Island Of The Cryptids

38

Jake had darted out across the terrace towards the car. Carlin hadn't done a distraction, but he had taken too long. Almost fifteen minutes. His nerves had gotten the best of him.

The rocks trembled below his feet. Moss sucked at the sides of the cliff walls, and he felt its jagged edges cut at his left arm as he ran. Pebbles scattered with each step he took. He came closer to the Explorer. He saw each of its details now, and he came close to the door.

He looked inside. There almost nothing in there. He couldn't see any phone or any other objects. He rummaged through the tattered mess of the glove compartment. He shot a glance backwards.

The cliff dropped sharply down at least a hundred feet. Jake felt his stomach churn as he looked down into the valley. His throat bubbled with bile as his anxiety took control. He used all of his mental strength to snap his attention back into the car.

That was when he heard the rumbling from inside the cave.

He quickly looked around, fearing the cryptid that was coming. It roared, echoing like a freight train's horn in the small confines of the cave. He couldn't see, only hear.

He ran back on the terrace, knowing he couldn't outrun it if he ran. He had to jump.

The cryptid shot out of the cave, slamming into the Explorer. It tumbled off the cliff, falling downwards. Jake eyed the thing. It looked at him, then reached its claws out, marching towards him, about to lunge in a furious fit of speed and ferocity that only a massive predator like it could muster. It stood about seven feet tall.

Jake cried as he threw himself off the cliff, feet first into the lagoon.