PumpkinBat posted:

The hand didn't

quote:

“Hurry up, Gina,” you call to your cousin. The wooden dock creaks as you jump up and down. “The water’s perfect for snorkeling.”

“I’m coming! I’m coming!” Gina yells. “Yeow! I should have worn sandals. The sand is burning my feet.”

You watch Gina hop across Tiki Island’s famous white sand. Glancing around, you remember how much fun you had visiting the island last year.

Lucky for you, your mom is a travel writer. When she wrote about Tiki Island a year ago she brought your whole family. With Gina along this time, you know you’re going to have a blast!

Gina jumps onto the dock to join you. She dumps her snorkeling gear next to yours. Then she gazes across the shimmering water. “Wow!” she gasps. “This place is amazing!”

A motorboat hums toward the dock. You’ve arranged for a ride to a nearby reef. You grin when you recognize the voice steering. It’s Kala, the resort owner’s son. He was your best buddy last year. “Hey, Kala!” you shout with a wave.

Kala ignores your greeting. And as the boat gets closer, you can see his face looks grim.

quote:

Kala noses the boat into the dock. He still hasn’t said hello or even smiled at you.

“Kala!” you cry. “Don’t you recognize me?”

Kala doesn’t answer.

This is not the boy you remember. Last year he was a total goofball – always laughing and pulling pranks. Why is he so unfriendly now?

"What's up, Kala?” you ask. “Why are you acting so weird?”

Kala gazes at you for a moment. “A curse has fallen on Tiki Island,” he replies slowly. “No one is safe.”

You stare at him. Then a wide grin spreads across your face. This must be one of Kala’s practical jokes!

“Ignore him,” you whisper to Gina. “He’s just trying to scare us.”

Gina rolls her eyes. “Whatever,” she says. “Let’s go check out the reef!”

You grab your snorkeling gear and jump into Kala’s boat. “Oooh, I’m so scared of the curse,” you tease him. “But I’ll try to be brave.”

“Don’t make jokes,” Kala says, frowning. “You may regret it.”

quote:

Kala turns his back on you and starts the motor.

As the boat flies over the crystal-clear water, you try to forget about Kala’s odd behavior. Minutes later, you arrive at the reef and Kala cuts the engine.

“Take care to make wise choices while you are here,” he warns you. “The curse of Tiki Island affects the surrounding waters. People have been known to... disappear.”

“Maybe they disappear because you’re so unfriendly!” you grumble. “Come on, Gina. The vacation officially begins now!”

Kala drops anchor. You and Gina put on your diving masks and snorkel mouthpieces and jump overboard. Both of you are good swimmers. You head toward the farthest point of the reef.

You glance back at Kala in the boat. His last words worry you. Could there really be a curse? You have noticed there are fewer tourists on Tiki Island this year. And people at the resort have been acting strangely. You hate to admit it, but you feel a little scared. “We should stick together,” you tell Gina.

“Deal,” she agrees.

You feel better.

Sort of.

quote:

This part of the reef is shallow. You and Gina float above brightly colored fish that dart around the coral.

Gina taps you on the shoulder. She points to an opening in the reef. An undersea cave! She wants to explore it.

You’re about to follow her, when you catch sight of something gleaming on the reef floor. What could it be? you wonder. It’s as big as your fist and comes to a sharp point. Cool! Maybe it’s a spearhead.

Gina’s already swimming toward the cave. You pop your head out of the water and see Kala waving and yelling from the boat. It’s too soon to head back, you think. What does Kala want?

Then you see it. A dark fin slicing through the water. Kala was trying to warn you.

It’s a shark!

And it’s heading straight for you!

What should you do? Try to swim into the cave? Or should you grab the spearheadlike thing and use it to protect yourself?

Quick! Make up your mind!

If you swim toward the cave in the reef, go to PAGE 111.

If you dive for the gleaming spearhead, turn to PAGE 40.

Character Sheet posted:

Inventory
Empty

Goal Endings: 0/5

Bad Endings
None yet.

Achievements
None yet.

Blueberry Pancakes posted:

The way this started out reminds me of that Goosebumps short story that ends with the girl being cut in half by a giant hermit crab.

PumpkinBat posted:

Junpei posted:

Spear head!

MelvinBison posted:

Oh hell yes I am so ready for us to fight a kraken. There's no kraken, is there?

quote:

You take the deepest breath you can. Then you swim after Gina toward the cave in the reef. You know the shark is close behind. You hope the cave entrance will be too small for the huge fish.

You squeeze through the opening. You don’t dare glance back at the shark. You just keep following behind Gina, swimming deeper into the cave.

This is deeper than you’ve ever snorkeled before. The cave darkens as the walls come closer and closer together. It’s more like an underwater tunnel than a cave. You worry that soon you won’t be able to fit through. What if you get stuck in here?

Your lungs start to ache. You’ll need to come up for air soon. The shark must have given up by now, you think.

But before you can motion to Gina to turn around, a strong current sucks you farther into the cave. And deeper underwater!

Your lungs are going to explode if you don’t breathe soon!

quote:

You’re suffocating! Drowning! You have to breathe!

You burst through the surface of the water. You spit the snorkel out of your mouth.

“PWAHHH!” you gasp at last. You can breathe again!

You glance around. The current carried you and Gina through an opening and into a small pool in a high-ceilinged cave. A rocky staircase is carved into the wall.

The powerful current still pulls you toward the far end of the pool. But now that you can breathe again, you feel relieved.

Until you hear the sound of rushing water.

“Gina?” you call. Your voice echoes strangely in the watery cave. “Do you hear–“

“Help!” Gina shrieks ahead of you. “A waterfall!”

Oh, no! She’s right!

The current drags you and Gina to the very edge of a giant waterfall. The foamy white water rushes downward.

You and Gina rush with it!

“Aaaaaaaahhhh!” you scream as you plummet down, down, down...

quote:

You splash into an even bigger pool of clear, still water. Gina flops right beside you.

The waterfall empties into a lake inside another cave. This one is tremendous! The walls are made of pink crystals.

“It’s beautiful!” you declare as you gaze around. The entire cave glows pink. Black sand forms a strange, magical beach.

You swim over to a wall. You reach out to touch a pink crystal. It breaks off in your hand. It’s sharp, but too beautiful to throw away. You stuff it in your bathing suit to take home.

An earsplitting creaking noise echoes through the cave.

“What was that?” you murmur.

The creaking grows louder and steadier. The blue water turns black. The pink glow becomes bloodred.

Just feet from where you and Gina bob in the water, the ruins of a ship rise out of the deep pool!

quote:

“Wow!” Gina gasps. “Look at that! What is it?”

“A ship!” you cry. “An old shipwreck!”

You and Gina tread water and wait to see what happens. Once the ship fully rises, the red glow diminishes. The black water fades to a dark blue. Silence surrounds you.

“Come on,” you whisper. “Let’s get a closer look!”

Swimming toward the battered ship, you notice it tips to one side. A tattered flag with a skull and crossbones hangs limply from a broken pole. You have a clear view of the damaged wooden deck.

“Oh, my gosh!” Gina sputters. “A treasure chest! And it’s full of treasure!”

A huge wooden chest lies open on deck. Gold pieces spill over its slides. More gold than you’ve ever seen, even in movies!

“I can’t believe what we’ve found!” you murmur in amazement. “A real pirate ship, with a real treasure!”

A movement on deck distracts you from your discovery. A shadowy figure approaches. Your eyes widen as you realize who – or what – is staring down at you.

“AAAhhhhh!” you scream in horror. “It’s a skeleton!”

quote:

“Swim, Gina!” you shout. “Swim away!”

You and Gina desperately stroke through the water. You glance back over your shoulder. You watch in horror as the skeleton leaps off the ragged-edged deck and glides effortlessly toward you.

“He’s after us!” you scream. How can a skeleton swim? you wonder. His dried, white bones rattle against each other as he races to catch up with you.

You and Gina swim as fast as you can. But the terrifying bone man is gaining. A wide-brimmed, feathered pirate hat casts a shadow over his skeleton face. But you can see his mouth wide open in an angry scream.

When you reach the black sand shore, he’s right behind you. Breathlessly, you tear off your snorkeling gear and toss it on the beach. Gina is right behind you. You notice several tunnels in the wall of the cave. You dart into the nearest one.

“Follow me, Gina!” you yell. Your legs are unstoppable now. You race into the tunnel, leading the way. Your heart pounds as you dash through the twists and turns. Then you glance behind you.

Both Gina and the skeleton are gone!

quote:

“Gina?” you call. “Can you hear me?”

No response.

“Gina?” you try again. Your voice echoes in the tunnel.

Then you hear a terrifying sound.

A scream.

Gina’s scream!

But where did it come from? Everything echoes in this cave. It’s hard to pinpoint the direction of the sound.

You have to find Gina. But where should you look? Did she ever make it into the tunnel? Did she take a different turn and get lost?

Or did the skeleton pirate grab her and drag her back to the ship?

If you go back to the wrecked ship, turn to PAGE 108.

If you stay in the tunnel to look for Gina, turn to PAGE 47.

Character Sheet posted:

Inventory
Pink Crystal

Goal Endings: 0/5

Bad Endings
None yet.

Achievements
None yet.

PumpkinBat posted:

Rebonack7, shouldn't that shard of pink crystal we broke off be in our inventory? We stuffed it into our bathing suit, right?

quote:

You search the tunnel for Gina. When you walk back a few feet, you discover another tunnel. Maybe Gina went that way.

“Gina?” you cry. “Gina? Are you in here?”

Gina doesn’t answer. But you hear sounds coming from farther down the tunnel.

You run toward the sound. After a few yards, the tunnel curves left – and then opens into a large cave. Sparkling lights blind you. You throw your arms over your face to shield your eyes from the blaze.

You move your arms away and squint. It takes a minute to adjust to the brightness. But then your eyes widen in amazement!

This cave is actually a lagoon. Strange plants loom overhead. The lights are not lights at all. They’re shimmering crystals – pink, yellow, blue. They cover the beach and the rock walls surrounding the lagoon. The colors dazzle you. Then you realize – the crystals are more than just colorful rocks.

They’re diamonds!

You gaze in awe at the sparkling surroundings. Then you remind yourself why you’re here.

“Gina?” you call out in a loud whisper.

A sudden whip-crack snaps in the air.

quote:

“Get up!” you hear a man’s voice order.

Where is he? Who is he talking to? you wonder. You duck behind one of the exotic trees. Has he seen you?

You gaze across the lagoon. There he is! You see a large man in a tattered uniform. His back is to you. He stands over someone lying on the ground.

Gina!

He’s talking to Gina! The man cracks his whip in the air above her head. Gina covers her face with her arms and huddles on the ground.

You have to help her! Your legs shake with fear, but you manage to stand. They still haven’t seen you. You crouch behind the thick tree trunk. You try to figure out what to do.

Then the whip cracker turns around.

You grab hold of the tree to steady yourself.

He’s the skeleton you saw on the shipwreck!

quote:

You watch in horrified fascination as ten more skeletons creep out of the thick vegetation. One of them reaches down and pulls Gina up by one arm. She screams, but the skeleton holding her slaps a bony hand over her mouth. Gina twists and turns, trying to free herself. It’s hopeless.

The first skeleton snaps his whip again. “Unmask!” he orders.

At once all the skeletons curl their bony fingers around their own necks. You watch in total shock.

The skeletons are pulling off their heads!

You gasp! The skeletons are not skeletons at all. They’re men in wet suits designed to look like skeletons.

Unfortunately, the one holding Gina heard you gasp.

“There’s her friend!” he cries.

He’s spotted you. Now what? You could turn back through the tunnel and try to get help. But they may take Gina, and you’ll never find her again.

Or you could try to hide by climbing the tree in front of you.

Whatever you decide, do it NOW!

If you run back through the tunnel, turn to PAGE 23.

If you climb the tree, go to PAGE 104.

Character Sheet posted:

Inventory
Pink Crystal

Goal Endings: 0/5

Bad Endings
None yet.

Achievements
None yet.

quote:

You decide to go back through the tunnel and try to get help. There are just too many of them to fight on your own.

You dash into the mouth of the tunnel. As soon as you cross the threshold, the entrance snaps shut!

You turn and gaze at the blocked passage. Strange gleaming growths hang in front of the entrance to the tunnel. They look just like teeth!

And the ground beneath your feet has changed. It’s not the sparkling beach of the lagoon. It’s soft and pinkish.

Whoops! Wrong tunnel!

In fact, this isn’t a tunnel at all. It’s the throat of some sea monster you’ve never even seen! And never will, come to think of it.

A loud gurgling comes from farther down the throat. You feel everything vibrate and shake. The creature is swallowing! You’re being sucked down. Down into the belly of the beast!

GULP!

Too bad the last meal of this vacation turned out to be YOU.

THE END

Character Sheet posted:

Inventory
Pink Crystal

Goal Endings: 0/5

Bad Endings
Mistook the mouth of a giant man-eating sea monster for a tunnel and ran inside.

Achievements
None yet.

Our options posted:

• Dive for the gleaming spearhead.
  
• Go back to the wrecked ship.
  
• Climb the tree.
  

quote:

You try to pull yourself up the smooth tree trunk. But you’ve barely moved an inch when two of the unmasked men in skeleton wet suits run and grab you. They drag you down and throw you next to Gina.

“You found me!” Gina exclaims.

“You may regret it,” the fake skeleton with the whip grunts. “Okay, you nosy kids,” he continues. “So you two wanted to do some exploring, eh? You should have quit when you found the shipwreck. You should have settled for a few crummy gold coins and gone back to where you came from. You don’t really think we’re going to share the diamonds with you, do you?”

“We didn’t even know the diamonds were here,” you sputter. “We don’t want them. We just want to get back to the Tiki Resort.”

“Ha!” the man with the whip laughs. He snaps his whip in the air and brings his face next to yours. “Sorry, kid,” he says. “There’s no going back. Your exploring days are over!”

quote:

“Why are you pretending to be pirate skeletons?” you demand.

The whip-cracker snorts. “Why do you think? To scare away nosy tourists like you!”

“What are you going to do to us?” Gina cries.

“It’s not what we’re going to do to you. It’s more what you’re going to do for us,” the whip-cracker snarls. “We must get as many of these diamonds out of here as we can before the Kenalua Volcano fires up again. This lagoon is fragile. Even a tremor from Kenalua can upset the ocean floor and cause a cave-in. We’ve already felt slight movement. Time is running out.”

“Even a slight tremor?” you gasp.

“Never mind that now,” the whip-cracker snaps. “You can join the others who wandered too far on the reef. We’ve captured enough of you now to get our work done quickly.”

“What?” you exclaim. “So you’re the ones who made people disappear! There’s no curse on Tiki Island. You’re the only curse!”

The whip-cracker and his band of skeleton-suited men laugh. “Yes,” says the leader. “I am the curse. And now the curse is on you two!”

quote:

The whip-cracking skeleton man throws his head back and laughs. Big, deep belly laughs. All of the fake skeletons laugh now, louder and louder. Their evil laughter echoes through the diamond lagoon, bouncing from one sparkling wall to another. The noise is so loud, it could cause an avalanche!

RUMBLE!

Uh-oh. What’s that? Is it your imagination, or is the lagoon really trembling under your feet?

RUMBLE! RUMBLE!

No. It’s not your imagination at all!

Should you warn the skeleton men to stop laughing before it’s too late? Or should you let nature take its course and try to escape when the walls of the lagoon tumble?

If you warn the laughing skeleton men, go to PAGE 44.

If you let the walls come tumbling down, go to PAGE 69.

Character Sheet posted:

Inventory
Pink Crystal

Goal Endings: 0/5

Bad Endings
Mistook the mouth of a giant man-eating sea monster for a tunnel and ran inside.

Achievements
None yet.

Omnicrom posted:

Rocks Fall, Everyone Dies

quote:

You decide not to warn the skeleton men of what’s about to happen to this lagoon. You grab Gina and run.

The whip-cracking skeleton man notices you. He stops laughing. “They’re getting away!” he shouts. He cracks his whip wildly in the air.

You and Gina dash toward the tunnel. Freedom! you think as you run. But just as you’re about to enter the tunnel, a hand reaches out from the diamond wall and grabs you.

The hand pulls you up to a row of steel bars. “Save us too!” pleads the woman gripping you. The bars block the entrance to a small cave.

Huddled inside is the group of missing islanders!

Quickly, you glance around.

Aha! There’s a lever on the opposite wall.

“This better work,” you mutter as you yank the lever down.

It does work! The bars slide open.

“Follow us!” you cry, leading all the prisoners into another tunnel. You glance back once and see the diamond lagoon for the last time.

The noise of the walls tumbling down is the only sound you hear.

quote:

Breathlessly, you run without looking back. Gina is panting and gasping. So are all the other islanders.

At last you reach the end of the tunnel. You stand in the mouth of a cave looking out at the ocean. You made it! You’re safe!

Something sharp in your bathing suit jabs you. It’s the piece of pink crystal you found. Taking it out, you hold it up to the sun. Through the crystal, everything looks rosy.

Then you remember. It’s not just any old crystal. It’s a diamond. It could be worth thousands of dollars!

You’re rich!

Wow. Now things really look rosy!

THE END

Character Sheet posted:

Inventory
Pink Crystal

Goal Endings: 1/5

Bad Endings
Mistook the mouth of a giant man-eating sea monster for a tunnel and ran inside.

Achievements
None yet.

Our options posted:

• Dive for the gleaming spearhead.
  
• Go back to the wrecked ship.
  
• Warn the skeleton men about the avalanche.
  

Darthemed posted:

This is some real Scooby-Doo poo poo.

quote:

RUMBLE!

You have to warn them, or you’ll all be buried alive in diamonds!

“STOP!” you shout. “STOP!”

They’re laughing so loud, they can’t hear you. Now Gina joins in. “STOP!” she yells. “STOP! STOP! STOP!”

Together you shout your very loudest. “STOP!”

RUMBLE!

RUMBLE!

RUMBLE!

RUMBLE!

RUMBLE!

quote:

Diamonds shower down on you. The walls of the lagoon are caving in. Your shouts were the final blow. Your warning is the very thing that caused these walls to tumble. You watch in horror as the men in skeleton suits are pelted by falling chunks of colored diamonds.

You and Gina try to run for the tunnel, but stumble over the shaking ground. Diamonds, diamonds, and more diamonds rain down. You and Gina are up to your ears in the sparkling jagged-edged jewels. The others are already buried.

You and Gina exchange final glances as the diamond walls continue falling on you. It’s over now.

But one thing is for sure, this vacation turned out to be a real gem!

THE END

Character Sheet posted:

Inventory
Pink Crystal

Goal Endings: 1/5

Bad Endings
Mistook the mouth of a giant man-eating sea monster for a tunnel and ran inside.
Buried alive by an avalanche of pink diamonds.

Achievements
None yet.

Our options posted:

• Dive for the gleaming spearhead.
  
• Go back to the wrecked ship.
  

Blueberry Pancakes posted:

Back to the ship!