The rain was beginning to lighten down to a drizzle. Along with the smell of the ocean, the air was clear and refreshing. Taking all of the fresh air cleared Ruby's head easing the headache she'd gotten from the rocking waves of the boat as it traveled the ocean. She stood at the top of the deck and faced forward towards the boat's destination. It felt better than sitting inside with everyone else where it was packed like a can of sardines.
Ruby hadn't felt an air quite so clean in her life. She closed her eyes feeling the fresh ocean air cool against her face. Her favorite red sweater hugged her body but was big and roomy enough and soft enough that it was just the right amount of warm where you didn't sweat. Her hands and face felt the chill of the ocean and afterrain, as did her legs (unfortunately bare due to wearing jean shorts, having assumed Costa Rica would be rather hot). Being here, on this little journey before reaching their destination 120 miles off the coast of Costa Rica, was the most peace Ruby had felt in a long while.
For years, Ruby had only known what Isla Nublar was like from stories or what she saw online or on TV. She was only five when Masrani Global and InGen opened up the park that changed the world: Jurassic World. Growing up Ruby lived in a world where dinosaurs, prehistoric animals that were once ancient beings of a far away past were living and breathing. Older people – her sister included – would mention how amazing this was. Ruby's peers didn't think much of it – dinosaurs were like anything else in the world. They were new to it but Ruby had always still had a fascination and a feeling of awe of them.
Ruby looked out from the deck of the ferry as it got closer towards the island. She held on to the guard railing as she watched the island begin to get clearer and clearer. Fog surrounded parts of it but even from so far-a distance Ruby had a good idea of Nublar's overall shape and geography. What was once a little speck just an hour ago was now a more defined landmass of mountainous jungle.
The sky was dark, cloudy, and looked like it was near to night yet it was only the middle of the day. The air felt warm that she and somewhat humid but the wind led Ruby to wearing her red hoodie over her tank top. She lamented not picking her skirt and leggings to wear that morning before leaving Austin instead of her shorts. Her legs were now freezing and she held them together, rubbing her knees close in a meager attempt for warmth while her upper body was nice and warm. It was an odd mix, kind of like a 5-Gum commercial.
"Excuse me, miss? You might want to get inside, it's not safe when it's raining like this." Ruby turned to see a Ferry employee standing at the side. She couldn't help but chuckle at the hat the goofy hat he wore which looked like a T-Rex's head sitting on his own. Was that uniform regulation?
"O-Okay. Pfft. I'll get inside." Ruby walked down the deck and through the doorway to step inside the main area. Other tourists of all different backgrounds from around the world sat in comfortable seats. But it was packed and crowded giving Ruby a feeling of overwhelmth she had wanted to avoid.
Her eyes scanned around for a seat or a space for more seclusion, at least a little bit instead of being tucked next to others. Ruby found a corner just away, for some reason no one was sitting there. She walked over and leaned against the window, still with a good view of the island, as she reached into her red backpack. Part of her regretted carrying so much with her, but the other part of her knew having all of her things in the convenience of a backpack was necessary. Her sketchbook was needed for drawing every day, her camera (classmates wondered why she had one when every phone now had good enough function, but Ruby always preferred the comfort of holding the camera in her hands) useful for taking photos of all of the cool sights and sounds, her bag of candies because she always could snack on a Kit-kat if she wanted something sweet, plus more snacks incase she went a long time without eating, water, binoculars (for sightseeing), pens, pencils, her comics –
"Ah ha!" Ruby said as she felt what she was looking for. She pulled out a small fine folded paper. It was blue and white, official looking, but attached to it with glue was a photograph. A printed photo of a young thin woman with long dark black hair and green eyes standing next to the large familiar form of a dinosaur.
A real dinosaur.
The large form and the back planes aligned on its spine gave away its identity as Stegosaurus. One of the classic dinosaurs, one Ruby swore Isabella had as a stuffed animal, even when she was a teenager. Her sister who was quite tall seemed dwarfed when standing next to the behemoth of animal.
On the actual paper was written in neat handwriting a message. Ruby wasn't surprised that it was written in pink-purple sparkle ink. Isabella's favorite color hadn't changed. Nor had she, Ruby realized.
Ruby, I know mom and dad wanted to wait until your birthday to bring you, but that's months away. And even though you're still technically in school, we decided to surprise you: You're coming to Jurassic World! Just for a visit, a week, but I've already got you put in for a good word. You'll get to see the whole park and more. Most of all, I can't wait to see my baby sister again!
PS: Dolores says hi too.
Ruby took a glance back to look at the island. She could see its green mountainous rocky features now but no more detail. It looked like the kind of lost islands and places Ruby would read about in books. The kind of places she'd always wished she could escape to away from her ordinary life.
She'd wanted to come to Jurassic World and work there as much as her sister did. When Isabella had gotten the job as an intern whilst still in college, Ruby and their parents were floored. Jurassic World was difficult for anyone to break into as an employee. Jobs such as working in gift shops, restaurants, and as overall guides were easier enough, but from overall maintenance to technicians and especially scientists, it was a difficult competition. Isabella however had won out with hard work and now had the most unique occupation on the planet: Paleo-veterinarian.
It had been years since Isabella had left home for the internship. She'd come on visits like Thanksgiving, Christmas, even to Ruby's graduation from Middle school. But Isabella wouldn't stay long and would have to return to Jurassic World. She, as well as other Paleo-vets, were critical to the health and wellbeing of the animals that called Jurassic World home. Ruby understood that as well as her sister.
She was like Isabella, whom other girls at school would call "brainy". Many times Ruby would be teased for being overly enthusiastic about learning – usually it was biology or history, but whenever Ruby would keenly display knowledge of world geography, history of the ancient world, or paleontology, the ridicule from her classmates would occur. At first Ruby didn't mind, it was mere joking, she thought. Teasing that every kid did to every smart kid. It was normal, right?
But then came the shoves, thrown pencils at her head, kicks to knock her down in the hallway. There was the tagging of her locker and the theft of her clothes after PE. The bike thrown down San Huevla Canyon behind the football field was the straw that broke the camel's back. No student liked smart kids. No one liked kids who loved to learn.
Nobody liked Ruby.
Ruby didn't want to think about school. She didn't want to go back either. The teenager wanted escape – escape to a new world where she could put her bright mind to good use instead of stagnating in public education where no one else wanted to learn or grow. At times, she'd rant to her teachers or the school's horrible guidance counselor (who sucked at her job) about wanting more than what high school was offering. She wanted to truly grow and learn beyond what public education was limiting her too.
"Don't be in a rush to grow up" they'd say. Or they'd just argue she could wait for college. Ruby didn't want to wait. She didn't want to wait any more.
She wanted to go out into the world. She wanted to be like Isabella. Ruby wanted something beyond an ordinary life.
Maybe someday, she could stay at Jurassic World and never come back.
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Ricardo ran through the brush faster than he had ever run in his life. He was sure from the hoarse aching in his lungs and the blood rushing through his legs that he was making much ground. Had he run like this every day, no doubt the man would be much healthier than he was now. Leaves and branches smacked him across his face as he ran through the jungle, he braved despite the sting of each branch and twig striking him. Sweat rolled down his forehead as the last drops of rain fell down from the sky. He was both hot and cold, wet and uncomfortable in his clothes. He wanted to stop and take a break but Ricardo knew he could not stop. He had to keep running, he had to make it up to the Pride.
The lions had run off. He had led them back to the special truck and was ready to drive them back to the Paddock after spending time outdoors. But then Winter had noticed something – something Ricardo couldn't being a normal human being. She was a curious animal always interested in everything and anything. Several times Ricardo had to recover his cell phone from her maw when she'd gotten too curious and tore his jean pockets. Anything new, shiny, or new smelling was a curiosity to the snow-white lioness and Winter always wanted to see it.
But while Winter took off, Ricardo saw that Luke and Cora were also intrigued. There was something in the jungle and these large carnivores were going to go after it, no matter what.
The zoologist's legs began to burn as he kept on running. He'd leapt over rocks and fallen trees and despite the pain in his ankles and the difficult muddy ground he continued to run on after his lions. Modern lions aren't fast creatures but are capable of keeping up somewhat with fast prey. But they normally burn out and slow down after a time. The super lions were different, despite their large bodies they could be quite fast well beyond a mere "burst". The last time he'd clocked them in the Paddock, Ricardo believed they could run for 60 mph continuously.
It was strange. It was another unexpected occurrence with a revived species. It defied the paleontological data gathered from fossilized remains. Which begged the question: were prehistoric lions as unique as the Jurassic World Pride, or were they special because they were genetic experiments?
The man eventually burst through the jungle trees and landed in a clearing. He caught himself as he landed onto muddy grass expecting he would fall forward. But he was able to balance himself with his arms held out. His lungs by now had begun to ache and burn from the physical exercise. Each breath was difficult and hurt ferociously. His throat ached of thirst – he needed water more than anything.
Despite knowing it wouldn't help he began to breathe deeply, inhaling and exhaling in means of somehow easing the pain. Ricardo's chest also grew cold – he'd been sweating a lot and being out and running in the rain would surely get him sick along with the sore throat. But he shook his head – he couldn't worry about this now, he had the lions, his charges, his animals that were priority.
He then realized his surroundings and saw them.
Luke was groaning in pain as he laid on the ground next to an open-air vehicle. The large massive animal was rubbing his big furry head against the car, his black mane matted while he held his arm beneath him. Ricardo could tell that he was injured by the way he was reacting and the type of groan he was making. The man scanned his eyes across the clearing. Cora and Winter presided over the mauled form of a bipedal dinosaur.
Ricardo blinked recognizing the color pattern and the torn frill of it as a dilophosaurus. It was a carnivorous dinosaur that had the horrifying ability to shoot venom from sacks in is throat while displaying its colorful frills to scare prey. For all intents and purposes, it was a true cunning predator. A top killer with millions of years of instinct in its genes designed to take down whatever it wanted to.
From the looks of things, his lions had killed it.
They killed a dinosaur.
Ricardo shook off momentary confusion as he ran to Luke. He grabbed the large animals' arm and looked it over. Luckily, despite being a fearsome enormous animal, Luke trusted the man enough that he did not bite or snarl at him when he held his injured limb. He knew, had the instinct that Ricardo was going to help fix him. The man saw that the fur was covered in black tar – the dilo's venom. It was toxic and it smelled strong. No doubt it was burning badly but it was still treatable. He had to get him back to the Paddock and get him seen by Hamish or another vet that could treat the wound.
But he looked over and saw Cora and Winter. They were still loose like Luke. He had to get all of these animals back but the truck was still a long ways away from their position. And Luke was in no shape to move meaning Ricardo might have to leave him behind if he walked Cora and Winter back through the jungle. Ricardo didn't want to risk that – the ACU would be on high alert after a dinosaur escape and if they suddenly came across Luke, he knew it could be fatal. For the lion and for the people.
Then Ricardo noticed the vehicle. In the seats sat two women wearing the black ACU military style uniforms. Both looked unconscious. Ricardo raced over and looked over the two of them. On the passenger side was a Caucasian woman with blonde hair who looked pretty banged up. She was bleeding from her forehead and might've been concussed. Ricardo snapped his fingers to get her attention but it was no use. He then looked over the other woman. She had long dark black hair that seemed to shine and was full figured – also unconscious. In her hands was an electric prod but it appeared damaged. Standard issue.
They must've had to fight the dilophosaurus. That would explain the injures but Ricardo was amazed they hadn't been bitten apart – they only had wound slashes here and there but nothing major. Regardless if they weren't gravely injured, the two women still needed to see a medic and fast.
Ricardo swore under his breath as he watched Cora and Winter. The two now stood off of the dilophosaurus and were watching their human with curiosity. Luke still lay on the ground and he groaned like thunder from the pain on his arm. The young man had an idea, a stupid, crazy idea that might just work so he could treat his animal and save the two women. He didn't like it. But he couldn't think of anything else that was safer.
"Cora, Winter, Go home!" Ricardo said aloud for himself. But he whistled and made a signal with his hands. This signal the two lionesses recognized. It was specific, deliberate, and only had been tested once before and never this far. But something in the two animals knew the man's intent. They looked to each other, then back to Ricardo.
They ran for the jungle. The two large felines were out of the clearing in ten seconds. They left behind Luke who also recognized his trainer's words. But as he made to stand, he fell back down with a groan feeling the pain in his arm. Ricardo winced watching his animal. He would make sure he was taken care of ASAP. The zoologist then turned back to the vehicle and reached for a walkie talkie and spoke into it.
"Come in, ACU. Hamada, Dr. Okoye, anyone in the area: this is Ricardo Torres, Behavior Studies. I have two injured women and an injured animal."
Ricardo needn't wait for a reply as the walkie talkie screeched with static. "Torres? What are you doing out here?"
The commanding female voice and Nigerian accent gave away Dr. Okoye's identity. Ricardo smiled. She was his boss. Initially when Ricardo first met Naomi Okoye, he was quite intimidated by the woman. Dr. Okoye was experienced with animal behavior study already and had actual on the ground experience working abroad. Part of him was scared by her serious disposition, but in the end Dr. Okoye was a good hard-working woman who truly cared about their work.
"I was on a routine walk with the lions. We – they bolted. We ran into your escapee…" Ricardo looked back over towards the dilophosaurus. Its belly still bloated with gas. Fresh blood flowing from his crushed throat. It smelled awful.
"You, you what? – what happened to the dilophosaurus?"
"It… my animals killed it. One of them is injured, its arm was sprayed by the toxic venom. I've sent the other two back."
He heard Okoye swear in a low voice. Ricardo didn't blame her. No one really ever accounted for a situation like this. And no doubt, someone, somewhere was gravely upset at the loss of the money spent into the deceased animal. Money wasn't a factor that motivated Ricardo or Dr. Okoye but it did fuel their higher ups and affected every aspect of their line of work.
"Stay where you are Mr. Torres. We are sending a team out there. Commander Hamada should make it first, he's in the area. Make sure your animal doesn't bite, okay?"
Ricardo nodded even though Dr. Okoye wouldn't see it. "Got it. Thanks Dr. Okoye."
The man let out a heavy breath. He then walked back to Luke who was groaning as he laid on the ground. Ricardo didn't have much on him to help with the wound but he knew the ACU vehicle would likely have a med kit. In the mean time waiting for the recovery team the man would make due with what he had.
In the back of his mind he hoped Cora and Winter would make it back to the Paddock. No doubt, Hamish would give him a piece of his mind once everything was settled.
He would worry about repercussions later.
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Dr. Henry Wu gazed out through the windows overlooking main street. The park was still quite active even during the rain. Now it was all almost over and more park guests were stepping out from underneath umbrellas or from the inside of restaurants and gift shops they had taken shelter in. Wu couldn't stop himself from smiling at the sight of children running over and immediately splashing into large puddles much to the chagrin of their parents.
He could only imagine what the reaction of his former boss, the former owner of InGen and Jurassic Park, might say if he were standing there with him. It had been 17 years since John Hammond's passing and yet, in some ways Wu could still feel his spirit, still alive with him in the new park. Perhaps, he would warmly smile watching children and adults watch with awe and wonder as brachiosaurus' shook the ground with each thundering step. He would marvel and hold the baby stegosaurs, gently as the grandfatherly man knew how. That gentleness, the sweetness of the man was infectious back then. Hammond's dreaming made Wu believe in the magic possible of his research, and now… now it was real.
Your dream is alive John. Here. Now.
Wu felt a dull sense of nostalgia sweep over him. His heart was heavy, his eyes welled somewhat.
He had been a young undergraduate when hired by Hammond some thirty years ago. Dr. Henry Wu was already fifty years old now, and yet despite a wrinkle or two beneath his eyes the man still retained a somewhat youthful outward appearance. True, he was a bit healthier than most – keeping a good balanced diet of what was required for his body, as well as a good regimen of exercise that was none too strenuous – but even so, Dr. Henry Wu could feel his age. He was tired, a bit melancholy even as he watched the rain go away and the sun peak out through the thick dark grey clouds above.
His tea was already finished boiling. An electronic kettle, noiseless and a mark of efficiency, sat alone on his desk next to his glass tea pot. He wanted the warmth of ginseng and honey to sooth the cold throat he had from being inside of the Creation Lab all day. Most of his colleagues that worked in the lab preferred coffee – the strong brew definitely kept them warm but the energy was a mere rush that would eventually lead to a crash. Which was why Wu preferred tea, calming, soothing, agreeable with his body. He had a theory that tea made for a better, more calculated researcher. Some day he may even prove it with a paper (if he made the time for it out of his busy schedule).
And yet Wu didn't move from where he stood – his mind was elsewhere still, years away in the past. The memory as clear as the day it happened in his mind.
He was back in the original laboratory. Back in the original visitor's center. The fateful day of the tour. When John Hammond's first guests made their way to look over his work. Wu wasn't a prideful man in particular, and yet he couldn't help feel the swell of joy at their gazes of wonder. They were impressed – two paleontologists who for years worked in the dust and earth recovering the great dinosaurs remains. Now they beheld eggs, hatching eggs, witnessing the births of Wu's creations.
But a certain Chaotician had choice words.
"John, the kind of control you're attempting simply is…it's not possible. If there is one thing the history of evolution has taught us it's that life will not be contained. Life breaks free, it expands to new territories and crashes through barriers, painfully, maybe even dangerously, but, uh…well, there it is".
Wu could never forget the man's mumbles. At the time Henry was undeterred. Nor was Hammond amused by him.
"You're implying that a species entirely comprised of females will… breed?"
"No, no, what I am simply saying is that Life… Find's A Way."
At the time, Wu found Ian Malcolm's words to be arrogance. Pure arrogance. He had never even studied dinosaurs, let alone animals. He was a mathematician for Christ's sake. His area was non-linear equations, making expensive courses for students to go into debt in San Jose. What did he know about the brilliant work Wu was performing that no one else on the planet could? Dr. Wu was standing at the edge of a brand-new frontier.
In the aftermath of the incident however, the fall of Jurassic Park, Wu was changed. Malcolm turned out to be one of the smartest me he ever knew. He understood the truth of the world far greater than any one else even realized. That still didn't mean Malcolm was less of a blowhard. But Wu in the years since the incident had taken Malcolm's philosophy to heart. Despite not being a scientist, Malcolm proved Wu wrong.
Life Found a Way. The once one gender dinosaurs had managed to breed. A quirk of the gaps of the dinosaurs' genetic code led to mutations the likes of which Wu couldn't have predicted. The animals could change their sex. Wu was not the all controlling lord of these creatures he had subconsciously assumed he was. Nature could not be controlled. It could not be contained.
Wu was merely an architect of creation. He could create, but to say he had control over what he birthed… that was arrogance. The man however felt a numbness, a bitterness in his core as he reflected. For it was in the failure, the great mistake that he had to learn this ultimate truth. The cost… human lives.
The children continued to play outside in main street. Exasperated parents following behind them as they screamed and splashed in the puddles and mud. Other families, other people mingled and walked on without a care or worry. Wu turned away from the window and went to pour his tea at last.
Filling his glass pot, Wu was ready to take a drink finally when his door was opened. The man blinked as a blonde curvaceous woman with green eyes stepped forward. Her heels clicked on the floor with each step. She wore a crisp, clean white lab coat like his own, and beneath was dressed a lot like an office woman with a purple blouse, black pencil skirt, and purple leggings. Wu couldn't help but smile – even after years, Dr. Glynda Rockbell proudly wore her favorite color in her lab uniform. A minor jab at assuring her self-identity, to not become a carbon copy of the other scientists in just the white coats.
She hadn't changed in the last twenty years.
"Glynda, would you like some tea? It's fresh." Wu said as he raised is mug to drink. The warmth passed through his lips and was a bit hot. But it was still soothing as it flowed through and down his throat.
"No thanks Henry. I'm headed down stairs to get coffee, Mexican, not too dark but dark enough." Glynda said as she set down a stack of folders. They were records of all the week's work. Wu needed to stamp and sign many signatures before they proceeded to their next phase.
"Well your taste in coffee and in men hasnt changed." Henry smirked as he thumbed through the folders. Even her favorite drink hasn't changed. Or her taste in men.
Part of him knew the paper work wouldn't be done at the lab. Again, it would be another night of bringing the paper work back home.
Glynda smirked as she took a seat in front of Wu's desk, crossing her legs as she did so. Wu didn't take a glance, focused on the papers – and also just uninterested in Glynda's legs. Partly because she was his good friend, they were good companions ever since their college days. That's all he saw her as and she the same. And partly, because he liked men.
"Works been busy. I don't even remember the last time we had a cup of coffee together."
"Just like old times at Gaspar's Coffee House. We got good chefs and cooks, but nothing beat's Gaspar's coffee." Wu briefly paused in writing glancing up at Glynda. The two shared a smile. For a moment, the two were back in college with their old gang at the Coffee House, not studying and goofing off like any other undergraduates.
"Say, you remember Matt, the business major? I seem to remember you and he shared a special moment at Gaspar's…"
Wu froze at the memory. Even at 50, even thought it had been many, many years, the esteemed geneticist couldn't help but blush in embarrassment. Glynda bit her lips and was near about to burst in laughter.
"No, no Glyn please don't bring that up. I was such a dooork!" Wu felt heat rising in his face. His friend didn't fail to notice.
"Oh my god you're blushing Henry! It's been years."
"That doesn't make it less embarrassing. Why did you let me go on stage when I can't sing?"
"Hey you were brave. I'd never have the guts to confess to my crush on stage and play guitar for him."
Wu groaned now ignoring the documents entirely. Glynda was outright laughing now and wiping a tear from her eye. It was just like back then, Glynda the tease and Wu the geeky best friend. He even remembered that being what was signed on the back of their graduation photos. Wu looked up at Glynda who was holding her sides, hiding the belly laugh she did whenever she was genuinely full of laughter.
She too, like Wu, still looked quite youthful for her age (if he remembered right, she was at least within her forties). Likely due to taking care of her personal health and a touch of good genes was the result of her smooth pale skin all around. Personality wise, despite also being serious about genetics work, and a brilliant geneticist at that, Wu found Glynda to still be the carefree woman he befriended all those many years ago.
He felt a joy in his heart at that. Friend. Glynda was his honest to God friend. Even after all of these years, even after he'd poured himself into his work, became obsessive at points in his career with perfecting the cloning, after becoming more anti-social and somewhat isolated as a person, after the deaths of his parents… after all of that, Glynda was still there.
"You know Glynda, I don't think I've ever told you – "
Wu was about to say how much he genuinely appreciated her companionship. He… didn't have very many friends. But the head geneticist of Jurassic World was interrupted when his door was opened yet again. This time however it was nearly slammed open but caught in time so as it wouldn't be broken, by another geneticist.
"Dr. Wu! Oh, um Dr. Rockbell how are you?" The geneticist said. He was young, blonde, and to Dr. Wu, an annoying ingrate. Even his mere prescience put off Dr. Wu.
"What is it Wade? Did you need to barge in like that?"
"Huh? Oh well, yeah actually. It's, well concerns Dr. Rockbell actually."
Glynda turned to look at the younger geneticist. "Me?"
"It's um… your creations. The, the secret exhibit, Paddock 12. The lions."
Wu blinked as Wade said this. The super lions – or before Simon Masrani had renamed them for marketing purposes, "Panthera leo atrox" – were the new exhibit that was intended to show an expansion of wildlife for the park. But more critically, they were under the Behavioral Research Program. To Glynda, they were her principal work that she helped bring into the world. Cloning mammalian animals which needed live birth. Her speciality.
Glynda stood up then and now intimidated Wade. She was quite a tall woman at 6 feet exactly and towered over the younger geneticist (who wasn't short either, but had to stare up into Glynda's eyes now that she was standing).
"What happened to them? Are they all right?"
"Um, yeah, well, actually no. Two are fine, one is injured. But they um, they escaped. And they, they killed a diloposaurus." The geneticist said in his nasally annoying voice. Wu would still be put off had he not fully listened to what the man said.
"Wait, do you mean dilophosaurus… the spitters?" Wu looked to Glynda. His old friend's eyes were wide, mouth open in reaction. Before he could speak to her again, Glynda pushed her way past Wade out of the office and out of the genetics lab.
Leaving Wu alone with Wade. The younger man scratched his blonde head as he stood awkwardly in the room.
"So, Dr. Wu-"
"Get out."
"Okay."
Wade rolled his eyes and smacked his lips in a tsk loudly as he stepped out. But the poor fool tripped as he tried to close the door falling onto his face. Wu didn't suppress a chuckle at that. And knowing Wade he would have definitely hit that huge nose of his on the way down.
The head geneticist felt no sympathy for him.
Wu turned to continue work on the papers Glynda had given him to look over. But he could not stop thinking about what he had just heard. The Super Lions had killed a dinosaur, a dilophosaurus at that. They were deadly animals, second only to the most dangerous dinosaurs on the island – the velociraptors – and even the dilos had to be treated with the most extreme of cautions. Secure transports, as many personnel from the ACU to guard them, and if need be – the use of deadly force.
Somehow, giant mammalian carnivores took it down. True, he had to remember that they were also fairly large animals. The largest of the big cats to have ever existed – which was what drew Simon Masrani to begin the project of their ressurections. Even so, Wu did not think they'd stand a chance against dinosaurs, especially the ones Wu himself had created. The animals were designed by evolution however with the best skills and build for hunting prey and taking down large animals. Perhaps that was the reason…
But Wu could not stop pondering. The Super Lions were large animals gifted already by millions of years of instinct and evolution. But the pride living in Jurassic World was being trained personally by the young man Simon had hired from California. The lion tamer he was, or so Wu partly remembered. The trainer worked quite closely with those animals, closer than other park employees, which was intentional in order to explore their behavior and actions.
In some ways… this new incident was useful for the study. An accident most likely. Or… Chaos at work.
"Life finds a way." He said to no one but himself. Words, mere words. But powerful words. They held meaning. Special meaning.
He was just an architect of creation. Life would not be contained. It would move, breath, go beyond and out of his control.
Wu gathered the papers together into the folder neatly. He then turned off his kettle and turned off al the lights in his office before stepping out and making his way after Glynda.
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Ruby could not believe her eyes as she stepped down from the ferry. The rest of the park visitors crowded the docks and were making their way towards the monorail nearby. To Ruby the monorails looked less giant amusement park and more modern metropolitan – like a modern tram or train she'd seen in videos of Japan or Europe. Her eyes widened at the sight as she realized she was getting ever closer to witnessing Jurassic World.
"Hey squirt, don't drop your jaw on the docks!"
Ruby blinked at the sound of her sister's voice. She then noticed that her sister in fact was right in front of her standing on the docks. How had she not noticed her sister? Isabella smirked down at her sister and made way to pat Ruby's head. Ruby frowned – she didn't like how quite tall Isabella was at 5'11 while Ruby was still a mere 5'2. Sure, Ruby was ten years younger but her big sister was always rather tall even when they were kids. Isabella was also somewhat skinny compared to Ruby which made her big sister seem even taller by comparison.
"Isabella! Don't pat my head, I'm not a baby anymore!" The teenager made way to swat her sisters' had. But Isabella had raised her hand up high from her younger sister. Ruby tried reaching but failed, cursing her short arms.
"Nice to see you too little sister. You're happy to be here, I can tell." Isabella smiled down at Ruby. Ruby couldn't help smiling back. Isabella was the definition of "cool big sis" even if she did tend to coddle Ruby here and there. But Ruby liked her sister, she looked up to her even.
"The island's cooler in person. I can't wait to get on the monorail and see the park!"
"Oh? Are you sure you want to get on there? It takes a while to actually get to the park on the monorail. I did bring my jeep after all." Isabella gestured a thumb to the side of the main building connected to the monorail. Ruby saw a blue and silver jeep parked on dirt road. On the sides she spotted the iconic symbol of the Jurassic World logo – a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton surrounded by a circle. It was painted blue against the silver doors.
From what their dad had said, they retained the logo from the old park. It was too good looking to pass over. It was recognizable around the world – surpassed only by Disney.
Isabella led Ruby to the jeep away from the crowds. It sat away from the main ferry area which was connected to the large escalators & major monorail station. Ruby followed her sister past a fenced off gate that was guarded by men in black military like uniforms holding firearms. Thankfully her sister explained these were non-lethal "pulse rifles" or weapons with powerful sedative rounds.
She heard Isabella's walkie talkie static to life but her sister turned it off without even looking. Her sister then unlocked the jeep and climbed in, Ruby following suit in the passenger's seat. She noticed that the back seat was full of boxes and equipment – mostly extra clothes, shoes, but Ruby also spotted matches and flashlights and other random things. That was a bit odd.
"Hey, do your co-workers need you? What if there's a sick dinosaur?" Ruby asked as she strapped in. She didn't like how the seatbelt somewhat constrained her chest and awkwardly adjusted herself. Isabella meanwhile started the jeep and was checking her rear-view mirror.
"It's fine. Today's my day off. I earned it after pulling all nighters and extra shifts. Thank God Masrani is fine with Unionizing. Anything happens in the park and there will be other vet's to take care of things. Y'know unless something really bad happens."
Soon they were driving away from the ferry and down the road. They drove along the southern coast of the island with the blue shimmering ocean to their right and the far jungles and mountains to their left. Ruby's eyes were wide as she took in the sights and sounds. Green topical trees dominated the landscape and were spread as far as the eyes could see. She brought out her camera taking video of it all and despite it being of high quality, the camera would do no justice to the actual images in front of her.
Isabella smiled as she watched her sister. She was introverted, loved being on her laptop reading or writing or gaming most of the time. That wasn't too different from Isabella when she was Ruby's age. But their parents did worry about Ruby being too closed off. She didn't have too many friends and would spend hours with her projects – online or nose deep in books.
However, Isabella suspected her sister, like her, was actually quite keenly intrigued in the wider world outside her bedroom. The computer was merely a tool to gather information, to learn about the world beyond her every day routine. That was proven from what Isabella heard her sister had been studying. From colonial history of the Americas, to how bottle caps were made, or the art of origami and meaning of Feng Shui, if a topic caught her interest, she would study it.
Coming to Isla Nublar would do her little sister good.
"Oh, do you mind if we take a de-tour? That'll get us faster to main street. We'll stop there before we go back to my apartment where you'll be staying." Isabella asked her sister. Ruby nodded back to her.
"Sure, you know your way around better than I do." Ruby responded. Although in truth, Ruby was actually interested in what dwelled off road away from people. She knew parts of the island the animals roamed freely – with some fences here and there, but otherwise out in the open, wild.
Isabella turned the vehicle off of the road and through the trees where it wasn't too thick. The jeep was now passing through the jungle. Ruby still had her camera recording – it was a DSLR she'd kept and maintained for several years and would take in good video. She couldn't wait to look over it when they'd gotten back. She was hoping though that she could get a glimpse at one of the dinosaurs somehow.
She's gotten so big. But she's still a pip squeak. Isabella thought, smirking all the while. Ruby had grown since the last time she saw her. How long had it been since she was hired as a Paleo-vet? Four years? Five years? She hadn't even graduated when she received the acceptance letter for the Jurassic World Internship. Isabella hadn't even turned 21 yet. Now she was 26 and already rather experienced from hands on work with the animals on the island.
At first, she assumed the internship would be ordinary. No way would she be working first hand with the dinosaurs, starting at the bottom you'd have to do grunt work, helping label and take samples, and note take, like she did in college. But upon arrival Isabella's view was turned upside down. She, and the other interns and beginners, were valued members of a team and given hands on training building their skills by actually working with the dinosaurs.
She would never forget the day she truly bonded with Dolores the Stegosaurus. That day, Isabella and Dr. Okoye were the ones who stood by helping with her blood transfusion after the animal had gotten seriously injured when in the plains. Isabella hadn't believed in herself but Dr. Okoye stood by her and together, they had saved Dolores' life. Now a days, the large beautiful creature found Isabella to be a trustworthy human and showed a gentleness towards the Paleo-vet whenever she appeared to her.
Isabella could never in her wildest dreams believe she would have this career. To work with living and breathing dinosaurs – it was a job few in the world ever had the opportunity for.
"One day, mom and dad should come visit the island. It's way better than Austin!" Ruby said with a smile. She laughed as several colorful parrots flew out from the jungle trees and across the jeep. It had startled Isabella somewhat but Ruby was more elated as she lifted her camera to record them all.
"Maybe. They might like the park. But I still don't know if dad's got… bad memories."
Ruby looked to her sister. She then motioned and turned off her camera. The two sisters were quiet recalling their father. Jesus Hernandez, a mechanic, a security officer, now a handy man in the United States. As a child, one of the native Tun-si who called "La Isla Nublada" home. The two sisters would be told stories of their father's life on the island which he would recount sometimes as stories for them before bed or at times when he was feeling nostalgic.
"We'd sail through the rivers and go out into the sea. That was our way of life." Ruby said, recounting her father's words while imitating his raspy Indigenous accent. Isabella smiled warmly recalling her father.
"Back then, this island was just another lost world. Only the Tun-si lived here. Not even the Spanish came here to settle it like they did with Costa Rica. And then… InGen came."
InGen. John Hammond's original corporation. Now owned by Masrani Global. It was the company that the girls' father worked for when Jurassic Park was being built from the late 80s to 1993. How he could do so, Isabella didn't know. Because it was InGen that was responsible for the removal of his people from Isla Nublar. At one point, the confrontation between the science company and the natives had turned violent. Friends and family their father once had were silenced.
"Why did dad work for them if they took his home? I mean, I don't think I ever could do that." Ruby asked her sister. Isabella heard her but paid attention to the road as she took another turn. They were now way past any roads and going deeper through jungle brush down the familiar route Isabella knew.
"Dad was already a young man. He came to the mainland to study and to work. When they removed his people, he needed a way to help support everyone. His mom, his dad, and siblings were in San Jose, but they were in poverty. So, he joined their security. And I mean, when you think about it, he was very qualified. He knew his way around the island better than anyone. Besides Rubes," Isabella turned to her sister. Ruby blinked but was too late as her sister flicked her nose. The younger girl yelped.
"What was that for?"
"You and I wouldn't even be here if dad didn't go work for Jurassic Park. Remember? Mom was one of the top chefs at the park and he couldn't resist her cooking. Something bout 'no one make's Chilean sea bass better than your mama'". Isabella recounted, making her voice a little deep and gruff in impersonation of their father.
Ruby couldn't help but laugh at that. Isabella turned her attention back to the road and looked into the rearview mirror. Her blue eyes in her reflection stared back at her. Part of her was taken aback at her appearance.
She was dark haired and pale-olive skinned. Ruby was the same but with short black hair that looked almost boyish (but made feminine with the dyed red highlights). Their features definitely took more after their mother, a fairer skinned Costa Rican who, like most Costa Ricans, were descendants of European peoples. But their dark hair resembled their father's (now already gray) which showed off their heritage as well as their eye shape. Most never believed the two when they'd mentioned they were half Amerindian. In contrast to their father, a man of dark brown skin and almond brown eyes who much more fit the bill of a native American. Even years later after living in the United States he was still very much the same Indian from the island. Careful, cautious, wise and one who loved music.
Did their father feel joy that his eldest daughter had her career on the island where he was born? Or was he conflicted, hurt that the land that was his peoples was now the center of a giant amusement park, built to make rich people elsewhere millions of dollars while their fellow people were scattered in Costa Rica. Isabella did not know. They didn't talk about it much. But part of Isabella wanted her father to find a closure.
The jeep passed through the jungle and was now driving through a grass field. A wide valley lay before them spread out and expansive. To the north was more mountains, gray, large, and massive rising out of the earth. There was more jungle and tropical trees scattered here and there and a river passing through the valley. Isabella stopped the jeep as they neared another road – the main road which would lead them back to Main Street.
"Hey, why'd we stop Isabella?" Ruby asked. She'd set her camera down and was looking around at their environment. Isabella merely smiled as she leaned back.
"You might want to keep that camera on squirt. Because right about now…" Isabella stopped as she glanced down at her wrist watch. It read 3:01.
Ruby frowned back at her sister but held the camera up again. Her eyes peered through the camera lens and she zoomed out to get a better look at the areas of the valley. Far off away she could see birds flying above the trees. She wondered what species they might be since Isla Nublar was still home to a wide variety of them that seemed to not be affected by the dinosaurs prescience. Ruby continued to scope around with the camera taking in the sights and different geographical features of the valley.
Then there was the boom.
The jeep shook from side to side. Ruby nearly jumped out of her seat at feeling the impact. Isabella was unfazed. Her blue eyes looked into the rearview mirror and now showed a mirth in them. A particular, mischievous mirth Ruby recognized from years of teasing by her sister.
"Is that a –". Ruby asked until it happened again.
This boom was louder and again the jeep moved subtlely. Ruby turned around in her seat now hoping to catch sight of the cause. Her camera still was in front of her face in the hopes she could get a better look at it. But all she saw through the lens was a great many tree trunks. Many gigantic – almost impossibly so. She raised the camera upwards to see if anything stood out only to find more jungle leaves.
Then the birds flew out from the trees. They casted shadows over the jeep as they flew out and into the valley. Ruby quickly took pictures with her camera catching photos of many colorful parrots going by. There was another boom and also the sound of the trees and leaves being pushed aside. The teenager turned her camera again to try and see-
A large foot stomped onto the ground next to them. It was almost elephant like, the foot, but had noticeable claws and features that differed from an elephants toes. Ruby raised her head up from the camera to look with her own eyes at the sight of a gigantic reptilian leg. It's skin was pebbled and gray – again like an elephants. But just this leg dwarfed any large land mammal by a long shot.
Ruby peered her head out of the window now and crane her head upwards to look upon the behemoth. Rising high and towering above the clouds was the graceful form of a dinosaur. One of the largest to ever exist and one that called Jurassic World its home.
"That's a… that's a…" Ruby felt her throat get caught. Her heart swelled and she couldn't help but smile at the sight of the animal. She could hear it chew leaves and the deep bellowing grumble of its body. It wqas louder than anything that Ruby had heard in her life. And yet Ruby was too caught up in the sight to be bothered (even if her ears had popped).
"Brachiosaurus. A 'long neck' but it towers over animals instead of horizontal. This funny girl's name is Pearl." Isabella informed her sister. She too was smiling as she looked up from their jeep at the dinosaur.
Pearl peered her head downwards and noticed the jeep next to her foot. She couldn't put her head down all the way from where she stood but she did see the two sisters and their jeep. The brachiosaurus then let out a bellow from deep within its chest. She opened her mouth letting out the song of the brachiosaurs which echoed across the valley.
Suddenly the jeep shook as the ground rumbled more. Ruby felt herself panic for the moment until hearing the sound of more brachiosaurs 'singing' in reply to Pearl. Then the "trees" began to move around them with large lumbering steps. Isabella then started the jeep again and drove out of the tree line and into the valley while behind them the heard of brachiosaurs emerged from the jungle.
Across the valley more dinosaurs began to break out of the trees. Ruby couldn't believe it as many orange colored triceratopsians made their way from the jungle – these having five or six horns in a crest on their head. Behind them emerged dinosaurs that Ruby recognized as Iguanodons, large animals which looked graceful as they walked on all fours. Some were blue others were a reddish pink. They made their way towards the water and began to submerge for a swim across it.
The brachiosaurs continued their song, trumpeting into the valley. More species of dinosaurs emerged out of the jungle in large herds. Yellow hadrosaurs with one crest on the backs of their heads also diving into the water, green Stegosauruses moving quickly towards patches of vegetation in the middle of the valley to feed their young, the ostrich like Gallimimuses racing out from the jungle and around the jeep as it drove by these animals. Even the reclusive and shy Sinoceratops made its way by passing through the herds as they walked on through the valley.
"That girl, the green ceratopsisan with the unique head crest, that's Mai Yun. A Sinoceratops. She comes out at this hour when the herds do too." Isabella informed her sister as they neared the animal. Mai Yun let out a honk as it noticed the jeep but then ran off. Ruby giggled as she recorded the Sinoceratops running.
Then another chorus of calls was heard. The earth shook more as then to the distance a herd of long neck Apatosauruses made their way through the valley. These longnecks were a blueish gray color and also quite enormous. Ruby needn't her sister to identify these animals for her – they were the classic dinosaur that every child on earth knew, even if not by name. And now Ruby was bearing witness to them walking the earth once again as they did millions of years ago.
The brachs responded with their song. The Apatosauruses sung back in response to them. This continued as the gargantuan animals strode through the valley. They were titans, lords of the earth, graceful gentle beings. Their songs called the residents of the valley – of Nublar – to walk in peace. At least, that's what Ruby imagined.
"Isabella, this… This is… this…".
Ruby couldn't find a word for it. What words exemplified the magic, the wonder of seeing dinosaurs in real life? What could illustrate the feelings, the sheer reverence one felt when standing before a humongous, ancient being? Nothing could.
Isabella smiled back at her sister. She too couldn't help but feel a heavy warmth in her chest as they drove through the herds of dinosaurs. Her blue eyes watering as Pearl let out her trumpeting song for all of Nublar's residents to hear.
"No problem sis."
This chapter was originally gonna be longer, going to flash way ahead rather than literally show the moments after Ayaka blacks out. But I thought it important rather than leave readers scratching their heads at how three predators got out of the middle of the jungle and out of harms way.
I have to admit part of me was kind of frustrated while writing. Because parts of the story needed to happen first which were necessary, but I felt like a little kid screaming "WHERES THE DINOSAURS" because, yeah, I have the dilophosaurus escape and fight which features in the first chapter. But that's not a true "first dinosaur Jurassic Park" scene we know. So, the end of this chapter has just that with the Hernandez sisters first meeting Pearl the brachiosaurus and many, MANY dinosaurs.
Original Character Notes:
This also isn't a secret, but the original characters take names from characters in other media. Stuff I like, movies, video games, you name it. This is Nothing new.
Ruby most prominently is named after Ruby Rose, the heroine from the anime RWBY. She's like her namesake appearance wise and somewhat in personality. But more so taken to a far side of a somewhat unsocial, trouble with bonding & feeling awkward growing up kind of teen. Dinosaurs fascinate her even if they are not one of her main interests that reflect her identity, like her sister. Ruby offers the unique take, being a kid born into a world where dinosaurs are alive & well in contrast to Ricardo, Ayaka, and other characters who remember a time when dinosaurs were extinct.
Isabella, Ruby's big sister, doesn't take any name inspirations from particular characters. But visual wise, she takes inspiration from the actress Arryn Zech who irl looks very much Latina. Isabella is the dinosaurs on the brain girl of the two but she and Ruby bond greatly over dinos. Likely, this was sparked by her father who was a worker at the original Jurassic Park and saw these animals first hand. Isabella is a cool Paleo-vet but also the "cool big sis".
Dr. Glynda Rockbell will be elaborated on in the next chapter. But for now, her given name comes from "Glinda the Goodwitch", the prominent character of The Wizard of Oz movie & books as well as Glynda Goodwitch also from the anime RWBY. She more greatly resembles Glynda than Glinda. Her surname comes from Winry Rockbell, a major character from the anime Fullmetal Alchemist.