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JPIV: Ruins of the Unknown [V.]
By AlanGrant5
JURASSIC PARK IV: RUINS OF THE UNKNOWN
[V.] THE ARRIVAL
A sudden jolt caused John Weller to wake from his slumber. Blinking his eyes into focus, John glanced at the window to his left. The morning frost had melted from the glass, giving him a crystal clear view of the dull colored water below. Gray clouds loomed overhead, indicating signs of a storm. Glancing at his wrist watch, John realized he had spent a couple of hours with his eyes shut. He had failed to obtain any sleep the entire week and although the hours he had been sleeping didn’t amount to the sleep he’d lost, he felt refreshed nonetheless.
Brian now sat across from John, shuffling through various papers. He looked to be deep in thought, with his glasses slipping from the bridge of his nose, rummaging through papers, pen in hand. John stretched, luring Brian’s attention away from his work.
“Damn John, you were out like a light,” Brian said, removing his reading glasses and tucking them into his coat pocket.
John grumbled, running his hands through the strands of silver hair.
“You woke up just in time. We’re just a few minutes away from the island.”
John remained taciturn, for the remainder of the time. He couldn’t believe they had reached the island already. Maybe he’d slept in longer than he thought. Maybe he was dreaming. John closed his eyes, only to open them to the same reality he had waken up to just minutes ago. It became quite clear that he was still trapped in a reality one would think to be a dream.
Suddenly John heard a mechanical hum and a low rush from outside. It was the landing gear, no doubt. John looked outside the window and saw a darkened object shrouded in thick clouds. The island looked to be quite a distance away from them, which puzzled John as to why the landing gear had been turned on so prematurely.
“You do realize that the island is at least a mile from where we are now?” John said, removing his seat belt.
Brian smiled, “Of course. We’re not actually going to land on the island itself. We’ve set up a landing platform on the ocean’s surface... for security purposes.”
John nodded.
The plane descended into the thick mist, preparing to land on the relatively unseen platform. As the plane drew nearer, the platform began to appear. It was a large rectangular runway, placed a good fifty feet from the islands coast. On the platforms far left hand corner, was a stair case, leading to a narrow metal bridge which lead to the islands pier.
Expecting the landing to be rough, John was surprised by the smooth tremorless way in which the plane skid onto the runway. With the plane coming to a complete stop, Brian looked up at John with excitement.
“We’re here,” the African American man said, rising from his seat.
John grabbed his black duffel bag and followed Brian out the door. Upon exiting the plane, a cold air brushed up against his face. The weather was unusually winter like for summer. He expected that from his residency in Alaska, but for an island miles off the coast of Japan, he figured sun screen would be a must, but not true. The sun was obscured by dark gray clouds that seemed to be layered upon each other. It would take some time for the sun to break through the endless layers of clouds.
“May I take your bag sir?” a man asked. The man was dressed in a heavy jacket and a hat which read “BIOSYN”.
“I’m fine, thank you,” John said, slinging the bag over his shoulder. The three men made their way up the rusted stair case. Once they made it to the top, a long, narrow bridge greeted them. John wasn’t quite sure of the bridge’s stability, for it look old and decrepit. Brian and the other man, began walking down the bridge, which hovered ten feet above the undulating ocean below.
“Come on down John. It’s sturdy as a rock!” Brian called back.
“Forgive me if the bridges shaky foundation gives me a cause for alarm,” John said, half joking, half serious.
John walked the full length of the bridge, finally setting foot on the beach sand. A large fence, surrounded the island’s perimeter, standing about six foot seven. From what John could see, the land was nothing but jungle, with a single dirt path leading to the pinnacle of the island. A jeep awaited their entry. John entered first, then Brian Once the door slammed shut, the jeep sped uphill.
“Welcome to Prehistoria Dr. Weller,” Brian said gleefully.
John turned to face the man, “Prehistoria? What’s the matter, you didn’t want to jinx it by naming it Jurassic Park?” John began to chuckle. Brian honestly thought he had come up with an original idea... that made John hysterical.
“Yeah, keep on laughing... this is nothing like Jurassic Park, John. You’ll see,” Brian insisted.
John grunted, looking through his window. The island was incredibly green, with lush vegetation compacted together, stretching as far as the eye could see. The road was bumpy as expected, running over numerous pot holes. Finally the jeep began slowing down as it neared the pinnacle of the mountain. Suddenly where there was once jungle on either side of him, there was now tall grass, high enough to slap against the rear view mirror attached to the vehicles side.
The jeep stopped, giving them a view of the majestic valley. Roaming on the fertile ground was a towering brachiosaurus, with it’s neck stretched out to the cloud covered skies. There were three of them, each walking together side by side. The creatures walked in unison, creating footsteps reminiscent to the sound of thunder. John’s eyes widened at the sight of the prehistoric animals.
Not too far from the brachiosaurs, was what looked to be a Gallimimus herd. A streak of orange traveled around and underneath the towering titans, as the bird like creatures galloped together in harmony. The scene was picturesque, magical, and yet... not real. And that is what John had tried to tell himself as he viewed the eye pleasing scene.
There was a moment of an awe filled silence as the jeep overlooked the valley. John watched the brachiosaur drink from a shimmering lake, with it’s neck arched over the pool. He watched birds flutter from the trees, as the prehistoric giants ate greenery from the sky bound branches. The sight was simply unbelievable and made it hard for John to breathe or even blink for that matter.
“Dr. Weller, this is no theme park I assure you. We’ve created this facility strictly for research, nothing more. We are nothing like InGen,” Brian said, gesturing for the driver to keep moving.
John was silent, his gaze focused on the animals before him. The jeep made its way down the slope and onto the valley’s flat surface. As the vehicle drew closer to the brachiosaurs, John’s heart began to beat faster. They were driving beside a living, breathing dinosaur. With the jeep driving directly beside the brachiosaurus, John tried to view the creatures head, but was unable to do so, as it was obscured by a single ray of sunshine piercing through the gray clouds above. John turned to face the area ahead of them. A beautiful waterfall became the backdrop of the prehistoric setting, the water creating a cloud of mist as it poured into the river beneath.
The honking of the jeeps horn, awakened John from his trance, bringing his attention to a herd of Maiasaurs blocking their path. The creatures were colored beautifully, with various shades of green decorating its body, accompanied by dark purple blotches. The driver honked once more, sending the herd to walk away peacefully.
“You’ll have to excuse the traffic...you know how it is during rush hour,” Brian said, content with John’s facial expression. John was definitely hooked. Brian couldn’t see John rejecting the job offer now, even if he did live in Alaska.
John began to smile, his eyes following the moving herd. Their response was not what John would’ve expected. The maiasaurs just turned their heads and made on their way, without so much as a hesitation.
Suddenly, the jeeps radio began crackling. “Situation in the trike paddock... all teams needed for assistance,” the machine called out, drowning in static.
“Trike? Triceratops?” John asked for confirmation.
Brian smiled, “That’s the one.”
“Can... can we see it... them.... the dinosaurs I mean,” John managed to stutter.
“That’s where we’re headed,” Brian said laughing at the awe struck John.
6/13/2002 12:32:39 PM
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