Born on the run to two Runners somewhere in what was once Dhun, Parker was left with a kindly old couple with Runner sympathies. Raised as one of their own (despite being a tren to their human), Parker grew up very much a product of his Age--cynical, bitter, angry, afraid. By the time he was an adult, he had lived his life hearing secret stories about his parents (31 and 22) and what may or may not have become of them. He hated them and their cause, and he felt it had ruined his life.

He began working in the factories as a way to make ends meet, trying to distance himself from his parentage and his adoptive family as well. However, the conditions of the factories slowly but surely began to break through his cynicism and bitterness. He watched as those around him (and sometimes, himself) suffered because of those who reigned, and the old teachings of his adoptive parents about right and wrong began to overpower his resentments.

Then, one night, as the factory workers were forced to work late (again), a fire broke out. An explosion rocked the factory and chaos ensued, and Parker found himself lost in the blazing maze of a building. He took a wrong turn and walked into a hallway engulfed in flames. There, he saw two Hunters beating another man--one of his coworkers. Without thinking, he moved to defend his coworker, but the Hunters hurled him without hesitation into the nearby flames.

Parker burned. His fur singed off his body, his clothes incinerated, and his eyes boiled in their sockets. He bellowed in agony, crying out for any aide that might come.

And a voice answered, Accept the flame.

At first, it didn't register, but it repeated, Accept the flame.

Parker, through force of will, found the strength to look around. He saw a small red fox with four tails sitting nearby. It cocked its head, and then began to skip away. As it moved, trails of flame followed it. Parker, in desperate pain, followed as best he could. He reached the hall once more just in time to see the kitsune attack the Hunters, savaging them with incredible heat and flames. Though too late to save his coworker, the kitsune did kill Parker's would-be killers.

Parker gave in, letting the fire consume him.

When he awoke, some time later, he was in a cool alley somewhere a long way away, with two burning tails and a full set of flame-red fur over his body. From that moment on, he was Runner 682, and he fought the Hunters every step of the way. He preached the Word of the Flame, and he sought out his people--the kitsune.

By the time the Exodus occurred, he had his own small following. By the time the Runners returned, he knew his course: to take the Mountain and be the Champion of Fire.