Tim's Lost World

by SlumberingVoid

Basically the last part of The Lost World: Jurassic Park featuring Tim Murphy from the first film.

Basically the last part of The Lost World: Jurassic Park, but featuring Tim Murphy. Having learned of what his cousin intends, to bring a male Tyrannosaurus Rex and its baby to a new Jurassic Park in San Diego, Tim joins up with Dr. Malcolm and Sarah Harding to try and stop him. When the creature breaks free of its containment and goes on the rampage, they must act quickly to ensure no lives are lost… human or dinosaur.

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, 1997

Even though it was now approaching 1 in the morning, the InGen docks were abuzz with activity. Luxury stretch limousines drew up and disgorged people in fancy suits and expensive haircuts into the chill morning air, while dock workers in white hard hats and blue coveralls milled about. InGen had, until recently, been a multi-million dollar company specialising in bioengineering under the leadership of its founder, John Hammond. Now, it was teetering on the verge of Chapter 11 bankruptcy as a result of Hammond's ambitious and ultimately failed dream, which was to create a fully-functioning dinosaur theme park with actual, living dinosaurs, on the Costa Rican island of Isla Nublar. The company had achieved this miracle by extracting blood from prehistoric mosquitoes preserved in amber, but the park had been sabotaged by a corrupt employee, Dennis Nedry, and InGen had abandoned the project. With their pockets getting lighter from the cost of the failed park and the half-dozen lawsuits from families of those who had perished, the board had ousted Hammond as CEO and instead selected his greedy, money-grubbing nephew, Peter Ludlow. Ludlow had proposed a smaller park in the form of an amphitheater in San Diego, featuring creatures captured from the breeding ground, Isla Sorna. They had managed to capture only two in the end, a mature bull Tyrannosaurus Rex and its offspring, and Ludlow had invited the board members and various investors to see for themselves. The ship holding the adult, the S.S. Venture, was due in about a half hour and Ludlow was already giving a speech.

"Fifteen years ago, John Hammond had a dream. Like John himself, the dream was grand, it was outsized, it was bold. It was also impractical and ultimately impossible. But half an hour from now, John's dream, reimagined and much better, will come true."

Ludlow paused in his speech to look over at the gate, where a young boy in his early to mid teens was arguing with the gate guard and a smirk crept onto his face. Of course, his dinosaur-besotted cousin would be here to protest. The boy had a good heart but understood nothing of business and money, so he was irrelevant. He continued, ignoring the boy's slightly audible words.

"I know my grandfather's no longer in charge but you gotta let me through! I've gotta stop this!"

The security guard fit many of the stereotypes; white, out of shape and disdainful of everyone who didn't automatically cower at his badge. He was consulting a clipboard and mockingly pretending to be interested in him. Tim was wearing a pair of smart beige slacks, a blue button-up shirt and a grey jacket, which made him look much older than fourteen, but the guard was talking to him like he was a lost little four year old.

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry, little guy but you're not on the list. Why don't you run on back home to Mommy, OK?"

Tim's hands clenched into fists; he was just considering if the satisfaction of slugging the guard in the face was worth the inevitable consequences when he heard a car draw up behind him. Turning, he saw two people getting out of a smart red convertible. One of them was a youngish woman, no older than 30, with long ginger hair; the other, wearing his familiar all-black ensemble, was instantly recognisable.

"Dr. Malcolm!"

"Tim? Tim, what are you doing here?"

"Trying to stop this. You?"

"The same."

The guard, whose nametag identified him as Jerry Randall, smiled condescendingly.

"Aww, your parents are here to take you home. You sneak out?"

"You-!"

Tim was just thinking which word in his expanded vocabulary he should use when a second guard, younger and more reasonable looking, came over.

"You three, come with me."

"Hampton, they're not authorised to enter-"

"Mr. Ludlow asked me to let them in."

Randall looked very put-out, but reluctantly raised the barrier to let them through, glaring at Tim as he did so. Tim glared back, then shot him the middle finger. The guard's face blanched but Tim was already inside. They walked towards the podium where Ludlow was addressing the crowd.

"I want to thank each and every one of you for being intrepid enough to venture out here in these wee small hours of the morning. I- Yes, what is it?"

He'd broken off to address a balding man in the uniform of a harbourmaster, who had materialised at his side looking very grave. Ludlow covered the mike but Tim could read his lips.

"The ship is here."

"It's early?"

"You'd better come with me, sir."

Ludlow paused to fling another cheerful remark at the audience.

"It's so exciting!"

He followed the harbourmaster into the shack, where several workers were milling around in a state of confusion mixed with panic. One was frantically issuing orders down a phone.

"I want a direct line to the Coast Guard! Right now!"

The harbourmaster led Ludlow over to a computer monitor that showed dozens of tiny green dots with numbers written next to them. He pointed to one that was coming in from the sea.

"Look. That's their transponder signal, Venture 5888. They're headed into port at 26 knots, but they ain't slowing down and I can't raise them."

"Try again."

The harbourmaster reached for the radio.

"Skipper, S.S. Venture, this is InGen Harbourmaster. Do you copy, over?"

There was no response; the computer showed no change in the ship's speed or course.

"Skipper, S.S. Venture, you are approaching the breakwater at flank speed. Reduce at once, over."

Again, nothing. Ludlow glanced out of the window, where a thick fog had settled in the chill early morning. The ship, though still not visible, could nonetheless be heard. An eerie thrumming, its engines most likely, began to grow louder. Outside, the assembled executives and harbour personnel stopped talking and looked out at the misty harbour, listening intently.

"What's everybody looking at?"

The woman with Dr. Malcolm had spoken. Malcolm listened, and a dawning look of horrified comprehension appeared on his face.

"We should've stayed in the damn car."

The distant thrumming had now become much louder, like the growling of some savage beast. Ludlow and the others emerged from the shack, staring out at the thick, impenetrable fog. Then, without warning, a large cargo ship exploded out of the fog. Unlike most ships, the bridge tower was located at the fore of the vessel, with the words S.S. Venture stamped on the hull. But Tim only really registered one thing; it was heading straight for the InGen docks, right where they were standing, at full speed.

"AAAAARRRRRRGGGHHH!"

Panic promptly ensued; the people on the dock had about ten seconds to get the hell outta there before the twenty ton ship crashed right into the dock and they put them to good use. Executives, security men, handlers and dock workers all scattered like ants under a magnifying glass, running every which way. Tim turned on his heel and ran, hearing Malcolm and the woman panting behind him in the same situation, and bizarrely recalled the rather traumatic but exhilarating experience he'd had on Isla Nublar, running for his life from a flock of stampeding Gallimimus. Barely had the last person cleared the dock before the sharp, pointed bow of the cargo barge slammed into the pier and, with a sound like the world crashing down around their ears, ploughed through a respectable seventy foot portion of it before finally coming to a halt. The harbourmaster's shack, evacuated in the nick of time, was obliterated into matchwood as it was in the direct path of the rogue vessel. Also in its path, and summarily and similarly destroyed, were a stack of heavy crates, a fancy limousine, two cranes and what looked like a giant metal lobster trap on a flatbed truck. As an eerie silence fell over the totaled dock, heads began to pop up curiously from their hiding places. Guards began to swarm the beached boat, utilising the still-intact roof of the harbourmaster's shack as a makeshift boarding ramp. Ludlow, Tim, Malcolm, the woman and a guard named Berner were the first up on deck. No sign of the crew, but a large cage like the one the ship had smashed lay in pieces on the deck and there were smears and streaks of what looked like blood. Noticing the open door to the bridge, Berner ran over to it and looked inside. Almost immediately, he withdrew his head, looking like he was about to throw up. He took great, steadying gasps, black face turning the colour of porridge.

"Oh, my God!"

"Where's the crew?"

Ludlow had been the one who asked; Berner glared at him.

"All over the place."

Ludlow glared back and went over to the door to have a look for himself, then stumbled back in horror and ran to the deck rail, heaving. Tim risked a glance past him and wished he hadn't as his own stomach did cartwheels; the captain's hand was on the wheel, but that was all that was left of him; everything a bit above the wrist was gone. Tim felt bile rise in his throat but forced it down.

"What happened here?"

Ludlow, face pale and sweaty beneath his wire-rimmed spectacles, had once again spoken. No-one answered, but the answer looked pretty obvious. Guards were scrambling all over the deck, slipping and stumbling a little on the stains and objects that looked suspiciously like body parts. A persistent mechanical grinding noise was issuing from somewhere near the amidships. The large, steel cargo door was caught in a perpetual state of half-opening and closing for some reason. The woman went over to the doors and then covered her mouth. Lying near the door control console, with the remote still clutched in his fingers, was the body of a man in sailor's clothing. Tim didn't fancy seeing what state this one was in, so he lingered behind as Dr. Malcolm went over. He took one look at the body, then at the doors and finally at the woman, who stared back with the same grim look of understanding.

"Check the cargo hold! There may be crew down there!"

Ludlow, trying to reassert command. Tim looked fearfully at Dr. Malcolm, who nodded.

"Everybody off the boat!"

Most of the men seemed to have been waiting for this because at his words there was an instant scramble for the ramp. All save one; Tim recognised the asshole guard, Randall, as he stepped over the corpse and pried the remote out of its death grip.

"NO! DON'T OPEN THAT!"

Randall smirked as he pushed the button.

"Why? What's gonna happ-?"

BOOM!

The huge heavy door exploded up, blasted open by something inside the ship's belly. Head held high and bellowing in rage, a massive green and black fully mature Tyrannosaurus Rex burst out of the cargo hold. Randall dropped the remote and ran for it, a wet stain flowering in his trousers; he'd pissed himself out of fear. A small part of Tim wanted to laugh; the rest of him, however, was screaming at him to get the hell outta there and, under the circumstances, he decided that was wiser. Terrified men and women scattered from the beast, scrambling down the ramp, diving behind equipment or even jumping overboard. But the Tyrannosaur wasn't interested in them, just getting off and away from this damn metal prison. The entire ship shuddered with each step the massive six-ton predator took. It spotted several dock workers scrambling along the dock below in terror and followed them down, roaring in hunger. Ludlow, frozen in shock, stared as the mighty dinosaur, his entire future, stomped off the ship and into the dock complex.

"Now you're John Hammond."

Malcolm had said it with no anger or irony, just grim understanding. Two security men came out of their hut, wondering what the hell all the racket was about, and saw the dinosaur. It saw them and they promptly turned tail and ran, passing through a checkpoint over which hung a large sign.

"WELCOME TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. NO FRUITS, VEGETABLES OR ANIMALS BEYOND THIS POINT."

The Tyrannosaur, however, was driven by rules set down by a far higher authority than the United States of America. He was hungry, thirsty and very pissed off; all the sign meant to it was an annoying obstacle that stood in the way of potential prey. With a swing of his mighty head, the T. Rex smashed through the sign like it was made of cardboard and stomped through the checkpoint, flattening two security fences and toppling a searchlight as he made his way to a tethered garbage barge, drawn by the smells of rotting meat. What he found there was not enough to sustain him, so he raised his head and saw, across the water, the sprawling metropolis of San Diego, ripe for the plunder. The Tyrannosaur took in a deep breath and let out a mighty bellowing roar.

"Why the hell wasn't it tranquilised?!"

With the dinosaur now off to terrorise San Diego, Tim had thought it safe to emerge from his hiding place. The dock was largely deserted, most people having fled in terror, but a few workers were still there, including Hampton who was being accosted by Malcolm's companion.

"It was tranquilised. Roland hit it with two darts filled with concentrated Carfentanil. It was over 10 milligrams."

"10 milligrams?! That'd put it into a coma!"

"It stopped breathing so we gave it naltrexone to counteract the effects, but we didn't know how much to give it. We had to guess the dosage."

The woman looked both scandalised and furious.

"You administered an antagonist without knowing the proper dosage?! You put the animal in a narcoleptic state, that thing's a locomotive now!"

Tim knew enough from his studies that the irregular combination of drugs in the Tyrannosaur's system had to be driving it mad. Certainly, at the very least it would have a massive hangover and more than likely be suffering from dehydration.

"Look, we're prepared here."

"Are there any more dinosaurs still on the boat?"

"No, Dr. Malcolm. We brought the infant back on the plane. But, look, we had this to tranquilise it."

Hampton had managed to yank a large rifle out from the wreckage of the flatbed that had been intended to transport the adult. It was a huge tranquiliser rifle, firing darts with a gas-powered cylinder built into the butt of the rifle; it had one hell of a recoil, but the power was necessary since the animal had very thick skin. Tim spotted Ludlow, who was sitting on a crate staring blankly into space; he appeared to be in shock, though Tim was willing to bet that his trauma stemmed more from the loss of the millions he'd been envisioning. He walked up to his cousin.

"Hey! Where's the infant?"

Ludlow seemed to come back down slightly. Almost dreamily, he murmured.

"It's safe. It has to be; everything rides on it, the future of InGen, my future."

Tim snorted; money. All he cared about was money, not about the fact that bringing the creature here had put not only it in danger, but hundreds of innocent people as well. He walked back to where Dr. Malcolm was.

"Tim. You really shouldn't be here."

"I've been in worse, Dr. Malcolm. I got chased by Velociraptors in a kitchen, remember?"

That still gave him nightmares, especially the noises the damn things had made as they hunted him and his sister. The woman was looking at him.

"You know Ian?"

"He was on the first island with me. Hammond's grandson."

Tim held out his hand.

"Tim Murphy."

"Dr. Sarah Harding. You're very polite for your age."

"You can blame my mother for that."

"Don't. Women like that sort of thing."

"I'm sure they do, but my boyfriend likes it better."

This usually caused raised eyebrows but she didn't even blink. Ian decided to steer the conversation back on track.

"Sarah, the dinosaur?"

"Right. The drugs will have made him severely dehydrated, so the first thing it's gonna do is find a water source. Then it's gonna look for the next thing it's body needs."

"Food."

Tim glanced at the lights of the city gleaming across the water.

"Well, it's spoiled for choice in that department."

"All the containment equipment is here, we've gotta get it back to the dock. The boat might still be seaworthy."

"I think I know what you're getting at."

"When we brought the baby to the trailer, it came. There's no reason to think it won't do the same thing here."

"Yep."

Tim, who was unaware of the trailer debacle, nonetheless got the gist of what they were planning.

"So, we find the baby, find the adult and lure it back here?"

"In a nutshell."

"Without getting eaten?"

"Hopefully."

"Right. But first, we have to find the infant."

As one, they looked at the still-catatonic Ludlow.

In the meantime, the male Tyrannosaurus was making his way through a quiet suburb, even quieter in the early hours. His stomping footsteps rippled the puddles in the street as he made his way into a small cul-de-sac, flattening an ornamental shrub. The adult had never seen houses and cars and streetlights but right now, he wasn't caring. The drugs had given him a splitting headache, he was dangerously in need of water and his stomach was growling louder than even he could manage. He sniffed the air, trying to catch the scent of water or food, and caught it coming from a nearby house's backyard. He stomped through the front garden, leaving metre-long foot-deep imprints in the perfectly manicured lawn, and into the backyard. Over the wall, in the garden of the next house, was a swimming pool. The dinosaur sniffed it curiously, since it smelled different to the water on the island, but decided it was worth the risk and stepped over the wall…. or rather, through it. Motion sensor lights flicked on in the garden, but he crushed them contemptuously under his feet as he made for the pool.

In the house itself, a little boy of about ten lay sleeping in his bedroom, which overlooked the back garden. The booming footsteps interrupted his dreams, waking him up. He opened his eyes blearily, seeing the water in his fish tank rippling in tune with the odd thumping, and felt fear steal through his body.

"Mum? Dad?"

He rolled over and got up, looking out the window. Then, to his amazement, something walked past it. The head of a huge reptile, with sharp brows, leathery green skin and a long snout filled with teeth like kitchen knives. He shook his head slowly, wondering if the pot roast his mother made for dinner might be making him hallucinate, but no. There was a real live dinosaur, a T. Rex, in his back garden. The animal's head stopped beside the window and peered in, curious. It saw the boy staring at it and let out a curious little growl; it didn't remember this little one. Without making a sound, the boy crawled out of his bed and went out into the hall, heading for his parents' bedroom. Outside, the adult dipped his massive head down into the pool and began to drink, gulping down great mouthfuls of the strange tasting but gratifying water.

"Woof-woof! Woof! Woof-woof-woof!"

His late-night drinking had disturbed the garden's permanent resident, an unpleasant looking pit bull on a chain. The name stencilled on the doghouse named him as Rex. The dog, unintimidated by the larger predator, kept barking, yanking on his chain as he pulled the doghouse closer. The Tyrannosaur, finishing his drink, looked at the annoying little yappy thing and snarled loudly. Whimpering, the pooch turned and hid in his doghouse.

Inside the house, Benjamin looked at his sleeping parents.

"There's a dinosaur in our backyard."

They didn't move. Two seconds later, however, they were groaning as he pulled the sheets off them.

"Benjamin? What are you doing?"

"Benjamin, it's two in the morning."

"Come on! There's a dinosaur in our backyard."

Benjamin's parents, arguing the whole time with Benjamin pushing them from behind, went into his room.

"It's the stupid fish tank! He needs a proper nightlight!"

"It's not the tank! Benjamin, please stop pushing me."

"It may as well be daytime!"

"It isn't. Just turn it off and-"

Benjamin's father cut himself off mid-sentence, staring in shock out the window. His wife joined him and her mouth clamped shut as well. Outside the window, head completely level with it, was the Tyrannosaur, chewing on something in his mouth. Dangling from between his teeth, hooked on the chain, was the family's doghouse. Biting down, the chain snapped and the doghouse fell, shattering into bits as it struck the patio below. As the parents stood, open-mouthed in shock, Benjamin popped up from behind them with a camera pressed to his eye and took a picture. Unfortunately, the light was on and the bright flash of light struck the dinosaur in his eye. He reared his head back and let out a roar of anger and fright, causing the entire window to shake in its frame. Startled into action, both of Benjamin's parents leapt back from the window with screams of terror. Blinking furiously, the dinosaur let out another roar, swung round on his heel and stomped out of the garden and back out into the street, setting off alarms and causing lights to flicker on in the surrounding houses. A flashy SUV parked at the kerb was rattled at his approach and its alarm began wailing, orange indicator lights flashing in agitation. Annoyed by the sound and light, the adult snarled at the car and swung his head to the side as he passed it. The SUV was flipped end over end into the air before crashing upside down into a boat trailer. Unperturbed by the damage he'd caused, the adult shook his head and stomped off in the direction of downtown.

The guards at the InGen Jurassic Park amphitheatre didn't know what the company planned to do with it and they didn't care. All they cared about was whether or not they got paid, and the company paid them to guard the place and keep out intruders. So when the headlights of a fast-moving car became visible in the distance, they barely stirred themselves thinking it would be a simple matter. However, the car maintained its high speed even as it got closer.

"Slow down! Hey, slow it down! Hey!"

Finally realising they weren't going to stop, the guards jumped out of the way just as the car, a red convertible, reached the barriers and smashed clean through them. Ian, in the driver's seat, didn't even look back; Tim, in the back, did.

"You know they might shoot us, don't you?"

"They can try. But we have to get this baby."

The amphitheatre loomed in front of them, majestic despite its half-completed state. Tim felt the feeling of deja vu as they drove through the main gate, an exact replica of the gates from Jurassic Park. The car drove past scattered equipment and into a holding pen, where they scrambled out of the car.

"There it is."

The baby Tyrannosaur was lying on a bed of straw in a cage, breathing heavily. Sarah gingerly opened one eyelid.

"He's sedated, really heavily. Come on, give me a hand."

Tim helped to pick it up; it was much heavier than it looked, but fully mature ones of his species could grow to weigh several tons. Ian opened the passenger door and Sarah scrambled into the back of the car. Tim got in the passenger seat and did up his seatbelt.

"When the adult sees us, once again with his baby, isn't he going to be like 'YOU!' There may be some angry recognition."

"Who knows? He may just be happy to see us."

As Ian clambered into the car, half a dozen guards burst in, brandishing pistols.

"Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

Tim stared down the one who had spoken, totally unafraid.

"We're taking the kid. If you really want to stop us, shoot us."

It was a bluff; he knew they wouldn't shoot a kid. As the car reversed out, he heard Sarah call out from the back seat.

"How will we find the adult?"

"Follow the screams."

An attractive blonde woman, eyes popping and screaming non-stop in horror, threw her BMW into reverse and the engine roared, accelerating backwards as fast as possible. The cars on either side of hers did the same, drivers also screaming and staring straight ahead. On the pavement on both sides of the busy street, late-night commuters fled for their lives in the same direction, screaming as well. A sedan drove in from a side street and was knocked two feet to the side as the decelerating BMW slammed into it, followed by the other two cars. The driver of the sedan shook his head, regaining his grasp on the world, and looked angrily at the car that had hit him. However, the angry retort died on his lips as he saw what everyone was running from. Stomping down the neon-lined street, in defiance of the fact that his species had been extinct for 65 million years, was the adult Tyrannosaurus. The drivers scrambled from their wrecked vehicles and joined in the fleeing crowd as the dinosaur stomped towards them. Another car hit the pile-up, flew high into the air and crashed back down on its roof, one wheel dislodging and rolling away. Above, the light turned red and the crossing signal began beeping. Noticing this, the dinosaur reached up and clamped his jaws down on the traffic lights, tearing them right out of their moorings. A city bus rounded the corner and promptly did a 180 as its occupants caught sight of the dinosaur.

"Holy shit!"

Spitting out the inedible traffic lights, the adult instead set his sights on the fleeing bus, sending the passengers scrambling to the opposite side in panic. The driver honked the horn, trying to drive it off, but the Tyrannosaur interpreted it as a challenge and bellowed his own before ramming his head into the side of the vehicle. The bus's windows exploded in sprays of glass chips and the vehicle lurched to one side before smashing through the glass front of a Blockbuster video store. Ignoring the bus, the dinosaur turned down another busy street, where the people there screamed and fled from him, scrambling over parked cars in their haste to get away. Caught up in the thrill of the hunt, the adult gave chase, snapping at the heels of those who lagged at the rear of the herd. This was how they got prey when hunting a herd, instincts hardwired into every predator's brain; pick off those who lagged or strayed, take whatever Nature offered when she offered it. And she offered it now; one of the fleeing humans, a man in glasses and a plaid shirt, broke off from the main group and ran for the entrance to a shop. Immediately, the Tyrannosaur swung away from the herd of fleeing humans and went for the lone straggler. He wrenched on the door handle and got it open, but the whole door was ripped out of its frame as the adult swung his head down and captured the unlucky bastard in his jaws. The man yelled and kicked, but these quickly dissolved into nothing as the adult bit down hard on him, crushing him in its jaws. Shaking its prey to ensure it was dead, the adult dropped the body behind a car and began to feed.

Ian drove through endless streets, looking for any sign of the rampaging Tyrannosaur. In the back, the baby was starting to wake up properly but was still groggy. As they drove down a busy main road, they saw something that was encouraging; a group of people, faces blanched in terror, running as fast as they could in the opposite direction. Then, up ahead, they saw it.

"There, there, there."

"Oh, my God."

Cars skidded on the wet road as their drivers spotted the angry theropod storming down the road towards them. People in the queue ahead of them were abandoning their cars and running, so Ian pulled the convertible into a recently vacated petrol station.

"He's never gonna know we have it if it won't make some kind of sound!"

"He's too drugged! Come on, little guy, wake up!"

The baby let out a tired little groan; up ahead, the adult turned his head and saw them. He turned his head a little to be sure, then let out an enraged bellow that sounded oddly like.

"YOU!"

"He knows!"

The dinosaur swung his head under the petrol station canopy and snapped at them, jaws closing inches from the front bumper. Ian threw the car into reverse and the adult roared, charging after them. An abandoned minivan was flipped out of his path, a moped squashed flat under his feet. They drove back the way they came, cars and people scattering as they saw what was coming after them. Sarah called from the back seat.

"Ian, slow down a little!"

Tim risked a glance in his mirror, which said "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear". Not helping.

"Uhh, I don't think so!"

They were nearing the docks now, police sirens getting audible. As they drove into the dock complex, four police cars and an animal control vehicle drove around the corner and skidded to a halt as they saw the Tyrannosaur. Supremely pissed off at more squealing and flashing vehicles, the adult bellowed full volume at the emergency vehicles. The cops took the hint; all four cars threw their gears into reverse and drove off, the animal control truck not far behind. Grunting in a satisfied manner, the adult resumed his chase after the car. In the back, the baby was now almost fully awake and struggling to get away.

"The ship should be on the other side of this warehouse!"

"But there's no way through!"

"I'm about to make one! Brace yourselves!"

The convertible smashed right through the wall of the warehouse, skidding to a halt inside. Tim threw off his seatbelt as Ian got out of the car and helped Sarah out.

"There we go. You have to follow me now!"

Ian heaved the baby in his own arms and they began to run for the water.

"Where's the Rex? Is it still behind us?"

CRASH!

As if in answer, the Tyrannosaur exploded through the wall they'd just crashed through, making the hole twice as big. He roared and kept up the chase.

Peter Ludlow sat in his car, phone pressed to his ear.

"Shoot it. Shoot it, tell them to shoot it. No, you idiot, the adult, shoot the adult! I want the baby back alive!"

At that moment, Ian, Sarah and Tim all ran past, the baby calling out in distress. Ludlow hung up the phone and got out of the car, giving chase as they ran up the ramp and onto the ship. Tim paused as he saw something on the deck.

"I've got this! Put the baby back in the hold!"

Ludlow climbed up onto the deck and grabbed Tim by the shirt front.

"Where are they?! What have you done with the infant?!"

Ian and Sarah emerged from the cargo hold and began running for the railing. Ludlow spotted them and threw Tim away.

"What have you done with it?! I want that infant!"

But they just jumped overboard. A helicopter began to circle, searchlight hovering over the docks. Then, a familiar howling issued from below deck, coming from the cargo hold. Ludlow cautiously peered in.

"Are you there?"

He went further inside, then his foot nudged something. It was the baby dinosaur's muzzle, bitten through. He felt the ship shudder, but dismissed it. He'd spotted the baby, huddled in a corner. It snarled at him, remembering him as the drunken idiot who'd broken it's leg.

"Ah, there you are. Now, come here."

He advanced on it, arms outstretched, but it suddenly darted past him and, turning around, he almost soiled himself at the sight of the adult, who'd entered the hold behind him and was now nuzzling his child affectionately. Then he saw the executive and let out an explosive growl. Finally he had one of these puny creatures at his mercy, which was non-existent right now. Ludlow stumbled back, hands piteously waving.

"Wait. Wait. Wait!"

He spoke to it like a master ordering a dog; but this was no dog. Seeing his chance, Ludlow pushed his way through a stack of boxes and fled up the ramp. Halfway up, however, he went down as the adult bumped him with his snout. Then he screamed in agony as the huge dinosaur took his left leg in his jaws and bit down decisively, causing the bone to break with a sound like a twig being stepped on. Holding the hapless executive in his mouth, the Tyrannosaur deposited him on the floor in front of his son, who watched with interest. Ludlow got up and tried to hobble away, but the adult knocked him back down. Father and son watched him struggle to crawl away, then Junior turned to his dad as if seeking something. The adult motioned his head towards the helpless prey and gave a wee nod. Junior opened his mouth, showing teeth that would be as big as his dad's one day, and pounced on Ludlow. The man's high-pitched screams echoed throughout the hold as the adult watched his son make his first kill. It was a proud moment, for him anyway.

A fleet of police cars were now converging on the docks, along with several helicopters bristling with marksmen. Ian and Sarah, dripping wet, ran back up onto the deck while Tim wrestled with the tranquiliser rifle he'd spotted earlier. The blasted thing was heavy, but he was in the best spot to get a shot on the adult. It was imperative it be restrained before the police snipers could kill the poor creature; yes, it had caused a lot of damage and killed a man, but it was also a scared and confused animal that did not belong here. Ian ran over to the door controls and pressed the button to close them; the adult roared up at the hovering helicopters, annoyed by their presence. Sarah ran up to where Tim was, holding something.

"You'll need these!"

It was a box of tranquiliser darts, industrial strength. Tim grabbed one and loaded it into the gun.

"You know how to use that?"

"Time to see if the video games paid off."

He heaved the rifle up and looked down the scope, targeting the adult through the closing doors, then pulled the trigger. With a hiss of compressed gas, the dart shot out of the barrel and buried itself in the thick leathery skin of the Tyrannosaur's neck. The adult let out a howl of anger; not again! Tim watched as it turned its furious glare on him through the narrow gap between the closing doors, feeling the rage and power in that gaze. Then the doors closed with a muffled boom and there was silence.

The S.S. Venture, still seaworthy despite having rammed a dock at high speed, was steaming steadily through the waves, bound for Isla Sorna. In the captain's cabin, Tim sat watching a battered old television set on which the ship was visible in a news report, along with the half dozen or so US naval battleships and carriers escorting it.

"There's a really first-rate shot of the deck of the ship, and the cargo hold that, for the moment anyway, contains the animal itself. Presumably with the infant, alongside."

He'd just hung up the phone with his boyfriend, a really sweet 15 year old from Hawaii named Freddie, who'd spent half the phone call fangirling over the dinosaur thing and the other half chewing him out for not telling him about the whole thing. Tim had coaxed him with promises of every little detail, since everyone knew the truth about Jurassic Park now.

"Now, we're going to take a moment and run the tape of our interview earlier with John Hammond. He's the former head of InGen Bioengineering, the man who's come forward now to spearhead this movement not only to return these animals to their island, but to keep the island itself intact."

Tim smiled as his grandfather's kindly visage appeared on the screen, speaking in that comforting Scottish accent of his.

"It is absolutely imperative that we work with the Costa Rican Department of Biological Preserves to establish a set of rules, for the preservation and isolation of that island. These creatures require our absence to survive, not our help. And if we could only step aside, and trust in nature, life will find a way."

These words were still resonating with Tim a few hours later, as he watched the adult and baby leave the ship and stomp down onto the beach. As they watched, they saw another adult, much larger than the first and with brown skin, emerge from the trees and roar a welcome. The mother, most likely; she stomped forwards to greet them, nuzzling her mate and then bowing her head to do the same with the baby. The two adults turned their heads towards the ship for a final time, fixing their powerful eyes on the watching humans, then turned away and lumbered off back into the tree cover with their child.