Storymaker: Long Version

First topic message reminder :

This is a further-modified version of a theatre game. It's quite simple. We take it in turns to contribute to a story. Each person may post one sentence per post. Just one sentence. It can be one word long. It can be longer, as long as it isn't a blatant run-on sentence. Use your one sentence to take the story in whatever direction you think it should go.

Before we start, a few thoughts and rules:

- No double-posting, please. Let other people have a chance to contribute.

- No post-editing, unless you want to correct a typo.

- This counts as one sentence: "Muffins for breakfast?" asked Esmerelda hopefully.

- One-word interjections at the beginning of a dialogue sentence don't count as a separate sentence. '"Hey! Drop those stolen muffins, buddy, or I'm calling the cops!" barked Lloyd threateningly.' is allowable. 

- New people (if any appear): Don't feel like you have to ask before you post. Jump right in!

While this probably won't be as weird as its short version, there's still a good chance it will turn out quite weird. Have fun with it, and we'll see how it turns out!

Time to start. First sentence:

"The clouds split, and a single sunbeam illuminated the letters on a sign."

[Whoever posts first gets to decide what the sign says!]

He had once been bitten by a bat.