Trails: First Generation

Sierra Blanca, New Mexico

Sierra Blanca, New MexicoAmber picked up her pack. The scenery belied the danger that lurked inches under the ground cover. One last glance at the monitoring equipment, and she turned to follow Tom.

Corbo lead the group down the trail they had come up, allowing the empty wagon to roll in front of him for now.

Alex reached for a leaf on a tree. "In Hawaii, people walk on freshly cooled lava all the time. People think it's fun. A good way to spend a vacation day. Not all volcanoes are that way though. The ones around here weren't when they were young."

"I imagine not. The earthquakes, the Rio Grande Rift Valley, and hundreds of faults cover what people think is a stable region. Hundreds of unknown or unstudied faults, concern me." Amber leaned against a tree to steady herself on the uneven trail.

Alex reached for her hand. "Try not to worry. There is nothing we can do to stop one. We can only hope to predict it."

He gazed up into the trees. "Or let Mother Nature predict. I think she's trying to tell us something big is happening now. The birds, squirrels, and rabbits have listened. The question is; will we?" He looked in her eyes, held her hand, before he turned back to the trail.

Amber wasn't sure what to do. She had barely met Alex a few hours before. No boyfriend had ever held her hand before. Karen had always been the one with a boyfriend. Earthquake ravines were far steeper than this trail, and she'd navigated those without incident. Heat raced up and down her spine, and breathing was far more difficult than it should be. Quakes had never affected her this way. Somehow, having her hand held was comforting, in a way she didn't expect.

About halfway down the mountain, her cell phone buzzed like bees. She pulled her hand away and fumbled in her backpack for it.

"Hi Mom. No, we were near the top of Sierra Blanca. Haven't seen any signs. A 3.2? Okay, we'll be careful. We're halfway back to the van. See you tonight."

Alex, Tom, and Corbo stared at her from a few feet lower on the trail.

Heat rose in Amber's cheeks. She hurried down the path, and brushed past the others. The wagon rolled in front of Tom, whose turn it had been to try to keep it from running down the mountain without them. Amber jerked the handle out of his hands and let the momentum of the wagon speed her down the trail without noticing the closeness of branches and trees.

Alex caught up to her, and took hold of the wagon handle as they reached the three quarters down marker. "Hey Amber, slow down. Don't hurry so much. You use twice as much energy that way."

Amber let go of the handle and said, "Sorry, it's embarrassing that they call to check on me over every little thing."

Alex stopped and lifted her chin in his hand. "A few years ago, I felt the same way. Now, I wish my mom could have called me when that rumble happened. Is it the volcano? Is it an earthquake? It may be both. This isn't walking to the corner store on a sunny day, in a safe seaside town. This is business. The other team needed to know we were all safe and our job was done. They could have called any of us. It is about you, though not all about you."

Alex held her chin a moment. He let go, and stared off down the trail. His eyes teared. "Sorry. I miss my mom. And, helping her and dad, rather than trying to do it all myself. Not used to it, I guess. After a year, you'd think."

"Alex," Tom said. "I'm here too. You did a good job up there. We have a lot more work to do. Let's go back to the van."

Amber nodded. Alex's reaction was familiar. She had always been sure of her opinions before. Now, she was unsure if she knew enough when put to the test. Then, Karen had been beside her. Apparently, Alex missed his mom as much as she missed her dad.

Tom reached his hand to Alex's shoulder. He turned to Amber. "I know it's not easy to be in their shadow. They sent you with us though, because they trust you, and your opinion. If your mom didn't care, she wouldn't have called. She wanted to check and see where our team was, and let you know, she was safe. You didn't ask where they were when the quake struck. You'll give an honest scientific report. That's why they didn't call Alex. They don't know him personally." Tom half grinned. It didn't quite work.

Alex checked his phone. "They may have tried to call me. My signal isn't good here. Guess I need to see what we can do about that at camp tonight."

"Sorry," Amber said. "Let's go. I guess we are all trying to do what we think is best." This whole trip on the mountainside had been a bit too much for her. Strange emotions clouded her mind. Why hadn't she asked her mom where she was? Her mom could have been in more danger than she was.

The memory of Karen and her own dad had hurt. Brandon never could, and never tried, to replace her own dad. He was always there when she needed someone to talk to, almost as much as her mom.

The heat she felt when talking to Alex scared her. He was different than anyone she had ever known her own age. Not at all like Jerry. Alex could almost be trusted, maybe. He'd never be Karen, not able to laugh and share silly things, as well as scientific things. Not that they were silly much. He might not even like cats.

They walked on down the mountain, ignoring Corbo. Amber watched for signs of land deformation. Animals or people walking on the mountain trail could have made the few visible changes. Vegetation flattened and rocks on top of plants in places. Some freshly disturbed from the quake today.

Amber was at the back of the line as the trail entered the parking lot. They hadn't seen many animals coming back down either. A few birds twittered and squirrels chattered along the edges of the parking lot.

Corbo opened the back doors to put the wagon in.

A typical fast food style bag with the name "Little Italy Deli" in forest green squashed beside the other equipment Tom and Alex had brought.

Corbo slammed the door shut.

Amber jumped at the sound.

"Okay, anywhere else today?" The seat groaned under Corbo's weight. "Livia hasn't shown up, and we want to be gone before she does."

Alex put his hands to his forehead. "Tom and I have been up way too long to go anywhere else."

He yawned. "We need to do more. Without a nap, I don't think we can."

"Okay, back to camp then?"

"It's midday." Tom yawned and stretched. "We can take a short nap, and check the terrain for taking more equipment out tomorrow."

Alex nodded. "Sure. My head is starting to hurt. The pressure and temperature is drastically different here than Hawaii."

"And the plane noise for nearly seven hours didn't help," Tom said.

After the van was on the road, Amber said, "I noticed the 'Little Italy Deli' bag. Is there a good Italian restaurant near here?"

"Sure, the one Livia's parents own. She brings food from there sometimes. She won't let me meet them, though," Corbo said.

"Why not?"

Corbo laughed as he steered through traffic. "What do you think? The strong Mexican fieldworker with a beautiful Italian girlfriend. She knows they won't like me."

That wasn't a nice thing to say about himself.

"They barely tolerate her. Sending her off to find out what she wants. She doesn't know any more than I do what she wants from life. Isn't much to offer around here."

Amber disagreed. Plenty of farmland to explore, places to dig, and read the stories the earth tells of its past, as well as predictions for the future of this community. "What is Livia like? Will she be joining us?" Having a friend to talk with would be nice, though no one could replace Karen.

"Not sure she will want to. She is a jealous person, and spends a lot of time with her rally group."

Alex bumped into Amber as the van swerved for a curve. "What kind of group are they?"

Corbo slowed for a stop sign. "One that doesn't like scientists, military bases, or much else. They spend a lot of time preparing for their 'second coming,' and they think both scientists and the military are speeding us there."

"Wouldn't that make them happy?" Tom asked.

"You'd think so. Though, it doesn't. Guess they want to live as much as the rest of us."

Corbo steered hard around a curve. "The group didn't seem half-bad a while back. It's one thing to know that the military bases aren't good for the environment. It's another to try to make them to leave. That won't happen."

Tom glanced back at Alex and said, "Can Livia help Dr. Rebecca with her work? It would keep her busy."

"No. She tried once. Livia was so resentful of the way Dr. Rebecca gets me to do whatever she wants. It made her too jealous to come around much. She doesn't understand. At work, you are ordered around. In personal life, it's different."

Alex held onto the seat. "Livia doesn't try to order you around too much, I hope."

"Sometimes. She claims it's just the way she is. I laugh, and say she is just as capable as I am, and less tired, as she doesn't have a job. Then she gets mad and tries to accuse me of liking Dr. Rebecca more. As if. She's almost as old as my mother!"

Amber tried not to laugh at that statement. Dr. Rebecca's work was her world. As her role model, Amber knew Dr. Rebecca wasn't perfect. People served the purpose they were there to complete, and nothing else. She rarely let anyone know her any better. In fact, she'd treat Brandon, Alex, and Tom as more workhorse than friends. Maybe better, because they would be helping put the data together. Even Amber was still a kid to her, until she proved what she knew and could do.

The tired group arrived back at camp and trooped to the sleeping quarters.

Amber walked into her room and put the pack down on the bed. She wanted a nap. There hadn't been much sleep the night before, the early morning wake up call, plane ride, and then the quake was more chaos than she normally faced in a month all scrambled into one day. However, Alex and Tom had been awake and going even more hours. If she rested for a few minutes, they could freshen up before their nap, and then she could take her time.

"Amber?" Alex peeked in the door. "Do you need in the bathroom?"

"Not now. Go ahead. How long do you want to rest?" Amber pulled out a travel alarm clock.

"Call your mom and have her wake us when she returns." He glanced at the room, enough space to walk between the bed and the wall. "This room's almost a closet."

Tom closed the bathroom door.

"It's okay." Amber said.

"Our room is bigger, for two of us. Wish they had left you a little more room." Alex leaned against the doorframe.

"Don't need it, do I? A table to put my clothes on would be nice. I'll be fine."

Alex closed the door as Tom passed him in the tiny hallway.

She stretched out for a moment.

Water trickled in the bathroom across the hall.

Karen would miss so much here. Two young scientists to learn from, and if she liked one of them better than Jerry, perhaps, they could work and travel together in the future. Better than leaving her best friend behind. A call, or an email, might still bring her to New Mexico.

Her phone rang, interrupting her dream of Karen, Tom, and Alex following her through a wooded valley with smoke rising from a distant mountain peak. She grumbled as she reached for the phone.

"Hi Mom. Yes. We were napping. I was supposed to call you. Sorry. I'll wake Alex and Tom. Be there in a few minutes."

Voices vibrated in the background. Groggy, she couldn't determine who was speaking, or what they were saying. She ignored it. In the hallway she stumbled, and knocked on Alex and Tom's door.

"Um," half groaned an unrecognizable voice.

"Alex, Tom, wake up. Dr. Rebecca wants us in the other trailer now."

"K, minute." Mattress springs clattered covering up the vibrating voices in the background.

Amber waited.

Alex opened the door.

Tom rubbed his neck as he sat up, yawned, and stretched.

"What's that screeching?" Alex asked.

"I thought maybe you had music playing." Amber grabbed her phone and bag before she closed her door.

"No. Not us."

Amber glanced out the window. Beyond the two trailers, a group of people carried picket signs. They circled the parking lot, screamed, and shouted.

"What do the signs say?" Tom said, half asleep.

Alex opened the door between the trailers an inch.

"Go away!"

"Stop the shaking!"

"End the research!"

"Don't invite trouble!"

The protestors screamed and marched in their direction.

Alex steered Amber toward the other trailer. "Come on Tom, now."

Once they were inside, he locked the door behind them, and looked out the window.

"They want us to leave. They think our visit caused the tremor today," Dr. Rebecca said.

"It's more complex than that," Corbo said. "They think the military are to blame as well. They may be partly to blame. I think we should use one of their bombs to stop the quakes, like in the movies. Dr. Rebecca doesn't think so."

Amber's mouth gaped. Her thoughts flew too fast to find words to express them.

"No, Amber, I would never advise that," Dr. Rebecca said. "We have no idea if they would stop the quakes, make them worse, or cause the sleeping volcanoes to wake up as well. It's too dangerous."

"And I think we should try something to relieve the stress," Corbo said.

"Or create more stress, of a new and more dangerous type," Dr. Rebecca said.

"It's no worse than what the military is already doing, testing bombs out there on the range. We don't know what the effects of those are either. Have they tested any new ones lately?" Corbo stood up as he spoke.

Dr. Rebecca sighed. "I don't know. And if they are testing them, they could be hitting undocumented faults, causing some of the issues we have experienced lately. You know we aren't allowed any information that might be confidential."

"And you're not even allowed to study many of the faults that lie in this great plain. You don't even know how many faults there are on White Sands. Or, if there are any new rifts on the bases. Military testing could be causing the seismic activity and they would never tell you. How many times have they refused to answer your polite emails asking for clarification?"

"Corbo. That's enough. There is nothing we can do to change what they do, or don't do. I wish there was."

"Lives could be in danger because of what we don't know. You've taught me that much."

Dr. Rebecca sighed. "The military requested these experts to come here for that reason. We will find answers."

Dr. Rebecca picked up her coffee cup. "Now, please, go call your girlfriend, and tell her, and her rally group, to leave this property before I call the rangers. They don't understand what they are picketing. As soon as we have information, we will hold a press conference."

He nodded. "I'll try. She doesn't listen to me any more than you do. If I didn't need her." He glared at Dr. Rebecca and stormed out the door.

Dr. Rebecca glanced around at the astonished faces. "Sorry. We disagree on what to do here. The government officials want answers as much as we do, without alarming the public unnecessarily. Of the three supervolcanoes on our continent, one is here at Valle's Caldera, north is Yellowstone, and out west, a third, Long Valley, in California. All show changes in their underground lava fields, as well as increased tremors, both in intensity and duration. A decision on what, and when, to tell the public has to be made soon."

Dr. Rebecca placed her coffee cup beside her computer. "Amber, thanks for pointing out the accumulated, across country dangers to your mom. She alerted me. I reviewed your notes, and many more. Without your help, you wouldn't be here."

Amber listened. She pulled up the map and reviewed the geographical features between the Rio Grande and Yellowstone.

Dr. Rebecca spoke in the background. "One more tremor like today, or one of greater magnitude, and we have to do something. We need all of your knowledge, skills, expertise, and all the facts you can gather as fast as you can. Let's all work together. Claire you may share today's adventures."

"We were able to see quite a bit today. I'm verifying the data to determine where the quake we felt originated. There were several small ones locally, mostly on and around White Sands," Amber's mom said.

"Meaning we will never know how much deformation there was?" Amber asked.

"Perhaps. I think General Nord will share with us; he has to if he wants answers. How much did you all manage today?"

Alex shared the day's story, at least the scientific part. He left out the emotional reactions on the trail.

They hadn't done enough. Amber knew that. Equipment should have been set up in at least one more place. If they hadn't all been so tired from lack of sleep, tempers wouldn't have flared, and they could have made it to the Carrizozo Malpais. She hadn't made a good impression on Dr. Rebecca being asleep when the adult team returned, that was obvious.

Corbo stomped back in, sat down, and glared at the floor.

Dr. Rebecca walked to the New Mexico map on the wall. "I have some old maps, recently digitized, of the survey information done before these lands became top secret. Until we have an updated one, this is all we have to go on."

"Dr. Rebecca?" Amber switched the screen to local geologic maps and pulled up the Inland Seaway maps beside them.

"Yes, Amber?"

"I hope we can see the faults. We need to, if we are going to determine what the government should tell the people. Is there someone who can tell us what's changed on these maps?"

"I hope so. We need to review and understand the old maps tonight. Tomorrow, you three place the next batch of seismometers. We may not have much time. The quakes are coming faster and stronger."

Alex pointed to the lava flows around Socorro. "What about here? There are so many quakes clustered in Socorro."

"The lava depth is changing there too. It appears the hot spot that was once under the Magdalena Mountains may have shifted to the east. The land is rising in a few spots, and lowering in others." Tom searched for data from the last few years.

"It may be forming a new caldera." Alex pointed to a data set from two days ago.

Tom compared the data from the last few years with the last few weeks. "Perhaps more than one. The rising land is often a mile or so in diameter. There are four known increasing spots, that have risen about a foot since accurate measurements have been made over the last few decades. Valleys, scarcely visible, have formed between them."

Alex whistled. "Not enough for the public to notice, only the equipment."

"It could be nothing, or something. The magma is closer to the surface in those four regions though." The map shifted as he plotted what would happen if the current changes continued unabated for a few more weeks.

"Anywhere else to worry about?"

The mountains on the map rose, and topography changed as Tom's program worked.

"Here of course. The sensors fluctuate after each quake." Tom zoomed out to show the White Sands and Sand Andres fault line.

"I see data coming in from the equipment we set up today," Alex said.

Corbo walked over and looked at the screen. "How does it help?"

"The more locations we have measuring equipment located, the easier, and more accurately we can determine epicenters," Amber's mom said.

Corbo nodded and turned to Alex, "The other machine you set up?"

"The one that measures atmospheric gases? It only works for a small area. If a fumarole developed half a mile, perhaps even a quarter mile away, it might not detect it."

"The seismometers work for miles, I guess," Corbo said.

"Depends on the size of the quake, and the terrain it has to pass through. Most will detect miles away. Some quakes have been large enough to be detected across the globe. The more equipment we have running, the more accurate our measurements," Dr. Rebecca said.

"What about the Datil-Mogollon Volcanic Field and the Aden lava flows?" Amber asked.

Dr. Rebecca handed Amber an empty coffee cup, and said, "We don't know. I have student teams going there tomorrow to set up any extra equipment we can spare. We will do all of the monitoring from here. They have to return to campus for exams. I figure the day after tomorrow we will begin monitoring all of these sites. Scientists around the world are setting up all the spare equipment they have, no matter the age or condition."

Chapter 8