Cereal by Brianne K (most interesting books to read txt) 📕

The mermaid could tell Arnold was having trouble holding his breath so with haste she swam quickly toward the wall of seaweed. As soon as their feet hit the pillar of sand, Arnold could breathe easily. The thick seaweed produced so much oxygen as long as he didn’t talk he would be fine. He smiled.

“So do you know what a clam is or not?” Brilla asked the sailor. Arnold opened his mouth to speak but was halted by the salty water, so he just shook his head ‘yes’. The mermaid whistled and instead of a dogfish a giant clam came, jumping up and down shaking with joy.    

Arnold awoke to the sound of waves crashing against burning white sand.

So you see, happy as a clam was made by a maddened and shipwrecked sailor who believed in mermaids. Therefore if you feel crazy saying “I’m as happy as a clam!” you may need serious help; but as long as you don’t hear mermaids or see giant clams, you should be fine.

Hybrid Story  

The Joker was very quiet. It was a rare to see him sit still for more than a minute or two; but keeping quiet in this situation would benefit him greatly. He was pressed up against the black wall of a dark hallway. He closed his eyes and stifled a laugh. The floor under him was smooth Plexiglas that resembled the inside of a beehive, yellow lights emphasizing the shapes. The Joker inched his way toward the end of the hallway being extra careful not to leave the wall. At the end of the hallway there was a large opening into another hallway. Joker peeked around the corner smiling. The hallway was clear so he jumped out from around the corner, the yellow glow from the floor making his pasty white face the color of rotting foliage.

He walked, almost skipped, down the hallway. The walls where lined with closed doors. The Joker backed up to one of the doors and jiggled the handle. It was locked. He frowned and quickly smiled again laughing loudly. He covered his mouth with his gloved hand and looked left then right. When he was satisfied no one heard him he tried the door next to it. It wouldn’t open so he tried the next, and the next, and the next. All of them were locked. He made an impatient noise and slapped his hands on his thighs not knowing what to do. Without thinking he started to whistle and stroll deeper into the heart of the H.I.V.E.

The sound of footsteps reverberated off the walls around the Joker. He stopped in his tracks as two guards in black and yellow colored uniforms stepped out from behind a door. The guards had vicious looking guns that matched the black and yellow ensemble. The Joker’s smile grew as he pulled out some kind of knife and retreated into a doorway and tried the door, it was locked so he waited in the shadows. The guards said nothing to each other but walked in sync, the heels on their shiny black boots clicking simultaneously. The Joker’s smile was almost touching his ears; his huge teeth seemed to glow in the gloom. The guards were closer now and the Joker was ready to strike. The guards never turned their heads to the left or the right and walked right by his gleaming knife.

Disappointment filled the Joker as he watched the two warm bodied guards walk away with a purpose in their step. The Joker stuffed the knife back into his purple jacket and put his hands into his pockets. Then he turned on his heel and walked the direction the guards had come from. He whistled a tuneless song wondering if the guards could hear him. Stopping at the door they had come through, Joker tested the handle and to his surprise it was unlocked. He triumphantly gripped the handle and swung the door open with a bang and a yell. Blackness covered the entire room and he heard nothing. He stuck his head over the threshold and raised his eyebrows. He felt for a light switch and found nothing but bare wall.

The Joker stepped in the room slowly and walked with his hands outstretched so he wouldn’t trip over anything. He took a few paces and was stopped in his tracks by an invisible wall of nothing. He hit it and felt like a mime trying to get free of an imaginary box. That thought made him feel silly because after all he was clown not a mime. He laughed at his own joke, the cackle sounding off the walls.

After a few moments of laughing and banging his fist against the force field, a pink light illuminated part of the large room stopping the Joker midlaugh. He stared at it intently, not knowing what to think of it, his black lined eyes squinting in confusion. The light grew and illuminated even more of the room which was very square and very empty. The pink light was stunning so the Joker shielded his eyes with his purple sleeve. He couldn’t see and with his eyes closed he ran for the door.

As he reached the door an explosion went off behind him sending him flying across the hall into the adjacent door. It was a hard hit that sent tremors of laughter through the Joker’s trembling body. There was smoke in the air and the smell of burnt lavender was overwhelming. He heard footsteps approaching from the direction he was thrown. Dark clouds of pink smoke spiraled inside the damaged doorway, he couldn’t see who was approaching him. He sat with one knee up and one leg stretched out in front of him, his head resting against the door.

“Didn’t expect to see you here,” said a high voice. “Joker.” The Joker looked up and saw a young girl with pink hair and matching pink eyes. Her dark blue dress and boots were shining in the yellow light that emanated from the floor. Jinx was someone the Joker was hoping to run into; a challenge. “Brother Blood wouldn’t be happy to see you in his sanctuary.” Jinx said staring Joker down.

“Oh, I’m sure he wouldn’t,” the Joker said laughing. “not when I'm here to steal some of his ‘so called’ magic.” He stood with a smile on his face. “You see he has something I want, no scratch that, something a need; desperately.” He took a step forward with a flourish of his coat tails carelessly waving his hand in the air. He circled Jinx with an air of arrogance. “My dear spiky head,” he said commenting on her two spiked pigtails bowing low to the ground, “I would love to stay and chat about Mr. Blood’s insecurities but I have a schedule to keep.” The Joker wiped off the dirt and grime from his fitted purple suit and green vest then sticking his hands in his pockets turned on his heel and started to walk away whistling.

He took a few steps further down the hallway. Jinx stared after him confused and slightly annoyed. “Wait!” she yelled, “you can’t be in here!” Jinx ran forward after the Joker. Before she could reach him he turned and threw a little round ball and as it hit the floor it exploded into a wall of purple and green smoke. Jinx started to giggle and cough, she couldn’t control it. She soon broke down into hysterical laughter that made her eyes water and her stomach hurt; and she had no choice but to sit on the floor and take it.

The Joker ran down the hallway laughing with his nose in the air. He ran by closed door after closed door searching for an exit sign, but he found none. Than something caught his eye; a glowing pink exit sign over massive double doors. The Joker made his way over to the door skipping. He stopped, looking at the strange pink sign. There was a faint glow coming from under the doors and where the two doors met. The Joker examined the round crystal doorknobs closely. He reached for the one on the right and turned it slowly. He opened the door slowly and it creaked with age. The light that was shining through the door was almost unearthly it was so bright; it was as if the sun had fallen from the sky and was now in the H.I.V.E.’s possession.

The Joker shielded his eyes from the great light that illuminated the large white room. In the center of the room sat a small hunched over man leaning against the source of the white light. The little man didn’t move or seem to notice him, so the Joker walked deeper into the room, the door closing behind him with a squeak. The Joker’s eyes adjusted the farther he went into the room.

This was it. The Joker had found what he was looking for, The Puppet King. Now the Joker couldn’t leave. He had to get the little wooden figure had to be his! The Puppet King was one of the ultimate magical instruments that Brother Blood found and has been keeping it under lock-and-key, selfishly. ‘This kind of power needs to be released for everyone to tremble before! When I the amazing and hilarious Joker release him he shall be in my debt forever! Batman will finally fall and Gotham City with him. I always win!’

The Joker rubbed his hands together greedily and walked to the center of the room to where the little wooden man sat motionless staring at nothing. “Hello, Mr. Puppet King, Sir.” Joker bowed low mockingly. “I think its time for a little wakeup call.” The Joker smiled with a laugh and pulled a small purple bomb from a pocket in his suit coat. There was a click and he threw it over his shoulder carelessly. Than he put his hands in his pants pockets and lazily took a few steps around the lifeless puppet, waiting for the boom. He smiled as he counted to five then he crouched and covered his ears laughing wildly. Nothing, not even a small rumble shook him. He stood and looked to where he had thrown the bomb and there stood the girl with two spiky pink pigtails. Jinx was holding back laughter and a cough. She held her hand out the palm facing down, her eyes were glowing pink. The Joker looked at her with an evil smile his teeth yellow and his green eyes menacing.

“Now, now little girl why don’t you go play with your dollies and leave a man to do his work, Hmmm?” his voice was not harsh but very degrading.

“Dollies?” Jinx asked in disgust, “What would I need dollies for when I can play ball?” she moved her hand backwards her eyes glowing intensely than flung her hand forward with a graceful leap and released the Joker’s own bomb sending it flying toward his head. His eyes widened and he laughed jumping out of the way. He landed on his feet but fell forward onto his hands and knees. Jinx yelled a battle cry as she lunged