“Well, that boy had a recording of Champ, I tell you. So’s I followed them out to the lake right off a Port Henry at the drop off. Now, rather than tell you, let me show you what I got on film with my night vision lens. Wanna get the lights for me, Cal?”
The lights went out and the green image of a boat with several people was barely visible. Then the sound of whistling could be heard in the background as the camera shook from waves hitting the boat. Then another whistle and another and another until they blended in harmony and abruptly stopped.
Then something came up out of the water on the other side of the boat ten, fifteen, twenty feet. Then a scream and the creature disappeared with a splash. The film stopped rolling.
“Lights.”
There was utter silence. After a full minute, a smug looking Jeff said, “Well, do you believe me now?”
Calvin Sanderson, the town councilman asked, “What do you plan to do?”
“They’re going back out tomorrow to get a film of the creature themselves. I suggest we join them.”
“And take a film of our own?”
“Heck, no! Ain’t nobody ever believed a film no matter how many times we got good pictures of the thing.”
“So, what are we going to do? Capture it?”
“What, are you crazy? You see the size of that thing? It’d drag you to the bottom of the pit and back again.”
“What are ya gonna do then, Jeff?”
“I ain’t gonna do nothing. We are gonna kill it. That’ll bring in the tourists. A full-sized stuffed and taxidermied Champ right here in our little ole museum. That’s what we’re gonna do. Are ya with me?”
All in attendance shouted, “Yeah!”
Chapter Fifty-Four
The next morning, the expedition met at the local diner for breakfast. They were there to celebrate and Moses was treating. On the walls hung the famous photos of Champ sightings, Champ dolls, Champ bobble heads, pencils pens and coffee cups. T-Shirts of every shape and size with sayings, “I saw Champ, The Monster in the Lake,” hung everywhere.
Even the waitresses had on Champ shirts and hats and the menus had Champ burgers, Champ fries and Champ specials of the day. The friendly waitress stooped over the table.
“Hi! I’m Mary. I’ll be your waitress today. Well, what’ll it be gang? We got every kind of omelet you can imagine and pancakes that will nail you to the seat they’re so big.”
Kyle spoke first to no one’s surprise. “I’ll try the pancakes. Do you have chocolate chips?”
“We sure do, honey. Ya want some whipped cream on that?”
“Yah! That’d be great. And syrup, too. You have any chocolate syrup?”
“I think we can scrounge up some. What about the rest of you? Or are you all gonna eat the boy’s leftovers?”
Teresa said, “Leftovers? You might want to bring him a couple of extra pancakes, instead!”
“Honey, you haven’t seen the Champ pancakes. They’re really big. Big as a sea monster!”
Everyone roared with laughter. Then the waitress took the rest of the orders and retreated to the kitchen.
“Strange group there, Cal. Think they’re celebrating something.”
“Won’t be for long, Mary.”
“What’s that?”
“Oh…nothing. Bring ‘em extra of everything. On me. They’re gonna deserve it.”
***
That afternoon, they all met at the docks. Moses had the hydrophone and a video camera equipped with infrared lenses. They didn’t want to spook the creatures. Teresa and Sonja promised not to scream this time. They had been caught off guard and vowed it wouldn’t happen again.
“We’ll take a tour of the lake and then, once the sun goes down, we’ll head over to the same spot we were at last night,” said Moses. “I have the best camera I could find and two cartridges of film. The housing sits on my shoulder so the movement won’t bother the shot. It’s what they use when they’re shooting a movie when there’s lots of action going on.”
“Do you think they’ll come back?” asked Caleb.
“I think they will, Gramps,” said Kyle. “They seem much more timid than they were in the past, but they are the same animal as far as I can tell. If the girls hadn’t screamed, they might have even hung around.”
“Well, they won’t scream tonight. I’m confident,” said their grandfather.
“I guess I am, too,” said Kyle to the surprise of the girls. “Of course, Teresa’s breath might scare them away.”
“I knew you couldn’t say anything nice without being mean.”
“I do have a reputation to uphold, ya know.”
“You did find Champ,” said Sonja. “I do not think you need to make fun of your sister anymore.”
Kyle was stunned. “I…uh. Can we get going now? We don’t have all day.”
Kyle’s complexion was a brilliant red. Caleb smiled. He liked the young girl from India. She was as smart as a whip.
“Is it going to be foggy again?” asked Teresa. “”Cause, if it is, my hair’s going to be a wreck again.”
“Are you satisfied?” asked Kyle turning to Sonja. “You made me waste a perfectly good opportunity.”
Sonja couldn’t help herself. She giggled.
***
Two docks away, several groups of men led by Jeff Handleman were loading three boats with equipment. One man handed several rifles and two handle-held rocket launchers to another and they stowed them under canvas. Several men struggled with a large thick net. They managed to pass it to men on the biggest of the three boats. It had a hoist on the back attached to the net.
A few depth charges were stored on board as well—just in case things took a turn for the worse.
“Tonight, we make history, fellows. We are going to put Port Henry back on the map. Remember, we can’t fail. We mustn’t fail. If the other boat gets in the way…well…do what you have to do. We can always blame it on the monster. I hate to say that. After all, we are civilized men. But there comes a time when enough is enough. We have to put first things first. Our families depend on us to bring in the tourists. Right?”
“Right!”
“We are going to make history tonight, right?”
“Right!”
“Everyone knows what to do. Let’s make like fishermen…until the sun goes down. Let’s go!”
***
A large school of krill, tiny shrimp-like animals favored by the baleen whales, moved in a mass the size of Rhode Island off the shores of Maine. They were pursued, not by whales, but by two prehistoric creatures as large as a Minke whale.
They gracefully maneuvered in and out of the krill, sucked in mouthfuls of the shelled shrimp, and spit out the water. They moved like a slithering snake through the cold water and whipped back and forth filling their stomachs. They would have to eat more than they needed to sustain themselves because, for the first time in many years, they were eating for their offspring who depended upon their parents for food and would until they were five years old, the age of maturity.
Unlike the plesiosaur, the creatures were not completely carnivorous. They also fed on the phytoplankton, small plant-like creatures that lived and thrived in the water. The numbers of these plants were shrinking and it was becoming more and more difficult for the sea monsters to survive.
To breed, they had to swim up long caverns under the earth filled with streams of running water and reach Lake Champlain. Some areas were dry and some were filled with water, and the trip took a great deal out of them. When they reached the lake, they fed their offspring: three young animals, one male and two females. They made their migration from Scotland every year at the same time until the female had become pregnant. Now they would remain in Lake Champlain for the next few years until their young were old enough to fend for themselves.
This day the feeding was good and the pair swam back to the tunnels off the coast of New Hampshire. The cavern was buried deep in the sand not far from the shore. They scurried back alon
g the long tunnel, dove in and out of the water, and snaked their way upstream sometimes against powerful currents, but they were amazingly strong swimmers.
At one time, there were many more of them, thousands. However, years ago, ships mistaking them for whales killed off most. The species was almost decimated by the turn of the nineteenth century. Millions of years of survival had abruptly ended—except for the remaining family. Although few people had seen these creatures, no one had ever discovered them. They were relegated to the pages of myths and legends, the monsters of superstitions and fear: sea monsters. Yet, they were gentle animals that had survived some of the most catastrophic events in the history of the world. Tonight, the legend would come to its end.
Chapter Fifty-Five
It wasn’t as foggy as the night before when they arrived on the site, but it was just as quiet. A gentle breeze blew across the lake leaving the surface of the water disturbed with small ripples of waves. A few fishing vessels across the lake ignored them as they passed. They thought nothing of it.
The Boston Whaler bobbed gently as Kyle prepared the tape and hooked the hydrophone up to his tape recorder. He checked the tape and made sure it worked.
“Okay Mr. Moses. It’s ready. Is the film ready, Gramps?”
“His grandfather swung the camera around and aimed it at Kyle. “Let’s do a sound check. We’ll make this like a documentary.”
“Okay.”
“Wait a minute!” said Teresa frantically digging through her backpack.
“What?” asked Kyle.
She pulled out her hairbrush and started brushing her hair.
“You wanna get that Gramps? People may want to see a before and after shot.”
“Just talk, Kyle. I’m rolling. We can edit this later. I want to make sure the night vision lens is working okay.”
“Hi! I’m Kyle Donavan. I’m here on the verge of one of the greatest finds in the history of the world. My sister, Teresa, just discovered her hairbrush. It was lost over sixty-five million years ago. “
“Kyle! You are so…so…mean! Not everyone has hair that looks like it was grown in a field and harvested.”
“Okay, that’s a wrap!” said Caleb.
“Hey, wait a minute. You got Teresa slamming me?”
“Yep! On video. For all humanity…for posterity.”
“For what?” asked Kyle.
“Posterity. You know. So all the next generations of little Kyles will never pick on their sisters again.”
Everyone laughed…except Kyle. “Wait a minute. Am I in some kind of a paradox future or parallel universe? This is all wrong.”
“What’s the matter, Kyle,” said Teresa chidingly. “Can’t take it.”
“I can only hope that the Nessies of this time period have turned carnivorous and they eat you.”
“After all you ate today; they wouldn’t have to eat for a week!”
Kyle looked around at everyone. He was sorely outnumbered.
“Okay, okay. I give. You win. Now, can we get on with the real documentary?”
Moses threw the hydrophone over the side with a splash. It was dusk and the skies were clear, although there was a storm forecast for later that night. Moses wiped the tears from laughing. He was enjoying this expedition more that any time he could remember in the last few years.
“It’s earlier than yesterday,” observed Sonja. “Do you think we’ll be here all night again?”
“I guess there’s no way of knowing for sure,” said Moses.
“I’m going in for a dip,” said Kyle suddenly.
”With those creatures in there?” asked Moses startled.
“They probably won’t be around for some time and I’m getting tired. A swim would wake me up.”
“I can’t let you do that Kyle,” said his grandfather sternly. “I’m an adventurer as much as anyone, but you are my daughter’s son. I promised her that I would take care of you and, to quote your mother, ‘keep you out of mischief.’ I intend to do that…at least as best I can. It’s bad enough we’re calling these creatures to us in this dingy.”
“Hey!” said Moses with feigned hurt feelings.
“No offense, but if that creature decided to dump the boat, we’d all be swimming home.”
“Swimming?” said Sonja fearfully. “No one said anything about swimming!”
“I’m sure nothing will happen, Sonja,” said Caleb. “Besides, you have on a lifejacket. You’ll just bob in the water like a buoy until we’re rescued.”
“Or eaten,” snickered Kyle.
“That’s not helping any. I do not think I like you anymore,” said Sonja
Kyle didn’t know why, but that statement hurt him. He wondered if he really was too smart-mouthed. It suddenly felt as if his stomach was being pulled out through his throat.
“I…I…uh. I’m sorry,” he said weakly.
Sonja stared at him for a moment. “Okay. But don’t say things like that. I am very much afraid of the water.”
“Maybe…I could teach you to swim some time?”
“Kyle! Are you asking Sonja for a date?” exclaimed Teresa.
He was speechless and caught with his mouth open.
“You better close your mouth, big brother. Before a tsetse fly builds a nest in there.”
“There aren’t any tsetse flies in New Hampshire, you dope…” Kyle caught himself in mid-sentence. It really was getting to be a habit, he thought. He decided to try to change and not be so mean anymore—especially around Sonja. He knew it would take some effort, but he thought that maybe he could at least cut back to once or twice a day to begin with.
***
After an hour or so, the wind died down and the moon came out and illuminated the entire lake. The shores looked eerie with the pine trees looking like mysterious dark creatures reaching out to grab their victims. With the breeze stopped, the water was so still it looked like glass.
Everyone sat perfectly still. Moses leaned back against the transom of the boat and, after a minute, began to snore.
Kyle looked over the side of the boat into the water. The moon caught the surface just right and he could see his reflection. Then something moved just below the surface and it scared the daylights out of him. He jumped up.
“I think they’re here!” he said as calmly as he could so he wouldn’t cause the girls to scream. “Gramps? Are you ready with the camera?”
“What did you see?”
Moses snorted and came to. “What’s happening? I miss anything?”
“Shhhh,” said Caleb. “Kyle thinks they’re here.”
Moses sat up next to Caleb. The girls crouched down on the deck of the boat and huddled together. Kyle looked back over the side. Two golden eyes stared up from just below the surface of the water.
He remembered the first time he saw Nessie. He was so scared, he ran right into the jaws of a pterosaur. This time, however, he was delighted. It was as if an old friend had returned from a long journey. In fact, it was a long journey. The longest journey ever.
Kyle reached into the water and held his hand below the surface. He hoped she wouldn’t pull him in again. He wasn’t up for a trip to the bottom, nor did he think he would survive.
The creature came up and bumped Kyle’s hand.
“Are…you getting this Gramps?”
“Yes. Yes I am,” he said amazed.
Kyle raised his hand up out of the water and the animal came up. It was much smaller than the one they saw yesterday.
“It’s a baby!” said Kyle.
Then another head popped above the water a few feet away and then another.
Kyle whistled.
The babies were about fifteen feet long and their heads the size of a boulder. The long snout was exactly the same as he remembered. He whistled again.
The three animals all responded by whistling in perfect harmony.
“Isn’t that the most beautiful sound you ever heard?” said Kyle totally delighted.
Sonja and Teresa
moved closer to the side of the boat.
“They’re adorable!” said Teresa. Sonja nodded in agreement.
From the north end of the lake, from behind them and from the south, three boats slowly moved in their direction. On the bow of each was a man with a rocket launcher.
Chapter Fifty-Six
Kyle reached out to the closest animal and put his hand next to its mouth. It cautiously stuck out its snout and sucked on Kyle’s hand. Sonja and Teresa followed suit and reached out to the other ones with similar results. Caleb filmed while Moses sat there with his mouth smiling clean up to his ears.
“They are beautiful!” exclaimed Sonja.
Suddenly, there was a loud splash. Up out of the water rose a beast bigger than Kyle had ever seen before. It let out a shrill whistle. Again and again.
The smaller animals dove in a flash.
Kyle jumped up. “Something’s wrong!”
Everyone froze. Sonja and Teresa dove for the deck and hugged each other.
The enormous creature raised itself up out of the water and another one appeared—a smaller one. It was closer to the size Kyle remembered.
“It must be the female!” he shouted.
The female raced toward the boat and then under it knocking over the camera. It fell into the water along with the tape recorder. Caleb tried to grab it but missed. Kyle leaped forward just as the transom of the boat dipped from the backlash of the large animal’s wake hit. He fell head over heels over the side with a splash. Caleb reached for him, but missed. Kyle disappeared under the water.
The sky lit up as a bolt of lightning cut across the sky sending out its hot blue tendrils through the clouds. A booming thunder followed. Then another boom—only much closer followed by a loud splash as something hit the water with tremendous force.
The largest of the creatures shrieked and thrashed back and forth on the surface. Another loud boom echoed across the lake and the sea monster shrieked again as she fell back with a splash. Caleb looked in the water for Kyle racing back and forth trying desperately hard not to panic. Right now, his grandson was his first concern. The girls clung to the inside of the bow with the door shut shaking and terrified. No one had any idea what was happening. Then the clouds burst with torrential rain falling in sheets.
No Time For Dinosaurs Page 24
