Disclaimer: Jurassic World and the Jurassic Park franchise are the property of Universal Studios, Michael Crichton, Steven Spielberg and Colin Trevorrow. I own nothing from this story aside from the plot.
Author's Note: Greetings Readers! First off, I would like to thank you all for your patience and I apologize for the extreme lateness of this chapter. I know I said it would probably be done by Halloween but it didn't end up happening, mainly because I was assigned to a short film project for my screen production class, which took a month to do, so I had to unfortunately shelve this story for a while.
Then when we were done, it was time for finals and that meant less free time to work on this. And I also apologize if this isn't as good as the previous one, I'm still in the middle of finals so I didn't have the time to give it a full run through, so feel free to suggest any corrections and point out any mistakes.
The next chapter's release day is still up in the air, as my exams are till next week.
Now onto the story, hope you enjoy.
Then a loud bang echoed through the jungle.
A shotgun round traveled at supersonic speed like a missile through the air, hitting the dinosaur square in the chest. The round harmlessly pinged off of the animal's armored hide, but it was enough to distract it momentarily. The eternity of having Zara's life flash before her ended; she panted and gasped, clutching her chest.
So close, she came so close to death.
Zara turned her head to the side, looking for the source of the shot. She was relieved to see Royce calmly striding out of the jungle, his weapon booming as he fired it from the hip.
Droplets of sweat ran down his face and his chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath but the look on his face was one of pure determination as he kept firing shot after shot, almost machine like. But the rounds did nothing but make it flinch.
He paused to take a look at the creature, "That is one. Ugly. motherfu— "
The animal roared, cutting him off mid-sentence and charged towards him but Royce was quicker and squeezed the trigger, his shots harmlessly pinging off of its hide, but one managed to hit the dinosaur square in the shoulder, hitting the exposed flesh from when it ripped the tracker out, making it howl in pain.
Bingo.
He refocused on the wound, firing more shots at it making the massive carnivore shriek and recoil back further from the pain, running off into the jungle to avoid the hail of gunfire sent it's away.
But in a fit of blind rage, the trooper kept firing, kicking up dirt and tearing the foliage to bits until his gun clicked empty.
His focused gaze never left the jungle, finger pressed down hard on the trigger even though it was empty. He was brought out of it by Zara repeatedly calling out to him.
Shaking his head, he turned to her, "I'm sorry, you OK?"
"I can't move, my leg's tangled."
"Stay still, I'm going to cut you out," He unsheathed his machete and cut through the vines, freeing her leg and pulled her up by her hand.
"Thanks," She said as she dusted herself off, "How about you?" she added when she saw the blood that was soaking his gloves and fatigues.
"I'll be fine, it was someone else's," He said, ejecting the empty magazine from his shotgun and reaching behind him to take a new one out of his ammo pouch, slamming it into the magazine well.
He looked around the area cautiously, adding, "But you can't stay here, it'll be back soon. I need you to go back to the car, and get those two boys out of here, I'll hold it off."
"Do you know where Zach and Gray are?"
"No, I didn't check the car."
"So, you're not coming?" She really didn't like the idea of leaving him to face it alone, it would be a death sentence.
He sighed and shook his head, "I can't, if I come with you, it'll be on us faster than we can outrun it. But I can buy you some time and keep it off your track while you escape."
"There's just one problem, it destroyed the car."
"Damn it, this day just keeps getting better and better doesn't it?" he sighed, then his head snapped up. "I have an idea, the old visitor center is a couple of minutes' walk from the where the car was, you can take those two there and bunker down for a while until rescue comes."
She nodded.
He unslung the tranquilizer rifle from his back and handed it to her, "Here, you'll need this."
The rifle wouldn't do much good against The Indominus but there were other dinosaurs in the area and it would be better for her to have one than none at all. His combat experience told him that some people felt more secure with a weapon in hand and after an encounter like that, she needed that extra sense of security.
As she slung the gun across her shoulder he added, "In the trunk, there's a case labeled MORO-709. You'll find some extra magazines in there."
"Can I have your watch too?" She asked.
"Why?"
"I told them to find somewhere safe when I left them, they're probably far away from the car by now."
"Alright, here," He took off his smartwatch and handed it to her.
Just before they parted ways, Zara turned to him, "Royce."
"Yeah?"
"Good luck out there."
He shot her a cocky grin, "I don't need luck. I'm a Ranger. Now get out of here, I'll see you on the other side when this is all over."
Those were the last words she ever heard from him before he turned away and ran off into the jungle.
When she arrived at the car, Zara quickly peeked her head inside of the passenger compartment, somewhat relieved that the boys left. The footprints that lead away from the car proved it. But there was only one set, that meant Gray was still unconscious and Zach carried him away.
At least they're safe, she thought.
She made her way to the rear of the car, but to her frustration the trunk was dented and jammed shut so she had to reach her hand inside of it to retrieve the case, being careful to avoid the shards of broken glass that were still stuck to the window mount.
Opening it, she found a cloth tactical belt and two rifle magazines, putting the belt around her waist and inserting the magazines into the pouches on it.
Reaching into the trunk again, she also took out a backpack, it contained emergency supplies someone would need in a situation such as this; a first aid kit, duct tape, a quart sized water bottle, a radio (not that it would do much good given the current situation), an electric lantern and some food.
Then she went to the passenger side and took out her purse, taking her phone so she could contact Claire when she could get a signal and a hair tie to push her hair back, it became sweaty and sticky during her run and she didn't want it impeding her visibility.
Zara also took out something else, something small but equally as important to her, something she'd rather not leave behind. It was a small golden SAS cap badge, a family heirloom that was passed down from her grandfather to her father, then to her.
She left the purse next to the car, with all the gear she had already, it was going to weigh her down and she could always come for it later anyway.
Clipping the badge to the collar of her blouse, she took a deep breath and sprinted into the jungle to look for the boys.
Royce trekked carefully through the jungle, keeping his senses on high alert. The Indominus tore a path of destruction in its haste to escape and left an obvious trail for him to follow, trees were toppled onto the ground, branches littered the floor from it charging through the trees and blood was spattered onto the bushes around the area, it was utter chaos.
The trail stopped near a clearing. The trooper stopped and scanned his surroundings, finger hovering over the trigger, primed to squeeze off a burst of automatic shotgun fire in case the Indominus decided to ever show its face.
The clearing was quiet, the only sound were the trees rustling in the breeze and insects chirping. Years of military training and experience told him that something wasn't right, then it dawned on him. This area was a prime spot for an ambush, and he was on the receiving end.
Then he saw a blur of movement coming from the left, the trooper tried to evade but it was too late.
The dinosaur's muscular tail slammed into Royce's chest like a giant baseball bat, knocking the wind out of him and sending him flying into a tree. He crashed into it, hitting several branches on the way down before landing with a hard thud.
He rolled out of the way just a large shadow loomed over him, barely avoiding the Indominus' foot as it stomped on his AA12, flattening it into a piece of useless metal. It roared triumphantly and glared at him, almost daring him to make a move.
The trooper groaned and groggily got back to his feet, gripping his side in pain. It hurt to breathe, probably broken or fractured a few ribs on the way down. In a bold move, he took off his uniform, vest and hat, then he took out his machete and locked eyes with the creature, slashing himself across the chest in a show of defiance.
The two combatants begun an intense stare down, like two wolves about to fight to the death. Readying themselves for the battle between man vs predator.
They circled each other, Royce twirling his machete as he recited the creed of the Ranger corps.
"I am a US Army Ranger."
"I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of the Rangers."
"I shall defeat my enemies on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might."
He leveled an intense glare at the carnivore, "Surrender is not a Ranger word."
"Readily will I display the fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission though I be the lone survivor," He grinned, it seemed cheesy, but if he was going to go, this is how he wanted it to be, holding the Ranger banner high and proud.
The animal roared and charged towards him.
"Rangers lead the way!" He bellowed, bursting into a full on sprint to meet the carnivore head on.
A scream cut through the jungle, startling Zara on her trek. Her heart fell, and a single tear rolled down her cheek at the loss of a good friend, but she didn't have time to mourn, so she pressed onward.
She found Zach and Gray a little later, resting at the base of a tree. When they saw her, they immediately rushed forward to hug her, relieved that she didn't meet her end. Zara just hugged them back, glad to see that they were safe.
"How did you make it out of there?" Zach asked as he pulled away from the hug.
She was about to answer when an earth shaking roar broke through the silence, "I'll tell you later, we need to move."
The three of them continued to walk further into the restricted area.
"Hey, what's that?" Gray said, pointing to an object that lay on the ground ahead of them. He ran ahead to see it closer and to his horror saw that it was a bloody hard hat, crushed and split open.
Tension filled the air then, the two boys hiding behind Zara as she raised the rifle and pointed it in all directions, sweeping the area for threats. Then something caught her eye, it was an electric ATV, used by staff members to travel to and from the restricted area.
"Stay close," Zara said to the two of them as she cautiously walked towards the vehicle, the rifle sat tight against her shoulders as she trained the weapon ahead. As she got closer, she could see that the vehicle was severely damaged, sparks shot out of the engine compartment and there were giant bloody rips in the seat.
Once she was sure the area was clear, Zara lowered the rifle and scanned the area around them, wondering where the old visitor center was, parts of it were still there the last time she came here but now all she could see was thick jungle.
Then she saw it, poking through the vines and palm fronds were the center's distinctive double doors. She walked towards it, calling for the boys to come with her.
As she came closer to it, she was disheartened at how far the once majestic building fell into disrepair over the years, still remembering the purpose it was built for.
Once, it was designed to welcome visitors from all over the world to experience the wonder and the majesty of these leviathans of the ancient world and the awesome power of science that brought them back from extinction, but now—now it just stood there, lifeless and empty. A relic of a bygone age much like dinosaurs that roamed in the park beyond it.
Zara pushed the doors open with a loud creak, the sound echoed throughout the empty building. Inside, it revealed a huge rotunda, and a spiral staircase that lead up to a second floor. Two decades of neglect had nature reclaim most of the structure, covering most of the area in thick vines and leaves. At the center of it were two statue bases where two dinosaur skeletons; a Tyrannosaur and an Alamosaurus once stood, posed in titanic combat against each other, but now they lay scattered all over the floor. A result of some unknown battle.
It was the second time anyone had set foot in it in years, the first time was last year when Claire assigned her to be John Hammond's personal guide when he came to visit the park a few weeks before his death.
A small smile spread across her face as she fondly recalled the time she spent with the parks founder, he was mostly wheelchair bound at that point, but still full of energy and enthusiasm at seeing his dream being realized successfully. When they came here, he couldn't stop talking about all the work they put into building what was supposed to become the greatest theme park in the history of the world. The building seemed to trigger a flood of memories for him.
"You know the first attraction I ever made when I came down from Scotland?" He asked as she wheeled him into the old visitor center. ACU troopers stood guard outside the main doors.
"Yes, it was a motorized flea circus." She said, stopping near the center of the rotunda.
"Petticoat lane," He smiled, fondly remembering his first attraction, "quite wonderful really, we had almost everything. A wee trapeze, a-a carousel, and a seesaw. People would always come and say they could see the fleas. "Oh, I see the fleas, mummy! Can't you see the fleas?" Clown fleas and high wire fleas and fleas on parade, but it was all an illusion."
His smile faltered and he swept his gaze around the empty building, his expression somber, "With this place, I wanted to show them something more, something that wasn't an illusion. We made living biological attractions so astounding that they'd capture the imagination of the entire planet. Certainly, an aim not devoid of merit."
He sighed, gazing sadly at his amber topped cane, "But we didn't treat the power that we had with respect, never realized how unstable and powerful it was until it was too late, and we paid the price for it."
"At least you had your heart in the right place."
He chuckled, "Well, you know what they say about hell and good intentions."
A brief silence hung in the air, broken by Zara asking, "Mr. Hammond, if you—,"
He held up a hand, "Oh Please, John is just fine, there's no need for formalities."
"John, I remember you saying that we should've left the animals alone after the San Diego incident, but then why sell INGEN to Mr. Masrani?"
"That's a good question. You see, after the Incident with Cathy Bowman and in San Diego, I knew that my board of advisors couldn't be trusted. I wanted someone I could trust to take care of my creations, my dream after I passed on, and who would treat this power with the utmost level of respect."
"What about your grandchildren, Lex and Tim Murphy?"
He shook his head, "No, they were adamant about wanting nothing more to do with this place and they wholeheartedly agreed to allow Simon to acquire the company. I couldn't blame them really, especially after what they went through here. He reminded me so much of myself when I was his age. Young, ambitious, an eye for talent and had the whole world ahead of him.
"I met Simon at my estate in New York. I was undergoing treatment at the time, so I was bedridden for the most part but we had a splendid time, let me tell you! We talked endlessly about anything and everything, future endeavors, our businesses, our hobbies. Then I talked about the park and just like that," He snapped his fingers, "His eyes just lit up and he was transfixed to everything I had to say. And without hesitation, he immediately asked if I could hand over INGEN to him, assuring me that he would take every measure so that there would be no further disasters. That's why I entrusted this place, my dream to him."
Hearing no response, he continued, smiling, "And from the looks of it, I put it into the right hands. Your boss, Claire, was it? She's done a fantastic job! Jurassic World is now the greatest amusement park in the entire world, there's not much else I can ask for. "
She sighed, "But it's a tough job though, we're barely braking even this year. It seems people aren't that interested anymore."
"I'm sure you'll figure something out, the prehistoric world has so much to offer us, so many bizarre and wonderful creatures that can dazzle the mind of the public."
Author's Note: This chap was a lot longer, clocking in at 5,000 words going on until The Main Street Pterosaur Attack but I decided to cut it in half since there was too much going on already and decided to make the other half it's own chapter.