Gabby the Gardener's Arc

Chapter 1 of 2

Gabby knelt in the dirt and stared at the ruined rows where her best tomatoes had been. Half the plot was torn apart, leaves shredded and fruit scattered across the soil. Her rabbit pressed against her side, warm and still. She had grown these to prove she could still manage something perfect, something worthy of recognition across all of Garden World. But now the earth moved beneath her hands. A ripple, then another. Something was still down there, pushing up from below. She pulled her hand back. The soil heaved upward in a slow wave, like something breathing. A crack formed along the center of the plot, widening as dirt spilled into it. The rabbit tensed against her ribs. Gabby stayed frozen, watching the crack spread toward the rows of carrots she'd planted two months ago. Those were supposed to be her entry in the spring competition. Now they tilted sideways as the ground beneath them shifted and sank. She should have asked someone for help weeks ago. But admitting the problem meant admitting she couldn't protect what she'd built. The cottage behind her stood quiet, its windows reflecting the morning sun. She'd stayed up three nights in a row watching from inside, but whatever was doing this worked faster than her exhausted eyes could follow. Now it was here in daylight, bold enough to tunnel while she knelt right beside it. The ground buckled one more time. Then a mound of fresh earth pushed up through the crack, spilling across the destroyed tomatoes. The movement stopped. Gabby stood slowly, dirt clinging to her knees. She looked at the ruined plot, then at the cottage, then back at the fresh mound. Three weeks of silence had cost her half her garden. She couldn't grow the freshest vegetables in Garden World if she had no garden left to tend.