-Day 1-
Arida
Pre-supernova

"I can see that happening." Allee smiled. "You remind me of a mermaid, being the swimmer that you are." She laughed. "Although, I would suggest you don't get anything on your face. You might regret it later."

Allee gave Xandria a sideways glance. "You're right. You are giddy. I don't know what's gotten into you either." She laughed. "Whatever it is, the kids will love you today."

***

Allee stood outside the shark tank, a camera around her neck as she watched Xandria come out of the tank, dripping wet.

"I can't believe you did that," she said, snapping a picture. "Oh wait. I can. I'm just glad it was you in there and not me." She snapped another, then laughed. "These shots will be going in my article, by the way. You look great. And soggy."

Day 1--Arida--pre-supernova

Xandria laughed, reaching for a towel and wiping her face off before she climbed the rest of the way out of the tank.

"No, I don't think anything would induce you to climb in there. I've got to say, though, it was a ton of fun, and wasn't really dangerous. Not like I was swimming with Great Whites or anything. By the way, you know how they train the sharks to not eat the other fish, right?" Xandria turned to the kids, raising her voice a bit so they could all hear her. A chorus of giggles, nos, and shaking heads met her question.

Xandria smiled.

"When they first get the sharks, they put a pane of glass between the sharks and the smaller fish. When the sharks try to go after the fish, they bump their noses on the glass. Sharks don't like bumping their noses, and they think it is because they are trying to eat the little fish. So they stop, and the aquarium takes the glass out of the way, so they can all swim together, and the sharks know to only eat the food the aquarium gives them."

"I dint know dat," a little redhead said. Xandria smiled at her.

"Water's fun, isn't it? Let's hurry up to the buses, so we can all go swimming! I'll see you all over there!"

Day 1: Berg
Lawrence Manor

A mansion built to survive anything: atomic bomb, world war, earthquake, tornado... but for what? None of that will ever happen out here. Hopefully...

The meandering thoughts of Malcom Lawrence, billionaire and engineering whiz plus owner of the grand Lawrence Manor overlooking Berg. The mansion was originally built by Malcom's grandfather over 55 years before he was born. It was originally meant as a getaway spot, a vacation house for the Lawrence's, before Malcom's father inherited the house and added several "survival" features to it. Now the mansion was more of a guarded fortress, though still retaining it's original Gothic outward appearance.

Malcom had moved into the house after his father died and had turned the old mansion into something of a "fortress of solitude"... except for when parties were needed to be held. The somewhat rugged looking billionaire lived alone, except for his butler and close friend Richard Jennings.

Most mornings before lunch Malcom would take a stroll around the manor grounds, eventually making his way to Lookout Peak, a rocky outcropping looking out over Berg and the surrounding lands. It was a spectacular view, even if most of the landscape was skyscrapers mixed with industrial compounds.

I wish there was something I could do for this city... something more. Berg is a good city, a little rough around the edges, but the people are mostly good. If there was just a way to give the good people the courage to make a difference...

Ever since Malcom had returned to his home city and moved into Lawrence Manor when he was 20, this had been a near constant thought. The people were mostly fine, but the government and law enforcement had been steadily declining, becoming more and more corrupt. Following the government, the people were starting to be more and more corrupt.

It happens in every city... but what happens when all the good people sit back and do nothing?

With that morose thought and a sigh, Malcom began heading back to the manor. "Maybe one day I'll have the power to protect this city. One day..."

As Lawrence was making his was to the side entrance, unbeknownst to him, a bright star was crashing to the far horizon behind him...

-Day 1-
Arida
Pre-supernova

Allee smiled as Xandria talked to the kids and snapped a couple pictures. Xandria was a natural at talking to the kids, and, aside from interjecting a few comments here and there, Allee was content to watch and take pictures.

They soon left for the buses, and Allee sat in the back as they drove back to the convent, which was right next to the swimming pool. Getting 20+ kids dressed for the water was somewhat of a challenge, and by the time they were all in the water, Allee fell onto a pool chair next to Xandria.

"Whew. Glad that part's over. I survived the sharks and getting the kids into the swimming pool. I don't think anything could happen today that would be harder than that."

-Day 1-
Judicia, Erbaine
Pre-supernova

The sound of dishes clanking drifted from an open window in a small brown house, as the early-morning sun warmed the city of Judicia. Laramie Tyler loaded the last of the silverware and closed the dishwasher door with her foot, turning to tuck several worn textbooks into a backpack.

She was pulling cereal boxes from the cupboard when her twin brother Ben skidded frantically through the door in his work coveralls. "Did you oversleep?" Laramie said, muffled, from the depths of the cupboard. Ben groaned in response.

"Class this morning?" he asked as he laced up his shoes. She nodded. "Political philosophy. That should be interesting. Catch!" She tossed him a bulky brown paper bag that held his lunch, and then pointed at him. "There's a surprise in there, so no peeking."

Ben grinned and leaned to kiss her on the forehead. "Be safe," he said, heading for the door.

Laramie smiled back. "You know I always am." As the door closed behind Ben, she scooped up her little sister Mirren and plunked her in a seat at the kitchen table, pouring milk in her cereal bowl. Ten-year-old Nicky wandered in and plopped into a chair, his eyes still bleary with sleep. "Are you goin' already?" he asked.

With a glance at the clock, Laramie nodded. "I'll be late." She swung her backpack over her shoulder. "Mum got home two hours later than usual last night, so she'll need to sleep for awhile. There's sandwiches for lunch in the refrigerator, and keep an eye on Mirren. I'll be back soon." She tousled Nicky's hair and slipped out through the kitchen door.

Hopping onto her bike, she rode into the warm, breezy spring morning, towards the beautiful college campus in the center of Judicia.

Forty-five minutes later, Laramie's mind was wandering in the middle of Dr. Dreyman's lecture about the supernova, when her good friend Liam stood up, folded his arms, and answered the Doctor's question with a simple statement that no supernova was coming. Secretly, Laramie agreed with Liam. There seemed to be no logic in the idea that Azurema wouldn't be warned of such a catastrophe.

She took a deep breath and spoke up. “Dr. Dreyman, if the supernova was coming, why would the government want to hide that fact from the country? The people would be completely unprepared, and all the government would gain for their trouble would be mass chaos and a populace with no faith in their leadership. That could cost them their power."

The Doctor merely raised his eyebrows at her and launched into a detailed exposition of the government's supposed behavior towards the coming supernova.

As he talked, Laramie tried to focus, but suddenly she stiffened and sucked in a breath. An odd shaking had suddenly taken hold of her body. It felt like a thousand tiny pricks of electricity were crawling over her skin, and her stomach curled into a hard, burning knot. She stared down at her trembling hands, closed her eyes, and tried to breathe.

For a moment, a rushing sound seemed to fill her head, like a million voices and wind-rustled leaves and the roar of a tumbling mountain. And then it was gone. Laramie opened her eyes and looked around the classroom. Everyone else seemed to be fine, so she pushed the unsettling episode from her mind and refocused on what Dr. Dreyman was saying.

As she listened, her eyes met the Doctor's, and a lightbulb suddenly switched on in her head. Everything he was talking about made perfect sense! Of course the government was gambling with its people's lives in their refusal to warn about the supernova. It was completely logical...why hadn't she seen it before?

- Day 1 -
Judicia, Erbaine
Judicia Zoo

As normal, the zoo was buzzing with excitement and fun. Kids were running from one animal area to another. People were talking, laughing, and taking pictures of all they could. Things seemed perfectly normal at the zoo.

The only disappointment was it was too hot for the penguins to be let out of the air-conditioned building and into the exhibit. One kid, who was watching the ice-covered area glummly, whined, "It's not fair! I want to see the penguins!"

"Hush, dear," his mother sighed. "We've seen the penguins before, and we'll likely see them next time."

"But I want to see them now!" The child complained. Everyone in the zoo liked the penguins. Without them, the zoo felt a little less lively.

While the mother was talking to a friend of hers, the kid unexpectedly exclaimed "Look! One of the penguins got out! And I think it's the one called Paxton! I like Paxton the best, don't you, Mommy?"

Sure enough, a penguin had made it to the outside of the building and into the open. He squawked happily, and started sliding around on his belly. Kids gathered around to watch him, cheering at how the zookeepers had let him out. Truth be told, they hadn't, but they were too busy posing for pictures to notice.

Things would've kept going on like this, if the zoo hadn't began getting affected by the sun's nasty heat. The electricity suddenly went out, and lamposts burst into flames. Scared to death visitors and zookeepers ran around wildly, and the animals panicked in the same way.

Paxton, who had still been sliding on the ice, started yelling frantically and writhing in pain. The child observing him -before being dragged away by his mother- thought it looked like the penguin was about to explode. Finally, he stopped, and waddled desperately to the penguin shelter. His other emporer penguin comrades were also squawking nervously, but he passed from the pain before he joined them.

Day 1--Arida

Xandria grinned.

"You lead such a hard life, Allee. Me, I just have to get in the water and swim with them. Actually, nix that. I don't get to swim. I get to walk around in the pool with them. I'll leave you to recover so you can prepare for the hurdle of getting them ready to NOT swim." Xandria snickered as she stood up, and walked over and let herself down into the pool. "Or, you COULD come in and swim with us!!!"

Xandria laughed, and started working with the kids, showing them various strokes, and generally just mixing with them. She knew she only had about a half an hour with them before they began racing, and wanted to make the most of it. This would probably be the last time she saw most of these kids. She was almost through making sure she had worked with each child for a good amount of time when a weird sparking started to come from the lights on the covered side of the pool.

And then it happened. With a loud boom, every light exploded and a huge pressure seemed to sweep over the complex. Xandria felt the water almost fall from beneath her, and then swirl around. The girl she was working with began screaming as the water pulled her down. The scream was cut off as she went underwater. Xandria tried to reach to pull her up, but couldn't seem to move, at all. The moment seemed to last forever, and the sun seemed to grow brighter, than to split in two. As the pressure began to dissipate, Xandria began to move--slowly, but at least she was moving. She put a hand up to shield her eyes from the sun--no, the suns--and began looking for the girl. She found her seconds later, and pulled the half-drowned child up, and quickly moved her to the side of the pool.

"Allee!! ALLEEEEEE!" Xandria screamed. "Come help me--no! Go get Sister Theresa. Or one of the Sisters. I don't care who, just get one of the nuns NOW!!!"

Day 1: Berg
Lawrence Manor, an hour after the Supernova

A strange tingling sensation on his back as he stood in the shadow of the manor... a bright flash... gust of.. wind, maybe? shoving him to the wall... pain... nothing...

It was mostly jumbled snippets, but Malcom had apparently survived.. whatever had happened. He was still slightly out of it, but he was in his room, a good sign. Jennings must have found me... Now I owe him three weekends off. Lawrence thought with a chuckle as he tried sitting up. At first the room seemed to be swimming around him, but after a minute or two, everything settled down.

"Must have hit my head pretty hard..." Lawrence contemplated aloud as he started to try and get out of bed, before suddenly getting unstable again. After a minute (and several deep breaths) Malcom tried standing again, this time meeting with success and even being able to walk around.

The room was mostly dark with only the yellow-ish glow of a pair of lamps illuminating the room. The large windows in the master suite were shut and the thick, red and golden curtains were drawn. That's odd. Usually the curtains are open, like I like them. Lawrence thought as he slowly walked over to the windows and slowly pulled back the curtains. The sight that met him was as close to a living nightmare as can be imagined.

The vast expanse of Berg was now riddled with hollow skeletons of buildings, some completely demolished while their neighbors stood perfectly intact. The green fields and trees leading up to Lawrence Manor were now either gone or shriveled remains of what used to be sturdy oaks and pines. Worst of all, the industrial area on the western edge of town was now belching out various clouds of black and grey smoke. This smoke was beginning to collect above the city and form a hideously black canopy over all of Berg.

"This is hell...."

"No, I'm afraid it is the result of some solar flare. Or so they say."

Malcom turned from the window to see Jennings standing in the open door way with a platter of toast and a glass of water. "Forgive the intrusion, Master Lawrence, but I feel it is time you tried to eat something."

"It's fine Jennings, just set the tray on the night stand." Malcom said gesturing to the side of his bed. After drinking some of the water and nibbling on the toast, Lawrence asked "Was there any damage to the manor? Do you know if anyone is hurt or even alive after this?"

"As far as I know sir, the estate has suffered only minor injuries. Your fathers insistence on those special re-enforced windows saved us from most of the damage. As for survivors, I do not know. The military is to move in sometime in the next few hours. Appears all of Telluri has been affected..." Jennings replied in his British accent.

"That's good... and not good. At least we are safe for the most part here. If nothing else we can go to the basement."

"You mean the cave." Jennings said with grin.

"Yes, the cave." Malcom said with a smile. After taking a last swig of water, Lawrence absently reached out to set the glass down... a few inches shy of the night stand. As the glass began to fall, both Malcom and Jennings quickly reached out to grab it... but it never hit the floor.

Jennings straightened and looked at his master then at the empty glass floating a foot away from the floor. "... Are you doing that?" The butler said with obvious surprise in his voice.

Malcom moved his hand away from the glass and held it out in front of him. The glass slowly drifted to his hand. ".... I think I am." Malcom replied slightly stunned after a few seconds.

"That is quite daft, sir..." was the only thing Jennings could say.

-Day 1-
Judicia, Erbaine
Capitol University
About 45 minutes before the Supernova

Liam continued to stand, stuck beneath Lewis's hard stare as the doctor retaliated to Liam's arguments. "What the government is doing here, is, in reality, ignoring the evil that is obvious and present in hopes that it will go away. The hazards will not go away. It is better to know a problem and prepare for it than to ignore the problem."

He glanced at Laramie again as she agreed with Lewis, admiring the strange dignity and strength in her eyes. Then Liam slowly nodded too. "I agree with you, Dr. Dreyman. That makes perfect sense." Why hadn't he realized it before?

He pulled out a piece of paper and started to write. I just got a really weird tingling feeling. I'm not sure how to describe it. Must be from being in the dear doctor's class too long. He passed the note to Laramie, then grinned at her impishly.

Liam continued to listen to the lecture with renewed interest. He was now only half-interested in working on his paper, although he continued to clip different sources and meld them together into one cohesive document. He nodded to himself. Dr. Dreyman was right. The government was trying to hide something from them.

And for once in his life, Liam actually considered the fact that there might be a supernova. What if the supernova was coming? What would happen when it came?

***

-Day 1-
Arida

"No thanks. I prefer to be un-wet, thank you very much. At least not right before I have to get ready for un-swimming." She laughed. "But I'm sure you'll have a good time. Have fun!"

Allee sat down in the pool chair, putting on a pair of large sunglasses and clicking around on her phone while she watched Xandria interact with the kids in the pool.

Suddenly, Allee was knocked by a wave of... something, something so strong that she dropped her phone and screamed. A huge blast of light filled the complex, and she heard a fizzling sound. She blinked at the sun. Two suns? When did that happen?

She jumped to her feet when she heard Xandria scream her name, then froze as she watched Xandria drag a girl to the side of the pool. The child started upheaving water. "What happened?" She asked, but realized the question was foolish. Whatever had happened, it wasn't good. Allee took off running towards the convent, her flip-flops smacking hard against the pavement, her chest burning, her head spinning. She screamed for someone--anyone--to help her.

(OOC: Sorry i'm so late on this!)

~Day One~
--Brink City--

A sea wind blew in through the open window, carrying the smells of salt water and fish. Josiah Kingsley wrinkled his nose, but didn't move from his seat at the piano. He was on the verge of composing a new song, and he didn't want to interrupt it for anything.

Carefully spacing his fingers over the ivory keys, he played an A major chord, and listened to the sound reverberate through the room. He couldn't help but grin. The flat had several problems - leaky pipes, mold in the basement, mice in the attic - but he was willing to forgive it all for this music room. No matter what instrument was played in here, whether it was the guitar, piano, or human voice, it resounded like a cathedral.

He moved to a D major, then a G. Good, but a little ordinary, he thought. Glancing up at his scribbled reference notes, he started the chord progression he had tried out last week.

Something in Josiah's mind clicked, and he began playing faster, with more feeling. New notes came to him like they had fallen from heaven. The disconnected chords connected suddenly, beautifully. It was like he was no longer playing the music - it was playing him.

Caught up in the joy of creation, Josiah closed his eyes and threw his head back as he shifted up a key. Then all at once, he felt like he slammed into a wall of water as his whole body suddenly tensed. Something ripped through him, like his entire body was being torn apart, molecule from molecule. He thought he might have screamed.

Then it was over, and he was lying on the floor, panting heavily. Groaning, Josiah put a hand to his head. What just happ - Michelle. Where's Michelle?

***

Michelle Kingsley locked the door of the flat behind her. She didn't really think it was necessary - this was Brink City, not Diabolis or Burg - but Josiah did, and her brother would really chew her out if she left the house without locking it.

Actually, he would probably chew her out just for leaving the apartment without him, but it was way too beautiful a day to spend inside the whole entire time.

Tapping her white cane ahead of her, Michelle started down the street toward Ferris Square, a beautiful garden several blocks north of the flat she shared with her brother. Being blind, she couldn't see the flowers or statuary or arches, of course, but Josiah described them so well she thought it was like she could; and she could feel the soft grass and leaves, and smell the flowers. Best of all, there was almost always some kind of band playing in Ferris Square.

Softly, Michelle clicked her tongue repeatedly. Ever since she was eight, she had learned a sort of echolocation to help her map out her surroundings through sound, like bats and dolphins. Bats and dolphins could do it better, of course, but she could tell enough to keep from running into things or people -

- like the group of people that stepped in front of her just now, for example.

Michelle stopped in her tracks. By the sudden coolness on her face where the sun had been shining, she guessed they were tall. By the sounds of shifting weight and other things she couldn't define, she knew there were two, maybe three of them. By the scent, she could tell they were men.

"Whoa, sorry, beautiful!" one exclaimed. He had a good voice, second tenor range, very clear. "Didn't see you there."

"It's all right," Michelle assured him, smiling.

"Hey, you don't happen to have a band-aid in your purse, do you?" he asked, sounding concerned.

"Uh, maybe. Why?"

"'Cause I just scraped my knee falling for you," he said, just a touch over-earnestly.

Michelle laughed, and the man and his friends started laughing too. "That's really bad," she informed him when she stopped laughing. "Really bad."

"I know, I know," he agreed. "It was awful - it should really be criminal. I should take you out to lunch to apologize."

"That's all right," Michelle said, preparing to go on. "I had an early lunch with my brother. Nice day to you."

She started to walk around them, but one of them grabbed her arm. "Where you goin', baby?" a new voice asked. It was softer, higher, and slightly accented - like from one of the desert cities. "Dave just asked you out to lunch. You should go with him."

"I really can't," Michelle said, a touch tremulously. She was starting to get cold, and she didn't think it was just because the sun seemed to have gone behind a cloud. "Please - let me go."

"All I'm asking for is lunch," Dave said persuasively. He took a step closer to her.

Feeling her heart start to beat faster, Michelle took a step back. The second man's hand was still on her wrist. Every sense she had was on alert. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing on edge, and a tingling sensation started to pass through her. "Please - " her voice broke from fear. "Please, let me go - "

"Come on guys," a third voice said. It was also male - deeper, fuller, younger. The speaker was standing farther away than the other two. "Let's go."

She felt Dave's breath on her cheek as he moved in closer. "Get away!"

"Why won't you just - " Dave began.

Then the world exploded.

Day 1--Arida

Sister Theresa met Allee halfway.

"What is it? What happened? Are the children alright??" she demanded, grabbing Allee's hand and beginning to hurry back toward the pool.

-Day 1-
Arida

"They're fine. I think." Allee ran alongside Sister Theresa. "I'm not really sure on that. I'm actually more worried about Xandria..."

Allee bit her lip as they rounded the corner back outside to the swimming pool. "Xandria? Are you all right?" She looked around with wide eyes. "Does anyone know what happened?"

Day 1--Arida

"I'm fine," Xandria panted, pulling another child out of the water and wrapping him in a towel. "Just some cuts and scratches. Remember that tattoo I was teasing you about?" --Xandria pointed to a couple of cuts by her left eye-- "I apparently won't need to worry about it. As you can tell, the roof for the covered part of the pool caved in, and might be leaking something, but I think most of the children are okay. Only two really seemed to inhale any water, but not so much that they're in danger of dying or anything. I am concerned about getting them out of the water and into shelter somewhere. I was thinking perhaps the convent?"

Sister Theresa nodded.

"The buildings are sturdy, but most of the windows shattered, so there is glass everywhere. The chapel seems to have the least damage. We'll take then in there until we can prepare a better area. I wi take these children with me--you two get the rest out of the pool and toweled, and then follow."

Xandria looked at Allee as Sister Theresa picked one child up and took the hand of another, then instructed the other towel-clad kids to follow her.

"Allee? I'm scared," Xandria whispered.

-Day 1-
Capitol University
Judicia, Erbaine
Pre-Supernova

As Dr. Dreyman continued his lecture, Laramie listened intently. With each point the Doctor expanded on, each statistic he quoted, another piece of logic clicked into place in her mind, and she found herself nodding along in agreement. Although she had sat in his class many times before, he had never seemed half as well-reasoned and wise as he was today. Maybe she had only needed time to adjust to his teaching style.

Her attention was diverted from the Doctor only when a piece of folded paper slid across and landed against her computer mouse. Laramie looked up and caught Liam's mischievous smile.

She read the short message and gave Liam a quick grin in response, before digging a pencil out of her backpack. Although her heartbeat had almost returned to normal after the bizarre attack and the scorching feeling in her stomach was gone, her hands still refused to stop shaking. She bit her lip and squeezed down hard on the pencil as she scribbled on the back of the note.

You had that feeling too?! That was...the strangest thing. Electric, almost. Maybe there's a thunderstorm coming.
Or...I had a coffee from the shop on my way here this morning. Have you guys been doubling up on the caffeine in your brew again?

Folding the paper back over, Laramie passed it back to Liam under the cover of the table and returned her focus to what Dr. Dreyman was saying. Suddenly, the implications of what the Doctor was claiming flashed into her mind. Why would the government wish to hide from them? Would they go so far as to hide a catastrophic supernova from their own people? The Doctor couldn't be wrong. But if he was right...

-Day 1-
Capitol University
Judicia, Erbaine
About 30 minutes before the Supernova

Lewis blinked in surprise as his two dissenting students suddenly decided to agree with him. Had he really been that convincing? It was a stirring speech, to be sure, and of course he was right--the proof all showed that-- but the turnaround had been very fast.

Oh, well. He was a bit troubled, but the result was good, he thought. "Alright then. Fine. Let's continue, on page forty..."

As the lecture continued, Lewis wondered about the tingling sensation that he'd felt before. It almost felt like how the scientists had described the effects of mass radiation. Could it be? He wondered, A day early? An excitement began to grip him, and he lectured with passion as the class went on. All of his students seemed engaged, a rare feat. He couldn't help but smile.

The class finished at last as the clock struck the hour. "Okay, I'll see you all tomorrow," Lewis told his students. "Go out and think." He waved as the class began to leave.