Jurassic Park Broken Lives
Chapter 39: The Human Influence
Disclaimer: I do not own Jurassic Park
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Author note: I'm back from holidays and hopefully can update again soon. Please review because I would like know how well this chapter turned out.
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Amanda held out her hand and Silver Claw graciously took the food. His drool coated her hand in sticky beads. Amanda chuckled slightly and grabbed more food for him. She looked to the stairway. Tom had decided to stay upstairs for the mean time until she was going to help him get off the island. It was too bad he did not like the raptors because if he were to learn the language, he may find being around them enjoyable.
Amanda giggled as Silver Claw's tongue tickled the palm of her hand. "Easy now, you don't want to choke on it." She cringed as the slimy strings of saliva rolled down her wrist and all the way to her elbow. She didn't mind though, at least he would get better and she could always wash it off later if there were a stream nearby.
"Thank you," Silver Claw said as he continued to lick her hand. "So this is what your cooked food tastes like?" He had enjoyed it quiet a bit, it was nothing like raw meats but yet it seemed to taste something similar to a mixture of parasaurolophus and gallimimus but with a stronger, foreign scent. It tasted better than it looked however. It looked like someone had thrown up in his mind but he still ate. It had to be good if Amanda was willing to eat it if he didn't want it.
"Yeah, pretty much." Amanda sighed. "If there were some spices, you might like it even more." She got a puzzled looked from Silver Claw for a moment. Amanda smiled and explained as simply as she could what spices did when one added them to the food. They way she described the taste he wondered why humans didn't just eat all the time with such abundance of food and so many different flavors.
Silver Claw felt himself becoming somewhat less hungry but the weakness in his muscles was yet too much for him to have any chance of going with her and he could not talk her out of it anyway. She had made it clear she was going to help Tom and that she couldn't let him stay here the rest of his life, though he suspect that she had other reasons as well for her willingness to help. He found it kind of funny that when Amanda walked away from one human another one enters her life. "I won't be able to go anywhere for a while." Silver Claw said saddened. "Are you sure you're going to be safe?"
"Don't worry," Amanda smiled and handed him more of the food, the plate was beginning to get rather empty. She knew she wouldn't get any of it. "If that rex is gone, we can get close to the building and then I'll see about going any closer." She sighed and leaned back slightly. She really hoped the rex was gone and would not bother them.
"What if they take you away?" Silver Claw stopped eating and looked at her. His mind filled with grievous thoughts of what might happen if they did and how much it would harm them both if it were to happen again, especially if one thought the other was truly dead.
"I won't let that happen and if it does, I'll find my way home to you." Amanda kissed him on the snout. "I promise." She held out more food which Silver Claw graciously accepted, his mind was slightly more at ease at her words. No matter what happened they would always be together even if it took a little while to get back to each other.
"Amanda, are you just about ready to go?" Tom asked from where he had seated himself halfway on the stairwell. "I think the monster is gone." He had filled a small backpack with personal items he kept hidden until he was able to go home. His thoughts however dwelled on how happy he would be to see his parents and them him.
"I don't know if it really is," Amanda looked around, "You wouldn't happen to have any weapons, would you?" She figured he didn't or at least none that he knew of but she thought she might as well ask anyway.
"Not that I know of," Tom leaned back and gently let his backpack set to one side. There were valuable things within it and he did not want them broken. Most precious of all was the bundle of bills he had gathered that amounted to a total of eleven thousand dollars which he found within the other building when he would go on trips for food. He figured he might as well get something out of being on this island if he ever got off. "Like I said, this place isn't finished."
"Well we're going to have to try the door then," Amanda fed the last of the food to Silver Claw. He needed it more than her, she reminded herself. "We should get you to lay somewhere more comfortable that this floor." Amanda wished that she could just lay with him and sleep for a while but she knew she couldn't. For being cold blooded at least that is what she had heard, he was surprisingly warm during the night even if he were not in the sun the previous day.
"I don't know where you'll find that," Tom said but quickly realized she was talking about his bed. "He can use the bed as long as he doesn't dirty it up." He grumbled slightly but quiet enough that Amanda did not hear though Tessa looked at him. If he was not able to get off the island he would have to sleep there again and he did not want some animal laying in it.
"Thank you Tom," Amanda said and help Silver Claw to his feet. "Just like in the compound hey?" She slowly walked him over to the bed and once he was settled down, she covered him up, much to the displeasure of Tom but she did not know it. She gently pressed his feathers down and hugged him.
"Yeah except we didn't have Ellie with us and Sunayana in the other beds," Silver Claw replied. "And I am not in as good of health as I was, and you aren't staying." Silver Claw saw her smile and it made him feel all the more better. She did not say anything but she did not have to, he knew what it was already. I love you.
Amanda smiled and kissed him again before walking to Tom. "Alright then, let's go. But remember that if I tell you something you have to do it." Tom nodded and slowly got off the stairs and stood by Amanda's side. Together they walked to the doorway and pressed the button, the latch did not open. Amanda pressed others but the door did nothing. Then it struck her, when the rex attacked it, it must have damaged the mechanisms inside. "This could be a problem."
Tom looked at her and then at the door. "Why? What happened to the door?" Amanda quickly explained what she thought had happened and Tom sighed. "I guess we're stuck in here then." He turned and walked away back to the stair way but a sudden bang made him jump. The window had been caught in the wind and slammed against the frame before swinging open again. His eyes lit up in realization. "We can use the window!"
"Hey, that could work but we'd need some rope so that we could get back in if anything when wrong." Amanda quickly looked around and when she saw some she quickly grabbed it. "I think this is long enough." With that she walked over and up the stairs until she was as close to the window as she could be with a strong enough beam to tie the rope so that it would stay. She tossed it out the window and then poked her head out to have a look around. "It looks clear at the moment although the rex could just be waiting behind the trees."
"I think we're going to have to take that chance." Tom said and quickly climbed onto the platform that sat just under the window. He would often lay and even sleep there when it was too hot inside the building because it seemed that any breeze or strong wind was forced in through the window but yet would not cool the rest of the building. He peered out the window. "I'll go first so that if it is out there, you won't be caught."
"Are you sure?" Amanda questioned but he was already out the window and sliding down the rope. It seemed from where she was it was a little hard for him to do it because his hands were starting to burn, which they were. Amanda waited until he was at the bottom before she started out the window. She heard Tom say several times that she should be careful. At last she reached the ground and blew on her hands; they were hot from the friction and now seemed tender. They began to move towards the building when they heard it, the distant roar of the Tyrannosaurus. It seemed that it had wandered off and in the opposite direction they were going. "This might be easier than I thought."
Swift and quiet they moved into the jungle passing as shadows amongst the trees with very little sound save the occasional crackle under foot from a branch or dried leaves. The air was humid in the early morning and a fog had settled over the island, even in the lighter areas if seemed they could only see about fifty meters ahead at any given time. The birds were quiet as if a great disturbance had silenced them and not a peep came from the trees. Occasionally the distant calls of brachiosaurs would drift though and make the jungles even more eerie. Amanda and Tom stopped and listened for a moment. The gentle footsteps of something was growing close but as of yet they could not see it but it was coming from behind them.
Amanda put her finger over her lips and moved into a bush as quickly and quietly as she could. Tom followed and soon they were hunkered down, well hidden by the scent the plant created. The footsteps grew ever closer and soon out of the mist a figure appeared, long and tall but the shape was unmistakable. It was a metriacanthosaurus but whether it knew where they were for sure or not could not be known yet. Amanda nearly gasped when she saw the creature. She had only seen the creature one other time and that was when Tyrannous was attacked by them. She watched patently as the creature lumbered into full view. It was not an adult but a juvenile though it was still taller than Amanda and Tom. It stopped only meters away from where its prey was hiding and began to sniff the air. It seemed unsure of where or even what they were but it was not about to give up.
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Loki stood quietly in a large grove of trees. He was on the other side of the lake and a great ways away from the building in which they now called home. He was alone. The others had gone home but he had wanted some time to himself because it had been several days since any had heard or seen Alex or Tyrannous though some wondered if they would find each other and team up or preferably kill each other. At least it was quiet. Loki yawned lazily. It was early morning yet but he could not see the sun and figured he would not for some time because of the fog that had set in during the night. He slowly walked out of the brush and into an open field. If the fog had cleared, he would have been able to see the mountains on the other side of the island and the entire span of the territory but he couldn't and so sighed. He turned away and looked the other way. He was atop the highest hill on the edge of the territory this side of the cliffs where Silver Claw had lived for a short time. In the distance the gentle crash of waves brought back the memory of where he had left Amanda, Silver Claw and Sophia. He hoped they were alright.
Slowly, Loki started down the hill towards the lake and he felt his heart rise. He was going to be a father in a few weeks. Anna was with egg and if it was not enough for her to be with egg, there were going to be many his mother told her from the way she was carrying herself and felt. His heart began to race. He was getting over excited to think there would be so many of his children. He and Anna had already begun to discus names. Though only two names they knew they would use for certain. Anna and Loki had both agreed to name one of the males and one of the females after Amanda and Silver Claw. It was something they thought was only right after the time they had spent together with the two and the grief Loki had caused.
Suddenly, Loki froze in place. An odd sound was in the air but one he recognized. The engine of the flying machine Amanda called a helicopter. It was coming from the direction where Silver Claw and Amanda were heading or at least that is where he thought it was coming from. It was however hard to tell from the way the valleys and mountains channeled sounds differently depending on where they originated and where the one listening heard them. He became increasingly worried. After what had happened to Amanda back in the cave with those men that had tried to rape her, it did not seem safe for her to be near humans. His mind was debating with itself whether or not to go and help but he was conflicted because of his pack, they needed him and he them not to mention he could not risk Anna's safety.
He closed his eyes and turned away. He started slow but it quickly grew into a run as he made for the nests. It would take him a little over a day from where he was but more than likely he would catch the hunting group before then. He could not leave the pack but perhaps he could talk a few to journey and see if Silver Claw and Amanda were in any danger and to welcome them back to the pack if they so wanted and his father allowed it.
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Amanda held her breath as she stared though a tiny gap in the bush. Her heart raced. The creature was standing still and did not seem to be in any hurry to move. Its nostrils flared as it sniffed the air in heavy, deep breaths. She hated those larger carnivores, they always seemed to show up when they were least wanted. Amanda's nerves were at their breaking point as the creature looked directly at her though it did not see her. Tom seemed more terrified than she, his entire body was shaking and he was drenched in sweat. His lips moved as if to speak but Amanda quickly cover his mouth.
Minutes passed as Amanda remained crouched within the confines of the bush. Tom had luckily kneeled on the ground but Amanda's legs were beginning to burn and itch uncontrollably. It would not belong before they either fell asleep or gave out on her and with a dense leave litter covering the ground, neither was good. She tried to drive her attention elsewhere but it would not stay, it kept coming back to her legs and each time they seemed to get worse. At last her legs gave out and her knees hit the ground with a crack. The creature did not look at her but elsewhere, the other direction. Footsteps could be heard and then the distinctive call of the pachycephalosaurus. The metriacanthosaurus lifted its head and sniffed the air almost excitedly with its teeth in full view. It made a low growl and dashed off in the direction of the pachycephalosaurus. Some time passed and the footsteps disappeared but not before the chase had begun with several loud yelps and barks.
Amanda sighed and sank back against the tree the bush had grown at the base of. Her breathing was somewhat irregular and her heart rate quick but at least they were alright. She looked to Tom but he was shaking and still unmoved. If the creature had found them, it may have been disaster for him. Amanda touched his shoulder and he jumped. He looked into her eyes with an expression ghostly pale with fear ridden eyes. He wanted to speak but couldn't. Amanda tried to comfort him but he could not stop shaking, it seemed that he had been paralyzed with fear like something out of a bad dream and though Amanda had brought him out of it, he still was under its spell.
"Tom, speak to me. What's wrong?" Amanda said almost pleading. She took his hand. It was cold and clammy with slight twitches among his fingers. He could not break the fear. His eyes seemed like they were attentive, darting back and forth but in his mind a scene of horror and desolation kept replaying itself again and again. Then suddenly, he blurted out an inaudible name. "T-Tom, what are you saying?"
"Jessica, we have to help her! Someone help me!" Tom shouted aloud. "She's going to die. No! Don't let go Jessica! I'll save you!" Tom reached out into space grasping for something but he never could get hold of it. Suddenly he screamed out. "No….!" With that he fell to the ground and brought himself into a ball and began sobbing uncontrollably. His breathing was heavy and irregular, every so often he would wheeze as if he were being deprived of oxygen. His body trembled erratically and Amanda feared of what could have caused him to do so.
Amanda had to stop him but she knew not how to. An idea came to mind but she didn't like it. She managed to press her knee on him and break him of his ball. She raised her hand a slapped him across the face with a loud thwack. For a moment he seemed to break from his state of fear and semi-coherence but it did not last. He gasped Amanda tightly in his arms shouting things that she could not make sense of. But at last she heard something she knew. "Why didn't you help?" He tightened his grip and it felt like he was squeezing the life out of her.
"Tom!" Amanda shouted and tried pushing away but she was held too tightly and she was too weak to break free. "Tom," Amanda wheezed slightly. "Tom, it is Amanda. You're ok!" She struggled as much as she could to no success and at last realized there was no other way. She dug her nails into the base of his neck and pressed almost as hard as she could and broke the skin in places. He yelped and eased his grip enough for her to break free. Amanda collapsed next to him in a slight daze. Her breathing was just as heavy as his but at last she managed to look over. Tom was no longer shaking. "Tom?"
"Jessica died by that creature," Tom said. His gaze was straight up and his voice sounded as if her were lost in some far off corner of his mind and almost oblivious to all else. "A few others survived the attack and as we made our way to the building, we were attacked. Most found shelter in the trees but she didn't. The others were only worried about saving their own skins and ignored her as they passed by her. And by the time I reached her it was too late. She was pulled from the tree and ripped apart before my very eyes. I can hear her screaming. Oh god! She was pleading for help but I wasn't fast enough. Then I took out my anger on someone for not helping and he fell from the tree and joined her in death. It's my fault their dead, all of them." Tom looked at Amanda finally with tear streaked cheeks and reddened eyes. "I'm so sorry."
"Tom," Amanda said in tears and crawled to his side. She lifted his in her arms and gently kissed him on the forehead. "I'm sorry to." Together they sat, quiet and still. Not even a breeze, wind or gust disturbed them. An hour passed as they sat in complete silence. Amanda began to hum the tune Silver Claw would repeat whenever he was trying to help Amanda though a bad time. It seemed to calm Tom to the point that he sat up by himself but he was still in tears. Amanda wrapped her arms around him and touched her forehead to his and she spoke softly. "What happened was not your fault Tom. You did everything you could to save those people but there was nothing that could be done. It's not your fault."
Tom remained quiet for a moment but at length spoke, "I don't know what to do. I have to go home but what about those who didn't make it? They have families too, what about them? Is it fair that I should be the lone survivor where so many died, cursed by their screams and haunted by their deaths for the rest of my life? No matter what I do, I will never be rid of their voices. So many died," Tom pulled away and stared into Amanda's grief ridden eyes. "What should I do?"
"Never forget them." Amanda said softly. "You will never forgive yourself for something that you didn't do but you will however be able to comfort those who lost someone. Live your life in their memory and do not forget that you survived by yourself for so long and now you may have a chance to go home, back to your family." With that Amanda hugged him tightly and began to weep.
Tom was slow to break the embrace but when he did, he held Amanda by the shoulders and looked deep into her eyes. He gently wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and slowly began to pull her close. Their eyes locked in an unbreakable bond, neither could look away and least of all stop what they were about to do. Tom's breath washed over Amanda's lips. They were so close to touching that the heat given off was intoxicating and edged them closer. Their scents mingled in a mess of hormones that acted as an invisible vice bringing them even closer until only a hairs width separated their touching.
A crack snapped them from their lock and forced their attention to the outer edge of the bush rather than each other. A loud sniffing came from just the other side of the leafy wall. What ever it was, it had found them. Amanda and Tom prepared to run when the head burst through. It was not reptilian or from a bird but a mammal, more precisely a golden retriever. Amanda was dumbfounded, how could a dog be on Isla Sorna? And just then the dog leapt forward and began licking Amanda's face profusely as its tail wagged with out end. She then noticed the tag. It was not any dog. It was hers, but how?
"Amanda!" A voice called out that caused Amanda's heart to jump. It was her father, he had come for her. She grabbed Tom and covered his mouth before he could speak. She explained her situation to him as quickly as she could and release him. She also asked him to be silent until she could know who else may be with him and if they were in any danger if she should be found. Tom had, however reluctantly, agreed though it pained him to stay any longer than he had to. "Fluffy!"
Amanda's eyes widened as her dog began to bark bringing her father closer. She couldn't let him find her. She looked at Tom, "Keep him busy but don't let them know I'm here." She pushed Tom out of hiding and Fluffy followed thinking Amanda was going as well. Amanda turned her head as the dog's wagging tail hit her several times as he passed by. Amanda was upset however that she could not spend time with her beloved pet and friend. It had been so long since she had last seen him but never had she forgotten him.
Tom stood nervously petting Fluffy as heavy footsteps grew steadily closer. Large shapes appeared in the fog and Tom nearly lost his nerve but then they became clear. There were four men in total. Two of them head large packs while two others were carrying rifles, one of which he recognized as Amanda's Father. The men stopped a few meters ahead of Tom. Amanda's father stood dumbfounded. "Tom?"
"Who's this," said the man standing next to Mr. Glendale. He was an average height for a man with a muscular build. Atop his head sat a woven hat with dark brown hair poking out from beneath it and shades hid his eyes. He wore a dark green vest and tan shorts. Tom felt his fear return in an icy wave at his cruel gaze that made him want to curl up and hide somewhere far away. Amanda's father explained who he was quickly and looked at him. "Tom, have you seen Amanda? Have you seen my daughter?"
"Uh…" Tom mumbled something inaudible and then spoke. "I don't think so but I've been here so long that my minds a mess. So many people died, I didn't know that she survived the attack. Please get me off this island, I beg you. Let's go now and not return." Tom glanced at the bush as inconspicuously as he could but it did not escape notice of the man next to Mr. Glendale.
"What's in their boy," the man said, his voice was cold and unnerving. He aimed the rifle at the bush and placed his finger on the trigger. "Well?" Tom glanced nervously back at the bush and then at Mr. Glendale. He blurted out suddenly that it was Amanda and that she asked him not to tell. Amanda's father nearly fell over as he jumped into the bush but stood up after a moment and looked around. "She's not here."
Tom looked around but could not figure out where she had gone. Just then he realized that Fluffy was gone as well. A debate filled him on whether to call for him or not because it would surely be Amanda's undoing and that was something he did not want to do. Instead he pointed in the opposite direction he thought she would have left in. "I think she went that way." But his misguidance was quickly thwarted as Fluffy barked loudly a short distance away and the group began a quick run in the direction. Tom was alone for a moment but then remembering the danger that lurked nearby always, he ran to catch up. The helicopter would have to wait.
It was not long before they found Amanda wrestling with Fluffy to calm him. He was pulling away and barking profusely and had his tail between his legs. Something had scared him badly for he was not a brave dog and was often found hiding under the bed at the sound of a car backfiring or someone shutting a door to hard. Amanda voice could not quiet him and at last he broke free of her grip and hid behind Mr. Glendale. Amanda stood looking at her father with deepening despair. She was not in the best condition for her to be seen by him and her arms still had their bandages as well as her leg. She wanted to go to him but held back for fear she never would escape his grasp and be dragged off the island.
"Amanda!" Her father shouted and ran to her. He pulled her into a hug and squeezed her tightly. "What has happened to you? Why did you leave, no boy is worth your life and being away from you family. I should lock you away so I never loose you. I don't want you to end up like your poor mother." He released her from his grip but took her by the shoulders looked into her eyes and smiled, something he had not done since the day he found she was alive. "Don't worry, you'll be home soon enough and I guess you can bring that boy you like as long as he isn't a troublemaker."
Amanda pulled free. "No, I'm not leaving dad." She realized how she had said it in raptor and quickly repeated it so he could understand. "This place is my home now and I don't want to leave no matter how dangerous it is." She was grabbed by him and held tightly. He spoke with a shaken voice. "Again with those feral sounds, I don't know what it is you've done here with him but something is wrong with your head and when we get home, you're going to a psychiatrist. They'll set you straight." His voice had changed drastically to become somewhat enraged with her.
"No!" Amanda said in raptor and managed to break free. A hiss came from the bushes behind her and in an instant, guns were raised at it but Amanda stood in the way. "I will not let you hurt him!" Amanda's father cracked his knuckles and walked towards the bush. "I'll teach this boy a lesson he won't soon forget." Amanda stepped in his way however and was quiet. He tried to get past but she would not allow it. "Move Amanda, I will not let you be the bride of some poor jungle boy. You're going to come home and find someone normal, now move."
Amanda planted herself in place. But she figured he'd eventually get around her so she thought of a solution. "Drop you gun and I'll introduce you as long as you promise not to hurt him. But I told him not to show himself as long as he was near people with weapons. There is a small glade nearby he told me and we can go there and speak alone. Please dad, if you want to know why I can't leave and why I love him so dearly you'll do this." Mr. Glendale was obviously softened by his daughter's pleas and so tossed the rifle to Tom and looked back to Amanda. She took his hand and led him out of sight.