Splash Zone: Part 8

Rev. Thompson began aggressively making his way down the steps towards the floor of the stadium. He signaled to one of his friends in the crowd, Daryle, to help him get through. "I'm going to handle this like I would've in my high school football days", Thompson thought. Daryle got the message. He charged at one of the security guards who was positioned towards the edge of the group and grabbed him around the waist. Thompson quickly leapfrogged over Daryle's back, knocking over both the old man and the security guard onto the concrete floor. The security guard tried to get up but Thompson kicked him in the groin and began to run towards the stairs leading to the water. Just like in high school: Touchdown! The other security personnel were too bogged down with his comrades to stop him.

As Reverend Don made his way up the stairs and onto the ledge on the side of the tank, he removed two items that he had been hiding under his coat. In his right hand he had a reddish-brown brick and in his left hand he grasped a foot long, raw herring that he had bought from a local fishmonger the night before and had been carrying in his suit jacket since he had left the house early that morning. He would lure the wretched whale over with the herring and then bash its head in with the brick.

He waded onto the shallow, submerged platform that the trainers use to access the whales, and held the fish out over the pool and the brick over his head. The whale slowly and menacingly swam towards him. Once it had reached the platform, it stuck its head out of the water and looked at him. Up close, the damn thing was a lot bigger than he had thought. But their size difference just made the situation all the more appropriate. This was his Goliath and he was just like David. No, he was like David and Ahab!

He was completely exhausted, severely overheated and barely able to focus. His mind and his heart beat were frantic, but this was his moment of truth. The second that he looked into the creature's eyes, he knew that he had been right all along. The animal had confirmed it itself. This was truly the Leviathan, great the enemy of God. The Reverend just stood there, elated with delirious joy at his new revelation.

Then suddenly the orca jetted forward. Completely ignoring the fish, it went straight for Thompson's leg. Grabbing it with its mouth, it pulled the leg out from under him, causing him to fall on his back and to drop both the brick and the herring. His arteries were punctured by the animal's great teeth. His leg was crushed in the whale's mighty jaws like a full can of soda being backed over by a truck. Everyone in the stadium had stopped what they were doing and were now looking on in silent horror.

Mira's eyes were frozen on the extreme violence happening just on the other side of the tank. Her jaw was dropped and she was speechless, catatonic. She literally couldn't believe what was happening; her mind wouldn't allow her to properly register it. The spray of blood and screaming continued and as she was still struggling to wrap her head around what she was witnessing, Floyd gently nudged her with his elbow and in a jokingly condescending voice said "See, that's why we never go into the water with that one".

After grabbing Thompson's leg and biting down hard, the whale flipped its head to the side, thus propelling Thompson into the pool. It then swam over to him and began pushing him through the water with the front of its nose, much like whales do with the trainers in the proper shows. Using its incredible strength, it propelled his entire body out of the water and many feet through the air, towards the other end of the tank. Everyone in the stadium watched as this gruesomely surrealistic version of the popular friendly whale show played out before them.

One of the reporters who was standing towards the top of the stadium, commented to the cameraman beside him, "It's a damn good thing we've got the Internet, 'cause there's no way in hell they'd let us show this on TV". The cameraman just nodded and continued to film. Rev. Thompson was now bobbing up and down, gasping for air and fighting to stay afloat. He saw the whale coming straight towards him. The top part of its body was effortlessly cutting through the water and its distinctive dorsal fin sticking up into the air. It vaguely reminded him of that yacht that he owned during his financial peak in the nineteen eighties. He probably would have admired its beauty had he not been in such intense pain, barely conscious and scared out of his mind!

The apex predator quickly approached him and wrapped its mouth around his torso like he was a baby seal. It crushed his chest and punctured his lungs with its teeth as it began to dive beneath the water. In his last seconds of life, Thompson thought he heard the whale say that it was indeed the Great Destroyer and that it intended to take over the world.

Alec Hutch was already considering putting a gun in his mouth when he saw what happened to Rev. Thompson on his computer screen, in his office. Of course he probably wouldn't actually do it, but if he was ever going to blow his own brains out, this would probably be a good time. He was witnessing the action at the whale stadium as it was happening. And unfortunately, not from one of his own park's private security cameras; but from a live, independent video feed courtesy of someone who was actually there and putting it out for the entire Internet to see! Oddly enough, one thing that gave him a tremendous sense of hope for the future was seeing that asshole Thompson getting ripped to shreds by one of the killer whales; the self righteous bastard deserved it.

No, Alec was not going to kill himself. But he was going to begin filling out his letter of resignation. He wasn't worried about employment, as men like him could always get good positions elsewhere. But since he was probably going to get fired after all of this anyway, he might as well quit now and spare himself from having to deal with the monster shit-storm that would be coming at him from all sides, as a result of this mess.

The atmosphere at the whale stadium was dead silent. The orca had taken Rev. Don Thompson under the water and that corner of the tank was still too clouded with the man's blood for anyone to see what was happening. Everything was still. Everyone was paused in shock over what they had just seen and heard. Then, one of the security guards suddenly jumped up onto one of the front row bleachers and began pointing hysterically at the tank. Shouting and sputtering in disbelief at the rest of the stadium; "Did anyone else just hear that fucking whale, TALK?!"