Jurassic World: Apocalypse – Chapter 15: Open Season for Indominus Rex
A/N: Alright, it's time for the moment you've all been waiting for...an action scene! This chapter is filled with excitement and suspense that should leave all you readers at the edge of your seats. I hope I have succeeded in my goal to make a really awesome chapter. I hope you all enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Jurassic Park except the very characters I've made up.
"Oh, for a minute I thought you were going to say that you and Tom are dating or something," Brianna said, relieved for some reason. Tom and Alaina had just spent the last several minutes explaining the mystery surrounding Dr. Grant's disappearance and their plan to find out what happened. "Are you sure that shed's going to provide us with answers?"
"Let's hope," Tom said. "First we gotta get through that fence."
"How were you planning to get across without getting caught?" Brianna asked.
"I'm not sure," Alaina admitted. "This gyrosphere is pretty tough, maybe we can get one of the Apatosaurus to kick us into the fence. Maybe one of them can break down the fence itself?"
"I know they weren't the smartest of dinosaurs," Tom said, "but I'm pretty sure they're smart enough to know the fence is electric. They've surely brushed up against the fence more than once."
For several minutes, the teens tried to figure out a way over the fence, discussing several different options. Unfortunately, no one seemed to have a realistic idea. Just then, one of the Apatosaurus looked up and toward the nearby forest. She rose her head high above the ground, peering into the distance. She emitted a loud call and began whipping her tail through the air even more rapidly. The other sauropods picked up on this behavior and began to do the same.
"What's up with them?" Brianna asked.
Tom said, "They look nervous."
"But what could make a 30-ton animal nervous?"
Brianna got her answer when the trees near the forest's edge began to sway, indicating a large creature was moving through them. Then, a tree fell to the ground as a large bipedal green and brown-striped dinosaur – 50 feet long and standing 20 feet tall – stepped out into the open. It was completely different from any dinosaur the teens had seen before. It was certainly a theropod, as evidenced by its sharp hand and foot claws, multitude of sharp, gnarly teeth and bipedal stance. Its head was large and bore two small horns above its eyes. Its back and neck was covered in several rows of crocodile or Carnotaurus-like scutes. This was definitely an apex carnivore, and it seemed to be stalking the sauropods.
Brianna's breathing began to stagger. "I-is...that supposed to be part of this ride?"
"OK, so we've got a 10-ton mega-carnivore running free in the park," Masrani summarized. "Not good."
Masrani, Hammond, Owen, Hoskins, Claire, Arnold and Anthony were in the Control Room, discussing what options they had to deal with the escaped Indominus rex. They all knew it was only a matter of time before the predator made her way to where tourists were located. She needed to be brought down before she could hurt anybody.
"Are you sure that we shouldn't call an emergency evacuation?" Hammond asked.
"We don't want to cause panic and suspicion among our tourists," Arnold reminded Hammond.
"And especially don't tell Malcolm," Masrani said. "I don't even want to know what he'd have to say about this incident."
Claire said, "Her paddock is pretty far away from the nearest tourist attraction, so we do have time to do something about the current situation."
"We should get the ACU out there immediately to capture it as quietly as possible. The very existence of this park is due to the vary ability to handle incidents like this."
"You should put that in the brochure," Anthony suggested. "I knew one of these creatures would eat somebody."
"No one's going to get eaten," Hammond snapped.
Claire said, "I'm sure the ACU can recapture the creature before it becomes a problem."
Owen frowned. "Claire, we need to know everything you can possibly tell us about this creature."
"Everything? Why?"
"When she attacked us in her paddock, I noticed several things about her. Firstly, I think I know why she clawed at the wall of her paddock."
"Why?" Hammond asked.
"She left claw marks in her wall, making us think she escaped. That's exactly what she wanted us to think! Then, she hid herself as we searched the enclosure for her until the attack. We didn't see her until it was almost too late because she was completely camouflaged into the foliage. She was an almost greenish color until her skin changed into the usual paler shade."
"Wait, are you saying she changed the color of her skin?" Claire asked in surprise. Now it was Owen's turn to be surprised; how could Claire not know the animal had the ability to change the color of its skin. Claire continued, "We knew she could change color to a minor degree, but never to the extent of, say a cuttlefish or a chameleon."
"So we've got an intelligent, color-changing apex predator now loose on the island," Arnold said. "Real nice. We should have made a herbivorous hybrid."
The doors leading into the Control Room opened as Peter Ludlow walked in. "Ah! There you are, Uncle! You won't believe all the work that's gone into the Triceratops Encounter attraction at Jurassic Park Orlando. The tourists are already loving the experience of..." his voice trailed off when he noticed everyone was standing together, as if discussing something. "What's going on?"
"The Indominus rex broke out," Owen told him.
Ludlow's jaw dropped. "Wait...you mean THE Indominus rex? It's...free...on the island?" The others nodded. "Oh gosh. Well, that's not the news I wanted to hear today. What are you all going to do about it?"
Hoskins cleared his throat. "We're going to get that bad girl and teach her some lessons." He turned to Anthony. "Can you tell us where she is in the park?"
"Certainly." Anthony pressed some buttons on the keyboard. He gasped based on what he saw on the screen. "Man, she travels fast!"
"Where is she now?" Claire inquired.
"She's near the Gyrosphere attraction!"
Hoskins clapped his hands. "Alright, that does it. Owen, we're going to get the other ACU soldiers and bring that monster down before she kills someone."
"And you'd better hurry up," Anthony added. "There's a gyrosphere with some people in it not far from the Indominus!"
"What kind of dinosaur is that?" Alaina asked.
For once, Tom wasn't sure. Overall, it looked a lot like a carnosaur, a group of dinosaurs consisting several species of theropods bigger than T. rex; but the horns on this dinosaur's head, the shape of the skull, the armor on its back...they seemed reminiscent of a member of the abelisaurid family. "I'm not sure," Tom said at last. "I'm assuming it's a carnosaur."
"But is it supposed to be here?" Brianna asked.
Suddenly, the dinosaur raced out of the forest at alarming speed and tore across the plains toward the sauropod herd. Her skin rapidly changed from the, greenish-brown color to a paler shade, almost white! Her red eyes glared harshly at her prey. She made a loud roar that must have echoed halfway across the island.
"Oh my gosh!" Alaina exclaimed.
The Indominus rex ran up to the herd of sauropods. The Apatosaurus herd stood toward the predator, ready to face it with their swinging tails and large bodies. The sauropod in front rushed toward the carnosaur, bellowing loudly. She rose onto her hind legs, increasing her height to nearly 50 or 60 feet! The carnosaur stopped dead in her tracks and growled. Then she leaped into the air and grabbed hold of the sauropod's neck! The Apatosaurus dropped down on all fours and moaned in surprise and pain as the carnivore's sharp teeth and teeth ripped and tore at her skin. The carnosaur released her jaws from around her prey's neck, which was now tattered and bloody.
"Holy Yuchuangosaurus!" Tom exclaimed. "Did you see that?"
With great force, the carnosaur ran into the animal's side with her tough skull and the Apatosaurus collapsed to the ground in a heap of dust. The poor animal was threateningly weak and loosing blood fast. She wouldn't last much longer without medical attention. But the carnosaur felt no pity for this creature. She ran up and began tearing into the animal's side, ripping out flesh and hide. The weakening Apatosaurus didn't stand a chance against this aggressive predator. The other Apatosaurus were frightened by this and began to move away. However, the large predator took notice and roared. She wasn't finished with her rampage yet. She left the dead Apatosaurus lying in the grass and charged toward the herd. The nearest Apatosaurus swiped her whip-like tail through the air, trying hard to defend herself. Unfortunately, the carnosaur somehow dodged the tail and slammed her jaws into the side of this new target. The Apatosaurus was brought down even quicker than the previous one. Blood flowed freely from the animal's open wounds as she lied dying on the ground.
Brianna turned her face away from the horror and buried it in Tom's shoulder. Tears formed in her eyes as one Apatosaurus after another was briskly taken down by the beast.
"What is that dinosaur doing?" Alaina asked, glancing at the Ankylosaurus pair nearby. Even though they were more heavily armored than an Apatosaurus, the Ankylosaurus were incredibly nervous about the carnosaur. They stood their ground and watched, hoping it would not attack them. "It's attacking one sauropod after another."
Tom tried to get an identification of the creature with the monitor inside of the gyrosphere.
"I'm sorry," the prerecorded voice said. "I am unable to identify the creature you selected. Please try again."
"I don't think that dinosaur's supposed to be in this area," Alaina said.
"Probably not," Tom said. "We should get out of here before it notices us."
"But the gyrosphere is designed to automatically move away from dinosaurs that are too close."
"True, but if the predator is moving faster than the gyrosphere..."
Alaina nodded. "OK. Let's go. We need to get back to the Gyrosphere station and warn the appropriate people."
As the Ankylosaurus began to move toward a more forested area near the perimeter fence, the Apatosaurus continued to be brought down mercilessly by the large theropod. The carnosaur had turned the area from a peaceful plain to a bloodbath. She had killed all but one Apatosaurus. After knocking the sauropod down, she ripped into the creature's chest. Tom watched with disgust.
"She's just wiping them out like a maniac!" Tom exclaimed. "That's not supposed to happen."
As Tom and Alaina looked in the direction they were headed, Brianna glanced back toward the bloody scene they were leaving behind. She tapped on Tom's shoulder.
"Yes?" Tom asked.
Brianna pointed to the carnosaur. The mighty beast had looked up from the injured Apatosaurus and toward them. She growled quietly, watching as they rolled along. Tom shook his head. No, he told himself. She can't possibly want to attack us too! She brought down six sauropods. That monster can't possibly be still hungry!
But Tom could only watch as the dinosaur reared up nice and tall and gave a mighty roar. Then the dinosaur abandoned the injured sauropod and charged toward the gyrosphere like a cat after a ball of yarn.
"It's coming this way!" Alaina cried out. Both Brianna and Alaina were terrified out of their wits by the colossal carnivore.
For the first time in his life, Tom truly feared for his life. However, he had to keep in mind active and alert if he wanted everyone to survive. He sped up the gyrosphere, but the predator was coming too fast. Her strides upon her bird-like feet caused her to speedily run across an open area at alarming speed. She roared again as she ran up alongside the rolling gyrosphere to close in.
"Brace yourselves!" Tom exclaimed.
The dinosaur's head slammed into the ball and the teens were sent spiraling out of control. The world turned into giant whirlpool of color and disorientation. Tom lost all sense of direction as the world spun around him. Finally, their spinning came to a halt. The teens were so dizzy that they couldn't tell which direction they had come from.
"Where did we end up?" Tom asked.
"I don't know," Brianna said. "But I do know that it's coming back!"
True to her words, the carnosaur was running towards them once again. Tom looked around and noticed a forested area near the perimeter fence where the pair of Ankylosaurus had presumed grazing. The predator reached them and using her head, she shoved the gyrosphere into the edge of the forest. The spinning started again as they spun toward the grazing herbivores. The Ankylosaurus looked up, saw the threat and turned to flee, bellowing in a panic.
"We're going to collide with the ankies!" Alaina proclaimed.
Tom tried to dodge the dinosaurs, but the gyrosphere received a hearty smack as the heavy club-like tail hit it in the side, making a large spider-web-like network of cracks. "Yikes!" Tom exclaimed. The monitor screen suddenly turned dark and the mechanic sounds associated with the gyrosphere died down. They were completely out of power!
"We're dead meat!" Brianna exclaimed.
The ankylosaurs moved away quickly as the carnosaur approached the now-still. Her movements were slower now as she stalked toward the ball. She seemed curious about the occupants inside. From above, the red eyes of the tenacious predator looked at the teens. Then she roared; Tom, Alaina and Brianna slammed their hands over their ears because the 150db noise was so loud. She lifted her clawed hand and banged it onto the top of the gyrosphere. Glass shattered as the claw on her largest finger punctured right through it. The three friends screamed in terror. Tom noticed that the dinosaur seemed less intent on hunting them; it was almost as if it was using the gyrosphere as a play toy! This was when Tom, was able to get a good look at the attacker's hand and he saw that it had four sharply clawed fingers rather than three, as with other carnosaurs.
What kind of crazy creature are you?! Tom thought.
Brianna and Tom grasped each other's arms as the monster lowered her head, looking right into the ball with a glare that would halt a lion. She moved her hand from the top of the ball and shoved the ball toward the perimeter fence with her head. The closer they got the fence, the more force the dinosaur put behind her push.
"We're going to hit the fence!" Tom yelled.
The gyrosphere hit the fence and broke free! Wires snapped and tore apart as the dinosaur forced it onto the opposite side where it began to roll down a hill. The teens inside, still somewhat disoriented from their spinning earlier, held onto their seats tightly as they half rolled/half bounced down the incline. They hit the base of a large tree hard and the dinosaur bellowed in triumph from the top of the hill. She began making her way toward them, slightly slowed down by the dense vegetation here – she wasn't finished yet!
Tom pressed the button to open the gyrosphere and the top and bottom half of the gyrosphere split apart, allowing them exit the gyrosphere that would have otherwise indirectly led to their demise.
"Come on, we've got to get out of here!" Tom exclaimed as he unbuckled himself.
"Where are we going?" Brianna asked.
"Anywhere away from that thing!"
The three teens escaped the gyrosphere as the carnosaur came up from behind them. She swung her jaws forward, grabbing hold of the gyrosphere ball itself, shattering most of the glass and severely damaging the vehicle. She realized her prey was escaping and charged forward. There wasn't much hope for the Tom and the girls. The dinosaur was running much faster than they could and there was nowhere to hide...or was there?
"Over there!" Brianna yelled. She pointed to a small door located in a large mound-like structure. Could it have been some kind of shelter?
They didn't have time to speculate. They hurried toward it, narrowly avoiding getting caught in the monster's jaws.
Please don't be locked! Please don't be locked! Tom hoped. He reached the door and pulled it open, revealing a small dark room underground, about five meters in diameter – crouching room only. The three of them rushed inside and just before they could shut the door, the dinosaur's hand reached inside. Tom pulled Alaina and Brianna further back toward avoid the dinosaur's grasping claws. The carnivore roared in fury as she reached as far as her size would allow her, barely missing her prey. Brianna clung to Tom and screamed.
"It's OK!" Tom said. "I don't think it can reach us!"
The four claws lacerated deep trenches into the dirt floor. But try as she might, there was no way she could access the kids. The dinosaur must have realized this was a vain attempt, so she retracted her hand from the rock. The moment she disappeared, Tom rushed forward and slammed the door shut, locking it with the heavy iron bars previously against the wall. A final roar was heard outside before the dinosaur's loud footsteps indicated the carnivore was moving away.
Tears flowed from Brianna's eyes as she tried to compose herself. The experience was too much for her.
Tom shook his head. "This was never supposed to happen. What are we going to do now?"
"We'll figure all that out in a few minutes," Alaina said. "Right now, I'm just astounded that we're still here!"
A/N: That was thrilling for me to write! Indominus rex was certainly terrifying in this chapter, especially to Tom, Brianna and Alaina! This was one of my favorite chapters to write I think. Tom, Brianna and Alaina are now somewhere past the perimeter fence, several miles away from the rest of the park? How are they going to survive? Will they try to head back to civilization or attempt to reach that shed they found via Alaina's phone? What mayhem do you think I. rex will cause? What plans do Owen, Hoskins and the others have to capture the beast? You'll have to find out in the next chapter. In the meantime, please be sure to favorite, follow and review on this story. Catch you all next week! Spare no expense!