Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Lost World—not a leaf, not a bullet, not even a single orange... sigh
Summary: Challenger's newest invention summons an uninvited guest from the future... though the explorers have no idea who this John Doe is, you have probably met him, yourself!... hints of MR...
(Explorers...meet: the modern teen... dundunduuuun!)
"Oh good lord, Challenger… what are you up to now?" Roxton muttered to himself as he stole a doubtful glance at the tangled mess of cooking supplies and wires occupying Challenger's workbench.
"I see you've stumbled upon my newest invention." The scientist approached from behind, holding the finishing touch for his contraption—a frying pan. Attaching the cooking instrument carefully to his machine, he began explaining…"You see, the energy gathers in this chamber and it compounds as it enters the…" Challenger continued to drone on about his experiment, unaware that he had lost his audience.
Marguerite entered the lab just in time to hear the end of Challenger's little lecture…
"…and it should create a big enough flash to alert the world of our presence on the plateau!" the eager scientist prognosticated.
"Do you think it'll work?" Roxton softly inquired, leaning towards Marguerite as she walked by.
"Hmph!" she sniggered lightly in his ear. "Do his experiments ever work?"
The visionary held his breath as he flipped the power switch of his invention. Marguerite and Roxton watched doubtfully.
A tinge of light quickly appeared and disappeared, proving only to be a flash in the pan (metaphorically and literally), but the eminent scientist was not about to give up.
Upon flipping the switch again, a brilliant beam burst from the machine, causing the explorers to shield their eyes. Lowering their hands, the group gaped at the result of the light.
An emaciated young man looked back and forth from to the explorers to a table that had recently appeared, which was replete with choice morsels of every kind; the man's eyes implored the group for permission to eat.
They watched as the stranger indiscriminately snatched food from the table to satisfy his voracious appetite… he had a seemingly interminable hunger. Marguerite and Roxton were somewhat disgusted—Marguerite had lost interest in the man as soon as he made it clear that she was not welcome to his gourmet goodies. He had even gone as far as to growl menacingly at the heiress when she approached.
Challenger, however, was intrigued with the specimen, and his mind abounded with curiosities of the new technology he had discovered.
"When will he give up? We already know the man's not going to talk." Marguerite complained to Roxton.
Challenger had spent the past two hours interrogating the strange man. Exiting through a constantly stuffed mouth, the man's replies were garbled and not too pleasing for the eyes.
"Well, he can't eat forever, Marguerite." The hunter uttered, making his way for the stairs. There was only so much Lord Roxton could take. Witnessing such gluttony was enough to make one sick.
Within the first half hour, the scientist had concluded the man was from the future (perhaps sometime in the 20th century?), and obtaining this small detail had caused the scientist to become incorrigible in his questioning.
"Surely the annals of science in your time mention something of this expedition?"
"Mmmphlgrbbbs… Idnoomgeee….harrgnpfhm…." was the response. The cadaverous guest, armed with a hunk of Parmesan veal and the last crust of garlic toast, stood and trudged up the stairs to the kitchen. Challenger followed him avidly. Raiding the cupboards as if he were in his own dwelling, the man scooped up all the food he could find and proceeded to eat.
"Enough is enough" growled the vexed heiress, tromping towards the source of her irritation.
"George, we have send him back, so why don't you just fire up that machine of yours and --"
"--I can't. It broke." His eyes were still transfixed on the guest.
"Well fix it then!" Her voice overflowed with exasperation.
"I wonder if everyone in the future has this big of an appetite… it seems he has a particular taste for fruit… apples in particular…"
"GEORGE! LISTEN TO ME" Grabbing his shoulders, the heiress twirled him around and forced the scientist to face her. "He is going to eat us out of house and home! We have to send him back."
"Yes, I suppose you're right…"
And so the man began the drudgery of repairing his troublesome contraption.
"Eureka!"
Having perceived what was troubling his machine, Challenger adjusted a few wires, tightened a few bolts, and set out to retrieve the guest—but the strange, hungry fellow refused to be moved.
"I can't bring my invention up here—it could be damaged even more, and this time I won't have enough supplies to fix it. We'll have to bring our guest back down to the lab, but if he won't allow us to--"
"George! George… leave that to me," Roxton interjected deviously.
Marguerite glanced away, struggling to stifle a smile, but all hope was lost as soon as her gaze returned to the hunter.
"Is this one of your usual methods of attracting prey?" she laughed breathlessly, observing Roxton as he hunched over, carefully creating a trail of food leading to the lab. He had taken immeasurable pains to sneak the tidbits away from the savage upstairs, managing to get away with only minor injuries. It had been quite an absurd sight, indeed-- watching the gaunt visitor nearly pummel the gallant Lord Roxton over only a few scraps of food!
"I've never tried this before, thank you very much…" Pausing to look up at Marguerite, he teasingly added, "Be careful… if you don't stop laughing, I might very well lay out a trail for you too…"
She grinned wryly, still chuckling under her breath.
Steeped in fruit juice, the odd young man climbed down the stairs, prudently checking each step for even a crumb. He had almost reached the last piece of fruit—an orange—when Challenger forcefully flipped the switch on his machine, recreating the dazzling spark that had started the whole thing and that would now finishit... The young man faded away.
Marguerite and Roxton stood side by side, both eyeing the plump, round orange hungrily—it was (very possibly) the last bit of food in the entire house…
Roxton reached down and plucked it from it's resting spot, enjoying the desire it aroused in Marguerite's eyes. He gazed intently at the fruit, then at the beauty before him.
"Would you care for a snack, my dear?" he inquired politely.
The heiress couldn't help but beam at his gentlemanly offer.
"The whole thing? Why, Lord Roxton, I couldn't…" Marguerite answered, attempting to reflect his generosity. She was about to suggest that they share the tidbit when it unexpectedly vanished.
"Well if neither of you want it, I'll take it…"
The couple looked up with disapproving awe as the ginger-haired scientist headed up the stairs and began peeling the fruit.
"Science does work up quite an appetite, you know!" he added through a mouthful of juicy orange pulp.
Author's Note: I got this idea while looking over the words from my English vocabulary list… It seemed like a good way to study and fulfill my need to write fanfiction, so I wrote this! Perhaps if I get enough reviews I will be prompted to write more vocabulary-lost world fanfic:-D