Choose Your Own: Ahoy! Sea Serpent?!?

To go to the beginning, click here.

“Ahab’s ghost!” You blink against the glaring light of those luminous orbs, pulse spiking. Each eye is the size of a cannon ball. Two horns sprout up behind the creature’s gilled jaw, glistening with dripping water. It yawns at you, revealing three rows of flesh-tearing incisors and a flat, slitted tongue.

You gasp and reach behind you for something, anything to defend yourself, not daring to look away from the creature. Its head rises as you back away. Its long neck shimmers in the sunlight like diamonds as it leans over the rail toward you.

Your hand fastens over a flimsy life vest. You grunt.

The beast’s head tilts curiously, giving you the impression you are staring into the eyes of an aquatic Labrador—except it’s bound to strike the instant your back is turned. You feel blindly along the deck with your other hand until it clasps over an air tank—prepped for diving. Smiling innocently, you inch the tank closer.

The creature blinks at you—blinks with snake-like eyes, membranes sweeping across from the sides.

Getting a grip on the neck of the tank you tense to swing.

The thing snorts, spraying you with a fine mist of dripping goo. You freeze, disgusted.

The creature lunges.

Its teeth cut into your shirt, narrowly missing the flesh. It whips its head back and flings you into the air, your hand still clasped over the diving tank.

For a second you glimpse the sun and clouds, then the water’s surface rushes up to meet you. At the last second you hold the tank out in front of you to break the swell. Salty liquid bursts around you.

Before you have a chance to fight for the surface something loops around your ankle. Salt stings your eyes as you force them open.

A snaky tongue—almost purple in this light—tightens on your ankle. You have only an instant to think before the mythical beast tugs you down. You shove the scuba regulator into your mouth, hoping you can equalize with the changing pressure in time to keep your lungs from bursting.

But instead of dying you see a light ahead, or below, an ethereal purple glow. Maybe you are dying. Maybe this is the equivalent of that tunnel of light everyone talks about, except under water.

As you near you can see it’s a dome of sorts…a gigantic bubble. It could cover the whole of Manhattan.

There are things moving under the bubble, living things—people or vehicles, you can’t tell.

The leathery tongue unleashes your ankle and the creature’s gleaming eyes meet yours. It nods toward the bubble.


Do you go with the creature

Or turn and swim away as fast as you can—without bursting your lungs?

Bittersweet Words

My list begins with: school, writing, rainy days, birthdays, and...

"The End."

I sit here, staring at my latest draft and lamenting that the story has nowhere new to take me. It's so fulfilling, and yet so sad.

"I'm done."

"Finished."

"That's all folks."

*sigh* It's kind of depressing really. Well, or it would be if I wasn't compelled by external forces (*glaring at my hubby*) to write this story into a series.

So, now that I've finished my WIP (again), I find myself going, "Okay, what's next?" Well, let me tell you. October is a busy month. I'll be critiquing and beta reading this book, and on October 24th, come back for the most awesome CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE bloghop ever!

Eighteen authors have come together to present the adventure of a lifetime, and you get to be one of our lucky readers. Look forward to seeing you there!

What's the worst/best "The end" you've ever met?

Choose Your Own Adventure Bloghop

Welcome. This is not the beginning of the choose your own. No. It's the end. To hit the beginning please click HERE and swing over to Kerri's blog. =) Happy adventuring, and may you succeed in your quest for the Yeti.

Fortune favors the bold, and you figure you’re pretty much dead anyway.

Flipping on your camera you point the shot upward. Taking a deep breath you whimper, “cheese”.

The camera flashes. The closest (and largest) yeti leaps to the cavern floor, rattling your bones with a thunderous crash. It roars with rage.

Your finger slips and snaps another picture.

The yeti blinks at you. You blink at it.

You flash another picture.

The yeti shrieks and throws its arms in the air like an angry gorilla.

Your knees buckle. What happened to that cheeky plan to snap a shot and run? You turn and smash into a furry wall of white.

The camera drops to the ground and another flash lights the cavern.

The beast you just ran into leaps back, hands in the air and screeches—like a woman who’s spotted a mouse.

Supercharged, you aim for the cavern entry, but two giant hands clasp around each arm and press inward, threatening to crush your ribcage. Your feet leave the ground. Slowly you are lifted.

Giant black eyes peer into your face. Glistening fangs are bared. A long white cloud of mist hisses between the creatures jagged teeth. Warm air circulates around your goosebumped flesh and you gag on the rancid breath. Garlic?

The yeti giggles.

Giggle? No. That couldn’t possibly be…

It occurs to you that perhaps this baring of teeth is not an act of aggression. From the way the corners of its mouth turn upward… Yup. That’s a smile.

The creature tucks you under one arm and starts grunting at the others. They now stand in a tight circle. Another one grunts back, then a third in a higher pitch. It appears they are having a yeti family council?

Meanwhile the fur against your cheek is becoming rather agitating. Rash, you are definitely going to have a rash from the friction. Hives maybe.

The yeti plops you down in the center and delivers a good smack to the top of your head.

“Ouch!” you cry.

The yeti giggles again. Another one gives you a smack on the head.

“Hey!” you protest.

They all laugh.

Another wallops your shoulder. You flail forward, landing in the paw of the largest one, deafened by the roar of yeti laughter.

***********************************************************************

It’s been three months and six days. You aren’t hungry, although you have no idea what it is they feed you. You aren’t cold—because baby yeti chose to make you his teddy bear tonight. How you hope he won’t roll over and smash you in the middle of the night.

You sigh.

You are resigned to being the family pet, but one day, just one day you might be able to escape. Wow. What story you’ll have to tell then!

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