Oceans

by D Kershaw

  Website: www.jwgarrett.com

  BHC Press: www.bhcpress.com/Author_JW_Garrett.html

  Escape

  by Maxine Churchman

  The ship pulled out of the dock, and I breathed a sigh of relief; safe at last. He wouldn’t find me now.

  Beneath my feet, the floor thrummed with the power of the engines. Every second propelled me further away from my tormenter and towards a new life across the ocean. I was free to start again.

  It would not be easy; I had used most of my money on the ticket. I looked around the shared cabin. There were no frills down here in 3rd Class. The name Titanic, however, filled me with hope; such a strong, promising name.

  MAXINE CHURCHMAN lives in Essex UK and has recently started writing poetry and short stories to share. Her interests include learning to improve her writing, reading, knitting, walking and teaching yoga. She is also planning a novel.

  Leave No Wake

  by Jesse Highsmith

  Traci could not believe her eyes. A moment of dancing had transcended into a journey deep underwater, surrounded by tropical fish and other bioluminescent wonderments. She looked at the wisps of red prom dress that now hovered around her body with the same rhythm as her auburn coloured hair. Just then, an electrical tremor shot through her as Chase’s voice flooded her eardrums.

  “Wake up! Oh, God, please wake up!”

  “Get back!” an EMT said, charging his defibrillator once again.

  “She didn’t take that much, I swear!” her friend yelled, panicked.

  No, Traci thought calmly. “I don’t want to leave.”

  JESSE HIGHSMITH is an adventurous wordsmith, musician, podcast enthusiast, and internet jokester from Central Florida, U.S. His specialty is short form flash fiction written within the confines of a large pesticide truck. However, he is currently writing his first novel, an otherworldly dive into death, acceptance, sacrifice, and redemption. He is also hard at work on his first foray into children’s books with former Infectious Magazine editor Sami Marshall, a project due to be completed very soon. They live in a rural countryside with his son Logan, dog Snowy, and a shadow-chasing cat dubbed Sir Liam Frederick, Duke of Cuteness.

  Superstition

  by Renée K. Reeves

  In the middle of a navigation lesson, the midshipman lowered his sextant. “Sometimes, sir,” he began, “I think the figurehead smiles at me.”

  The captain frowned. “Is that so?”

  The boy nodded. “Her teeth are quite sharp, you know. And when her hair slips, I tuck it back behind her ears.”

  When confronted, the bosun shrugged. “It’s bound to happen. Seawater is harsh and it’s been months since we had her shellacked.”

  The captain sipped cold coffee and consulted a chart. “Fix her before we cross the northern sea,” he finally said. “We’ll perish if her sisters hear her sing.”

  RENÉE K. REEVEs enjoys folk music and morbid history, ideally combined. She’s a tall ship sailor and science educator who writes speculative fiction on her days off. Renée’s work has appeared in Friday Flash Fiction, Scribendi, 101 Words, and elsewhere.

  Scotland

  by Kevin J. Kennedy

  Scotland was the birthplace of most mythological creatures. Now, only few survive. Selkies such as I have been here since the beginning of time. Created and favoured by the old gods. Able to switch between our seal-like self and human form. Nessie is also real to but there are far more at sea than there are in Loch Ness. Just one trapped there with no other to breed with. Other cryptids existed. Humans called them Bigfoot, griffins, Centaurs and unicorns, all hunted to extinction aeon’s ago by the plague called humankind, but the sea is ours and we will remain.

  KEVIN J. KENNEDY is a horror author & editor from Scotland. He is the co-author of You Only Get One Shot & Screechers, and the publisher of several best selling anthology series; Collected Horror Shorts, 100 Word Horrors & The Horror Collection, as well as the stand alone anthology Carnival of Horror. His stories have been featured in many other notable books in the horror genre. He is an active member of the Horror Writers Association. He lives in a small town in Scotland, with his wife and his two little cats, Carlito and Ariel.

  Website: www.kevinjkennedy.co.uk

  Amazon: : amazon.com/Kevin-J.-Kennedy/e/B016V0NA7M

  Medusa Rising

  by Freddy Iryss

  The world at three thousand feet below the sea’s surface is alien and full of things I’ve never seen: plastic bottles from last century, fishing lines, a boat propeller. A jellyfish floats past, with a yellowtail and a brim swimming—alive and well—in its see-through guts.

  “What are the fish doing in the belly of that jellyfish?”

  “Surviving, of course,” said my travel companion who, like me and a thousand others, had taken to the water to escape the raging fires on land.

  A giant jellyfish, well-fed in these rising temperatures, grabs me with its tentacles and swallows me.

  TO IMPRESS HER OLDER brother, Freddy Iryss read her way through his collection of Isaac Asimov’s books of SciFi at the tender age of ten. She pretended that she understood what was going on in those futuristic worlds, while deep down she found them disturbing her peace of mind. Who and what was out there? Iryss’ non-fiction writing includes themes on identity, the postcolonial and post-national. Her fiction evolves around the concept of the anthropocene. Writing SciFi is to imagine the world of our reality without bounds.

  Website: freddyiryss.blogspot.com

  Twitter: @FreddyIryss

  Going Down

  by A.R. Johnston

  They were going down and there was nothing that could be done. They had hit something in the middle of the night. Now the boat was slowly leaking, and the storm was getting worse.

  “Are they going to rescue us in time?” She spoke loudly over the howling wind, the waves crashing against the boat.

  “I hope so. I’m sure I saw something circling out in the water. I don’t think it’s just waves hitting the boat.”

  “What?”

  Then it didn’t matter, something crashed harder into the boat. Water rose. Then she saw the fin in the water. She screamed.

  A.R. JOHNSTON is a small-town girl from Nova Scotia, Canada. She is known to write mostly urban fantasy, though she goes where the muses lead her and you never know where that may be. She is a lover of coffee, good tv shows, horror flicks, and a reader of good books. She pretends to be a writer when real life doesn’t get in the way. Pesky full-time job and adulting!

  Facebook: arjohnstonauthor

  Website: arjohnstonauthor.wordpress.com

  Captain’s Knowledge

  by Radar DeBoard

  Captain Nadal stood at the helm of the ship. His wise eyes looked out over the vast ocean they currently sailed upon.

  His years of sailing had brought him experiences that could not be simply taught. He knew the wind picking up as well as the waves climbing in height meant a storm was coming.

  Nadal knew from their current position that if they sank, no one would be able to save them.

  That also meant that no one would be able to hear the screams of the sailors down below as his crew and him tortured and killed them.

  RADAR DEBOARD is a horror movie and novel enthusiast who resides in the small town of Goddard, Kansas. He occasionally dabbles in writing, and enjoys to make dark tales for people to enjoy. He has had drabbles and short stories published in various electronic magazines and anthologies.

  Facebook: WriterRadarDeBoard

  Satisfy the Hunger

  by Brandi Hicks

  I swim fathoms below the surface, but I’m starved, and fish don’t fill my gut. Not even the sharks help to stave the hunger. I need more. It’s an unrelenting pain, I have to eat more. The creatures stumbling into the water are filled with a liquid that curbs the ache. Now I long for it.

  I can sense it now that I’ve had it. I can feel it coursing through the water, like it’s searching just for me. T
hump, thump. Thump, thump. The hunger grows, the ache rages. I see it and I want it.

  So I take it.

  GROWING UP IN WEST Virginia, Brandi Hicks loved to have her nose in a book, her eyes toward the night sky and putting a pen to paper. Her imagination was always sparked by her grandfather and her mom taking her to new places and teaching her about the unusual. She loves fantasy, sci-fi, and learning about science and history. She has two beautiful children, and hopes to instill creativity and a love of reading in them. Finding new crafts to try keeps her busy when not playing with her kids or working.

  Beyond the Reef

  by Monica Schultz

  It sees him. Mark doesn’t know what it is, but it knows him. He shivers, even as the sunshine warms him and dances across the clear water.

  No one else has frozen. Mark’s family still bobs on gentle swells, crossing the rift without hesitation; eager to reach the shipwreck.

  The guide warned them, but he still glances down. A gaping maw splits the reef in two. Night slumbers beneath his dangling feet. Mark clutches his floatie, but it’s too late. Their eyes have met.

  It reaches for him; the pressure crushing his bones. Devouring him. The depths silence Mark’s screams.

  MONICA SCHULTZ is a full-time Mathematics and History teacher from Ipswich, Australia, with a passion for writing fantasy. When she isn’t busy finding ‘x’ in the latest equation, you can find her curled up with a young adult book and a cat on her lap.

  Website: https://monicaschultzauthor.weebly.com/

  Instagram: @monicaschultzauthor

  A Sailor’s Sacrifice

  by A.R. Dean

  The waves rock gently below my boat. I grunt as I drag the struggling parcel to the boat’s edge.

  “Hush. It’s only the sea.” I pet the girl’s hair.

  She struggles around her gag.

  “No one can hear you,” I gently remind her. “Not where we are.”

  I tie the irons around her wrists as she cries. With a shake of my head I toss her overboard and into the waves. She disappears quickly to a watery grave.

  I hum a sailor’s tune as I head back to shore. If Neptune enjoyed my gift, tomorrow the nets will be full.

  A.R. DEAN is a dark and twisted soul. Dean has spent their whole life spreading fear with the tales from their head. Best known for stories that terrify and show the evilest side of human nature. So, look for Dean haunting your local cemetery or under your bed, because they’re here to spread the fear. Turn off your lights and enjoy a scare. Dean is being published in Black Hare Press’s Beyond and Unravel Anthologies. Keep a lookout for more stories.

  Facebook: A.R. Dean Author & Ghoul

  Swims with the Fishes

  by Sean P. Chatterton

  Every bridge support column on the Trans-Atlantic Bridge has a low density patch the size of a human body. The mafia owned the companies that built it. Any contractors, or union people who caused problems were given a choice of swimming with the fishes or becoming an upstanding citizen.

  Those that chose to swim were given concrete boots and dropped off the bridge. If they survived the drop, they had plenty of time to drown, long before they reached the sea bed hundreds of metres below.

  As for the others: Well, they will now be upstanding for hundreds of years.

  SEAN P. CHATTERTON has been a reader of Science Fiction and Fantasy since he could read. Being introduced at a young age to Tolkien's middle earth, E. E. "Doc" Smith's Lensman series, and Asimov's robots, amongst countless others, gave Sean an active imagination and a yearning for something more. Like the world famous grandfather of modern SF, Arthur C. Clarke, his first published short story was of a teleporter accident. This was sheer coincidence but one that Sean is very proud of. He now produces short stories on a regular basis and has had over twenty published stories to his credit..

  Website: www.seanpchatterton.co.uk/bio.htm

  Facebook: sean.p.chatterton

  The Thing Underwater

  by E.L. Giles

  “Did you hear it?” said Second Officer Smith, his eyes glinting. “Her voice. She’s singing. I need to see her.”

  Taking Captain Trumbull unaware, Smith started to run across the deck, unexpectedly jumping overboard into the fathomless and icy black water.

  “Smith!” cried Trumbull, feverishly searching the murky waters. “Man overboard!”

  Turning, Trumbull found an almost empty deck. The few men remaining were in the process of jumping overboard as well.

  Just as Trumbull turned to stop the last man from diving in, he heard it, her voice—soothing, melodious, simply intoxicating. Only one thought remained: I must join her.

  E.L. GILES is a dreamer, passionate about art, a restless worker and a bit of a weird human. He started his artistic journey as a music composer until the need to put his thoughts and stories down on paper grew too strong for him to resist it any longer. He lives in the French Province of Quebec, Canada, with his girlfriend and two boys.

  Facebook: elgilesauthor

  Website: www.elgilesauthor.com

  Siren Song

  by Jo Mularczyk

  “Mum I’m bored!” she moaned.

  “Where’s your new toy?” her mother answered.

  Lorelai glanced at the man lying listless on a nearby rock. He sensed her gaze and tried to rise. His arm flopped into the water.

  “It’s all worn out,” she cried disgustedly.

  “Then find something else to do.” Her mother was unsurprisingly distracted by the effort of staying perched upon her human float, who was somehow managing to swim and simper simultaneously.

  “Fine,” Lorelai huffed. She swam towards the boat routes and waited for her moment. Then she tilted her head back, opened her mouth and sang...

  JO MULARCZYK’s stories and poems appear in magazines and anthologies including - The School Magazine’s Blast Off and Touchdown; Zinewest 2017, 2018, 2019; Short and Twisted 2017; Open House 2 and 3; Short Tales 4 and 5; Christmas Tales 4; Wonderment; an upcoming Bloomsbury UK book of poems for children; fourW thirty; and several upcoming publications. Jo mentors gifted and talented students’ writing groups, runs junior writing workshops and is a co-author with the student literacy program, Littlescribe. Through Littlescribe Jo provides writing tips and story starters for students to complete as co-authors. Jo lives in Australia with her husband and three children.

  Website: www.jomularczyk.com

  Facebook: jo.mularczyk.author

  Cousin Joe

  by Cecelia Hopkins-Drewer

  My cousin, Joe, was holidaying from the East Coast. (If you have heard the tales, you might know some coastal folk share DNA with us ocean dwellers.) He admired the tube worm encrusted buildings and was astounded by the giant spider crab and vampire squid.

  When we encountered the frilled shark, he remarked that it looked strangely like me. I was proud to receive the compliment and opened my mouth to display rows of trident shaped teeth.

  “Yeuch!”

  “Come back, Joe!”

  Fully intending to comfort my relative, I gave chase. Unfortunately, Joe swam away and refused to visit ever again.

  CECELIA HOPKINS-DREWER lives in Adelaide, South Australia. She has written a Masters paper on H.P. Lovecraft, and her weird poetry has been published in THE MENTOR (edited by Ron Clarke), and SPECTRAL REALMS (edited by S.T. Joshi). Her novels include a teenage vampire series commencing with MYSTIC EVERMORE. Short stories have been published in WORLDS, ANGELS & MONSTERS, BEYOND, STORMING AREA 51, and UNRAVEL. (Dark Drabbles anthologies edited by Dean Kershaw).

  Amazon: amazon.com/Cecelia-Hopkins-Drewer/e/B071G968NM

  Website: chopkin39.wixsite.com/website

  Molinere Underwater Sculpture Park

  by Vonnie Winslow Crist

  Facing into the ocean currents, Jason deCaires Taylor’s concrete people gave Liam the heebbie-jeebbies. Still, he took selfies with his friends.

  Created from life-casts of Grenadians, the sculptures
covering the seafloor had already been colonised by corals. Liam knew eventually, their features would be erased like the identities of slaves tossed overboard during the journey from West Africa to the Americas. A journey which included these waters.

  The circle of children holding hands bothered Liam the most. Especially when one turned its concrete head to stare into his eyes.

  They’re haunted, thought Liam.

  Heart racing, he swam for the surface.

  VONNIE WINSLOW CRIST is author of The Enchanted Dagger, Owl Light, The Greener Forest, Murder on Marawa Prime, and other award-winning books. Her fiction is included in “Amazing Stories,” “Cast of Wonders,” “Outposts of Beyond,” Killing It Softly 2, Defending the Future - Dogs of War, Midnight Masquerade, Chaos of Hard Clay, and elsewhere. A cloverhand who has found so many four-leafed clovers she keeps them in jars, Vonnie strives to celebrate the power of myth in her writing.