AWAKENED FROM THE RIFT, PART 1: (Patreon)

Though a largely uninhabited place, the shorelines remain an eerie border between creatures of the land and sea. Beyond this boundary surely awaits only death, for there are monsters just as hideous and just as savage as those on land as there are in the abyss. The sea is an unpredictable realm in and of itself where the occasional nightmarish thing may find its way into the world of land dwellers, slipping in undetected, swimming in wait through the blood canyons, or settling within the cloudy depths of inland bodies of water. 

A ways off the coast, some distance from the mainland, an island has been discovered. It's isolation; a prime spot of retreat from the regular horrors, as well as an opportune location for a group of fishermen. They thought to have found peace but have merely positioned themselves front and center of a new phenomenon. Amidst the middle of the island sits a small lake with the anglers floating above. The peaceful silence fades into a deep murmur of quakes far beneath their raft, powerful enough to shake the island, much to the concern of the anglers. Still unsure what to make of it, the men sit uneasily, looking at one another in confusion. The suspense is broken when one of their lines are caught. The man it belongs to leaps instinctively to grab it, fighting to hold with all his strength. The others reach to help just as he is pulled under, waist deep and head first. As the struggling stops, so do the waters turn a deeper red than usual, and out they pull the skeletal remains of the man they once knew. Latched onto the scraps of flesh are two monstrous fish of bone and teeth, erratically swinging back and forth as they hang above the water. A panic and realization disrupts the group, but they try to maintain a rationale, quickly deciding how they can best return to land. This island is no longer theirs. 

POLL: 

-Swim for it. 

Everyone makes a mad dash towards land in different directions. After hanging the body in the water for the bone snappers, its every man for himself, with the simple hope that at least some of them will make it ashore. 

-Dump the body and paddle. 

One big distraction combined with the paddling power of the whole group. Time may be of the essence here, so it may also be their best hope to take advantage of the opportunity before them, throwing the body overboard and speeding away as fast as they can manage. 

-Lure them away with bait. 

Drawing attention away from the boat may allow the paddlers to slowly make their way to land. By casting their lines farther out with the flesh from their friend, it could buy them enough time to carefully paddle away, hoping not to bring more attention to themselves. 

-Catch them one at a time. 

An insane idea by an insane man. Much to the annoyance of the others; every suggestion is welcome when one's life is on the line, and in this case quite literally. A theory that requires the men to simply cast their lines to catch the fish one-by-one, killing them above water, then paddling back to the island once it's safe.