Mission Critical
We were gathered around Mae as she groans in discomfort. "She's asleep. The leaves have stopped the bleeding, but I don't know if it's going to last." Sammy says worriedly. "Ben said that Kash has a phone. Let's get it, call for help and get out of here." Yaz says as I nod in agreement. "But, what about the dinosaurs?" Darius asks as we all look at him. "Now that's Mae's injured. Whose going to protect them?" Darius says as I answer. "Look at her, Darius." I say as I point to Mae who groans again. "She's hurt, while I feel bad for the dinosaurs, Mae's health is what I care about more, she's needs medical treatment. If her wound becomes infected than she's going to be in a lot more trouble." I point out as the others nod.
"The leaves aren't exactly sterile. We'll split up, some of us go looking for the phone while the rest, look for a Med kit or something." Ben says which I agree too. "Ben's right. We need that phone and Mae needs something better than these leaves." I say as everyone agrees. "Only problem is, that we don't know where he went." Kenji points out as a green light is shown. "A BRAD." I whisper as we all hide. I lean down and pick up Mae and carry her far from the light. The BRADs light shown around the cave as Sammy moves her foot away from the light. The light cuts off as the another BRAD shoes up. "New orders received." The robots leave as I carry Mae back. "Maybe one of them is heading back to Kash." Yaz whispers to Brooklynn and Darius.
"You guys go. I think I saw a first aid kit in one of the snow gliders. I'll get Mae patched up." Ben says. "I'll go with you. Their is still that Yutyrannus in the arctic." I say which Ben accepts. As Sammy, Darius and Kenji are heading to the forest biome and Brooklynn and Yaz following the BRADs, I stop Yaz. "Please, be careful." I whisper to her as she smiles, pecking my lips after. "Don't worry, I will." She says as she runs off. I smirk and run after Ben towards the arctic biome.
As me and Ben race thought he tunnels, Ben is looking back at me. "What?" I question which he just smiles. "Sorry, its just...really sweet seeing you two together." He says which I smile embarrassingly to myself. "Yes...yes it is." I say happily. I notice him going to say something funny. "Say anything funny and you'll regret it." I say threateningly which shuts him up. We turn a corner and arrive at the biome. We look out and see a snow glider not far from the airlock. We run through the cold and hop into the vehicle, I notice that Ben is freezing his ass off. I laugh while he glares at me. "Shut up." He grits out as he looks in the back. We find some bandages, water and a med kit. I take the bandages and kit while Ben carries the water. We get out and start to head towards the airlock when a green light appears and we back up against the glider.
To make matters worse, the wind started to pickup and I look over and see Ben, he looks like he has sucked a lemon. I realise that he is desperately trying to keep his himself from shivering. His focus is going haywire as he nearly drops a bottle. The light goes out and we hear the BRAD walking away. Ben looks at me through one eye while I shake my head. He looks at me with a sorry look as his teeth clatter. I hear the BRAD stop and it's metal plates moving sharply. I hear coming back as I nudge Ben. I look down under the car as he quickly moves underneath. I follow as I pull the kit under just as the BRAD looks to where we were just standing. The BRAD scans but just like before, walks away.
Ben breaths a sigh of relief, we go to get out from under the glider but a thud is felt and a soft growl is heard. I look to my left and see a feathered foot landing next to the glider. I sit perfectly still as Ben does the same thing, he is covering his mouth as to not chatter his teeth. The Yutyrannus moves in front of us and I notice that it has a distinctive limp. Must still be hurt from its encounter with King Richard. I hear the snort of a nose as I quickly bury the medical stuff and the water. Ben looks at me terrified as I turn onto my back and take my axe out. I look for the fuel tank and I cut the cord, spraying gasoline on myself and Ben. The Yutyrannus roars before sniffing again, this time, its head leans down as its teeth and jaws are shown to us, the glider is just short enough the the medium size carnivore can't see us. I put a finger on my lips as I look at Ben who nods as his eyes shift between me and the teeth. The jaws nudge the glider before sniffing again, the Yutyrannus grunts in disgust before roaring as it walks away from the glider, it's limping leg dragging along the snow. We sigh in relief and rest our heads against the snow and glider respectively.
We make our way back to the cave, our encounter with the BRAD and the near scare from the Yutyrannus hastening our effort back. I place the med kit and bandages down as Ben does the same with the water. "Ok, Mae. Let's get you cleaned up." Ben says as he gently moves the leave. Mae groans loudly in pin as she blindly punches Ben in the face. "Haaaaaaahaaaaaa!" I almost choke my own throat, fucking hell that was funny. I hold my cramping stomach as I watch Ben fall down, completely dazed from the hit. "Ben...you hurt me." Mae says which I laugh again. "You hurt me." Ben says as he points out the slight bruising around his left eye. "Sorry, maybe we should stick to the leaves." Mae says as I finally get my laughter under control. "Really sorry but was funny as fuck." I say as I kneel beside Mae.
"However, the leaves aren't exactly sterile and we have properly medical gear that is more efficient than this leaf. It may hurt but will be better in the long run." I reason to Mae as she ponders before agreeing. "We don't won't you getting an infection. Luckily, 'antibacterial', is my middle name." Ben says as he holds up a bandage. "Really? My middle name is 'Enfys'. It's Welsh for 'rainbow'. So many colours." Mae says as she dozes off, still slightly out of it. Myself and Ben look at each other weirdly. Mae is ecentric, we just didn't know, this much. "Let's get this wound better. You're not going to hit me again, are you?" Ben says worriedly as he prepares to move the leaf. "I'm not. I'm ready this time." Mae says as she prepares herself. "Ok." Ben says as he moves the leaf. Mae cries out in pain as she goes to punch again but my reflexes are faster. Ben flinches as I catch Mae's fist. "Maybe, I should hold your arms so you don't hit him, just in case." I say as I chuckle at the ridiculousness of what's happening. Mae nods while Ben nods really fast in agreement. I hold Mae's arms as Ben gently moves the leaf. Mae cries in pain but I keep her still. "Hurry." I say to Ben as he cleaned the bite mark with the water before adding an antibacterial paste over the wound. Mae continues to fidget in pain but I hold her arms steady. Ben quickly wraps the wound around Mae's torso and shoulders. It's not long after that we are able to tie the last knot of the bandages. I hand Mae some pain killers and water, she gulps both the tablets and the water down hard. "How are you feeling?" I ask which she nods. "Still hurt but otherwise, I'm alright, thank you." She says as I smile. We look to the side and see Ben nursing his growing black eye. "Got him good, though?" I say as Ben turns and glares at me. I just laugh in return.
Awhile later, the others had return. I noticed Yaz looking upset about something. "Hey, you ok?" I say as I walk up to her but she simply just hugs me. "I am now." She says quietly as I return her hug. "Come on. We got a lot to say." She says as she pulls me with her to the group. We gathered around Mae. "We found Kash...in this creepy warehouse full of BRADs." Yaz says as she sits down. "How many?" I ask as I kneel down. "A hundred, I would say." She says as I curse under my breath. That's a lot to deal with. "I almost had the phone. But then..." Brooklynn goes stop say as Yaz finishes for her. "He went back into he compound." She says as I think about it. That place is a fortress. One way in that we know of, guarded by robot dogs and irate male raptors. "No way of getting in, at least not front on. It'll be suicide." I say. "Something else is going on. We saw some drones pull Big Eatie away from her daughter. For some test." Darius says as Kenji follows up. "It was...hard to watch." He says which Mae gets angry at. "Hasn't he hurt them enough?" I think about what he could possibly use her for. "What test?" I say as a trumpet is heard in the distance. "That's King Richard!" Mae says as she goes to get up but myself and Brooklynn gently place her back down. "Whoa, you are in no shape to go anywhere." Brooklynn says. "You need to rest." I say as she looks up at me. "But he is hurting him just like with Big Eatie." She says as my eyes narrow. "We'll go. And we'll stop him."
We arrive at the compound and see some drones herding King Richard through the trees. He still has wounds on his leg and shoulder but he looks so exhausted. The humidity of the jungle is affecting him, that fur coat is slowly weighing him down, literally and figuratively. "What is he doing to him?" Yaz questions as we hear a loud roar and see Big Eatie being pushed out by another groups or drones. Big Eatie turns and focuses on King Richard who trumpets in warning. Big Eatie responds in warning as well Big Eatie knows that this animals is nearly as big as her and probably just as fierce, she is warning the mammoth of her strength. Some predators and prey will avoid each other if the risk of injury is too great and judging from Big Eaties wounds and King Richards, neither of them are in a particular mood for combat.
We notice the drones moving around them and pushing them closer and my eyes widen. "He wants them to fight." I say as I come to the realisation of what Kash wants. "What?" "No way." Kenji and Ben say respectively. "It adds up." Darius also says. "Tampering with their food. Making them more aggressive and unable to feel pain. Testing Richard against the Yutyrannus. Big Eatie for a test. He just wants them to fight. He doesn't care about them. He just wants to see them fight." I say in absolute anger. This is immoral, forcing animals, no matter what species, extinct or de-extinct shouldn't be forced to fight for the pleasure and entertainment of people. "King Richard is strong but he won't last against a Tyrannosaur, and an angry one at that." Brooklynn points out. "Guys, I know that phone is our only way off the island but we have to-." Darius doesn't finish as I interrupt. "Save them." Sammy follows after me. "Yeah we do." We all stand together as Darius does a double take back at us. "Wait, what? I thought-I mean, I was gonna-." Kenji this time is the one to interrupt. "Give us one of your 'save the dinosaurs' speeches. No need, bro. We got you." Kenji says as Darius turns to me. "While I still think that we should be getting off this island is our upmost priority. I'm not going to sit by as some asshole plays with dinosaurs like their toys to be thrown away." I say with venom in my voice. Darius nods happily as we all are on board.
"Kash must be controlling the drones from within the compound. All we have to do is get in there and disable them so the animals don't hurt each other." Brooklynn says. "How are we going to get in when Kash is already in there, most likely with a BRAD and oh, I don't know, getting past the raptors. I'm sure that they remember us." I say sarcastically to Brooklynn who glares at me. "What? They're logical reasons." I say. Big Eatie and King Richard are getting more erratic and irate with each passing moment that they are trapped here. I hear heavy quiet breathing behind me and I turn to see Yaz staring intently with fear etched on her face at the two gigantic animals. "We have to draw Kash out somehow." Darius says as I hear Ben chewing. "I got some ideas on that front." He says evilly as he points at us with carob bar. How he has one, I have no idea.
"Perfect. Sammy, you're with Ben. Once Kash leaves his compound..." Brooklynn, this time interrupts. "We'll tail him. Make sure he stays out." She says as she elbows Kenji. "Ok. Yaz, you, myself and Ryan will make our way past the raptors, into the compound and disable those drones. Ok?" Darius says which I look at Yaz as she tries to get her breathing under control. "Yaz?" I whisper to her. My unspoken question going to her as she steadies herself. "I got this." She says confidently as she looks between me and Brooklynn. Brooklynn nods is respect as she and Kenji trail off into the jungle. "You do got this." Darius says as he places a comforting hand on her shoulder before walking off. I walk up to her as she looks at me. "If at any point that you think you can't do it. Tell me and I swear, I'll get you far away from here as possible, the mission be damned." I say to her. Every fibre of my being is worried about her. She smiles and kisses me. "I'll fine, I promise." She says as we walk after Darius.
He is hiding behind some shrubbery as I kneel next to him. I notice that Yaz hasn't followed and I look back and see her breathing very heavily and sweating profusely. She collapses to the ground. "Yaz!" I yell out as I run over to her. Darius following behind me. I notice that Sammy has come to, hearing me call out. Myself and Sammy help her steady herself. "I'm sorry. I'm just...I'm fine." She says as she looks to the ground. "It's ok if you're not. These things don't fix themselves overnight." Sammy says as I sit in of Yaz. I hold her hands as she looks at me. "If you don't want to do it, that's fine. Your health is more important to me. If you don't want to be here or if you feel that you can't than let me take you back to Mae. Please, don't torture yourself." I say with worry and fear in my voice. If Yaz tries to push herself, then her next attack could be her last if a predator picks her off or if a BRAD catches her. I'm not going to let any of that happen. "I'm sorry but 'what things'?" Darius asks. "It's nothing-." I interrupt Yaz. "Yaz...you gotta tell him." I say as I rub my thumb across her hand. "I've been having...nightmares. When everyone shared their own that it'll be ok but they haven't gone away and the attacks..." It goes unspoken. "Why didn't you tell me?" Darius asks as I answer. "We didn't want to worry you or make you feel bad. It was a group agreement and...it was the right thing to do. To help Pierce that day when we missed the plane." I say.
"Ok...new plan. How about you go with Sammy and Ben while me and Ryan go in the compound?" Darius says as Yaz looks at him gratefully. She leans over and hugs him. "Thank you." I just hear her whisper as Darius returns her hug. Yaz gets up with Sammy and walks off. She looks back at me as I look at her with worried eyes. "Please, be ok?" I mouth to her as he nods back to me. I look at Darius and we nod to each other with determined looks. We run along the edge of the clearing, as we look and see the drones pushing the two animals together. Their frecious roars and trumpets are echoing around the entire biome as we station ourselves at the edge of the compound, with a clear line to the door. "Hurry, guys. We need to get Kash out of there." Darius says to himself. "Patience, my friend. If I know Ben, he'll do something that will absolutely draw Kash's attention." We look out and see that the animals are too angry now and just want to hit something. Mainly...each other. Big Eatie bites down on a tusk of King Richard who tries to shake it free. "No." Darius say with fear and myself stare out in anger.
Sometime later, we hear a loud explosion, of course he would use something to blow something else up. I point out to Darius that Kash is walking out with a BRAD in tow, completely non chalant about the massive Tyrannosaur or mammoth next to him. We make our way out of the bushes as Kash is a good enough distance away. I hear rustling behind us as I see some leaves shaking. "Darius...go!" I yell to him as one of the raptors jumps out. We run to the compound as I notice that this is the one that Yaz scarred the other day. We continue running but the raptor is catching up. I narrow my eyes before coming to a complete stop and backhand the predator. I shake my hand at the hit as the raptor groans in pain and wobbles a bit wobbly from the contact. "Go! Get the drones away!" I yell to Darius as he runs into the compound. I run into the jungle, far from the compound as the raptor gets its bearings together and chases after me. I find a small clearing and turn around. The raptor is slowly stalking up to me. Its teeth are bared and its claws ready to slash. It's threatening growl in unnerving but I hold my bearings. I take out my axe and hold it at the ready. "Well...come on, then!" I yell at it as it pounces. This was a very terrible idea.
