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Bradshaw shook his head “As in rip the continent in two”

Kurt studied Bradshaw’s face There was nothing to suggest he was joking or delusional “Coain?”

“That’s where the wory, there are beneficial uses and harmful uses for this one Thero claims he’s finally succeeded in his quest and unlocked the secret to liy He insists that he would have used it for the benefit of the world, but because the world rejected him and brutalized his children, he’ll now use this newfound power for revenge, beginning by ripping this island in half”

“Even with soy source I’ve never heard of, that sounds a little absurd,” Kurt said “A thousand nuclear bombs couldn’t split Australia in half”

“No,” Bradshaw agreed, “but plate tectonics can”

“Why don’t you cut to the chase here? What are you telling me?”

“I’ll let Hayley explain the details, but Thero claiy to unleash earthquakes and affect the movement of continental plates”

Kurt had seen a study soht be possible on a h pressure, deep-well injections of certain chemicals were known to lubricate fault lines and cause minor tremors in places But for the most part, these were quakes felt only on the readouts of seish above

Then again, this zero-point energy was like nothing Kurt had ever heard of before

“Thero’s already proven it to us,” Bradshaw said “In the letter detailing his threat, he promised to unleash an earthquake exactly two nature He insisted it would occur somewhere between Adelaide on the southern coast and Alice Springs, where we are now”

“There was an earthquake lastone”

“Six-point-nine,” Bradshaw said “One hundred and twenty miles north-northwest of Adelaide It hit on the exact date Thero proest quake we’ve had in years”

“But there are no fault lines here,” Kurt said, rey “Australia sits in the middle of a plate, not on the boundary like California or Japan”

“So I’ve been told,” Bradshaw said “Thero insists he can change all that That when he’s done, Australia will be cleaved down the middle and there will be, in effect, two smaller plates where there is currently one”

Kurt’s mind reeled Was it really possible?