[qoute]Ice Bath (2) : Rainfall is rare in Destiny City during Winter; there have been a few light showers between the occasional snow but it’s never been enough to be significant. In some places, it’s just enough for a thin layer of ice to cover the ground and make it a little slippery, but ultimately it’s not enough to worry about. In an inconspicuous place in town, you step into one of these icy puddles and the thin layer of ice shatters. The hole itself seems maybe three feet wide and if you’ve ever been in the area before you know it’s just a pothole a few inches deep at most. Except, when the ice shatters, you fall, plummeting into it as if it were a lake of icy water. It’s pitch black around you and only pale blue lights shimmer above you. The darkness is never ending and you can’t make out the details of anything except the shrinking hole above you. Maybe you remember how to swim and pull yourself out, maybe you black out and feel someone else pulling you out--either way, your frozen, soaking body is pulled from the puddle. The chill is immense, but if you look at the hole after being pulled out, all you can see is the ground below. There’s no sign that what you just experienced is real--except for the fact that you’re still soaking wet.

Sarin was patrolling after a rainfall, jumping in the bigger iced over puddles because he really was still a kid at heart. He had definitely slipped on ice that hadn’t cracked and fell flat on his a** a few times, so he was nursing some bruises that wouldn’t have bothered him when he was younger (holy s**t when did he get so close to thirty years old?). And yet, he was still having fun.

Okay, so maybe he wasn’t patrolling as well as he should be, but there hadn’t been anything happening lately. His patrols lately had ended up as long, cold walks with the occasional appearance of someone on the other side. Maybe he should call up Aaru or Hali, or both, and see if he could tag along with them when they went out. At least if they didn't find a fight, they could have a good time together. Hell, maybe one of them knew a girl they could set him up with. Although, he did really like that Dawn girl that he met over the summer. He should definitely call her and ask her out on a date...

As he walked down a side street, he spotted a huge puddle, at least three feet wide! That was going to be fun to jump. It didn’t seem that deep, but then again it didn’t have to be deep to make a nice big splash. He took a short run at the puddle and jumped in, expecting to land immediately with a big splash around his feet.

But he didn’t land. Instead he was plunging into ice cold waters, surrounded by pitch black except for a pale blue light above him. Where he apparently entered this strange icy lake. His body felt heavy, and for a long moment of shock he couldn’t remember how to swim. All he could focus on was the hole he entered through growing smaller.

His heart thumped hard in his chest, and it was like it jump started his brain at the same time. He suddenly remembered how to swim and kicked his heavy legs to take himself upwards. His arms pumped harder and faster the closer he got to the pale blue light, until he reached it after what felt like forever. He burst through the top with a loud gasp for breath and heaved himself through the hole.

The cold air on the other side made his entire body shiver violently. s**t, he needed to get home. He had taken a few steps away from the puddle-hole when he realized he needed to find a way to block it off so no one else fell through the damn thing. Except when he went back… the puddle was back to just being a puddle.

Okay, maybe he should stop being surprised by weird s**t in this city. Still shivering, he found a secluded corner and transformed back into his civilian self. His clothes were dry now, but he was still freezing. Definitely time to get back home, and fast.