Utterly Mad

Some atmosphere if you can dig it

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The morning is punctuated by the sounds of loud commercial jets flying over head, the smell of burning coals and gas from the trains weaving through and between buildings as they chug along the cities 'veins' like red blood cells. Outside your house you can hear the hustle and bustle of the city start to pick up on the streets, cars zooming, people jogging, the sounds of smooth jazz filling the airwaves of the morning radio. It is 6:30 AM in Pelagium Station, what is normally referred to as the "Morning Hustle" to commuters as the first for anything takes off at this time on the dot. What it means to you however is that you have a couple of hours to get your shop set up before commuters arrive in Pelagium to wait for their next flight, train, etc... to come in.

Duncan, the Armor Tailor
Your alarm clock screamed at you to get up, the sunlight dearly shining through your curtains in rays of hazy light. Across the hall you can hear your parent's stirring in their sleep, its almost time to get up. The streets are filled with the usual morning commuters, probably on their cellphones talking about business mergers or whatever. One day though, maybe you'll be one of those people. The walls of your room are covered in blueprints of armor designs that look like 'hip' posters from afar, your closet is filled with your own works, and your desk probably has a computer underneath all the fabrics and cans of 'Munster' and 'Red Pull'.

Parsel, the Cook
You don't own an alarm clock, you never needed one since your family are the ones that normally wake you up. A knock on the door from your oldest (just below your age) brother signals that its time for the crazy, hectic, and delicious combat of the breakfast feast. You can hear the clatter of dishes and the family shouting echoing up the stairs, followed by the patter of more feet sprinting down the stairs. With your window wide open you can hear cars honking in the streets, and obscenities flying about the road from pissed off commuters. Just another day in life, you suppose. Your room is about as clean as it should be, a laundry hamper over flowing with clothes, a desk with a computer on it with some papers and essays you did back in culinary school, and your notebooks of doodles that sit in a neat stack right next to your bed, with your latest doodle book sitting wide open on the nightstand.

Erika, the Booze Master
Your alarm clock roars to life with the static-y sounds of rock music, the bass lines vibrating the alarm clock off the night stand and crashing to the stained carpet. It jolts you awake for you to see your average room, a closet door ajar with a series of outfits behind it, your bass guitar propped up in its stand, and your practice dummy that you take stress out on (you can tell because you knocked its head off last week with one swift kick). Through the hall behind you, you can hear your mother's alarm beeping followed by the loud slam of her hand hitting the snooze button. Guess you're making breakfast again today. Outside in the streets you can hear the monorail roar by your window and the sounds of roaring engines of cars speeding down in the roads below your house. It sucks living on The Incline (your home is built on the side of a hill), but you can't beat the view of the Clocktower and the city skyline at night. Maybe you'll be blessed today to get out of this little rut you've been in for the past eight years, maybe not. It all feels up to chance.

The Universal Schedule as of 2014 EE, 6th, Acrill

• 6:30AM-8:30AM [Setup Shop]
• 8:30AM-6:30PM [Opening Hours]
• 6:30PM-7:30PM [Closing Time/After Hours]
• 7:30PM-6:30AM [Off Time]

The Government's recently passed law(s):
[Order of The Government Subsection D: You will pay your bills on the date permitted or face punishment] What this means: If you fail to pay your bills you are permitted to jail time or execution

Erika sighs, and rolls out of bed. Her hair was a mess, as it usually was this early in the morning. It wasn't helped by the fact that she was spending another day at that sorry excuse for a liquor store. She reminds herself that with another day comes another dollar, and they could definitely use the money, and with that she pulls down her favorite hoodie and work clothes and gets dressed.

She makes a quick stop by the bathroom to brush her teeth and fix her hair, tying it back into her usual tight bun. Walking past her mom's room, she takes note of the silence and decides it's time to get breakfast ready. Eggs and some fried ham. Nothing special, nothing too complicated. By the time her mother was coming down the hall in her slippers and night gown she had scooped the breakfast onto their respective plates, and they both sat down to eat. After a sufficient period of piercing silence, she asks, "Sleep well?" Her mother says, rather drowsily "Hm? Oh, yes of course, honey. Just stayed up late last night." Erika sets down her fork. "Why did you do that?" Her mother waves away dismissively. "Ohh, just reading a new book." Erika picks up her plate and says "Well, try to get a nap in sometime today, okay?" Her mother smiles that warm old lady smile. "Of course, sweetie. Now you better get to work." She sets the plate down next to the sink, and grabs her bag by the door. "Yeah. I'll see you when I get home. Later, mom!" Her mom waves from the table. "Bye!"

Erika steps out onto the slanted street, nearly tripping as she steps down from the level house. Cars whiz by, throwing gusts of air and bits of trash across her path. Another day, another dollar she tells herself, and gets to walking from her home to the nearby monorail station to catch the next train into town. The ride was short, and without much complaint aside from the creepy guy sitting nearby that wouldn't stop staring at her. Not that there was much to be done about people like that, unless she felt like getting arrested.

She leaves the train, and unlocks the door to her liquor store to start a new day. Everything was in place, as liquor stores didn't take much day to day maintenance. She flips on the lights and makes sure the refrigerators were keeping the beer cool. After that, she takes a walk through the store with a box of various goods, restocking the shelves for the new day. Finally, she flips on the OPEN sign outside the window and takes her place behind the cashier's counter, ready to go.