Truehearts & The Escape From Pirate Moon by Jake Macklem (ebook audio reader TXT) 📕

The injured beast cried out an agonized squeal but the monster’s jaws were sunk into muscle. The rest of the herd backed away, squealing warnings to each other as one of their own died. The massive beast used its front legs to push while it thrashed its long slimy eel-like body, dragging the corpse back into the water.

Thunk. Ace felt the jolt as a leviathan swam beneath the raft, bobbing along the surface. Thunk. Thunk. More creatures bumped the raft, their wakes spreading behind them as they swam toward the shore. The smooth water exploded when two leviathans broke the surface, each thrashing while holding onto the dead Not-buffalo with sharp teeth, tearing it in two before they splashed back into the water. The waves made by the violence lapped against the edge of the raft, gently pushing it.

The sun continued to rise as the duo sat in silence, tensing with each ‘thunk’ on the raft. An hour later they saw the Not-buffalo herd again, clustered in a group, bumping into each other, nudging closer and closer to the water. They began to whine as they crept closer to the waves. Ace whispered, “What are they doing?”

Cam watched in silence for a while, Ace following his gaze. He looked at the trail left by the massive herd, watched them at the shoreline, and then looked across the hundred-foot gap of water between the shores, and the well-worn path up the side of the plateau. Looking back at the animals in a quiet voice he said, “Damn.”

“I don’t like it when you swear.”

“I think this is their crossing. It must be shallower here.” Cam looked down into the water and his eyes widened in fear. “This is gonna be a feeding frenzy.”

Following his gaze, Ace saw dozens of the monstrous fish swimming in quick jerky motions. “That doesn’t sound good.” Ace felt a strange cool sensation in the pit of her stomach.

Slowly and quietly, a leviathan pulled its massive body into the shallows. Its tail wiggled slightly then stopped. A moment later the massive creature erupted from the water, chomped down on a Not-buffalo's tentacle, and dragged the beast into the water. That sparked it. With a squeal and thunder of hooves, the Not-buffalos stampeded into the water, stomping the creature to death as they charged ahead. The shore surged with spraying water and blood.

The Not-buffalos thrashed and fought to cross the gap. When the tall creatures were about twelve meters from shore, the water became deeper and the Not-buffalos started to swim, desperately splashing, chest tentacles flailing just under the surface.

“This is our chance, Red,” Cam said as he grabbed his paddle. “We have to get to the plateau. Are you ready to do this?” He fixed Ace with a look. “Just remember─ slow is smooth, smooth is fast.”

Ace nodded and picked up her spear. Cam thrust his paddle into the water and pulled. The raft started moving toward the shore. The Not-buffalos continued their frantic scramble for the far shore, those in the lead starting to find footing again. She noticed a ‘V’ shape heading toward the raft. “There’s one coming, Cowboy.”

Cam stopped paddling and the raft continued to drift toward the shore. A ‘V’ circled the raft—under the murky water, Ace could see the massive leviathan that was making it. Its mottled skin blended perfectly with the murky water, it slid beneath the waves. It looked straight at her with one violet eye and blinked. Oh no. “I think it knows we’re up here,” she blurted.

“How? Cam asked while he watched the carnage twenty meters away.

“It looked at me.”

Cam grabbed his rifle and scanned the water for the beast. “Where is it?”

Ace spun a circle, desperately looking for the leviathan. “I don’t see it.”

Both stopped and froze. At the same time, they shouted, “It’s under us!”

Ace felt herself lifted as a massive force slammed into the raft. Cam’s eye widened in shock, his arms out to his sides, trying to keep his balance. The water was far below them, at least five meters On either side of the raft, large teeth and jaws lifted it out of the water. Cam’s pack was flung away from her out of reach. His metals! Gravity took hold and everything fell back down to the water below, the leviathan’s jaws snapped shut. The sharp teeth piercing the polymer shell with ease, crushing the raft under the force of the bite, wedging it in the beast’s gaping maw.

Gear and pieces of the raft rained haphazardly into the water. Cam held his rifle in one hand, and his hat in place with the other as he splashed down. Ace fell back toward the water. I don’t want to be fish food.

19: Cam

Cam hit the waves and went completely under the water, he opened his eyes. I have to get it! He saw his backpack. The precious metals and extra weight carried across the red iron moon of death was sinking rapidly to the bottom with his family's dreams of escaping Earth.

Then he turned to the commotion—the monstrous fish splashed into the water. Ace swam toward shore drawing the attention of the leviathan and it swam after her.

Damn it!

  20:Ace

Ace splashed into the flood. Forcing her eyes open and ignoring the sting, she saw the beast fall back into the water. With her spear in one hand, Ace swam to put distance between her and the monster. The beast flailed, chomping its jaws. The raft was ruined, but the polymer shell was stuck in its mouth.

Ace broke the surface and gasped for air. Swimming straight for the shore she heard and felt the splashing behind her. They can come onshore. They can come onshore. Feeling the ground, Ace got her feet