The following four chapters are dedicated to the late

Michael Crichton

Author of Jurassic Park and The Lost World

Some characters in these chapters, and some of the others going forward, were created by him

Chapter 9

When Joseph Trevor Frost saw their destination in the near distance, he remembered that he didn't expect to be seeing it on a boat, but Victor Darius had insisted that the mission be conducted more covertly once the information his team had gathered became clearer to him. He had said his reasoning was that there was something about the location and all of the history involving the area. After accusing Victor of sounding secretive, like his alter ego Trent, he finally gave in and said that they would be given a full debriefing before they landed.

Moving over to where Trent stood, his trench coat flapping around in the breeze, Joseph looked out at the island in the distance and pulled off his sunglasses. "I don't know how Albert Wesker can stand wearing these at night. I can't see a damn thing."

Trent chuckled. "Yes, well, he was accustomed to them before he received his gifts. It had to do with his medical condition." He shook his head, putting his hands in his trench coat pockets. "Dr. Wesker has always had light sensitivity, and he spent years working on a cure that he never found."

Joseph raised an eyebrow. "That's why he joined Umbrella?"

Trent smirked, which was odd, because he wasn't really a man that smirked. "Yes, one of the evilest men in the world just wanted to cure light sensitivity."

Joseph shook his head. "You're making fun of me."

"Oh, I'm very serious," Trent admitted. "Trust me."

"I always have," Joseph assured.

Trent pulled the hand nearest to Joseph out of his trench coat and clasped it to Joseph's shoulder. "I know, my boy."

"I've got everyone gathered," Joseph said. "Well, everyone except your experts. One of them is on the bridge with Captain McCabe going over safety measures and equipment stability. The other is in the crow's nest, and I can't get him to come down. If you're going to spill the beans, now might be the time."

Trent sighed. "It's times like these that I wish I hadn't quit smoking a few years before meeting you. I could really use the nicotine right now. The bridge has an open transmission going, so they'll hear everything from there just fine, and I'm sure the good doctor will be able to hear what I have to say just fine from the crow's nest. He knows the majority of everything already anyway."

"Then he knows more than me," Joseph told him.

"Correction," Trent said. "He knows the stuff you don't know, but you know what he doesn't know."

"That doesn't make a lot of sense," Joseph admitted.

Trent smiled. "He doesn't understand what Umbrella is truly capable of."

As he nodded in partial understanding, Joseph led the way away from the front of the boat and in the direction of the team, which consisted of a lot more people than Joseph had originally planned on. He still had Kevin Ryman, Rain Ocampo, J.D. Salinas, Olga Danilova, Vance Drew, and Chad Kaplan, but they were also joined by Director Marco Palmieri and his squadron, which consisted of ten of the bravest soldiers Joseph had ever laid eyes on. One of those soldiers, James Shade, was Palmieri's second in command: a truly brave and calm under pressure individual.

They were also accompanied by Yoko Suzuki and Dr. George Hamilton, which hadn't made sense to Joseph, but this was the time to get their answers.

Trent cleared his throat, grabbing everyone's attention. "Thank you all for coming. I know this is a bit unorthodox, especially with me being here. I'm usually not out in the field, and I had to rush to Costa Rica from Utah just to meet up with you, but this is one of the biggest Umbrella operations we're going to ever deal with, and it could in fact be the most dangerous. We have to be on our guard and ready for absolutely anything and everything out here."

"We've dealt with horrors before, sir," Rain reminded him.

"And you've always fought bravely, Ocampo," Trent told her. "But this situation is going to give you a whole new meaning to the word horror. I promise you that."

Joseph glanced in the direction of the island, getting closer by the second, before looking back again. "Our destination is the second in an island chain that locals call Los Cinco Muertas."

"The Five Deaths," Rain mumbled under her breath, crossing herself.

"This is Isla Tacano," Joseph continued, but Rain's comment didn't go unnoticed.

"We've never been under the impression that Umbrella has any business ventures in Costa Rica before," Kaplan said. "I don't get it."

"That's because this is also about something else," a voice called from high up.

Everyone looked up toward the crow's nest. A man in a safari hat and matching vest over his khaki-colored ensemble leaned on the railing looking down at all of them. He looked massively out of place amongst the team of soldiers, but considering Yoko and Hamilton, perhaps he at least half way fit in, but this team was confusing, and so was the mission itself.

Director Marco Palmieri squinted in the darkness as he tried to make out the man up above. "And what is that supposed to mean to us?"

The man in the crow's nest looked in the direction of Victor Darius and shook his head. "I told you it was a bad idea to wait till last minute to fill everyone in." With that said, he turned and moved for the ladder, going down it, as he continued speaking. "One of the other islands, Isla Sorna, houses creatures long since thought to be dead, or at least, it has creatures that somewhat resemble those relics of the past." He stepped off the ladder and moved to Palmieri, extending his hand out. "Dr. Richard Levine, Paleontologist."

Palmieri accepted the handshake, but he raised an eyebrow anyway. "Paleontologist? I'm not well versed in that field, but don't you study dinosaur bones?"

Levine nodded emphatically. "Correct."

Palmieri looked to Trent. "Victor?"

Trent smiled as he stepped over, Joseph in tow. "Sorna was owned by a now defunct company called InGen Bioengineering. They were responsible for cloning genetically engineered animals that have been extinct a very long time."

"You're not seriously saying that they brought dinosaurs back to life," Rain surmised, not at all believing the words as they came out of her mouth.

"That's exactly what's being said," Levine told her. He reached to the side where he'd left his backpack and pulled out a laptop computer. Turning it on, he pressed several buttons and then turned the screen toward her. "This is a live feed that only we can see from a structure on Sorna. I've had this active for several years, showing me the daily life of these creatures."

Rain shook her head. "That's a movie or a documentary. Has to be."

"Trust me," Levine said. "It most certainly isn't."

"Regardless of your belief or disbelief, this is real," Trent told Rain as he stepped up beside Levine. "Umbrella tried to buyout Biosyn, a rival company of InGen's years ago after a failed test in Chili that put them in a lot of trouble, but the United States wouldn't allow the buyout, because Umbrella is too big of a conglomerate. However, behind the scenes, both companies started working together anyway, covertly, and eventually, they managed to con Isla Tacano out of The Costa Rican Government."

"I have back footage of Umbrella choppers landing on Sorna from the past two years," Levine told them. "They've been tranquilizing the animals and taking DNA samples. They may have gotten animals that I wasn't aware of being on Sorna as well. My team didn't get to survey the entire island when we were there back in 1995."

"Wait," Joseph said, crossing his arms as he moved over. "If they're cloning these InGen dinosaurs, could they be using them to test the T-Virus?"

Trent nodded solemnly. "Along with other things, most likely."

"Son of a bitch," Joseph said under his breath. He shook his head. "We're not prepared for this."

Trent shook his head. "What did you think we were coming out here for? I gave you everything I had on the Fossil BOW. That's what led us out here. This island is owned by Red Umbrella, and somehow White Umbrella ended up with Fossil. This is why Director Palmieri's team is out here with your team."

"And Dr. Hamilton and Yoko?" Joseph asked.

"I need their medical expertise to determine the state of the BOWs on the island," Trent replied. "They can also find out for certain if there are more facilities like this one."

"And you've got the best field equipment and vehicles money can buy," Levine informed. He turned toward the bridge area up above and cupped his hand. "Hey, Jack, get down here!" He turned back toward Joseph. "Jack Thorne is the leading authority in vehicles and equipment. He has honed in his construction since we were on Sorna. We're not going to be taken off guard."

"Unless these things are as vicious as Mr. Darius has led me to believe," a voice called out as Dr. Jack Thorne moved down the stairs from the bridge.

Levine sighed. "You're supposed to be giving these people confidence, doc."

"I'm not going to flat out lie to them," Thorne told his colleague. "I've safety proofed this equipment against the InGen dinosaurs, but from the things I've been told about Umbrella BOWs, I'm giving it some pause. We don't need to be giving them a false sense of security."

Trent cleared his throat, grabbing their attention. "Thank you, gentlemen. Everyone, double and triple check your weapons. This mission isn't going to be for the faint at heart, and we may have to go in guns blazing. I don't have the slightest clue what we're going to find on Isla Tacano, and that scares the living hell out of me. Let's get this done the right way. Keep our team formation tight. Don't leave anyone behind. Watch your back and your partners' backs at all times."

"How are we approaching the landing?" Marco asked.

Trent gestured up toward the bridge. "Captain Blake McCabe, formerly of the Philadelphia S.T.A.R.S. branch, is going to drop us off at different points on the island. I don't particularly like the idea of splitting up, but we will have the advantage against the Umbrella staff that way."

"Are there BOWs just out roaming around?" Rain asked.

"Doubtful," Trent told her. "But I wouldn't rule out that they might have one or two lurking around to give them advanced warning of a threat. We can't rule anything out here. To the South, where we almost are, there's an old Plantation House that belonged to the original owners of the island centuries ago. Director Palmieri's team will land there with Dr. Levine and Dr. Thorne. The rest of us are going to the harbor that is toward the North West of the island. From there, satellite imagery shows that there's a mansion."

"A mansion?" Joseph asked.

Trent looked to him and nodded. "I zoomed in as best I could, and it looks remarkably similar to The Spencer Estate."

"Fantastic," Joseph said with absolutely no joy in his voice at all.

Trent smiled flatly, clearly understanding.

"And what about laboratories?" Levine asked. "With what they're doing, it's highly likely that they'd have to have some massive facilities."

"Your team is going to be travelling North, away from the plantation house to meet up with us at the mansion eventually," Trent explained. "In that direction, the imagery shows something that is labeled on a sign at the front as Special Operations Complex. That's bound to be the target you're referring to. Director Palmieri, your team is to investigate for documentation so we have proof of what Umbrella is doing on the island, and then burn the facility to the ground."

"It will be my pleasure," Marco told him.

"Good luck to you all, and may God protect us," Trent said.

Director Marco Palmieri observed with great anticipation from the beach as his men and the scientists drove the Thorne Mobile Field Systems vehicles off of the boat ramp. He kept hearing noises in the distance, but he wasn't sure if it was just his mind playing tricks on him or not. Being here in the middle of the night didn't help the situation, but it had to be done.

James Shade, Marco's second in command, stepped out of a SUV as it stopped in front of him. "So how exactly are we getting these through the foliage?"

"Doc Thorne's specs say that these things are built massively sturdy," Palmieri replied. "They should be able to take hitting a few trees in the way, considering they're made to take the blunt force of an adult Tyrannosaurus Rex."

"Do you think we'll see one of those, sir?" Shade asked.

"After everything we've seen already from Umbrella," Marco began, "I wouldn't be one bit surprised, Number One."

Shade nodded. "Strange times we're living in."

Marco couldn't agree more, but he didn't say that. He was now focusing himself on the mission at hand. Other than Shade, he had nine other soldiers in his squad as well as Dr. Levine and Dr. Thorne to keep track of. They were loaded to the teeth in weaponry, and there were three vehicles, four per vehicle except for one that would have to cram a fifth person.

"I'm going to check that plantation house," Shade said. "Make sure it isn't being used by Umbrella as an early alert system."

"Take the other men from your vehicle then," Marco ordered. "No one goes anywhere alone."

Shade nodded and moved to his vehicle to collect his team.

Marco moved in the direction of the vehicle that housed Levine, Thorne, and one of his men in the back. Levine sat in the passenger seat while Thorne drove. Marco would join them in their vehicle, and so he got in the back and nodded to his man beside him, Bryce Williams, before turning to the front. "My Number One is going to check the plantation house."

"Better safe than sorry," Thorne said.

Levine glanced back, past Marco and Bryce. "The boat's moving off to the other destination." He shook his head. "Really worries me not having an escape route right here."

"As long as we stick to Mr. Darius' plan, we'll be fine," Marco assured him.

James Shade tried to slowly open the entrance door to the plantation house only for it to completely collapse from age and decay. He shook his head. "Very stealthy, Shade," he whispered to himself before using a hand gesture toward his three men behind him to move forward.

He was pleased to have the companions that were with him, honestly, because they were the ones that Shade had worked with the most. They had been Marines along with him before taking on Victor Darius' cause after they were honorably discharged from service. It had surprised his wife that Shade decided to continue serving with a completely different fighting force, and despite that he couldn't tell her what his new mission was, he made sure she knew that it was of great importance and about safety and security for the country.

The men with him were Russell Jones, Henry Wallace, and Jefferson Stanley, and they had been his friend through many missions over the years, but this one had to take the cake. He'd never believed the stories about what Umbrella had been doing shadily behind closed doors until he'd seen it all for himself. A lot of their belief had come from the visuals that had been shown to them and everyone else in the cause from Raccoon City's historic downfall. Thousands of people had died because of Umbrella's negligence, and he had to do everything in his power to keep them from continuing the nightmare.

The front room appeared safe. If there had been furniture or other signs of previous life in the plantation house, it was long since gone now, probably decayed to the point of disintegration. That was fine for him, because that made it much easier to see the entire…

'Wait,' he thought to himself. The sudden feeling of them not being alone crept into his mind, and it had him scanning his eyes around the entire room, not seeing anything, but the feeling was still there.

There appeared to be a light tapping sound and low breathing.

'Look up!' Shade's mind screamed at him. He finally did just that, and crawling around on the ceiling was something that reminded him of the Licker BOWs, but it couldn't have been. It was completely green, and the eyeless face had twin crests resting on top of it. There was a swishing tail at the back, and as the creature seemingly looked down at them, a fan opened on its neck right before a hissing sound escaped its mouth.

"Fire!" Shade yelled, raising his gun and opening fire.

It was too late, the creature bounded on the ceiling, away from the bullets and rounded back around toward Russell Jones. A black liquid spit from its mouth, slamming into his face, causing him to drop his gun and scream in agony.

"I can't see!" Russell yelled, trying in vain to wipe the sticky, oozy saliva from his eyes.

A massive Licker-like tongue rushed out of the creature's mouth, grabbing hold of Russell and pulling him into the air and then into the darkness as the soldiers continued to fail at hitting the BOW with bullets.

"Hey!" a voice called out from somewhere else in the plantation house. "Help me! I'm down here!"

"Find the source of that voice!" Shade yelled. "Eyes on the ceiling. Fire at will if that damn thing returns." Shade led the other two men deeper into the plantation house, stopping as he saw light coming from under a door. He tried to open it only to find that it was chained shut with multiple locks. Whoever was down there, Umbrella didn't want let out.

Slamming his foot on the door multiple times didn't budge it. He fired rounds at the locks, blasting them off one at a time.

Behind Shade, a massive tongue wrapped around Henry Wallace's head, dragging him to the roof. From beside him, Jefferson Stanley raised his gun and fired at the ceiling, but the creature was gone yet again.

Finally, the door opened and Shade pulled himself through, turning back toward Jefferson, whom moved in the direction of the door only to get blasted with black ooze and then pounced into a corner by the BOW. Shade raised his machine gun and fired multiple rounds into the creature's back before finally hitting the head, taking it down. Jefferson, however, was dead. All of his men, his friends, gone.

Shaking his head, Shade closed the door and turned around, finding a man in workout sweats standing at the bottom of the stairs, staring at him. He took a deep breath, trying to hold back the tears from losing his friends, and moved down the stairs. "You'd better have a damn good story for me. I lost three men out there getting to you."

"You're lucky you survived," the man told him. "That thing out there, it used to be a Dilophosaurus, or maybe it was combined with whatever the other thing was."

"A Licker," Shade told him.

"So, you have some information I don't," the man stated. "That's good. We can fill in the gaps for each other."

"Are there more of those things out there?" Shade asked.

"As far as I'm aware, they were only keeping one of them on me," he replied. "Basically, an insurance policy to keep me in my forever home." He gestured out to the huge basement that was loaded to the brim with everything that anyone could want. There was a beautiful entertainment center with a flat screen TV, three shelves loaded with DVDs and video games, and a plush couch sitting in front of it. A major gym setup was beside all of that, and a lavish kitchen had been set up past that. There were two doors, which led to the bedroom and the bathroom.

"Why are Umbrella keeping you down here?" Shade asked.

"Umbrella?" the man asked. "The Pharmaceutical company? No, no. Biosyn Bioengineering have me down here. I was kidnapped and drug to this island a several years ago. Jackasses told me that they faked my death. They even had a body made up to look like me and everything. To top it all off, they gave me one of the most embarrassing ways to die imaginable: dysentery."

Shade sighed and finally lowered his machine gun, deciding to give whoever this was a chance at belief. "I'm James Shade."

The man extended his hand out and smiled. "Donald Gennaro, lawyer."

Shade accepted the handshake. "Lawyer? What does… Biosyn want with a lawyer so badly they'd fake his death and keep him locked up?"

"I represented InGen before they were shut down," Gennaro explained. "If you're on this island, I figure you've at least heard of InGen."

"They were part of the mission briefing," Shade said. "So, you have a history with their dinosaurs?

Gennaro nodded. "That's right. They needed someone that had been to one of the islands. I was just the unlucky bastard that was on a business trip at the time and vulnerable to capture."

Shade nodded. "Well, Mr. Gennaro, we need to get you outside to the others. We're making a trip to some Special Operations Complex, and then we're meeting the rest of our people at a mansion they're raiding to the Northwest."

Gennaro suddenly looked very worried. "No one should be going to that mansion."

"Why?" Shade asked.

"There's great evil there," Gennaro replied. "We need to get to your other people now."