Jurassic Park Broken Lives
Chapter 40: A Not So Happy Reunion
Disclaimer: I do not own Jurassic Park
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Author Note: After careful consideration, I've decided to take the suggestion of Genome Soldier and add a Raptor from the third pack that inhabits Isla Sorna. Please Review.
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The jungle was silent save the gentle crash of waves in the distance. Not an insect stirred as the predator passed by. It was a velociraptor and she was alone. She had been exiled from her pack for arguing how they treated the human lover shortly after he left and so she could not return to her home under the penalty of death. Her name was Kari. She was only a year and a half old with very little experience in hunting and other knowledge used by adults to survive which made her exile all the worse. From head to tail, Kari was an impressive four and a half meters long which by their pack standards was large amongst 'infants her age' as the others would often tell her but small yet when compared to the others raptor species. Her eyes were bright green and were set under a small, almost indistinguishable crest. And like the other females of her pack, her scales were brown in color and only distorted by the many scars earned when fighting off the males whenever they would try to force themselves on her.
It was somewhat more calming to be alone than in the chaos of the pack she left behind. She left nothing she cared about, there were no males she liked and she didn't have much of a family anyway. Kari inhaled deeply, taking all the scents that she could of this strange territory. She felt somewhat exhilarated by the fact she could do as she pleased now. There was no rules that she had to follow, no nests to tend to, no nothing! "I'm free at last" she thought. She continued to walk quietly though the jungle, she didn't know where she would end up but she'd know her new home when she found it, preferably somewhere where she could hunt in peace and lay around in the sun most of the day without the constant threat of attack from predators and others of her own species.
A strange scent lay in the air that aroused her curiosity. All her life she had been confined to the field where the adults would drive prey into and she had only once been in the jungle outside it, even then it was only a few dozen meters in before she was called back when the others noticed her absence. She decided to check it out. It was something new; it was sweet like the fragrance of some plants but yet not, it seemed stronger. She could hear rushing water ahead and it seemed to be where the smell was emanating from. Curiosity switched to caution as Kari approached. She crouched and peered through the dense brush. What she saw stunned her.
Across a small stream, kneeling in the mud was a human, a female by what she learned from the stories. She had her head ducked down and seemed to be grooming her hair but there was a bubbling substance in it. Kari didn't know what to think of it. She was an oblivious target to any hunter and that stuff she had in her hair would attract carnivores from kilometers around if it were the source of the smell. Was she that unskilled in survival? What did humans do about predators where they came from? Kari's head tilted to the left and she wondered how old she was. She couldn't tell as she had never seen a human before this and didn't want to disturb her, at least not yet to see if she could understand raptor like that human lover's mate did.
The human seemed finished as she got up and looked around. She reached in her pocket and pulled something out. Kari sniffed the air, it was food. The human had food with her and she proceeded to peel the wrapping from it and then take a bite, it was crunchy by the sounds but she spit it out and threw the remainder to the ground with a sigh. Kari froze, her stomach had growl and it was loud enough that the human heard it too but seemed to think it was herself. It had been a few days since she had eaten and this human presented an easy target but she held back. When she left the pack, she had sworn to herself she was not like the others, ruthless killers and merciless hunters that killed more for the pleasure than their own survival. Her hunger would have to wait. She would only kill it if she had no other choice, at least for now.
The human picked up some kind of container from the bank and turned away unaware of the predator lurking nearby. When she though enough time passed, Kari leapt over the stream and quietly followed the human into the jungle. How oblivious was this human, the wind was carrying Kari's scent right to her but yet she did not know. Kari couldn't help but shake her head in disbelief. Not only was she terrible in survival traits but it appeared she had no natural defenses and ways to protect herself besides her legs to run but Kari doubted they would carry her fast enough because they looked too small to have much muscle.
Kari caught wind of another scent, a carnivore was lurking nearby. She looked from side to side but couldn't see beyond the dense brush. She suddenly wished she were in the field, it was easy to see the distant movements of any creature because no matter what they did, the grass would move. A scream made her jump, it was the human and she was in trouble. Kari raced forward and stopped. The human was swinging her arms to keep what she assumed was an ornitholestes at bay. The human had been injured in her left arm but it was not serious from the little blood that was seeping out. The human screamed again.
Kari let out a loud roar and leapt forward. The ornitholestes had no chance of escape as the scythe-like claws buried into the gut and made several massive bleeding wounds. In a last-ditch effort to stop its attacker, the ornitholestes gave a kick and managed to hit the velociraptor square in the chest, leaving a small bleeding wound of its own before it died. Kari stood victorious over her kill and looked at the human. She was motionless and paralyzed with fear. Kari turned back to her kill and tore a sizable chunk from it and tossed her head back swallowing it. She took several more mouth full's and turned her attention back to the human. She was still unmoved but her eyes had widened more.
Showing her bloodied teeth, Kari lowered her head to meet the face of the girl. She could smell the human's fear but made no threatening move towards her. Why did she fear her? Kari asked herself. She had done nothing but save its life. Kari remembered the food the human left behind, perhaps it had gone bad. If so she might be hungry. Kari turned around and quickly tore a chunk off before laying it in front of the human. Perhaps humans were different from what she had heard. Kari nudged it forward but still the human did not want to move.
Maybe she was dead? Kari nudged the human and she stirred but only to press herself against the tree behind her more. "It's ok," Kari spoke softly but that seemed to scare the human more. How could the human lover have gained his human's trust? Maybe it was a male and female thing. Kari looked at the wound and gently nudged the skin under it. The human quickly grasp the arm and cover the wound with her hand. Well she was getting somewhere at least. Kari laid herself on the leaves and continued to stare at the human. For now, her curiosity of new things had the best of her and it would be some time before the smell of a kill drifted far enough to attract other carnivores so when that time came she did not know if there would be just one carcass or two.
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Amanda quietly led her father to the clearing that Silver Claw had told her about. It was a small glade with little grass but enough brush surrounding it that something could easily hide without detection for a very long time. She took him to the center and stopped. She looked at her father and him at her. "Well, where is your boyfriend?"
Amanda gulped. "He's my mate and I don't want you to think there is anything wrong with my choice in who I love, but dad you probably won't understand why unless you come to know him like I do. You must understand that I love him more than life itself and separating us would be like killing us. I never want to be away from him, do you understand?"
Mr. Glendale sighed. "Amanda there will always be other boys. What you feel for him now is what you think love is but it really isn't. You're a teenager and I'm guessing, well hoping so is he, you're just confused by hormones. It happens to everyone when their young. Now could you stop your stalling and get him to come out already." Amanda had her father close his eyes and she waved Silver Claw in. He stopped only two meters from Amanda's father. Silver Claw was nearly the same height as he but not quite. "What's that smell," Mr. Glendale asked. "Please don't say that's him. It smells like rotting meat and…, anyway, it's something terrible."
"Alright you can open them but don't scream or call for help." Amanda said. She watched as her father opened his eyes but he was looking at her first. His gaze turned to Silver Claw and he froze with his jaw hanging open slightly. Amanda looked between her father and Silver Claw but it was Silver Claw who moved first. He gently touched his head to Mr. Glendale's arm. A second passed and then his body dropped to the ground limp. Silver Claw looked at Amanda with apologetic eyes but she only shook her head. "Don't worry Silver Claw, he only passed out I think." She reached down and touched two fingers to the side of his neck to make sure he had not had a heart attack. "Yeah, you gave him too much a startle. He'll be alright in a moment."
Silver Claw cocked his head in confusion. "Why did he do that?" Amanda sighed and placed her hand on his side. She gently rubbed his scales and then answered, "I once bought a six thousand dollar television for my room when I four after getting hold of his credit card and pin number. When the delivery people showed up the next day," Amanda chuckled slightly, "He got such a shock that he passed out. I used to do things like that all the time when I was younger just to make him pass out because I thought it was funny. Then I went too far and put a snake in his bed and woke him up. Unfortunately he was in the hospital for about a week." Amanda sighed and knelt by her father.
"You don't look at all like you father," Silver Claw said softly. "I don't mean that as an insult or anything." Amanda laughed and gently rubbed his neck. She couldn't agree more with him. All her life among humans, she had always been told she looked like her mother rather than her father. And now it was amongst raptors that she was told she looked nothing like her father. Either way, she still loved him as much as she did her mother and hoped nothing would happen to him.
Mr. Glendale stirred slightly but did not open his eyes. He groaned and rubbed his head. "Amanda, please say I was imagining that creature?" She chose to remain silent but wrapped her arm around Silver Claw. "Amanda?" Mr. Glendale opened his eyes and backed away as quickly as he could before leaping to his feet and it seemed as if he would dash at any moment. "Amanda, get away from that beast before it kills you like they did you mother!"
Amanda wrapped her arms around Silver Claw even tighter. "No dad, he's not like other creatures. I love him and he loves me. He's my mate and…" Amanda was unable to finish as her father began to freak out in an inaudible slur of words and phrases that Amanda thought should never be uttered by anyone. She attempted to calm him but only received an angry attack of words that angered Silver Claw to the point that he raised his feathers. He wanted to growl and to hiss at him as the words got increasingly worse and at last he cold hold back no longer. He broke free from Amanda's grip and leapt on him, pinning him easily to the ground before showing his teeth only millimeters from his face. "See I told you, I told you it couldn't be trusted!"
"Silver Claw!" Amanda shouted and grabbed his side. She tried desperately to pull him off but he refused to budge more than a few centimeters. He made a low, very threatening growl and then looked at Amanda with saddened eyes. "I'm sorry but I couldn't listen to him insult you like he was. It made me angry to hear you treated that way and I'm not getting off him until he has apologized to you." Silver Claw showed his teeth again and looked at Amanda's father with increasing hatred. No one should speak to their child that way no even if they disapprove of their actions.
Amanda sighed and looked at her father. "He said he's not going to get off of you until he hears you apologize to me for those mean things you said. See dad, what husband wouldn't want that for his wife." Amanda crossed her arms and looked down at him. She had to take a side and after what her father had said, there was no way should was siding with him on this. At last he said it though not in the kindest of ways and Silver Claw released him although reluctantly. Amanda stood by Silver Claw's side as Mr. Glendale stood up and brushed his cloths off and shook his head but it was not long before he was back at it.
"How can you love an animal like this?" His voice was filled his anger and disgust towards Silver Claw and Amanda. "You must have hit your head or something because you aren't thinking straight Amanda. How could you think that this is right, not in a million years would it be acceptable? An animal isn't human; you know what people think of people like you who chose animal partners over human ones. They're shunned in society, sent to jail or worse. What do you think people will say about me when they find out my daughter is an animal lover and not in the way PETA is? Humph. You should be ashamed and disgusted of yourself!" Silver Claw hissed at him again. "See what I mean, he's a bloody animal with no feeling or thoughts other than to hunt and kill. One of these days he'll kill you and not think twice about it. The way I see it is that he's no better than the one that killed your mother. You might as well have died in that attack because you sure as hell aren't my daughter, not any more!" Mr. Glendale crossed his arms and stared cruelly at her.
Amanda burst into tears and went running off into the jungle. Silver Claw lingered for a moment with his eyes locked on Mr. Glendale. How could her father be so cruel? And how could he not accept she was in love with something other than human? Silver Claw gave a final hiss and raced off to catch up with Amanda. He found her a few dozen meters away from the glade where she had dropped to the ground and was crying uncontrollably. Silver Claw set down next to her and gently touched his snout to her cheek. She wrapped her arms around him and would not let go. Her face was red and wet with tears. He began to hum the most cheering tone he knew but it did not help.
Silver Claw began to feel worse and worse. There was nothing he could do to cheer her up or at least calm her down. How could someone be so cruel to her and say such a thing. There was only one thing worse than exile amongst raptors and that was having a parent say they no longer loved you and there was no way to ever take it back once said so forever, that pain would linger over the raptor. Often it would bring about a fight to the death between the parent and child because it was considered the ultimate insult. Mr. Glendale was lucky he wasn't killed right there for his unfathomable cruelty. Silver Claw pressed his body against hers and pulled her head so that it lay on one of his arms while his neck rested on top of it. He placed his free hand on her side and gently curled his claws until they pressed against her skin. From now on, he would shelter her from the cruelty of humans and make sure they would not harm her again. If they did, they would suffer his wrath no matter who they were! With a low growl he covered Amanda's legs with his tails and closed his eyes.
Minutes passed and Amanda at last began to calm although her flood of tears did not cease. Silver Claw became aware of a scent in the air. It was of a predator. He looked up without making it seem something was wrong. He looked in the surrounding area and then he heard the light footsteps as something approached. The bushes to his right rustled and out of them stepped Sophia, Tessa and Zenith. They stopped and looked at Silver Claw in confusion but at last Sophia stepped forward.
"What happened?" Sophia asked softly. She looked over Silver Claw to see that he was hiding Amanda. No matter how angry she was with Amanda, it was still something she had to put aside and care for both Silver Claw and Amanda if they were going to be a pack. Silver Claw turned his head and slowly began to explain all that had transpired when he met Amanda's father and then at last he told them of the words her father had said. Sophia and Tessa hissed angrily. "I will end his life now," Sophia hissed angrily, "Where is he?"
"Going I hope," Silver Claw replied. "There are several armed men back there and Tom is with them. I wouldn't want to go any where near them especially now." Silver Claw tilted his head down and began to lick Amanda's cheek gently. He feels Amanda shift and bury her head against his neck. "It's alright Amanda," Silver Claw spoke as softly as he could. "I won't let him hurt you again."
"I think we should get going," Tessa spoke, during the time Silver Claw was explaining what had happened she had noticed voices getting closer. The humans were coming and by the sounds of it, they were going to kill any creature they found. "Those humans are coming this way and I think it would be best if they didn't find us." Sophia and Zenith agreed but Silver Claw was silent.
Silver Claw looked at Amanda. He was too weak to carry her. He did not yet have the strength to lift her more than a few meters before he collapsed. It was amazing enough that he managed to get out of the building and come all this way. If he had the strength he would carry but he looked at the others with saddened eyes. "I can't carry her." Silver Claw looked down with shame. "I'm still too weak to be able to."
"I'll carry her," Sophia said reluctantly. "Zenith needs to keep pressure off his foot and Tessa can protect us if something should attack. Sophia walked over to Silver Claw and lay next to Amanda. "Just help her on my back and then we can go." Silver Claw nodded and was heartened by the fact after all that happened Sophia was still a good friend. Amanda reluctantly released Silver Claw and by her own strength climbed onto Sophia. Soon they were off. Silver Claw stuck close to Sophia with Tessa in back and Zenith leading. They passed the building and continued on. There were some caves to the north that Tessa knew about that did not connect to the main system that would allow other greens to attack them. They would stay there since Tom would more than likely tell of the building if they did not already know.
Amanda tightened her grip around Sophia as she began to slip to one side. She had her head against the base of Sophia's neck. And despite the tears she managed to say, "Thank you." Sophia felt her anger disappear at those words. She had no reason to be mad at her, she was ill and only asked for something she needed to live. Amanda would have done that same if they were in opposite positions. "You're welcome."
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Ellie grumbled as she dragged a small dinghy ashore. It was heavy enough without the equipment aboard it and she was alone. The fog was still heavy in the air even though it was about seven in the morning and the boat she had taken out to Sorna was out of sight. She was told it would take her right to the island, not stop a mile and a half away so she could paddle the rest of the way with an atrocious current to deal with. With one final heave, she had the boat as far on shore as she could pull it. She looked picked up a backpack and sighed as she looked at something covered by a tarp. She never was told what it was but it was heavy enough to weigh down the front.
First things first, she thought and opened the backpack and retrieved her gun. She checked to make sure it was not wet and then holstered it. She pulled out a strange gun-like device that they had 'borrowed' from Biosyn. It was one of there new devices made for their little trip but they would have to go without. It made a high pitched frequency that was particularly harmful to the ears of dinosaurs and other creatures much like a dog whistle but with a much louder sound and audible to humans. She plugged it in and tried it. It was a terrible sound that gave her a headache to compliment her growing cramps from pulling the dinghy. If the thing under the tarp was as large as it looked and heavy, it would stay behind. She pulled back the tarp and gasped.
Beneath the tarp was a motorcycle but not like any she had ever seen. It was a specially built one for traversing jungle terrain and even jagged rocks. On a straight away, it could for surely outrun any dinosaur and best of all it was surprisingly light as she dragged it out from the boat. She looked in a small compartment in the back and found a solar panel. It could be run by battery or gas. She hopped on and started it by means of a button. There were no keys to loose so she would have no troubles save it being stolen by someone in the helicopter she saw pass by earlier. Ellie fumbled with her backpack until she had it right and then road off down the beach. She loved that fact it was completely silent.
The salty air rushed by her as she traveled down the beach. She glanced down and noted a small screen with what appeared to be a GPS with a map of the island, its many roads and streams as well as the buildings. It was much more detailed than the one Amanda had found. Amanda, she thought. What would her reaction be once she found her? And Silver Claw would be nice to see again though she had forgotten much of his language. She hoped Amanda had not forgotten English.
A game trail presented itself as one of a few ways into the jungle without the constant worry of trees as long as she went slowly. She turned off and followed the trail. At this rate, she would be at the road in a few minutes and then she could head north. The helicopter had gone that way and her primary mission was to stop Biosyn at all costs. If they got hold of even one dinosaur, they could clone hundred and more than likely they would get loose amongst the public. She wished the cure was finished, though it was far from it. It would spread amongst the dinosaurs even if they weren't killed or eaten. A single bite would have been enough and then that would spread like wildfire. That would have made them escaping far less serious at least if they were herbivores.
Ellie rounded a corner and mud sprayed all around her and covered her up to her knees. She grumbled again. This is not how she remembered Sorna. She was not covered in mud and tired beyond belief because of a boat she had to drag ashore. Then she realized it. She did not tie it down. It was going to drift away on her. Crap she thought but did not turn back. She had a phone and the GPS was more than likely being tracked back at the main operations. A few minutes passed before she was free of the jungle and looking at a massive cliff face towering over her. She gulped and looked both ways down the road. She had to go north. Last time Amanda was seen was at the other side of the ravine and she was heading this way but that was over a week ago. She assumed that Amanda had followed the road to the building. That is where she would be the safest.
A low growl caught her attention and she looked to her left towards the ravine where three raptors stood about a hundred meters away with their claws prepared to kill. Two of them were green while the other was a combination of red, yellow and green. Ellie's heart jumped. She prepared to put the motorcycle in full and escape down the road but hesitated. She called out to them first in what little of raptor she remembered, "Are you friends?"
The raptors hissed and charged her. "I guess not," Ellie put the bike in full and sped down the road. At first they were gaining on her but then they fell back. She sighed with relief and looked ahead where a fence had been, the tattered remnants lay scattered abroad. She had to slow and then stop before it. She didn't know if the fence was still working or not but the raptors were still in hot pursuit, unwilling to miss a chance to kill a human. They may have fallen behind her some ways but they gaining ground as she had could not go further yet. Ellie didn't hear anything and so slowly wheeled the bike over the wires. It wasn't on but she still had to be careful of sharp edges that would puncture the bike if she were not careful. Rocks were different, they couldn't puncture the special wheels but blade like steel could.
Ellie at last made it over but they were too close. The bike could not get away before they were upon her. She drew her gun and aimed at the lead one. She fired. The bullet hit its mark and the lead green smashed into the ground, tumbling a bit and then coming to rest on its side, a bleeding wound over his heart. She tried firing again but the gun jammed. Ellie was nearly paralyzed with fear at that moment. She then realized she had one more trick. She pulled out the gun shaped sound device and squeezed the trigger. The sound hit the raptors like a brick wall and they jumped back, screeching and shaking their heads. Ellie laughed and hopped on her bike again. She slowly drove far enough ahead and then quickly put away the gun and sped off.
The raptors fell too far behind for her to see and she sighed. She did not however ease up on the speed. She found herself turning several large corners as she gained in altitude. She smiled as the wind tossed her hair and she felt free. The smell of the jungle filled her with joy. This is the Sorna she remembered she thought gleefully. A half hour passed and she came upon an overturned truck with shattered windows and stuff lying about. The vehicle looked like it had taken a terrible pounding from something very large. She could not stop however much she wanted to. She had an idea but shook it off. Her secondary mission was to place tracking devices on Silver Claw, Amanda, and whatever else was with them so they could find them when they needed to and track territories. Ellie shook her head. She didn't know how much Amanda would be acceptant to the idea of a microchip being inserted under her skin at the back of her neck. She had some basic medical supplies to help them recover if they did choose to but more than likely they would not be used other than to treat wounds. The worse part of it all was being trained to do it with a live animal.
Ellie continued on. She rounded another corner and she could see the building through a large grove of trees but the road did not turn towards it. She had to follow the road for now but as she began to loose sight of the building, she saw the helicopter and could smell the rotting of a very large carcass. She was too late. Biosyn was in the building already. Perhaps Amanda had escaped to another building a little ways to the north that is if she made it at all. Before she could search however, Ellie had to set up a base nearby that would go unnoticed by carnivores and people alike. She remembered there being some caves by the road somewhere in the conversation on the helicopter with her boss. She just hoped they were empty.