9: The Good Witch Grenda

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We had made it to Dakhi and got in the heli. I was piloting the chopper over a strange sea when suddenly the system failed and we crashed.

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The island in the sea was buoyant. I couldn't see anything hanging from it, keeping it up. It looked like a normal mound of an island, just a bunch of dirt topped off with some short grass. Something seemed a bit off about it though.

"Rien! Aaron! Ambur! Guys! Where are you?" I shouted. They'd been lost when our heli crashed. The sea was so deep, I couldn't see the bottom. That's how I knew the island was floating. I was treading water, a skill townspeople are taught from ages 2-6. I'd turned 14 this last year. My birthday is August 12.

I was about 150 yards from a bulky, thick wooden "ladder" (it was more of a bunch of planks somehow put there in 4 inch increments), when I realized that the water was very transparent, certainly more than regular sea water. Something whipped past me. All I saw, in the time it took me to turn around, was a 5 yard tall, 2 yard wide, unexplainably long... Tail?!

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Oh my god, I thought, as I realized, there were sea monsters in there! They were at least 1,000 yards long, with no limbs, all they had other than a long body was, a thin crest of a fin running along their bodylength, and a head. It had large fin-like gills, and teeth that could shred and eat a shark, with a mere flick of its head, at least 10 feet long.

I swam as if Lucifer were trailing me. I suddenly noticed that Rien was only a few yards behind me.

"Rien!" I screamed and waved my hands, "Over here!"

"Fall? Is that you?" A faint cry came back.

I let out a small sob of relief and we swam to the bank together. I hadn't known Aaron wasn't that far away. Watching us.

We then sat on the shore, scanning the gleaming sea for other survivors. Suddenly, to the east, I saw two heads waving at us and swimming closer.

"Hey! Hahaha! Hey! We're over here guys!" A faint cry came. It sounded like Aaron was relieved.

A few minutes later, we all were on the bank, wondering what to do next. Suddenly, a huge cry and moan shook the island and the shore.

"Guys. What in God's name was that?" Asked Ambur frantically.

"Uhhh..." The others stood in silence. Another cry of a moan and another boom. This time it sounded and felt, closer.

"Guys, just a theory, but I'm thinking... Whale!!" Screamed Rien, in the blaring wind.

"Run!!!" I shouted, "Rien and I will take the ladder to the west, you guys take the east, ok?! Now run!" I shouted, as I started to run.

Everyone ran to the designated ladder, which, to my surprise, were extremely easy to climb. Rien and I were at the top in no time. Suddenly, another boom shook the island, except this time it was so close that we blacked out and collapsed.

When we woke up, we were in a playground sort of a fort, with open sides and a thin, yet durable structure. When we turned to look around, suddenly a dark figure popped out.

"Agh! CLU! Stay back Rien!" I shouted protectively.

"I'm no CLU! I'm the witch! In search of trespassers of The City of Cilos!" She shouted with a brilliant grin on her face.

"We wish to pass through!" I said instinctively. I've read a lot of adventure books.

"There is but one way to pass through. Each of you must make a sacrifice for me!" She replied with her scratchy voice. I realized she hadn't shown her face yet, just kept it hidden in her dark wispy cloths.

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