Monster Shark: Zombie Shark - Twofer

By Stephen D. Sullivan

Twice the Terror!

What’s worse than one megalodon on the loose? Two megs on the rampage!

In MONSTER SHARK, the outcast triton Umira tries to protect a shipful of ungrateful treasure hunters from a ravening monster. While in ZOMBIE SHARK, a young mage tries to protect her lover from the undead tool of warlock’s revenge.

Both novellas are rip-roaring summer reads--and suitable to heat up cold winter nights as well. You’ll be hooked from the first lines!

Stephen D. Sullivan is the award-winning author of dozens of fantasy novels and stories. He lives in haunted Frosthaven, Wisconsin.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Stephen D. Sullivan
• Release date: Aug 4, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301121298

Stephen D. Sullivan

Stephen D. Sullivan has written more than 50 books across many genres: fantasy, SF, horror, detective, movie adaptations, and more. Readers the world over enjoy his fast-moving prose style and hard-hitting action sequences. He has won numerous awards for his work, including the 2016 Scribe Award for his horror-comedy novel, Manos: The Hands of Fate.Not sure where to start? Try these:NEW! Manos: Talons of FateBEST SELLER: Manos: The Hands of Fate (2016 Scribe Award Winner)HORROR & MONSTERS: Daikaiju AttackFANTASY: Tournament of Death novelsSCIENCE FICTION: Heart of Steam & RustADULT: Elf Erotica (Elf Princess on Mars)OVERVIEW: Martian Knights & Other TalesThere are plenty of others to choose from, too. (Including some books from other authors published by Steve's Company, Walkabout Publishing.)Browse! Buy! Enjoy!

Book preview

MONSTER SHARK & ZOMBIE SHARK

In a special TWOFER collection.

Drowning the warlock didn’t end things...

The two young mages looked in horror at the mangled body lying on the docks.

We need to get out of Scaletown, Arzu whispered to her lover. Right now.

What? Nissa asked. Why—?

Don’t you remember? Arzu hissed. "We’ve seen this before!"

Gods of Mercy, Nissa gasped. She’d been so worried about Arzu’s illness that she hadn’t noticed the similarities; Belna the fisherwoman had clearly been savaged by some kind of huge shark. But, that’s impossible! Umira killed that monster.

I know, Arzu replied.

We sealed the rift! Nissa said, voice cracking with desperation.

I know, Arzu repeated. But maybe there was another one.

Gods of Mercy!

I don’t know how it’s happened, Arzu said, all I know is that we have to get out of here—right now!

How?

Before the echo of Nissa’s question had died away, though, the town’s alarm bell began to ring again.

All the people assembled on the docks, which must have been at least three quarters of Scaletown’s population, froze at the sound—even those tending to the dying fisher captain. Everyone looked puzzled.

Then a little girl’s frantic cry split the air, drowning out even the peal of the bell:

SHARK!

…It only started the terror!

* * *

Stephen D. Sullivan

Novels & Collections

The Crimson Collection

Tournament of Death: The Empyrean Keep

Tournament of Death 2: The Deluvian Temple

Martian Knights & Other Tales

Luck o’ the Irish

Zombies, Werewolves, & Unicorns

Dragonlance

The Dragon Isles

The Dying Kingdom

Warrior’s Heart (Catriona trilogy)

Warrior’s Blood (Catriona trilogy)

Warrior’s Bones (Catriona trilogy)

Legend of the Five Rings

The Scorpion

The Phoenix

The Lion

Spider Riders

The Shards of the Oracle

Quest of the Earthen

Reign of the Soul Eater

And more…

E-Books & Stories

Daikaiju Attack

Heart of Steam & Rust (steampunk)

Monster Shark

Zombie Shark

Crimson & Dragons (Crimson)

Crash of the Titans (Crimson)

Thor Loser (Crimson)

Snowraven

Kidnapped by Saurians (Dungeons & Dinosaurs)

Ghosts of 9/11

Elf Princess on Mars (regular or illustrated Elf Erotica editions)

And more…

Anthologies

Blue Kingdoms: Mages & Magic

Uncanny Encounters: Roswell

Hot & Steamy (steampunk)

Sol’s Children (sci-fi)

Lilith Unbound

And more…

MONSTERS SHARK and ZOMBIE SHARK - TWOFER

~ Two Blue Kingdoms Novellas ~

Stephen D. Sullivan

• Walkabout Publishing •

Smashwords edition.

© 2013 Stephen D. Sullivan

I worked hard on this book, and I hope you enjoy it! I’m a real person trying to make a living, not some faceless mega-corporation. Your purchase of this book makes it easier for me to write more stories for you to enjoy. So…

This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to the vendor of your choice and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

*

Walkabout Publishing

S.D.Studios

P.O.Box 151

Kansasville, WI 53139

www.walkaboutpublishing.com

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, scanning, or any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission of the author.

Monster Shark

Special thanks to my first readers including Paul McComas, Jean Rabe, and—as always—Kifflie Scott.

Zombie Shark

Thanks to Christine, Vicki, David, and—as always—Kiff for the reading and suggestions. Y’all make everything I do better.

Cover art & design © 2013 Stephen D. Sullivan.

Get a free wallpaper of these and other stories at www.stephendsullivan.com –where you can find out more about me, as well. Thanks!

* * *

For Julie.

* * *

CONTENTS

MONSTER SHARK

I. Treasure

II. The Beast Below

ZOMBIE SHARK

Prolog

One

Two

Three

Four

Five

Six

Afterword

Samples of Other Stories

Daikaiju Attack (Free Online Serial)

Crimson & Dragons

Sisters in Arms

Author’s Notes

About Monster Shark

About Zombie Shark

About the Author

Original Covers

* * *

MONSTER SHARK

~ An Umira the Accursed Story ~

Stephen D. Sullivan

I. Treasure

Sharks circled Umira, above, below, and on every side. Their cold black eyes gazed at the triton starwatcher, scrutinizing her scaly blue skin, her long green hair, and her glittering jewelry. Umira gazed back, her own black eyes trying to peer into their alien minds.

Are we so different?

Eyes, teeth, skin ... all so similar. Both, feared and hated—outcast from civilized societies.

We are alike.

Despite their similarities, a chill of doubt ran through Umira. As a triton, she’d been around sharks most of her life, but she’d never faced so many at once, never a school this large or with so many different species: redfins, daggertooths, blues, hammerheads, and more. Mariners had named this place the Shark Keys with good reason.

Had it been a mistake for Umira to come here? Would this decision be her last? Even with all her strength and skill, a school this size could tear the triton apart in moments. Would that be so terrible, though? At least then there would be an end. At least then she would know: there was no place in the Blue Kingdoms, either above or below the waves, for Umira the Accursed.

Umira steeled herself, strangling the dark thoughts until they vanished into the depths of her soul once more.

I will not die this day. Not unless I am stupid. Not unless I show fear.

She kept her swimming movements regular and her heartbeat calm. She did not reach for the serrated longknives strapped to her hips. Instead, she forced every aspect of her body to send a single, potent message:

I am not prey.

Though Umira was neither mage nor telepath, the sharks seemed to believe her. They remained curious but respectful, keeping their distance from the starwatcher. Even the school’s sole ravager—a species of shark known to eat both human and triton—spared Umira merely a passing glance.

Is this what it feels to be accepted?

Umira focused her sea-born senses on the school, heard the water passing across their gills, felt their sinuous movements as waves of pressure against her scaly skin. She moved in harmony with them, but she still could not tell: Was this acceptance or merely indifference?

She reached out and caressed the side of a passing redfin with her webbed fingers. The fish arched pleasurably under her touch. Its skin felt smoother than her own. Then the shark darted away into the azure distance of the middle depths.

I am like them. More than I am like people.

For a moment, Umira almost felt at home.

WHOOMPH!

Smothered thunder shook the deep. The entire water column quaked, and the sharks swirled in agitation. Some buffeted Umira, their skin scraping like sandpaper now. Umira gasped involuntarily. The school wasn’t attacking, though; they were confused, frightened. Umira felt the confusion, as well.

The pressure, the sound, the sudden rush of cold from deeper waters, all dazzled the triton’s senses. Every instinct told her to flee, to swim away, fast, as her fishy brethren were already doing. Only Umira’s intellect overcame her panic. Once more, she strangled the fear inside, pushing it back into the deep recesses of her mind.

In an instant, the rest of the school had vanished into the deep, leaving Umira alone.

What just happened?

A shadow eclipsed the bright disc of the ocean’s surface, many fathoms above. She looked up and saw the silhouette of a large ship cutting through the waves.

People? People did this? How?

As the waters calmed around her, Umira felt a slight tingling just below the surface of her scales.

Magic.

But from where? The ship felt alien, an intruder in her world. She felt the magic emanating from it, but there was something else, too ... She peered down into the indigo depths, and noticed a faint glow that hadn’t been there before—not a reflection from the surface above, but something different, something that made her feel as though crabs were crawling across her skin: powerful, ancient magic.

She looked from the ship to the strange glow and then back.

The humans’ magic is causing this somehow. They are harming the