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Jurassic Park Dawn of Retribution Stage Eleven
By JPJunkee+Yvonne
ELEVENTH STAGE
"Extreme hopes are born from extreme misery."
-- Bertrand Russel --
After Larson had gone ahead to pursue Grant and the others, Griffin had taken it upon himself to get the men back together. Most of the chaos had since passed, and the Rican soldiers were either disposed of or chased off now. Once the men were all in one place, Griffin instructed them to follow Larson's tracks in the valley.
Griffin held his rifle tightly against his chest as he ran along with the others. Blood of men from his team, and likewise of their foes, covered his clothes. The rain poured down on him, washing away some of the gore, but also leaving some of it behind as a horrifying, and yet satisfying, reminder of the fight that had just ensued.
Beside him, barely keeping up with the pace, was McCarney. His face was red with exhaustion. Griffin had not known McCarney very long, but he knew that he was a little out of his element when it came to combat. McCarney was what Griffin would think of as a technology junkie. Griffin speculated why McCarney was even involved with the mission sometimes. He wondered if McCarney's inexperience with hellish confrontations would endanger the mission.
Now was not the time to think about such things, though. Griffin held his hand up to his brow, shielding the rain away from his eyes. They were coming up on a Hummer that had crashed into a creek bed. They would check there for survivors, or any sort of equipment that could be salvaged.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The rain stung his closed eyelids. He could register pain, and for that he was thankful. Slowly, his eyes opened.
Javier Martinez stared up at the dark, swiftly moving clouds, as the rain came crashing down on him. He moved his fingers and then his toes, checking to be sure he wasn't paralyzed. Hesitantly, he sat upwards, wincing when he heard the sounds of his back cracking slightly.
He had flown from the back of the Hummer when it had crashed into the creek bed. He had seen the world fly end over end around him, and then he had landed on his back. Soon after, all had gone black.
He checked his watch.
He had been out for nearly ten minutes.
His back hurt like hell. He twisted his neck from side to side, hearing it pop softly.
Then, taking a deep breath, he slowly got to his feet.
Martinez stood in the knee-high grass of the valley. Not far from him, he could see the crashed Hummer. He heard the distant roar of a dinosaur, instantly reminding him of what a dangerous situation he was in.
His rifle. Where was it? He spun around, and saw it laying in the mud behind him. Martinez hurried to the rifle, picked it up, and wiped as much mud off of it as he could. He wondered if it was still in working condition. He didn't dare fire the rifle to check, for fear of attracting any dinosaurs.
He grabbed his radio from his belt, and pressed the talk button, "This is Martinez, what is the situation?"
There was a long pause of static, and then someone replied, "We thought you were dead."
Martinez smiled, "No, not quite."
"We have suffered many casualties. A few men, including you and General Aldez are missing."
"I'm in the middle of the valley, I don't know where Aldez is."
"Most of us have regrouped at the campsite," said the voice over the radio. "Someone said they saw Aldez driving towards the trees at the East side of the valley."
Martinez frowned. He knew what that statement entailed. "Okay, I'll go and look for him. Martinez; out."
He put the radio back on his belt, and looked around him.
From somewhere to his left, he heard voices approaching. He made out a few words of English, instantly dropping to the muddy ground. In the mud, he listened as the voices grew nearer. These were the men he and his fellow soldiers had fought against.
Ever so slowly, he got off his chest, and assumed a crouching position, his eyes barely topping the grass. He saw about six Americans walking down the side of the creek bed, approaching the Hummer that had crashed there.
The men reached the Hummer and threw open the doors, rummaging through the interior. They were moving fast and frantically. They looked frightened. One of the men pulled a grenade from his vest pocket, and then began yelling to the other men.
Martinez quickly shouldered his rifle, and aimed at the man with the grenade, as every other man began to back away.
"Moment of truth," he whispered to himself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Griffin held the grenade firmly in his hand, yelling, "Get back!" Everyone else moved away from the Hummer, which Griffin was going to destroy. He turned to the open front door of the Hummer, and placed his hand on the ring of the grenade.
The glass of the door's window exploded into a thousand tiny shards, as a bullet raced past his head. Griffin tried unsuccessfully to protect his face as the glass laced into some of his exposed skin. He hit the ground, and rolled under the Hummer.
Gunshots rang throughout the valley around the wrecked vehicle.
McCarney jumped behind the Hummer, using it as a shield, as bullets flew all around him. He watched as one of the other men caught a bullet in the chest, and went down bleeding and screaming. He popped his head out from behind the Hummer, and fired a few rounds of his pistol in the direction of the opposing gun fire.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Martinez got out of his crouch, and back onto his stomach as bullets flew over his head. He had killed one, and injured two. He was still outnumbered, and he was not comfortable with the amount of ammo he still had in his possession.
He began to belly crawl closer to the Hummer, until he reached a spot in the grass, where he could easily see the others. Putting the scope of the rifle to his eye again, he aimed at the head of one of the men and pulled the trigger. Brain matter exploded out the back of the man's skull as he fell limp to the ground.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Griffin stifled a scream of horror as one of his men fell beside the Hummer, his skull looked like a broken Christmas ornament. He pushed the dead man away from the undercarriage of the Hummer, and rolled out from under the big vehicle.
Laying in the mud, he watched as a blast of fire and smoke shot out of the grass. A wicked grin appeared upon his face, as he stroked the grenade in his hands.
"McCarney!" Griffin shouted over the gunfire, from beneath the Hummer.
After a moment McCarney came crawling to the side of the Hummer, where Griffin's hand was protruding.
"Take this!" Griffin demanded, holding a grenade out to McCarney.
McCarney stared at the grenade for a moment, and then slowly, took it from Griffin's hand.
"Blow up the bastard!"
McCarney nodded, and got to his feet, the grenade feeling very heavy in his hand. Moving swiftly, he pulled the ring from the grenade.
A bullet zinged past his ear. He gasped, and instinctively dropped to the ground.
Slowly, he raised his head up from the mud. It was in that instant that he realized he had dropped the grenade. Jumping to his feet, he frantically looked for where the grenade had fallen, ignoring the gun blasts around him.
Griffin was moving his way out from under the Hummer, all the while, he watched McCarney. What the hell was he doing? Why wasn't he taking cover?
The mud made a 'plop' noise to his right. Griffin spun his head in the direction of the noise, and saw, to his horror, the grenade laying directly beside the right front wheel of the Hummer.
"Oh shit," he mumbled as he got off the ground, and bolted away from the Hummer.
The grenade went off with a tremendous explosion. The sound of the detonation was deafening. Griffin was launched off his feet from the blast, and flew directly into McCarney's body.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Martinez watched as the torn frame of the Hummer flipped over in the creek bed. The fire illuminated the shocked faces of his foes. They would be easy shots now. But, he was running out of ammo fast. Instead of killing his enemies, he used their sudden surprise to his advantage, and quickly made for a quick and silent retreat.
He ran as fast as his legs could carry him.
He ran to where the trees met the valley. Perhaps there, he would find Aldez. And then, he could possibly get off this God-forsaken island.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Griffin stood motionless, looking over the burning wreckage. He ran his hand through his dirty hair, and thought about how fun it would be to explain this all to Larson. Three men dead and their enemy had evidently escaped alive.
He turned away from the twisted metal, his head looking down at his feet. He had only walked two steps, when he accidentally ran into another man.
Looking up, he saw that it was McCarney.
McCarney's face was pale, his mouth agape, he looked to be in shock. He shook his head, "I'm sorry."
Griffin made a big sinister grin, then put a hand on McCarney's shoulder. "Not as sorry, as you're going to be." He patted his shoulder, and walked past the smaller man, leaving him with his thoughts about what was yet to come.
* * *
Malcolm closed his eyes, catching his breath. His back was still against the door, as if he were guarding the entrance with his life. Slowly, he opened his eyes. It was very dark inside and he couldn't even see his hand waving in front of his face.
Somewhere in front of him, he heard Grant whisper softly, "Where is Leah?"
Malcolm took a deep breath, trying to compose himself, then he said, "Um, we got---"
"Shh!" came a harsh whisper in the gloom of the building.
Malcolm lowered the volume of his voice. "Sorry. Uh, we got separated. She's in a building across the street. The rex has gone now, I think."
No reply.
"Um, why are we whispering?" Malcolm asked softly.
"We're not alone," he heard Ellie whisper in the dark.
Malcolm rolled his eyes, then whispered to himself, "Of course not. It's against the rules to give the good guys a break, isn't it?" He sighed then asked, "What is it?"
There was a pause. The silence lasted so long, that Malcolm thought a response would never come. And then, Grant answered in a grim whisper, "Nests."
"We can't stay here long," Ellie said.
"I know," Grant answered. "We need to go get Leah."
A sharp hissing could be heard in the darkness. The hair on Malcolm's arms stood on end. Then came the sound of a soft hooting.
"Where is Kaje?" Malcolm asked.
"He's with me," Ellie said. "And he's still out cold."
"Uh, can anyone see what these things are?" Malcolm said in a worried tone.
There was now an audible sound of claws scraping against the wooden floors of the building. Malcolm swallowed hard, and listened as the footsteps grew nearer.
"Dilophosaurs, infants, but still dangerous," Grant said.
There was a pause, as they listened to the sounds of the infant dinosaurs come closer.
"Alan," Ellie said, "go get Leah, now. Ian, come here and help me carry Kaje. I can't get him on my own."
Grant never answered. Instead he got to his feet and ran for the door. Malcolm moved out of the way, as Grant opened the door and left the building.
For the short moment the door was open, light filled the room. The light washed over the oddly shaped head of one of the dilophosaurs, the creature stood only three feet tall, but it still had the menacing appearance of the full-grown adults. It opened its mouth wide, revealing glistening yellow fangs.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Grant ran out into the unrelenting rain. He looked to the fallen building, where Aaron had been before. He saw that his friend's body was no longer there, causing him to shiver. Looking away from the destruction, he ran to the building across the street, where he hoped he would find Leah.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Crawling on his hands and knees, Malcolm moved across the dark room, over to Ellie. He could hear the dilophosaurs as they walked closer and closer. How could they see in such a dark place? he wondered. And that's when the thought occurred to him, that perhaps they couldn't see. Maybe they were as blind as he was in this place. If that was the case, why was he bothering to crawl?
Frowning, Malcolm got to his feet, and began to walk slowly to Ellie.
Somewhere behind him, he heard one of the dilophosaurs screech. And then he felt something warm smack him in the back of the neck. His skin began to tingle and burn. He didn't need to touch the glob on his neck to know what had hit him.
Quickly he got back down on his hands and knees. So much for that idea, he thought.
Finally, he made his way to Ellie and the unconscious Kaje. They were huddled together in a corner of the room. Once he found them, he quickly tore off his jacket, and began to wipe away the glob on the back of his neck. He looked behind him, to see the dim outline of one of the beasts standing near the door he had just been sitting against.
"Are you hurt?" Ellie whispered.
"No, not really. But, let me recommend that you think twice before standing up, okay?"
"We need to get out of here," she said.
Malcolm nodded, "Yeah, but the door's blocked now. We're not getting out that way. And the windows are all boarded up."
"So, we'll go out the windows."
"Um, they're boarded up," Malcolm reminded her.
"I know."
"Wait . . . um . . . what?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Grant made it to a nearby door and abruptly stopped in front of it, kicking up the mud near his work boots. Briefly taking a look around, he opened the rusted door, sending a squeaking echo throughout the room. He was amazed at just how heavy the door was, and when he let it go, it rushed back into place, causing another echo. As the door slammed, he thought he had heard a dinosaur growl. After a few moments, it was very quiet . . . and dark enough to alarm him.
"Leah?" he whispered.
He could faintly hear someone breathing in the darkness, so he squinted, trying to get a glimpse of her shadow. He was about to call her name again, when he heard something moving, walking over some sort of debris on the floor nearby.
"It's coming toward you," he heard Leah harshly whisper.
A flood of emotions rushed through him, as he felt relieved to know she was okay. Her message was another story, though.
He was hearing the approaching noises coming from his right, so he slowly moved to his left, trying to figure out where Leah was.
"What is it? Did you see it?" he whispered.
As he talked, the unknown creature began to walk a little faster toward him.
"I-I don't know," Leah whispered back.
"Where are you?"
"Hiding behind some counter," she quickly answered.
The room was just too dark. He needed to figure out how to alleviate that. As he was thinking, he heard a hacking sound, and then listened as something struck the wall, just next to his face. He quickly dropped to the floor, slightly yelling in surprise.
"Alan?" Leah whispered tersely.
Still on the floor, Grant nodded and whispered, "I'm okay."
He was 99% sure of the species, but he wanted to bring some light into the room to make absolutely certain. It would also help to figure out where Leah was, and if there were any other ways out of there. He felt around the floor and his hand brushed over a few bricks. He picked up one, and looked toward one of the windows that had been covered by a dark tarp, where very fine slivers of light were trying to invade the room. He stood and hurled the brick through the window.
It had gone through quite easily, but it only left a hole the size of the brick in its wake. Frowning, wishing the brick would have broken the whole window, Grant turned his attention to the creature in the room. Only briefly did he get the chance to see it, as a black ball about the size of his fist, came hurtling at his head. Grant quickly dropped to the floor again, and watched as the black ball flew over his head, and then smacked into the wall behind him. The ball was now black goo, as it made its way down the wall, creeping like molasses.
Then he heard the all-too-familiar hooting sound, followed by movement. Still on the ground, he whispered, "Where is it going?"
Leah's voice was quivering and faint, "It's at the other side of the room."
"What's it doing?"
A short pause then, "Waiting."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ellie took a deep breath, then got to her feet. Instantly, the room was filled with hoots and snarls. She kept her back to the dilophosaurs, as she walked swiftly to one of the boarded up windows. Malcolm was following close behind her, dragging Kaje along on the ground.
Ellie grabbed one of the boards, and pulled back as hard as she could. Eventually, she pulled the one side of the board off of the window, the nails exposed. She heard the smack as some of the dilo's spit hit her in the back. She tried her best to fight back the bile rising in her throat from the retched smell of the substance. Focusing on the task at hand, she yanked back on the other side of the board, easily pulling it off the window.
Ellie handed the board to Malcolm, then set to work on the next board in the window.
Malcolm let go of Kaje, and was now waving the board back and forth like a sword, trying to keep any curious dinosaur from stepping too close.
Ellie pulled another board off of the window, and handed it to Malcolm.
A board in each hand, Malcolm waved them back and forth, the nails pointing outward toward the little demons. The dilophosaurs hooted and growled, slightly puzzled by the actions of the humans.
One of the dilophosaurs snapped its head back then forward, and spat at Malcolm.
The glob of spit smacked one of the boards he was waving. Malcolm was shocked he had blocked the spit, "Whoa."
Ellie pulled yet another board off the window. Another black glob of spit hit her in the back. She ducked her head down and said, "Okay, there. We should have enough room to make it through now. I'm going first, then you push Kaje through, got it?"
"Wait, what- what do you mean 'should have enough room'? What if it's not enough room to make it through?" Malcolm asked.
But Ellie wasn't listening, she stuck her head and shoulders through the remaining boards on the window, and then easily slid outside. On the other side she then put her hands back in, waiting for Malcolm to hand Kaje to her.
Malcolm grunted as he lifted Kaje's limp body in both his arms, and rushed to the window. The dilophosaurs snarled eagerly as they crept closer. Ellie reached her hands through the window, and grabbed Kaje's shoulders, and began to pull. Malcolm pushed Kaje a little too hard, causing Kaje's head to smack one of the boards.
"Oops. Uh, that was an accident," Malcolm said.
Ellie and Malcolm moved Kaje's body through the window. Kaje landed with a thump on the wet ground outside. Then, Ellie appeared by the window again, "Okay, your turn."
Malcolm picked up the boards that Ellie had removed, careful not to get cut on the nails, and quickly handed them out the window. "Just in case," he said. Then he quickly put his hands on both sides of the window, and put his head outside. Ellie grabbed his shoulders, and began to pull. Malcolm wriggled through the window until he got to his waist, where his progress was suddenly interrupted.
Ellie tugged at his shirt, trying to pull him out, but Malcolm wouldn't budge.
"Oh . . . not good," Malcolm sighed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Grant crawled on his belly. The pain in his injured hand was almost paralyzing, but somehow he found the strength to block out the agonizing discomfort. He needed to get Leah out of the building. But he knew that if he were to do that, he'd need to somehow get around the dilophosaur. This was no infant, though . . . the size of the spit alone told him that. He crawled behind a desk, and began looking for something he could throw.
What kind of building was he in? The desk he hid behind had many open shelves. One of the shelves had candy bars on it. He was in a convenience store.
The dilophosaur roared in the semi-darkness. Grant could hear the careful footsteps of the big creature, as it made its way across the room, towards Leah. It walked into the light from the broken window and he could see that, while standing up, its head barely cleared the ceiling.
Acting quickly, Grant grabbed a handful of the candy bars, then stood up, and threw them across the room. Grant ducked back down behind the desk, and listened as the plastic wrappers of the candy bars smacked to the floor.
The dilophosaur paused, and looked about the room, growling softly. Then it turned its head and walked towards one of the candy bars.
Grant saw the opportunity. He knew the time was now.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I keep seeing images of little monsters nibbling on my ass. I think I should be concerned," Malcolm moaned, as he continued to try and make his way through the boarded up window. He kicked his legs wildly on the inside of the building, trying to keep back the little dilos.
Ellie had moved Kaje aside, and was now back to pulling on Malcolm. It was becoming increasingly obvious that Malcolm was not going to be moved out of the window by brute force alone, especially not in with him being in such a weakened state. Letting go of him, she ran to look for something that could be used to get him out.
Malcolm growled, "This is not the proper time to run away." He heard a shriek from within the building, and then felt a smack of spit hit his buttocks. "Oh, how delightful."
Ellie found a hatchet, still wedged in a tree stump, and ran back to Malcolm.
He saw what she had in her hand, and smiled, "Good girl."
Ellie pushed Malcolm’s head down, then reached past him, and began to hack away at the remaining boards on the window. In a matter of seconds, she had broken one of the boards in half. Malcolm gasped in surprise as he slid the rest of the way out of the window, and he landed face first in the mud. Ellie was quickly by his side and pulling him to his feet.
The small head of one of the waist-high dilophosaurs stuck its head through the window and snarled.
Ellie and Malcolm ran to Kaje's body and began to drag him away from the building.
The first of the dilophosaurs jumped out of the window, and began to creep towards them. Another head stuck out the window.
Ellie let go of Kaje, and threw the hatchet at the first dinosaur. The hatchet missed the dilo by a foot, and hit the side of the building. The dilophosaur looked at the hatchet, then back at the humans. It shrieked, and the fan on its neck opened. The colorful frill rattled and shook, as the small creature walked closer to them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The full-grown dilophosaur bent its long curved neck to the ground, and pushed one of the candy bars with its crooked snout. It took a long breath of air through its nostrils, smelling the object that had flown across the room.
Grant stood up behind the desk. The dinosaur had its back to him. Grant looked to Leah, at his left at the other side of the room. She stared back at him, looking very frightened. Grant slowly brought up his hand and pointed at her, and then he moved his hand to the right, pointing at a door leading into a back room. Leah nodded her head, she understood.
Grant watched as she began to crawl out of her hiding place in the corner, and make her way to the door.
While she was making her way out of the room, Grant kept his eyes on the dilophosaurus. The big creature was now licking the candy bar. It acted mystified as to how the bar had flown over there.
With the dinosaur's attention temporarily averted, Grant looked at the top of the desk. There was only a cash register and an ashtray. Moving as quietly as he could, he pulled the plug of the cash register out of the outlet, then slowly began to pick it up off of the desk.
Grant heard a sharp crack and snap, he looked at Leah. She had frozen, on her hands and knees. Underneath her were pieces of broken glass.
The dilophosaur snapped its head up, and looked over in the direction of the noise, it saw Leah instantly, and let out a long screech.
Grant picked up the cash register above his head, a wave of unbelievable pain shooting through his hand, and then he hurled the heavy object at the dinosaur. The cash register hit the animal in the back. It snarled, and then whipped its tail to the side, powerfully striking Grant in the stomach. The force of the tail lifted Grant off his feet, and he was thrown out of one of the windows.
"Alan!" Leah screamed.
The dilophosaur looked away from the window Grant had flown through, and then looked back at Leah. Its eyes narrowed to small slits of orange, as it purred like a tiger, and walked toward her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A third infant dilo hopped out of the boarded up window, and a fourth stuck its head out, preparing to jump out. Ellie and Malcolm continued to drag Kaje's body away from the little, three-foot tall horrors.
Suddenly, a fourth dilo sprang at them from the side. Ellie saw it just in time and dropped Kaje, and then swung one of the wooden boards at the dinosaur. The board hit the dilo in the neck, the long rusty nails impaling its rough green skin. The creature wailed and then fell on its side. Ellie then turned back to Malcolm, and helped him drag Kaje.
Malcolm pointed over her shoulder, at a pick up truck. "There! Go there!" he yelled.
The truck was rusted and in need of serious repair. It had no tires, and was resting on four blocks of cement.
Ellie and Malcolm quickened their pace, and dragged Kaje to the truck.
Upon reaching it, Ellie opened the rusty door of the beaten down truck. Malcolm slung Kaje in so hard and fast, that Kaje's head smacked against the passenger side door. Malcolm ushered her in, and then he too jumped into the snug cab of the pickup truck. He shut the door just in time, as a glob of black spit hit the door's window.
Kaje moaned and began to lift his head, his eyes fluttering open. He rubbed the top of his head and sighed, "What's going on?"
An infant dilophosaur jumped up onto the hood of the truck, released its neck fan and shrieked. The small creature shot spit at the windshield, blocking Kaje's view of the animal.
Kaje screamed and fumbled for the doorknob. He pushed his shoulder into the door, then jumped out of the vehicle.
"Get back here!" Ellie screamed at him.
Kaje only made it three steps away from the truck when two of the waist high dilophosaurs ran up to him, hooting. He quickly spun around, and ran back to the truck, and closed the door.
Now the infant dilos were all over the truck. Smacking the glass with their skulls, and then spitting every now and then.
Malcolm watched with more annoyance than fear as the dinosaurs scrapped their claws against the window by his face. He sighed and shook his head, "This brings back memories."
"Why aren't you driving?!" Kaje snapped.
Malcolm rolled his eyes, "Gee, what a novel idea! I'll tell you why! One, no keys. And two, no tires." Malcolm smiled, despite their situation.
Kaje looked around desperately, "Where's Dr. Grant? Did they get him and his girlfriend?"
Another glob of spit smacked the windshield as Ellie shook her head in dismay, "We got separated from Leah. Alan went back for her."
Kaje nodded his head, then whispered, "What are we going to do now?" His voice quivered with uncertainty and fear.
One of the dilos kicked the windshield, creating a small web of cracks in the glass. Malcolm shrugged his shoulders, "The only thing we can do . . . wait."
* * *
Leah backed away from the big dilophosaurus as it methodically walked towards her. She faced the creature, and crawled backwards, slowly making her way to the door that was somewhere behind her. In spite of her predicament, her mind drifted to Alan. How badly had he been hurt? Was he even conscious? Why wasn't he coming to save her now?!
The dilophosaurs hissed softly, its jaw muscles working up and down.
Leah's back hit the closed door behind her. She reached her hand up, and tried to turn the knob.
The door was locked. She nearly cried out in helpless despair right there, as she cowered against the door, looking up at the hideous creature coming to kill her.
The eight-foot tall dinosaur let out a terrifying screech as its frill opened on its neck, and began to rattle. It stood straight up, and arched its neck down at her, its mouth ajar, exposing jagged misplaced teeth. Then it snapped its neck backwards---
Leah felt the door she was leaning against open wide, and then five loud bangs filled the room. She watched as baseball sized holes ripped into the dilophosaur's frill, neck, and skull. The creature screamed in agony as it fell to its side and began to convulse, blood spewing out of its neck. Despite the many puncture holes in it, it continued to scream and twitch for a long time, before it finally lay still in a pool of its own blood.
Leah watched the scene with a confused sense of horror and relief. Then she felt a searing pain in her scalp, and was lifted to her feet by her hair. She screamed as she looked into her eyes of her savior.
Into the eyes of Brock Larson.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sitting in the cab of the truck, they heard the loud gunshots. The infant dilos heard them, too, and turned their heads in every direction. Then came the terrible piercing screams of the dying adult dilophosaur. The infants looked at each other and then with soft little hoots, they scurried away from the truck and disappeared back into the building from which they came.
Kaje looked at Ellie and Malcolm. Everyone showed the same expression of ambiguity for the recent developments in their dilemma. Kaje was about to say something when they heard the shouting in the distance.
"Grant!" a loud and powerful voice boomed.
Recognizing the voice, Ellie gasped, "Larson."
Malcolm slowly and quietly opened the door, stepping outside. The dilophosaurs were gone, but now they had to deal with an even more dangerous foe. Behind him, Ellie and Kaje got out of the truck, and then together, they crept up to the buildings.
* * *
Sarah gripped the arms of her chair as the boat bobbed up and down in the swells of the wild ocean. She now wore a yellow poncho, the yellow plastic covering all but her face and legs. She was under the comfort of a roof for the moment, but she wanted to be ready in case she was forced to leave the dryness of the bridge behind and face the rain and open ocean.
Outside her window, she could barely make out the dark island of Isla Nublar. They were close now. The tallest peaks of the grim island blocked out the dim glow of the sun, that struggled to shine through the overcast clouds. Sarah wondered if there would be any moon tonight, or if the storm clouds would block it out, as well.
Rain came from all above and from the side. The swirling winds sent water in every imaginable direction. Lightning illuminated the boat and the ocean around them, creating sinister and confusing shadows of waves and beings that lurked somewhere in the deep.
The boat rode a large wave up, and then came crashing back down the other side. Lightning flashed, and Sarah couldn't help but believe she saw the bottom of the dark ominous ocean not far below them. Again, they were hit by another wave, and lifted upwards once more.
Sarah looked up at Scott, who was struggling with the wheel to keep the boat stable. He was attempting to reach the western side of the island, where they hoped the tall mountains would possibly block out some of the wind and offer them some shelter.
She sighed and looked back out her window. Beside the boat, she thought she saw movement, something that defied the rhythm and motion of the waves. She stared out her window awaiting a flash of lightning to reveal the entity that lurked somewhere beside them, hidden in the dark waters.
The harsh light from the skies above came once again. And Sarah saw the being clearly for the first time. Amongst the white froth at the surface of the raging ocean, she saw the large head of a humpback whale as it breached the surface and took in another fresh breath of air. The large mammal's head hovered there for a moment, the small eye shining like a jewel in the brilliance of the thunderbolt as it seemed to stare right back at her. Then, just as soon as it had appeared, the head disappeared back into the gloom below.
"I'm not so sure about this little plan anymore," Scott said, almost laughing at the comment as he fought with the waves. "Too late to turn back now though, eh?"
Sarah looked back at the man. He was fighting against the storm with all his might. She could see the muscles in his arms bulging from underneath his shirt sleeves. The storm picked up the boat again, lifting it high above the other swells, and then releasing it and allowing it to crash back down again. Sarah couldn't persuade herself to help. She was too afraid to even respond to what he had said, much less help.
Sarah's stomach churned as she felt the boat lurch to the side. She looked out the window on the port side and watched in fear as the boat fell from the wave they were riding and was sent on a collision course with a wall of white water.
Without having time to react or brace for impact, the port side struck the wall of water with a sickening crunch. If she had been holding onto her chair any weaker, she would have been sent flailing to the ground. She was dimly aware that Scott had lost his footing and fallen over, landing hard on his shoulder.
The groan that escaped Scott's mouth was silenced by the sound of the torrential rain and water as the boat was launched up once more and sent crashing through the tops of the waves.
A voice called from somewhere at the rear end of the boat. "Scott! There's a leak in the bunker!"
Sarah looked at Scott just as he began to stand. Without another word, he rushed past Sarah and went towards the rear of the boat.
Sarah sat glued to her seat, but she stretched her neck outwards to see if she could hear or see what Scott and the other two crew members were doing. She couldn't see anything and their voices were muffled by the howling winds. She looked back at the wheel of the boat, as it spun out of control.
Unaware she was going to do it, until she actually stood up; Sarah dashed towards the wheel and grasped it with both hands trying to hold it steady. The force of the waves was unbelievably strong. Sarah snarled, bearing her teeth, and shifted her position putting her back and legs into her hold on the wheel. Miraculously, she was able to hold it stable. She smiled deviously and reaffirmed her grip on both sides of the wheel.
Looking out the windshield, she saw the bow of the boat as it reached the peak of yet another wave, and then came crashing back down, sending white water splashing across the transom. When it crashed down, she noticed a board from the boat had loosened considerably. Sarah frowned and watched as wind tugged at the single board that had suddenly sprung up on the floor of the boat.
The snap of wood was hardly audible when the board broke free from the floor and was carried by the wind directly to the windshield.
"Get down!" Scott shouted, seizing her by the shoulders and pulling her down to the floor. The board broke through the windshield, showering them with shards of glass, wood, and water. Scott was instantly back on his feet, and had grabbed the steering wheel again.
"What happened at the back of the boat?" Sarah shouted over the storm.
Scott somberly shook his head, "Waves jarred some of the shit back there. The bunker, which holds all our gasoline, got ruptured. We're running out of fuel fast."
"Don't we have any backup fuel?" she asked.
"Yeah, but not a lot, considering how badly we're damaged. Only enough to get us to Nublar."
"And then what?"
Scott sighed, "Then we hope we can find some more fuel there, or else we're going to be spending some time there, I presume."
Sarah frowned, things had just gone from bad to worse. Slowly, she sat back down in her chair, took in a deep breath, and held on for the ride.
* * *
"Dr. Alan Grant! Stop being a coward, and show yourself!" Larson yelled.
Grant's eyes opened slowly. He was laying on his back in the mud. Rain splashed down on his face. He felt dazed. And his vision was slightly blurred. He slowly got on his hands and knees, and looked where he was.
He was just outside one of the broken windows of the convenience store. He remembered the tail of the dilophosaur hitting him hard, and then flying out the window. He didn't remember landing. He must have blacked out, or something.
"Grant!" he heard Larson bark loudly, again.
Slowly, he peeked up his head by the window, and looked into the store. Inside, near the back of the dark room, he saw Leah in the arms of Larson. A pistol was pressed up against the side of her skull. Larson looked unhinged and his face was bright red.
"Don't make me kill the girl, Grant," Larson warned.
Grant brought his head away from the window. He shook his head, and took a deep breath.
"Alan, run," he heard Leah whimper. "He'll just kill you, too."
Grant couldn't believe what he was hearing. How could she expect him to just leave her behind with Larson? But, as shocked as he was to hear her pleas, he noticed he was neither coming to her rescue, nor running away.
Larson growled, "Grant, I know you can hear me. I warn you; do not test my patience."
Grant heard running footsteps somewhere to his right, and turned to see Ellie, Malcolm, and Kaje making their way towards the street of the village. Grant quickly waved his hand, and told them to stay where they were. They nodded their heads, and did not move any further.
"Fine," Larson said. "I will give you a count of three, and then I will kill Ms. Owens. That seems fair, doesn't it?"
He could hear Leah as she began to cry.
"One."
Leaning up against the building, Grant swallowed hard. He knew Leah was right. If he gave himself up now, Larson would more than likely shoot him. He struggled with the decision he had to make in seconds, a tear making its way down his cheek.
"Run now, Alan. Don't die because of me," Leah cried. Larson shook her to silence her pleading.
"Two."
The sound of the gun firing echoed throughout the desolate village.
Grant jumped when he heard the blast, mostly because he wasn't expecting it after the count of two. He nearly screamed out in horror. He felt like a bullet had raced through his own heart. He was probably only fifty feet away from Leah, but he was helpless to save her. He wished he had died. He wished Larson would just kill him now as well. The feeling in his heart for betraying Leah was something he did not believe he could live with. He closed his eyes, as he began to stand up.
Then he heard Leah's crying, and Larson's laughter.
"You didn't think I'd actually just kill her like that, did you?" Larson asked from inside the building. "No. It seems you're quite the faithful man, Dr. Grant. You believe you can get away from me, and then save your love later? I admire you for your courage, but I must say, that your courage alone will not be enough. I will find you, Grant. And when I do, I will---"
Larson abruptly began to fire the pistol in random directions. Bullets flew everywhere. Grant ducked his head down as a bullet raced out of the window above his head. He didn't hesitate any longer. Quickly he got to his feet, and began running towards Ellie, Malcolm, and Kaje. When he reached them, they all turned and ran into the jungle, trying to gain as much distance from Larson and themselves as they could.
In Grant's mind, he knew that Larson would not kill Leah. He would hold her as bait, and use her to recapture Grant again. But he had no intentions of ever being under Larson’s control again. In time, he would try to rescue Leah. But now, they needed to flee the immediate area.
Comments are appreciated!
--JPJunkee and Yvonne
9/16/2003 3:51:54 PM
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