(Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay in posting ch. 14 but here it is now. I try to get up a new chapter every weekend, so stay tuned :) Thanks for reading!)
The sun shone valiantly on the waves of the bay as midday came to pass.
Hannah tugged at the outer-skirt of her dress absentmindedly. She still wasn't accustomed to wearing such heavy pieces of clothing with so many layers to it.
Ever since her awakening in the woods, she found herself in a very time period-appropriate dress that resembled the clothes she had on prior to her transportation: a white undershirt with black rosemaling throughout, and a pale blue skirt. The skirt puffed out a little; not like a ball gown would, but just enough so that it wouldn't stick to her legs as she walked. Although, her attire was the least of her worries at this moment.
She used the toe of her boot to dig in the dirt as she observed Benji, Kristoff, and a few other ice harvesters survey an ever-growing gap in the ground, that had begun cracking near the lodge after the earthquake.
She stood a small distance away from the new ravine, cautiously overlooking the destructive product of her mere existence.
Jess stood posed on Hannah's right, with her arms crossed and a contemplating expression gracing her features.
As if sent from Hell, from behind the girls a horrific screech sounded that almost made Hannah's knees buckle at the pitch of it.
Everyone in the area turned around abruptly, to witness Maverick, the disturbed man, bolting towards the gorge.
"Oh my god, he's gonna fall in!" Hannah exclaimed pointing a finger, prompting a few harvesters to attempt to tackle him onto the ground.
Unfortunately, their actions weren't quick enough. Maverick promptly jumped over the edge, and went hurling downward. The belt of his pants caught on a protruding rock from the side of the ravine, catching him midair.
The poor fellow was left dangling and thrashing around like a cat wearing the cone of shame. His screams echoed up the canyon walls, as everyone peered down at him helplessly.
Elsa came up behind Hannah placing a hand on her shoulder to get her attention. "What's going on out here?" The queen questioned with a twisted expression.
"It's Maverick, look he's stuck down there!" Hannah pointed out frantically.
Elsa grimaced as she pushed her way through the crowd to the edge. "STAND BACK EVERYONE!" She ordered, readying herself.
The surrounding mob backed up a few paces as the queen began to twirl her hands, summoning the magic to break through her palms.
A whirlwind of snowflakes and sparkling light maneuvered it's way down to the dangling man and pulled him up delicately. It dropped him in front of the ice harvesters responsible for him, and they took him safely into the lodge.
"Good save, they should really get a handle on that guy." Chuckled Anna as she wandered over to stand next to her sister.
"I'm just glad everyone's alright." Elsa replied, gingerly touching her wounded shoulder, which had been flared up by the use of her powers. "I could freeze the ravine over, but it will just continue to grow and break apart more."
Jess turned back to look at the lodge skeptically. "Is it even still safe to be staying here? One more earthquake and this place is gone."
"She's right. I think we need to evacuate this area at once, and move to higher ground." Benji figured, gazing intently at the mountains lining the horizon.
The earnest doctor Lionel, nodded his head, having overheard the previous conversation.
He cleared his throat hoarsely. "Yes, I agree as well. It is quite a shame, but we have to take the peril of the situation seriously. I'll inform the harvesters to gather their belongings, we leave tomorrow morning."
As quickly as it came, the day was gone. Darkness encased the sky once again, while four or five men loaded up sleds in preparation for their departure the next morning.
Kristoff came up beside his colleague, Anders. The young man stood with an arm resting on the edge of his sled and the other on his hip. He gazed at the lodge for a few moments before addressing Kristoff.
"I'm really gonna miss this ole' place." Anders smiled sadly. "So many good times with the guys eh, Kristoff?"
"Yeah well, we'll just build another safe lodge some place else. I hear that ice harvesters are pretty good with tools..."
Hannah listened to Kristoff and his friends laughing together off in the distance.
She sat perched precariously on the very edge of the ravine, dangling her feet ever so slightly and glaring down at the pitch black depths of the canyon.
Of course, she was aware of how horrifically dangerous this action was. To be honest, Hannah didn't know what coaxed her to sit on the precipice of a the cliff as she was doing now.
She couldn't explain it. She was just drawn to it, despite the danger. Then again, she though to herself, "I've always been drawn to self-destruction, even though it brings pain and consequences with it."
The painful silence was broken by a soothing familiar voice behind her.
"You feel it too?" Jess said at almost a whisper, cautiously taking a seat next to Hannah on the edge.
Jess went on, "It's almost like I can feel a connection to it, like it's a part of me. It was created because of us anyway."
Hannah sat in silence for a moment, griping the sides of the cliff, letting the rock dig into her palms uncomfortably.
"The collapse of this world is only going to get worse. There's no getting around that. But if we want to survive until the alignment, we can't give in to the destruction." She said at last.
Hannah stopped to take a breath. "Who knows how close Garth is to finding us. If he does, it's over for us, Jess. He'll kill me and you, and everyone here."
She cleared her throat, as if trying to speak words that were painful. "We can't let our destruction ruin Elsa and Anna's life. They were happy before we came, Garth's right. We don't belong here." Two tears slid down her cheeks.
She pulled her knees up to her chest. Jess did the same, she was now crying as well.
"We can't risk hurting all these people, so I think we should go on our own." Hannah stated finally.
Jess at last spoke up. "You know they won't let us go without them. Not after everything we've been through, Hannah."
"That's why we won't tell them. When everyone's asleep, we'll sneak out. We can keep moving camp, and Garth and his army will follow us; they won't be after the others anymore. We keep going until the alignment , and if our plan works, if Yvonne pulls through for us, then we WILL get home alive." Hannah sniffed up the last of her crying, and got to her feet.
Jess stayed sitting and staring at the same abyss that Hannah once gazed at. She was afraid to leave the safety of Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, and Benji, but she knew deep down that Hannah was right.
Hannah smiled sadly and reached her hand out to help up her friend, and Jess gladly took it.
"So tonight it is then." Hannah whispered.
"Tonight it is."