Titanium

22

Ti

[Ar]4s²3d²

Titanium

“Come on, Mom!” Penny begged.

“I’m scared.” Tonya stood at the ticket gate to zip line at the Alligator Farm in St. Augustine, Florida. Other adventure seekers entered the queue to zip line over the gators.

“What are you scared of? I’ve done this several times. The high trek is the coolest.” Penny unstrapped the zip lining gear from her slender limbs.

“What do you mean ‘what am I scared of?’ I’m scared of falling into the alligator pit and becoming lunch for the reptiles,” Tonya whined.

“Mom, that’s not going to happen. You’ll be perfectly safe. These zip lines are strong. No one has ever fallen into the gator pit, ever.” Penny tugged her Mom’s arm.

“But I’d be the one it happens to.”

“Mom, you said last time that you’d do it next time. In fact, you’ve said that every time, but you always chicken out. Come on, I’ll walk you up the trek and strap you in myself.” Penny paid the ticket agent for her mom’s first zip line ride.

“But what if I’m the one?” Fear filled Tonya, yet she allowed her teenage daughter to escort her up the steps to the top of the tree canopy.

“Besides, a gator won’t eat another Gator, that’s cannibalism.” Penny laughed, pointing to her mother’s orange and blue, Florida Gator t-shirt.

“I don’t think the real gators would know I’m a Gator fan. But you’re right, that would be cannibalism.” Tonya smiled, and her fears abated, for now.

They ascended the final steps to the zip line and watched those ahead of them strap in and zip through the trees with screams of glee.

“You’re up, Mom. I’ll hook you in, then take pictures for Facebook. We better hurry before that storm gets here.” Penny pointed to the dark clouds rolling in for the summer afternoon thunderstorm.

Tonya nodded and slid her legs through the zip line harness. She sat in the harness while Penny and the guide hooked her in. She tried not to look down at the gator pit below, but her curiosity grew. The gators appeared so small a hundred feet down. They mostly slept on the banks lethargically, completely oblivious to the humans zipping over them.

“Don’t worry, Mom. These harnesses contain titanium. They’re super strong,” Penny said.

Tonya nodded, then closed her eyes.

“Ready, three, two, one, go!” Penny pushed her mother.

Gravity did the rest, and Tonya zipped through the tree tops high above the Alligator Farm. Opening her eyes, she marveled at the peaceful beauty from one hundred feet up. Zipping through the tree tops, Tonya screeched with delight. “Wow, this is thrilling!” Tonya wondered why she’d been so scared to do this. It exhilarated her.

Thunder boomed nearby, and lighting struck the big tree which secured part of the zip line course. The tree cracked and fell, taking Tonya’s line down.

“Arrgh!” Tonya screamed. She wondered if the fall would kill her. It didn’t, she landed in the water below with a loud splash. Then three more splashes followed, and her greatest fear was about to come to fruition. Three big gators splashed into the water. One of them bit her arm up to her shoulder, then dragged her beneath the water and did its gator roll. Luckily, she drowned before the gators ate her.