Josh Poole and Travis Wellman: Authors

What follows is the start of the first novel that we wrote. We figured that the prologue would be a good teaser for anyone interested in our writing. Enjoy!

Buried Remnants

By Josh Poole & Travis Wellman

Prologue

With storm clouds rolling in, Isaac shuffled up the rocky slope burdened with a backpack full of clanking tools while a bucket swung wildly from his hand. Labored breaths bloomed in the cold air before his face, hanging only for a moment before he cleaved through them. The altitude was such that his ears never quite popped, which made it feel like someone had stuffed an air hose inside his skull, and turned it up to 100 psi. He set the bucket down with a clang. 

The site was rich in fossils, and the previous winter had weathered the shale to expose fresh, prehistoric marvels. He stared across the Pacific Northwest wilderness to eye a wall of threatening clouds before shifting his gaze to a fossilized alder leaf between his feet. A stiff breeze blew through his sweaty, tousled hair as he shed the backpack and retrieved a chisel, setting to work with a blinkless focus.  

After several hours, he had uncovered leaves, insects, fish, and an ancient rose. Most of them were things he saw everyday except for the first, which was either a particularly homely specimen of an identified species, or something entirely new. A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead, falling on his arm to be mistaken for rain. Overhead, the sky had darkened with an ominous sheet of clouds, but Isaac continued undaunted, benching out slabs of fossil-bearing shale, hoping he called the system’s bluff even as the air around him bristled with electricity.  

Isaac worked until the last possible minute, then, after putting his tools away, he noticed an odd lump in the shale next to an excavation just large enough to bury him in. It was probably no more than a mineral deposit, but the thought of a fossil stowed inside was enough to make him swear under his breath, and unpack the necessary tools. With the storm bearing down on the mountain, he extracted the chunk of shale from its rocky host. A wave of angry air crested over the hilltop just as he stuffed the specimen into his bucket and jammed the tools back inside the pack.

After plenty of stumbling, sweating, and swearing his way down the steep hillside, Isaac reached his Jeep. He popped its hatch open, shoved his pack and fossil-filled bucket against the backseat before ripping a can of Ruby Red Squirt out of a styrofoam cooler. Raindrops began to fall as he cracked open the soda and took a swig. He closed the hatch as cold droplets pecked against his exposed skin.

Isaac’s hand slipped on the door handle, giving the clouds enough time to release their payload and carpet-bomb him before he’d managed to fling the door open. Swearing, he hurled himself inside the Jeep with a mouthful of soda that quickly fizzed up into his sinuses. Isaac broke into a coughing fit, then took another long swig to drown the reflex. The engine turned over as rain roared against the windshield. He let out a relieved sigh, but as the wipers floated across the glass, Isaac screamed, spraying Squirt across the passenger seat in a splash of crimson. 

“Shit!” 

There was a massive silhouette looming in the rain just beyond the front of the Jeep. Isaac squinted, but before he could make out the figure, rain covered up the windshield again. Seconds passed, the silhouette moved closer, and Isaac gripped the wheel tightly. When the wipers swung across, they revealed a large grizzly sauntering around the bumper straight for the driver’s-side door. 

     Isaac turned to stone, with only his eyes moving to keep track of the animal until it came to a halt on the other side of the flimsy door. He could hear the bear breathing sharp gusts of wind that pelted the side of the vehicle and threatened to flip it over. Without warning, the animal reared up on its hind legs, covering the window with its belly before its front paws slammed on the roof. 

The sweet smell of the soda began to permeate the Jeep’s interior, piquing the bear’s curiosity. Its claws raked across the roof, attempting to open the vehicle like a tin can. Isaac reached for the soda, and with his hands trembling, took another long swig before the bear let out a roar and sent the squirt traveling down the wrong pipe. Red liquid sprayed all over the driver’s side window as Isaac hacked and gagged like a dying animal.

Once Isaac was done heaving, his gaze floated back up to the window, meeting two beady orbs that stared right back. Two plumes of fog flashed on the window as the creature breathed, obscuring the bear’s face, leaving only a blurry mass. Windshield wipers shrugged back and forth in Isaac’s peripherals as the bear continued to glare at him, its lower jaw hanging open to reveal yellowed teeth. The bear sniffed the window, then ran its gigantic tongue across the pane.

“Okay big fella, I’ll make you a deal.” Isaac cracked open the window. “You get a taste, and I get the hell out of here.” He lifted the can up to the opening, pouring a ruby-red ribbon down over the glass until the can was nearly empty.

The bear licked as the soda streamed down the side of the car, then stooped to lap at the forming puddle as Isaac put the Jeep into gear and began to creep away. He glanced in his rearview to see the creature rooting around, and finally exhaled. The access road jarred him around until he turned onto proper pavement, and with the bear long gone, he went to take a sip, only to find the can empty. Isaac let out a laugh as he sped towards home.