The Salty Meme Squad

The Salty Meme Squad is a circle of friends who met in 2013 in middle school. The main group consists of Ian Afif, Cody Stephens, Amelia "Mia" Ray, Nicholas Gardener, and Michael, who no longer lives in the same area as the others, but remains close to the others through Discord and online gaming. The two founding members, Ian and Cody, became friends in 2012, and met Michael soon after. They then met Mia in 2013 after he moved away. Nick joined the group after having been an acquaintance of the other members for a while before coming closer by sitting with the others at school lunch. Over time, the four became extremely close-knit, and it was during this time that the group was named the Salty Meme Squad by Ian.

The main members (excluding Michael) are based in eastern Pennsylvania, and currently attend the same high school. They share a common interest in video games, anime, memes, and internet lore. Ian and Mia are artists, the latter actively pursuing a career in the arts.

Upon entering high school in 2015, Mia discovered her ability to tap into fictional universes and interact with various fictional characters, as well as manifest physically into works of fiction without affecting the actual events. Shortly after discovering this, she gave these abilities to her other friends, who can wield them through the use of various artifacts. The group members can also transform into superhero-like entities when needed in order to fight against a variety of forces who wish to do harm, whether it be monsters, hostile manifestations of memes, or, occasionally, each other.