Man was the earth's most dangerous creature. He controlled the air, the sea, the pollution, the earth. It was man who sought out animals, killing them for sport more than food. It is man who believes that the earth is his to own, to craft, to destroy. Yet there are men, who take from the earth and believe there shall be no consequences. They do not see that the actions they take hold dire consequences. If not for them, for the world itself…
Nicholas Cutter was an evolutionary zoologist. In short, he studied how the creatures of the earth evolved into what they are today. His main direction of studies was of the prehistoric creatures. Dinosaurs. And although he found the subjects fascinating, he was not the most sought after professor at the Central Metropolitan University. Most of his days were spent working as a team leader for other department projects and giving specialized lectures for the university. Still, it paid his bills.
He looked out at the pantheon sparsely filled with students. Most were conjugated in the back, practically out of his sight. All the students seemed to hold a glazed look about their faces. Several were actually dozing off. At least it was a turnout.
Cutter looked back to the slide behind him. It was a skeletal structure of a Velociraptor. "Now, here we have a very well preserved fossil. Can anyone of you give me the species?"
There was a silence in the pantheon.
"Anyone?" Cutter asked.
Still no talkers.
Cutter nodded. "I see. Then I supposed there's no use for me to lecture, as none of you have even bothered to do your reading assignment."
"Could it be a Velociraptor Monogenesis?" called a voice.
Cutter nodded. "Very good. Glad to see someone knows the reading."
"Oh I don't know the reading, Professor. Just the creatures." The voice replied.
Cutter frowned. "Connor, lights."
The bright pantheon lights turned down quickly. The traditional, low lights came up in place. The students sat forward in their seats, looking around for the person responsible for interrupting the lecture. A man was standing up in the center of the seating. He wore a dark blue suite complete with a well-crafted cane. From the far distance, Cutter could barely make out his facial features, but he could at least see the man had dark brown hair.
"Can I help you sir?" Cutter asked.
"I certainly hope you can, Professor Cutter." The man replied. "However, I seemed to have interrupted your lecture."
"Apparently not." Cutter replied. The students quickly gathered their bag and left the pantheon. "Class dismissed. Read chapter ten and eleven and don't be surprised if there's a quiz worth thirty percent of your grade!"
Cutter stepped from the stage and walked up the stairs toward the man. As he approached the man, Cutter realized the man couldn't be any older than he, but clearly better off. The man held himself very high, meeting Cutter's eye contact.
"Can I help you sir?" Cutter asked.
"I certainly hope so, Professor. Perhaps we can talk in your office?" he asked.
Cutter nodded. "This way."
Luckily, the many perks of his location was the nearness to the pantheon. Cutter led the man just down the hall to his office. Cutter opened the door and entered his vast office. Skeletal remains of various dinosaurs lay scattered about desk surfaces. Term papers lined his main desk, unseen by his eyes. Cutter sat down behind his desk while the man slowly took in the appearance of his office.
"Can I offer you a cup of coffee?" Cutter asked.
"No thank you." The man said. He turned and took the chair in front of Cutter's desk.
"Now, what can I do for you?" Cutter asked.
"Professor Cutter, I'll get right to the point. I own a vast property off the coast of Costa Rica. I've leased from the government and turned it into…shall we say a preserve of sorts." The man explained.
Cutter frowned." What does this have to do with me?"
The man leaned toward the desk. "This preserve I've created, is for a special breed of creatures. Creatures that are…your specialty."
Suddenly the office door opened. A young man entered carrying his laptop and backpack in his arms. His black hair was messed up on his head, sticking out in different positions. He paused momentarily when he saw the man in front of Cutter's desk. "Oh…I can come back later."
"Don't worry Connor." Cutter said.
"I was just wondering if you wanted to review the slideshow for tomorrows lecture." Connor asked.
"I don't think that will be necessary." The man said.
Cutter looked back at the man. "Excuse me?"
"Professor, before this preserve can be open to the public, it needs certain endorsements form a variety of people. You are one of the select few, highly regarded by an employee of mine. And if you could join me and the other guests for the weekend and review the park, the park and return to schedule, as will you." The man explained.
"Blimey. You're James Lester." Connor said.
The man looked back to Connor. "Bright young lad. Not too well dressed, but bright."
"Connor Temple. He's my brightest student and technical assistant." Cutter explained.
Lester nodded. "Enjoy your work?"
Connor chuckled lightly.
"Connor's sticking around until he pays off his student loans." Cutter explained
"Ah, the financial woes of university students." Lester commented. "Well Connor, what do you think about the idea?"
"The preserve?" Connor asked. "I think Professor Cutter should go. I mean, it's not like he's leaving during the week, the students will still be here. And I'm sure the university could postpone the lecture to another date."
"Wonderful." Lester said. He rose to his seat. "And I will more than gracious enough to compensate you both for your time."
"Compensate?" Connor asked.
"Both?" Cutter asked.
"Of course. I can't very well take the professor without his assistant. And on top of travel and boarding expenses paid for, Mr. Temple will find his student loans paid in full by the end of the weekend, and you, Professor Cutter, will find yourself eligible for early retirement." Lester explained.
Cutter glanced over to Connor. Connor's jaw was hanging open, almost in shock. The amount of money Connor was getting for his weekend was enough to make anyone faint. And the amount that Cutter would receive was unbelievable. Just for one weekend. One weekend to spend in a preserve. What was the harm?
"Where's the plane?" Cutter asked.
Lester smiled.
firts chapter...here we go!