Ryan M. Patrick

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This is the end!

Chapter Forty-Two: Pick up as soon as the last chapter ended. The survivors board the Nautilus; mosasaurs gently guide the submersible upward taking into account “the bends”. Lots of discussion and speculation, and a few points where they think the submersible is going to implode, but it doesn’t. The mosasaurs no longer communicate with them. They surface and signal for rescue via satellite. The mosasaurs disappear into the depths.
Probably going to condense a lot of this – no need to stick around longer than we need to.

The tension just isn’t there like it is with the creatures.

Finally back to the surface.

Chapter Forty-Three: The Delbert D. Black picks them up as a storm rolls in. Her husband is on the ship and helps get them onto it. Parkowski finally breaks down after everything that has happened. End on a positive note – her dropping a hint to DePresti that she might be pregnant based on her gut feeling and what the lead mosasaur said to her about “continuing her species”. Lots of naval and nautical technical details of the recovery of the Nautilus.

I like this a lot better than the last version – it really comes full circle in this draft.

This was in the last draft but didn’t hit as hard.

And it’s all over.

Chapter Forty-Four: In a debrief days later inside of an unmarked Crystal City skyscraper, Parkowski and the rest of the survivors are sworn to secrecy about the mosasaurs and the mission. Tie into the ILIAD mission and give her shadowy hints about government organization hiding the mosasaurs and other historical mysteries. End with her telling Carmano that she’s pregnant and Parkowski theorizes that her pregnancy was the reason that the mosasaurs saved them.  

This chapter existed in the previous draft, but I wanted it to have more bite.

But I’m going to edit it a ton.

Epilogue: A now-visibly-pregnant Parkowski and her husband walk along the beach, spotting a mosasaur flipper in the waves—a subtle reminder of the deep’s secrets.

This is the same as the last 4 drafts – hasn’t changed at all.

Thanks for following along! I’ll post some editing ones soon.