Together, Marissa and Ash dragged Reece to the shore and hauled him up the bank. Ash lay back, panting, exhausted and seeing stars. His foot felt terrible. The stargo-jet hovered nearby, its afterburners glowing blue as it settled down. Its rear ramp slowly opened and people rushed out. Some of them were heading towards Ash and Marissa. Ash heard the spinosaurus roar. He looked to his side and saw the diplodocus rear up, waving its giant feet like a startled horse. It clubbed the spinosaurus in the head, causing it to drop dead-weight, an instant K.O. Then the diplodocus smashed down, crushing the giant predator’s skull into the dirt.
Dazed, Ash found himself being carried to the stargo-jet. He saw Reece being stretchered alongside, blood seeping from the wound on his chest. Marissa was hobbling beside them. Once inside the jet, Becca appeared, tears streaming down her face.
“How is he?” She said, snatching quick breaths and wiping her eyes. “Oh, Reece, my darling.”
“I need a defibrillator,” one of the ground crew called, holding an arm out to stay Becca. “He’s in cardiac arrest.”
Ash pushed away the people helping him and stared at Reece. A man cut away his suit with pneumatic scissors. Blood flowed freely from Reece’s ribs. Marty, Harper, Babs and Marissa stood like statues, their faces racked with fear. Someone thumped down a defibrillator and the man tending to Reece took the paddles and pressed them to Reece’s chest.
“Please bring him back,” Becca stuttered. “Oh, Reece, come back. I love you, Reece. Please don’t leave me.”
“Three, two, one, charge. Clear!” The man yelled.
Reece’s body convulsed, his muscles tensing, his veins popping as the electricity surged through his skin. His rib cage didn’t rise. He still wasn’t breathing.
“Clear,” the man said again, pumping another burst of charge into Reece’s chest.
Reece remained still. His face ashen white and peaceful. The man with the paddles looked at Becca and shook his head.
“No,” Becca cried. “Again, do it again!”
“Reece,” Marissa said, crying. “You can’t die…”
“Go again!” Becca ordered. “NOW DAMMIT!”
“Get back,” the man with the paddles said. He rubbed them together and pressed them to Reece’s chest. “Three, two, one, charge and clear,” he called.
Reece convulsed again, his back arching. He stayed rigid for a moment, his gritted teeth locked in a silent scream. Then he fell to the ground.
“I have a pulse. I’ve got a rhythm. I need an I.V.”
“Reece,” Becca said softy, leaning over him and brushing his face. “We did it. You saved them, we saved them. They’re all safe, all of them.”
Reece slowly opened his eyes and smiled at Becca as people busied around him, tending to his injuries.
“There you are,” he breathed, smiling. “My angel.”
“I was thinking something similar about you,” Becca said, kissing his forehead, trembling profusely.
“All that just for a forehead kiss?” Reece said, wincing as someone pressed a compress to his ribs.
“No,” Becca said, closing her eyes and kissing his lips. “I love you, you idiot.”
A serious look crossed Reece’s face and he tried to sit up. Becca gently pushed him back down.
“Lie still,” she said.
“Wait, no! The starjet. I crashed it in the volcano. If the lava breaches the core it’ll go into meltdown. You need to tell, Mo, you have to remotely shut it down… I need to…”
“It’s shielded,” Becca said, shaking her head. “Don’t worry. It’s shielded. If it can handle a star a volcano’s...”
“No,” Reece said, the whites of his eyes shining. “The ramp was open when it fell in. That was hours ago. The core’s shielding could perish any moment. It’ll overheat, go thermonuclear. It’s gonna explode! It’ll wipe this island off the face of the planet!”
Evacuation
W hen he awoke, Reece realized he must have blacked out. Ground crew were rushing up the loading ramp and into the stargo-jet. Behind them, flames had engulfed the basecamp’s accommodation structure. A steadily falling snow of volcanic ash coated the runway and fires raged in the forest beyond. There was a deafening blast and the ground shook, causing the guest wing of the main complex to collapse. A fresh barrage of lava bombs was lighting up the sky, pounding the base and surrounding trees.
Reece found he was strapped into the row of seats lining the portside hull. The kids sat opposite, staring helplessly at the chaos outside. Reece shifted and cried out in pain. His ribs crunched inside his chest. He felt woozy. The pain dissolved quickly.
“Don’t move,” the man next to him said. It was Hicks, the base medic. He was gently squeezing an I.V. bag that fed a tube into Reece’s arm. “You’ve broken at least five ribs and have a nasty puncture wound. I don’t know how it missed your lung. We patched you up as best we could. We can’t do more until we get back home. You got lucky, but you need to stay still.”
“Thanks,” Reece said, scrunching his eyes as the drowsy, woozy sensation amplified. The pain meds Hicks was feeding him were strong. He must have been in pretty bad shape to warrant this level of pain management.
He gazed down at his bandaged torso. The slight movement made the world jiggle, like it was made of jelly. He noticed a red stain on one side, where the bandages were soaking up his blood. He suddenly remembered being in the jaws of the spinosaurus. God, the thing had had him in its jaws! The last thing he remembered was being flung sideways and impacting the lake. It had been like hitting a concrete wall. Someone must have saved him, but who? He looked over at Ash, who was seated next to Marissa. Ash smiled and gave Reece a thumbs up. Reece suddenly realized it must have been the kid. He vaguely remembered being dragged onto the shore beside the lake. Then he remembered Becca telling him she loved him.
“You’re one hell of a kid,” Reece said, chuckling. “I’d go into the fray with you anytime.”
“What?” Hicks said. “There’s nothing more I can do until we get back to Earth. Just try and relax. It won’t be long.”
Reece nodded. Suddenly, the rear loading ramp whirred and started to close. Yellow lights strobed throughout the cargo bay, which was marked out with black and yellow chevron tape. People were busily strapping themselves in, in any available seat. Reece saw Mohammed searching for a free seat.
“Mo,” Reece called, “Mo, over here.”
Mohammed dashed over, shaking his head and smiling.
“You old sea dog,” he said chuckling. “I can’t believe you guys survived out there. If they gave out medals you’d get them all.” His expression turned to concern as he looked Reece up and down. “Nah, just a love bite. You’ll shake it off.”
“Hopefully not too soon. These meds are kinda fun. Everything seems a bit...” he sighed and his eyes rolled back. “It’s all a bit flobbly, jibbly and flobbly.”
“You’re totally high, man,” Mohammed said, chuckling.
“Totally, dude,” Reece said, flashing a peace sign and feeling a silly grin stretch across his face. “How’d you manage to shut off the starjet?”
“The starjet?” Mohammed replied blankly, shaking his head. “Those meds really must be strong. No, Reece, this is the stargo-jet. You’re on the stargo-jet. Look, I gotta take a seat. We’re leaving like immediately.”
“Wait,” Reece said, grabbing Mohammed’s wrist, “Becca didn’t tell you about the starjet, about the core?”
“I haven’t seen Becca. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Reece felt his cheeks burn. He scanned the seats throughout the cargo bay in turn. He couldn’t see Becca anywhere. His heart started to race. He blinked, trying to fight against the medication that was making the simple cognitive task of facial recognition seem impossible. She had to be here. He tore the drip from his arm and cast off his harness.
“Oh, no,” Hicks said, grabbing him. “You need to stay still.”
“Get off me,” Reece shouted. �
�I’m gonna lose it if you don’t let me go. Seriously, let go now.”
Hicks released his grip, looking both confused and amazed. The loading ramp was almost closed. Reece staggered into the middle of the cargo bay, desperately checking the seats.
“BECCA! BECCA?”
He still couldn’t see her. His panic was rising exponentially. He’d never felt fear on such a profound level. She meant everything. There was nothing without her. A void was opening in his soul and he was falling in.
“Cockpit,” he said, staggering towards the front of the craft.
“Reece,” Mohammed said, gripping him and helping him forward. “She gonna be in there. It’s okay, man.”
“She has to be,” Reece said, feeling his lower lip tremble. “Please, Becca…”
He threw open the cockpit door and Jay stared up at him from the pilots seat, shocked by the sudden intrusion. The co-pilot’s seat was empty. Tears rolled down Reece’s cheeks. He staggered forwards and manoeuvred into the free seat, his ribs crunching abysmally. He felt sick.
“What’s up?” Jay said. “Shouldn’t you be resting?”
Reece didn’t respond. He stared at the screens across the cockpit, which were arranged to mimic windows. Then he saw her. His chest tightened and his heart ached like it had suddenly swelled to three times its normal size. Becca was in the control tower. He grabbed a headset, jumped up and leaned towards the monitors.
“Becca?”
“I’m sorry, Reece,” her trembling voice came. “I can’t stop it.”
“Becca, come back. You have to stop what you’re doing and come back right now.”
“I can’t,” she said, sniffing back tears. “I’m so sorry, honey.”
“You can’t leave me like this, Becca,” Reece said, sobbing freely. “I love you. You know that. You know I love you. Please come back.”
“I love you too. Jay you have to leave now. You’ve only got minutes, maybe seconds.”
“Shut up, Becca,” Reece cried. “Just listen to me, just listen. You’ve got to come back. You have to come back now, you got that…”
“Jay, get that thing in the air. The starjet’s core’s in meltdown. I’m only holding it off by routing coolant from the outer shields. It’s gonna blow… any second…”
“I can’t,” Jay said. “I…”
“Jay, get that ship in the air or everyone’s gonna die. Everything we fought for will be for nothing. Leave. NOW! Everyone’s gonna die otherwise. You have seconds…”
“Thanks, Becca,” Jay said, engaging the thrusters, making the stargo-jet rise. “You’re one of the good ones.”
“NO!” Reece screamed. “Put us back down! Becca, please… I’m begging you, please don’t leave me. Please come back… at least try…”
Becca held a hand to the window of the control tower and blew a kiss.
“You’ve been the love of my life,” she said. “I’m so glad I got to know you, even if it was for a short while. We’ll meet again. I know we will.”
“I love you,” Reece said, crumbling in the co-pilot’s seat, his ribs crunching as he sobbed uncontrollably. “I love you so much… I’ll search for you for all eternity… Becca… my Becca…”
“I’ll always be with you my darling.”
Becca watched the stargo-jet rise up. It tilted, then zoomed skywards, through the ash clouds. She sat down, sobbing and staring across the burning island. There was a bright flash. The volcano’s sides exploded, sending out a pulse of energy that shredded through the trees. She closed her eyes as the tsunami of fire raced out from the core of the explosion, incinerating everything in its path. She thought of her parents. She thought of Reece. Her heart had never been so full of love.
Back to the Future
T he stargo-jet exploded through the star portal and the night side of modern day Earth unfolded below as a sea of a billion lights. Jay angled the jet and punched through the stratosphere, streaking flames across the night sky. He flew towards the horizon, above which the sun was rising, ushering in a new dawn.
Ash knew Becca hadn’t made it. Reece had practically been comatose as people had carried him back to his seat, his face still wet with tears. Now he sat staring blankly forwards, destroyed, a wreck of a man. No one could speak. Silence hung over the entire cargo hold. They were now a funeral procession in mourning.
“Can we stay friends,” Harper said eventually, his voice trembling. “I know I don’t deserve it. I’ve never had many friends. My life’s all fake, but you guys aren’t. We aren’t. Becca wasn’t.”
Marissa took Harper’s hand and squeezed it. She couldn’t speak for crying, so she kissed the back of his hand and nodded.
“Friends forever,” Marty said, sniffing. “Forever and always.”
“There’s only ever gonna be one Jurassic Five,” Babs said, fighting back the tears. “We’ve got to stay together. We’ve got to remember Becca, what she did for us, what she gave us.”
“I owe her my life,” Harper said. “I’m sorry I was such a dick, Ash. I’ll spend forever making it up to you. I promise I will.”
“Don’t be silly,” Ash said. “You guys are amazing, all of you. I’ll be there for all of you always too.”
Ash closed his eyes and said a prayer for Becca as Marissa took his hand and squeezed. He could see the faces of his mum and brother. He felt like the luckiest person alive, because as far into the future as he could see, his life looked perfect.
Yamamoto
T im skinner stood next to Aaditya in the rising lift. He stared at himself in the mirror on the back wall, examining the wrinkles spreading from his eyes and mouth.
“Where did the time go,” he said, amazed by the reflection of the old man staring back at him. He still felt like he was twenty-five inside. “It goes so scarily fast.”
“It does,” Aaditya said nodding and casting a glance at his own reflection. “It seems I only met you yesterday. At least we didn’t waste the years.”
“No, old friend,” Tim said as the lift bell dinged and the doors rolled open. “After you, chap.”
Aaditya walked forwards, into the enormous marbled penthouse apartment on top of Yamamoto Industries tower in Tokyo. A butler bowed and relieved them of their jackets.
“He’s on the balcony,” the man said in a thick Japanese accent. “If you please, this way.”
“Is he any better?” Aaditya asked as they followed the butler.
“Not really,” Tim replied. “It broke his spirit. He’s just given each of the kids and everyone that experienced that nightmare, fifty million dollars each. He can’t forgive himself. I keep telling him it’s not his fault, but he won’t accept it. He hates himself.”
“Maybe this news will change that.”
“Hopefully,” Tim said, smiling. “I’m pretty sure it’ll help.”
On the balcony, Mr Yamamoto sat in an armchair with a blanket draped over his knees. He stared across the Tokyo skyline, looking like a broken, frail man, a mere shadow of his former self.
“Hey, Nori,” Aaditya said, “how’s tricks?”
Mr Yamamoto turned, smiled and gave a small bow, which Tim and Aaditya respectfully returned.
“My friends,” Mr Yamamoto said, his eyes crinkling as he smiled. “So good to see you. Will you stay for dinner?”
“With the food your chef cooks I’d stay here forever,” Tim said, patting Mr Yamamoto’s shoulder and laughing. “We’ve actually got some news for you. I think you’ll like it. Aady, the floor’s yours.”
“You can have whatever funding you want,” Mr Yamamoto said to Aaditya. “Everything that’s mine is yours. I can’t take all this with me. I don’t have long left. How much do you need?”
“I wouldn’t be giving everything away just yet,” Aaditya said, handing Mr Yamamoto a tablet. “You’re gonna need it.”
“I’m retired now,” Mr Yamamoto said, placing the tablet on the table beside him. “Give whoever it is whatever they want. I trust your judgement.”
Mr Yamamoto sighed and picked up the tablet. He pressed a button on its side and the screen illuminated. His eyes shot wide and he leaned forwards. He gasped, then cast off his blanket and sprang out of his chair.
“This is incredible. Does Reece know?” He said.
“Not yet,” Aaditya replied. “I wanted to show you first. We didn’t want to get his hopes up for nothing.”
“For nothing?” Mr Yamamoto said, his voice sounding fresh and full of energy, like a man many years his junior. “This is everything. We’re not leaving her out there. How long do you need to mount a rescue mission?”
“We’ll have to locate and steal the confiscated stargo-jet back from the U.S. government,” Tim said, “and get the team together, but we could stage a mission within a few weeks. I’m pretty sure Reece will be in, if we can find him that is.”
“Make it happen, we’re going back,” Mr Yamamoto said, smiling at the tablet. “We’re coming for you. Hold tight and don’t give up. We’re coming back for you.”
He smiled at the tablet. It displayed a grainy image of Becca holding a piece of card that read, STILL ALIVE…
Continue the adventure now…
JURASSIC
EARTH
EPISODE II
RENEGADES
Logan T Stark
©2018 Logan T Stark
All rights reserved
THE ADVENTURE CONTINUES…
The Last Woman on Earth
Jurassic Earth Trilogy Box Set Page 21
