Hello. So, a lot of planning and substance in this chapter, I feel. But also, a worried Becker. Dun dun duuunnn ;-) (always wanted to do that). And I can only apologise for the Jess-Lester comment halfway through, but I couldn't resist in such a context. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Primeval. And it doesn't own me. Much.
Becker gulped and stared at the hole and slowly the cacophony of sounds died away as the lights dimmed and the power was cut, leaving only the glow from emergency lighting systems, which worked on their own power generator. Matt, ignoring Becker's lack of action, hitched up the box to study the hole more carefully. He frowned and picked up the round-ish piece of plastic which had been displaced, mulling over the marks of weakened cheap plastic.
"We definitely need to get better cages," groaned Becker, running his hand through his hair in frustration and worry. "Who's idea was it that a normal animal cage, designed to withstand, at worst, a ferocious kitten, would be good enough to hold back a dinosaur!" Matt looked up sharply at the Captain and raised his eyebrows to say 'Really? You need to ask?' Becker groaned. "I know Abby claimed the small ones couldn't possibly get through the plastic; for someone who has lived in the Cretaceous, she can sometimes be very naive."
"It was policy before she went and, to be fair, it's never failed before. Come on." Matt placed the cage back down exactly where it had been and squatted down, peering in the direction that the circle had fallen. He followed the path, shuffling along and noting any scratches on the floor.
He eventually came up against a small grill, normally there to allow a plumber access at the pipes stop-cock which was positioned there. It was silent now, the gas and water supplies cut to all parts of the building, the reasoning being that nobody wanted a soap style explosion on top of the lock-down.
"We need to get out of here and so we need to catch that dinosaur again. Any attempts to release the lockdown will be futile until it's been caught or, at east, we have it under control."
"What about Connor's trapdoor?"
"That one was removed and Connor's the only one who knows the new codes."
"WHAT?"
"There was going to be a presentation tomorrow when he released all the information needed. Hasn't anyone told you about that yet?" Becker shook his head and sighed. He was feeling incredibly useless, his time off work for his leg leading to him being desperately behind all the news of what had been happening in the very area he was supposed to be an expert in – security.
It was at times like this he particularly missed Danny. Sure, conversations about the man abseiling down the ventilation shaft...
The ventilation shaft. Becker tries to dismiss the idea as soon as it appeared in his head as something from a bad film. Or Connor. The idea, however, was having none of it, getting lodged in his mind.
And now Becker would have to be the one who has to suggest it – the idea he detested the most. Sometimes he hated being so practical and dedicated to his job. Becker opened his mouth to voice this laughable idea...
"We'll have to use the vent shaft, I think," Matt said. Becker expertly (in his mind) styled out of the 'mouth hanging open to speak' pose just as Matt looked around at him from studying the hole. "We need proper equipment from the menagerie first." Becker nodded "Abby and Connor should be there; maybe we can meet them halfway."
"Connor!" groaned Abby, clutching on to her precious pet and staring, annoyed, at her boyfriend.
"What?"
"What have you done?"
"I haven't done anything." Abby gave a sideways look at him. "I'm serious. I was walking right behind you." Abby sighed, but believed the reproachful look her boyfriend was giving her; he wasn't always stupid after all. Rex chirped and tried to climb over her shoulder, but she held on.
Abby gestured with her head that they should continue to see what sort of stretch of corridor they were stuck in. Connor followed, darting his eyes around to check if there were any hidden dangers that had triggered the alarm. He was so preoccupied that he didn't' see Abby stop ad walked straight into the back of her.
"Hey!" he exclaimed, more out of surprise than annoyance, but Abby ignored him and twisted around to face him.
"You said that Rex wouldn't cause any of this. And what's more he was out for ages before there was a problem."
"No. I programmed in his DNA pattern and life signs into the system. He's effectively a member of staff in that sense, with clearance to go anywhere he pleases." Connor paused. "Don't tell Phillip I've done that. I'm not sure that I'm meant to have done so, especially as he really doesn't like him and said that if he ever saw him again he would..."
"Connor! Concentrate! And think. If it's not Rex that's set off the alarms, then what has? I mean, could we possibly be facing another dinosaur on the loose. Maybe the Mammoth. Or anything!"
Connor did think for a few seconds, before the clear, honest truth dawned upon him. No matter how intelligent Abby feels her 'pets' are, none of them could get out the menagerie without the codes; Rex just happened to be in a less secure area than all the rest. Meaning there was only one creature that could have caused the upset.
"The new dinosaur. The one we just caught. I don't think Becker or Matt had time to get it to the menagerie."
"But that's been in the ARC for about half an hour. Why would it only just set off the alarms?"
"Because up until this point it was within ten foot of an authorised member of staff. It was a new feature so we could get the creatures in without disabling the security every time. It's all in my presentation."
"You mean the one you were going to give tomorrow. Oh, this is hopeless. I bet you can't disable the lockdown."
"From here?" scoffed Connor. "Now why would I make it easy for myself?"
"Yeah, why would you?" groaned Abby, sarcastically. Connor huffed and Abby sensed he was getting irritated at the incessant criticism his work was receiving at this particular moment in time. Sure enough, a defence was quickly forth-coming.
"It's meant to prevent against attacks from humans too. So people can't just wander in here."
"But now we can't wander out!" There was an awkward silence as the pair faced away from each other, then Abby started to walk again.
"I'm sorry," cried Connor after her, stopping her in her tracks.
She sighed and turned. "Me too. It's not your fault."
The couple smiled tentatively at each other and walked on as a pair (or trio counting Rex). Eventually, they rounded the corner and came up against their real boundary. A fire-door, normally simply made of wood, but now with the tell-tale steel curtain down over, displaying the security procedure.
"Now what?" asked Abby.
The soup had just arrived, the hubbub of sound dying down briefly as the waiters and waitresses came around, then returning to its original height.
"So, you see, business connections are vital in the modern Government's... shall we say, stranger projects. Without them, the full potential of them cannot fully be realised, for both..."
"Mr Lester?" A suited waiter interrupted the conversation, causing the three men to look around at the embarrassed young man. "Erm... there's a message for you, sir. An urgent one from a Miss Jessica Parker. She was... very insistent, sir."
"I bet she was," muttered Lester under his breath. He dabbed his mouth with a napkin and stood up. "Do excuse me, gentlemen. Miss Parker is not someone to ignore lightly in our work-place." The waiter stood back to allow the civil servant out. The two men watched him leave with interest then turned back to one another.
"Mistress?"
"It would seem so."
Lester exited the room and was led towards a telephone which had the receiver lying down next to the main hub. He marched over to it and picked it, only to grimace at the tone of voice that was being used on him.
"Where have you been? Why hasn't your phone been on? I've been trying to reach you for quarter of an hour. All I got was your bloody answer-phone!"
"Jess, what on Earth is going on? You've just taken me away from a couple of men who could sponsor that biological project Matt has been worrying about. This had better be good. And not Connor."
"The ARC has gone into lockdown."
"WHAT? Why didn't you say earlier?"
"You have nine messages on your mobile!" Lester took a deep breath in, trying to calm his nerves.
"Look, what has happened?"
"The ARC has gone into lockdown," Jess repeated patiently.
"I gathered that," replied Lester, wearily. "Any other information you've managed to discover while you've been waiting to contact me?"
"It's a Code 2, according to the outside monitor. That's a loose dinosaur. What shall we do?"
"Who's 'we'?"
"There's me, Jimmy from tech support, 'cos I had to call him to sort out the monitor when it went bananas, Private Simons, who was on perimeter patrol, and Emily, who I called in case she started to worry about where Matt was. I haven't told Burton yet. I wanted to know whether I should."
"Not yet, please. The last thing we need is him raving about how the dinosaurs are a nuisance that should all be put down. It was hard enough to stop him doing that last time. Look, wait there until I come and review the situation. In the meantime, try and establish contact with the people stuck inside. Who is stuck, by the way?"
"Matt, Abby, Connor and Becker."
"Now, how could I have guessed it was going to be those four?"
Bang! Becker grimaced as pain shot up his arm when the full weight of the cabinet which held the lab coats suddenly shifted onto him. Anyone would think they were worried about the coats being shot; certainly, the cabinet seemed to be bullet-proof.
"Sorry!" exclaimed Matt. "It slipped." Becker grunted and heaved the cabinet down onto the floor. Gazing up, he calculated that it was now in position, underneath the vent grill. A quick glance at Matt confirmed that the other man had thought the same thing.
Becker pulled out his trusty Swiss Army knife and opened the screwdriver attachment, then stared up at the grill. Matt impatiently took the tool out of his hands and clambered up onto the cabinet to reach to the screws which held the grill in place.
Part of Becker's brain was hoping that Matt would be quick in order for them to escape and be able to do something more helpful than just getting out. The rest of his brain hoped the screwdriver wouldn't fit, so they could stay down here and out of the ventilation shafts for as long as possible, maybe even until they could be rescued. But that was cowardice, so with a heavy heart, Becker smiled when Matt easily started to turned the screws.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Becker fumbled through his pockets and Matt looked down in surprise at the ringing mobile that the Captain pulled out. Becker frowned and checked up at Matt, who looked mystified, before opening the phone. Connor's name was presented in simple white print. Becker pressed the green button.
"Connor? How can you be phoning me? I thought the mobile network was blocked when there was a lockdown unless you're in the ADD room. You're not there, are you?"
"What? No, no, no," came a gritty response. "I programmed it so that certain numbers would still be able to call. At the moment though, that's only there's only my number in the system."
"So you can call me, but I can't call you."
"That's right. We were wondering if you had heard any strange noises. Only a dinosaur must've escaped."
"We know. It was the new one. Look, Connor, we need to get equipment from the menagerie. Can you get in there? We're going to be travelling through the vent shafts."
"We can try. We're right outside. I'll phone you as soon as we get in." And with that, the droning beep as the call ended flooded Becker's ears.
Until the ventilation shaft grill came crashing down.
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