Jurassic Park Broken Lives
Chapter 14: Dreams
Disclaimer: I do not own Jurassic Park.
Amanda, Silver Claw and Lance fell through the darkness. Amanda screamed until she hit the ground, her head hit a rock, the world began to spin, and suddenly everything went dark…
Amanda slowly awoke but refused to open her eyes. The air around her was cold, strange scents filled the air, and she had an overwhelming headache. Her body hurt but tingled with new sensations and the world seemed anew. She could hear distant creatures walking through the jungle and the soft gurgle of a nearby stream. She could smell creatures around her but could not identify them. Single voice suddenly called her name.
Reluctantly, Amanda slowly opened her eyes. The world was a blur of colors and shades before them. She heard her name again. A ghostly shape slowly came into focus. It was Silver Claw. He stood in front of her with a smile on his face. Then she noticed she was no longer in the hole in the ground but in the middle of the jungle, surrounded by a dense wall of bushes.
"Silver Claw," Amanda questioned. "What happened? Where are we?"
"You must be tired Amanda," Silver Claw said softly. "We're in our home and you just laid your first clutch of eggs."
"What," Amanda shouted and stood up. She immediately toppled over and she looked to see that she had been lying in a nest.
"Careful Amanda, you don't want to accidentally step on our eggs." Silver Claw said and slowly walked over to her. He gently licked her cheek and sat down next to her.
"How can I lay eggs, I'm human," Amanda stuttered and looked at him. "We can't even mate! Why would I want to lay eggs?"
"You must really be tired," Silver Claw said softly and rubbed his head against her. "We have twelve eggs incase you didn't know."
"I'm human though." Amanda nearly shouted and looked at her body. Her eyes widened in shock and she nearly passed out at what she saw.
Her body was no longer that of a human but of a female velociraptor. White scales covered a majority of her body while a few black patches and lines ran down her sides and back. A large tail, her large tail, extended from her body, large muscular legs ended in the recognizable killing claws of a velociraptor. She slowly looked down to see the dexterous three fingered forearms of a velociraptor that ended in black claws. She focused her eyes inward to see her snout, the scales darker than on her body.
She slowly reached up and touched her face. "This can't be real, it can't be."
"Amanda," She heard a voice say. Sunayana emerged from the bushes. "What beautiful eggs," Sunayana said and approached them.
Amanda snapped at her. Her eyes widened when she realized what she had done. "Oh, I'm sorry Sunayana, I didn't mean it."
"It's alright Amanda. I didn't ask to approach your nest and for that I'm sorry." Sunayana said, bowed her head, and backed away, disappearing into the bushes.
"How did I become a raptor?" Amanda asked skeptically, turning her attention back to Silver Claw.
"The incident in the laboratory," Silver Claw smiled and gently licked Amanda's cheek again.
"What exactly happened?" Amanda asked, pulling away from him.
"Well we were on a walk way when it collapsed on us. I fell first into the stuff and it changed color. You fell in and the next day you woke up a raptor." Silver Claw said. "I still can remember your reaction, you were so happy."
"What?" Amanda shouted, "I don't want to be like this, I like being human."
"I see," Silver Claw sighed and slowly stood up. "Good bye Amanda." Silver Claw disappeared into the bushes.
"I didn't mean it Silver Claw, I'm sorry Silver Claw, come back!" Amanda yelled. Suddenly the world faded to black. "Silver Claw, come back!" She stared into the darkness around her; she stood suspended in the emptiness, unable to move and alone. She once more heard her name and felt herself pulled to an unknown destination.
"Amanda wakeup," Silver Claw said. "I'm here Amanda."
Amanda turned over slightly and opened her eyes. "Silver Claw," She screamed and wrapped her arms around him. She began to cry.
"It's alright Amanda, I'm here and you're safe." Silver Claw whispered. He gently rubbed his head against head. "We fell into a tunnel and we're in a small building right now."
"What happened?" Amanda asked softly, whipping several tears away.
"You hit your head on the rock so I carried you on my back through the tunnels." Silver Claw replied and pulled away slowly.
"Why is it so dark?" Amanda questioned.
"It's night," Silver Claw replied. "You've been out for quite some time now."
Amanda reached up to her ear and pulled out a thorn but no flower. "Where's the flower you gave me?" Amanda reached the back of her head and found her hair crusty with dried blood.
"I think it may have fallen while we were in the tunnels." Silver Claw replied and looked down.
"I'm sorry I lost it Silver Claw, it was beautiful though." Amanda said looked around. "And where's Lance?" Amanda panicked, not because she has been out cold for at least seven hours, but that Lance may have gone hunting and could bring a predator back here.
"Outside, you were screaming in raptor and he just left." Silver Claw sighed.
"What was I screaming about?"
"You kept screaming for me to come back and that you were sorry about something." Silver Claw said with a saddened tone. "Do know why?"
"I was having a dream… I'll tell you about it later, ok?" Amanda said and looked down. "Lance, are you out there?"
"Oh, you're away finally." He replied from outside. "Could you come out here for a moment?"
"What do you want?" Amanda asked as she finally stopped crying.
"I want to know if you or the lizard knows where we are." Lance replied.
"He's not a lizard," Amanda said and stood up. She opened the door to get outside and stepped back slightly. "What's that smell?"
"Swamp, were near some kind of bog, though there is a road out here." Lance said and put the knife he was tossing in his pocket. "Will you be wanting this back?" He asked and showed the knife Amanda had earlier.
"You took it from me!" Amanda said, angered, and took it back.
"No, it fell off you went I helped you on to the dinosaur's back." He said, "Now, do you know were we are so I can call my helicopter?"
"I've never seen this place before." Amanda answered and looked at Silver Claw, but he shook his head.
"Oh well," he sighed and started walking down the road. "See you later Sheila."
"Where are you going?" Amanda asked and quickly walked up to catch him.
"There's bound to be a building along this roar somewhere," Lance said. "I can call my helicopter and get them to drop my supplies off."
"Isn't the helicopter at the mainland?" Amanda suspiciously asked.
"No, it's actually sitting on a boat off shore here, waiting for a call to drop my supplies off." Lance snickered.
"He's not as dumb as I thought," Silver Claw said and Amanda laughed at the comment.
"Yeah, but now he can get a new gun," Amanda said. "What if he runs into Sunayana or another raptor?"
"What are you two talking about?" Lance questioned.
"What we're going to do with you," Amanda replied. "We can't have you killing things for the fun of it because you could endanger our friends if you get your supplies."
"Friends, you mean there are more raptors nearby that you hope do not end up on a wall." Lance said with a grin. Silver Claw immediately pounced on him and held Lance's arms down with his forearms while his killing claws were ready to use.
"Please let me kill him Amanda," Silver Claw snarled. "He's as bad as Tyrannous."
"Silver Claw, I know he's bad but I don't want to know that you've killed a human." Amanda pleaded in raptor. "Just hold him still for a moment though."
Amanda walked over and reached into Lances pockets. She pulled out the supplies he had been carrying, a phone, two army knives, a lighter, a wallet and a small case. She opened the case to find a dart with a glowing neon blue liquid in it. She moved in front of him and pointed to the dart.
"Is a poison dart, kills anything in less that a second." Lance admitted. "My rifle had one but your lizard broke it and I couldn't get the other dart out. Why am I telling you this?" Lance tried to move but Silver Claw put more of his weight on him and tapped his claws impatiently on his back.
Amanda quickly closed the case. "Why do you need something that dangerous?"
"Because I didn't know how big the creature was and why am I explaining this to you," Lance said. "Now, can you get this thing off my back?"
"Silver Claw, you can get off him now." Amanda said politely.
Silver Claw slowly stepped off him. "Can we leave him Amanda, he's defenseless and we won't know it he dies."
Lance slowly stood up and back away from Silver Claw. "Can I have my stuff back now?"
"No," Amanda said, "I'm going to destroy this dart and keep the rest of this because you would only use it to get your supplies and kill Silver Claw possibly." Amanda placed the items in her pocket and held the case tight.
"Fine then," Lance said in a clear clam tone and turned away. He walked down the road some ways and turned around. He bent over and it looked like he was tying his shoes, though it was hard to tell in the darkness. He slowly stood up and snapped his arm forward.
Silver Claw suddenly clasped to his side, yelping in pain. He looked to his leg to see a knife sticking out of his leg. He hissed angrily at Lance and finally managed to stagger to his feet.
"Go bye Amanda, I'll be sure to come back for your friend in a day or so." Lance shouted and turned away, running.
"Silver Claw," Amanda shouted and raced to his side. She gently rubbed his neck, trying to calm him. "I'm sorry, I should have let you kill him," Amanda said, bursting into tears.
"I'm fine, Amanda," Silver Claw said. "But could you pull the knife out of my leg?"
Amanda quickly reached over and slowly pulled the blade out, being sure not to wiggle it. She cried and through the knife into the jungle on the other side of the road. Blood trickled down his leg and to his foot. "This is entirely my fault," Amanda cried. "How deep is the wound?"
"Not very deep, it only cut into the skin; it doesn't feel like it hit too much muscle." Silver Claw replied and nudged Amanda's chin up. "Please stop crying, I'm ok and it is not your fault Amanda."
"Do you want me to put a bandage on it?" Amanda sobbed.
"No, I think its fine," Silver Claw said and stepped forward. He yelped in pain and staggered forward. "It went deeper than I thought. We should find as safe place to rest until I can move with out this pain."
"Do you want to stay in the shed until tomorrow?" Amanda asked softly, although still crying.
"Ok," Silver Claw replied and limped towards the shed. "I should be able to walk tomorrow.
Suddenly in the distance, the thunderous roar of the spinosaur sounded through the air. Soon it followed it was a scream. Amanda and Silver Claw quickly moved into the shed and closed the door. Silver Claw collapsed to his side and exhaled several heavy breaths. Amanda tossed the case with the dart into the tunnel and carefully looked out the window.
Heavy steps, faint at first, slowly grew louder until the spinosaur stepped into view of the sheds dirty windows. Its figure, outlined by the moonlight, showed that it was something in his mouth, something moving. It was Lance; he was still alive and kicking. The spinosaur sniffed the air and looked around but soon moved off into the jungle.
"Lance is alive," Amanda whispered to Silver Claw. "The spinosaur has him in its mouth."
Silver Claw laughed slightly, although it hurt to do so. "That spinosaur might have hatchlings then. He's going to suffer more than anything I could have done to him."
"Why is that," Amanda whispered.
"The hatchlings are probably old enough to start learning to hunt live prey," Silver Claw answered. "They will be given him to practice on."
"Oh… that will be… unpleasant." Amanda whispered and sat down next to Silver Claw. She gently did not rest her head on him but on the ground. He moved over to her side and looked into her eyes.
"Now that we're safe, what was the dream about that you mentioned earlier?" Silver Claw said and placed his head on her stomach.
"Well, it started off when I woke up. I could smell and hear thing I could never have as a human. I opened my eyes and there you were, smiling at me. I stood up but fell over because my body was weak." Amanda said and started to turn red. "You sat down next to me and told I must be tired after laying twelve of our eggs. I was confused and looked at my body… I was a female raptor. Then Sunayana came out of some bushes and I snapped at her because she went near the eggs. I could not believe it and I said I wanted to be human. You said goodbye and walked away. That's when I started calling for you to come back and that I was sorry."
Silver Claw moved his head and stared at her in disbelief. "You were a female raptor?"
"Yeah, you said in the dream that there was an accident in the laboratory and I woke up the nest day a raptor," Amanda said, turning redder.
"And we had eggs?"
"Yes, twelve of them," Amanda replied and looked away, embarrassed.
Silver Claw smiled and hummed slightly. He nudged her until she looked at him and he looked deep into her eyes. "Amanda, how do you feel about me?"
"What do you mean?" Amanda asked and put her hand behind her head as a sort of pillow.
"How do you feel about me as a friend?" Silver Claw asked.
"You're my best friend; you are the friend everyone dreams of having. You are loyal, friendly, smart, caring, and funny." Amanda said and closed her eyes. "I think I'm going to go to sleep now, goodnight Silver Claw."
"Goodnight Amanda," Silver Claw whispered into her ear but she was already asleep. Silver Claw licked her on the cheek and rested his head on her chest.
Meanwhile Lance kicked and swung at the massive maw that held him. Why had this creature not killed him yet? Suddenly a branch lashed him across the face and blood trickled down his cheek.
"Let me go you beast." Lance yelled but only received another branch across the face.
For over an hour, the spinosaur held him tight in its jaws. The air became foul with the stench of decay and before long the passed a parasaurolophus carcass. Thousands of flies flew into the night air as the spinosaur passed another decomposing body of a dinosaur. Lance nearly puked at the gruesome sight and smell of the rotting flesh and putrid smell.
The spinosaur stepped out of the jungle into a small glade. At its center, illuminated by the moonlight, a large nest rose several meters up from the ground around it, dirt, leaves, and large sticks made up its structure. Large bones surrounded the nest, though they were more to the tree line. The same foul air surrounded the nest as in the jungle around. High pitch squeaks came from within the nest and sent chills down Lance's spine.
Lance suddenly found himself tumbling out of the maw of the spinosaur, his legs and body cut by the teeth. He hit the ground hard, the breath knocked from his lungs and the world spun in a distorted blend of colors. He wheezed in short shallow breaths until he could see. He was inside the nest, sticks protruding from the side stuck into his back and wounds bleed from all over his body. Four shadowy figures stood on the other side of the nest, nipping and squeaking at each other.
Lance quickly sat up; the nest walls were too steep to climb and the spinosaur towered overhead. He slowly reached for his ankle and pulled out a small silver revolver.
"If I'm going to die anyway, I'm taking you little monsters with me." Lance mumbled and aimed the gun. He only had five shots so he had to be quick.
The infant spinosaurs squeaked but did not move any closer. The adult spinosaur slowly moved over to the infants and nudged them slightly, making a low deep rumbling sound that vibrated the air around the nest. Three of the babies cautiously stepped forward and steadily grew closer. Three gunshots rang through the air and the three infants dropped to the ground, twitching in spasms. The adult roared in anger and lunged at lance.
He pulled the trigger when he had the last infant in sight but the gun only clicked. He felt himself suddenly thrown into the air, the gun flew from his hands and landed somewhere by the last infant. He looked down to see the gaping maw of the spinosaur as he fell into it. He screamed as he felt the jaws close around him but not hard enough to break the skin. The creature's massive tongue moved him towards the back of the mouth and forced into the throat of the spinosaur, alive…
Amanda slowly awoke to the soft patter of little feet and squeaks that surrounded her. She opened her eyes to see several infant velociraptors jumping on and at each other. One notice Amanda was awake and bounced over to her.
"Mommy," the little female raptor shouted and soon the others followed.
"Mommy?" Amanda questioned and looked at her self. She was a raptor again. She moaned.
"Kids, stop bothering your mother like that, she just woke up." A voice said and Amanda looked to see Silver Claw standing near her.
The little raptors ran towards Silver Claw. "Daddy!" They shouted in unison and played around his feet. Amanda had an overwhelming sense of joy in her heart as she watched the little raptors play at Silver Claw's feet.
Amanda then took this chance to look around. Surrounding her were about thirteen nests, several had raptors resting in them. A stream ran down the center of the nesting area, dividing it in half. Large bushes and trees surrounded the area and the heavy fragrance of flowers filled the air.
"Go play with Sunayana, kids. Daddy wants to talk with mommy." Silver Claw said and smiled as the group of little raptors raced over and piled on Sunayana while she rested in her nest.
Amanda watched as Silver Claw slowly moved next to her and sat down. He looked deep into her eyes and smiled even more. "How are you darling?" He asked in a sweet tone.
"Tired," Amanda replied.
"They're great though, aren't they?" Silver Claw said and looked to Sunayana, who pushed away the little raptors with her snout and playfully swatted at them.
"Yeah," Amanda replied. "When will we be able to sleep again?"
"In a few weeks," Silver Claw answered. "They'll be old enough to have their own nest to sleep in."
Amanda smiled at him and gently licked his cheek. She hummed the lullaby she heard Silver Claw hum before. Silver Claw smiled back and playfully pushed her over. Amanda laughed and pounced on him. They rolled around in the nesting area until Amanda had him pinned to the ground. She lowered her head and looked into his eyes. Her amber eyes met his red one's and her heart filled with a feeling she could not explain.
"Give up?" She teased.
"Never," Silver Claw laughed and managed to roll himself over, forcing her to the ground. He looked her in the eyes. He playfully licked her cheek and hummed. "Give up my mate, you can't win."
Suddenly gunshots sounded through the air and a warm liquid rolled down Amanda's side. "Noooooooo," she screamed.
Amanda suddenly sat up, her body covered in a cold sweat. She looked over to see Silver Claw yawn and look at her. The morning light poured in through the dirty windows and lit up the room. Amanda sighed heavily and rubbed her stiff spine.
"You had another dream didn't you?" Silver Claw asked sadly.
"Yeah, I did,' Amanda replied in the same saddened tone. "I screamed again didn't I?"
"Yeah," Silver Claw said, his breath came in heavy gasps.
"What's wrong?" Amanda asked, "You don't look so good."
"The wound is causing me a lot of pain right now." Silver Claw said and cringed when he moved his leg slightly. "I don't think I'll be going anywhere today."
Amanda started to cry, "How bad is it?"
"I don't know," Silver Claw said and whimpered slightly when he moved his leg again. "It isn't even that deep."
"No, no, no." Amanda cried. "Lance might have put something on the blade before he hit you."
Silver Claw remembered the blue liquid and looked down. "Amanda, what ever happens, you have to stay safe, even if I… die."
"You are not going to die Silver Claw, you can't." Amanda sobbed and wrapped her arms around his neck.
Silver Claw purred softly, "Living with you makes life so much better."
"Are you hungry?" Amanda asked and released him from her grip.
"Why?" He asked back, "I can't go hunting."
"I can though," Amanda said and brushed away the tears.
"No, it's too dangerous." Silver Claw protested and tried to stand. He yelped in pain and collapsed to his side, breathing in hard heavy breaths.
"I'll be back in a little bit Silver Claw, with food for you. Save your strength." Amanda said and stood up. She checked the phone to make sure it was off and placed along with the lighter and wallet on a shelf. She kept the knives in her pocket and headed towards the door. "I'll be back later Silver Claw, please stay here and get better."
"No, please Amanda, stay here, please." Silver Claw begged but she walked out the door and closed it behind her.
Amanda wiped the tears from her face and looked around. The morning light illuminated the area, dense trees and large ferns lined the road. The soft chirps of birds filled the air along with the buzz of insects. A soft breeze blew her hair slightly and chilled her face.
Amanda started walking down the road, opposite of where Lance had run. She passed a large gap in the trees where the spinosaur had walked through the night before. The island seemed clam as she searched for something to hunt. Then she noticed several small tracks in the dirt. She bent down to examine them and looked up to see a path leading in to the forest. She followed.
Why did she leave? Silver Claw questioned himself. He whimpered as a wave of pain coursed through his body. If I die, she will never know that I… Silver Claw let out roar as his body trembled painfully and his muscles began to twitch violently.
Amanda followed the path, the jungle quickly became dense and the path harder to follow. Amanda slipped out of her shoes and continued on foot as not to create any noise. The ground was soft with damp leaves and mud. Ahead, she could hear several animals calling to each other. Amanda quietly climbed over a log and continued to close in on the noise. A light breeze blew towards her and carried a strong smell of the creatures. Finally, she reached the edge of a clearing, a herd of two legged creatures grazed at its center. Amanda quickly hid herself in a bush that had a strong smell to it.
The creatures, hypsilophodon, two meters long, dark green in color with bright blue or red spots on their backs, grazed unaware Amanda was hiding in the bushes near to them. They used their short beak like mouths to rip mosses and ferns from the ground while several other creatures picked up stones in their mouths and were swallowing them. Large eyes set on the sides of the animals head scanned the surrounding jungle for danger while they continuously sniffed the air. One of the animals moved towards the bush Amanda was hiding in and carelessly nibbled on the leaves.
The hypsilophodon was young. It made a low series of repeating clicks as it tore off several leaves. The other animals replied in the same series of clicks and suddenly the wind picked up, blowing several leaves.
This is my chance, Amanda thought as she quietly pulled out the knife from behind her back and gripped it tightly. The animal raised its head and sniffed the air. Amanda leaped onto the creature and stuck the knife into its throat, though it did not die. The hypsilophodon squealed and tried to shake Amanda off but collapsed to the ground.
The rest of the herd ran off into the jungle, calling, clicking and whistling to each other. Amanda grabbed the knife again and slid it across the animal's throat, this time killing it. She stood up, looking down at the animal. Blood gushed from the wound and over the ground. Amanda looked at her hands and dropped the knife. Her hands dripped with blood, though only a bit was on her shirt.
What has happened to me? She asked herself. I just killed a defenseless creature and I do not even feel bad about it. Have I become a cold-hearted killer? I do have a reason to kill though, Silver Claw. He cannot hunt and until he can, I am the only one who can feed him.
The bushes around Amanda suddenly shook and she quickly picked up the knife, holding it out, ready for what ever came out. Suddenly a raptor jumped out, it was Talon. He looked at her, though he did not hiss or speak. Three more raptors jumped out from behind and Amanda looked briefly to see the scarred raptor, and two females.
"You frightened away our prey," one of the females hissed. "We've been tracking them all night."
"I'm sorry and I am not looking for trouble," Amanda said, lowered the knife, and bowed her head. "You can have this after I get a bit off for Silver Claw."
The female perked her head up, surprised that Amanda showed her the respect that another raptor would. "I wasn't expecting you to have learnt how to act around us so soon. I am impressed. My name is Samantha by the way."
"It's nice to meet you Samantha." Amanda said and nodded her head.
"You four had better not be bothering her," a familiar voice said and Sunayana stepped out. "Where is Silver Claw?" Sunayana asked after she sniffed the air. "I don't' smell or see him anywhere.
"He's in a shed not too far away," Amanda started to cry slightly. "He might be dying."
"What!" Sunayana hissed. "What happened?" The other raptors became agitated, growling and hissing, though at nothing in particular.
"We found another human yesterday," Amanda said and looked down, "I think he poisoned Silver Claw."
"Where is this human," Talon hissed and stepped forward. "I will kill him."
"The spinosaur took him to its nest." Amanda sobbed. "I have to be going." Amanda quickly cut off a large piece of the back leg and walked back the way she had came, passing Talon without any trouble.
"Wait Amanda, I'm coming with you." Sunayana said and quickly ran up to her. "Loki, you're in charge of the group until I get back."
"We're coming with you," the scarred raptor, Loki, replied and followed Sunayana. He looked back to the rest of the members and gestured for them to follow. They bowed their heads and quickly caught up to him.
"What happened exactly?" Samantha asked, walking alongside Amanda.
"Lance threw a knife of his that he likely covered with poison at Silver Claw and got him in the leg. This morning Silver Claw was having trouble breathing and it hurt him to move his leg." Amanda replied and cried even more.
"Why would he do that?" Talon asked, for some reason he was being kinder to Amanda.
"He was a hunter. He kills animals to put on a wall as a trophy." Amanda sobbed.
"No more questions," Sunayana said and gently rubbed her head against Amanda's shoulder. "She's been through enough."
Amanda quickened her pace when she slipped her shoes on. In half the time it took her to reach the clearing from the road, made it back and soon could see the shed. The area was unusually quiet. Suddenly a roar came from within the shed. The raptors looked at one another, nervous of Silver Claw's condition. Amanda rushed ahead and opened the door. She dropped the meat and her knife. Tears filled her eyes and she rushed to the raptors side.
"Silver Claw," Amanda cried.
Author note: Oh no, another cliffhanger, lol. As usual, I would like to hear what you, the readers think about the story and if you have any suggestion to where I could improve it. I killed Lance because I think I ruined him when I introduced him so… goodbye to him. I will add new and better male characters to later chapters but for now, only raptors. A hint at next chapter is that an old character may be returning.