-Day 1-
Arida

Allee winced when Xandria showed her the cuts by her eye. "You're going to need to get those taken care of. Then we can worry about that tattoo."

Allee grabbed as many towels as she could find, and started drying the kids off. One of the girls was crying, and Allee pulled her close. "It's okay," she whispered. "It's going to be okay." I hope.

"I'm scared too," she whispered to Xandria. "What's happening?"

Then a thought entered her mind. Laney. Was Laney okay? What if whatever just happened had affected her too?

Allee picked up her phone, but it was dead. "Blast." She pushed her phone back into her pocket and reluctantly focused on the matter at hand. She'd have to worry about Laney later, whether she wanted to or not. "We need to get these kids inside."

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

Liam found himself nodding in agreement - something he'd never done in Dr. Dreyman's class as far as he could remember. Soon his paper was forgotten, and it was all he could do to keep up with Dr. Dreyman's points. They all dinged in his head, falling into place as they did so. Dr. Dreyman was right! He always had been!

Liam was so enraptured by the speech that he forgot to respond to Laramie's note until the very end, when class was dismissed. He turned to her with a smile as he stood up and began gathering his laptop and books together. "I have a feeling a thunderstorm's coming in. Maybe that's it. Still, it was really strange." He laughed. "As for the coffee... well, let's just say I did a little experimenting. Did you like it? More caffeine is always better." He winked. "That was a long lecture, but a good one. I need to stretch my legs. Wanna go outside and take a quick walk before our next class?"

-Day 1-
Judicia, Erbaine
Apartment House
Pre-Supernova

Today isn't the best day for me. I got a cold and a fever, so I was too sick to listen to Dr. Dreyman's lecture about a "supernova." I have no idea what he means by that, but I assume it would've been interesting to listen to. I don't always agree with what he has to say, because it seems a bit far-fetched at times. In the end, though, I still learn something. When I get better, I'll probably ask Laramie what he talked about, along with catching up on life with her and Ben.

Setting his pencil down, Leon Silverlake looked at the clock on the wall. By now, Dr. Dreyman's class had finished. "Darn," he grumbled before blowing into a tissue. It was still hard for him to admit he had been too sick to go to the university. He enjoyed learning and debating there, and it gave some purpose to his life.

His deepest dream was to become a sucessful writer on important matters in philosophy. Ever since the time he went out in hopes of finding out more about his past, he had desired to help others with words and meanings. If there was a way to heal pain and other issues out there, he hoped to find it. Why not work on destroying the agony in their world and make it a less hurting place to be?

After having another coughing fit, Leon decided to go to the university and pretend that he wasn't with fever and a cold. He stood up and headed for the door. I'd rather die instead of miss ways to improve with my journaling and writing, he thought in determination. And if I'm lucky, I'll see Laramie or someone else who goes to Dr. Dreyman's class too.

-Day 1-
Arenico, Outskirts of Diabolis, Wind-Farm
-Reaper-

He took a breath, and another… he had to calm himself…nothing to be angry about… just that those power hungry freaks in the ‘Department of Energy, Water, and Commerce’ in Diabolis had sent out another examiner to ‘ensure your project is up to standards’.

He was riding up in the elevator with the stupid fellow, A Mr. Benson Smith, who was babbling on like an idiot about something having to do with water conservation, as they rode up 25 stories to the top of the central tower, to the control room. He tried to calm his breathing… he really did. They had been hounding him for years, throwing every manner of block and obstacle In his way.

As they reached the top and the door light clicked on, the stainless steel doors slid open soundlessly to admit them to a room full of blinking lights, beeping systems and colorful displays. The nerve center of the entire wind-farm was before them. This room itself cost nearly $20,000… all of his personal money.

They strode in. The room was roughly rectangular; banks of computers covered the three walls that didn’t hold the elevator. To one side of the elevator was a metal ladder than ran up through an access hatch to the roof of the wind turbine. Up there was a balcony, and another room that controlled the power flow from this turbine itself. “Here we are…” He said in an overly sweet, and very sarcastic voice, “Have a look around… but don’t touch anything.”

Mr. Smith moved about the room, holding a tablet computer and making notes on the operations and computers used in the running of the tower and wind field. The last of the construction had been finished only hours before, the turbines only powered up half an hour ago, and so hopefully this would be the last examiner… then they would leave him in peace with his creation.

He hung around in the background, hoping that if he didn’t talk as much as possible the man would leave extra soon. Within a few minutes, the man turned to him, saying in something of a condescending air, “I’m sorry… but I’m afraid that your computers are not up to the specifications needed… you’ll have to shut down the entire field until you can upgrade them to the necessary rated systems.

His eyes blazed and he growled, but before he could answer, the tower began to shake, as if it was turning into the wind when he knew it shouldn’t be. Then the shaking became much more violent, as if something was wrong with the tower itself. “What did you do!” he demanded, rushing over to the controls but not seeing anything wrong. Mr. Smith stammered as he dashed back to the ladder on the wall and climbed it, popping the access hatch and climbing out. He stood on the balcony, two dozen stories above the desert plains below. The examiner climbed out after him. The tower was shaking and the wind howling as he braced himself against the railing that ran around the outside.

“What have you done to my tower!?” he demanded, reaching to grip the examiner by the collar and shake him, “You did something!! I know you did!!!”

Mr. Smith was, frankly, terrified… he stuttered and stammered, not coming out with any sort of rational words. The Owner of the field screamed at him, something snapped in his mind and he felt a sudden tingling sensation overtake him from the bottom of his spine to the top of his head. He gave the poor examiner another vicious shake as rage overtook him and without another thought, he pitched the man over the railing, letting him fall to hid death. He found himself breathing hard, gasping for breath that would not come as he looked out to the horizon. A strange light show was taking place, the sky bleaching white and as he looked toward Diabolis, he saw what looked like a billion pinpricks of light appear.

Moments later he was still staring, but that was when a blast of energy hit the edge of the wind-farm like a wall. He watched as his precious towers were toppled, pitched on their sides, torn from their foundations… destroyed. He screamed and reached out to them, as if he could stop them from falling. That was when the wave hit his tower. He felt his footing leave him, the tower falling one way and him being pitched over the side in the opposite direction. He felt metal shards from the collapsing structure slice into him as he fell, a guttural yell ripping from his throat. He plummeted through the rising cloud of dust, feeling himself smash through a section of metal before impacting the ground.

He lay still… the only movement his labored breathing… then his eyes fluttered, opened. Where brown had been before, only red shone now. He growled from deep in his throat and heaved himself to one knee, then to his feet. Wind swirled around him as he stood in the midst of his destroyed dreams, the crumpled piles of steel and wire. Blades of wiped out turbines stuck out of the sand. As he stood there, breathing heavily, he yelled, “I’ll get you…. I’ll find you… whoever caused this… and I will take what I deserve… Diabolis will be MINE!!! You will fall before me… The REAPER!!”

Supernova
— Day 1 —
Parksville, Erbaine
Palisade National Park

There was an eerie silence when Terra awoke later to find herself splayed across the ground, her cheek cradled in the dirt.

I must have hit my head on a rock when I fell, she thought, confused.

When I. . . when I fell. . . .

The entire, bizarre experience came back to her like lightning.

She scrambled to her knees, and looked up. The world seemed normal. The sky was pure blue, and there was only one sun shining in its depths. How long had she been out? Had she hallucinated it all? She felt normal. . . almost normal.

Was it all a dream? She thought uncertainly.

. . . No.

Her clothes were still sopping wet, and she was covered in mud and scrapes and bruises. Something had happened, even if she couldn't figure out a logical explanation for it yet, even if she had no idea what was reality anymore.

Think, Terra. Think.

She leapt to her feet, and began running up the river. Maybe this was a stupid thing to do after the kind of experience she'd just had, but right now, Terra wasn't thinking in those terms. She had to see the spot where she had fallen.

She skidded to a stop twenty paces from the oak tree she had been sitting in before. She almost expected to see a twisted, melted monstrosity in its place, remembering the sickening feeling she had felt when the tree suddenly gave way like goo.

But it looked perfectly regular. Better than regular; beaming with health, even. Its leaves were very bright green. . . almost oddly vibrant.

She walked up to it, tentatively placed her hand on the trunk, and gasped as she felt a tingling sensation—stronger, fuller, stranger than the brittle shock of electricity—go all the way up her arm and into her body.

She looked up. Even the thick branch she had been sitting on was still there, and she would have sworn it had broken or fallen. She never remembered letting go of it, and yet she had slipped right through it as if it had been liquid.

How. . . ? She glanced at the ground beside the tree, expecting to see a deep furrow in the ground where she remembered tumbling into the river. But all she saw was normal, though unusually bright green, grass.

It must be a trick of the light, she thought, shaking her head as if that would make it stop.

She was about to start convincing herself she had had a seizure and hallucinated the entire thing, when she glanced back up at the oak tree just as a cloud moved in front of the sun. The forest was suddenly bathed in shadows. And that was when she noticed.

The tree's leaves were glowing.

She reeled a step back, gasping sharply. This was not natural. This should not be happening. She had spent all of her life in the woods, and never had she seen anything like that. She must be dreaming. She must be going mad. She stared at the tree, agape, stumbling backwards.

She slipped in the mud on the riverbank, falling to her knees, and catching herself with her elbow.

A dull pain rippled through her forearm as if she had irritated an abrasion.

She bit her lip, and hauled herself over to the shallow water along the riverbank, and plunged her right arm into the current, washing away the layer of mud with her other hand.

At first she could only see her reflection in the water, turned opaque by the dirt she was scrubbing away. And she looked a mess. Her face was streaked with mud, and her dripping, curly hair was full of twigs and leaves. But all those other details faded away as she stared into her eyes. They had always been green, but more of a clear, seaglass shade.

Now they were gleaming the same strangely radiant shade as the oak tree's leaves.

She began to pull her arms out of the river to cover her eyes, to block out her own, alien reflection, to silence the scream that was pressing against her lips. But instead she froze.

Terra stared at her wrist in horror.

A coil of glowing green skin was wound around her forearm, starting at her wrist and ending a few inches below her elbow.

It wasn't oozing. The skin wasn't damaged. It was just there, embedded in her arm and radiating like a firefly on a summer night.

"The rope," she whispered, her eyes widening.

Except it hadn't been a rope. But admitting to herself that a vine had shot out of a tree, wrapped itself around her arm, and kept her from plunging over a waterfall was too ridiculous.

Nothing was making any sense.

She reached into her small, waterproof backpack, and pulled out a roll of bandages, and slowly, mechanically began to wind it around her arm.

Something told her that this was better kept a secret.

Day 1--Arida

"I don't know, I don't know," Xandria whispered back. "It was like the entire world faded away for a second, then came back. It was freaky. But you're right--let's get these kids inside. I don't think it is good for them to be out here in the double suns."

Xandria lifted the last two children--twins--out of the water, and each woman wrapped a towel around the kids.

"Come on, everyone," Xandria said as cheerfully as she could manage. "We're gonna take a walk over to the convent, and pretend we're churchmice in the cathedral--we'll all need to sit very still and quiet once we get there. Let's go."

-Day 1-
Arenico, Diabolis
Downtown, On the Roof of a Government Facility
Previous Post

Gideon stared blankly into space, listening to his frantic heartbeats and wondering how in the world he was still alive.

There was no step. Nothing there to catch his fall. And yet something did, otherwise he would have plummeted to his death. He couldn't explain it. He could feel his hands tingling.

"Gids?"

Edwin's frantic whisper brought him back to his senses. He looked into his friend's frightened eyes and saw the reflection of the two suns upon their glossy surface. All around, the blaring music characteristic of Diabolis had ceased - replaced with screams and yells. A cloud of smoke billowed from somewhere nearby.

The one good thing about all this: with the panicked civilians down below, their path to the central computer was less likely to be met with resistance.

He grabbed Edwin's hand. "Come on - let's go!"

The boy hesitated. "But Gids, are you sure -"

"It's now or never. We'll get in and get out before anyone realizes what's going on."

He sprinted off towards the rooftop door, and this time, Edwin followed. Bending down, Gideon pulled a small device from his pocket. It looked like a swiss army knife, but instead of blades, it held an assortment of flattened rods with differently shaped tips. He inserted one into the lock and wiggled it with practiced fingers. A moment later, the door slid open, and the pair of thieves slipped silently inside.

The stairwell was pitch dark. Gideon gasped from the shock of it - he had been expecting at least a solitary florescent light to show their way. As he inched his way forward, something crackled under his feet. It sounded like broken glass.

A flick, and then Edwin's face was illuminated by the flame of the lighter he always kept in his pocket. Glancing around the corridor, he observed, "The lights blew out. There's glass all over the floor."

They crept down the stairs, Edwin leading the way with his lighter. Three floors down, they passed through a door and set out on a rehearsed path through the building. From studying floor-plans, Gideon knew that the central computer lay just beyond the maze of offices on this floor - and since it was Saturday, not many of the workers would be there. Everything was dark here was well, and a strange smell hung in the air. Doubt prickled in the back of his mind. Would the computer even still be up and running?

Another door - easily unlocked by Gideon - led them to the room they were looking for. The moment Gideon stepped inside, he sensed something was different. A quiet hum revealed the presence of some vast piece of machinery that - unlike the rest of the building - still seemed to be running. Blinking blue lights outlined the computer's massive structure. Gideon didn't know much about technology, but he couldn't help but be amazed at the sheer amount of information that block of silicone must be capable of holding. Just what is it we're after, here?

"Is that where we plug it in?" said Edwin, examining the side of the computer. He pointed to a tiny slot that Gideon had not yet noticed, about the right size for his microchip. Withdrawing it from his pocket, he slid it inside. Instantly, one of the blue lights flashed red, and a tiny light on the chip turned white. Whatever the chip was meant to do, it was working.

The floor rumbled beneath Gideon's feet. Before he could figure out what was going on, the computer emitted a sharp pop. Whatever backup generator had been powering it finally blew out, and one by one, the lights faded, leaving the computer a useless lump of metal and wires.

Gideon pulled the chip out again and stared at it, wondering if it had gotten everything it needed. But just then, he caught a whiff of that strange smell he had sensed before - and this time he recognized it. The hairs on the back of his neck began to prickle. "I smell -"

"Smoke," said Edwin.

They stared at each other. The building vibrated again.

"We have to get out of here," Gideon breathed. "Now!"

Day 1: Burg
Lawrence Manor

You're hit by the shockwave of a supernova, then awaken to find you have superpowers? Hardly the things of reality... Yet, it's real. Either it's real or this is one heck of a dream.

Malcom was currently standing in his study located in the right wing of the manor. There was now a new "gift" to add to the list of powers the bachelor now possessed: the ability to teleport through shadows and even control the darkness to an extent. An ability Lawrence had just been demonstrating to the now somewhat nonchalant Jennings.

"I do trust you are not going to start a life of crime because of all this..." the butler asked with genuine concern in his voice.

"I'll try not to leave any evidence that may lead back to you, Richard." Malcom replied with a slight smile before stepping over to one of the many bookcases in the room and pulling out a volume of "Silvestri's Guide to the Great Musical Works of Our Time". As the book was pulled out, the neighboring bookcase creaked, was pushed outward and then opened to reveal a small, somewhat crude, elevator. "Coming?"

"Thank you, Sir...." was all the butler said in response. "I have a feeling I better." Jennings said with a smile as he entered the elevator with his master. As soon as both men were inside, Malcom pulled a lever that caused the metal box to descend.

A few minutes later, the elevator stopped and opened to reveal the basement of Lawrence Manor or "The Cave". The latter name was more fitting as the basement was, in fact, a cave. Actually, it was one massive cave with several smaller offshoots connected to the main cavern, though the smaller caves all led to dead ends. The central cave was made of one grand room with several "balconies" jutting out or up from the walls/floor. A natural underground river ran through the cave, keeping the cavern a constant cool temperature and giving a perfect source for backup power run through generators.

Before Malcom was born, the two elder Lawrence's had built a small dam in one of the caverns and hooked up several large underground generators to the manor, in case of emergencies. Once Malcom had inherited the estate, he had added on to "The Cave" installing stairs, ramps, hidden exits to the outside, storage for his Hyper-Bikes and a medium sized open air "office". The office area was tucked into the right side of the cave and consisted of several wall monitors, a desk with keyboard and a chair. This was where Malcom usually spent most of his time when he was not having to be the It man of the hour.

"I finally have the ability to help the people, now. This is my chance to finally do something for Burg." Lawrence said as he began rebooting the systems that controlled the mechanics in the cavern. "I've tried giving money to the government and police, but they never use it for good... always spending it on raises and parties. As though that was going to help..."

Once the systems were online and the familiar low hum of the machines filled the cavern, Lawrence walked over to a box sitting on a small outcropping in the wall. "I've been working on this for months... now I feel I can finally use it." After opening the box, Malcom turned to Jennings holding a white fabric mask with black splotches that possibly resembled a face.

"A superhero mask? You plan on dressing up, then going to the authorities and offering your services to them, I presume?"

"Heh, not quite. I don't know who, if anyone, to trust that is in authority in Burg. Especially now with... this Event." Malcom began explaining. "No, the only way to make sure I help the people that truly need it is to do this alone. Outside of the aid of the governments."

"Ah, then you shall be a vigilante. I'm tempted to call the men in the white coats, if I knew they were any still around." the butler said looking from the mask to his master and then back at the mask. "... Though if you are truly doing this for the greater good, I suppose I can go along with it. Just don't expect me to go jumping off rooftops as well." Jennings finally said with a wink added to the last bit.

"Very well. I think we can both live with that." Malcom said with a laugh. "And yes, this is for the greater good. I need to do this... I've been needing to for years..." he trailed off as he inspected the mask in his hand. "I'll test all this out tonight. It will also give me a chance to see what state Burg is in. I'll need dinner slightly early tonight, Jennings..."

"Very good, sir. I shall be in the kitchen then if you need me. Hopefully we won't run out of food..." the butler said before giving a short bow to Malcom, then heading back to the elevator and thus to the manor.

(((OOC: Sorry for the mammoth post! Plenty of substance, though... )))

Day 1--Northeast Arida--a post that should be read entirely with a high-society British accent.

Candice de Mon sat back in her red velvet chair with a large, centuries old, book of fashion designs upon her lap and smoke curling up from her cigarette. She was positioned so that, in case anyone opened the door, they would first see the back of her chair, surrounded by the suitably ominous swirls of smoke. Her book happened to be one she should technically be studying for her degree, but, situated so she could read it better, was a copy of The Missing Dalmatians by Saddie Dims--Candi's all time favorite read. While fashion was high on her list, Saddie Dims book topped everything else. At the moment, Candi was doing her best to find a coat design--THE coat design--to complete her costume of choice. The black walking suit was done. The red satin evening dress was done. She even had the perfect pairs of shoes to match both outfits. Now, to find the coat.

This had been Candice for the last six years (minus the cigarette for 4 and 1/2 of those years, due to being a minor). With her naturally half-black, half-white hair, Candi had been the recipient of much teasing, usually of the sort of being called "Crummella" after the villainess in The Missing Dalmatians. Candi didn't mind being associated with Crummella at all, although she did wish Ms. Dims had chosen a better name for Candi's personal heroine. But there is not much use arguing with those long dead.

Candi did, however, have Ms. Dims to thank for The Idea. The Idea was to turn herself into Crummella, but only ever so much better than Crummella. The hair didn't need to be touched--it was that way naturally. The clothing could be adjusted to fit--and it had given Candi much joy to design and order these ornate costumes. But this last coat, THE coat, had been her obsession for years. The only problem was, Candi would settle for nothing less than the REAL thing. She would settle for nothing less than a reversible fur coat with real furs--and one of those furs had to be authentic Dalmatian skin. So far, she had had some trouble procuring the skins, but finally, she had them. Now, what design??

As she flipped another page and ran her long fingers across the grain of the paper, the world suddenly seemed to flash a bright white. Candi half rose out of her chair, both books sliding off of her lap. The black curtains of the bay window she had been facing suddenly blew back toward her, and the window suddenly gave way to the pressure, shattering into a thousand tiny fragments, which all came flying toward the girl. As the large book of fashion fell, the pages seemed to break free in the sudden wind, and were caught up with the glass, whirling together before Candi's eyes. her cigarette ash seemed interested in joining the fray, and Candi watched, half frightened, half intrigued as it rose to swirl with the rest. A sudden, loud boom seemed to resinate from the mixture, and the pressure first pulled Candi in, then threw her back onto the ground. The entire castle seemed to tip this way and that, and Candi desperately clawed at the floorboards, trying to catch a good hold, but she could not. One final, desperate grab allowed Candi to clutch some of the glass and dust from her books, but no floorboards.

"Oh, stop rocking and stay still!!" Candi exclaimed, letting go of the particles.

And the world around her did.

Candi's hand immediately went to her head, which she had managed to knock several times already, but she jerked it away when a piece of glass stuck to her hand began to scratch her face.

"I...I....wait...."

Several hours later, the door to Candi's sitting room creaked open.

"'Scuse me, Miss, but everyone is in all a tither over that there explosion. I know ye said not to interrupt you, but, well, we jus' all wanted to make sure you were alright."

"Oh, I am," Candi said, staring into the flickering firelight. "I'm perfectly fine."

"Even with that there cut on your forehead? Your dress looks torn up awful."

"That can be fixed. Annie, get me a leather satchel, if you please."

Annie did as she was told.

"Thank you," Candi said softly, beginning to scoop up the pile of dust that had once been her book, cigarette, and window. "I think I shall get changed into something a little less damaged."

"I'd think that was grand, miss, 'cept your room was quite harmed by the explosion. I dinna think any of your clothes survived."

"We'll see," Candi finally said, rising and walking toward the door. Annie's gaze followed her, wondering what on earth had made her mistress suddenly so sedate. "Oh, and Annie?"

"Yes'm?"

"Don't let anyone clean the hearth in that room after the fire dies. I shall do it myself. That is an order, understood?"

"Yes'm."

--Day 1--
Burg

Music blared from the radio sitting atop the toolbox in the shop, Kyle slid from underneath the car he was working on, he bent backwards and stretched his now twisted up back.

His boss who was still welding on the same piece (which he had been trying to attach for the last forty minutes,) finally switched off his torch, and looked over in Kyle's direction.

"It gets worse with age kid."

"Oh great something to look forward too." Kyle said with a smirk.

"Yeah, not a whole lot of perks come with this job." his boss said, flipping down his welding helmet.

"Yeah, tell me about it." Kyle said under his breath.

He huffed and looked back down at the car he was fixing, then out of nowhere a huge power surge rocketed through every power line in the building.

Sparks shot from the outlets and sprayed onto previously spilled gasoline, which caught fire, and it was all down hill from there.

Left and right, things were catching fire. Kyle rushed to the door but a piece of fallen rubble had blocked the path, dodging more flame to try and find another exit, he saw a crack of daylight through a window and scrambled for the ray of hope, but just as he reached it two metal beams collapsed and trapped his leg.

He strained to shift the beams, but they wouldn't budge. Then from behind he heard a familiar raspy voice, his boss was crawling toward him.

"Kyle! Help! I'm...stuck!" his boss cried, apparently not seeing that Kyle was trapped himself.

Not wanting his boss to give up, Kyle yelled back, "Hold on! I'm coming!"

"Hurry up, the flames are getting closer!"

Kyle struggled with the beams, and in one last feeble attempt to move them before he lost consciousness. He lifted his hands, and something he never expected happened.

Flames shot from his palms and thrusted him backward like a rocket. In pure shock, he starred in awe for a moment, but his bosses distant cry for help snapped him out of it.

Kyle ran toward where his bosses screams were coming from, he finally found him, but there was already another figure standing next to him. The smoke cleared some and Kyle realized it was a fireman.

The fireman looked as though he was astonished to see anyone else survived, then said, "Follow me!"

Kyle hastily followed behind the fireman, weaving through the rubble, they finally found an exit.

The first thing Kyle saw was a bright light, it was an ambulance doctor shining a pen light in his eye.

"It's ok, you were just temporarily blinded from the smoke." The doctor said.

Kyle looked down, his arms were covered in blood, as was his face he guessed. He sat on the edge of the ambulance, with the doctor still bouncing around, bandaging everything....That was when he noticed his surroundings.

Flame and rubble covered the streets of Burg, power lines scattered the ground, buildings looked like they had lost entire stories.

Kyle could only imagine what had happened here. But Burg was not the only thing that was different, he had yet to discover the thing that would make the real difference in his life.

Day 1--Northeast Arida

Candi walked slowly into her spacious, but now tattered, bedroom and equally slowly pushed her door to. After standing, frozen, for a moment, she suddenly, violently turned and slammed the lock shut. A quick walk around her room followed, the 19-year-old viscously tearing at any hanging fabrics and beating at the curtains. After satisfying her fear that someone was hiding in her room, Candi slowly reached into the bag and took out a small handful of dust. she let most of it pour through her fingers and back into the satchel, then blew the last bits of dust off of her hand and onto her bed.

"Give me clothing worthy of a lady of rank, of Crummella," she whispered, her eyes shut. After a second, she snuck a peek out from under one lid, and was relieved to find her request had been fulfilled. There, on her bed, lay a black and red hunting suit, and beside it, a mink riding cape, along with riding boots and a riding crop. After a moment's hesitation, Candi put them on, and, stowing her bag, unlocked the door and walked down to the main hall, where Annie and the other servants had gathered.

"Aye, miss, ye look quite fine, 'though I would wish ye would let the good doctor take a look at your brow," one of the elder servants said. Candi nodded.

"Maybe later. But first, what happened? Does anyone know?" Candi's question was met with shaking heads and murmurs. She nodded. "Very well, we do not know. Have the grounds been checked, is everyone alright? How are the buildings? What structures are safe, and which are not? We must know before the sun sets, so we may have adequate shelter, and shelter to offer any of those in need."

"You heard, let's go, see what will do," the majordomo said. "Make sure whatever supplies that can be saved are."

"Thank you," Candi said. nodding at him.

"It seems to me, our little mistress has aged quite a lot in a few hours," the majordomo muttered to his assistant as they left the hall. "By the last ten minutes, I would never have put her a year below 30, but she's always been one to act her age before that."

"You mean to act a brat?" the assistant snarked. The majordomo said nothing, merely glared at him.

Day 1
Burg
O'Brian's Shoe Store

As Bob stepped out of the stock room he realized with horror that things were worse than he thought they had been. Every shelf in the store was on the ground and the shoes, shoe boxes and debris stretched half-way to the ceiling. Bob managed to move in a half-walking, half-swimming way, pushing debris to the side as he went and climbing over the larger obstructions. At last he found O'Brian, but the man was unconscious. As much as Bob disliked his boss at times, he would not just let him die there- even 'enemies' earned a wealth of sympathy from Bob in their times of need. Bob knelt beside his boss, tears forming in his eyes, trying to figure out what to do.

Day 1
Burg
A vacant lot on the city's boarder
Just before the Supernova hits

Allison Thomas yawned and ran her hand through her collar-length brown hair. The vacant lot she stared out was an ugly, barren waste, but to Ally (as she was often called), it held the promise of a new life. What she couldn't do if only she had this land..!! It might have seemed small to others, but to this city girl, it was like a wonder-land, large enough to do anything with. She could pull the weeds, get rid of the debris, fertilize it, plant crops...Or, she could go the other direction, and build herself a mansion...okay, she was crazy. A garden planted here would die if ever it even sprung up, due to the enormous amounts of pollution int he city. And she would never be able to build the mansion she had always dreamed of; not with the paltry sum she made working as a clerk at Nails are Us! beauty supply. Still, a city girl could dream, couldn't she? Today, anything seemed possible.

"What a wonderful, bright, sun-shiney sort of day..." she breathed, hugging herself in joy. Today she would fulfill her dream. Someway, somehow...Every once in a while she'd get like this, have a day when her dreams could come true. Somehow...someway...

"Bob would laugh at me if he could see me now. He's probably chilling at his apartment this very moment." She chuckled to herself. Oh, how she loved Bob! And yet, how different they two were! Even their dreams were different; Ally had delusions of grandeur, dreams of the largest scale. Bob, on the other hand, dreamed of just one noble yet simple goal: go to college. Would it be difficult, especially at his age? Yes, but highly possible, if only he was determined enough. Ally dreamed of the wonderful, impossible things, things that sheer determination could never give her. Of course, she wanted to marry, which was something that most people did. It was a common dream, perhaps. Yet even this premise was adventurous to her; here she was, twenty-six years old, single, fun-loving, a sketcher by trade. It would take a special, loving man to fill the longing her heart held for a husband. And yet, despite the intensiveness of her longing, she could wait. One day, the man of her dreams would be there. He himself need not be perfect, but she knew their match would be. They would grow together, learn together...she pictured him with piercing blue eyes that saw straight to her heart, knew what she was thinking, and enjoyed her company as much as she would enjoy his. Bob did not wish to marry, or at least he never spoke of it. Hm...perhaps she should play cupid, some day when she had the time, wasn't dreaming so much for herself...

Suddenly, all of Ally's thoughts stopped. An enormous wave of heat and light knocked her off of her feet and threw her to the ground. She cried out in terror and pain, threw her arms over her head and curled up into a tight little ball. Heat beat through her clothing and pierced her skin, light burned her pupils though her eyes were closed and pressed to the dirt beneath her. She cried out again, and her thoughts turned to Bob. Bob, he could help her.

"Bob!" she cried. "Bob, help me...help me..." Her voice faded to a murmur as the light and heat faded to a- well, they were still very much here, and she felt hotter than she had ever felt before (even when she had crossed the desert at sixteen), but she could stand up and, if she squinted very hard, just barely see the sun- no, wait, TWO suns...the squinting made her see in double, perhaps. Or she was dehydrated from the exhausting heat. Ally sighed and sat down int he lot, wishing that, for the moment, anyway, it was not so vacant and had several tall shade-trees. She sat there for what seemed to her an eternity as she waited for the heat and light to return to normal levels. Finally they did, the 'eternity' was not an eternity, never ending, but only six or eight hours. By then, the day was turning to night, and she stood, stretching her stiff legs, and headed for home. However, she did not reach it before she was stopped by two men and three women. The group clamored around her, stared at her as though she was some odd being. Ally pushed past them, terrified. What was going on? Why did they stare at her like that?? Ally ran the rest of the way to her apartment and fell at last into the doorway and locked the door behind her. Gasping for breath, she hurried into the bathroom and peered into the mirror; what she saw made her heart beat even faster than it already was. Her hair was growing, growing so quickly that she could see it growing. It passed her waist, grew until the hair was streaming onto the floor, all around her, filling the room.

"No!" she yelled, sure she was hallucinating. "No, no, stop! STOP!" This was all just a bad dream. She fell to the ground, into the hair, and then suddenly...she felt around her shoulders- there, her hair was normal again. Gasping with relief, she stroked her hair, her short-ish, brown hair that she had never before appreciated. It was alright, she was normal. Sighing joyously, she stood up and headed to the kitchen. Being out in the sun all day had given her heat-stroke, she was sure. She filled a water bottle with filtered water and retired to her bedroom to rest.

~Day One~
~Brink City~

Josiah got up to his feet, looking around frantically. The room seemed not to have suffered much from ... whatever had just happened. Brushing himself off, he stumbled out of the room, calling his sister's name.

In a few minutes, he realized she must have gone out. He always hated it when she went out without him, but today all he felt was fear. Who knows what's happened to her, he thought. She could be bleeding in a gutter somewhere -

Just then, the front door opened, and Michelle came in. "Mish," he said, relieved.

"Siah!" She ran up and hugged him so tight he could barely breathe. Michelle was always affectionate, but this was a bit much even for her.

"Mish," he managed, "Not quite so tight, please."

She let go of him and took a step back. "Sorry!" Michelle wiped at her eyes fiercely. "What just happened?"

"I don't know. Maybe there's something on the news."

Josiah helped his sister sit down - when she didn't complain, he got a touch more concerned, and made a mental note to ask her what happened out there later - dug the television remote out from the couch cushions, and hit the 'power' button.

Nothing happened.

***

There were times when nothing Michelle said would affect her brother, and this was one of them. After checking the TV connections, he ransacked the whole house, trying to find anything electric that still worked, and found none.

"Maybe a power line fell - " she tried once.

"It'll be back any minute," she said when he ran through the room looking for a radio, but he didn't seem to hear.

"Will you just stay in one place for one minute?" she demanded as he ran up to the attic.

But Josiah would not listen until he had assured himself that the phones, television, radios, computers, clocks, and anything else not on batteries was not working.

So she stayed on the couch and waited, trying not to think about the men who accosted her before the explosion, knowing that any minute Josiah would be satisfied, and come back and tell her -

She heard him come in. His tread was heavier than usual - he was carrying something big. "We're going to Parksville."

That wasn't what she had expected.

Erbaine, Parksville,
Wolf Rehabilitation Center
15 minutes after the Supernova
– Day 1 -

The wind shook structure still stood after the effects of the massive solar flare…or whatever the catastrophic event had been. Several trees around the building had fallen, and many leaves, just grown, had been stripped from branches and now decorated the path outside like a strange green carpet. The sun was still blazing, though the air was much more still, and if you stared into the sky you could still discern the outline of a second sun…a foreign and freakish phenomenon, but almost like a symbol, a mark, left in the heavens as a sign of what had occurred.

Inside the place, all was quiet. The Center seemed deserted for all the noise within. Glass littered the halls; every light had shattered and plummeted the place into a strange and eerie darkness. The window which Loretta had gazed out, not that long ago, was shattered, it’s shards of crystalline like pieces scattered about the room. Loretta still lay on the floor, her mind roving about in the plains and fields of a dream like trance. Reality was slowly returning though, seeping back in to p***k her brain and her thoughts, lashing them back to the present. She stirred, eyes slowly opening, blinking the blurriness from them. She was instantly, and keenly aware, of the painful throbbing in her head, pounding like a hammer, and so sharp. So intent upon this overwhelming feeling, for the moment she didn’t realize that her voice had not formed the low groaning sound which she had attempted to emit.

Biting her lip she slowly lifted herself up by her palms, fragments of glassing rolling off of her back and legs and she adjusted to a sitting position beside the counter. Using one hand she touched the bloody laceration she had received from her fall, which ached steadily. Oh…what happened? She thought, only slightly recalling the event from the fuzzy recesses of stored away memories.

Then she heard a voice. A high frightened, whimpering voice that invaded her mind; almost screaming in her head. ‘Help me!’ it cried, out of breath, ‘I’m scared…I’m hungry. Oh, help me please!’ She started, eyes widening, desperately looking around, searching for the being who spoke. Her gaze fell upon the wolf pup, locked in his carrier, his little golden eyes staring her with fright, and his mouth parted. He seemed to bark, but instead she heard once again the words ‘Help me!’
Loretta froze, eyes fixed on the animal, stunned. It wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be. No…it was simply her imagination. Perhaps her fall had injured her more than she had first thought. But then the voice returned, and she reached out one hand, wary at first, puzzled, but her heart was wrenching at seeing the little puppy crying. Her finger tips slipped through the square spaces between the bars, and she felt the cold wet nose of the wolf. It wined, sniffed her, rubbing its little head of course fur against her skin, then looked back up at her, tail wagging. She cracked a smile, despite her head throbbing, and wondered how she had heard it speak.

Perhaps I’m disillusioned…but…maybe…

It began crying again, and she felt her own eyes tearing up. The poor thing…I must get it out of there… Reaching forward, using both hands she flipped the latch and scooped up the pup into her arms, stroking it gently to calm it. It seemed to work, and she stood, struggling somewhat, trying to use one hand to stand, using the counter corner as her grip. As she rose to her full stature, a sudden, and sharp wave of dizziness hit her, followed by more pain, and she almost fell back, gripping what surfaces she could in desperation to simply stay up right. The puppy let out a wine, and she thought she heard a faint trail of words tease her mind but she ignored it and forced herself to over-come the aching… I have to get it out. I wonder where the others are… She swallowed down some nausea and began stumbling across the floor, glass crunching beneath her boots.

The room was a disaster, and she wondered what sort of wave must have ripple through to cause it. The shelves had fallen from the walls, and all the bottles and things were broken. The small fridge in the corner, containing the milk was luckily still standing…but its electronic hum was clearly gone. Loretta went to it, holding the wolf in one arm, and reaching out with the other hand to open the door. The inside was still cool, though dark, and she groped around, finally landing a grip on a full bottle of milk. It was the least she could do for the small animal, the only one so far she knew was still alright. She tipped it to the puppy’s lips and it drank a few swallows, before pulling it’s mouth away and looking around.

Loretta smiled down at it, though it was agonized attempt, and she had to close her eyes for a minute, trying to bite back the sick feeling in her stomach. I have to get outside…fresh air. I have to found out what’s happened…

She slowly made her way to the open door way, housing the bottle and wolf still in her arms, trying to carefully pick her way across the floor covered in glass. She took a final, long, confused and anxious glance over the room behind her, red hair falling to obscure some of that vision. Then she plunged into the hall, met by some broken items; all the lights and a few windows had shattered, mostly everything else was alright, except the things blown down but there was....darkness. Nothing that had once used power was working.

When she arrived at the door, she opened it with her back, emerging on the outside, welcoming the light and the fresh air, and the more natural sight of a familiar and not wrecked place. She breathed deeply, trying to clear her head. Her green eyes scanned her surroundings, and noticed the downed trees and the blanket of leaves…but she assumed that was because of the massive wind gusts she had witnessed before blacking out. The wolf squirmed and she let it down for a moment, watching it though to make sure it didn’t run. It seemed to know to stay close to her. Loretta knelt down beside it and set the bottle upon the ground. What had happened? Was the strange quietness in the forest because of the terrifying weather she had seen? She didn’t know, all she knew was that her head was hurting and that for some reason she thought she could hear the wolf puppy talk…

Day 1-Arida-Henna District

Fang pushed the door of the convenience store open, and strode in. Today was his kind of day, and he was ready for it--his gun was carefully tucked within reach, his homies were outside in the getaway car, and the store was ripe for robbing. He had staked out this store quite a while ago, and knew when it had the most cash on hand. This was just what he needed to establish himself with more than just his gang--he was already firmly established there--but there was a certain girl who he could do to impress. 

~~

"Dog, sure this was the right time to do this?"
"Aw, come on, Tuck, nothings gonna happen." Speedy grinned, winding in and out of traffic. He glanced over at Fang, who was busy counting the goods. Speedy gunned the engine, just slipping through a yellow light and up the onramp. And then it happened--just as it did for thousands of others. The pressure. The light. The flashes of colors. The world swirling, swirling, and continuing to swirl as Speedy lost control of their ride and they went hurtling down the embankment. 

-Day 1-
Capitol University
Judicia, Erbaine
About 10 minutes before the supernova

As Dr. Dreyman dismissed the class, Laramie piled her books into her backpack and hoisted it up over her shoulder. Watching the other students file out of the class, she realized Leon hadn't shown up that morning and wondered if he was all right. He wasn't one to miss any chance at studying.

She turned to Liam and checked her watch. "A walk would be great! My mind agrees with the doctor, but after an hour and a half, my legs don't."

As they exited the classroom and walked through the hall, Laramie said, "As for liking the coffee?" Holding up one hand, she glanced at her still-shaky fingers. "When I stop buzzing, I'll let you know," she laughed. "But really, it was good."

She stepped out into the daylight. "Ben said to tell you he'll be coming by to raid the frappuccino mix any day now--oh, ouch! When did it get so bright out here?"

Shading her eyes, Laramie squinted up into the sky, bleached a blinding bone-white. She opened her mouth to comment on the strange color, when the ground started to vibrate beneath her feet.