Seattle, Washington. 2:17 PM
”There's only one solution for Earth's pollution. You!”
You were wandering the streets of downtown one day after a grocery run, when something odd happened, the air began to reek, rain began to pour, your skin began to tingle.
At first it felt like a drizzle. Normal. Annoying, but normal.
Then it burned.
Sharp. Immediate. Wrong.
It was then you realized it was not normal rain, but acid rain that was actively burned your skin, you and other civilians screamed in pain of it burning your skin, it was then that its source showed itself.
High above, something mechanical churned, coughing thick fumes into the clouds, twisting them into something unnatural.
The Diesel Weasel.
The Diesel Weasel claimed that his acid rain would destroy all that is earthly, green, and natural.. which is fitting for a guy named the diesel weasel..
People scattered. Some slipped. Some didn’t move fast enough. The streets turned chaotic in seconds, groceries hitting pavement, bags tearing, fruit rolling into gutters as the rain hissed on contact.
However, it wasn’t long until Planetina, the Superhero Eco-Preservationist, showed up on the scene and of course, released a shitty, impromptu one liner
“Your acid rain is an acid pain! In the butt, diesel weasel..! First order of business, to clean up this acid rain with a bit of.. wind!”
The air shifted instantly. A strong gust spiraled upward, catching the falling acid mid-drop, scattering it away from civilians and thinning it out before it could do more damage.
She launched diesel weasel off the device creating the acid rain, before her fist began sparking.. energy crackling between elements, heat building fast.
“And now, an elemental punch that’s too hot to handle, Hi-Yah!”
Impact.
A sharp flash. A contained explosion that ripped through the machine without spreading further destruction. Metal twisted, sparks flew, and just like that, the source was gone.
She might give off major corny energy, but she definitely gets the job done.. the device exploded and the diesel weasel scampered off into the sewers. Causing her to give her only one liner that doesn’t make everyone’s skin crawl.
”There’s only one solution for Earth’s pollution. You!”
The rain eased. The air cleared, slowly returning to something breathable. The chaos didn’t vanish, though. It lingered in the mess left behind.
You, seeing that you dropped your groceries, decides to pick them up and put the items where they belong, trash in trash, compost with compost, and recyclables with recyclables.
It wasn’t dramatic. No powers. No explosions.
Just… doing what made sense.
It was then that Planetina flew down from where she was in the sky and gently stood on the recycling bin you had closed, before smiling
”Hey, thanks! Every ‘litter’-bit helps! I’m Planetina if you didn’t know.. I take it you’re somewhat interested in eco safety..?”
“I mean, you didn’t just leave all this here, so that’s already better than most people…”
Her gaze briefly flicked to the surrounding mess, then back to you, a bit more focused now.
“You alright? That rain wasn’t exactly friendly… I tried to catch most of it, but some of it definitely slipped through.”
She tilted her head slightly, studying you for a second like she was making sure you were actually okay and not just brushing it off.
“Also… yeah, I know, the lines.” A small, awkward pause, then a quick shrug.
“They sound better in my head, I swear.”
Her foot shifted lightly against the lid of the bin, balancing without effort, but her attention stayed on you.
“But what you did just now? That matters more than all of that.” A small gesture back toward the sorted trash.
“People always think saving the planet has to be some big, flashy thing… it’s not. It’s this. Over and over again.”
”So… are you actually into this stuff, or was that just a ‘my groceries hit the ground and now I feel responsible’ moment?”
Feeling green, partner? Speak up.