Quote:
The Lantern Festival (10) : Scientists have been hard at work trying to understand the strange, glowing qualities of the luminescent caterpillars found in the caves by the reservoir. The caterpillars still shrivel up if they are taken out of the caves but their glowing secretions have been processed into an organic paste that can withstand the outside world. The city is selling paper lanterns infused with various seeds. The glow paste is full of minerals to support healthy plant growth without risking damage to the environment; all lantern purchases come with a small packet of activating power that will heat the paste up enough to mimic the effects of a candle without the concerns of flammability. When the glow paste loses its heat, the lantern will return to the Earth and upon the first rain (or any contact with water) the paper will dissolve and the seeds may begin to grow. All proceeds from the lanterns are put right back into the community to support local conservation and environmental protection efforts.
Community events like the Star Festival were right up Dawn’s alley. She practically lived for it! If there was a need for volunteers she would be the first one to sign up, as long as her schedule allowed for it that is. Sadly this time she didn’t get a chance to be one of the various staffers who did everything from selling tickets to things, handing out food, or even passing out little star charms. Dawn particularly adored the little blue star she got when a kindly older woman handed them around. It was just so darn cute! It almost made her sad that she had been out of the city for so long. Her father got transferred so they kind of up and left, leaving everything behind. All her friends. All her classes. Her girl scout group. Her neighbors, and their pets. Everything! It had stunk, but she ultimately understood. It had been a fantastic, too good to believe really, offer that meant that their family would be in a completely new ‘tax bracket’ as her father would say.
Once in the other city, in the other state, across the country so it was quite literally in another Biome, they settled in rather quickly… At least her parents did but for Dawn it wasn’t quite so simple. It was a completely different world then the one she had grown up in, at least environmentally wise. From the Eastern Temperate Forests of the east coast to the Northwestern Forested Mountains of the west coast. It was the same, kind of, but different. It wasn’t home of course. Besides, she had been introduced to just how ‘special’ Destiny City was right before they had to leave. It was a city that was beyond dangerous, one of the reasons her parents were so happy to take the job offer, but it also meant that there were alot of people that needed help. A lot of people that she could help in a way that only she could. So what exactly brought her back to this ‘wretched hive of scum and villainy’? School of course! Well, not just school since she could have gone to college anywhere, in fact it likely would have been cheaper elsewhere, but she wanted to be here. In Destiny City. Where she could do some real good. Something more than just being a dog walker or a volunteer in an animal shelter. A real person of change. A true fighter for good.
Of course she was thinking about all of this as she gratefully paid for one of the seed lanterns, finding them very fascinating themselves, and quickly activated the paste. It didn’t take long for the delicate object to take to the sky where it was quickly joined by other lanterns. It was a cute idea with the added bonus of being completely eco-friendly. When the lanterns inevitably fell they would spread flowers and greenery. Spreading joy and happiness. Just like Dawn wanted to do… or at least spreading help. A helping hand when needed. Sometimes that's all someone needed, a chance and a little bit of help. No one was a lost cause… no one a forgotten soul…
Dawn wanted to be like that lantern. An uplifting light in the dark night sky.
It wouldn’t be easy but she felt she was up for the task. Regardless of what it may bring.
((Word Count: 566))
Biome Map
