Paladin Decen (Samuel Mason)
"My entire life I've always yearned for something great. But I lived in a world that already had enough greatness." - Mason
Samuel "Sam" Mason is a 23 year old former college student, capable of the soul link and suffers from an ancestral curse of bad fortune. Sam lives with his roommate Toby "Tob" Rufus. After the apocalyptic events from John Crypt's arrival, Mason and Rufus team up with The Black Jason to seal the dimensional tears ravaging his world and forms Team Darkstar.
Mason's innate heroism catches the attention of Crypt after saving him from an infernal. After reaffirming his desire to help John stop Ariandal in the Champions Universe, John passes down his soul link creature to Mason, making him the second holder of Sentry, and the successor to The Black Jason.
Due to his unique way of wielding Sentry's power, John gives Mason the codename Blackflame.
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Pre-Apocalypse
Samuel Mason was a college student studying engineering along with his roommate Toby Rufus. Although an average student, Sam is unable to secure a job position due to his curse, and must rely on Rufus to pay the rent to their basement suite. Aspiring to join the army, Sam decides to start training his body, though slow progress demotivates him.
Jason's Arrival
On his way to the gym, Sam notices the sky opening up to multiple portals, and thousands of strange creatures flood the streets. Sam hides behind the forest and witnesses the creatures killing and injuring civilians left and right. Grabbing a tree trunk, Mason attempts to fend off the creatures from a trapped family, but is swatted away by an infernal, where he lands in a bush. Barely conscious, Sam sees a mysterious man fall an impossible distance from the sky and lands several feet away. Heavily injured and somehow alive, the man seeks refuge, and Sam takes him to his basement suite, which is in ruins. Toby freaks out believing Sam brought a homeless man to their shelter.
The next morning, Toby informs Sam that the creatures have caused damage on a global scale, and that the college has been entirely decimated. News reports reveal only 15% of the population has survived, and military forces were wiped out, outmatched in firepower against the beasts. Sam wishes to see his family to check up on them, but John advises against it, as charging into the now infernal run wasteland would be suicide. Toby is now unemployed as he states his manager was devoured by a creature with horns and weird green flames. The man tells him that the creature is an infernal, and only he is able to defeat them. The man introduces himself as John Crypt and reveals to be a mage tasked to battle the infernals from another dimension. John demonstrates Sentry's power to the boys but nearly collapses. It is revealed that Crypt is terminally ill from an infection known as the Corruption; a mysterious entity that had infected all of his friends and family in the Champions Universe.
The following night, John regains consciousness, and tells Sam and Tob about his adventures in Croft, along with Trinity, Wheeler, and his time in the Mage Academy, as well as its downfall. After hearing John's story, Sam is greatly engrossed and pleads John to bring him along in his final fight against Calliope. Sam tells John that he wanted a purpose in life, and that he was willing to do anything to prepare for the battle. John dismisses the idea, telling him to be realistic and that a normal human without a soul link creature would not stand a chance against the New Militia. A frustrated Sam leaves the dining room and heads to his room while John leaves the hideout to patch up the city as much as he can.
