Repose

→ It begins after that record-hot day of 107 degrees. The trees in Repose's forests and orchards begin rustling in regular patterns, bending against the wind, as if something tall were passing invisibly through and parting them like water. It happens repeatedly, night and day, for several days in a row. The rustling leaves a cool breeze in its wake for those willing to venture beneath the canopies, and the sound of the whistling wind carries surprisingly far.

→ In the Capital, two students are questioned after they're heard bragging that they made a teacher's car crash into a guardrail. The problem is that they claim they did it without ever touching the car. Everyone, of course, knows that's just talk, but the students don't return to classes. When their friends inquire, their parents tearily inform them that they cannot discuss it. Rumor has it, though no one knows where the rumor started, that the students have been taken to that creepy SuperMax prison on the edge of town.

→ The scientists that drive in from the Capital call it bioluminescence. They assure residents that the glow that covers Repose's lakeshore is the result of an enzymatic reaction, and perfectly harmless. Brave swimmers quickly start to report that the water is beautifully cool, clear of algae and gunk, and that a feeling of peace washes over them whenever they take a dip. It takes a few days for the lake to become crowded with residents and visitors alike, and they all report the same feeling of peace and tranquility from being in the water. Pretty impressive for an enzyme.

[Around midnight. Over the intercom.]

Cat, psst. Are you awake? [He tries to whisper, but it doesn't really work.]