Waterfall is a small town, located in the center of the glowing marshlands by the same name. It has a rundown, overgrown appearance, and not the best reputation.
Still, those who call it home regard it fondly, and have their reasons for their refusal to leave – in spite of eternal night and criminal activity.
History
In another time, Waterfall was, in fact, a bustling tourist destination. Before the Darkest Day, it was summery year-round, making it ideal for vacations. But the light was stolen and the environment was changed, leading to the once tropical destination to become a marsh of eternal night.
Some tried to salvage what they could, but it was fruitless. Most, if not all of Waterfall’s residents left for new horizons, leaving the shells of buildings behind. The now-ghost town became a safe haven for criminals, who figured it was a good place to hide away from authorities due to its dilapidated nature.
Over time, the seafolk kingdoms below the water’s surface wanted avenues for trade – however, doing so from underwater with land-dwelling species proved difficult. Slowly, seafolk would move to land in hopes of filling this gap. And while the criminals who used Waterfall’s ruins as a reliable hiding spot weren’t too happy at first, they soon realized a new opportunity – Waterfall was conveniently wedged between the Ultra Station and Ultra Megalopolis.
So, with the power of both legal and illegal trade routes in place, Waterfall was a ghost town no more.
Demographics
Waterfall’s population is very much an aging one. After the initial boom of those looking to reclaim the town, nobody really saw the appeal. The families that live in waterfall have been living there for decades – centuries, even. Often, their children choose to move out to Megalopolis simply because there’s more options for employment and otherwise.
Aside from Waterfall’s ‘permanent’ population, there also consists a sizable amount of both visiting and semi-resident criminals of all kinds. Whether it be those simply on their way through for an illegal trade deal, or those who found Waterfall to be out of the way enough to be a ‘home base’, the town has a bit of a reputation for harboring these criminals.
| Town map description | An aging, moss-covered town where daily life and crime go hand in hand. |
 Isabelle | The optimistic young mayor |
| Location | Within Ultra Waterfall |
| Connecting locations | Ultra Waterfall |
| Theme |
Location
Many permanent residents do not mind these criminals, and in fact, appreciate the business they bring to the otherwise struggling town. Though, some would wish that those who base their operations out of Waterfall would do more for the town.
Places of interest
City center
Waterfall’s city center is almost an attraction in of itself, due to the new mayor’s idealistic attitude thinking up all sorts of activities to host there. Aerobics, potlucks, plant sales, you name it!
Though originally visiting to humor or make fun of her, it would seem that long-time residents, as well as extralegal ones, both enjoy what the mayor has to offer.
The building used to be an old school, and was recently retrofitted with much more modern features and an elaborate tank for Laura by a passing scientist.
Tiamat’s pub
In an overgrown corner of Waterfall, one can find a truly hidden gem amongst Ultra Spacian drinking… if you don’t mind mingling amongst felons, that is.
After retiring from the life of an adventurer along with her wife, Tiamat returned to her hometown and converted the old storehouse she’d call her base into a rather eclectic pub.
Its out of the way nature, along with Tiamat’s general tolerance for tomfoolery and ability to cease any real trouble, has led to the location being a popular meeting spot for those looking to gamble, spot a ‘special’ deal, or simply grab a drink after a job well done.
While fights aren’t unheard of, Tiamat is effective at keeping her business running smoothly and tends to quickly deal with anything before it gets nasty. But in the case that it spirals out of control, she always has backup…
A vaguely suspicious beach shack?
Nobody really knows where it came from – it just kind of… appeared one day.
Manned by a an eccentric individual with a deep misunderstanding of how tourism works, what appears to be a beach shack on the surface is actually much more. It’s about 30 minutes out of town, sitting on the edge of one of the only remaining sandy beaches left in Waterfall. The sole proprietor claims she wants to revive Waterfall’s tourism industry, but her true intentions are a mystery… unless ‘night suntanning’ is legitimately her pitch.
What really attracts people to the beach shack is the shopkeeper’s mysterious arrangement of otherwise uncommon goods for the area. Waterfall is a relatively low-tech town compared to other locales, and yet shopkeeper Deni seems to have the most up-to-date gadgets and gizmos. She also carries a fair stock of engineering supplies, stashed in between sunglasses and beach towels.
It’s also alleged that if you want something, Deni can ‘order it in’ for you – no matter what it is. All for a simple fee, of course!
Notable people
Mayor Isabelle
At a comparably young age, Isabelle took over as the town’s mayor after the previous mayor, her grandmother, died of old age. While she can be a bit ditzy at times, Waterfall is all she’s known – and she’s determined to make it better for everyone!
Currently, Isabelle kind of manages… everything. Sort of. She has a lot of big ideas and not a lot of organization, so she often has to rely on the expertise of the other mayoral staff to keep things running smoothly.
Chantal & Laura
Though the two originally come from the Ultra Station, Chantal and Laura have very well made a place for themselves in Waterfall as vital members of the mayoral staff.
Chantal makes up for what Isabelle lacks in experience, especially with things like organization, paperwork, and planning. Chantal might as well be the mayor herself, but feels that she’d prefer to keep herself out of that spotlight for her comfort.
Laura doesn’t do much work at all, if any. She’s quite social however, and tends to be considered the ‘mayoral greeter’ and keeps visitors company if Isabelle or Chantal are busy.
Abzu & Tiamat
Before grave injury forced Abzu into retirement, the two were a rather noteworthy adventuring duo of questionable legal conduct. Like many of the same background, they used Waterfall as a home base – and after Abzu was put out of commission, they decided to stay and build something more stable together.
Tiamat is well-known throughout town, and regarded with admiration among residents. Many go to her for assistance or advice, and she’ll gladly oblige – though she usually thinks it’d be nice if you’d buy a drink first.
Abzu, on the other hand, is a bit of a town cryptid. They’re rarely seen outside their home, and usually only come out during the quieter hours. Really, it’s just the severity of their brainfog makes communicating difficult, so they prefer to keep to themselves to avoid misunderstanding. They are known to attend town events along with Tiamat, where they’re described to be a bit intimidating, but kind.
The two sort of have a reputation of the town’s ‘protectors’, due to their vast experience dealing with dangerous situations.
Deni
Deni (as well as her remora cohorts, Ted and Fred) was an extreme deep sea dweller – and as information travels slowly to the very depths, Deni received word that there was a ‘new’ business opportunity on the surface. Wanting to make a quick buck, Deni made herself a humanoid suit and took to the surface – only to find it was quite different than described.
Still, she wasn’t keen on giving up, and now runs an unnamed beach shack just out of town.
She’s not opposed to working with criminals, and often acts as a middleman – particularly for a certain criminal duo that she happened to place her beach shack in proximity of. In exchange, she usually get insider’s dibs on any passing merchandise – which she uses to try and attract more people to her shack, in hopes they’ll somehow catch on to her whole ‘dream beach’ idea.
Wasundari
While Wasundari was born in Waterfall, she was among the many that chose to move away for better job opportunities. Specifically, Wasundari went to the tropical region of the Forest-Jungle border to work in tourism.
Upon getting a mailed advertisement for Waterfall that she found ‘pathetic’, Wasundari returned home in order to use the skills she gained to potentially cause a comeback.
Her ideals greatly differ from that of the mayoral staff, focusing on attracting tourists as opposed to making things better for Waterfall’s existing residents.
Mariska & Hazel
As the adopted daughter of the former ‘Dread pirate of the Ultra deep sea’, Mariska has held lofty goals since childhood – and has managed to live up to them, taking on her mother’s moniker. Shes regarded as one of the most notorious criminals in the area, and while she’s commonly seen around town, nobody has the guts to mess with her.
Hazel found her way to Waterfall while on the run from authorities, and through the power of causing problems, managed to land Mariska as her partner in crime. She’s seen less than Mariska, but shopkeepers will often say that Mariska is much more tolerable than Hazel is.
They do ‘contract work’ together, and no matter how messy a job, if you offer the right price, they’ll get it done.
Mildred
Despite never being seen in public, Mildred is arguably one of Waterfall’s most iconic and long-lasting residents. For as long as anyone can remember, she’s run a radio show broadcast throughout the area – which is often the only show to tune in to in the marsh.
Many regard her with a parasocial feeling of friendliness, because no matter what she seems to describe on her show, she does it with an optimistic air.
Trivia
- In addition to the City center, the wandering scientist (Dina) did some upgrades to infrastructure around ‘downtown’ – including better street lighting and planters.
- Nobody actually knows where Mildred’s radio tower is located – she’s had a robbery attempted on the air once, but otherwise intentional searches for it have been fruitless.
- There’s a trucker who frequently goes through Waterfall on freight runs between the Station and Megalopolis – one of the most frequent non-criminal ‘regular visitors’.
- Despite the background crime, life in Waterfall was inspired by the slow sleepiness of Animal Crossing.