[/CHAPTER 1 – ON SHAKY GROUND]

Mark: “What’s going on… Wh- Where am I…

Theo: “Mark? Are you there? I don’t exactly where you are, but you sound like
you’re from below me. The earthquake must’ve caused the sand to fall. Listen I
need you to stay calm as I find I way to locate you.”

2 hours earlier.

Mark: “Alright everyone! Since today is my birthday, I have decided… That we,
are all going to a beach resort!”

Theo: “And we, are not paying for a resort just because it’s your birthday.”

Mark: “I’m… paying for everyone’s fee.”

Theo: “Are we going right now? I’m ready.”

Theo somehow already packed up all his things in that small amount of time.
It seems like he already knew this were to happen.

Lilith: “That was a quick change of mind.

Lilith: “Hey Eliot are you going to the resort?”

Eliot shrugs.

Lilith: “Welp, me and Eliot really don’t want to go to the beach so we’ll just go
buy you cake.”

Mark: “Alright then, I’m taking the truck, you two take the car. Theo let’s go.”

Eliot: “I did not say I’d go with you.”

Lilith: “Too late. I did.”

Theo: “Ooh, this will be fun.”

The two groups then went their separate ways, Eliot went with Lilith, and
Theo went with Mark. Eliot and Lilith went to a nearby mall and went for a
walk, Lilith doesn’t really know what she’s looking for but she will know it
when she sees it. And there it was, a bakery, and it has what she’s looking for.

Lilith: “Hey can I buy the cheapest pie you have?”

Eliot: “I thought we’re buying Mark a cake…”

Lilith: “What do you expect? I’m broke.”

Lilith: “What’re you doing?”

Eliot: “Oh? I just hacked into the store’s staff Wi-Fi and well, I’m trying to find
which beach resort Mark and Theo went to using a GPS tracker and…”

Lilith: “And what?”

Eliot: “I might just hack on security cameras all over the resort just to stalk
them.”

Waiter: “Hey ma’am, here’s the pie you ordered.”

Lilith: “Hey do you have icing and well uh, a box I can put this pie in?”

Eliot: “…”

Waiter: “…”

Lilith: “…”

Waiter: “Yeah sure, I’ll… go get just that.”

Eliot: “Icing…? On pie?”

After a couple minutes the waiter comes back bringing the things Lilith asked
from. Lilith then uses the icing and starts writing something on the pie.

Eliot: “‘Hey, do you want some 3.14159?’… Really Lilith?”

Lilith: “What? It’s a good joke thank you so much.”

Both leave the bakery and went on their way to the resort. Meanwhile, Mark
and Theo are on one of the resort’s restaurants.

Mark: “Huh, I wonder what’s taking them so long to get here.”

Theo: “They said they’re going to buy you cake, give them some time.”

Mark: “They know that I’m not the kind of guy who wants a specific kind of
cake. They could just find one and they’re done.”

Theo: “…”

Mark: “I’ll go to the bathroom.”

Mark went to the bathroom. It took him some time to leave the room but
when he did…

Theo: “Why are you moving in circles?”

Lilith: “Mark’s moving in circles and you’re still focusing the camera on him.
He knows what you’re doing.

Mark: “I think I know what’s taking them so long.”

Mark says that, standing still, looking at a security camera, that’s also looking
at him.

Lilith: “You’re busted Eliot.”

Theo: “What do you mean you know what’s taking them so long?”
Mark: “Eliot hacked into the security cameras of this resort. He probably
tracked us using a GPS tracker. They’re stalking us.”

Theo: “That’s… not surprising.”

Lilith and Eliot are driving to the resort. Everything was fine, it was peaceful,
they were driving down a road in the middle of a field. When suddenly
something felt… wrong. Lilith stepped on the brake, and they knew it.
Something was definitely wrong.

“Lilith: “It’s an earthquake!”

Mark: “It’s an earthquake!”

Eliot: “You do say.”

Lilith: “At least we’re in an open space… No building can fall on us. I’m more
worried about Mark and Theo.”

Ironically, a tree just falls and pins their car to the road.

Eliot: “Yep, nothing to fall on us at all!”

Lilith: “I said buildings!”

Theo: “We need to run out of here!”

Mark: “Quick! We need to find an open spa-.”

Theo: “Mark? Mark where did you go…?”

Mark: “What’s going on… Wh- Where am I…

Theo: “Mark? Are you there? I don’t exactly where you are, but you sound like
you’re from below me. The earthquake must’ve caused the sand to fall. Listen I
need you to stay calm as I find I way to locate you.”

Theo: “Oh I know! Let me just…”

Theo opens his phone and opens his GPS tracking app and tries to rack Mark’s
phone.

Theo: “Aha! There you are! Mark, I know where you are right now, I am 2
meters to west of you. Now we just need to call rescuers and you’ll be out of
there safely!”

Mark: “I- I don’t think that’s gonna *huff* work so easily. Sand is slowly *huff*
slowly falling on me. If I don’t *huff* get out of here in 30 minutes… I- I’ll die
from suffocation.”

Lilith and Eliot struggles to get out of the car but it doesn’t help. The tree
pinning them down is so heavy that they can’t move an inch. Lilith then
notices something on the car’s side mirror.

Lilith: “Hey, is that smoke from the back of the car…?”

Eliot: “Yes, it is. Is that bad news?

Lilith: “The smoke may have been caused by a leak in the engine. If that’s the
case then if the car’s gasoline vaporizes and turns into gas… It will then mix
with the air and create a spark of flame and…”

Eliot: “And…?”

Lilith: “The car’s gonna explode! With us in it!”

Eliot: “Going with you, was not a good idea.

Lilith: “Shut up. We gotta find a way outta here.”

Eliot: “We have to call Mark for help.”

Lilith: “Are you serious? It’s Mark’s birthday at least call Theo.”

Mark: “This- *huff* This is the worst birthday ever.”

Theo: “Don’t worry Mark, I’m getting you out of there. Oh, Eliot’s calling. Good
timing Eliot, I need your help. Mark’s fallen under sand and he says sand is
slowly falling on him. He has 28 minutes to live!”

Eliot: “Hey! Hey! We’re the ones supposed to be asking for help, a tree pinned
our car down and we’re stuck in a car that’s about to explode!”

Lilith: “Mark’s stuck under sand… How about you try to find a blowtorch? A
blowtorch can create heat ranging from 3200 to 3800 degrees Fahrenheit.”

Theo: “And sand turns to glass when acted upon heat higher than 3200
degrees Fahrenheit! That’s a good idea! I’m trying to find somewhere with
blowtorch. Now if you would please, tell me how you look like right now and I
might be able to help you get out of there.”

Eliot: “Alright, I’m sending pictures to you right now.”

Theo: “Hey Eliot, how heavy are you?”

Eliot: “156 pounds.”

Theo: “Okay, Eliot you need to try and push the tree upwards, and Lilith will
try to crawl down and out of the car. Lilith you will then go to the other side
and help Eliot push the tree upwards and help him get out of the car.”

Eliot: “Okay.”

Eliot hung up the phone and proceeded to do what Theo said.

Eliot: “This sure is heavy… Are you almost out?”

Lilith: “…”

Lilith: “…”

Lilith: “…”

Lilith: “I’m out!”

Eliot: “Sweet! Come on, help me, this thing is heavy!”

Lilith: “On it.”

Lilith: “Come on! Get out of there!”

Eliot: “Almost out!”

Lilith: “I can’t! It’s too heavy!”

Lilith takes her hands off the tree causing it to fall on one of Eliot’s knees.

Eliot: “Ouch!”

Lilith: “Oh my god! I’m so sorry!”

Eliot: “It’s okay, it’s okay. Now that we can’t carry this tree with my knee
pinned down, we need to find a way to get rid of this tree!”

Lilith: “We’re in a road in the middle of the field! Where are we supposed to-
Oh look a shack!”

Lilith runs as fast as she can to the shack right in the middle of nowhere to
find if there are any materials she could use.

Lilith: “Come on. Come on. Come on!”

Lilith: “Oh sweet! An axe!”

Lilith runs back to Eliot, but slower than she anticipated because of how heavy
the axe is.

Lilith: “I got just what we need.”

Eliot: “An axe?! You’re gonna chop my leg off!”

Lilith: “Well I’m a chemist not a lumberjack. You’ll just have to trust me in this
one.”

Lilith chops the tree as fast as she could but she’s still halfway through when
suddenly flame starts to spark on the car’s back.
Eliot: “Lilith chop faster!

Lilith: “I’m trying!”

Eliot: “Then try harder!”

Lilith: “Done!”

Lilith pushes the cut off tree and pulls Eliot out of the car. They then both run
away with Eliot injured as fast as they could.

Eliot: “Hey you… You sure you left nothing important there?”

Lilith: “Wait a minute… The pie!”

And just a second after she said that, the car exploded into pieces.

Eliot: “Just forget it, let’s get out of here!”

Theo: “A blowtorch! Now I just have to get out of this warehouse before an
aftershock happens!”

Theo also takes a welding mask and hurries back to the beach resort and uses
his GPS tracker to find his way back to where Mark is.

Theo: “Mark! I’m back! I got a blowtorch, I’m gonna turn the sand above you
into glass and break it. Then I’ll get you out of there.”

The plan was good, the chances of success was high. Well, it was high. But not
anymore because before Theo could even start heating the sand another
aftershock happens.

Theo: “Oh no.”

Mark: “Theo- *huff* Help… Me.”

Theo: “The shaking stopped. Mark are you still there?”

Mark: “I am. *huff* but our 20 minutes *huff*, is now just 5.

Theo: “I’m heating the sand you’re gonna be out of there in no time!”

Lilith: “An aftershock! Mark better be out of that sand pit by now or he might
not be able to survive this one…”

Mark: “Theo *huff*, the sand’s almost getting my head…”

Theo: “Almost done!”

Mark: “40 seconds.”

Theo continues to heat the sand. It’s slowly turning into glass. It’s surely
taking time.

Mark: “7 seconds.”

Mark: “6”

Mark: “5”

Mark: “4”

Mark: “My head’s going under the sand now…”

Theo: “Done!”

Theo then punches sand-turned-glass as strong as he can, and does it until the
glass breaks. He then tries to dig the sans under the glass and sees Mark’s
hand.

Theo: “Mark! I see your hand! I’m pulling you out!

Theo grunts to bring Mark out of the sand. It worked, but Mark is in much
pain.

Theo: “I’m surprised you survived that, the force of the sand burying you
must’ve hurt.”

Mark: “I didn’t want to die on my birthday.”

2 weeks later.

Lilith: “Hey Mark.

Mark: “Hey.”

Lilith: “So we know that you had a… A rough day on your birthday. So me,
Eliot, and Theo have been saving up to give you a special treat!”

Lilith: “…”

Lilith: “So, do you wanna go to the beach resort?”

Mark: “Nope.”
[/CHAPTER 2 – A SHOCKING EVENT]

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