Jurassic Park Broken Lives
Chapter 43: Captured
Disclaimer: I do not own Jurassic Park
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Author Note: A suggestion has come up recently and I would like to know what you think of the idea. I am neither for nor against the idea but I would like to know if you would like to see a lesbian relationship between Cassandra and Kari. It was not what I was thinking of, my idea was more of a parental role (Kari adopted Cassandra as her daughter), but I can change it if enough of you would like. Please leave comments about what you think. Again sorry for the long wait but school has kept me busy with homework and exams. (For those who would like to know, the title of the next chapter is Silver Claw's Wrath) I will try and get it done as soon as I can.
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Amanda locked eyes with the female of the greens that she assumed was here to kill her and Silver Claw. The female was tall but yet smaller than Tessa. She had a bright crimson hide with blotches of yellows, greens, blacks, and a few peppered spots of blue. Her eyes were a bright blue with a slight tint of green which stuck out all the more because of the crimson around it. As the female opened her mouth again to hiss, Amanda could see the teeth, stained pink from blood, and its tongue, a blue-black color with areas of saliva that glistened in the light.
Ellie however had her sight on the male while she tried to fix her gun. He was taller than the female but obviously older from the duller complexion of his scales. His hide was a dark shade of emerald green and the length of his body was riddled in scars. The bright blue eyes that sat under small crests stared at the humans, examining them while his head made slight adjustments like a bird locking onto its prey.
The two raptors began to circle the two humans but made no hint that they were a threat and going to leap forward and tear them to pieces at any moment. As long as Ellie's weapon was not working, they would not attack unless they felt threatened. Several minutes passed and the female stopped before Amanda. The male made one more circulation before coming to a stop before Ellie with his teeth shown.
"So you are Amanda," the female of the green said. Her voice was soft like Sunayana's voice but yet had a slight difference, almost like an accent. "And who's your friend, the murderous little charlatan who thinks that she knows how to use the weapon of cowards." She raised her head high and seemed to proclaim her dominance over the two humans. She took a menacing step forward but stopped short of the second as her tail stiffened as if to leap forward but then relaxed. "Do you understand me?"
"I do," Amanda said in a passive voice. She hoped that Silver Claw and the others would come to them before the two raptors decided to attack so she decided to do her best to stall them. "Why are you here, who sent you?"
"That is none of your business," the male snapped and hissed menacingly. He raised his claws and then dug them into the ground. He looked past Ellie to Amanda and then to the female. "Let us kill them now before they become a nuisance and the others show up to protect them."
"No not yet," the female said, "I have a few questions for the human lovers mate." She received a cold stare from the male but he was silent. She continued, "What made you choose him as a mate?"
Amanda blinked blankly. The question had caught her off guard. "I…I love him. I chose him because I love him." Amanda said in raptor and then glanced back to Ellie. She had yet to fix the gun. "You still haven't answered my question."
"Nor will I, you are in no position to be asking questions, only answering." The female said and then laid in the grass, the male remained standing however. "Now, how did you meet this Silver Claw?" Amanda remained silent. "I should tell you that if you don't answer my questions it will result in your immediate death and I will make sure he is tormented by the thoughts of how I tortured you and how you began me to stop, calling his name for help but you weren't there. Oh, why weren't you there."
"Alright," Amanda looked down. She didn't know why this raptor wanted to know about how she and Silver Claw met and if they were in love. "We met in a building." Amanda received a looked that she knew met for her to add more to what she had said. "My family was killed by the spinosaurus a few days before we met and I was hiding in the building when he stumbled upon me." She didn't want to say any more but if she was going to stall them longer she had to. "He had just lost his family to the spinosaurus as well. I ran away at first but he rescued me several times from different carnivores."
"We should kill them now before this one finds out what is wrong with her weapon," The males said in a harsh tone the forced the female to stand. He was barraged by harsh terms and orders to remember his place.
Amanda was about to speak when the female shrieked, it was loud and terrible. In an instant the female dropped to the ground and went limp. Next gunshots rang out from all around them. One hit Ellie's gun and knocked it from her hands while another hit the male raptor and as soon as the shots fell silent, he dashed into the woods.
Amanda looked around desperately for the sources of the shots but she could not see them through the thick brush. A sudden burst of pain erupted from her gut and she looked down to see a dart sticking out of her. She reached down slowly and pulled it out. It was empty and as she realized it, she dropped to her knees. Amanda tried to stand by instead rolled over on to her back and the last thing she saw was a pterodactyl flying overhead amongst the fluffy clouds. Darkness overcame her and she saw no more.
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Sophia awoke. Her eyes still heavy with sleep refused to open. She moved slightly and felt something cold touch her. Her eyes opened. She was in a cage! She knew well enough that thrashing around and trying to break the cage would only hurt her. A rush of feeling filled Sophia and she remembered what had happened. She had run away from the others when she had found out Tyrannous was her yet unborn children's grandfather and Zenith's father. She remembered the tiredness that overwhelmed her and that the humans had shot her and after that she could remember no more. Her neck was stiff and sore in a place where she assumed that she was shot.
A gentle breeze swept through the area as Sophia looked around. She was in a small clearing near the cliff overlooking the ocean but she suspect that there was some foliage at the base but she was nowhere close enough to see. There were two empty cages to her right and one to her left. They were so close that they nearly touched and she could have easily reached out and touched them if her arm were able to bend enough to slip between the bars. Several tables were scattered around the clearing with large tools and machinery and she could see three tents set up in a circle at the outer edges of the clearing. A low hum quickly caught her attention. She looked around but could not see its source but soon enough she realized what it was, a fence.
Several birds flew overhead squawking loudly and seemed to be frightened. A low hiss drifted through the air and then a kind of explosion that made her jump and hit her head on the top of the cage. Sophia could see sparks flying from behind a large cluster of foliage and she knew that something had touched the fence. She sniffed the air. The humans were nowhere near her.
Sophia began to look for something that she could press to escape but there was neither something in reach nor something in sight. She was not even able to stand up because of the low confines of the cage. She gently touched her snout to the metal bars, they were cold and unwelcoming but she knew that she had to escape. She could not fit through so there was only one other choice. With great reluctance, she tilted her head and slid her lower jaw alone one side of a bar and her upper along the other.
The metal squealed as Sophia began to chew the bar. Her teeth ached as they began to scratch the hard surface and after a few minutes, her gums began to bleed. She whimpered as she continued without a break. Suddenly, she recoiled as if something had bitten her. Pain throbbed in her mouth and she whimpered even more. Slowly, she explored the inside of her mouth with her tongue and soon found the source of her pain. A tooth had fractured down the middle but had not come out.
With another whimper, Sophia turned her head and tucked it under her arm. She wept quietly, a gentle whimper and growl. She felt more alone than she ever had before. The humans would return and surely kill her or worse. If they left her until her children were born then they may kill them before her. She couldn't kill them herself no matter who they were related to but even worse was that she considered it a possibility. Why had she been so stupid?
She wanted to be with Silver Claw, Amanda, Tessa, Ellie, and most of all she wanted to be Zenith. She loved him and she ran away, how could he accept her back for what she had done? If she were ever able to get back to him, she would have a lot of apologizing for. She should not be scared of what her children may grow to be she thought, they would not be with the traitor and Zenith is nothing like Tyrannous.
Sophia pulled her head out from under her arm and looked through the bars at the clouds above. She wished she could just be free of all the dangers that plagued her life. She wished she could settle down somewhere where there was nothing to threaten her life. She wished that she could live in a territory where there was no real danger to her children when they were born. She could not however think of any on the island.
Perhaps it would be best to just go back to her home and live there with Zenith if he would go. Together they could rebuild the nest or move them to a safer location like the tunnels. Even the building would be an acceptable place, it was more sheltered than any other place she could think of and the larger carnivores could not enter it. An idea came to mind and she wondered about the other pack that had split away from hers, would they accept her?
Her thoughts were interrupted however when she heard the footsteps of several creatures approaching. She looked around and then noticed a gate that she had neglected to take note of before when she had first glanced around quickly to see where she was. With a click, the gate opened slightly and then it swung open as three humans entered the clearing. Behind them, dragged a raptor of the greens and Amanda, they were tired at the waist and were simply dragged along the ground. Sophia hissed fiercely at the sight, she didn't care about the green but Amanda should not have been treated like she was.
While two of the men placed Amanda in the cage on her right and the green in the one next to it, the man who had shot her kicked the cage she was in shouting at her to be quiet. This only made Sophia angrier and she snarled more. With a sigh, the man plucked a small rod from his side and pressed a button. An electric crack resonated from it and then he stuck her in the neck with it.
Sophia howled as sparks burst from the device, her body shaking with rage and pain. When he released her from its torment, Sophia collapsed against the cold metal, panting and her chest heaving, she gasped for air and whimpered. A satisfactory grunt came from the man and he walked way from her.
Whimpering again, Sophia looked to her right to see Amanda propped up against the bars closest to her, she was still unconscious. Her pants were shredded near the base and filled with holes all the way to her waist. The back of her shirt had been rolled up almost of her neck while the front remained down and her stomach and chest covered, and the smooth skin that was once on her back was replaced by long scratches, several bleeding wounds, and her skin was blackened by mud and dirt. And worst of all, a dark line circled her waist where the rope had been tired too tight. It looked like a terrible bruise and she knew it would cause her much pain when she woke. Sophia felt terrible that she had caused Amanda to suffer so much.
Being brought so close to death, or at least thinking she would be dead, had changed her more that she thought it would. It made her realize that she had no reason to be angry with Amanda. She was the one who slew the spinosaurus that nearly ate her and Zenith. Amanda had only been kind but received anger and distrust in return. The only wrong doing on her behalf was that she fell in love with the one Sophia held dear to her hear. Sophia looked down but then noticed slight movement come from Amanda.
"Amanda?" Sophia asked softly. "Amanda, are you awake?" She heard a soft groan come from Amanda and then she rolled over. Sophia saw the tears rolling down her cheeks and she knew she was in pain. Amanda's head tilted down and she began to cry even more, attracting the attention of the man who had just shocked Sophia.
"Shut up little girl," Lewis Dodgson said in a harsh tone. When she did not stop, he plucked the rod from this belt again and pressed the button. "Stop or I'll do to you what I did to your friend." Amanda could not stop however and so he knelt by her side. Amanda screamed as the electrical current ravaged her body.
Sophia's eyes widened at Amanda's pain and she made the loudest call for help she could, saying that Amanda was being harmed. She knew it would draw Silver Claw and the others. Sophia shrieked as the electric rod jabbed her side and she slammed against the bars uncontrollably.
Walking with a grin on his face, Dodgson moved to join the others. He began to speak to them but Sophia could not tell what it was about. Soon after he finished, the two men went to their tents but Dodgson stood by a table and opened a case. He pulled a long syringe with a lengthy need out of the case and filled it with some kind of liquid. He then pulled his gun from his shoulder and loaded it with the dart. After a quick looked down the barrel, Dodgson shouldered the rifle again and walked to one of the tents.
Once he had disappeared within the tent, Sophia looked to Amanda who had curled near the back corner of the cage allowing her a clear sight upon the green female who looked back at her. Sophia hissed slightly but then turned her attention to Amanda. "Amanda? Amanda, are you alright?"
Amanda looked up. Her face was reddened by her pain and glistened from her tears. She hesitated to answer but nodded unsurely. She removed her hand from her side to reveal large, almost blister like wounds on her side from where the rod had come in contact with her skin. Once she was sure that Sophia knew that it was not life threatening, she very gently placed her hand, cupped so that nothing touched it, over the wound.
"I'm sorry Amanda," Sophia said sadly. She had scales and a higher pain tolerance than Amanda so she knew that it hurt her much, much more than it did a raptor. "It's my fault you're here. I should never have run away. I-I-I was just… scared."
Amanda opened her mouth as if to speak but the gate into the area creaked and drew both her and Sophia's attention. Two people, a man and a woman rushed into the enclosed area and slammed the gate behind them. Just as the door shut, a blue streak hit the fence but was repelled instantly. It was Silver Claw! With a hiss, he disappeared into the brush beyond the fence but not before looking at Amanda and his expression softening at the sight of her sill alive.
"Holy shit that was close," the man exclaimed, gasping for air as if he had run a marathon. He wrapped his arm around the woman next to him and pulled her close, "You alright Holly? Did it scratch you or something because it seemed to be sick, I think it might be diseased?"
"No, I'm fine Chad," she kissed him on the cheek. "I thought you were going to fall behind there for a while. I don't know if it's sick though, I didn't see any sign of disease. It seemed to me that it was angry more than anything maybe it's enraged.
"Hey Dodgson you old son of a bitch, you didn't say anything about these dinosaurs being mad." He laughed deeply and began to walk forward but stopped when he heard a hiss. He looked at Sophia for a long while, unable to see Amanda. "Look at that thing. They're ugly bastards aren't they? I wonder if it's a guy or a gal." He laughed again, "Eh Dodgson, where you at?"
"There are two of them and something in the middle. I can't tell what it is." Holly said and crouched. "Oh my god it's a girl!" In an instant, she was at the cage and was about to open the latch but she felt someone grab her wrist. It was Dodgson. "Why do have a young girl in a cage Dodgson? What did she do to deserve this?"
"Do you know why that thing was after you? We have his mate." Dodgson said and released her hand and walked away. "That girl might just kill you if you open the cage for her. And Chad, how many times do I have to tell you that if you are addressing me, it's sir or Mr. Dodgson."
A large grin crept over Chad's face and he just patted Lewis Dodgson on the shoulder before joining Holly next to the cage. He looked at her and then to Dodgson. "Did you guys have your way with her because she looks like she's been through hell?" He looked back at her and noticed the reddening under her hand. "Does she speak at all?"
"I do," Amanda said angrily. "You had better let me go and leave this place before you are eaten." Amanda removed her hand from the wound and crawled to the front of the cage. "Dodgson is nothing but trouble. You had best leave him outside the fence."
"Oh my, what happened to your side? Wait a minute, Dodgson you didn't use your cattle prod there on her did you?" Holly asked even though she already knew the answer, "how could you do that to her, what did she do to deserve it?"
"She's as feral as any animal on this island," Dodgson said in a harsh and emotionless tone that sent shivers down Amanda's spine. He walked forward and kicked the cage heavily then stepped back. "She speaks in growls and hisses most of the time. You should have heard her in the clearing where we caught her and this one." Dodgson pointed to the cage holding the female green. She had remained silent since she awoke but seemed to be studying her surroundings closely from the slight twitches of her eyes and the fact her gaze was on the area and not movement.
"How'd you capture her, did you use rope or something?" Chad said and looked at Sophia as she hissed at him. Several birds flew overhead and Chad saw a slight movement in the brush beyond the fence. Dodgson saw it too.
Amanda looked back and saw Silver Claw's head emerge from the brush. "No Silver Claw," Amanda spoke in raptor. "Go and hide somewhere and find Ellie. I'll be fine. Please, I don't want you to be shot, go." Amanda felt her heart drop as she knew the sorrow that he felt upon seeing her imprisoned and the sorrow that both of them felt because they could not help one another. He mouthed something and even though she could not know for sure, she knew what he had said. 'I love you.' He slipped away and tears began to roll down her cheek. "I love you too."
"I see what you mean by growls and hisses," Chad said and walked to the fence. "Was she talking to that thing or was it something else?" He received a strange look from Holly as if he had said some preposterous idea like the sun circled around the earth. "It was only a though," he shrugged and walked away from the fence.
Holly looked back through the cage bars. "What's your name?" She received a silent stare for a few moments but then Amanda answered. "Amanda eh, that's a nice name. If you promise not to try and escape I can treat your wounds so they don't get infected or anything. Where are your parents?"
"I won't promise you anything," Amanda crossed her arms. "My mother is dead and my father was with that guy." Amanda pointed to Dodgson. "He shot me with a dart so I assume he probably shot and killed my father since I don't see him around here."
Dodgson pulled the rod from his belt again and gently tapped it against his hand. "I'm sure he is still alive Amanda. That is unless he found something that ate him. The kid was with him as well so I don't know if he's been eaten or not." Dodgson knelt by the bars closes to Sophia and lightly tapped the rod against the bars resulting in a high pitched echoing sound. "Why don't you just sit back and relax, it's obvious you aren't going anywhere." With that, he guided Chad and Holly into a tent on the far side of the clearing and they disappeared inside.
Amanda leaned against the side closest to Sophia and slid her arm between the bars and gently touched Sophia on her side. Sophia looked at Amanda with sorrow and remorse. "It's not your fault," Amanda said. "We're alive and that's all that matters. I'm sure that Silver Claw and the others will find a way to get us out of here. I have a question though, why did you run away from us?"
"I was scared that all of you wouldn't accept me because of what I had done." Sophia lowered her head. She figured she might as well tell her. "I'm pregnant with Zenith's hatchlings. I ran away because I found out that they, my children, are related to Tyrannous. I was going to kill myself but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I'm sorry."
"Sophia," Amanda said in a tone of understanding. "I think it's great that you're going to have children. Even if they are related to Tyrannous, they won't turn out like him, not if you are raising them. You're going to make a great mother Sophia and you shouldn't think otherwise."
Sophia's expression softened and she placed her head against Amanda's hand. "You really think so." Amanda nodded. "I am truly sorry that I got you into this. I hope you can forgive me, I hope that Silver Claw can forgive me, but most of all, I hope Zenith will forgive me." Amanda's hand gently scratched the underside of Sophia's jaw.
"I'm sure he will Sophia, you were scared that all. Everyone gets scared." Amanda realized that there was blood coming Sophia's mouth. When she asked about it, Sophia quickly told what she tried to do but had failed at and then proceeded to press lightly on the tooth with her tongue. "I can help you with that that is if you want it pulled out." Sophia nodded slowly and kept her mouth open. Amanda reached out and gently touched the tooth. She tugged at it a little and then wiped the saliva from her fingers onto her shirt and then proceeded to pull on it as hard as she could. On the third try, she succeeded and the tooth came out but not before cutting the tips of Amanda's fingers up.
"Thank you," Sophia said with a slight hint of discomfort and pain in her voice. She probed the hole with her tongue and then gently set her head on the bottom of the cold cage. She watched as Amanda cleaned the wounds she could reach and examined those that she could not tend to. Every now and again, Amanda would look over her shoulder to see if, what Sophia assumed was Silver Claw, was peering out of the bushes once more.
An hour passed and the sun had passed its peek and was beginning to fall once more. The air however remained hot and humid. Waves broke upon the unseen shoreline beyond the base of the cliffs and the wind only fueled them. Insects came alive in the forest beyond the fence and sang in a chorus of chirping and buzzing. Few animals could be heard in the jungle but on occasion, the long call of a brachiosaur would resonate from all directions.
Sophia snapped at a passing fly that had continued to persist in annoying her. She had not seen the humans since they had disappeared within the tents nor did she wish to. After what they had done, if she were to escape, the one known as Dodgson would be her first meal. She would make him suffer for what he did to her and Amanda. His death would be as slow and painful as she could make it and he would beg for death before the end.
A flap on the tent opened and the woman know as Holly stepped out. She crossed the gap and entered a tent on the other side. A few minutes passed before she reemerged holding a bundle in her arms with several large poles sticking out from all directions. Amanda quickly explained to her that it was for another tent and the basic 'how to.' Sophia watched with some curiosity about what the human was doing and soon it had her full attention. She found it funny to watch as the human kept having troubles and then had to start over or take what she had just done apart.
Amanda however had her sights on the brush. She had two things on her mind, escaping and holding Silver Claw in her arms for the rest of the day and not letting go of him. Why was it that other humans always tore them apart from one another? It seemed that the whole world was against them and would try anything to tear them apart. She winced as a cool breeze swept across the tender skin where Dodgson had electrocuted her.
Slowly, her attention turned back to the female of the green raptors. She was quiet and still like stone. Her body was relaxed but yet there was a hint of tenseness within it. Amanda could only wonder what she was thinking about. She wondered why this female, who by all accounts was her enemy, was so interested in her love for Silver Claw and how they met. What could she possibly gain from knowing it? Amanda didn't like the fact that she had to speak about the death of her family as well as Silver Claw's but it kept her alive long enough that Dodgson captured them. And where was Ellie, hopefully she escaped Amanda thought. Whether that was a good thing or a bad one that Ellie had not been caught was yet to be seen because the male was also missing. There was an even greater issue however. How would Silver Claw rescue them and what would they do about the green. It was not safe to have her around while she was under orders to kill Silver Claw, but yet there was something different about this green. Amanda felt some kind of curiosity about her even though she hid it well.
With a sigh, Amanda turned her attention back to her love. She stared at the sky and every cloud seemed to resemble him. The guilt for telling him to go and leave her behind was building up but she knew it was for the best. He had a chance to save her now and they had not the chance to shoot at him. Amanda felt tired and slowly laid herself on the cold metal of the cage bottom. Using her arm as a pillow, Amanda slowly closed her eyes. She mumbled silently, "I love you Silver Claw," and she drifted into a dream filled slumber.