Jurassic Park Broken Lives
Chapter 36: The Forgotten Tapes
Disclaimer: I do not own Jurassic Park
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Author Note: For those who would like to know, I plan to have this story as a whole at least one hundred chapters long. Then there is the prequel to it, though I may not have much time to work on it because of this story. Jurassic Park the Beginning explains what happened before Broken Lives to the original raptors of Site B. Thank you for the numerous reviews in the last chapter and I hope that you, the reader, will continue to review because I like to know where I could get improvement or at least ideas for future chapters and general comments.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Amanda hummed lightly as she scrubbed at her hair vigorously to rid it of knots and dirt. In the time shortly after Sophia and Zenith had left, she had decided to explore a bit of the building with Silver Claw. It had not taken them long to find out that the building had running water and a fair amount of working electrical devices. Most important of all to Amanda, a working shower. It was stubborn at first with only a few droplets falling from the spout but after some time it slowly trickled out greenish-brown water and then finally, the water cleared and out came a full and constant torrent. It was warm to the touch. Though the water hurt her wounds a little, it was too refreshing to pass up.
Silver Claw stood outside the shower room. Even though he was her mate, she felt uncomfortable being without clothing in front of him. She did not know why. It was not like he was human and would get any excitement out of it but the whole idea of her being nude in front of another made her too self-conscious about her appearance, especially now with her injuries.
Amanda looked to the towel bar where she had hung the blanket that she had wrapped around her to go with Silver Claw down the halls. She had forgot to ask him why her shorts had gone missing but she suspected that it had something to do with the fact that she had pissed herself and that they most likely smelled terrible while she was laying in bed unconscious for all that time. She hoped that only Silver Claw knew of her tattoo.
Amanda reached for the bottle of shampoo and condition that she had found near the door on a small shelf. She shrieked. A large thick legged spider the size of her hand crawled out from a crevasse in the wall next to where she had placed the shampoo.
"Amanda, is everything alright?" Silver Claw said from outside the door.
"There's a spider in here," Amanda said and backed further away as it crawled towards the far wall. "It's a big one."
"Eat it," said Silver Claw. "You need to regain you strength."
"No," Amanda protested. "Could you kill it?"
Silver Claw sighed and entered the room. Amanda had wrapped herself in an orange towel that she had found to dry herself off with. However, she was standing as far away as she could from the creeping insect as she could possibly be. Silver Claw slowly crossed the floor and in one quick swoop, snapped up the insect and brought an end to its life. A greenish liquid leeched out of his mouth as he chewed and it dribbled down his jaw before dripping to the cold stone floor beneath him.
A chill ran down Amanda's spin as she watched. It creped her out more than anything else she had seen him do. "I don't know how you can eat that," Amanda said out of sheer disgust.
"Its food," said Silver Claw plainly.
"Still…" Amanda shuddered as the spider's body crackled upon Silver Claw closing his maw again. She had to look away.
Silver Claw tossed back what was left and looked at the steady stream of water from the shower. "So this is what a shower does?" He stepped forward and under the water. After a moment, he closed his eyes and began to purr. It sounded much like a cat but more deep and with a hint of a low, delighted growl.
Amanda stood quietly as the water poured off Silver Claw's sides and he seemed to forget she was the one who was using it in the first place. She began to tap her foot impatiently but then a devilish grin formed on her face and she moved to several sinks on the other side of the room. She twisted the knob to on.
Silver Claw let out a yelp in surprise as the icy sting of the water drenched his body. He hopped out of the water and quickly moved to the door. Amanda began to chuckle quietly to herself.
"Why did it do that?"
"I turned this tap on," Amanda laughed. "It made the water run cold." She turned it off and smiled.
"Why would you do that," Silver Claw walked over to her until his snout was less than an inch away from her face.
"Because I love you," Amanda said and gave him a light kiss on the snout. "Though you don't interrupt a lady when she is showering and it seemed you were not about to move any time soon so I made you."
Silver Claw let out a low hiss of amusement. He grabbed a hold of the towel covering Amanda and showed his teeth. Amanda quickly grabbed hold of the towel near to where he had hold.
"What are you doing," Amanda said in a serious tone, no longer laughing or cheerful.
Silver Claw let go and stepped back. "I thought that you wanted to play." Silver Claw lowered his head.
Amanda sighed. "I don't like being around people without my cloths. How about this, after I'm finished in here we do something, ok."
Silver Claw replied only with a head nod and quietly left the room.
Amanda let out a sigh as the clicks of his claws slowly quieted as he stopped outside the door and she presumed that he was now resting on the floor outside. Amanda sighed. She felt bad for him. He seemed to enjoy it so much but she made him leave. Amanda glanced around the room and noticed a large yellow hamper filled with clothing.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tessa stopped in one of the many volcanic tunnels under Isla Sorna. She looked around in the perpetual darkness that surrounded her and listened for the slightest noise that told she had been followed. She heard none.
Of all the caves, she knew of only one the others had no knowledge of. A cramped crack in the wall that the others had presumed to be just that, a crack, but it was more than that, much more. It led into a narrow passageway that barely any of the others could have a hope of fitting into but she could fit.
The tunnel was short but if one was to get stuck, they could not escape. If they were to struggle, it was more than likely that the roof would collapse in; it was of a very soft material. The small passage connected to a larger tunnel that reeked of a foul smell, a potent concoction of dung and other such wastes that had washed in from the surface. It was a haven for the fat rats that could not survive long on the surface where they would be picked off quickly by predators of every sort. The structure was composed of a rough stone that seemed very similar to the material that the humans used to make up their building. Though through the muck that covered it, it would be nearly impossible to tell.
Tessa pushed her way into the tunnel. The first time she had used it, it was to escape the first time when she found out that she was pregnant with Zenith, the only one that survived when she laid a clutch of twelve. She could not bear to have him live in the torture of the nesting grounds deep underground. She thought it fortunate that she lost much of her weight since last passing this way. The fit was not as tight and much easier on her scales.
She struggled little in the boundary where the passage met the tunnel and the wall had thinned since last time she had been through. She stepped into the thick, dark waters of the tunnel. Around her, squealing in fright of an intruder, rats scurried away into smaller tunnels that were only large enough for them to enter. She knew better now than to catch and eat one so sniffed the air instead. Tessa shook her head in distaste. She hated that it had to come to this but it was the only way.
Tessa paused. She could not remember which of the ways she had taken the last time to reach the building. The tunnel led to each of the buildings on the island but it was a terrible route, especially after a hard rain. Then it came to her, the current. That is what she had followed.
She felt the current running past her claws and turned into it. It would take her a few "hours" (as the humans had called the passage of time when she cared to listen in) to reach the building where as the others would take a day or more depending on the route they chose to take. She stepped onto a broad path along the far side and began to run. I will see my son soon, she thought as she ducked to avoid getting entangled in the cables that hung down in numerous parts of the tunnels.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Amanda slipped into a light shirt and shorts that appeared to be as clean as they would be after the time they had spent in the basket. She did not like that fact that they looked like a tan when they should have been a white but they would do. At least there just happened to be some women's clothing in the pile that was about her size.
She looked around a saw several brushes and a large bucket. She smiled and grabbed the bucket and a brush. Amanda quietly moved to the shower and filled up the bucket before moving next to the wall that separated the door and the showers so that one could not see in unless they stepped around the wall.
"Amanda," Silver Claw questioned. She had stopped humming and became quiet for some time.
Amanda grinned. He would get a surprise when he came in.
"Amanda, are you there?" Silver Claw asked again and stood to his feet. He was worried. "Amanda, I'm coming in."
Amanda tipped back the bucket and the moment she saw his head, she tossed the bucket full of water on him. Silver Claw immediately jumped and turned to face his attacker with his claws ready and his teeth showing.
Amanda only bust into laughter and walked up to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head against his.
"Settle down," Amanda said softly.
"Why didn't you answer me," Silver Claw said and relaxed. "I thought you might have fallen unconscious again."
"Well, I thought you could use some time in here. You seemed to like it and I was wrong to make you leave like I did." Amanda released him from her grip and stepped back. "I realized I was being a little rude."
Silver Claw showed his teeth. "You were a little. I don't think Sophia was too happy either."
"Why?"
"When you asked her to find a pail, it sounded more like an order than a request and well… she does not like that." Silver Claw looked at the door. "She won't be too happy when she comes back to find you have water here."
Amanda hooked her arm around Silver Claw's neck and pulled him to the shower. She started to fill the bucket and mixed in some soap. Silver Claw began to purr again.
"When was the last time you cleaned your scales?"
"A while now, I can't remember the last time I did, though it was a long time ago."
"Well," Amanda started and hoisted the bucket over his back, pouring a mixture of soapy water over him. "I think I'll help you this time."
"Why are there bubbles in the water, and why does it smell weird?"
"Its soap," Amanda smiled. "It helps clean things and makes you smell nice. I also have a brush which should work better than those teeth of yours."
Amanda began to scrub the base of his neck. She hummed lightly. For some reason, it reminded her of when she would wash her pet dog, a golden retriever. She suddenly felt the brush slip from her grasp. She went to catch it but it did not fall. Instead, Silver Claw had pulled it out of her hands and was holding it between his jaws. When Amanda reached for it, he jerked his head out of her reach.
"Come on," Amanda laughed.
Silver Claw jumped back and raised his body as high as he could. Amanda jumped hopelessly for the brush which was well out of her reach. She could only reach the middle of his jaw but he had shifted it to the very top.
Amanda frowned and crossed her arms. He had grown quite a lot since their first meeting. His length was about a foot longer and when he stretched upwards, she only was a high as the base of his arms. The scales around his eyes were much deeper red, almost to the point of a crimson color while the scales on his body were a dark navy blue. Scars were the most predominate around his neck and his back legs and back. His killing claws or at least his remaining one was six inches long at least and very sharp.
Amanda jumped again in a fruitless effort to retrieve the brush. A thought popped into her mind and she grinned. She knew what to do. Amanda slowly began to circle him though his head tilted to keep and eye on her as she moved behind him. She did not know if he could hold her in his weakened state but… Amanda leapt onto his back.
Silver Claw stumbled clumsily with surprise of the added weight. After a moment, he managed to keep his balance but Amanda had snatched the brush out of his mouth.
Amanda gave a sly smile, "Got it."
Silver Claw gently rubbed his head against hers in acceptance of his defeat. He showed his teeth.
"I don't think I've really seen you do that much," said Amanda.
Silver Claw cocked his head.
"You've never showed your teeth when you were happy." Amanda continued, "Is that something you do when you're really happy?"
"I guess so," Silver Claw replied. He himself did not notice it but apparently he had not shown his teeth out of joy in some time. He raised his feathers.
Amanda giggled and rubbed her head against his neck. She hugged him tightly before slipping off and getting the bucket.
Silver Claw moved back under the shower and purred softly. He enjoyed the warmth of the water and he was sure that Sophia and Zenith would upon their return. He felt the splash of water as Amanda poured another bucket over him and then began to scrub his scales clean.
Silver Claw tilted his head up as Amanda scrubbed his neck and then his jaw. Then he heard something, a low grumbling. He was hungry.
Amanda chuckled, "We'll find some food after this, okay?"
Silver Claw nodded and opened his mouth and let it fill with water. He looked at Amanda with a sly grin. He forced the water out in a straight line that hit Amanda square in the face. She had taught him how to do it whilst they were swimming in the salty body of water that led to the ocean the day Loki had left.
Amanda's eyes widened with surprise and she poured some of the water from the bucket into her mouth and spit it at Silver Claw. It got him in the right nostril and he shook his head vigorously trying to clear it out. He seemed to cough a few times then he suddenly sneezed loudly. It made Amanda jump in surprise because it was so loud.
Amanda laughed even louder. She was laughing so hard that she had to sit on the floor. Silver Claw sneezed again, and again, and then again. Amanda felt as if she would die laughing.
Amanda laid back on the floor in a laughing fit. She suddenly felt a large amount of weight on top of her. Amanda stopped laughing and looked to see Silver Claw's snout in front of her face.
She felt great warmth boil up from deep inside her, she was beyond happy to be with him. Her every pain seemed to disappear as the feelings she had for her mate encompassed her body. She looked into his eyes and they looked back. Amanda touched her nose to his snout and kissed him lovingly. Silver Claw hummed lightly over the sound of water raining over their bodies. It was a soft, soothing tone that made Amanda drift towards sleep. Her eyes grew heavy and soon she was starting to nod off in the quiet serenity.
"Let's go find something to eat before you fall asleep," Silver Claw whispered in her ear.
Amanda moaned in protest but she could feel herself being lifted off the ground by the shirt. Amanda hung her arm off Silver Claw's back and walked along side him towards the hall. A cold breeze swept through the room and Amanda shivered.
"Maybe I should get some cloths and dry off first," said Amanda before she pressed herself against Silver Claw for more warmth.
"I think we can find something down the hall," said Silver Claw before he nudged her out the door.
Amanda stumbled slightly and then noticed a small pile of cloths on the floor next to the doorway. Amanda looked at them in a moment of uncertainly. She shrugged and picked them up.
"I hope they fit you," Silver Claw said. "When you said you might be a while and for me to wait outside, I decided to wander around. I stumbled upon a room where the clothing was and I looked for things about your size."
"Thanks Silver Claw," Amanda said and hugged him. "I'll try these on right now!"
Silver Claw showed his teeth as Amanda rushed back into the shower room. He heard the water turn off and then her humming as he presumed her to be drying off. Several minutes passed before she remerged.
Amanda twirled in a circle before Silver Claw. "How do I look?"
She had on a light green, buttoned shirt with the Ingen logo on the left breast. The shorts that Silver Claw had found were a dark grey in color with deep reaching pockets on either side with a string to tighten or loosen the waist.
"Only more gorgeous than you did before."
Amanda smiled. She looked to the wall to see if there where signs, which there were. One of the signs read: "Living Quarters" with the arrow pointed to the left while on pointing to the right read: "Storage."
Amanda pondered for a moment but turned towards the hall where the storage would be. Silver Claw trotted beside her, purring softly.
"I think we would have a better chance of finding food down here in the storage room," said Amanda. She placed a hand on Silver Claw's back. It was night and most of the lights in the halls seemed to be broken so she needed some guidance.
"I hope they have more of those things you shared with me when we first met."
"I hope so too," Amanda agreed. "I like meat as much as you but something sweet is good to have once in a while."
They continued down the twisting halls for a few minutes. The halls became darker and harder to see in but yet Silver Claw could still navigate his way through them. The ground under foot was cool on Amanda's bare feet and she worried about stepping on something sharp in the darkness. Amanda and Silver Claw turned another corner and stopped. Before them was the door to the storage room. Amanda reached out and turned the knob.
The door opened with a heavy creak that sent chills down Amanda's spine. It had been a long time since the door had been opened and the doors were rusted heavily. Silver Claw sniffed the room before entering to ensure there was no danger. Amanda followed him in.
"I hope the lights work," said Amanda as she groped the wall for a switch. She found one.
The room lit up in a brilliant flash of light. As Amanda's eyes adjusted to the light, she could the rows of shelves, each stacked full of unmarked boxes and construction supplies. To the far right was a small television with rabbit ears on top and a VCR on the right side of it. In the center of the room, a large concrete circle with a metal dome covered by a large box. To the left, several lockers, most of which were locked by a heavy combination lock.
"I really hope there is food in one of those boxes," Amanda said after a moment of pondering. "I think this might just be the workers storage though."
Silver Claw sniffed the air, "What do you think would be in there?" With his snout, he gesture to the center.
"I don't know," Amanda said and walked to the box and pushed it off the dome. It hit the ground with a loud crash. Amanda immediately recognized the sound. It was a box of tapes.
"I mean that dome thing."
"Oh," Amanda said and moved behind the hinges. She pulled back but let go as a foul smell emanated from it. "Let's not do that again." She waved her hand in front of her nose. "It's the sewer for this place."
Silver Claw snorted and then shook his head. "How could a place smell that bad?"
"It's were the sinks, showers, and toilets go to from in the building," said Amanda as she opened the box. She was right, it was full of tapes. Each one had a faded label. Amanda picked one up. She could hardly see what it read but she could distinguish it. It read: "T and R Observation #156."
"What's that?"
"I don't know," replied Amanda. She did not know what it meant be T and R, though she wanted to find out.
Amanda walked over to the TV and blew off the dust from inside and outside the VCR. She set the tape down and looked at the TV. It was an old dial television with small knob that she assumed was the power. She pulled it. The screen flickered but remained dark for a moment. Slowly, it came on. The only reception was static with a dark bar along the top sixth of the screen. It was very old indeed
Amanda popped in the tape. It took a minute but the darkness of the tape cleared to video overlooking a large electric fence.
"I wonder where that is?" Silver Claw asked.
"You can see it?" Amanda questioned.
"Yeah," Silver Claw replied, "Why?"
"Oh, it's just that scientist found that certain creatures could not see the television screen because… I can't remember what else it said."
"I can," Silver Claw said and cocked his head. "I wonder who that is."
Amanda looked back to the screen to see a young women going to the fence. The women sat down in the grass by the fence and looked into the enclosure.
"Where are you," She said softly.
A low snarl came from within the fence but a loud bark silenced it. Amanda could not tell what kind of creature it was over the hum of the fence. A moment passed before a large male raptor appeared by the fence.
"There you are," The women said in a soft and delighted tone. She pulled something from her pocket. "I know I'm not supposed to give these to you but I thought I would sneak you one since you like them so much." The women reached through the electric fence and gave the raptor a bar of some kind. It ate it out of her hand.
"Do you recognize that raptor?" Amanda asked Silver Claw.
"I can't tell who it is because of that fence," Silver Claw admitted. "But did she just feed him by hand?"
"Yeah, I know. It's strange."
"So have you been a good boy, Seth?" The women asked to which she had a low purr in response.
"Dad," Silver Claw's jaw trembled slightly.
"That's your dad," Amanda stated. Silver Claw only nodded. "So that women must be Tessa then," Amanda added.
A flash of memory flooded Amanda's head. She remembered what had happened to her when she was hiding from the pachycephalosaurus. "We're not safe here."
"What?" Silver Claw said, turning his attention away from the television.
"We have to leave and get far away from here," Amanda panicked. "The greens are alive and they know we're here."
"What," Silver Claw snarled.
"I spoke with Zenith's mother before I found you. There was another who went to tell the others. They might take a while because the caves in this area were blocked but they're coming here."
"We have to find…" Silver Claw cringed. A sharp pain ran through his gut.
"Silver Claw," Amanda wrapped her arms around him to help him stand.
A sudden crash rattled the building. A moment of silence followed. Another crash sounded and then a long deep roar. It was the spinosaur. It was attacking the other side of the building. Several yelps and calls from Sophia and Zenith echoed down the halls. They were calling for help.
Amanda looked around the room. A small twinkle caught her eye. She released Silver Claw and ran to a shelf. A large set of bolt cutters lay on the shelf. She looked to the lockers. There must have been a reason for the locks.
A loud shriek echoed down the hall. It was Sophia and she was in an immense pain. The spinosaurus roared again, it was in pain itself.
Amanda raced to the locker and barely managed to clip through one of the locks. She threw the lock and clips to the ground and opened the locker. Inside was a large rifle like device. A small shelf held the ammunition for it. Large syringes were labeled by their strength. Amanda grabbed the highest strength and headed out the door. She loaded the gun clumsily as she ran towards the sound.
"Amanda!" Silver Claw shouted. He tried to run after her but a pulse of pain forced him to walk.
Amanda ran as fast as she could down the halls, she followed the noises because she did not know her way. She rounded corner after corner until she finally rounded the last corner and nearly froze out of sheer terror.
The spinosaur had torn up much of the roof by the entrance. Its long, bloodied snout snapped ferociously at Zenith and Sophia. The two raptors were side by side, slashing with their claws at the snout. Sophia was injured; large holes punctured her tail and the flesh at the end of the tail was torn all the way to the bone. Zenith however appeared to be uninjured except a small bleeding wound on his foot.
"Zenith, Sophia, get back!" Amanda shouted even though they could not hear her.
Amanda raised the gun and fired. The force of the recoil sent Amanda to the ground. The dart however hit its mark. The spinosaurus let out a thunderous roar and pushed further into the building. It was now fixed on Amanda.
She fumbled with the weapon and it fired. The dart exploded upon impact near Zenith and Sophia. Sophia looked at Amanda and snarled angrily.
Amanda pulled the trigger again. The spinosaurus let out a roar that could shatter windows. The dart had struck it again but not in the snout. The dart buried itself in the eye of the beast. Crimson blood gushed from the wound. The spinosaur swung its head up and through the reinforced roof. Zenith and Sophia managed to get out of the way of falling debris, but only just.
A shadow fell over the door way. The body of the spinosaurus fell forward. The walls and part of the roof collapsed as the body hit the ground. A final wheeze came and then nothing. The spinosaur was dead.
Amanda sighed in relief but suddenly she was thrown to the floor, the gun slid well beyond her reach. She looked up to see Sophia's blood drenched maw inches from her face.
"This is all your fault!" Sophia screamed.
Amanda tried to push her off but felt the blood soaking through her shirt as Sophia placed her claw over Amanda's stomach.
"Move, I dare you," Sophia snarled. Her voice quivered out of pain and a rage that Amanda had never seen before. "I should rip you to pieces!"
"Sophia!" Silver Claw shouted at her.
"What," Sophia snapped. She looked at Silver Claw and hissed.
"Get off her Sophia!" Silver Claw shouted even louder. He made himself look larger and raised his feathers out of dominance.
Sophia snarled even louder and seemed to be about to leap on him. Sophia looked down at Amanda and then back to Silver Claw. She gave a heavy kick to Amanda's gut before she ran down a hall away from Silver Claw.
Amanda gasped for air. The kick had knocked the breath out of her.
"Amanda!" Silver Claw shouted and raced to Amanda's side.
"Sophia!" Zenith disappeared down the hall after her.
Silver Claw stopped and looked over Amanda. A dark stain on her shirt caused a wave of panic pulsate through him. A narrow cut in the shirt was at the center of the blood. Amanda was in tears and coughing.
Silver Claw gently pulled back the shirt…