Jurassic Park: The Creatures of Atlantis
Author's Note: Ok, I probably should be working on Hillwood Medical, but the words weren't flowing and I didn't want to force anything. I promise that I will get back to that story. However, I've always loved Jurassic Park and I decided I wanted to try a story with another series that I like, Jimmy Neutron. (This really isn't an Atlantis story, just for the title only.) Don't own Jurassic Park; Michael Crichton does. Don' own Jimmy Neutron either.
Chapter 1
"CNN has just learned that John Hammond, the CEO of InGen has died. InGen was the center of much controversy stemming from the infamous InGen Incident that occurred in 1989 on Isla Nublar off the coast of Costa Rica where it was reported that…"
He turned the TV off in disgust. The media loved to reminice on what happened that day.
He was eleven years old at the time. Dealing with velociraptors and a tyrannosaurus rex certainly helped children mature faster. He and his sister were never really quite the same after they left the island. Technology certainly had the potential to benefit mankind, but it could easily be as destructive. Sighing, he massaged his temples and sat back behind his grand-father's desk.
"Tim?" The familiar voice was followed by two knocks.
"Come in, Marvin." The door opened and a portly, middle-aged man waddled into the office. He had obviously made good time getting there; his brow was covered in sweat and his collar was rumpled. He exhaled heavily.
"I have something important for you." He pulled out a large manila folder that was inside his coat pocket and placed it on the desk.
"Thanks, Marvin." Tim reached across and took the folder. Marvin collapsed into a chair in front of the desk.
"You want anything to drink?"
"You don't mind?"
"No, go ahead." Marvin got up again and waddled towards a small refrigerator in the corner of the room. He opened a bottle of Coke and took several greedy sips. He had been the company attorney ever since Donald Gennaro suffered an unfortunate end at Isla Nubar.
"So what is it?" He returned to his seat in front of the desk. Tim stared hard at the contents of the envelope.
"It just looks like a blank DVD and some papers." He examined the disc in the light.
"Are you going to see what it has?"
"It says on the envelope that I need to watch this alone." Marvin stood up and finished the last of his Coke.
"Well, then, don't let me keep you waiting. Call me if you need me."
"Ok, thanks Marvin." He waited until Marvin waddled out of the room and shut the door before putting the disc into his laptop. The computer hummed softly as it loaded the video. Soon, he was staring at the kindly face of his beloved grand-father who was propped up by several pillows as he rested on a large bed.
"Hello, Tim. If you're watching this, well I guess that means that I've passed on." Hammond paused and took a deep breath before continuing.
"It's a bit disheartening to be recording a death message. I'm sure it must be a little strange for you to be watching this, because it'll be like receiving a message from beyond the grave. Well, anyway, enough of that. Tim, I hope that you are watching this video alone because what I am about to reveal to you is for your ears only. You're the only one that I can trust because you and your sister were the only ones who loved these creatures as much as I did." He took another deep breath and continued.
"It's a pity that your sister isn't here to hear this as well but then again, she always seemed to like computers more than dinosaurs. I don't blame her; it's much safer. Look at me, I'm rambling again." He chuckled softly.
"I'll get to the point. I'm sure you haven't forgotten the time you spent on Isla Nublar. I'm that it didn't work out. According to Dr. Malcolm, Isla Sorna didn't fare too well either. However, I have not given up hope that one day everything will come together, and the public will be ready to see these magnificent creatures. You see, my dear boy, there's something that I've kept hidden from everybody. Isla Nublar and Isla Sorna were not the only sites. There was one other; one other which was safely hidden from all scrutiny." Tim's eyes widened at the news.
"This other site, which I'll call Site C, is located off the coast of Australia, deep underneath the Coral Sea. I've marked it on the map I've included in the envelope. It is perfectly intact with a full support staff maintaining its facilities. I'm rather proud of this site, actually; there have been no reports of any problems, so far. Tim, I want you to get a team together and investigate that site. See if it's ready for opening to the public. I'm counting on you, my dear boy. And one more thing; don't let Marvin Brooks or the members of the board find out about this. Those weasels would ruin everything. Good luck, my boy."
The video ended rather abruptly. Tim ejected the disc and placed it back in the envelope. He let out a heavy sigh and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He stared hard at the map. There was a spot on the Coral Sea clearly marked with a distinct 'X'.
"Another site." He repeated quietly.
He was going to have to make some phone calls.
The students stirred restlessly in their seats in the giant auditorium. A young man in the front row stifled a yawn and stretched. 9 A.M. was too early for physics. The professor at the front of the room continued lecturing from a series of PowerPoint slides, animatedly waving a laser pointer as he lectured.
"And that's how you prove Newton's Second Law." A brown haired young woman raised her hand.
"Yes, Colleen?"
"Um, Professor Neutron, I think class ended five minutes ago." He spun around and stared hard at the clock in the back of the room.
"Oh, yes, I'm sorry everyone. Make sure you do the reading for next class. I'll have your labs back by then. Have a nice weekend!" He called out over the noise of students zipping their backpacks and hurrying out of the room. He turned off his laptop and placed it back in his messenger bag. He put on his coat and slowly climbed the steps. He walked slowly down the hallway until he came to his office.
"Good morning, Professor Neutron." He turned towards his secretary and smiled. She was a grand-motherly type of woman who had served as the department's administrative assistant for nearly twenty years.
"Morning, Gayle." He walked over towards his mail slot and grabbed some envelopes.
"Anything interesting?" Gayle looked up from her computer.
"No, just some rejection letters from the NSF." He replied nonchalantly, continuing to go through the pile of envelopes.
"You shouldn't be so pessimistic." He chuckled.
"You should read some of them. They're pretty funny. The last one chided me for proposing an outlandish proposal in a time in which fiscal responsibility must take center stage. Imagine the government telling us about fiscal responsibility." Gayle laughed and he poured some coffee into a paper cup.
"I'll be in my office. Let me know if anything comes up." She nodded and he stepped inside his office. He hung up his coat and sat down behind his desk. It was messy as usual. Papers and scientific journals littered the area near his computer. He cleared some of the mess away and started grading the labs. He paused when he came across a small picture propped on his desk. It was a picture of him and Betty at a dinner party last year. She was as stunning as always, with her short black hair just below her ears. He wasn't looking too bad either. He was significantly taller, and the hair that looked like it came from a soft-serve ice-cream machine was now trim and short. That was a happier time, before she told him that she said that their relationship was moving sideways rather than forward. Sighing, he removed the picture from his desk and jammed it into a drawer. He picked up the last of the labs that he needed to grade and started looking them over.
"Professor Neutron?" Gayle knocked on the door and stuck her head in.
"What is it, Gayle?" He replied not even looking up from his papers.
"You have a phone call on line one." He continued grading without looking up at her.
"Why didn't you just patch it through like you usually do?"
"It's somebody named Tim Murphy; he claims to be the new CEO of InGen." He paused and looked up at her.
"InGen as in John Hammond's company? As in THE InGen?" She nodded her head slowly.
"I'll take it."
The phone was the worst alarm clock.
She groaned and turned over to stare at the clock. It was 9:30. Sighing, she sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. The phone continued to ring.
"Ok, ok, I'm coming." She stumbled across the room and grabbed the cordless phone sitting on the dresser.
"Hello?" She mumbled in a throaty voice.
"Cindy? Did I wake you up?" She rubbed her eyes and yawned.
"Kind of, Carl. What is so important that you would wake me up on one of my few days off?"
"I'm sorry, Cindy but this is really important. I mean, this is just huge. This could be the biggest thing…"
"Will you just tell me please?"
"Well, there was a phone call for you just a couple of minutes ago."
"A phone call. Is this what you woke me up for, a phone call?" She shook her head in disgust.
"Wait a minute, I'm not finished yet. It was from Tim Murphy, the new CEO of InGen." At the word 'InGen', Cindy perked up a bit.
"InGen? As in the people in the dinosaur incident, InGen?"
"The one and only." She shook her head in disbelief.
"What could they want with me? I'm a marine biologist, not a paleontologist. I don't have anything to do with dinosaurs."
"I don't know, but he left you this number and said that he wants you to get back with him ASAP."
"Hold on, I need to write this down." She walked across into the small study adjacent to her room and copied the number onto a sheet of paper.
"Ok, thanks Carl." She hung up the phone and walked back into her bedroom. She plopped back on the unmade bed and stared at the ceiling.
"Dinosaurs. All this before I've had my coffee as well."
"Well, Mr. Murphy, I really do appreciate your generosity. Are you sure that you don't have any objections whatsoever in funding my research? No? That's great. Ok I'll be there tomorrow afternoon. Thanks again." He hung up the phone and gave a silent fist pump. He unplugged his laptop and quickly put it into his messenger bag. He grabbed his coat and quickly left his office.
"Leaving so soon, Professor Neutron?" Gayle looked at him in surprise. He turned to her and began speaking excitedly.
"This is just great, Gayle. Mr. Murphy, the new CEO of InGen has offered to fund my research. No questions asked. I have to meet him in his estate in Westchester tomorrow morning. He's sending his company helicopter to pick me up!"
"So you're just going to leave, just like that?"
"I don't see any reason why not." She looked over at the computer monitor.
"You have an intradepartmental faculty meeting today at three o'clock today. What do you want me to do about that?" He waved it off.
"Just cancel it, and we'll reschedule it later."
"There are going to be some pretty angry professors."
"This is a chance of a lifetime, Gayle." She smiled at his child-like enthusiasm.
"I know. Go. I'll deal with the meetings." He hugged her and walked away quickly.
"You're a saint!" He called as he sprinted down the hall.
"I'm very impressed, Mr. Murphy; I always thought that InGen was exclusively a bio-tech company. Well, I'm glad to hear that your research interests are expanding; the ocean does have many possibilities. I'd be delighted to meet with you. Tomorrow afternoon in Westchester? I don't know if I can get on a flight out that quickly. The company jet? Are you sure it isn't a hassle? Well then, I'd be honored to accept. I'll be ready. Thanks so much. Good-bye." She hung up the phone and began making plans in her head. She quickly called her lab.
"Carl? Yeah, it's me. You'll never guess this. InGen has offered to fund my research without any strings attached. I know it sounds too good to be true, but I've got to take the chance. I'm going to meet with Mr. Murphy at his home in Westchester, tomorrow afternoon to present my research. Just work around my schedule, will you? Ok, thanks Carl." She quickly finished the remainder of her coffee and hurried up to her room to change. She put on a white long sleeved t-shirt and capris and grabbed her laptop.
Little did they know about the kind of research they were about to perform.