32.

   By some miracle we landed on the monster’s head. He floated quietly in the river as we clutched at his slippery scales and held on for dear life fearing the worst. His beachball sized eyes rolled back and looked at us. His terrible mouth seemed to work its way into a smile. He spoke. “I have been listening to you and I am pleased.”
   “That’s wonderful.”, I choked. “Just great.”
   “You have put one over on the Doctor, that rancid sack of shit.”, he hissed.
   “He broke its glasses!”, panted Nanette.
   “He called it a bore to its face!”, added Pat breathlessly.
   “Why are deadly evil men so often deadly boring?”, wondered the leviathan.
   “Because they are petty and small?”, I ventured.
   The beast surged forward. “What is your name?”, he demanded.
   “I am Oliver.”, I responded. “And these are my friends, Pat and Nanette.”
   “You’ll do.”, snapped the crocodile.
   We rode through the dancing waves too scared to think what might become of us. The canyon soon gave way to a rugged plain. The riverbanks were lined with ancient ruins. The behemoth’s tale propelled us toward the shore. When we were safe on land, we rolled off his back onto the sand. He reared up on his hind legs and introduced himself.