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"Birds of Prey"Written By: ExecutiveShrimp Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, it belongs
to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. Written for pleasure not
profit. Rating: R Warnings: Adventure & Suspense, Pairings: 1x2 Summary: Only twenty feet, but over 200 million years between them and for a while neither party knew what to do. The creature took a step towards them, almost apprehensively. Duo and Heero reactively jumped back and Duo tripped over his own feet and fell backwards. Then it all boiled down to two things: Predator. And prey. Birds of Prey – A GW adaptation of Jurassic Park (1993)
"Birds of Prey" Chapter 6
A short search concluded with them finding the gate to the valley and the road that had led them there and they decided to follow it back the way they came, since they wouldn't let it take it through the valley now that they knew what was out there. The idea of heading into jungle also didn't appeal to them. There was some safety to the dirt road, even if it was only imagined. They were quiet, each lost in their own thoughts. It had been quite a rollercoaster, dropping down into pure terror from the heights of ecstasy. It was an incredible discovery, but now they better understood the kind of danger they were in. Duo was antsy. Every sound that the forest produced plucked at his nerves like the strings of a guitar until it was an unrelenting, building crescendo. Before long they spotted the yellow sign of the Tyrannosaurus Rex enclosure, as well as an equally bright Ford Explorer. Perhaps the same as the one they had seen before. They approached the vehicle with caution, but it proved to have been abandoned. He had been so focused on the car, that Duo hadn't even noticed the destroyed fence until Heero tugged at the sleeve of his shirt and pointed directly at it. The thick wires had been snapped, three complete sections were missing and part of the fence further down the way was listing. "That explains it," Duo muttered. The T-rex had broken free from its pen, only to break into the 'Valley of the Gentle Giants'. The power on all of the electric fences was down, it appeared and it spelled disaster for the kind of 'zoo' this island had been turned into. He spun around his own axes, shooting looks at trees and bushes that moved, but it was only the wind. The doors to the car were open and Heero leaned in on the driver's side. "Keys still in there?" Heero popped his head out. "There is no keyhole for ignition. It looks like it's not meant to be driven, but just runs on some kind of guidance system. That's probably what the track in the road is for." Duo lowered himself down to the ground to peer under the vehicle, but it didn't attach to the track in any way. A remote signal could steer the car, but not power it. "Maybe I can get it to start." Heero stepped out of the way so Duo could climb into the driver's seat and then leaned against the door frame with one arm, watching. He appraised the interior for a moment. A computer screen had been fitted into the glossy, walnut dashboard. The leather crinkled and smelled brand new. An acrylic pane mounted on supports covered the wheel. He figured if the car couldn't be manually operated at all, the steering wheel would have simply been removed, not covered up. With his hunting knife Duo pried the panel at the bottom of the steering column open. A story about kids in Detroit stealing cars had taught him how to hotwire a car. It wasn't as quick as the movies made him seem, but if he was patient with himself, he could manage. He located the right wires, leading to the battery and the ignition and stripped away half an inch of insulation on the ends of each and he twisted the copper ends around each other, since he didn't have electrical tape to attach them. Then he found the wire for the starter motor and stripped that too. With his feet at the ready on the pedals, he touched the exposed ends together, expecting the engine to turn on and ready to rev to keep it running. Nothing happened. He tried it a few more times, pausing to check to make sure he had the right wires. He did. He tried once more and that was when he noticed a red light blinking behind the acrylic pane, indicating the car was getting power, but not enough to start. "Dammit. The battery is dead." He had been looking forward to continuing the rest of the way in the relative safety on the vehicle, but they would have to go on on foot. "Maybe that's why they left it," Heero supplied, making room for Duo to get out. Duo looked around and caught sight of the grass hut restrooms. The small building had completely collapsed. Large, three-toed footprints and tire tracks marred the dirt road. He shivered as all kinds of scenarios played in his head. "We should keep going," he said, anxious to get away from the eerie spot, even though he knew there was no escaping his fear until he would be back on that fishing boat. "I want to get off this goddamn island." The mouth of the tunnel before them was like that of a monster meaning to swallow them up and Duo paused at the sight of the dark void. The quickest way back to shore and back to safety, was the way they came, but he dreaded stepping into that total darkness, not knowing what could be lurking within. They both produced their flashlights from their backpacks and took their first steps in. The sound of the jungle faded until only the dripping of water and their own footfalls remained. The beams of light they shown ahead of them lit the ground and the walls, but couldn't penetrate the blackness straight ahead. If something was in there, they wouldn't see it until it was only a few yards ahead of them. Occasionally Duo turned back to shine his light behind them. Their way through the tunnel took long. Too long. Longer, it seemed, than the first time they had gone through. Like the tunnel itself had stretched to prolong their fear. Duo was breathing so loudly he feared it echoed through the entire tunnel, alerting every creature on the island to their presence. He could tell Heero was tense too. More than once he watched the Japanese man freeze to listen, when there was nothing there – thankfully. The beam of Heero's flashlight trembled as the hand that held the flashlight shook. Duo's own aim wasn't much steadier. When the light at the end of the tunnel appeared, Duo resisted the urge to sprint towards it as he yearned for daylight and fresh air. They both took a deep breath when they emerged and were enveloped once more by the singing and chattering of birds and the rustle of the leaves. It was deafening in comparison. However, their terror wasn't over. The 'alley' stretched out before them. It wasn't dark, like the tunnel, but it still felt claustrophobic. They were still closed in. The first time they had passed through, they could hear the buzzing of the electric fences that towered over them on either side. That sound was absent now. The lights atop the steel posts were still switched off. The security measure was inactive and it was sorely missed now that they knew what kind of threat was lurking inside those enclosures. It wasn't a flea circus. It wasn't an illusion. It was real. The fear was real too. The two men shared a look, each reluctant but both knowing they could not stop. As they walked on, Duo recounted what they had seen, because how could he not? Those creatures – 'dinosaurs' was still odd to even think – were as impressive as they were imposing. He tried to explain their de-extinction to himself and briefly wondered if perhaps Isla Nublar had somehow been shielded from the process of evolution going on all over earth for millions of years, preserving the prehistoric animals. But that idea sounded even more crazy to him than the only other explanation: that InGen had not discovered them, but created them. Not being a man of science, Duo had no idea how that was possible and they would have to dig into that as they'd write the story. But now he understood why a genetic research corporation had been funding fossil digs for the past couple of years. He wondered if it was possible to get DNA from fossilized bone, quickly dismissing the suggestion based on how ridiculous it was. 'Fossilized', in essence, meant the bone had been turned to stone, after all. The phrase 'can't draw blood from stone' was strangely applicable. Couldn't extract DNA from it either. But then how? And even if they did find or reconstruct a complete gene sequence, how did they come to a viable embryo to incubate? The science of it was mind boggling. Certainly to him at least. He bounced some ideas off Heero, knowing the man had a pre-existing interest in this sort of stuff, but the other journalist quickly admitted this was way beyond his scope of knowledge and he was certain it would be the same for many of the world's most learned scientists. Because if it was easy, it would have been done a long time ago, so Heero said. "Why do you think that?" "Because of the dino-geek phase. Never mind the immortal fame you achieve with such a scientific endeavor of bringing back extinct beast, it is a goldmine. Every kid wants to see a real dinosaur and the parents who could afford it would spend thousands to come visit a place like this." "But what of the repercussions?" Heero scoffed. "Science has never been deterred, or even slowed down by repercussions. Science simply bulldozes on. It's the most powerful force on earth, not even the Catholic church could stop it." Duo made a face. "Let's not write a religious debate into this article." "Our witness described the creature that attacked her as a demon," Heero pointed out. "There is some kind of theme here that can be woven in, that really says something more that: Look, dinosaurs." "Oh, she's 'our' witness now, huh?" He scrunched up his face. "It's probably better not to include her. I've had troubles before with witness who recanted their stories." Heero's expression was sympathetic but his tone was unyielding. "Duo, the woman was mauled by a dinosaur. As soon as we give her her credibility back by exposing the truth, she'll want to open up about the ordeal she survived." It sparked a thought that hadn't occurred to Duo before. "How did the thing even get to the mainland? There's like a hundred-and-twenty-odd miles of ocean between here and there." "Maybe it was some kind of amphibious dinosaurs. Or maybe some kind of flying thing? Or perhaps it was a stow-away on a boat." That didn't make much sense. Why would InGen create a dinosaurs that had the physicality to escape the confinement of the island? Or what kind of dinosaur would be smart enough to hide away on a ship? Maybe they flew it to the mainland themselves, perhaps an unwise decision to conduct more studies over the course of the weekend, thinking it wouldn't escape containment. Whatever the logistics, it was a compelling part of the story: InGen hiring mercenaries to hunt down an escaped asset and covering up the deaths it had left in its wake as it hunted along the coast of Costa Rica. Those kinds of repercussions might not stop science, but it would sure bring a swift end to a 'zoo' like this. He was about to continue their discussion, noticing Heero had gone silent midway in their back-and-forth, until he followed his partner's worried blue gaze to discover something he had been too preoccupied to notice before. He swallowed a lump in his throat that may well have been his still heart. A few yards up ahead, the wires and cords of the fence to the left of the road had been pulled apart, creating a large opening. The steel wires jutted out over the road. The ends of the wound cords were frayed as they appeared to have been chewed. "Which pen is this?" Heero asked in a barely audible whisper. Duo only shook his head, even though the other wasn't even looking at him to be able to tell. He didn't know. He hadn't been paying attention to the signs, which had been an odd curiosity yesterday, but too frightening to really study today. He searched his memory, remembering the names of the species. Dilophosaurus, Proceratosaurus, Suchomimus, Herrerasaurus and… one more, but he couldn't remember. It had been an odd name, something with an X. "Baryonyx," he recalled suddenly. But according from his books from when he was young, a Baryonyx would be far too large to fit through the opening that had been created. "Is that it?" "No, Baryonyx is too big." "This looks like it was done by something big…" "Not that big." The same went for Suchomimus, which was larger still. "Whatever it is… it's out." Duo released a shuddering breath. He had cherished naïve hope that most of the other animals would have been unaware of the power going out and would have stayed away from the fences as they must have, at some point in the past, known it would shock them on contact. But then he realized that since they could hear the absence of the charging buzz, the animals could too and, much like modern day animals, they probably had better senses than humans and had dared to investigate. He stopped himself from suggesting that they should go back. There was no guarantee there was any safety there and he did not want to risk going back through that tunnel. The only hope that remained was that the creature had made its way through the alley quickly and had long disappeared into the freedom of the jungle. So, instead he said: "We should keep going." With a gentle touch to the small of Heero's back, just below his backpack, he urged him to move. Their pace was slow. The crunch of dirt under their boots was too loud for either of them to be able to stand. Every rustle of leaves had Duo about ready to jump out of his skin. He sweated profusely, not because of the heat or humidity. Every bead of sweat running down his temple and his neck also made him acutely aware that they had run out of water a few hours ago, adding to their dangerous situation. Duo didn't think he would physically be able to stand the tension he felt. It made him ill. It made it hard to breath. It made every heartbeat painful. Occasionally the road would curve, robbing them of their view of what was ahead. He wished the parrots would stop squawking and he wished the wind would die down, so they could at least hear better. They rounded another curve and both halted abruptly and held their breath. Only a tail was visible at first. Long and slender. It was almost white, with a black tip and black banding. It flicked and then moved as the creature pivoted and its head and body came into view. It stood about six feet tall, on two legs. Two forearms folded under its chest. The body was white – with black striping and mottling. The head was inky black. The yellow eyes glowed as it regarded the two men. It tilted its snout up and sniffed the air as it seemed it was still trying to figure out what they were as they tried to determine what it was. Herrerasaurus, Duo supposed, although it had always been depicted in darker and muted colors. Of the dinosaurs mentioned on the signs, Herrerasaurus was the one to match the physique of the animal in front of them. Even if he had wrongly identified it, it was still very clearly a carnivore. The fingers on the front limbs culminated in long, curving claws and when it opened its jaw as if to taste their scent on its tongue, it exposed narrow, sharp teeth. Only twenty feet but over 200 million years removed between them, for a while neither party knew what to do. It took a step towards them, almost apprehensively. Duo and Heero reactively jumped back and Duo tripped over his own feet and fell backwards. Then it all boiled down to two things: Predator. And prey. As soon as that clicked for the creature, it leapt forward with a shriek. The claws on the feet dug into the dirt for traction so it could quickly build up to its full speed. Heero pulled Duo up by his arm. They stood absolutely no chance of outrunning it, so instead their instincts drove them to climb. The two men jumped apart and into opposite fences. The fence shook as Duo hoisted his weight into it, as fast as his trembling arms and legs could manage. The thin wires cut into his fingers as he pulled himself up by them. The thicker cords were easier to hold onto, but too far apart to solely rely on. He heard the rasping breaths of the creature beneath him and he hoped he was high enough to be safe. He had nearly reached the top of the fence when Heero's scream pierced the air. Duo threw a look over his shoulder. Heero hadn't been able to climb up quite as high as he had, but he was out of reach from the dinosaur. However, it wasn't giving up on the hunt and it repeatedly jumped up, snapping at Heero's feet. With every leap its body crashed against the fence, making it shake violently. Heero hooked his arms through the web of wiring in a desperate attempt to hold on and not get thrown off the fence. "Hey! Hey!" Duo shouted and he rattled the fence he was on in an attempt to distract the creature long enough so Heero could climb higher. The Herrerasaurus didn't react to him, it had completely zeroed in on its prey and kept jumping into the fence. If it was any smarter, it would think to get up on the concrete base of the fencing first and jump up from there. The two feet of difference would enable it to latch its mouth onto Heero's feet. Duo feared it would only be a matter of time before it figured that out, or discovered it by accident. Right now the collision of the fence threw it back far enough every time that it landed with its feet in the dirt. It clawed at the wires every time and with one final jump, its right forearm got caught between the wires. The dinosaurs scrambled for footing, finding it on the concrete base. But with its claw stuck, it couldn't jump up anymore. However, it thrashed its entire body, powerful enough to nearly succeed in shaking Heero off. The man screamed, but not for help, because he knew there was nothing Duo could do. Duo watched in horror, unable to think. The weight of the dinosaur, combined with its aggressive pulling and convulsing, caused the fence to start to lean forward with a sickening groan. The steel posts were gradually buckling, tilting the fence down at an angle. The animal's feet came back down to the dirt road and it kept pulling on its arm, while simultaneously snapping its jaws at Heero who would soon become easier to reach. A sudden, blaring alarm startled Duo and his eyes were drawn to the lights atop the steel post of the fence Heero was on. They were blinking rapidly as a warning. The lights on the fence on his side were still off. He knew what was happening. The power was coming back on. Soon, 10.000 volts would electrify the fence. "Heero, jump!" "Are you crazy?!" "Jump!" The other journalist disentangled himself from the fence and was thrown off by the rabid shaking of the dinosaurs. The sweeping tail hit him as he fell and he landed in the dirt with a thud and a grunt. The dinosaur extended itself as far as it could, biting at him, while its limb was still stuck. Heero pushed himself up on his feet and climbed up the opposite fence, afraid the creature would free itself and grab him. Duo came down and helped Heero up, right before the animal caused the entire fence to list forward so far that it collapsed and fell against the opposite. The alarm blared again and the lights blinked faster. The two men were at the top of the fence. Even though the lights on their side weren't blinking, the electricity would pass through from the other side, now that the two were in direct contact. "Jump!" Duo said again and this time they both jumped. They fell onto ground, into the enclosure and Duo crawled on top of Heero to shield him when sparks started to fly and the Herrerasaurus screeched – a most horrifying sound that cut right through them. It flailed about until it suddenly went limp and silent. Duo pulled Heero up from the ground and then pulled him into his embrace, squeezing him tightly to stop him from trembling and letting him cry into his neck.
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