No one stood by Thomas. They thought he was weird. They thought he was weak in a world ruled by the strong. Maybe they were right. But history will mark him as the greatest hero that never lived...

(Note-This is a mixture fan fic, between Magic and D&D. So, it's kind of a WOTC fan fic. )

Earth, 2005

The crisp November air filled Samantha's morning with the usual childhood nostalgia. She loved the fall, more importantly the snow. The snow was all cleansing, after all. The snow helped her forget the father that drank instead of worked and the mother that died when she was little. The snow helped her come back from drugs and from bad lovers. The snow helped her remember the last shreds of her humanity that she held so very close to her heart.

This morning was the first morning in some time that she had been sober enough to go to school. She wasn't thrilled about going. It did nothing for her. She was too smart for the remedial classes, but not quite up to speed with the classes for her age. Samantha was a lost soul among an ocean of lost souls.

The leaves and frozen slush crunched under her shoes as she mad her way up the stairs into the high school, the sounds of stereos blasting either heavy metal and hardcore rap following her. Both felt like a large dose of "ouch" this early in the morning and right after a rather large party like the one at Travis' house last night. As the door opened, the old school bell rang. The tinges of pain in her head because beacons of agony in her post-inebriated state.

Samantha made her way to the bathroom for a quick smoke, and then made her way to the cafeteria for the state's free breakfast for the underprivileged. With her precious dry muffin and half frozen orange juice, she sat against the wall. She was alone and forgotten by the people that once called her dear friend. No one even gave her that pity stare from across the room anymore.

Not more than two painfully raisin filled bites into her breakfast, a new kid walked up to her. He was black hair that was messy (but thankfully not greasy), clothes that weren't all that new, and a brown backpack that was still black in parts. He smiled.

"Could I sit with you, fair lady?"

Samantha studied the boy for a long time. It broke Thomas' heart when the loneliest of lonely souls laughed at him and walked away.

Dainaria, Final day of the 99th year of the Silver Dragon

The diviner Kao looked out over the war ravaged lands. From his high tower, he could see all the way to the boarder of the smallest of the 5 great kingdoms, Dainaria. Dainaria once was the entire continent, holding the powers of the 4 great kingdoms as well as the countless minor factions that tried their hardest to either survive, conquer, or just stay the hells out of the way.

Kao was the finest diviner in any kingdom, which put a modest meal on his table. He had never been one for grandeur, just a skilled mage that happened to hit on the right woman at the bar one night. That woman was the princess and it was her pleading with the king that next morning that saved him from the suffering of his fellow commoners (It was also her pleading that kept the king from killing him for what he was caught doing with the princess the night before…).

Today marked the beginning of a new century. The turn of the century marked large changes in the sands of time, making them easier to gather quality readings and decipher them with little difficulty. Add Kao's supreme divinatory skill and he could most likely write an accurate book of prophesies for the coming century.

The diviner held his youthful eagerness in check as he prepared his spells and talismans for the rituals he would spend the day performing. The first he prepared was a simple top. He wrapped the string around the top's head and balanced it carefully in the center of a very particular table top. The table had countless runes and pictures, each with a specific meaning. This ritual was simpler than the other divinations he had prepared, but this would give him the questions those more complicated rituals required. On top of that, it was rather fun to play with the top.

Kao focused his energies into the top and felt the top respond. He pulled the string and top spun, glowing a faint blue. The top glided over the table, looking for the right spot to spin. For a few minutes, it darted to and fro, never losing its momentum. Suddenly, it froze over an icon. The aura turned bright blue, showing it had found its place.

Then, something unexpected happened. As Kao reached for the top, the aura changed to from blue to bright red. The top spun backwards, faster, waves of heat flowing off of it. Cracks began to appear and the top began to hum as it went faster and faster. At the crescendo of its unusual behavior, it exploded with a force large enough to send Kao and everything near the table go flying.

Once the young diviner regained his wits, he slowly approached the table. The blast had covered the table with black soot, except in one small spot where the top had been spinning. It had also damaged most of the runes. Working quickly, he set to work preparing new spells. He had to find what rune set off the top like that.

Earth, December 15th, 2005, 5:30 PM

Thomas made his way home after another long, horrible day of high school. Once again, he had been made fun of for his every step. A part of him had gotten over that a long time ago and accepted the fact that he was going to be alone until college at least. But, another part was angry. Another part was so very angry; at himself, the world, everything around him for the way things were. A part of him hated everything that lived.

The two halves fought as Thomas unlocked the door to his apartment and pushed it open. He lived with his mom. His dad and younger sisters lived across the country in California. Thomas had little love for his father, but he really did care about his sisters. He would have crossed heaven and hell to save them.

Tonight, his mom was working late again. This meant another pizza night. He was the only kid he knew that was honestly sick of pizza. It's not that Thomas didn't understand her working all the time. It was that he had honestly begun to forget what she was like. It had been at least a week before Thomas had seen her for more than 5 minutes.

Thomas threw his backpack on the couch and turned on the TV. He didn't really watch it. All that was on was about the wars and how peace talks were going well. He pulled out a large old shoebox and set up a chair at the kitchen table. The box fell apart as he set it down, cards spilling out over the table.

"Damn," he muttered, scooping the cards back into the box.

He took the lid off and began to sort through them. Tonight, Thomas was looking for a new idea for a new story. The one thing that kept his fragile sanity in tact was writing. In his stories and mind, he was the best wizard ever. In fact, he had spent a lot of hard earned money on all sorts of Dungeons and Dragons books to learn more about wizards and magic. One day, he would find the way to make it all real.

The telephone next to him rang. With a sigh, he puts the cards down and picked up the receiver.

"Hello?" he said.

"Corner of Pace and 5th, 20 minutes," the voice said hurriedly. What surprised Thomas more was the fact the voice was a woman's. "Bring all the cards your can. Oh, and those books of yours. 20 minutes."

Click.

Thomas stared at the phone for a few seconds. With a shrug, he hung the phone up. He laughed and sat back down with his cards. People had played this joke before. They pretended to be his friend then took turns beating the crap out of him. Most days, he might've gone down to play. But, tonight, he decided against it. He still hurt from the last time they did this.

The phone rang again. A little more agitated, he picked up the phone, the cards still in his hand.

"Hello?" he said, this time a little more forcefully.

"Thomas, this isn't a joke."

Thomas stopped breathing. It was the same voice as before.

"Get to the corner of Pace and 5th. You only have 19 minutes now and you have a lot of luggage. Now, march. Or, I'll come get you. And that will hurt."

Click.

This time, Thomas took a second to think. Could this be real? Could she really be asking for him for a reason?

Thomas packed all of his cards into his backpack and two sacks. In another sack, he packed up all of his books. After popping a few aspirin, he set out. The destination wasn't far off. He couldn't understand what the big hurry was.

In 10 minutes, he was on the corner. In the back of his mind, he could see how ridiculous he must've looked. A 17 year old kid holding three bags and a backpack. Honestly, he felt like kicking his own ass.

As if someone had read his mind, three thugs walked out of the store across the street. They grinned and pointed at the boy. Thomas sighed. It was a joke. Now, he got to pay.

The thugs walked over and surrounded him, circling like vultures.

"Hey, boy," the small one said, "What are you doing out so late? Don't ya know the streets are dangerous?"

"Yeah," another said, "There's all kindsa thugs and dangerous folk. Why, you never know when someone's gonna mugs ya."

"Yeah," the big one said in a tone that showed he might not have been the mental giant of the bunch.

"Well, boys," the small one started again, pounding his fist into his palm, "What's say we teach the boy a lesson?"

The other two nodded in agreement and flashed horrible grins.

"Stop," a voice commanded. A woman's voice.

The three would-be muggers turned and found a young woman wearing a white cloak. Behind her stood a man in a blue cloak, the hood up over his head. The thugs laughed.

"What the hell?" the small one said, "It ain't Halloween, bitch. Now, run along or we'll get y'all next."

"But we outnumber you," she said. With a grin, she added, "That means there's more of us than of you."

The small thug reached behind and pulled out a pistol. He grinned.

"This here's a cop's gun," he gloated, "He thought he was hot stuff too, but we showed him. Now, run along or I shoot."

The woman simply smiled. She leaned back against the wall, not looking concerned. It seemed that only Thomas noted a piece of paper fall from inside her cloak. The thug just shook his head.

"I tried," he said. Then, he pulled the trigger. Or, more accurately, he tried to pull the trigger. The gun melted into a burst of white light. The small thug staggered back, scared.

"L-Let's go!" he cried and the three ran off. Thomas just stared. The woman very carefully bent down, picked up the paper, and replaced it in her robe.

"A simple Disenchant and they take off to the winds," she said to her companions, "I wish that the monsters back home were so impressed."

The man chuckled. Then, the woman returned her attention to Thomas. He nodded.

"It was you that called, wasn't it?" he said, his voice firmer than he thought it would be.

"Yes," she replied softly, "Forgive my pleading for hurry, my diviner saw you would take longer than you did.

The man in a blue cloak bowed low.

"My apologies, Mistress Aerna," the man said, "It seems my powers are weakened on this plane."

Thomas blinked. Powers? Plane? Could it really be…?

Yes, Master Thomas, a voice echoed in his head. He looked around franticly for the source of the voice. The man in the blue cloak cleared his voice.

"Once again, I apologize, Master Thomas," he said, "I let my mind drift into yours a bit."

The woman in the white cloak giggled.

"It seems you can't do anything right today, Kao," she muttered, grinning. This drew a chuckle and a bow from the man.

"Now, onto business," Aerna began, "Thomas, I called you here because, well, we need your help. We are part of six mages that make up the Royal Wizards Guild of Dainaria. Kao is the king's diviner, finder of truth and danger."

"I'm also handy for finding ways to not get killed in missions," the man interrupted, drawing no attention from the others.

"That too," Aerna continued, "I am Aerna, the king's enchanter and a summoner of no small skill."

She bowed low, then continued.

"Kao recently divined the future of our kingdom at the beginning of the year, as he has for 4 years now. It is custom to fly the rune of destiny with our flag each year. So far, every kingdom has found the same rune on their tables, the Rune of Death."

"Needless to say, no one's saying 'Happy New Year' back home," Kao jested.

"I see," Thomas said, "So, why do you need me?"

"Well, that's the thing. I'm not sure. Kao found a prophecy involving a boy about your age from your time. We're not sure, but, we'd sure like to find out if you're the boy."

"How do you do that?" Thomas asked.

"I can cast a regimen of divination spells on you to find out whether you're our boy or not," Kao said, cutting Aerna off.

"So, will you come with us, Thomas?" Aerna asked, smiling.

Thomas thought for a second. After a moment, he shook his head.

"I need to stay and help my mom," he said, his voice devoid of the grief that he felt in his heart. Aerna nodded.

"You'd only be gone a few days," Kao said, "After all, she works all the time. I could cast a minor illusion that would give her the appearance you were asleep at night, then gone in the daylight."

Thomas frowned. He didn't like that idea very much. He wanted to stay and take care of his mother, not come close to a dream just to lose it. After all, who would pick him for a prophecy that could save a world? But, something tingled in his brain. Something slowly brought his mind to like the idea. With a big smile, he nodded.

"Okay, sounds like a plan!" he exclaimed. Kao smiled and nodded.

"Very good," he said, "The illusion has been cast. I figured you'd say yes in the end."

"Now, come with us," Aerna said. Thomas walked ahead of the two wizards.

You messed with the boy's head, didn't you? Aerna asked in her thoughts.

Of course, Kao returned, The fool was actually going to say no.

Do you think he's the one we're looking for?

I'm not sure, Aerna. He's stronger than he thinks he is. Even if he's not, he could be a very good wizard with some training. And the Gods know we could use another good wizard.

The three walked on until they came to an underpass. Kao took out a large book from his cloak (it seems that these things could hold anything) and cast a spell on the wall. He replaced the book and held his arms out.

"Portal to Dainaria," he said, "One at a time, no pushing, and don't touch anything. Oh, and don't walk off the path. It gets kind of…unpleasant when you do that."

Thomas took a gulp then walked into the portal, Aerna following. Kao took a look around. They would have the boy back in a few days, no problem. Kao entered the portal and let it fall closed behind him.

December 16th, 2005, 4:30AM

The peace talks in Washington had broken down. No one in the ghetto saw them coming. No one had told them that the other side was winning the overseas wars. No one had told them that they had landed troops on US soil. No one had told them this was going to happen.

At 4:30 AM, every warring country on the planet sent their nuclear missiles at one another. At 4:30 AM, the world Thomas knew ended.