Elkay was furious. From the moment Ellie had been appointed as Queen, there had been no doubt that she would be the most amazing Lord to date. The past few months had completely contradicted that hypothesis. More than anything, Elkay wanted Ellie to be a good Queen, and not for entirely selfish reasons, as was usually the case. Ellie had been virtuous and sensible before meeting her grandmother. Not a day went by that Elkay didn't question whether she'd ruined Ellie by being a part of her life. She knew that Alan, Robin, and a few others were starting to speculate about it as well. Ellie wasn't the same as before, and it was more than likely that it was Elkay's fault.

Then again, Ellie was predisposed to failure. Elkay would have liked to believe that her dear granddaughter was untainted by her genes, but it simply wasn't so. And then there was the damned snake that had struck her. The mere existence of the creature was Elkay's fault. That made three ways she had ruined Ellie's life. That, and she had put her through crazy escapades before they became chummy. That was four.

There was no easy way to admit that Ellie was going sideways. For a while, Elkay had been in deep denial, assuming that her developing flaws were simply the result of stress from the unexpected influence that Neithhotep had forced upon the story. But it wasn't. Ellie had control now, yet she wasn't acting responsibly. She just narrated like . . . well, like Elkay had. And there was another funny thing: Ellie kept claiming that she was trying to help Claire by putting her through so much shit, but anyone familiar with narration (ie Elkay) would immediately see through her white lies. Elkay had justified her own actions in a similar way when Ellie was the protagonist. Now, she had passed her questionable morals on to her successor. That wasn't a good sign.

Elkay's mind was filled with terrible premonitions of Ellie's fall from grace. She could imagine her manipulating others to suit her narrative's needs, staging elaborate battles by making villains of her peers. Why not? She was basically weaving an intricate web of lies already. It was only a matter of time before she went full out crazy.

Maybe she already had.

Cassowaries wouldn't just show up out of nowhere, especially in Asterpara. The loose feathers by the volcano didn't belong to any bird, never mind a Cassowary. Ellie was lying. She was lying because the truth was too hard to take.

Elkay rested her chin dismally on her egg. They had moved it to a special incubation chamber (by Ellie's orders, of course). Although it was wasteful to open the lid too often, Elkay found comfort in touching the green ovoid.

It reminded her of Asterpara.

It reminded her of home.

Jurassic Park could never truly hold her heart. Her spirit soared with the dragons from the land of the Snow Deer to the tropical forests where glowing caterpillars made their cocoons. Isla Nublar was not her home because none of her friends lived there. None except Ellie. But she was starting to become a very bad friend indeed.

Ellie entered the room at the precise moment this thought crossed Elkay's mind. Her timing was always convenient in how inconvenient it was. Elkay lifted her head with exhaustion and looked at her granddaughter, her ears hanging limply. She didn't even bother to say hello. She wished that Ellie would ask her what was wrong, but she already knew, and so she wouldn't ask. They'd just keep playing the same stupid games over and over again until the end of time, because there was no escaping the endless cycle of deceit and hurt.

"Too sad to write?"

Elkay shook her head.

"Can you start, then?" Ellie pressed.

Elkay nodded weakly.

"You can stop with this self-pity thing anytime, you know," Ellie said breezily, "You're only making yourself look bad."

Elkay took a deep breath.

"I'll write. I know it helps you. Just don't forget that you have a world to run."

Ellie snuffed.

"How could I forget something like that?"

"It's easier than you think."

Ellie frowned.

"Alright, I'm not going to suffer through your passive-aggressive bullshit. You have a story to write. We're backtracking a little bit, because we need to find out why Henry Wu is a spinosaurus."

"He fell on a staff."

Ellie rolled her eyes.

"Very funny. I mean the other Henry Wu. From Jurassic World."

Elkay nodded.

"I know the one."

Ellie marched away briskly.

"Don't disappoint me."

Elkay didn't flinch when the door slammed. She had been expecting it. With a silent breath, she stood up, closed the lid of the incubator, and moved dismally towards the window. A toucan descended from the sky and landed on her tail as she held it out.

"Good evening, Master Elkay," he cawed.

"Good evening, Moku-Pa. I know you're upset because I haven't been paying much attention to you, but I am about to delegate a task that may be of interest."

The toucan cocked his head.

"What task is that?"

"The Henry Wu of Jurassic World carries with him a piece of paper with a single word written on it. I need you to discover the significance of this word."

The toucan nodded.

"I will gladly do it. What is the word?"

"Sierra."

***TSJWFEW***

Moku-Pa had known Elkay for a relatively long time. He was of Asterparan descent, but they had met in the world of Jurassic Park. Back then, there was only the novel canon. On the day they first bumped into each other, Elkay was a raptor. Moku-Pa had been puzzled by her behavior. She was carrying an egg to the river, which didn't seem normal. He had watched in fascination as she wrote "George" on the shell in permanent marker, then let the egg drift down the stream to an unknown destination. It had eventually been found by two humans after the universe shifted canons, but at the time, there was no way of guessing what would come to pass.

On the day they met, Moku-Pa had sworn his loyalty to Elkay, who had revealed that she was, in fact, the Queen of Asterpara. If he had to guess, Moku-Pa would affirm that her eventual downfall had been caused by the events that took place earlier that day, which she refused to talk about. She was traumatized by it.

There was nothing odd about Asterparans having several children with different partners, but the way Elkay went about it seemed to connote a deep-rooted problem. From the moment she created the Overworld, Elkay had been less than reliable, and her unfortunate encounter only reaffirmed that something was terribly wrong. Even so, Moku-Pa trusted his Queen, although she assigned him questionable missions.

Now, years later, she came to him with a new request. This one seemed reasonable. Well, reasonable in nature, at least, for it would be a difficult mystery to solve. Moku-Pa therefore called upon his dilophosaurus friend, Dixie, to help him crack the case. They traveled to the Jurassic World, flying across the ocean to the almost-forgotten park. Carrying Dixie by the tail, Moku-Pa scanned the island with sharp eyes.

"It's very much possible that Sierra is the name of a woman," he speculated, "It seems too obvious, though. What does that leave us with?"

"Could be the name of a toboggan," Dixie sassed.

"I doubt it," Moku-Pa replied, playing along with her jest, "He doesn't seem like the sledding type. Not really a people-person either, which leads me to believe that it's not a long-lost love."

"Don't rule that option out so quickly. Sometimes, the easiest answers are- Hang on. What's that?"

Dixie pointed to a large lagoon. Near the edge, an emaciated animal was resting its head on the concrete. The rest of its body was floating pitifully in the water. Moku-Pa folded his wings and prepared for a landing. As they came into contact with the ground (rather noisily), the creature lifted her head weakly and gave them an empty stare. She closed her eyes and let out a quiet rumble.

'Sad, isn't it?' she whispered in her own language, 'You'd never believe that I used to be someone important. Now, I'm dying, and I will not be remembered.'

Moku-Pa stepped forward, his talons brushing against the rough concrete unpleasantly.

"Someone important?"

The creature nodded.

'In another life, I had a name. I worked here. People knew who I was.'

"What happened?" Dixie asked.

'Henry Wu happened.'

Moku-Pa leaned forward with interest.

"Henry Wu? You knew him?"

The creature nodded.

'We didn't get along. That's why he decided to get rid of me.'

Moku-Pa bobbed his head in excitement.

"Do you know what 'Sierra' means?" he asked eagerly, "He carries a note-"

'I can't help you,' she moaned dolefully, 'My previous life is all but lost to me. It's like a dream. My memories have merged with my imagination. I wouldn't know what's real and what's not.'

Moku-Pa sighed.

"That's unfortunate. Thank you for being honest, and I'm sorry for whatever it is that led you here."

The creature swallowed. Moku-Pa noticed that her throat seemed dry.

'I don't know if this information is of any use to you, but he dropped into my tank a long time ago. He wasn't human.'

Moku-Pa hopped closer to her, his interest rekindled.

"Do you know how he came to be a spinosaurus?"

'No. He fell from a helicopter, changing along the way. I attacked him, but he managed to escape. Later, I saw something standing near the edge of my tank, but when I dragged it in, I realized that it was not him. I let the second creature go. I doubt it survived: I did some serious damage before I realized that I was mistaken.'

Dixie rubbed her chin.

"I think I know who you're talking about. Was it a white dinosaur?"

'It was white, but it wasn't a dinosaur. Not like any dinosaur I've encountered, anyway.'

The creature shuddered and closed her eyes.

'I think I'll be dead soon.'

Dixie put her paw over her mouth.

"Is there anything we can do?"

'No. It's better this way. I'm looking forward to whatever comes next. The last few years of my life have been unhappy, so my luck is due to change.'

She took a raspy breath.

'I think this has been my punishment. In my past life, I made many mistakes. I devoted myself to a heartless cause. That's what it all comes down to, in the end. Heart. A heart can never be satisfied if it stands alone. I thought my work would improve the world. Perhaps it has, in some ways. I only wish that I had taken the time to get to know the world I was trying to save. Maybe then, I could have held on.'

Her breaths grew shallower.

'It must have been easy for him to claim that I'd disappeared. There wouldn't have been anyone who wished to see me. He said that I retired, and they believed him. No one tried to contact me after that. They had no reason to. I should have given them a reason . . .'

She coughed weakly.

'I won't last much longer. I must ask you to leave. I have very little time to think, but there are some things I still need to sort out.'

Moku-Pa and Dixie gave small bows, then made their way into the jungle. They didn't speak for a long time. They were visibly shaken from the encounter. Finally, Dixie let out a sigh of regret and turned her eyes to the sky.

"Why do bad things happen to innocent people? It's so sad. She seemed terribly unhappy."

Moku-Pa nodded.

"The poor thing must have had a difficult life. She seemed tormented by something. I wonder if what she said was true."

"That Henry Wu dropped from a helicopter?" Dixie asked, "It's possible."

Moku-Pa sighed.

"It just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. How did he change?"

"PMR?" Dixie suggested.

"Possibly, but how did he die? There are no spinosaurs on this island that could have killed him."

"The original virus has many secrets," Dixie said softly, "He might have been the exception to the rule."

***TSJWFEW***

Wu turned a large claw around in his hands. He hadn't had much time to clear his desk, and this was one of the few relics he had managed to save. Moonlight danced across the fossil as the helicopter's rotors shadowed the scene. The loud thumping was nothing but a gentle hum in Wu's mind. He had more important things to think about.

***TSJWFEW***

"Didn't Owen experience the PMR, once?" Dixie asked.

"Yes. As I recall, he was struck by lightning twice in a row. The first time was what changed him, then he was killed by the second shock. Being electrocuted while changing must trigger the PMR somehow."

"But Owen's powers are special. The tiger gave them to him, not Elkay."

Moku-Pa perched himself on Dixie's left crest.

"That doesn't necessarily mean that it's entirely different. We'll have to ask Elkay for a catalogue of the side effects to be sure, though. While we're at it, we'll ask our own Henry if he knows about 'Sierra'. First, we'd better make sure that our examination of this park is thorough. We might be able to glean some information from our surroundings."

***TSJWFEW***

Wu didn't remember who he was. He was furious. Why? Who knew. Somehow, he had lost his mind, and he was ready to take it out on the world.

There was another dinosaur who shared his sentiments. She was badly injured when he found her. He thought he recognized her from somewhere, but he wasn't sure.

'You . . . What are you?' she asked.

'I might wonder the same thing about you.'

'Are you empty?'

Wu was puzzled by the question.

'Empty?'

'Empty. The others are empty. That's why they can't be allowed to live. I have to end them, because they are empty and I am not. They are beneath me. They have to die.'

'I understand. You want to make them pay for what they've done. It's fair.'

'It is. It's fair. It's right.'

***TSJWFEW***

Dixie was intimidated by the dark jungle. She had lived on Isla Nublar for a very long time (in fact, she was the first dilophosaurus to be hatched), but she had grown accustomed to the civilized community that Ellie had founded. This Isla Nublar was untamed. Aside from the infrastructure, there was very little to suggest that the island was populated by civilized beings. Well, civilized relatively speaking. Dixie had encountered monstrous humans on several occasions. Brutality knew no species. When a barbaric person found themselves unrestrained, the results would often be disastrous.

***TSJWFEW***

They killed together. Working as a team, Wu and the white dinosaur slaughtered a stegosaurus. At first, Wu was glad to have an outlet for his anger, but something in the back of his mind was screaming for him to stop. It was as if there was another version of him beneath the layer of his current consciousness. It annoyed him. Nevertheless, he ignored it.

'Come on. We'll kill another,' his partner said.

Wu sniffed the carcass.

'I'm hungry.'

'Doesn't matter. We have to keep going until we find someone who isn't empty.'

'Why?'

'We need to find them.'

Wu snarled.

'You never make any sense. Just shut up and let me eat.'

He dipped his head down and started tearing chunks of meat off of the carcass, but a dangerous look from his partner made him freeze.

'Are you empty?'

Wu growled.

'You know me better than that.'

'You don't think it's important to find someone who isn't empty. You don't understand.'

'I'm not empty.'

'You're like the others, aren't you? You're exactly like the small ones. They said they wanted to be free, but they chose to let themselves be controlled. They were empty. So are you.'

'I'm not empty!'

The white dinosaur turned her attention to the carcass, suddenly distracted for no obvious reason. She ran her claws through the bleeding flesh and held them in front of her face. The blood dripped down from her paw slowly.

'What we are doing is beautiful. We need to continue. It's the only way. The world is not pure. We will fill the emptiness.'

***TSJWFEW***

"Do you think he's crazy?" Dixie asked as they strolled through the abandoned lab.

"Who? Wu?" Moku-Pa asked, "Of course. He's disillusioned. When a person has no one to hold onto, they lose a part of themselves. That's why I imagine the PMR must have been rough for him. He had nothing to bring him back."

They rounded the corner and stopped dead in their tracks. The room they had entered was an absolute mess. There were broken vials and shattered beakers all over the floor. The lab had obviously been the stage for a brutal fight. The mess, however, was not the most unsettling part of the scene. There was a large dinosaur lying on the ground.

She was dead.

***TSJWFEW***

Wu was starting to remember who he was. The dinosaur had brought him to the lab to destroy any trace of the humans. As he took in his surroundings, Wu realized that he knew where he was. Slowly, the endless anger that defined him began to slip away, and his true persona resurfaced. His partner did not notice his inner turmoil.

'These liquids make fire. We can burn it all.'

Wu held his head with his paws. He felt like he was regaining consciousness after being in a coma.

'No . . . No, don't destroy it,' he whispered.

'Are you becoming empty?' she snarled.

Wu growled.

'It's you who's empty. Destruction will not make the world a better place. You can't hope to purge everything that displeases you. Even if you did, you'd be left with no real purpose.'

'Purpose? We have no purpose!'

'I do.'

'YOU'RE WRONG!'

***TSJWFEW***

"Do you suppose he killed her?" Dixie whispered.

"He must have. But why?"

Dixie crossed the room, her head hovering close to the ground. She picked up a broken vial and turned it around in her claws.

"Sierra. This one says 'Sierra'."

Moku-Pa fluttered over and grabbed the receptacle with his talons. Sure enough, there was a label with the mysterious name.

"What does it mean?" Dixie asked.

Moku-Pa shrugged.

"It says that the DNA that was stored in here was a mix of baryonyx and suchomimus. He was planning to make a hybrid. A very boring hybrid."

He tossed the vial to the side.

"I guess that's it, then. Sierra means nothing at all."

Dixie shook her head.

"To us."

Moku-Pa gazed at her pensively.

"Maybe we should go. Somehow, I don't feel comfortable doing this."

Dixie didn't reply. With a heavy sigh, Moku-Pa landed on her shoulder. As they exited the building, Dixie wiped a tear from her cheek.

"It was important to him. We may never know why, but he held onto the idea of Sierra. He must have killed the Indominus to protect his dream."

"But his dream was destroyed."

"I guess we know why he returned to Biosyn."

"Why?"

"He believed that he no longer had a purpose."

Moku-Pa closed his eyes.

"Can we say for certain that we ever have a purpose?"

Dixie looked out at the setting sun.

"I'd rather not think about it. Just like Sierra, it's a mystery that is better left unsolved."