Chapter 391: Chapter 391: Frequent Occurrences
The ground began to shake violently. Ronan Kendrick grabbed Evelyn Ford and pulled her several meters away before the shaking stopped again. A few seconds later, it started up once more. This cycle repeated until another one of the nearby log cabins collapsed. The two wolfhounds barked, standing in front of Evelyn with their ears pricked, warily scanning their surroundings.
"Thirty tremors in the last ten minutes. The magnitude is getting smaller, but the frequency is increasing." Evelyn had a bad feeling.
Claudia Schultz had said that after the ocean waters surged inland, she was washed away to Sudenia. But because of the frequent earthquakes, she followed other refugees all the way to Varden. When another earthquake struck Varden, they fled again, finally ending up at Immeasurable Mountain.
The zone of frequent seismic activity was moving from the south toward the northwest. In the past ten minutes, two of the tremors had been above a magnitude six, while the others were around a magnitude three.
There were numerous volcanic clusters in The Southward. North of the border, about forty kilometers from Immeasurable Mountain, lay an active volcano.
An earthquake wouldn’t necessarily trigger a volcanic eruption, but it could certainly provoke volcanic activity, especially for earthquakes in tectonically weak zones with volcanic clusters.
In addition, crustal movement and magma activity beneath the earth’s surface could also induce earthquakes and eruptions.
"The ground is still shaking. I’m so dizzy I can’t even stand straight."
"Evelyn, are we still running or not?"
"I can’t run anymore. My legs are jelly; I can’t even stand up. The ground just won’t stop shaking."
Everyone looked despondent. Zoe, terrified, was bawling her eyes out. Quincy held her, trying to soothe her. Taylor Vance and Zion Lowell were slumped on the ground. No one looked okay.
Evelyn looked at the three collapsed log cabins in the distance, a sense of powerlessness suffocating her.
"First, go get some wood and build a fire here. We’ll wait a few hours before going inside. The cabins that are still standing are dangerous right now. Everyone try to stick together."
Evelyn brushed the snow off her clothes. Only then did she realize her hands and legs were trembling violently. Of all the disasters she had endured, earthquakes were what Evelyn feared the most; they had left her with deep psychological scars.
"There’s still a tarp. I’ll go get it. We can set up a tent and make do here for the night," Officer Graham said before heading to the warehouse alone. By then, the tremors had paused, but many people were still squatting on the ground, too afraid to stand up.
Evelyn needed to go calm the Mammoths and the herd of horses that had bolted, so she had Ronan Kendrick go back to the cabin to gather some things.
The others started building a fire and setting up the tent. A few minutes later, however, another tremor hit. It was still small, but it was enough to knock over the newly built fire pit.
"We only had a few days of peace, and now the heavens are stirring up trouble again. Are they even going to let us live?"
"We’re not going to have to flee again, are we? I don’t want to go. I’m so tired. Just let me die here."
Everyone was sighing and cursing their fate. Even Evelyn was simmering with frustration. After finding the frantic Mammoths, Evelyn spent a long time calming them down before leading them back. The shelter in the livestock area had collapsed. Evelyn brought out some branches, then led all the other animals together to feed them.
Red Deer, takins, elk, roe deer, Mammoths, horses, argali sheep, two pigs, chickens, ducks, rabbits—she took stock of all the livestock. When no one was looking, Evelyn moved some of the animals into her space to prevent any more accidents and to make them easier to take with her if they had to leave.
Evelyn felt lost too. If they left this place, she had no idea where they could go. Staring at the dreary gray sky, she heaved a heavy sigh.
When she returned to the fire, the others had already buried four posts in the ground and stretched the tarp over them.
"Evelyn, it’s raining."
Evelyn held out her hand, and raindrops splattered against her gloves. "Everyone, get under the tent."
Peter Owens and Chet Lawrence went back to the kitchen and pulled out the pots, pans, and bowls from under the collapsed cabin, moving them over to the fire.
"The cellar should be fine, right?"
Officer Graham shook his head. "The cellar’s okay, but there are some small cracks in the walls."
All the food, gasoline, and clothing were stored in the cellar. Everyone was afraid it might get buried.
"Let’s boil a kettle of water first. The chairs are out. If we sit by the fire, we won’t be cold. This rain is getting pretty heavy, and it’s windy too."
Rain hammered down on the tarp. Everyone huddled together. Wyatt Vaughn placed the kettle on the iron rack. Ronan Kendrick came in from outside, holding an umbrella. Evelyn went to his side and quietly asked about their cabin.
"The house didn’t collapse. I’ve packed up all our things, so don’t worry."
Evelyn nodded. She stood at the entrance of the makeshift tent, staring blankly at the rain outside.
The light drizzle turned into a downpour. After the water boiled, Wyatt Vaughn poured everyone a cup of hot water to warm them up. But just then, the ground began to shake again. The hot water spilled before anyone could drink it. Wyatt suddenly broke down, squatting on the ground and sobbing. Seeing her cry, Zoe started wailing too. Several of the workers stood by helplessly. Quincy was torn between calming Zoe and worrying about Wyatt, his eyes red with anxiety. Evelyn went over and took the child. Joelle Finch had already gone to Wyatt’s side, holding her tightly as they both cried.
Taylor Vance added more wood to the fire. Nathan Xavier and Drako returned with two more buckets of water and placed the kettle back on the iron rack.
The suppressed sobs were like a hammer, pounding on everyone’s heart.
Evelyn was about to put Zoe on her back when Miles Vaughn came over and glanced at the child.
"I’ll carry her."
Miles had always been indifferent toward Zoe. He saw the child as a burden holding Wyatt back. Just like today—when the earthquake hit, Wyatt had to carry Zoe, which meant she couldn’t run fast and even tripped because of the extra weight.
Miles took Zoe and put her on his back.
"Stop crying."
He tried to soothe her, his voice flat. Zoe was still sobbing. Quincy ran back to the cabin and found her toy, trying to distract her, but she just pushed it away and struggled, wanting to go to Wyatt.
"Stop crying, you’re so annoying," Miles snapped, his patience wearing thin. Everyone had just survived an earthquake; having to endure a child’s heart-wrenching screams was grating on everyone’s nerves.
Wyatt stood up, wanting to take Zoe back, but Miles stopped her.
"You want to raise her, and I can’t stop you now. But from this moment on, you need to make her face reality. This world is a cruel place."
"Don’t coddle her. Let her calm down on her own."
Wyatt’s heart ached for the child. "She’s not even a year old."
"But you and Quincy almost got crushed by the cabin just now because you went back for her! She’s not even your own blood. If she dies, she dies. Wyatt, you need to wake up!"
Wyatt yelled, "Brother!"
"Calling for me is useless. Either she learns to shut up and stop crying at the drop of a hat, or you start being rational. Let me tell you, Wyatt, if you die, no one is going to take this child. Because in this world, nobody wants to raise a burden who does nothing but cry, eat, and drink."
"She’s just a baby! Crying is her instinct. Brother, I know you care about me, but you can’t expect a child who isn’t even one year old to be sensible."
Outside the tent, the rain poured relentlessly. Inside, the argument between Miles and Wyatt over Zoe erupted once more.
