PHASE I [ 6 00 ] It’s a normal day in Cerealia. Well, normal enough. Sure, the rain has become a bit louder on the top of the platform, but that isn't really a big deal. And sure, a large portion of the population (the population associated with water) seem to be incredibly energetic, almost to the point of distraction -- they can’t sit still, they always feel like they need to be moving. With them, there’s a definite sense that something is coming. Still, not really a big deal. Then another portion of the population (the population associated with earth) is incredibly dragging, nodding off at random intervals and finding themselves incredibly sluggish. Nothing's coming for them. What a shame.
All in all, it's really just a normal day.
Well, until it starts raining. Cerealia is an enclosed, monitored microenvironment. It does not rain. There is no weather. Really, why would CERES ever need it to rain? How silly! But now it is raining, and heavily at that, downpour falling steadily without any signs of letting up, even as the unprepared streets begin to flood as the amount of water builds up. Now is the time to ask yourself, "does CERES even make umbrellas?"
Still, absolutely normal here, yes! Mosley's broadcast aside, it's so very normal.
And it will continue to be normal (and wet) until, without warning, any and all communication with CERES cuts out -- along with the power. Looks like you're in for another blackout, Cerealia. This is all still extremely normal!!
PHASE II [ 700 ] One thing’s for certain; the colony can’t take this much concentrated rain. The rain continues on and on and on, without any change. On the third day of this (slightly foreboding) rain, there’s a loud, metallic groaning from the top of the colony, loud enough for everyone to hear.
And then the platform falls.
It lands heavily on the Residential District, smashing into a third of the actual residences in one fell swoop (and hopefully not squishing you in the process). A small quake will rattle through the rest of the district at the force, some other buildings being toppled in the process. With the platform out of the way, the rain turns from a heavy downpour to a merciless flood and the carefully maintained atmosphere quickly becomes muggy, humid jungle air. Please don't blame CERES for the sudden frizziness of your hair.
Speaking of CERES, they're still nowhere to be found. Some monsters, on the other hand, are right there to greet you if you manage to fly up to where the platform once was in this rain. Thankfully, the rain seems to be keeping them uninterested in the colony... for now.
(Seriously, please don't bother the monsters. Just leave them alone and go find an umbrella!)
PHASE III [ 1200 ] And then, on the fourth day, there’s a rumbling noise.
Perhaps you've found shelter elsewhere. Perhaps you still don't care about just a little water. Perhaps you're just glad CERES has shut up for a little while. But no matter where you are, if you look to the edge of the colony you will see something truly frightening. A swell of a wave crests over the top of the colony’s walls, and for a brief, breathless moment, it can been seen, angry and without mercy --
And then it falls, completely flooding the colony.
Stalls, roofs and walls are swept away, debris flung about dangerously. The wave hits hardest in the Residential and Entertainment Districts, knocking down the gym and completely flooding the school. All of the districts are damaged in some way, however, from the Pleasure District to the Research District. There's nothing left untouched.
And then there is silence, even as the rain continues to fall, and a good portion of the city is covered by the depths.
BONUS [ xxxx ] All that aside, if for some reason you wish to dive into the water, there are dolphins! Yay, dolphins! If you’ve always wanted to go swimming with dolphins, now’s your chance. Of course, they look a little... well...
Even so, they’ll let you ride them! What nice dolphins. They’ll let you ride them aaaaall the way until they get you out into the deepest part of the water because of course, that's the best place to go swimming. They won't actually say that though because they're dolphins and they can't speak. This isn't The Little Mermaid, you know. But after that, without ceremony, they’ll buck you off just in time for some friends to show up.
You fool! That's just what you get for trusting dolphins!
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phase i!
it subsequently came down in exorbitant buckets though, rendering that jacket he'd haphazardly tossed over his head next to useless, a catalyst for mold and mustiness and other forms of generally recognized discontent. under the dingy bleariness of the sky, he's only trying to make it back to the apartments after his shift, which is exceedingly difficult with endless lethargy to contend with, but he manages.
his briskness is obsolete in the face of a jolting tase, because that's exactly what he needed to continue on his trip wholly rejuvenated. except not, unfortunately, as that incipient spark didn't put the fear of god into his exhaustion.
instead makoto instantly recoils, a gasp sputtering the rest of the way out of him as he unconsciously retreats a couple of steps. there are a number of possible assumptions running through his mind, but the first is static shock. granted, the rain sort of threw a wrench into that logic, but the literal crackles of light zapping about him seem to indicate something's off. ]
The rain is really bad, huh? Are you okay? I mean — your hands —
[ the power outage blows out the rest of the lampposts and miscellany of dimly-lit buildings, only adding to the burgeoning, insidious awareness that something else was at work here. ]
I'm alright. You were the one who zapped me though, right?
no subject
this is the exact situation Adolf wanted to avoid, and yet he finds himself metaphorically and semi-literally neck-deep in these waters; just his luck. hands shoved in deep pockets ball into fists, close-cropped nails digging into the heel of his palm to try to will all this extra energy inwards, not outwards to hapless teenagers. like this one.
the surrounding darkness doesn't help his efforts towards being discreet, either, what a headache— the occasional white-blue sparks of miniature lighting aren't exactly what you'd call normal. ]
...Don't get too close.
[ he'd put up a hand in warning if that didn't seem dangerous at this juncture. as it stands, all he does is step backwards. ]
Did I burn you.
no subject
he's staring now, eyes widened in misunderstanding. he can't parse the semantics of strangers half-obscured by inundating rain and flickering like a busted fluorescent lightbulb, but makoto's fairly certain it wasn't intentional. disconcerting and frightening in turns, yes, but it doesn't rule out the distinct lack of malicious intent that would otherwise have makoto running for the heels. he retreats a few steps, but not enough to avoid being potentially struck by lurid bolts from the blue (literally). ]
I won't. Is this kind of thing normal for you?
[ in a gesture of reconciliation, he raises his hands, palm-up, expression coaxing into polite abashment. ]
I'm really alright! I barely even felt it. [ the lie is all but transparent by this point when he pointedly stares at everything but his companion. ] I'm guessing your power acts up around water?
no subject
but it's quite obvious from the lack of eye contact that makoto is Not Being Truthful about it not having hurt (adolf'd know, he's the constant victim of his own electricity), and almost on instinct, his broad shoulders pull back just another fraction of an inch. it's harder, when people try to be kind. ]
It's usually more under control. [ implying that he's not the equivalent of a walking taser on most days, thank god. ] —It's something in the air that's making it worse. Do you feel it?
no subject
as makoto doesn't have the same physical aptitude of an electric eel, he can't fully grasp adolf's emotional hang-ups with a power that veritably wedges a distance between and anyone he might want to physically grasp without the latent possibility of electrocution or balloon static, but he can empathize with not making a bad situation worse by jumping right into the thick of things.
makoto blinks, curiosity present in his uplifted eyebrows. ]
Something in the air?
[ he considers his statement for a moment or two longer, then shakes his head. ]
Mm, no. I don't think I have, sorry. I've just been really tired lately for no reason at all, but it seems a little — ... I mean, I can't even remember it raining once since I arrived until now. Do you think it might be a sign something bad is about to happen? This can't just be a coincidence.
no subject
...I can't say. It's been too early for me to tell.
[ meaning that he's new, and that he doesn't quite know what to expect from this place other than the unexpected, and sudden squalls seem to sit squarely in that realm. ]
But exercising caution isn't a bad idea. If this is something out of the ordinary, taking precautionary measures would be smart. [ he glances around them, at the general confusion caused by the blackout. ] —How tired are you?
no subject
I'll bear that in mind.
[ more disconcerting than the endless streams of rain sluicing down their frames after going so long without any sign of condensation for months is the awareness that adolf could very well be right, after all. the precipitation a portentous harbinger for the storm in whatever form it eventually came as. ]
Well, I'm still conscious, so not as tired as I feel. [ a reproachful smile. ] Ever since I came back from that ... place, the one with all the lights everyone was trapped within for a day, I've only felt like sleeping all day. Pretty counterproductive when I have work and school to go to.
How about you?
no subject
he doesn't hold it against Makoto, is the sentiment.
more important is the rain and the information, the former an annoyance and the latter something he can work with. ]
No bouts of fatigue for me. If I could, I'd give you all this extra energy.
[ he would, gladly, if it'd stop him from being a walking hazard. ]
—Funny that you're worrying about schoolwork, even in a place like this.
[ bone-dry, almost a little sarcastic— don't kids usually want to avoid school?— but just a little enamored, under a carefully controlled surface. ]
no subject
[ drizzled in rain and living on a prayer that comes across more as wishful thinking than belief, makoto smiles, trying to amend his prior reaction — the shock that flitted over his face just a few seconds earlier before he schooled his features into placidness. ]
I'll be okay. I just need some more rest, I guess! [ an effusive nod. ] I shouldn't keep you here if there's somewhere you need to be, unless you'd like some company for the trip. I'm trying to ... stay outside for as long as I can at the moment, actually.
[ suspicious ................
and regardless of whether or not adolf decides a guy with skewed priorities would make a decent conversational partner for the road, makoto obliges him full use of the vacant walkway with a sidestep, hastily tucking his hands back into his pockets. ]
I'm Makoto, by the way! I wish the circumstances had been better, but it's nice to make your acquaintance.
no subject
You'll catch a cold if you stay outside.
[ he says, simply, matter-of-factly, without the usual inflection people reserve for statements of concern; it even sounds almost patronizing from that even, tempered tone, but the slight flit of a frown that passes through green eyes might give him away. he dials it back, though, by appending: ] If we can even catch colds here.
[ the classic tsun backpedal. but he obliges the suggestion to get going, pointing feet towards the direction of the residential area. he's a little worried about the state of the orphaned Cybuddy cats that he passes by every day on his way to work... ah... ]
Makoto. [ the name is parroted, committed to memory despite his seeming disinterest. ] ...Adolf Reinhardt. I'll say it again, but it's foolish to stay outside in a blackout.
no subject
I should head somewhere else in the meantime, then. The blackout probably means that a lot of places have already closed up, though.
[ but while adolf's tone reads as nothing but nuanced disinterest, it's his words that affect makoto, smiling a little faintly as he recedes to the opposing side of the concrete. there's the notion of lying — just a simple fib that he'd return home at the nearest possible convenience and sleep off the exhaustion seeping into his bones, but instead he raises his head, nodding perceptibly beneath the buckets of rain. ]
I'll be fine. I'm not planning to stay out here the whole night, just until it's late enough. Please take care to travel safely in the meantime! I'm glad I was able to meet you, if nothing else.
[ and with a soft wave, off makoto goes to spend the rest of the evening avoiding his best friend-slash-roommate, like he has for the past several weeks. ]