The cool morning air passes through the driver's side window, gently blowing over Claire's face. Sitting back against the seat, her whole body is utterly relaxed; her arms droop from her hands, only a slight grip on the steering wheel. The sky overhead is a deep blue, the faintest traces of green starting to appear over the mountains in the East. The surrounding forest is still bathed in shadow for the moment, the car headlights the brightest lights currently shining along the service roads. Up ahead is a wooden sign post. When the headlights strike it, Claire sees the words written in black paint.
Visitor's Center, T. rex Kingdom -
Claire, follows the sign, turning right at a bend in the dirt road up ahead.
The road takes her along the length of a tall, concrete wall running up and down the road on her right. Claire tries not to look at it, and takes a deep breath as she continues down the path. She eases the pressure of her foot on the gas pedal to keep calm, bringing the car to a mild crawl.
Boom
Claire bring the car to a smooth stop when she hears it, or when she thinks she hears it anyway.
That paddock is the size of Trafalgar Square – what are the odds she'd be here?
Sitting in the stopped car, Claire glances over at the 25 foot high wall of concrete just a few feet from the vehicle. After deciding it was just a trick of the early morning, she prepares to continue on her way.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Claire knows she didn't imagine anything this time. She didn't imagine the sound, nor the subtle shaking of her rear-view mirror. The deep booms continue at a slow pace, growing louder and stronger with each one. Shaking her head, Claire brings her foot back down on the gas pedal, and the car lurches forward at an increased speed down the road. It's not too long before the booms start to shrink in power and volume, and Claire lets out a long sigh of relief when she can't hear anymore, laughing quietly at herself.
After passing by the paddock, Claire passes a sign that reads 'Employee Parking Lot' and pulls casually into a spot, the very first spot by the back door with a sign of its own stating 'Reserved for Park Manager.' Claire can't help but smile at the sight of the post. Grabbing her purse and a brief case from the passenger seat, she exits the car, locks the door behind her, and strolls pridefully through the doors.
Inside, her foot steps against the hard floor echo from wall to wall down the hallway. Only some of the lights are on, giving it a haunting atmosphere. But Claire was resolute in her morning cheer, making efforts to bid 'good morning' to ever custodial worker and security guard she passed by.
With just one trip up the elevator, Claire flashes her ID badge to the standing guard, who takes a quick glance and smiles. "Good morning, Ms. Dearing."
"Good morning….Mark!" she says, quickly glancing at his badge. The control room is dead quiet, and nearly pitch black. Taking out a keychain, Claire struggles for a moment to remember which one is the right key for the fuse box, finally remembering that the gold one with the number 11 on it is the right one. She flips two switches – 19 and 26 – and soon the whole room is lit up by a modest orange light, contrasting against all the blue of the furniture and computer screens. Going down the line of monitors, Claire, lazily turns them all on. They sit, quietly humming to themselves, waiting for their users to set them to work.
About a half hour after arriving, the elevator door opens again, and Zara strides through, carrying two cups of Starbucks coffee. "Morning!" she calls to Claire.
"Oh thank God," Claire says, not even waiting for Zara to reach to reach her before holding her hand for the cup. "You are a godsend, Zara," Claire says, taking a long sip from the cup.
"You know what's funny?" Zara asks. "I actually almost got lost looking for the Starbucks."
"What are you talking about, it's right on Main Street!" Claire says, chuckling with incredulity.
"Well, it's still pretty dark out there!" Zara says, laughing with her boss. "I was standing outside Ben and Jerry's for a half hour before I realized the difference."
"Oh Zara….what am I going to do with you," Claire says, shaking her head slowly and grinning.
"I don't know, but you best wait until after work," Zara says, winking at Claire.
Not long after, more control room workers start showing up, wishing everyone else in the room good morning before setting up at their station, engaging in light chit-chat with their desk mates. One of the first to arrive is Vivian, dressed in a knee-length white skirt and light blue blouse. Impeccably kept, she takes a seat at one of the two Main Control Stations. About a half hour later – one minute before the obligated start time – Lowery walks in, wearing a grey vest over a white t shirt, tucked into a pair of blue jeans. He takes a seat next to Vivian at the other main control station.
At precisely 7:00 AM, Claire stands at the head of the room, in front of a giant monitor showing the whole of Isla Nublar. "Alright, listen up everyone," Claire calls out, drawing everyone's attention to her. "This is it – the day we've all been waiting for. Everything we've done up until now has been leading to this day. Today, we make history….yada, yada, yada, it's all very big and ceremonial, you get the drill." Everyone else laughs. "But seriously, everyone, this is gonna be a big day. However, you shouldn't let that intimidate you. If you are in this room, it is because you were chosen specifically because – out all possible candidates – you are the absolute best for the job," (she says while trying hard not to look at Lowery). "No matter what this park can throw at us, we can handle it. You can handle it. If you have a problem, don't hesitate to come get me. Together – we will make Jurassic World work!"
Lowery is actually the first to applaud, coaxing the others to join in. Claire, to her own surprise, smiles and nods at him, and at all the others. Vivian raises her hand, "Excuse me, Ms. Dearing-"
"Vivian, come on- call me Claire!" Claire says.
Vivian gives a small smile before continuing. "Okay…Claire, um when are check ins supposed to being?"
"Excellent question. Check ins should be coming in by 7:30. If you don't receive one by 7:45 call the attraction or facility, they might just be caught up with something. They will be penalized if they don't check in by 8:00 AM."
Lower then raises his hand. "Hey Claire, uh, what's the deal on bathroom breaks?"
"Thinking practically – like it," Claire says, giving him a thumbs up. "We have breakers on every floor in the building. Call one of them, and they will man your station while you do what you need to do."
"And what about food and stuff, can we eat in here?" Lower asks.
"You can…just try to keep things tidy. Dinosaurs are one thing. Roaches are another," she says, to the laughter of her audience.
"One last thing," Lowery says. "What are the rules on personal workspace? Like, can we bring in pictures of family or -?"
"You may personalize your workspace, just make sure that none of your effects violate any of our codes regarding permissible imagery. Basically, if you can't wear it, you can't put in on your desk. Does anyone else have any questions?"
"What do we do if we lose our work badge?" one of the workers calls out from the back of the room.
"Badges can be replaced, but there's a $10 fine for each replacement," Claire says. When no one else, raises their hands, Claire checks her watch briefly, and says, "Alright then! Let's get ready!"
Within 15 minutes, the lines begin to stir with activity.
Patrick Murphy, checking in for Mobile Veterinary Unit
Brendan Anderson, checking in for Concessions
Abigail Carrier, checking in for Maintenance
Maxwell Powers, checking in for the Hilton Isla Nublar
Amelia Gillan, checking in for T. Rex Kingdom
Sharon Hill, checking in for Ferry Landing
Kunal Patel, checking in for the Museum of Natural History
Henry Wu, checking in for Hammond Creation Lab
Jeff Thomas, checking in for Safari Tours
Katashi Hamada, checking in for Asset Containment
Brian Switek, checking in for the Visitors' Center
As the minutes ticked by, more and more sections of the park check in, with each check in being logged into the system. The only slight hiccup came from the coordinator at the Gondola lift, who seemed to be having trouble getting the thing to work. A quick call to maintenance had a repairman on his way in less than a minute. By 8:45, all the stations had been contacted.
Except for one.
"Anyone not checked in yet?" Claire asks, the instant the second hand of her watch hits the mark.
"Only one attraction. The Pachy Arena?" Vivian says, wondering if she pronounced Pachy correctly.
"Oh I can take care of that," Lowery says, picking up the phone. "Hi, Lowery Cruthers from park control, checking in. Everything alright?"
No answer.
"Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no," Claire says quietly to herself, hoping none of the employees can hear her. She leans over Lowery. "Get me a feed on the Arena."
With just a few buttons tapped on Lowery's keyboard, the monitor switches to a view of an open space. Bare, dirty ground spreads out toward a circular wall spanning the camera's view. Lines of seats are stacked on top of each other like the Roman coliseum. What Claire sees in the center of the arena nearly cause her to shout something obscene in the control room.
A man lays spread eagled over the ground, face down in the dirt. He isn't moving. At the lower left-hand corner of the screen, there is something moving – swaying like a tree branch in the wind – but there is no wind. It takes Claire a second to recognize the tail for what it is.
Lowery doesn't even think. He picks up the phone and says, "ACU, this Lowery Cruthers from Park Control, we have a Code 18 at Pachy Arena," putting down the phone for a second, he turns to Vivian. "Vivian, please call Guest Relations, inform them that the Pachy Arena is closed until further notice." He then goes back to his own phone and picks it up once again. "Medic Team, this is Lowery Cruthers from Park Control. We have a Code 12 at the Pachy Arena, victim is lying face down in the ground, does not appear conscious." He waits for a response before saying, "Okay got it, thanks." Then he turns to face everyone in the room, before saying in a loud voice. "Just so everyone knows, we have a Code 12 and a Code 18 at Pachy Arena, that attraction is closed until further notice."
Claire looks at Lowery with wide eyes as she sees him take a seat back at his desk. In the quiet that followed, a wide smile breaks out over her face and she gives him a very firm pat on the back. "Lowery! Good job! Excellent job! Good calls, all around!"
"Thanks Claire!" he says, noticing the subtle hint of surprise in her voice.
Letting out a huge sigh at his desk, she stands back up and checks her watch again. "8 O'clock on the dot," she says. "the ferry should be arriving just about now…."
One by one, the eager tourists descend down the ramp to the dock. The gleaming orange sun stays hidden behind the mountains, shading the guests from its intense rays. The gleaming white tour boat that carried them here lies dormant in the midst of the harbor, gleaming blue letter spelling out 'Isla Nublar Ferry' on its hull. Dressed for their summer bets, there is a somewhat homogenous mixture of shorts – both jean and khaki – as well as dozens of brightly colored vacation shirts. Many have come already dress in bathing suits, the sound of the flip flops lost in the excited chatter that had broken out upon arrival. Many cameras are already out, enthusiastically snapping photos of every mundane detail of the island, most especially the sign posts lining the dock leading up to the first monorail station. They spell out "Welcome to Isla Nublar!" in no less than half a dozen languages.
At the base of the escalator leading up to the monorail station, there is a podium where Simon Masrani watches proudly as the procession of tourists draws ever nearer. Behind him at his sides are all of his board members, Lilah sitting to his immediate right. The visitors are herded into a space surrounding the podium, spacious enough to hold them all with plenty of elbow room. A yacht employee at the very back of the crowd gives Masrani a thumbs up, letting him know that all of the guests are unloaded. Behind him, the luggage is loaded out of the boat cargo and onto a series of trucks.
At the sight of the thumbs up, Masrani taps the microphone to get everyone's attention. When they have pretty much all calmed down, Masrani speaks. "Good morning, everyone!" They answer him in turn with a dull roar. "I know you're all anxious to embark on your adventure, so I'll try to keep this brief. In 1987, Dr. John Parker Hammond had a dream. Of all his dreams, it was the grandest, the boldest, and the most spectacular. It was to resurrect worlds seemingly lost forever, and to bring mankind face to face with the most amazing group of animals ever to set foot on this planet. Though John Hammond was plagued by failure, and he would die before seeing this dream realized – here, today, we are privileged to witness the fulfillment of that dream. Within moments, you will see, with your own eyes, creatures never before seen by human eyes. You will be the first, but not the last. You are the intrepid pioneers who will launch this park into the forefront of popular entertainment. Indeed, the wonder and awe that you are about to experience will be the envy of all the world
"So before you begin on this prehistoric adventure, let me just take this time to share with you my hopes for you and for this park. It is my hope that, when you see the animals who call this island home, you will recognize the extraordinary power of nature to create, and to destroy. You will learn something of the history of life on our beautiful, blue planet. And most of all, that you will take the experiences you make this day, and carry them with you for the rest of your life. And that – armed with this newfound sense of humility and awe – you will work to make this world of ours a better place, for all creatures, great and small.
"But now, enough with speeches. Your adventure awaits! So, allow me – Simon Masrani – to be the first to say: Welcome to Jurassic World!"