Azazel:Deadwater:9/20/2025
Went back down to the beach last night without my grub suit. Needed to do some demon shit. I waded out into the water, deepish, let the waves buffet me, tangle my dreads and toss me around until I was numb from the cold. The ocean has many voices. They travel through the water, vibrations within a medium, slipping effortlessly through the liquid. The chatter can be overwhelming. Listen for the deep voices, those with resonance, these are the travelers. Under the water, I can hold my breath for hours. For hours I listened. There is pain everywhere beneath the waves, heat, plastic, acid, chemicals, the mechanical drone of cargo ships, none are safe, even as vast as the ocean is.
One deep voice, a little slippery, spoke of an ice island crumbling to the sea. Another spoke of an island that never was stormy, but now storms come often and destroy everything. Still another of an island where there used to be fish, but now there are boats.
No voices spoke of the black rubbery bubble that brought our new residents ashore. But all voices spoke of loss and hunger.
This is why we demons want the planet back. To set things right.
Miriam:Deadwater:9/20/2025
HOLY SHIT. Ok so I wasn’t supposed to be up on the floor where the sea people are, but I was on break and my whole job from Az is to get intel. So I went up anyway. I didn’t know exactly where they were, but I knew they had been given one of the bigger wards so they could stay together. I was wandering, trying to look like I was working, because there’s a guard in front of the door. He saw me coming and puffed up.
“No entry. Only the Doc.”
“I’m supposed to bring them magazines, so they can get used to living here before they get out of the hospital.” I held up an armload of magazines.
“I wasn’t told of this.” The guard was a young guy from the PD, his badge said Officer Dillon. I stuck out my free hand.
“I’m Miriam. I just started here. It’s my job to provide a little extra comfort to patients.”
He stood with his hands on his hips.
“No one told me you were coming.”
The hall was quiet for a few seconds and then I heard voices coming from the other side of the door. Strange voices, shrill and high pitched, talking about how warm they were. Too warm. Dying. I shoved the magazines at the officer and walked into the room. The sea people all looked up sharply, they were huddled on the far side of the room, as far as they could get from the big sunny window. I walked across and drew the blinds.
Then I spoke- in their language. I didn’t know I knew their language??? This must be a demon thing. Az is still sleeping so I can’t ask him, but while we talked the officer called the doctor. We had a long conversation with me translating.
Anyway, they come from an island in the arctic that’s melting and crumbling. They eat lichen as near as I can figure and are dying because it’s too warm here. But they left because their island was falling apart. There used to be a lot more of them, but most died because of starvation.
It was sad and exciting all at once. I’m worried Deadwater won’t be able to save them or find a new place for them to live. IDK, it’s kind of a lot. I’m going to poke Az awake because I need to talk to someone.
August:
We are still walking through this foul smelling squishy tube. We do not grow tired, merely anxious. We were, at one point, attacked by what I assume to be a remnant of sausage. It was disc-shaped and showed evidence of teeth marks. It also brandished a mouth of its own, and clawed hands, but its locomotion was by rolling which proved to be ineffective. Evelyn picked up a wilted and soggy piece of lettuce and was able to stuff it in the thing’s slimy little maw.
Aside from that, we just walk. And yes, we have put together were we are, but neither of us can muster up the fortitude to say it out loud.
There is a constant burbling and rumbling that vibrates the slick surface on which we tread.
There is only one place we can be.
I loves it. Especially the voice, I need to dig more Az stuff.