#surfacetension

We usually think of surface tension turning droplets into spheres in order to minimize their area. But spheres aren't the only shape surface tension can enforce.  (Video, image, and research credit: C. Quilliet et al.; via APS)

Water, being a liquid, takes the shape of its container. The arrangement of particles and their motion make liquids behave differently from solids and gases. 💧

In a solid, the particles are tightly packed and fixed in place. They can only vibrate slightly and cannot move freely. Because of this rigid structure, solids retain their shape no matter where they are placed. 🧊

In contrast, the particles in a liquid like water are close together but not fixed in one position. They are constantly moving and can slide over each other. This freedom of movement allows water to flow easily. When water is poured into a container, its molecules rotate and spread out until they are fixed according to the shape of the container. 🥛

Another important factor is the force of gravity. Gravity pulls water down, causing it to collect at the bottom of the container. Since the molecules can move freely, they rearrange themselves to fit the available space. This is why water forms different shapes in different containers, such as bottles, glasses, bowls, or pools. 🌍

At the same time, water molecules attract each other through weak intermolecular forces. This attraction keeps the molecules close together so that water can change shape but still maintain its volume. It is also related to surface tension, which creates the smooth surface that appears on still water. 🌊

Gas behave differently because their particles are far apart and move very freely, so gases spread out to fill the entire container. Water does not completely fill a container like gases because its molecules stay close together.

P.S./Warnings: Heavy themes of Angst, Anxiety, Trauma, Blood, Violence. Suggestive (but no smut ever). PG-13 content! Characters are aged up. Reader discretion is advised.

Snippet Word Count: 1,222

MAJOR CHAPTER SPOILERS! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK! >:3

Your morning alarm is going off, trying to wake you from your heavy sleep, and you groan. “Five more minutes,” you mumble, but as you move your jaw, pain radiates up to your ear, and you pull your eyebrows together. Why do I hurt? You wonder, sleep thickly coating your consciousness. Then you realize it’s not your morning alarm, and you’re not lying comfortably in bed. Your body is pressed against rough concrete, your face smushed uncomfortably to the floor, and the alarm blaring through your cell is deafeningly loud. 

        You squeeze your eyes shut before blinking them open, anxiety instantly soaking your senses. The scene is overwhelming. A deep red light flashes over the walls out of pace with the loud noise. Every hair on your body stands as a sliver of hope rises into your chest. Did they finally find me? You think as your mind threads together the pieces of reality. You inhale a sharp breath at the pain of pushing off the ground. The entire right side of your body is asleep, tingling with painful static as you get into a seated position. There’s yelling, and the unorganized chatter of Footbots hits your ears before you see them rush in through the right-side doorway, past the front of the wall of cells, and down the hallway dead ahead. They disappear down the corner, taking a left. That must be the way out, you think. You have to squint to make out the figures, and you wonder if your vision is blurry from the taste of sleep still lingering on you, or from the beating you took earlier. 

        “What is going on?” Your cell neighbor asks, her voice cutting through the alarm system. 

        “I don’t know,” you holler over the noise. 

        “I will tear those creatures apart if given the chance! Rrrrakka, rakka!” She yells. 

        “You think it’s a jailbreak?” You ask. 

        “It must be,” she yells back. 

        You had turned your head to hear her more clearly, but blurry movement in the hall catches your eye, and you quickly whip your head back to attention. The movement makes your head spin, and you groan. Coupled with the concussive alarm and the flashing red lights, the sensation makes your stomach turn. Something runs into the bars of your cell, and you jolt back, landing on your backside with your hands extended behind. You squint your eyes, trying to make out what kind of creature it is. It’s green, and maybe a little blue? You try to focus, but your head is still spinning. Then, you hear your name. Then again. And again, and you recognize the voice right away. 

        “Leo?” You ask, hope spreading like wildfire. “Leonardo, is that you?” 

        The green figure works away at breaking the padlock, silver shining metal brightly reflecting the flashing lights. Your vision dances with multiple people in front of you, and you ground yourself against the concrete, focusing all of your attention until your vision narrows in. You see three, then two, then just one mutant turtle before you. Green skin. Blue bandana. Dual katanas.

        “Leo,” You say his name again, tears instantly pricking your eyes. You can’t believe it. Leonardo snaps the padlock off the door to your cell and swings your door open. His eyes are all white, and his brow is pinched down, focused, serious. A shocked sob bursts out of you as he reaches his hand out to you. You take it, and he pulls you to your feet with one easy motion, scooping you up in his arms bridal style. 

        “Wait, we have to help her, too,” you say, looking over to your neighbor’s cell. A tall teal-green lizard-like mutant stands at the bars, holding onto two of them, and for a moment you feel like you’ve seen her somewhere before. You swear you see her mouth move, but you can’t hear her voice over the noise anymore. Before you can ask her to repeat herself, Leo takes off into a powerful sprint. You gasp, clinging as tightly as you can to his neck, the sudden motion making your head swim again. “Wait!” You yell. “We can’t leave her behind!” 

        Leo doesn’t respond, and you frown. He runs with you down the hall and takes a sharp right at the end. 

        “Wait,” you say, “are you sure this is the right way?” 

        He nods his head. One quick, sharp motion. 

        You frown again, watching behind him as the hallway grows longer and longer. You look down and notice his katanas neatly strapped on his shell. He’s wearing his old set, the gold-handled, red-wrapped dual katanas that were his trademarked look before his father passed. Your eyebrows knit together. Something doesn’t feel right, and you relax your grip to lean back just enough to see his face. Leo’s eyes are still solid white, narrowed and focused on the path ahead. Not once does he turn to look at you. 

        “L-Leo?” You ask, your flame of hope growing unsteady. 

        He slows his pace, gradually coming to a stop. The alarm is still blaring, the red light flashing over the extra-wide hallway, but he’s standing completely still, his face scrunched. Your heart rate spikes, your eyes flicking over his features, trying to figure out what’s wrong. You open your mouth to ask, but before the words can leave your mouth, he speaks up. 

        “You reek,” he spits out. 

        You flinch. “W-What?” 

        “I said… you. Reek.” Leo’s voice is a low growl, and as his white eyes blink, he tilts his head toward you, blinks again, and reveals his stormy eyes accented by black sclera. 

        You shout and immediately try to push him away, but his grip is strong, and your arms are too weak. You feel a low rumble rise from his plastron, and a deep, sinister laugh emits from behind his teeth. You look up in horror, watching his face contort. His white teeth are sharp, pointed, unlike anything you’ve ever seen before. 

        “What’s the matter?” The creature asks, his voice an echo of your Leo’s, and distorted in a way that makes your skin crawl. “Don’t you still love me?” 

        “Let me go!” You shout, slamming your hands against his chest as hard as you can. 

        He huffs, the sharp grin fading from his face. “Okay.” 

        Without warning, his tight grip releases you, and you fall flat on your back on the concrete. The wind knocks clean out of your lungs, and you wheeze, desperate to gather air back into them. 

        The creature laughs again. “Alright, cut the lights!” He hollers over the alarm. “And shut that noise off!” 

        Your pained gasps and moans are suddenly the only sound in the hall, bouncing off the hard surfaces, piercing your ears. You inhale sharply, trying to get off the floor, but your arms shake uncontrollably, and you fall back down. You hear the creature laugh again, a blood-curdling, horrifying sound. “What are you?” You cry, gritting your teeth. 

        “I’m subject X, or subject 3 if you care for the details,” the creature says casually. “But you can call me Leo.” 

        “You are not Leo!” You shout with all the strength you have left. You look up just in time to see his smirk turn down. 

        “I am,” Subject X says, his nostrils flaring. “And I’m better in every way.”