“What’s a ship’s log?” said Annie.
“It’s a diary of an ocean trip,” said Jack.
He peered at the computer screen and read a log entry:
MONDAY, JULY 5
“Hey, that was just last week,” said Jack. He read further:
COLLECTED ROCK AND SHELL SAMPLES
MAPPED OCEAN FLOOR
FOUND TINY CRACK IN HULL
“This is like your notebook,” said Annie.
“Yeah, the oceanographer was writing notes on the computer,” said Jack.
Jack and Annie read further:
TUESDAY, JULY 6
CRACK HAS WIDENED
MUST RETURN TO REEF SOON
“A crack where?” said Annie.
“I don’t know,” said Jack. He read further:
WEDNESDAY, JULY 7
MORE TINY CRACKS
CANNOT BE FIXED
HEADING BACK TO REEF TODAY
“Uh-oh. This doesn’t sound good,” said Jack. He read further:THURSDAY, JULY 8
DEFECTIVE SUB
RETURN TO REEF
LEAVE FOR HELICOPTER TO TRANSPORT TO JUNKYARD
“‘Defective’means broken, right?” said Annie.
“Yep,” said Jack.
“So this sub is broken, right?” said Annie.
“Yep,” said Jack. “And it was waiting to be taken away by a helicopter. To a junkyard.”
“Yikes,” said Annie.
“Now we really have to get back,” said Jack.
“Let’s try pressing the waves picture,” said Annie.
She pressed the waves picture on the computer screen.
The mini-sub began to rise slowly.
“Oh, good,” said Jack.
The sub went past a small coral mountain. It went past schools of fish and waving plants.
“Oh!” gasped Annie.
Jack gasped, too.
Two eyes were staring out from behind a giant sea plant. They looked human—except they were as big as golf balls.
The sub moved past the giant plant.Jack breathed a sigh of relief.
“What—?Whose—?” sputtered Annie.
“Don’t ask,” said Jack.
They stared back at the plant.
Just then, a long arm came out from behind it.
Then another arm came out.
Then another—and another—and another—and another—and another—and another!
Jack and Annie stared in horror at a giant octopus.
“It’s coming after us,” said Annie.
Slowly, the octopus crept through the water.Its eight arms reached for the mini-sub.
5兩只眼睛
“航行日志是什么呀?”安妮問。
“是航海時記的日記。”杰克回答。
他瞟了一眼電腦屏幕,讀了一條記錄:
7月5日,星期一
“哎,那就是上個禮拜啊!”杰克說。他繼續(xù)道:
收集巖石和貝殼類動物標本
繪制海底地圖
發(fā)現(xiàn)殼體有細微裂縫
“這真像是你做的筆記。”安妮說。
“是啊,海洋學家也是在電腦上記筆記。”杰克說。
杰克和安妮繼續(xù)讀道:
7月6日,星期二
裂縫變大了
必須馬上返回礁石
“裂縫,在哪兒?”安妮問。
“我不知道。”杰克說。他繼續(xù)讀著:
7月7日,星期三
出現(xiàn)更多裂縫
無法修復
今天開始返回礁石
“哎呀,好像情況不妙啊!”杰克說,他接著往下讀:
7月8日,星期四
潛水艇出問題
返回礁石
等待由直升機送往廢品廠
“‘出問題’是指壞了對吧?”安妮問。
“對。”杰克回答。
“那么這是只壞了的潛水艇了?”安妮問。
“是啊。”杰克說,“而且它正等著被直升機送往廢品廠報廢呢!”
“呀!那我們該怎么辦呢?”安妮說。
“現(xiàn)在我們真的要回去了。”杰克說。
“我們來試試這個上面有波浪的圖標吧。”安妮說,并將那個鍵按了下去。小潛艇隨之開始緩緩上升。
“太好了。”杰克說。
潛艇經(jīng)過一座小珊瑚山,一群又一群的魚,還有在水中搖曳的植物。
“哎呀!”安妮倒吸了一口涼氣。
杰克也驚得屏住了呼吸。
只見從一株巨大的海洋植物后面探出了兩只眼睛,它們很像人眼,但卻有高爾夫球那么大。
小潛艇駛過了那株巨大的植物,杰克長舒了一口氣。
“什么東西?誰的眼睛?”安妮語無倫次地說。
“別問了。”杰克說。
他們回頭又看了眼那株植物,可就在這時,從植物后面伸出了一只長手臂,緊接著又伸出來另外一只,然后是第三只、第四只……
杰克和安妮驚駭?shù)匕l(fā)現(xiàn)那竟然是一只巨大的章魚!
“它正跟著我們。”安妮說。
只見那只章魚緩緩在水里爬著,然后伸出它的八只手臂撲向小潛艇。