propelling its twenty-two feet and forty-five hundred pounds through the water like an arrow.
It came underneath the prey and detected the beating of several hearts and the faint trace of urine. This prey had limbs and the shark could intuitively tell from its shape that it carried little fat. It did not identify it as a seal but was curious and swam around the prey slowly, listening to the vibrations and attempting to trace the scent of urine. It approached one of them from underneath and gently rubbed against it. Its outer skin contained denticles; sharp backward facing bits of calcium that were the same shape and material as its teeth. The prey bled and attempted to flee back to shore.
The shark, aroused by the blood, began to follow.
The prey was slow and the shark dived as far down as it could go, preparing to thrust upward into the prey at the midsection and take a large chunk of flesh out of it. It would then swim around nearby and wait for the prey to bleed to death before coming in to feed.
But the shark picked up something else as it dove into the depths. It was something with a massive heartbeat. It moved and it seemed to move in every direction at once and the shark’s senses felt overwhelmed. The thing was far too large to be trifled with.
The shark shot to the surface as quickly as it could and felt the mass behind it follow. The shark tilted to the right and then the left, its tail pumping back and forth so quickly it created a small current from its mass jetting through the water. But the thing was too large and too fast to be outrun. The shark felt it behind it, heard its heart. Its lateral line picked up movement in all directions and couldn’t tell which way the thing was coming.
It made one last attempt to lose the creature by shooting to the surface like a rocket. The mass of gray and white broke the surface and its tail propelled it ten feet into the air.
As the shark was rising, a tentacle wrapped around its tail and slammed it back into the water. The shark struggled and snapped its teeth wildly as it was pulled underwater backward. It caught a portion of flesh and tore it away, only the pain making it realize it was its own tail and that it had been folded in half. It heard nothing as it was pulled apart at the midsection as easily as seaweed. Its head, still receiving signals through its central nervous system, saw the black opening and heard the crunch as the creature chewed once, and swallowed.
----
16
Patrick stood at the pier, staring at the massive ship. It was black with gold trim and the upper third was white. It was named Challenger I and it made him think of the shuttle that had malfunctioned and exploded.
He scratched at his chest; Christopher had made him buy a wool suit from a local thrift store and he wore it with loafers and a nice imitation Rolex watch.
“I hate this,” he said.
“You gotta look nice for this guy.”
There were a handful of men that stepped off the ship. One, a large muscular man covered with tattoos, was pushing Taylor Hamilton in a wheelchair. The wheelchair was brought over and Christopher thrust out his hand.
“Mr. Hamilton, it’s an honor.”
“Nice suit,” he said, turning to Patrick without shaking hands. “Was it hard to get it out of your grandfather’s grave?” Hamilton laughed and Patrick could see several black, rotting teeth in his mouth. “I’m just kidding.” He stuck out his hand and Patrick shook. “Taylor Hamilton.”
“Patrick Russell.”
“You made the right choice in not going this alone boys. If this is what I think it is, there’s money in it for both of us. Walk with me,” he said with a sardonic grin. The muscular man began to push Hamilton down the pier toward shore and the men followed. “I’ve been reading some reports about the attacks that took place here. Interesting events.”
“Have you ever seen a giant squid?” Christopher asked.
“No, nobody has. But I was close once, in the Bahamas.
It came underneath the prey and detected the beating of several hearts and the faint trace of urine. This prey had limbs and the shark could intuitively tell from its shape that it carried little fat. It did not identify it as a seal but was curious and swam around the prey slowly, listening to the vibrations and attempting to trace the scent of urine. It approached one of them from underneath and gently rubbed against it. Its outer skin contained denticles; sharp backward facing bits of calcium that were the same shape and material as its teeth. The prey bled and attempted to flee back to shore.
The shark, aroused by the blood, began to follow.
The prey was slow and the shark dived as far down as it could go, preparing to thrust upward into the prey at the midsection and take a large chunk of flesh out of it. It would then swim around nearby and wait for the prey to bleed to death before coming in to feed.
But the shark picked up something else as it dove into the depths. It was something with a massive heartbeat. It moved and it seemed to move in every direction at once and the shark’s senses felt overwhelmed. The thing was far too large to be trifled with.
The shark shot to the surface as quickly as it could and felt the mass behind it follow. The shark tilted to the right and then the left, its tail pumping back and forth so quickly it created a small current from its mass jetting through the water. But the thing was too large and too fast to be outrun. The shark felt it behind it, heard its heart. Its lateral line picked up movement in all directions and couldn’t tell which way the thing was coming.
It made one last attempt to lose the creature by shooting to the surface like a rocket. The mass of gray and white broke the surface and its tail propelled it ten feet into the air.
As the shark was rising, a tentacle wrapped around its tail and slammed it back into the water. The shark struggled and snapped its teeth wildly as it was pulled underwater backward. It caught a portion of flesh and tore it away, only the pain making it realize it was its own tail and that it had been folded in half. It heard nothing as it was pulled apart at the midsection as easily as seaweed. Its head, still receiving signals through its central nervous system, saw the black opening and heard the crunch as the creature chewed once, and swallowed.
----
16
Patrick stood at the pier, staring at the massive ship. It was black with gold trim and the upper third was white. It was named Challenger I and it made him think of the shuttle that had malfunctioned and exploded.
He scratched at his chest; Christopher had made him buy a wool suit from a local thrift store and he wore it with loafers and a nice imitation Rolex watch.
“I hate this,” he said.
“You gotta look nice for this guy.”
There were a handful of men that stepped off the ship. One, a large muscular man covered with tattoos, was pushing Taylor Hamilton in a wheelchair. The wheelchair was brought over and Christopher thrust out his hand.
“Mr. Hamilton, it’s an honor.”
“Nice suit,” he said, turning to Patrick without shaking hands. “Was it hard to get it out of your grandfather’s grave?” Hamilton laughed and Patrick could see several black, rotting teeth in his mouth. “I’m just kidding.” He stuck out his hand and Patrick shook. “Taylor Hamilton.”
“Patrick Russell.”
“You made the right choice in not going this alone boys. If this is what I think it is, there’s money in it for both of us. Walk with me,” he said with a sardonic grin. The muscular man began to push Hamilton down the pier toward shore and the men followed. “I’ve been reading some reports about the attacks that took place here. Interesting events.”
“Have you ever seen a giant squid?” Christopher asked.
“No, nobody has. But I was close once, in the Bahamas.
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