|
Jurassic Park Shadows of History Stage Nine
By JPJunkee
NINTH STAGE
"Look to the shadows, that is where
the real truth will be found. Hidden
like a lie in the world of the blind."
--Kyle Warner--
CHAPTER 38
They all walked silently together. They had made it away from the dinosaurs, away from the compound, but being in the jungles of Costa Rica, was still very dangerous. They needed to get to civilization, quickly.
Malcolm looked at his surroundings with new eyes. Why had he come here? It was against his theories, it was against his calculations. He was an unseen number. He had come here. But why? Why in the hell did he come!
But now, looking at the beautiful, lush green jungle, he found the answer. Because he was wrong. Utterly, and yet very simply, wrong.
His theories, his beliefs were wrong. Fate, was wrong. His calculations, were wrong. Life itself, was wrong. And what hurt him the most, he was wrong. Ian shook his head and smiled, he couldn't wait to get back home. It was time for change, and he hoped to change for the better, without constraints and without the shackles of the handcuffs that his theories had placed upon him in the past. He was free of his past mind. The universe was at hand.
If there was one thing he knew was true, it was that life was full of chances, and opportunities. He had taken his chances, and had taken advantage of the opportunities that life had presented to him. And where had it taken him?
It had taken him here. It had taken him to Isla Sorna and Nublar. And none of this had led him to riches -- sure there was a slight bit of fame, but it wasn't the kind he wanted -- none of this had led him to happiness. And until now, he never realized it.
When he got home -- if he got home -- he was going to be a new Ian Malcolm. Whether it meant no longer being a choatician or not, he just wasn't sure.
But he knew it was time to live the normal life, for once.
Ian looked to his right, Grant was walking with the dog, next to Leah. Ian had been around long enough, to know something was going on in their heads.
He watched, as Leah slipped on a log, and began to fall, but Alan grabbed her hand and picked her up. Leah smiled and walked close to him after that.
Malcolm felt like saying one of his normal quick whips, but he held back. This was good for Grant. Malcolm had read up on Grant's recent past, and he knew that the man hadn't had the best of times as of late. This was good for him, Leah was good for him. He needed something like this back in his life. But, Malcolm was afraid, that Grant wouldn't act on it, that Grant would be too much of a coward.
Aaron Madison called from the back of the group,” Can we stop for a minute? Brunell's not looking so good."
Malcolm turned around and saw Wes Brunell wheezing for breath as he sat down. His skin was as pale as a ghost. "I'm fine," Brunell said, then coughed.
Malcolm walked up to Brunell and looked down at the man's slashed back, "Let me look at this."
"Nobody's stopping ya," Brunell said with a sigh.
Malcolm knelt down and pulled back the shirt. The shirt was stuck to his skin at first (from both sweat and the crusty blood), but with a tug, it came up. The slash was still bleeding, though not as bad. But now, it had dirt and other unsanitary things in the wound. "You've gotten debris into the wound. Want me to clean it?"
Brunell sighed, "No, we'll be in a town soon enough. Don't touch it." Brunell winced in pain as he began to lay down on the dirt path. "Just let me rest for a while."
Leah frowned at the man, and walked up to him. She looked at his large gash, and gasped. She put a hand to her mouth as she turned away. She walked past Grant and into the jungle, alone. She knew Brunell was dying, and she didn't want to be there when he left this world. Brunell had kept the team alive many times with his skill and knowledge, and Leah felt horrible looking at him when he was in such pain. She knew she was probably a coward for not wanting to be with the man, but she couldn't stand anymore death, so she continued to walk away.
Grant watched her go, not sure what to do.
"Alan," Malcolm said softly.
Grant turned to Malcolm, who was sitting with the dog.
"Go after her."
Grant nodded, and Malcolm thought he could see a hint of a smile from him, before he turned to pursue Leah.
Leah stood next to a large tree. Her arms folded. Her thoughts full of guilt and sorrow.
"A lady shouldn't be out here all alone," Grant said walking around the tree.
Leah looked down at the ground, "We are going to die, aren't we?"
Alan approached her, and put his hands on her shoulder. She kept looking down.
"I look at Brunell, and I see his pain. I know that we're next," Leah said, not looking at him.
Alan smiled and turned her around. He put a hand on her chin, and raised her face to look at his, "We're going to be fine. I won't let anything happen to you, I promise."
Leah frowned for a moment, but when she saw his smile, she hugged him.
Alan was surprised by the sudden hug. At first he wasn't sure what to do. Then, he put his arms around her, and hugged her back. "It's all going to be okay," he said.
"Alan?" She said, looking into his eyes.
"Yes?"
"Are you . . .,"she stopped, and just began to stare at the forest canopy.
"Am I what?"
"Are you feeling the same thing that I am?" Leah said, looking back into his eyes.
Grant was startled and lost for words, "Uh . . . what are you feeling?"
Leah smiled, "I'm. . . . I'm feeling that---"
Madison's yell cut her off, "HOLY SHIT! What in the hell---"
Leah and Grant looked at each other, then they ran together back to where the others were.
They approached Madison who was holding his hands to his mouth, in what seemed to be both deep thought and also disgust. Madison pointed behind him, and Grant and Leah advanced.
They were now at a waterfall. The waterfall was about twenty feet high, and the water running down flowed into a shallow little river. Malcolm was standing beside the river, and at his feet . . . were bones.
Grant put a hand on Leah‘s arm, implying for her to stay back. He walked up to Malcolm and looked down at the bones.
"They're human," Malcolm said, grimly.
And indeed they were. Grant looked over the skeletons, there seemed to be eight different bodies, at least. He knelt down next to a small skeleton, it still had rotting clothing on it. It was a baby boy's carcass. Grant took a deep breath and looked away.
Malcolm pointed across the river, "Remember that dinosaur carcass we found earlier, the one just outside of La Pieda? The one that was being protected by others of its kin?"
"The carcharadontasaurus."
"If you look closely," Malcolm said, pointing across the river, "you can see its body laying in those bushes."
Still kneeling, Grant looked closer, and he saw the faint outline of the giant carchar carcass.
"What is this place, Alan?" Malcolm asked. Grant could hear the fear hanging in his voice.
Leah looked down at Alan, and then back at the bones. She didn't want to be here. She felt like she was being watched. Watched by something. . . . hidden.
Grant looked down at the bones, then at the river, "You suppose the skeletons could have washed down the river?"
"That carchar was from down stream, these bodies were carried here."
"Then, I think we should be leaving here as soon----"
A gun blast filled the jungle. Malcolm looked around in confusion. Then, he looked back to Grant. Alan's hand was grasping his chest, blood trickling through his fingers. Alan gasped for breath, as he fell next to the river.
Leah screamed, but managed to stay calm enough to make her way to Grant. Malcolm held up his gun and said to Leah, "Move him away from here. Stay with him."
Leah nodded, her eyes were filling with tears, as she dragged Alan away from the river and behind a bush nearby.
Madison hobbled up behind Malcolm. The cameraman was holding his gun limply in his hands, his body was shaking in obvious fear. Madison asked Malcolm, "What happened?"
"Grant's been shot."
"What?" Madison held his machine gun with a firmer grip now and looked around warily.
"Where's Brunell?"
"He's sleeping, the dog's with him."
Another gun shot filled the jungle, and Madison clutched his leg as he fell to the ground. Malcolm looked down at the man to see blood gushing from his knee.
"Put down the gun, Dr. Malcolm!" A voice called in the jungle.
Malcolm did no such thing.
A bullet hit the ground near Malcolm's feet. Ian instantly reconsidered. "Okay, putting the gun down."
From across the river, a figure stood up from behind the carchar carcass. The figure moved out of the shadows. Malcolm could hardly recognize the man.
Lewis Dodgson's body had been ravaged. One of his hands only had dangling skin. He limped with a bloody thigh, and his face was splattered with blood and dirt.
"You thought you killed me . . ." Dodgson said, his voice like a raspy wind.
Malcolm looked at Dodgson then looked back to where Leah was hiding with Grant.
"You can't ever kill me, Dr. Malcolm."
Malcolm looked down at Madison, the man was trying to crawl away, both his legs now injured.
"Where's the other one?" Dodgson asked, stepping up to his edge of the river.
Brunell jumped out from behind a tree, and shot his last shotgun shell into the chest of Dodgson.
Dodgson yelled in pain, and staggered backwards. He raised his magnum and shot Brunell in the hip. Wes Brunell spun like a top, and hit the ground in a heap.
"You see, Dr. Malcolm? I cannot die," Dodgson said, now aiming the gun between Malcolm's eyes, "But you, on the other hand . . ."
An ear-splitting roar rang on the river, birds in the jungle all took to the air around them, squawking in fear.
Then . . . all was silent.
Dodgson looked around in confusion. Malcolm didn't dare move a muscle.
Then, the waterfall's water shot everywhere, as an immense dinosaur leaped from within the waterfall and out into the river. The dinosaur gave another single roar and then charged at the surprised Dodgson. The animal was fifteen feet high, and its snout was like that of a crocodiles.
Dodgson screamed in fear, and shot the animal once, before the great mouth came down and easily picked up his body from the ground. Dodgson's little arms waved in protest as the dinosaur raised its head, and began to swallow his body. A moment later, he was gone. Lewis Dodgson had been swallowed whole.
The dinosaur growled softly then looked down at Malcolm.
Malcolm didn't move. He continued to stare straight ahead.
The long head of the large carnivore lowered to the ground and stared straight into the eyes of Ian Malcolm. The air that rushed out of its nostrils blew Malcolm's hair all about. But still, he did not move. The creature let out a soft purring sound, and cocked its head to the side.
Then the great behemoth gave a slight nod of its head, and turned away from Malcolm and soon disappeared back into its lair within the waterfall.
Malcolm gave a sigh of tremendous relief, his body began to shake uncontrollably, but after a moment, he was under control again. He swallowed hard and walked over to Madison, "You okay?"
"I'm fine," Madison managed to say, as he crawled behind a tree.
Malcolm nodded and walked over to Brunell's body. He was laying face down on the ground, the dog was laying beside him, crying and licking the back of Brunell's neck.. Ian reached down and slowly rolled his body over. The man's arm flopped limply when he rolled over. Malcolm frowned when he saw the man's face. White and sullen. His eyes staring blankly into space. Ian lowered his head, as he used his free hand to close Brunell's eyes.
Then, he got up, and walked over to where Grant and Leah were.
Leah bent over Alan and held his head off the ground. She pulled the sweaty hair away from his eyes.
He looked up at her in total despair. Slowly, he allowed his eyes to close.
"No, Alan. Stay with me," Leah pleaded, her eyes filled with tears.
Alan gasped for breath, looking at the bullet wound in his chest. He sighed. "I'm sorry," he breathed.
"No, Alan. Don't. Please."
Alan took a last breath, and everything began to go black.
Leah grabbed his hand and held it firmly. Then, she leaned in close and kissed him on the lips.
Alan felt the warmth of her lips on his, then everything went numb, and the world went black.
Leah felt his hand go limp in hers. She looked at his closed eyes, and she began to sob.
~~ Comments are Appreciated ~~
2/18/2003 8:25:22 PM
Comment on this fan fiction!
|
|
|
