LAVA CAT CRUISE SHIP
Chapter Seven
Happy Friday!
Another chapter of Lava Cat Cruise Ship! And guess what? The ebook is READY! So Paid subscribers, watch your inbox, I’ll be sending you a copy of the full story at some point today or tomorrow so you won’t have to wait for the next chapter drop!
ME-OW!
SEVEN
The shadowed creature took a step towards them.
Eidon's breath hitched in his throat as that sound -- a boat motor carving through gravel -- grew louder. Celia stiffened beside him, her breathing stopped. But she didn't dare move. Franklin's hand held tighter to Eidon's, hot and sweaty against his skin. In the reflection he could see the kid had closed his eyes, wishing the monster away.
But it wasn't going away.
Eidon watched the creature, there in the reflection. Thirty feet back. Whatever it was, it was big. The size of a bear but sleeker, more leanly built. The outline betrayed its bulging, powerful muscles. And the glint of something white, silhouetted on the side of its face. A horn?
The three of them nearly jumped as the creature let out a spitting hissing sound. It stepped closer. And now Eidon could see the white part better. A tooth. An incisor. Huge and sharp and begging to tear into the soft meat of his body. And where there was only one he could see, he knew another was there, on the other side of its face, hidden in shadow.
Eidon glanced up at the light above the elevator, the numbers ticking as it rose through the ship. Six decks down. If they waited, the sudden chime of the doors opening might be enough to startle the creature, make it attack. If they tried to run, they'd get two steps before it pounced on them.
Cold sweat flowed in rivers down Eidon's neck.
They were stuck.
And then....
Ding!
The creature let out a roar as the elevator doors slid open, a blast so loud it rattled Eidon's brains inside his skull. Franklin's terrified fingers tugged and pulled at Eidon, and Eidon watched, paralyzed as the hulking shadowy mass sprang towards them, its gaping mouth all too visible in the emergency lighting.
And then a voice, crackling and bafflingly calm sliced through the horror, silencing the deafening animal bellow. "Due to bad weather..."
The creature stopped short, its guard hairs rising as it cowered at the sound over the Silver Queen's speakers. "All passengers are asked to remain in your cabins at this time."
Eidon watched, his mind barely making sense of the scene before him, as the shadowed animal retreated, running off into the bowels of the ship.
What just happened? His body felt light suddenly, floating on fear and confusion as if he were in a dream -- a nightmare. Nothing seemed real. And yet he was awake. He could still smell it -- stale dust and pungent urine. And blood. Old blood.
A hand grabbed him by the collar, yanking him out of his thoughts and into the elevator.
"Vite!" hissed Celia, grabbing Franklin by the hair with her other hand. "Before the other one shows up."
"Other one?" asked Eidon, still not quite sure this wasn't a dream.
"The other prints," she said, hitting the close button again and again and again as the elevator doors slid shut. "There's another one around here somewhere."
"It left," said Eidon, sliding to the floor. Was he asking or just stating? "It just left."
Celia decided it was a question because she gave him an answer. "The announcement must have spooked it."
"What was it?" Franklin whimpered, tears streaming down his face.
Eidon shook his head, trying to make sense of the obscured shadowed shapes that had made up the beast. He shuddered, remembering the gaping pink mouth, the massive fangs. He'd never seen anything like that. He wasn't even sure it had been real. "It seemed like a.... like a cat. Like a lion. Or a tiger."
Celia shook her head. "It looked--" she stopped, her blue lips pressing together nervously as she tried to slow her frightened breath "-- bigger."
Another ding sounded above them as the elevator opened its doors to the main concourse. The unease that had already settled in Eidon's chest grew as he stood and stared out at the dimly lit ship. The main concourse was usually buzzing with passengers. Now, there wasn't a soul in sight.
"Eidon," said Franklin nervously, his warm little hand still gripping his.
"You heard the announcement, Franklin. Everyone's just in their rooms." He tried to sound sure, not just for Franklin's sake but his own. Everything was fine. It had to be fine. This was his father's ship. And the good captain would have everything well in hand.
"Where is your room, Franklin?" asked Celia.
The boy pointed straight ahead, in the direction of the hallway that lead to the Howard's suite.
"Come on," said Eidon.
His legs felt like putty as he lead them down dark hall after dark hall. His nerves were still on edge, his senses alert. He could feel his entire body electric with the expectation that the creature could be lurking any where. His mind knew better. It was on the Cloud Deck. It couldn't move between decks unless it figured out the elevator or how to open the door to the stairs and logic told him that was impossible. But then again, what he'd just seen with his own eyes should have been impossible. And yet he'd seen it.
A sudden break in the silence -- a low sound somewhere up ahead -- made Eidon stop, his muscles coiling.
"Voices," whispered Celia.
She was right. Men's voices. Eidon laughed nervously as she moved passed him, leading them towards the sound. He couldn't stand this feeling - a rabbit being stalked by a fox. Couldn't stand how his body was reacting, like it had always known it would be prey one day.
As they moved closer to the voices, Eidon saw a group of men in Silver Queen staff polos with flashlights. "....No they checked the gym," one was saying.
"Paul just radioed to say Charlie and Nessa weren't in the theatre," said another.
"Well they can't have disappeared!"
"Maybe we should alert the bridge-"
"Hey!" One of the flashlights turned on Eidon, blinding him as the staffers all turned in their direction. "You heard the announcement. You're supposed to be in your rooms."
"We're going," said Eidon.
One of the stewards took the flashlight from his mate, letting Eidon see again. "Do you want me to escort you to your rooms?" he asked them.
"We're just down this way," said Eidon, pointing.
One of the other staff tapped the steward, turning his attention back to their conversation. "I think we should go back and check their quarters."
Eidon, Celia and Franklin turned down another corridor, leaving them to their conversation. At the end of the hall, they stopped at a door marked 317. The Howard's state rooms.
"Those crew men were missing someone," said Celia.
Franklin looked up at Eidon. "Do you think that...thing...got em?"
Eidon wanted to tell Franklin not to be stupid, but for the first time, the kid was right to be worried. Instead of answering, Eidon knocked on the door.
No answer.
"I have my key," said Franklin, sliding the card into the lock. The door opened with a click and the three of them stepped into the Howard's luxurious suite. Eidon thought the quiet in the main concourse was unsettling. Here, it was utterly, suffocatingly, silent.
"Mom?" Franklin asked, running off to check the bathroom. "Dad?"
"There's no one here," said Celia.
Eidon glared at her. What did she have to go and state the obvious for? She pursed her lips, conceding that wasn't worth pointing out. But the damage was done, and Eidon watched Franklin deflate, his face turning red as he began to cry. "Where are they, Eidon?"
Eidon couldn't begin to guess. But a terrible fear began worming through his stomach.
Awkwardly, he hugged Franklin to him with one arm. "I don't know, man," he said. "We'd better find my father."
That was all Eidon could think to do. If there was one person who could keep order on the Silver Queen, it was the good captain.
And Eidon felt small, like a little kid again. A kid who just wanted his dad to hurry up and chase the monsters away.