Prompt - Monsters in the Deep
The Destiny City Reservoir opened about a year ago and is an easy escape from the big city. It’s a five minute drive outside of the Eastern side of town and features clear water and sandy beaches--although, the sand here is notorious for squeaking when you step on it. It’s a hot spot for all fun summer activities, but it’s been back in the news recently for mysterious reports of some strange, aquatic monster. Some accounts say they’ve spotted a twenty foot long, snake like creature capable of rearing a long neck high above the water. It’s hard to tell if the videos are doctored, but there are too many rumors to dismiss easily. Something strange might be lurking deep in the water. Are you the type to investigate this or is it enough to dampen your waterfront plans? While you may not ever actually interact with the supposed cryptid, you can spot a strange creature in the distance. And, who knows what youma are crawling in the area, anyway?
Ask him a few months ago if he believed in monsters and he would have rolled his eyes, ask him now and he would have at least humoured a bystander. It was certainly his job to listen to concerns regardless of what he felt but now that he knew more he had come to the conclusion that something was definitely in the water. Oh sure, his partner could laugh at the overhyped conspiracy theories, he didn't know what actually existed out there, but Regula now had a genuine reason to suspect.
...Too many people were referencing it and more importantly, too many of the stories matched.
Admittedly there had been a spike in accidents in the last week or so and while some of this could be explained by good weather and an influx of activity, the almost constant need for lifeguards to intervene in almost every circumstance to drag someone from the water had at least piqued the interest of the local police force. While they weren't about to spout their own conspiracy theories, it had been pertinent to at least send a small number of officers to the area to act as a deterrent in case some individuals were playing pranks.
Tricks and pranks were all well and good but the fun stopped when people got hurt. It was for this reason that Regula now found himself at the reservoir, in the piping hot sun, in full uniform. If there was ever a time where he felt uncomfortable it was right about now; he was absolutely boiling. He'd at least had the foresight to wear a short sleeved shirt but unfortunately shorts weren't exactly to spec for his line of work.
Not even ice cream was going to save him.
Eventually he and his partner had both sought refuge under the trees and from there they had periodically patrolled up and down the immediate area with half an eye on the water. The lifeguards knew what to look for when it came to that, they were just here to be flagged down if there was someone in the water that needed to be the dealt with for causing chaos. So far everything had been going well, there were no signs of disturbance and save for the occasional intervention from a lifeguard to pull a younger child closer to the shore and back to their parents, very little gave cause for concern.
Unfortunately if either he or his partner had been expecting any amount of drama the pair of them were in for a great deal of disappointment but that was always how these things went. Now that he'd been deployed to watch the waterway it seemed that their rumoured monster in the deep had gotten shy and for now, the pair of them were destined to sweat uncomfortably and mutter about the heat for the better part of the remaining week. At least people were safe though, that was the point right?
He eventually leant forward against the fence and released a sigh, small favours did mean he had his shades at least.
"I'm gonna bring a picnic next time," his partner concluded as he came to join him.
"How romantic," Regula replied with his usual drawl and a shake of his head.
"Well it's either that or we start moonlighting as lifeguards for something to do."
"...Mmm," Regula raised a brow and cast a side long glance towards his companion. "What could possibly go wrong," he uttered with a hint of sarcasm, it was something that he didn't get a rise for in return.
Silence seemed to suit them well though, there was something nice about just being able to relax sometimes and for once, they'd gotten a decent assignment. In reality though, he had made a mental note to return later in the evening. Whether anything happened during the day or not was irrelevant, he needed to find out what was underneath the surface.
Total Words: 662
