Isaac Shrader ~ October 2017


 Featured AuthorIsaac Shrader

 

 


 

 

 

 

How the Whale Got its Blowhole

By Isaac Shrader

 

Whale always got water before any other animal, and he stole all the water because of his huge mouth. The other animals were getting no water. The next day, Whale was slurping up all the water in the watering hole to fill his huge body. Jaguar was sick of being thirsty, so he jumped on Whale’s back and cut a hole in Whale with his claws. Whale screamed, and all the water came out of the hole for animals to drink. Thanks to Jaguar, Whale could still drink, but the water always came out of the blowhole for the other animals to drink!

 

 

   

The Adventures of Seven

By Isaac Shrader

 

     It was a sunny day in Numbersville, and Seven was just waking up.

     “Ahhh,” Seven yawned. “Today will be a good day, because I am a lucky number.” Seven got dressed and ate his favorite breakfast.

     Seven went to work. He worked at a subway station as a cop. While he was working, he saw Thirteen doing graffiti on a train.

     “Hey!” Seven yelled and started to chase Thirteen.

     “You can’t catch me!” Thirteen yelled and jumped on a subway. Seven jumped in after him. Seven saw Thirteen running to the front of the train. Thanks to Seven’s luck, he managed to catch Thirteen, because Thirteen was unlucky. Seven and Thirteen were in the driver’s area.

     “You’re under arrest!” Seven said to Thirteen.

     “I hate being unlucky,” Thirteen muttered.

     Seven took Thirteen to the Numbersville Police Station. The last thing Seven said to Thirteen was, “You don’t have to be unlucky or bad just because you’re an infamous unlucky number. You can always change your ways of life.” Thirteen just nodded as he was escorted away by two numbers, Forty-Two and Eight. Seven went home later that day and got ready for bed. “Another day, another lesson,” he said to himself as he fell into a deep sleep.

*****

     The next day, Seven went back down to the police station. When he got there, he realized something was wrong.

     “Sir, sir!” Eight yelled, running up to Seven. “Thirteen has escaped!”

     “What? How!” Seven exclaimed.

     “We don’t know! The security cameras got destroyed,” Eight said.

     “Well, with both of our luck combined, we can find him.” Eight nodded and said,

     “We should also request the help of Forty-Two; she is great.” Seven and Eight went to Forty-Two’s office.

     “What do you want?” Forty-Two asked. Seven explained that they needed help finding Thirteen, and that she was the best detective in town. “Okay,” she said. “I’ll do it.”

     So, off they went. A subway officer, a CSI officer, and a detective.

     “First, we have to go to the last place Thirteen was seen,” Eight said. “It will also be a great place to take DNA samples.” They set off to the jail to see what they could find.

     When they got to the cell, they started looking around for any clues on how Thirteen escaped. Eight took out his CSI kit and started looking around the cell for clues. Seven and Forty-Two questioned a security guard about the escape.

     “Where were you at the time of the escape?” Forty-Two asked the guard, whose name was Sixty-Nine.

     “I was in the break room,” the guard said, “and then I realized the security cameras were not working.”

     “So, what did you do?” Seven asked.

     “Well, I grabbed my flashlight, because it was night, and I went down to investigate.”

     “What did you find?” Forty-Two asked.

     The guard pulled a note out of his pocket. “This was sitting on the floor,” Sixty-Nine said. He handed it to Seven and he quickly read it. Here’s what it said:

If you ever want to find Thirteen, meet me at this address: 613 Negative Lane Sincerely, Secret Number

     Seven handed the note to Forty-Two for her to read. “Oh, no!” she exclaimed.

     “What?” Seven asked.

     “Word on the street says six-one-three Negative Lane is a haunted house where the infamous Six-Six-Six lives!” 42 exclaimed.

     “You mean Six-Six-Six as in the evil demon!” Seven exclaimed.

     Forty-Two nodded grimly. “It’s also a shifty section in the town; negative numbers live there.”

      Seven knew that negative numbers were known for their crimes and suspicious activity.

      “I found something!” Eight suddenly yelled.

      They walked over to him. “What did you find?” Forty-Two asked.

      “I was testing for any way Thirteen could have gotten out, and I found this,” Eight said, holding up a bag full of black dust.

      “What is it?” Seven asked.

     “It’s a type of element called ‘Oriam,” and it’s used for teleportation!” Eight exclaimed.

     “So, Thirteen teleported out of here?” Seven asked.

      “Not exactly,” Eight said. “Something teleported him out of here.”

      “And, we think we know who,” Forty-Two said, handing Eight the note and explaining who wrote it.

      “Are we going to go? Eight asked.

     “If we want to find Thirteen, we have to,” Forty-Two said. “Then, let’s go,” Seven said.

*****

      They stood at the start of Negative Lane. Seven looked down it and saw that the trees were so thick overhead that it completely blacked out the sunlight. Dark. Dreary, and destroyed homes sat there. Seven saw dark alleyways and stray cats. 

     “This looks very dangerous!” Seven exclaimed.

     “Good,” Forty-Two said. “I love a great adventure!”

     “Well,” Eight said, “when in doubt, keeping going forward.”

      Seven, Forty-Two, and Eight continued onward through Negative Lane. As they walked, Seven saw eyes looking back at him through the darkness. Finally, they made it to 613 Negative Lane. Out of all of the houses, it was definitely the creepiest. It was all boarded up, dark, and the trees around it were all shriveled up.

      “Yikes!” Eight exclaimed. That definitely is a haunted house.”

      “I guess we go in?” Forty-Two asked Seven, and he nodded.

      When they got to the front porch, Eight stepped on a board and it fell through.

      “Ow!” Eight exclaimed, pulling his leg out.

      “Are you okay?’ Forty-Two asked.

      “Yeah, I’m fine,” Eight said.

      They went through the front door and saw a big staircase leading upstairs. They started to climb it, and the floorboards creaked with every step.

     “This is freaky,” Seven said.

     They made it to the top, and there was only one room with a door closed. Forty-Two stepped towards it and opened the door.

      “I’m glad you could make it,” Thirteen said. He was in the middle of a completely empty room except for a mirror on the left wall.

      “You’re under arrest!” Seven exclaimed, taking out some handcuffs.

      “No, he is not!” a deep voice rumbled. Then, out of the mirror, out stepped Six-Six-Six. “Hello,” Six-Six-Six said in an evil voice.

      “Wow,” Eight said, “that was pretty impressive.”

      Seven glared at Eight.

      “Why exactly is Thirteen not under arrest?” Forty-Two asked.

      “Because, I am controlling him now. He is my son, after all,” Six-Six-Six said.

      “What!” Seven exclaimed. “He’s your son!”

      “Yes, and we are leaving Numbersville!” Six-Six-Six said. “Here, nobody liked us, so we have to move cities.” Six-Six-Six marched over to his son and put his arm around him. “C’mon, son,” Six-Six-Six said, “we are leaving.”

      “Not so fast!” Seven yelled. He ran and tackled Thirteen.

     “Stop!” Six-Six-Six yelled.

      Eight ran over to the mirror and yelled, “This is the thing Six-Six-Six used to rescue Thirteen! It’s a teleporting mirror!”

      Six-Six-Six tried to pull Seven off Thirteen, but Seven kicked him, and he fell over.

     “I can reprogram it to take us back to the station!”

     “Then do it!” Seven yelled.

     Eight went to work.

     Six-Six-Six tried to sit, but Forty-Two put him in cuffs. “Now, you’re under arrest,” Forty-Two said.

     “Under what charges!” Six-Six-Six asked.

     “For harboring a fugitive!” she answered.

      “I did it!” Eight exclaimed.

     Seven grabbed Thirteen and put him in cuffs. Then, they jumped into the mirror. Seven, Eight, and Forty-Two delivered Thirteen and Six-SixSix to the police.

     Seven told Six-Six-Six, “People may think you’re a demon, but I think that after years in jail you can settle down in a new town and start over, maybe even make a life for yourself and Thirteen.”

     Six-Six-Six nodded and walked to the guards.

     Later that day, Seven went home and sat down in a big, comfy chair. “Another day, another lesson,” he said, smiling. “Who knows who I’ll give a lesson to tomorrow.” He got ready for bed and sunk into a very lovely dream.

 

~~~

The Do-Over (An Excerpt) By Isaac Shrader

 

Chapter One

 

     "Wake up, Jared." "Wake up." " Wake up..."

     I sit up with a sudden jolt of energy! My head slams against something metal "Owww," I moan. I realize I was in the dark. I move my hands around the area I was in. I feel cold metal walls all around me. When I lift my hand up, I immediately feel the ceiling. I couldn't even sit up straight. "Where am I?" I wonder aloud.

     Then, I hear crying, very soft, but definitely there. It sounded like it was coming from above me.

     "Hello!" I yell.

     The crying stops abruptly.

     "Hello!" I yell again, louder this time.

     "Who's there?" another voice yells.

     "I'm under you, I think," I say.

     The other voice says, "Are you in my head?"

     My instincts told me I shouldn't be talking to this person. "Yes," I say, "I'm in your head."

     "Really?" says the other voice. "I've heard other voices in my head since my son died."

     "I'm so sorry to hear that," I say. "Now, could you start digging under you, please?"

     "Why would I do that?" the voice says.

     "Because you want to," I say.

     "But, I don't have a shovel," said the voice.

     "Well, go get one."

     There was a long pause. "Fine," the voice says, and then it was gone.

     I took a deep breath and then I realize something; how was I breathing? There seemed to be no air holes or vents. Was there even air in the in this place? Then, I hear a sound above my head it sounded like metal on metal.

     "Ok, I did what you asked," says the voice.

     "Good," I answer.

     "Now, go back to your house."

     "Ok," says the voice.

     Then, it was gone. I waited for a while to make sure it was gone, and then I pushed with all my might up, and the metal lid opened and blinding light hit me in the face. I stood up and immediately fell over again. It was like I hadn't moved in forever. I tried again, and this time it worked. I climbed out of the hole and into the world. I was in a field of flowers and tall grass.

     "Who would put me in a box in the ground?" I wondered aloud. I could see the tip of a building in the distance, so I started to head there. Little did I know that I had stepped on a little stone in the ground that said, "Here lies Jared McShaw."

     When I got to the building, I realized it was a barn, clearly abandoned but still intact. I stepped inside and gagged at the smell. Whatever lived in here must have died in here too. A bat flew over my head, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. It was getting dark, so I decided I sleep in the barn for the night, even if it smelled horrible. I needed to figure out who put me in the box, and if it was because they wanted to kill me. Then, a realization hit me; I couldn't remember anything about my life before I got in that box!

     I struggled to remember, but nothing came to me, not even my own age. Finally, sleep found me, and I had a dreamless sleep. When I woke up next, it was still dark, but I decided to head out, because the smell in the barn was overpowering. I walked for a little ways until I found a road. I started down it and got to a gas station. I decided I would go in and ask for directions. When I got inside, it was a very small shop with one man behind the counter.

     "Hello, and welcome to the twenty-four-hour Corn Dance Mini Mart. How may I help you?" asked the man behind the counter with no enthusiasm whatsoever, like he was sick of saying it.

     "Actually, I was looking for directions to the city." I said.

     "Sir, Kansas City is 50 miles away from here; I hope you have a car," said the man in a southern accent whose name tag read "John.”

     "Kansas City!" I thought. "I'm in Kansas." "Well, do you know where the nearest car rental is?" I say.

     “’Bout eight miles from here." John says.

     I checked my pockets and found a credit card. "Thanks." I say.

     "No problem." John says.

     I started out the door but John called back. "One more thing sir."

     "Yeah?" I ask.

     "Why are you wearing such nice clothes? Come from a funeral or something?"

     I left the store, and I hoped the car rental didn't seem so far. My joints felt like they were one hundred years old. As I walked, I thought about what John had said. Why was I in such nice clothes? A thought crossed my mind, but I pushed it away. No way could that be possible. But, it did explain the nice clothes and why I woke up in a metal box in the ground. Before I could think more about this, a car pulled up beside me and the window rolled down. When I saw the man in the front seat, I stumbled away. I knew that man, but I couldn't remember where I knew him from.

     The man in the front seat must've been thinking the same thing, because the toothpick he had fell out of his mouth and he said, "No way, Jared, is that you!"

     Before I could respond, he jumped out of the car, ran right to me, and gave me a rib-breaking hug. "How is this possible!" he exclaimed.

     Now, that the man wasn't crushing me I got a good look at him. He had short brown hair and was wearing cowboy boots, jeans, and a flannel shirt.

     "Who are you?" I asked.

     "What do you mean?" said the man. "I'm your cousin. Conner."

     "But, how are you alive?" said Conner.

     "Wait, what!" I said.

     "Yeah, remember the accident?" said Conner.

     "Are you saying I died and came back?" I said.

     Conner replied, "We better go to my lab."

     As we were driving I asked Conner, "You’re a scientist?”

     "Yep," he answered.

     "And, you’re saying I was dead?”

                 To be continued....