moved carefully as she popped the lens cap. She took a long, calming breath.
This was the most important moment of her life. No one needed to know she had just run 1.6 miles and was still panting. No one needed to know she had cut her hand and the sight of blood made her faint. She needed to be focused in her mind and clear in her voice.
Pointing the camera to the east, upstream, she started filming. “I’m Elizabeth Banner of the Banner Geological Study outside of Virtue Falls, Washington. The date is August fifteenth, the time is 7:38 P.M. It’s been approximately twenty-five minutes since the earthquake ended, and I’m here on the rim of the canyon to report on its effects on the terrain, and to watch for an incoming tsunami. When we look to the east, we’re looking toward Virtue Falls, where the Virtue River drops forty feet off the granite escarpment into Virtue Falls Canyon. The river then runs seven miles before it enters the Pacific Ocean.” She did a slow sweep from east to west, toward the ocean.
A quick glance showed the ocean still appeared normal, wild and churning, but that defined the Pacific. If everything the study had revealed was true, the tsunami would arrive, and soon. The timing depended on which fault had broken, and how far offshore it was.
“I’ve studied this area extensively, including the photos Charles Banner took on his first day in the canyon and photos of the work done in the twenty-five years since. For the past ten months, I’ve done hands-on work as a member of the study. I’ve hiked the paths, knelt in the dirt, examined the geological layers. As you can see, even after this massive earthquake, most of the terrain looks the same. The river still tumbles over the stones.” She focused on the river bed, then slowly the lens lifted up the far wall of the canyon. “The trees and brush still dig their roots into the canyon walls. But look! Rockslides have ripped down the walls, cleaning away vegetation and exposing new geological layers. We have to look at this now, because when we look to the west, we see that the canyon widens out.” Slowly she walked toward the highest, westernmost point.
In the few minutes since her last glance, the ocean had changed.
She had to swallow her excitement before she could continue, and keep her voice level, calm and scientific. “Here where the river meets the Pacific Ocean, trouble is brewing.” She did a long shot of the entire area. “Frequently, before a tsunami sweeps into an area, the ocean sucks back, exposing rocks, sandbars, the ocean floor itself, and leaving fish and aquatic life flopping in the air.”
Elizabeth had always heard so much about the onset of a tsunami, seen videos shot by people on the scene, tried to imagine what it would be like to view it in person. Now she was viewing it, large and clear, the only one of the team lucky enough to be a witness to the cataclysm.
She had so much at stake here, not merely the knowledge that hundreds of scientists would study every scrap of evidence in classes and conferences, and thousands of people would view her video on television. She also had a reputation to uphold, a reputation formed not by her actions but by the actions of her parents. She had to prove she wasn’t Misty, beautiful and wanton. She had to prove she wasn’t Charles, prey to murderous rages. If Elizabeth could remain cool under this pressure, never again would there be suspicious glances cast her way, or whispered rumors behind her back.
Of course, Garik would tell her she was kidding herself, and maybe she was.
But hey, Garik—maybe I want to prove something to myself.
In her best lecture voice, she said, “We can clearly see this is the case, and can also see why the geological evidence in Virtue Falls Canyon points to massive tsunamis which in the past have swept far up the river, filling it like a bathtub, then … wait. Far out to sea—is that the swell?”
Her heart began to pound so loudly she
This was the most important moment of her life. No one needed to know she had just run 1.6 miles and was still panting. No one needed to know she had cut her hand and the sight of blood made her faint. She needed to be focused in her mind and clear in her voice.
Pointing the camera to the east, upstream, she started filming. “I’m Elizabeth Banner of the Banner Geological Study outside of Virtue Falls, Washington. The date is August fifteenth, the time is 7:38 P.M. It’s been approximately twenty-five minutes since the earthquake ended, and I’m here on the rim of the canyon to report on its effects on the terrain, and to watch for an incoming tsunami. When we look to the east, we’re looking toward Virtue Falls, where the Virtue River drops forty feet off the granite escarpment into Virtue Falls Canyon. The river then runs seven miles before it enters the Pacific Ocean.” She did a slow sweep from east to west, toward the ocean.
A quick glance showed the ocean still appeared normal, wild and churning, but that defined the Pacific. If everything the study had revealed was true, the tsunami would arrive, and soon. The timing depended on which fault had broken, and how far offshore it was.
“I’ve studied this area extensively, including the photos Charles Banner took on his first day in the canyon and photos of the work done in the twenty-five years since. For the past ten months, I’ve done hands-on work as a member of the study. I’ve hiked the paths, knelt in the dirt, examined the geological layers. As you can see, even after this massive earthquake, most of the terrain looks the same. The river still tumbles over the stones.” She focused on the river bed, then slowly the lens lifted up the far wall of the canyon. “The trees and brush still dig their roots into the canyon walls. But look! Rockslides have ripped down the walls, cleaning away vegetation and exposing new geological layers. We have to look at this now, because when we look to the west, we see that the canyon widens out.” Slowly she walked toward the highest, westernmost point.
In the few minutes since her last glance, the ocean had changed.
She had to swallow her excitement before she could continue, and keep her voice level, calm and scientific. “Here where the river meets the Pacific Ocean, trouble is brewing.” She did a long shot of the entire area. “Frequently, before a tsunami sweeps into an area, the ocean sucks back, exposing rocks, sandbars, the ocean floor itself, and leaving fish and aquatic life flopping in the air.”
Elizabeth had always heard so much about the onset of a tsunami, seen videos shot by people on the scene, tried to imagine what it would be like to view it in person. Now she was viewing it, large and clear, the only one of the team lucky enough to be a witness to the cataclysm.
She had so much at stake here, not merely the knowledge that hundreds of scientists would study every scrap of evidence in classes and conferences, and thousands of people would view her video on television. She also had a reputation to uphold, a reputation formed not by her actions but by the actions of her parents. She had to prove she wasn’t Misty, beautiful and wanton. She had to prove she wasn’t Charles, prey to murderous rages. If Elizabeth could remain cool under this pressure, never again would there be suspicious glances cast her way, or whispered rumors behind her back.
Of course, Garik would tell her she was kidding herself, and maybe she was.
But hey, Garik—maybe I want to prove something to myself.
In her best lecture voice, she said, “We can clearly see this is the case, and can also see why the geological evidence in Virtue Falls Canyon points to massive tsunamis which in the past have swept far up the river, filling it like a bathtub, then … wait. Far out to sea—is that the swell?”
Her heart began to pound so loudly she
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