One day, instead of blue, the sky started raining green, and everything changed.
People initially believed it to be some strange meteorological phenomenon, a freak event brought on by pollution, or an experimental aircraft gone bad. However, the world started to change as the green rain poured, drenching the trees, streets, and people below. The grass took on an iridescent hue, glimmering in the faint illumination. Trees’ veins glowed dimly as their leaves coiled inward. Once dismal and drab, buildings absorbed the liquid and turned bright jade and emerald.
The whispers followed.
It began as a faint breeze hum that was indistinguishable from the sound of raindrops striking roofs. The murmurs soon became into voices that spoke in unintelligible languages. Researchers rushed to examine the material, but it resisted every test. It wasn’t regular water, nor was it poisonous. The droplets pulsed like living things under a microscope.
First, the animals responded. Feathers that had been perched in the trees began to glow eerily as the birds flailed furiously. Dogs’ eyes flickered like green coals as they howled at the sky. Most oddly, those who spent too much time standing in the rain started to transform. Their eyes became a darker shade of green, and their skin a subtle glow. They conversed in low voices, matching the wind-borne murmurs.
Emma, a young journalist, was glued to her camera as she watched from the window of her apartment. She had previously reported on many odd occurrences, but none like this. She couldn’t help but go outside. She felt a chill as the rain caressed her skin like silk. The world around her brightened almost instantly, with noises crisper and colors brighter. Now she could hear the murmurs, growing like vines through her thoughts.
“Now you see,” they whispered.
Emma’s heart pounded as she stumbled back. The green rain was altering them as well as the world. However, into what?
The authorities warned people to stay inside and stay out of the rain. However, it was too late. At night, entire cities illuminated, their inhabitants conversing less and moving more slowly. Something ancient and alien was emerging as a new intelligence. Change was not the only thing the rain had brought. Something had arrived that was watching and waiting. Emma muttered back, “I see,” as she lifted her camera and snapped a final image of the changing world.