Monday: The Ground Awakens
As the deafening hum intensified, the earth trembled beneath their feet. Jas stumbled, barely catching himself on Roman’s arm as the group scrambled toward higher ground. Behind them, the burned-out remnants of the research station cracked open, the ground splitting with a low, guttural roar.
"What’s happening?!" Ivy Mae cried, clutching the survival notebook tightly to her chest.
A plume of steam shot skyward, hissing and spitting like a boiling kettle. Then, before their eyes, the earth bulged upward, cracking apart in jagged lines. In an instant, a small volcano erupted from the ground, spewing not lava but a bizarre geyser of hot mud and shimmering crystals.
“Is that even possible?” Roman shouted, his face pale.
“I don’t know!” Ivy Mae yelled back, dragging Jas along as Miracle barked furiously and Sleepy Z clung to her pack. “But we can’t stay here!”