Group+A

This page is for Group A only:
 * 1) **Adrianopoulos**
 * 2) **Briggs**
 * 3) **Brown**
 * 4) **Calametti**
 * 5) **Carr**
 * 6) **Chesser**
 * 7) **Emmett**
 * 8) **Galanopoulos**
 * 9) **Gonzalez**
 * 10) **Gulsby**

=** Editing this page ended on 9/20/11 (see assignment). The page was locked on 9/27/11. **= =Don't Go Near that Wacked-Out Turtle!=


 * I was walking down a dirt road the other day and saw something standing dead still in the middle of it. It hissed a nasty noise (I promise I saw spit!) and jumped straight up. It scared the living daylights out of me, so I ...**

jumped back with a shriek and grabbed for a nearby stick. I had to find out what this thing was and I wasn't going in unarmed. After I collected my wits, I started to move in on the mysterious spitting, hissing thing. It seemed to be standing still again and as I crept up on it I noticed... (L Andrianopoulos)

that whatever it was had only one eye! It was a dark brown looking creature. It was very hard for me to see it at first because it was blending in with the dirt. The closer I became the more it hissed at me. At this point, I held on even tighter to my stick. I had to find out what this "thing" was! Where did it come from?! After I noticed that it only had one eye, I also noticed that......... (S. Briggs)

it only had three legs. As I continued to inch closer, the hissing became louder so I slowly moved to it's blind side. I was able to get just a little closer before it moved to gain visibility of me again. I had to take a step backwards after it let out a loud hissing noise and spit at me. Fortunately, I was able to close enough to notice that....... (C Galanopoulos)

it was a one eyed, three legged turtle that was badly injured. He was scared and hurt and needed to be taken to an animal clinic. I layed down my stick and moved closer to the injured animal. He hissed once again but as I moved really close he ducked his head into his shell to hide. That was when my instinct took over ....... (N Chesser)

As I reached out to pick up this poor, injured, scary looking turtle I heard something that made me question everything I knew! The turtle stuck his head out and said "Please help me. I was hit by someone speeding down the road on a riding lawn mower and knocked off the road!". I thought to myself as I sat in shock "Did that one eyed, three legged turtle just talk to me?" and the truth was that he did! The next thing he told me was.... (Jcarr)

"I realize I have probably caught you off guard for more than one reason; however, as I ducked into my shell a moment ago with no intentions of showing my face to you again, it occurred to me that you may be my only chance at survival. And I desperately want to live!" He paused long enough only to judge my willingness to listen to him continue, and based on my mouth agape stare in his direction he must have assessed he could safely continue without interruption.. He continued with his story, "Perhaps it would help your shock if I told you a little more about me. Allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Rufus. I am part of a traveling circus group...or at least I was until early this morning when the craziest thing happened! I was..." He stopped suddenly and looked at me with dismay, "Where are my manners?! I haven't even caught your name yet! Please do introduce yourself. I will be most happy to finish telling you the sequence of events leading to my un-timely circus departure, but perhaps we could chat on the way to the clinic for help?" His pleading eye looked at me expectantly. I cleared my throat and tried to find the words to say. I opened my mouth to begin... (A. Gulsby)

"Well, of course. I am most curious about you, but it is clear you need medical attention," I tell him as I gingerly tote him down the dirt road back toward my house and car. My name is Stacey, and I am a student at the University of South Alabama. I have studied biology, but I am pretty sure I must have slept through the part where scientists had discovered talking turtles." As I place him on the front seat of my car, attempting to buckle him in without much success, I ask him, "So, how is it you can speak and what on earth happened to you?" He chuckles a little and begins his story: .... (L. Emmett)

"Rufus spoke up once again, "I am sure glad I met you Stacy, I was on my way to San Francisco with the rest of my circus cohorts. As speaking turtles we are reluctant to speak to those that are not our specie. I would never have spoken to you if I did not need your assistance." Stacy nodded in acceptance. Rufus went on to explain that he is part of a singing turtle music group that travels with the circus. "Our caravan was speeding along this deserted highway when we came across...." (Z.Gonzalez)

a nice rest stop. We decided to take a pit stop and grab a bite to eat. As I wandered off from the rest of the circus, a child saw me and thought I would make a great pet. She scooped me up and placed me on the back of her dad's truck. I was horified! What would I do? I could see the rest of the circus crew off in the distance but no one could hear me nor see me. I yelled as loud as I could but still no one could hear me. The truck sped off. We traveled about an hour until we reached this dirt road' Rufus becomes very emotional as he finishes the rest of his story. (N.Chesser)

But before Rufus could say another word I noticed that a black SUV was following us. I tried changing lanes, but the SUV stuck close behind me. I sped up, but still couldn't shake the mysterious SUV. I told Rufus we were definitely being followed. He didn't seem surprised. Then he confessed that he was in a circus, but that his band of singing one eyed, three legged turtles were actually a secret government experiment and that the SUV that was following us was driven by the FBI and that if they caught up to us ....... (JCarr) Then not only would he be returned to a life of humiliation and pain with no real life, but I would face either life in prison or share his fate as a secret government experiment. I felt my chest tighten in panic. I knew I couldn't just turn Rufus over to the people he claimed hurt him, but the idea of being a fugitive or worse did little to make me brave. After a few seconds of internal battle, I looked Rufus in his eye and said.... (L. Emmett )

"It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings! And correct me if I'm wrong, Rufus, but I don't believe I've heard a fat lady. Have you?" A small smile began to spread across my new friend's face. As I pressed my right foot clear to the floor with the accelerator, I yelled out, "Hold on to your little brown shell, Rufus! We're going to make a break for it!" The small but giddy sound of a gleeful turtle cut through the air. "Rufus, one of your special talents wouldn't by any chance be reading would it? Because I'm going to need a navigator for this crazy adventure we've just begun. I just realized my iphone was dropped on the side of the road back there upon my first moments of your discovery. All I have is a couple of old maps in the glove compartment." I glanced in my rear view mirror to see the black SUV keeping up with our pace, while managing not to gain any on us. I looked towards Rufus to await his answer only to find that... (A. Gulsby)

Rufus had already pulled out a GPS and miniature handgun out of his shell! "I didn't tell you the whole story," he admitted, guilt and urgency weighing in his voice. "The circus singing group was actually my cover-up as secret spy for the U.S. government. The black SUV behind us is not the FBI but actually a group of terrorist monkeys from Southeast Asia...they can talk too! My team actually discovered a plot they were working on to... (T.Brown)

take over control of the reptillian trade in America and re-route all turtle importation to Cambodia where they will be trained as assasins cleverly disquised as household turtles. "Lemme get this straight", Stacey said as she careened around a corner-still keeping an eye on the SUV behind them. "You are a U.S. spy, posing as a circus performer. You were kidnapped by a toddler and now we are on the run from Southeast Asian primates who want to capture you and recruit me?" "Yep. That about covers it," Rufus replied with a hint of sarcasm. "Well then, I guess we'll be needing this, Stacey grinned as she revealed..... (L. Andrianopoulos)

that she too had secrets, she pressed a hidden button underneath her dash which let out a plume of smoke behind her vehicle as well as obstacles that would stop the black suv in its tracks. Stacy was a field officer set out by the NSA to protect American interests against Southeast Asian insurgent groups. Stacey explained, "I had read about talking monkey's in Southeast Asia, Rufus, but not talking reptiles." Rufus looked surprised and was anxious to get away from the monkey insurgents. Stacey said, "Do you want to go to an animal clinic? Or shall we go see my handler, I'm sure they can handle your medical issues." Rufus responded by... (Z. Gonzalez)

shaking his head. Rufus was growing very weak. He was fading in and out from his injuries. On the way to Stacey's handler, she noticed that Rufus was passed out. Stacey then turned and made a phone call to her handler. It was a set up! This whole time Stacey had been plotting his capture. She called the handler and said, "I have him. He is barely alive but I'm bringing him in so we can run test." Stacey and the handler were stoked! When she pulled up at the office, the handler said..... (S. Briggs)

"Good work Stacey, everything has gone according to plan." As she was bringing Rufus inside, several other SUV's had surrounded the building. Despite losing the SUV that was following them, they did not realize they were being tracked. The SUV that was following them had gotten close enough to shoot the back of the car with a tracking device. As Stacey and the handler hurried inside, they quickly went into lockdown. Before all the doors were sealed, Rufus was conscious enough to hear someone from outside call his name. He had heard that voice before, but could not make out who it was. Now that the building was secure, Stacey and the handler moved quickly to the lab. (C Galanopoulos)

While Stacey and the handler were trying to prepare the tests and hold the monkeys off with banana missles, Rufus had managed to sneak through the trap door into the direction of the familiar voice. He couldn't believe his eyes! There in front of him stood his old friend and colleague from the spy acadamy...Sergio the Salamander! Sergio had been following the situation and knew his old friend would need assistance. "I haven't seen you since the Cameroon Cobra Crisis!" exclaimed Rufus fighting tears in his eyes. Sergio replied, "There will be time for reunion my dear friend, but first,..." (T. Brown)

we must get on my invisible helicopter and fly to Guam. The monkeys have captured the handler, but Stacey is coming with us." Stacey and Rufus boarded the helicopter and soon found that it was being flown by one of the Southeast Asian monkeys. "Oh no!" Rufus yelled, "Sergio has changed sides. How are we going to escape, Stacey?" Stacey formulated a plan and she and Rufus decided to..... (J. Calametti)