you'll be living here, and I need to practice. You see, when Jesus was a young boy well over three thousand years ago, he went to Jerusalem with his parents for the pass over feast…"

And we'll carry on…

Yes we'll carry on…

His name . . .!

()()()()()

A few weeks later, Clark was in the middle of a friendly market place in New Smallville.

"Fruits, vegetables, and grain!" Clark called out. "Fresh fruit, vegetables, and grain!"

"Hey Clark!" A blond friend of Clark's named Barry said. "I'll take four apples."

"Over here, Clark!" A Martian named J'onn J'onzz called out. "I'll take five!"

"Four apples and five!" Clark called out.

"Four apples and five." Imra repeated.

"Four and five wrapped and tied." Lois said with a smile as she held up a package of four apples and a package of five and handed them to Ayla.

"Get ready, Clark!" Ayla called out as she passed them to Kell.

"Cause here they fly!" Kell said as he tossed the apples to Clark, which he caught easily.

Clark then walked up to Barry, glad to have an excuse to talk to them.

"Hey Barry." Clark said. "I like the new shirt."

Clark then leaned Barry close so no one else could hear and whispered, "Meeting tonight at Snyder's Mill."

"Here you are J'onn." Clark said again as once more he leaned close to J'onn and whispered. "Meeting tonight at Snyder's Mill."

Clark tried to go to market once a weak as a way to have an excuse to talk to his friends naturally and inform them of the meeting times. His family had come to Earth from Krypton when he was ten and Kell was just a baby, following it being overrun with factories for Brainiac's various war machines. He managed to adapt well to Earth, especially with the extra powers Kryptonians got in the yellow sunlight, but he kept the powers to himself as often as he could to have a quiet life.

"Perfect for the kids." Clark said as he took a pastry sample from the baker and ate it. "I'll give you twenty credits for the box."

Clark then leaned in to the baker, Katar Hol, and whispered, "By the way Katar, meeting tonight at Snyder's Mill."

While Clark was talking with Katar, a young boy with black hair and green eyes, juggling several balls, walked into the road in front of the truck the gang was using as several oranges fell off and the boy quickly grabbed them.

"Why don't you learn how to drive?" The boy asked.

"Well why don't you stay out of the road?" Garth asked.

"Hey, those are our oranges." Kell pointed out as the boy began juggling them.

The people laughed as Garth was unable to catch them when Clark showed up to keep things calm.

"Nice juggling little fellow." Clark said. "What's your name?"

"I'm Dick Grayson." Dick said. "You know, if you really want a treat, I could juggle some of those watermelons in your truck."

"Well," Clark said with a smile. "I think we should see this."

Dick was given the melons and easily juggled them.

"Wow." Imra said. "How are you doing that?"

"Easy." Dick said with a smile. "It's all in the wrists and timing the tosses just right. Here, let me show you."

()()()()()

By evening, Dick handed Imra two small bean bags as she began to successfully juggle them.

"Dick!" Imra called out excitedly. "I'm doing it! I'm doing it!"

She'd never really done anything like this before. She'd always stuck to books.

"See?" Dick said with a smile. "You're doing pretty well, Imra."

Suddenly, Imra missed count and the bean bag hit her on the head.

"Ouch." Dick said with a smile.

"Imra!" Lois called out.

"Clark and Lois are really nice." Dick observed wistfully.

"Yeah, they're great." Imra said as she thought of how Clark and Lois selflessly took her, Garth, and Ayla in, something she doubted many others would have. "Clark's the greatest guy on Earth, and you should hear him tell a story."

"Oh, my parents are great too." Dick said with a smile. "We have a family circus act and travel the whole galaxy."

"Wow." Imra said in awe. "Where do you live?"

"Oh," Dick said. "Well, see that big white villa? We live in an even bigger one just behind it."

Imra looked at a large white house as she gaped at the idea of what Dick's house must look like.

"Imra, time to go sweetheart." Lois said with a kind smile.

Imra went onto Clark's truck as it drove off when she turned to Dick.

"Hey, why don't you come over to our meeting tonight?" Imra asked. "And bring your parents. Clark's gonna tell some stories about Je-"

"Imra, are you crazy?!" Kell said as he pulled Imra over to him. "Inviting a stranger to hear our stories? He and his parents could be spies for Brainiac."

"Kell." Imra countered calmly. "Dick's not a spy. He's our friend."

Dick waved good-bye as the truck went back to Clark's farm.

()()()()()

That night, at Snyder's Mill, everyone Clark had told of the meeting arrived, making the secret sign of the fish to prove they were Christians. Once it was proven, Kell would invite them in and get rid of the sign if it was made in any lasting way.

As everyone was there, Clark cleared his throat.

"Friends of Jesus, I want to thank you all for risking so much to come here." Clark said. He had removed his glasses since he only wore them as a way to hide the possibility of him being a Christian leader. "You know, some things never change. For example, when Jesus was teaching in Galilee, the Romans who occupied the city were so suspicious of gatherings; people had to leave the city to hear him speak. One day, Jesus and his disciples had gone across-"

Clark stopped when there was a sudden knock on the door.

Kell walked over to the door and saw the kid from that evening.

"You?" Kell asked.

"Is Imra here?" Dick asked as Imra got up on Kell's shoulders and peered through the hole.

"Dick?" Imra asked.

"We can't let him in." Kell protested. "He doesn't know the sign."

At that, Dick juggled two bean bags in the air fast enough to make the shape of the sign.

"Oh yeah?" Imra asked. "Then what do you call that?"

Imra opened the door and let Dick in.

"He could be leading Brainiac's entire army right to our door!" Kell protested. They could be dealing with what happened on Krypton all over again.

"Kell, he's just a boy." Clark said patiently. "And he's as welcomed as anyone."

"Where are your parents?" Imra asked. "Couldn't they come?"

"Oh!" Dick said as he thought. "They really wanted to, but they had a performance tonight for the Governor of Thanagar."

"Oh." Imra said, apparently accepting what Dick said, but Kell thought that Dick's response took a little too much time to say."

"Now where was I?" Clark wondered.

"People in Galilee had to leave the city to hear him speak." Garth said helpfully.

"Oh yes." Clark said. "Thank you, Garth. Now, Jesus and his disciples had gone across the lake to be alone, but when they came ashore, there was a great crowd waiting for him. It is said that there were five thousand people there.

"'Lord,' Jesus' disciple, Simon-Peter, said. 'We should leave this place. We'll get no rest here.'

"But Jesus felt sorry for them since they didn't have a leader.

"'They are like sheep without a Sheppard.' Jesus pointed out.

"So, he began to teach them. He told them God loves everyone. The good and the bad. The honest and the dishonest alike. He loves our enemies just as he loves our friends.

"'Surely God doesn't love the Romans!' A man called out. You see what Jesus said was very brave as there were freedom fighters in the crowd who hated being ruled by the Romans.

"'Love your enemies.' Jesus countered. 'Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who treat you badly. Do to others what you would have them do to you.'"

"'Lord,' One of Jesus' Disciples said after awhile. 'This is a lonely spot, and it's getting late.'

"'Send the crowds out to the farms and villages, so they can feed themselves.' Peter advised.

"Instead, Jesus said, 'You feed them.'

"'How?' Peter asked. 'It would cost a fortune to feed all these people.'

"'How much food do you have?' Jesus asked. 'Go and see.'

"They found a young boy who willingly offered his food, five loaves of bread and two fish but nothing else.

"'All we have are these five barely loaves and two fish.' A disciple pointed out.

"'Make the people sit down on the grass in groups.' Jesus advised, and they divided into groups of fifties and hundreds.

"Then Jesus took the food and gave thanks. He broke the food into portions and gave it to his disciples to feed the people, and everyone had enough to eat.

"'Gather up all that is left.' Jesus instructed his disciples. 'Let's not waste any.'

"The disciples did so and filled up twelve baskets with what was left over."

"Wow." The children said.

"Clark," Ayla asked. "What happened to the boy with the bread?"

"No one really knows." Clark said. "For all we knew he grew up and became a baker."

"Alright, that was an exce-"

There was a sudden pounding on the door.

"Open up in the name of Brainiac!" A voice called out.

"I told you that boy was trouble!" Kell shouted. "Quick, you all know what to do!"

Everyone hid in pots and Dick hid in a rolled up carpet as Kell quickly began grabbing some straw and began using a stick to mix it in with a fresh coating of mud for just such an occasion when several men broke the door down as Imperiex, one of Brainiac's top guards, stood there.

"You there." Imperiex said. "Where are all the Christians hiding?"

"Christians, sir?" Kell asked with a laugh. "In here? I'll eat this mud if you find any Christians in here."

Imperiex walked around and put his foot on the carpet as a small squeak came from it, and Imperiex undid the carpet to find Dick there as all the soldiers held blasters to Kell as he tasted the mud.

"You know, with a little salt, it wouldn't be all that bad." Kell admitted.

"Search this place!" Imperiex called out, and the soldiers found several of the Christians. Everyone made a run for it as Kell used his heat vision to cause the mud to harden and boil until it shattered and sprayed all the guards as he rushed off with his speed.

()()()()()

Outside, Clark did a quick head count.

"Garth, Ayla, Imra, and Kell." Clark said with a sigh as everyone smiled. "That's everyone. Thank God we're alright."

They then heard a carriage roll off as they turned to see Dick stuck in a cage.

"Dick!" Imra called out as she rushed to him before being stopped by Kell and Kal, causing Imra to weep as the two looked sadly at each other. Who knew what Brainiac was going to do to the boy?

Well that's the first chapter. Please tell me what you think.