https://everythingspeakstome.com/files/original/24539f9717a3e5a6d6ddc33106520989.jpeg d9a540601053fbd25dd8c87c004bbaf0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource After The Rise ... Description An account of the resource Using elevations and water level projected on EyesOnTheRise.com, these speculative fictions explore the world that was Miami after sea levels rise 6 or more feet. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Administrator Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Please post your written submission in this field. The images you would like to include should be posted as attachments below. “-And so to summarize, David Martinez went missing a few days ago. Track him down and be sure to retrieve the body if anything nefarious happened. You got that Subaru?” the head of the police station, my boss, dictated. “Y- yeah I got it,” I had weakly responded. After receiving my job I was given a lot to think about. I didn’t really have much in the way of experience but things like this are really just a trial by fire. I have confidence I can complete the task but I haven’t been to Miami Beach in a little under two decades. The place has changed after such a long time, as everything does but I digress. I waved at my boss as I readied to part. I saw him tilt his head in acknowledgment before I walked out of the room. I walked past a few rooms and waved at a few of my work buddies before reaching the front door. After getting to the door, it hit me just how tired I was. My eyes felt heavy and my brain was already beginning to feel foggy. By this point it was 11:17 PM and I just wanted to get home. I sifted through the coat rack and picked mine out. It was a well-maintained, tawny brown. I had gotten it new to look the part of my new role. Over it, my hat. A fedora with a dark brown lining the middle of the crown. I really tried to look the part. It had been raining at this point so there was already this ominous atmosphere around the station where we worked, it got pretty dark. Fortunately, I don't particularly mind the rain. I grew up loving water. Most of my birthday parties were in pools and I was a swimmer in high school. It works the brain and really makes a studious person… look it up. I wrapped myself in my clean coat and placed my hat on my head then walked out the door. I fumbled through my pocket and groped around for my keys. The rain pounded on me but because of my thick coat I really couldn’t feel too much. The sound of the droplets crashing onto the already formed puddles drowns out any other noise, dulling my hearing to anything outside of the moment I’m in now. Finally my hands finally grasped the remote as I pressed the button and unlocked my car.I stepped in, wetting the leather just a bit which frustrated me but I really couldn’t do much about it. I turned on the car with the click of a button and switched a knob on my left-hand side to turn on my high beams. I was able to blitz down 117th all the way to Miller without a care of my surroundings because no one was walking around me to get splashed by the car displacing puddles on the street. I heard sometime a while ago that cars weren’t really good with handling water and would often get stopped by it, seems almost unreal to me with the magnitude of water in this world. I don’t know how people back then got around. I swerve my car to the left as I turn onto Miller and drive down. There aren’t a lot of street lights on this part of Miller I’m driving on so I have to continue relying on my headlights. No cars were out and about at this time as everyone was likely home or working a night shift. If my car lights weren’t on, it would have been like a void out there. My surroundings were also pretty off-putting. There was no one and by all means I was alone. You would think by now I’d be used to the solitude but in all honesty, I hate being alone. One of my deepest fears is being alone. I keep it under control as I have to in this line of work. I can’t be panicking due to the seclusion but I will never be able to get used to it. After another 10 or so minutes, I turn into the parking lot of my apartment complex. It’s a little old but nice all the same. I have good neighbors that often make conversation with me. The lethargy is hitting me hard now as I sluggishly make my way into the building, at this point dragging my feet. I call the elevator down and within seconds I’m greeted with more emptiness as I enter the elevator alone. I press the button labeled “7” and rise. After making my way to my door, I grope through my pockets again looking for the right key. I pull it out and start fiddling with the key hole. Another consequence of my fear of loneliness, long hallways really bug me out. It’s like this tense droning as you are cramped to a confined line, staring down an empty corridor, hoping nothing is there. And if there is- CLACK! I open my door, interrupting my speech on why I hate hallways. I walk into my room and remove my shoes by the entrance to maintain the cleanliness of the floor. I hang my coat on a hanger on the door and place the hat right over it. I purchased the hanger for my door to complement my detective clothes and make it seem like it’s my main outfit… to emphasize that I am a detective, cool right? After hanging my clothes and locking my door I turn around and walk through my living room and kitchen. The floor is a spotless and stainless rug, devoid of crumbs or grime. The table is set with a nice table cloth running down the middle, a vase on the top of the cloth. Perfectly symmetrical. The couch is organized with the throw pillows perfectly on either side. I open the door to my bedroom and remove my shirt and pants. I pull up the comforter for my bed and wince a little as I ruin the structured look of the bed. However I didn’t mind too much as the second I laid my head on a pillow and sank into the mattress, I felt the weight of my exhaustion hit a climax. I saw the black outside my window for but a second. I felt myself fade. I felt like I was being warmly embraced in a hug by my comforter and as my eyes began to close, I blinked and the sun was creeping into my eyes with an alarm blaring next to me. Feeling well rested I shot out of bed and turned off my alarm. I made my bed almost immediately and got ready for a shower. I completed my morning routine and waited for night to come. I crossed off another day on my calendar: March 27th, 2042. I had a pretty thrilling day but you aren’t here to hear about that now are you? Let’s cut to the job that happened during the dead of night. Unlike the previous night, this night was silent and I only heard the roaring of my engine as I zoomed down the highway to arrive at a place I really didn’t want to be at… especially not alone. On the way I received a call from my boss. I answered as quickly as I could humanly react. “He- Hello?” I confusedly asked. “We left you a boat on the water to traverse the area. I’m sorry to make you do this alone, too many people would be precarious and would endanger you,” he continues without changing his tone of voice, “It will be a paddle boat to not make much noise and draw too much suspicion as to what you are doing and as to what your goal is.” “Oh… okay..” I despondently shot back, baffled by his almost robotic tone and how he didn’t even say hi back. “Subaru, you do not sound very pleased. Is this not to your li-” he inquired before I cut him off. “N-no no, it’s uh.. It’s perfectly fine. It’s for my safety, yes? Peeeeerfectly fine,” I assure him. “Perfect-” he briskly exerts before ending the phone call. Again I was almost baffled by his inability to greet and say bye. He’s too stiff and robotic for his own good, honestly. After not much longer, I arrived at Miami Beach.. Or what it once was. I found a serviceable parking lot that wasn’t broken down or submerged in water. After some time of mentally preparing myself, I turned off the car, killing any noise for miles. I felt the immediate weight and pressure hit my shoulders all I once as a chill ran through my spine. I was in complete solitude with nothing but pitch black darkness. The area was not maintained well and so there are no lights illuminating the derelict location. I lift the trunk to my car and pull out an electric lantern. Already I am dreading this job. After getting what I need, I turn on the lamp and make my way down the street. Plish… Plosh… Plish… The only sound for miles was the sound of my shoes connecting with half formed puddles at my walking pace. I was half expecting the sound to continue when I stopped moving but I was too scared to test that theory. See, the reason I fear being alone is because I fear that I am not truly alone when I think I am. After a few hundred feet, the street becomes submerged, and I realize I reached my destination. When reaching a certain distance the light from my lamp shines upon the hard wood of my little row boat. I sat in the back of the boat and placed the lamp on the seat to my front to guide me as best as it could, illuminating the water in front of me. I push off as fast as I can, fearing that something would catch me if I don’t. Like that I was off into the water for the longest job I had yet. The wood creaked as the boat slowly crept through the water. The sound of water constantly being displaced filled my ears as I tried to ignore the dread hanging over my head. I looked up to the sky to see that there wasn’t a star in the sky. The moon was obstructed by clouds, making the lamp I had my only true source of light. I saw nothing around me as, from my perspective, I felt like a small light in an endless void. I felt myself shudder as I could hear the sound of wind howling and crashing into things I could not see. The wind wasn’t very loud or rough, but the deafening silence made it apparent. Slowly coming to vision, I see the shattered glass and rusted metal of an old building made itself known. I rowed through the interior of the antiquated place, some of the ceiling panels had fallen and were nowhere to be seen. I bumped the boat on a set of stairs inside and stopped for a moment. I hesitated to climb out and explore but it was my job. I stepped off as the boat rocked in the water for a bit. I traveled the innards of the building upwards of an hour. The rundown nature of the building did not put my racing heart at ease. In fact, another noise became apparent to me in the emptiness, my very own beating heart. After a little bit longer of exploring I decided to head back to the boat. With my heart at ease that I could finally be back to the boat, I almost joyously walked down the stairs. I was so excited to be back in the water that I didn’t notice my foot sink into a hole in the stairs. My heart sank for a half second as my only instinct was to brace. The stairs broke while I was walking down it and I plummeted down to the floor beneath. Fortunately that floor was the floor where the water was and I just crashed into the water, soaking my clothes. “aaaaAAAAHHH SHIT! GOD DAMMIT!!!” I screamed. After a second of processing, I swam back to the boat and climbed into it. As I pushed off and resituated myself in my seat, I realized the lamp was flickering. Water probably leaked into it and the visibility was now dimming, so as I had time left I quickly paddled out. I began to feel anxious knowing that I might not be able to know which way I’m going with no light. I feared the worst as I paddled out of the building. My brain raced and the beating of my heart was loud in my ears now. I had a vision of being so far stranded in the ocean because I went the wrong way that I wouldn’t be able to see any land for miles. Another vision invaded my brain of staying the night and being found by a crazed individual who would roam Miami Beach. But I guess right now that would be me, huh. As I reached the end of the building, my dread was reaching a breaking point until I noticed light reflecting off the water. I looked up after reaching outside and noticed the clouds had cleared. I was now able to clearly see my surroundings… or at least the silhouettes. When I took the time to look around, I saw large, towering edifices over me. Almost larger than life. I felt tiny and puny next to these titans. I paddled through and felt as though the buildings were looking down at me. As dreadful as it felt, it was also almost sad at the same time. There was something all so tragic about these large buildings, so lonely. This feeling did nothing but fill me with more dread. I continued through the droning silence, using the moonlight to guide me. My heart still sounding in my ears, my breath leaving my body as I slowly inhale and exhale, the boat still displacing the water around it. These served to keep me from going insane in the near silence and loneliness. I began to feel drowsy. I felt as though I was going to start seeing hallucinations soon. My eyes closed for a moment. Then another moment they closed once more. Then for longer they closed. And then… a loud noise roused me. The boat had crashed into something but there was no building in front of me. My heart sank and I felt all the terror and trepidation that had been building from my dread reach a breaking point. My stomach was in knots and my head was spinning as I went to look over at what I hit. My heart beat grew louder and louder and my breath became labored. I finally look over and I see a face staring back at me. I fell back onto the boat in absolute fear, unsure of how I’m supposed to react. A realization hit me at that moment though. I rush over to the edge of the boat again and grab the figure. It was male who matched the description of David Martinez, the victim. I put him onto the boat and rowed him over a building with an exposed interior like the previous building. I lay the corpse of David there and begin to paddle back. It was in that instance that I heard motion from behind me, it was David rising from his supposed death… I’m just kidding, but imagine if that did happen? I’d be shitting bricks. I made a mental note and left Let’s skip some of the boring parts because I’m sure you really don’t want to hear about how I debriefed the police station the next morning or how I got home and showered twice because I felt dirty. On the afternoon of the 28th, I led a recovery party to retrieve the body of David Martinez. We arrived at the water, but instead of a small row boat to avoid making noise, we had an actual boat. One with an engine and space for more than two people. Among us was a set of two officers, armed to keep us safe; 3 individuals, trained to recover bodies, ready to retrieve David; a medical examiner to try and gauge what happened to him on surface level before a real autopsy could be done… and me. I was guiding them through the waters. Honestly I was at ease now knowing that I wasn’t alone. I was able to really focus on my job now. It helped that I was able to see the large buildings from before that were once looming silhouettes. It made it easier for me to locate the building where I left the corpse. In the distance I heard a droning motorized sound that seemed a little strange to me but I paid it no mind. After arriving at the building, the medical examiner began to analyze the cadaver as the rest of us just kind of sat around making what can only vaguely be considered small talk. It’s not very easy when dealing with such a heavy subject as death. Another 10 minutes passed and the droning noise kept getting louder, maybe it was some kids wanting to ride a jetski through the waters. Until I realized it sounded similar to the boat we were just on and before I realized what was happening, a loud crack went off close by, ringing in my ears. It sent an immediate chill down my spine. I had no time to react to what happened as I saw what used to be one corpse turn into two. The medical examiner was laid across the floor, his head brandishing a new orifice. Immediately I saw as both officers drew their pistols and began firing off. My survival instinct was kicking in as I bolted to the boat and felt the weight of every step. “I am in so much danger, holy shit. Oh my god I have to keep going, Jesus Christ,” I was whispering to myself as I sprinted. I made it back onto the boat in time to see one of the rescuers retrieve both bodies with the help of another rescuer. With time they made it back with no injury. We called the police to come back when a few more shots rang out, striking me and one of the rescue workers. I felt a cold wash over my right side as I hit the ground for cover. I felt a bit stiff and checked to see if something was restraining my right shoulder when I noticed the hole in my arm. It was at this moment where I felt a searing and burning pain on my right shoulder. The cold numbness from before turned into a burning sensation on a concentrated part of my arm. I really couldn’t get a good look at who was shooting as I was in a panic, but I found out later what happened. Presently, however, I looked at the lives that had just been lost and heard the boat take off. The droning became louder and louder in my ears as my vision faded. Following that the noise grew quieter exponentially. White. Nothing but a supremely bright white filled my retinas as I realized that I was finally awaking from having passed out. The sun was burning my eyes so I squinted and glanced away from the sun. I was lying relatively still in the hospital bed. Alone. I saw no one around me and for once, instead of feeling dread… I felt at peace. I was no longer in danger and I felt safe. I closed my eyes once again and felt myself fall back into a comforting and easing slumber. I found out later that David Martinez was in debt with the wrong group. They were loan sharks who preyed on people like David, down on their luck and low on cash. When David couldn’t pay back what he owed, he was killed and dumped into the ocean. Fortunately it didn’t take long for his wife, Lucy, to notice he was missing. Not all the loan sharks were caught but a few were apprehended. Honestly I stopped paying attention after hearing I did my task. I was happy that I finished another job. I smiled at my boss and said with an eagerness to please, “So… what’s next?” Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Alone Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Anthony Alonso Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 04/17/2023