The helicopter shook violently, and Henry Wu clutched his seat nervously. The side door in front of him was wide open, for whatever reason, and he was thoroughly petrified of getting thrown out during one of the shakes. There were no seatbelts or anything that he could strap himself down with; he had to relay on the mercenaries to prevent him from falling out, which wasn't a comforting thought. Not that he wasn't comfortable with them; these men were handpicked by Vic Hoskins, and Wu trusted Hoskins' judgment completely. Despite his unfriendliness, Wu was well aquatinted with the man; they both shared similar ambitions and dreams. He was looking forward to working with someone who shared his desire to create.

But Hoskins had failed to share one piece of information with him: where they would be going. At the moment Wu wasn't even aware of where he was being taken. And the mercenaries refused to tell him anything; if he asked they would simply respond with, "Soon enough, sir."
Wu had the sense he wasn't supposed to know where this place was, which was unnerving to some degree. He couldn't work out why they were withholding information. He started to get uneasy. He thought if he was being taken as a hostage; he didn't really believe that Hoskins would resort to that kind of atrocity; after all, he was willing to share everything with him. There was nothing Wu intended to withhold. Perhaps they wanted his money?

Then, suddenly, the helicopter was slowing. Wu glanced out the open door and saw, illuminated by hundreds of yellow lights, a large compound. There were armed mercenaries crawling the building, and a tall barbed fence circling the complex. Wu felt sick; it looked like a prison.

They were descending rapidly. As they got closer Wu noticed the ground was covered in sand; there were no trees or bushes or any other plant life. It must be a desert. It would be a perfect place for them to practice their experiments in isolation; but also an ideal location for a high-security prison. Wu started to wonder if the game was up, that the authorities somehow discovered his activities; if he was destined to rot in a cell for the rest of his life. The helicopter landed with a gentle thud. The mercenaries immediately took action, scrambling into the bay to retrieve the embryos; one of them grabbed Wu roughly around the shoulders, and guided him out of the helicopter. He was led across the sand, toward the compound. He looked up, and noticed two men standing before him. One was tall and broad-shouldered with a beard, and the other was short, with a clean cut and a briefcase in his let hand. They didn't resemble security officers.

As they neared, the bearded man extending his right arm. "Dr Wu. We've been expecting you," he said.

Wu, not knowing what else to do, shook his hand.

"My name is Frank Wilber. I'm in charge out here," said the bearded man with a pleasant smile. He motioned toward the short man beside him. "This is my assistant, Tucker Lane."

Wu licked his lips. "You're not... I mean, you're with Hoskins, yes?"

The bearded man looked confused. "Of course we are. I was his second-in-command out here."

Wu felt dizzy with relief. "I... sorry, I thought I was on my way to jail. This place looks a lot like prison."

Wilber laughed. "That's rich! You have nothing to fear out here, Dr Wu." He cast a suspicious sideways glance at Tucker, and suddenly, Wu felt unsecure again.

"But enough small talk. There is much to do," said Wilber, taking Wu by the shoulder. "I believe this is going to be a beautiful friendship. I can see it already."

"If you don't mind," said Wu, "but when will Hoskins be arriving?"

Wilber frowned. "You haven't heard?"

Wu didn't like the sound of this. "No..."

Wilber clasped his hands together. "We received word an hour ago," he said slowly. "Vic Hoskins is dead."

Wu stared at him, stunned. Hoskins was dead? "How did this happen?" he demanded.

Wilber started leading him toward the complex. "We're not entirely sure, but apparently, his body was found in the laboratory. That is, what's left of it. It appears he's been dismembered."

Wu recalled reports like this from years ago, back during the time of the old park. Velociraptors were the usual prime suspect for these sorts of attacks. They had a tendency to tear their prey apart, usually cutting them in half so their organs fall out. A sickening thought.

"It's all very sad, but for you and me especially, since he both knew him well," said Wilber, but to Wu he didn't look very upset. In fact he looked almost pleased, like he had gotten rid of a fly that had been annoying him. He was about to say more when suddenly, they were stepping through the doors, into the huge compound.

The interior was massive, with multiple levels that led all the way to the ceiling. Dozens of hallways led to even more rooms. There were mercenaries and other people as well, dressed in yellow and orange work suites. There were pipes stacked in the corners and other building materials; the place looked very incomplete.

"Not everything is ready yet," Wilber explained, walking ahead while Wu hung back to take in the surroundings. "My boys have done a mighty fine job, though. This entire structure wasn't here a month ago."

"Very impressive," Wu muttered, and it was; but he couldn't help feeling uneasy. Something was out of place.

Wilber turned around, and looked back at him. "I'm very excited to work with you, Dr Wu," he said. "We are going to accomplish many amazing things, you and I." Suddenly, his smile faded. His eyes took a dark, aggressive appearance. His voice was dark and threatening.

"But on my terms."

Before Wu could make sense of what was happening, he felt several people grab him from behind. He spun, and saw the mercenaries who had flown him in, all grabbing his sweater and jostling him forward.

"What is the meaning of this!" He yelled.

Wilber turned away from him. "I apologize for this, Dr Wu. But unfortunately, its absolutely necessary."

The mercenaries kept jostling him, and started leading him down a hallway. "You cant do this!" Wu shouted.

"Cant do it?" Wilber repeated. "I can do whatever I want. Hoskins is dead; I'm in charge now."

Wu was struggling furiously, but couldn't brake free from the mercenaries. Panting, he managed to choke out, "You'll live to regret this."

A dark, devious smile crept onto Wilber's face, and he stalked off, laughing manically.