The prototype for what was to replace the gas jeep safaris was both cumbersome and slippery. Built for two passengers, the vehicle was largely made of glass – a perfectly clear sphere for observing animals, unobstructed. At the practice track on the western plains, the early models kept sliding independent of the will of their drivers. Emergency brakes failed and physical barriers were needed to halt the glorified hamster balls. Technicians and engineers, alike, rushed to the scene to fill damage reports and generate model revisions. The biggest complaints (withholding the horrible handling) from test drivers were the grinding gears and the lack of working locking mechanisms on the vehicle doors.
"I'll tell you something," a test driver murmured, dazed and dizzy, after opening the glassy hatch. "People are gonna just walk out of these at their leisure."
"And do what?" an aiding technician asked. "Pet a sick Triceratops?"
A year and three months post-opening, Jurassic World was evolving, much like other theme parks of its kind. Construction phases and ride additions peppered the work calendar like lights on a Christmas tree. Multi-colored sticky notes and interjecting sharpie marks wreaked havoc on the interns that scrambled to log the information on the park's servers. The hamster balls – dubbed "Gyrospheres" – were set to be ready by the fall, with the Gyrosphere Adventure open before Christmas. The technology was in its infancy, however, and deadlines were pushed back thrice already.
By the Gyrosphere's fifth iteration, the gear grinding, locking mechanisms, and traction issues were largely resolved. It was on the morning of October third, 2006, that the Gyrosphere's "maiden voyage" occurred with Simon Masrani, himself, being one of the two passengers seated in the close-to-final product. The other was an engineer, whom sat with a clipboard on her lap. Pencil in hand, she scribbled away at the faults she noticed in the consistency of the outer shell's rotation, the occasional gear tick, and things of that nature.
Simon Masrani was a tall Indian man that looked much younger than he truly was. Juggling several major international corporations, he'd been interviewed in regards to the source of his "fountain of youth."
"A nice martini and season three of Sex in the City is all that's needed to heal the soul," he replied.
Reclining and relaxed in his seat, he lifted a brow at the woman's feverish scrawling. Her written words looked like chicken scratch. He cleared his throat as the Gyrosphere continued along its pre-programmed path.
"You look busy," he said.
The woman jumped up slightly. She pushed her thick glasses further up the bridge of her nose. "Not at all, sir."
"The clipboard says otherwise." He smiled and nudged her gently. "Listen…uhm…?"
"Suzanne."
"Suzanne," Masrani began, "do you have any idea what you and your team have accomplished?"
"We've created the first generation of fully spherical land-based vehicles, yes."
"No, no, no," he said. "Do you have any idea what you and your team have accomplished?" He noticed that her facial expression was still blank. "I will take that as a no." He gestured forward with his hand at the green pastures ahead. The sun had freshly risen from the horizon, being half-past seven, and made the lush grasses and trees glisten with the morning moisture. "You will bring people even closer to animals that haven't existed for millions of years. We can almost have them walk side-by-side. Almost." He smiled. "Relax, and enjoy the ride, Suzanne. Jurassic World is a wonderful place."
Suzanne pulled the tie that held her red hair back away from her scalp, letting her hair freely fall to her shoulders. She exhaled and nodded. "Okay. I'll try. I'm sorry, sir. It's just been a really stressful time in the test field."
"No worries," he said. The Gyrosphere approached the base of a short hill, and the gear system shifted to accommodate to the change in terrain. Masrani wouldn't have noticed it to have been a problem if Suzanne didn't immediately return to her notes. He said nothing as the vehicle climbed to the top of the hill, overlooking more of the valley.
"That's the gear shift," she sighed. "Kind of like when you drive, we have different gear configurations for these things."
"Even a deluxe sports car has its issues. The technology will adapt with time, I assure you-"
Masrani paused and gripped the control stick on the center console.
"What's wrong, sir?" Suzanne shifted her eyes from her paper, to Masrani, to finally the field. She dropped her pencil.
"How do we turn on this thing's radio?" he asked lowly.
"There's a red button beneath the chair," she said, averting her eyes and gripping her hands to the seatbelt. Masrani did as she suggested, and the surround-sound speakers came live with static, immediately replaced to a game warden's voice.
"This is patrol seven, we read you loud and clear sir," the warden said.
"Send a disposal team and any vets in the area," Masrani said.
"Is there an injured animal, sir?"
Lying at the base of the hill was the bottom half of a dinosaur's corpse. The orange coloration and powerful hind limbs made it extremely clear that it had been a Gallimimus. The body was paler than a living specimen, indicating that the animal died hours before. It was still a fresh kill. The Compsognathus hadn't swarmed the body yet.
"No. A dead one."
Author's Note:
This is the first story I've published in a long time! I'm glad to be back c: Expect Chapter 1 later this week.