Jet Fusion:

Jet made his way carefully through the dense underbrush. The going was difficult but he kept at it. The sun was blotted out by the massive trees, so despite the tropical heat, Jet actually found it to be chilly. He reached his crate quicker than he had expected. He felt some relief. He wasn't as far off course as he had feared.

He unsheathed his knife and sliced through the straps around the case and unlatched the case. Within he found an arsenal of weaponry to pick from. He wrapped his hands around a 50 caliber sniper rifle proudly and held it up. It was lighter than models he had used in the past, since this one had a synthetic polymer composite construction. The barrel had been blued to subdue it and was threaded to accommodate a silencer. He twisted it lovingly into place until he heard the click that meant it was secure.

He slid knives and throwing spikes in concealable sheaths that were strapped to random parts of his body, reloaded the magazines for his Mp5k, and slipped the sniper rifle's sling so it hung across his chest, securing the rifle on his back. His preparations were sadly interrupted by the sound of a animal snorting in the brush nearby.

He swung his weapon at the ready and crept low. He caught an acrid smell of carrion on the air. He knew it was a meat eater nearby. He stepped carefully, keeping his eyes glued to the nearby tree line. He felt his foot step in something soft. He glanced down and felt disgust at what he saw, animal spoor. He could see bone fragments embedded. It was definitely a carnivore. He flipped the safety off of his weapon and crept closer to the nearest tree.

He glanced left and right but couldn't see the source of the snort he had heard. He held his breath and strained his ears, willing his senses to pick up more information than they were. A bush shook nearby. That was when he saw it. He knew what it was easy enough having seen it before in the movie Jurassic Park. It was a Velociraptor and it was watching him. His mind reeled in shock. This thing couldn't be real, but then again the gargoyles shouldn't have been real either.

"I'll right Jet. What do we know about this creature? In the movie they hunted in packs, so this thing is most likely not alone." He thought to himself. He glanced around at the surrounding trees and shrubbery. If there were others here than they were camouflaged really well. He decided it was best to get out of his location in a hurry. He reached into his utility belt and slowly removed a smoke pellet and a grappling hook launcher with his left hand. He kept his motions really slow. He took his eyes off the location of the raptor only for the moment it took to aim the launcher. It let out a soft whoosh as the spike rocketed off into the air striking a thick branch high up in the air.

The air filled with screeches. Jet slammed the smoke pellet at the ground. The air filled with grayish black smoke hiding him from the angry raptors' view. The launcher had an automatic reel that activated and Jet felt his body lurch as the line pulled tight lifting him off the ground. He caught the movement of several shapes circling through the smoke below him. He figured if each dark shape was a raptor then there were six of them. It took a few minutes for the smoke to clear, but when it did he saw that he had been correct. There were six raptors below him, and they were staring up at him. "Great they can see me," he thought to himself, "Well hopefully the books and movies aren't entirely correct about how intelligent they are."

He felt his heart drop in his chest as the raptor closest to the tree dug in its razor sharp claws, and began to climb toward him followed by the others.

Eustace:

Eustace fidgeted in his seat. It's not that he didn't find Carl and Sheen's conversation interesting. It's just that his mind kept drifting to the sleeping girl in her blue lion. He knew it was wrong for him to have any feelings for her that weren't out of friendship, but he couldn't help it. "I didn't ask for any of this. Wasn't I entitled to like who I liked? Where is it written that she and I couldn't end up together?" He thought to himself. It made his heart ache in a way that he never felt before to know that he could never ask her to be his girlfriend. He felt robbed inside to know that her heart couldn't ever truly belong to him. He wanted to speak to her. He wanted to throw himself at her feet and confess his undying love. But these feelings weren't supposed to be his. This wasn't right.

He glanced that the viewing monitor for Cindy's lion. It was still turned off. He knew that she was sleeping, and not only deserved her rest, but also needed it. She was most certainly the key to winning the day. He wasn't sure how he knew but he sensed that she had the power to vanquish the monster they would face. He decided it was best if he tried to keep his head focused on the mission, but the jealousy was tearing him apart from the inside.

Dream continued:

Cindy turned to face the thing she felt on the steps behind her. The spectral apparition behind her glowed softly, but its features were grotesque and inhuman. The face was deformed and partially skeletal and flesh seemed to hang in chunks off its skeletal form. It opened its mouth that seemed to grow wider than should have been possible and it roared at her. She screamed as she felt flat on the step behind her. It made click and clack sounds, as the thing scuttled toward Cindy on spider like boney legs that were coming out of its severed lower half.

She crawled backwards as fast as she could. It was coming too fast for her to stop, even for the moment it would take for her to get to her feet. It swung sharp claw like bony fingers at her again and again. Each time she felt the air move from the closeness of the swipes. She hit the top stair and threw herself into a backward summersault. The momentum carried her backward and upward as she sprang up on her feet. She struck at the apparition with a round house kick. Her leg struck three of the bony spider like legs sweeping them out from under her attacker. As it collapsed it flailed in anger, striking out in every direction. Three of the claws on its right hand cut Cindy's arm. She ignored the flash of hot pain and stomped on its bony misshapen head until it stopped writing and was still.

A doorway at the end of the hall opened filling the dark hallway with light. The music grew louder, the room clearly being the source. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and entered the room.

It was Jimmy's bedroom. She had been in here often enough by now, having worked on one project or another. The room seemed exactly as she remembered it. It made her heart ache a little being in here. She sat on the bed and sniffed his pillow. Every detail of the room seemed perfect. Even the pillow smelled like him.

"I know this is only a dream, but somehow I feel like you're here with me." Cindy said out loud.

"I am with you Cindy." A voice that sounded like Jimmy replied.

Cindy looked up from the pillow she was hugging. Jimmy was standing there as perfectly as she remembered him.

"You're not real. You're just a figment of my imagination." She said sadly as she closed her eyes. She felt his fingers touch her cheek as he had done many times. She opened her eyes and felt her breath catch in her throat as she saw his sapphire eyes staring back into hers.

"I'm real Cindy. I don't know how I got here but I'm here all the same." Jimmy told her. The look in his eyes seemed to be imploring her to believe him.

"No, that's not possible. I'm only dreaming." Her words weren't very adamant. "But how do I know you're not just a dream induced manifestation of what I want to be true?"

"I think we're both astral projecting, Cindy." He said.

"That does sound familiar, but remind me what that is again." She replied.

"Well astral projection is an out of body experience. The theory is that we all have a spiritual body that resides within our physical one. Sometimes for varying reasons the spiritual or astral body leaves the body. Sometimes it can happen when two people are separated and desperately want to see each other." He said.

"Ok let's say for a minute that I believe you and that this IS an astral How do you explain this house and that thing that attacked me on the stairs?" she asked.

"Books on the paranormal claim that the astral world has many levels. The lowest being the physical world. The highest aren't really described, but they say that there are beings of light that block earth bound travelers from ascending any higher after a certain point. Some people claim that they are angels that guard the entrance to Heaven. Anyhow, people that claim to have astral projected claim that they often found themselves at a relative's house that they wished to see, so I'm pretty sure that this is my actual house. My guess is you came here because of your desire to see me. As for that creature, the books claim that there are earth bound 'spirits' that are jealous of travelers because we are still living beings and they are not. But all the books claim we are stronger than them and can shrug them off if they attack us by ascending to high plains in the astral world."

What happens now?" She asked.

"You'll wake up but before you do I must tell you a few things. I don't have control over my body." He told her.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"I don't have to explain. Please take my word for it. You have to free me from the hold Betty has over me. Please don't give up on me Cindy, no matter what I may say or do on the island." He took her hand and continued, "Just know that I love you."

Her cheeks flushed in response and she forced herself to stare in his gorgeous eyes as she replied, "I love you to Jimmy and always have."

He kissed her once. His lips felt warm against hers and he pulled away leaving her lips tingling. The room began to fade around her and she felt strange for a moment as if she was in two places at once. On one hand she felt like she was in the room but on the other hand she could feel the chair where her body lay within the blue lion. "I'm waking up aren't I?" She asked Jimmy.

"Yes, before you go I have one more thing to tell you. The dream injector is still active. You probably know that by now. It can alter reality. Betty desires to gain full control over the device, so she can reshape reality and make herself a god. She will do anything she can to get what she wants. She is more than she seems. Don't under estimate her abilities." he said,

"How can I defeat her if she's as powerful as that sounds?" she asked.

"You're mind is still connected to the dream injector." His words faded in and out as she slightly regained consciousness. "Quick take this! Its made out of a piece of the metal that we got out of the dream world. It can be reshaped. You will know how to use it when you most need it!. She woke up but the last thing that she heard was "you have the power!"

She opened her arms and sat up in her chair. She glanced at the sensors for her lion and saw that she still hadn't reached her destination yet, and wouldn't for at least another hour. She turned a dial and the lights within the cockpit grew brighter. Cindy noticed a pain in her arm that made her wince when she stretched. She glanced down and saw three shallow slashes on her forearm. She held her arm close and stared at the cuts. The cuts were in the same spot as the ones in her dream. She considered the possibly that she couldn't have cut herself by tossing in her sleep, but there was nothing sharp on her chair or uniform that would have cut her.

"Maybe it was real after..." She stopped herself mid-sentence. She noticed a metallic object glinting in the light. She picked it up and saw that it was the sword that Jimmy had handed her in the dream. She heard a squeaking noise behind her and spun holding up the sword in a fighting stance. It was as if someone was wiping there finger on the screen of the monitor closest to her. She watched as words appeared. she wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't seen the words form herself. The words said, "You have the power, Cindy. Love Jimmy."

To be continued….