I sat outside a small cafe at a table that had a large umbrella attached to it, enjoying the light pitter patter of the rain above. It was the next day, after I stayed the night at the local inn. The plan was to wait for the weather to get better before heading out. The temperature was better today, not too hot and too cool unlike the blistering heat yesterday. I took a sip of my hot chocolate, warming my insides. I wonder how long this rain is gonna be for. I tapped my feet on the ground out of boredom, suddenly hearing a splash. Is there a puddle below me? I looked down, seeing an inch of water below… but it wasn’t a puddle. The whole ground everywhere was covered in an inch of water, even the road in front of the cafe. Odd…The light pitter patter of rain from above on the umbrella started getting louder.

“Hey, what’s this?” asked Xiz, standing above a rectangular shape on the sidewalk, floating on a stream of water. It had a sandy texture on top and half of it was dark while the rest was brown.

“Oh, that’s a shingle. They’re on roofs to protect houses from the elements.”

“Roofs huh? What’s it doing here then?”

“Well sometimes when it’s super windy… they get torn off of roofs and end up on… the ground…” I said thoughtfully, realizing what I had just said. My heart sank. I looked at the trees across the street, they were bent at an odd angle because of the harsh wind. I felt a strong gust of wind hit me, sliding my table a bit before stopping. The pitter patter of rain hitting the umbrella from above now sounded like heavy fists were bashing it. I looked around to see drops of water the size of fists punching the ground. The wind only got stronger, snapping some trees across the street, sending them falling onto parked cars in front of shops and blocking the road. The powerlines started snapping as well. I felt my hands tremble at the sight.

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“Xiz what the hell is going on?”

He stared at the chaos that unfolded before us with a grim expression as he said “Consequences”.

I grabbed my bags and decided that it was time to leave. The inch of water below me had now increased to a foot. I jogged out. People streamed out of their houses; it seemed that those were flooded now as well. The wind howled loudly, bending and breaking more parts of the town. The sound of thunder filled the morning sky. Umbrellas, signs, and whatnot were sent flying in the wind. The rain just kept pounding harder and harder from above while the stream below kept rising, reaching my waist. People were grabbing whatever possessions they could carry and whoever they could carry, doing their best to get out of town. I saw a car drive by, fully submerged in the flooded streets. At this point I had to swim but the bags, fully drenched now, started pulling me down below the water. It was getting harder to swim and fight the weight of my stuff. I couldn’t even take them off at this point. As my head went under I reached for anything I could grab above the water. This can’t be the way I go…

My prayers for mercy were suddenly answered. I felt something brush against my hand so I held on for dear life, pulling myself over. It was a tree branch. I struggled through my fatigue and climbed up onto the branch. It was a tree that had fallen now floating down the road being pushed by the stream and wind. It finally slowed once reaching the edge of town. There was way less flooding here and a light drizzle compared to town. I got off and rolled onto the ground, taking in deep breaths to calm my racing heart. Then boom! Lightning struck the town sign nearby, splintering it into a million pieces. I covered my head so I wouldn't get hit by flying debris. The deafening sound of thunder filled the sky. I got up and ran further out of town then stopped a safe distance away. I turned around to look at the once sunny, dried up farm town, hearing screams coming as the storm tore and submerged the whole place.

“Th-this isn’t my fault. I warned them,” I repeatedly mumbled to myself as my legs shook, making me slowly sink to the ground.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Xiz said with a smile, appearing beside me as I rocked back and forth on the ground.