Terminus Part I: The Journey There (Draft)

Chapter 36: Dinosaurs

"Wait, when did you pick up a case?" asked Milangelo.

"It's an informal case, Milangelo. I want to know what brought the circus to the island in the first place."

"You think they might have plans for the dinosaurs?" asked Cameron.

James explained that it seemed unlikely, but that all possible outcomes were important to consider in a case.

The group was lead to the next enclosure by Joneas, who lamented that he had nothing better to do.

"Don't be like that," said James. "We may be a little odd, but we're not that bad."

"Are you sure about that?" asked Cameron.

The next enclosure was the home of the Triceratops. There, a different handler explained that the triceratops was a fairly peaceful animal except when threatened.

"They may engage in horn fights with each other over things such as alpha status or mates," the handler explained.

The crew spent a few minutes appreciating the triceratops for what they were, and then moved on to the next species.

Cameron noted that they were picking up the pace. Patricia explained that sometimes, when people want to, they can set their own pace; and sometimes that pace can speed up.

The next dinosaur they noted was the ankylosaur. This particular species was the Europelta (Europelta carbonensis). James told the handler of the group's encounter with a wild Europelta, and he explained that wild dinosaurs were more or less left on their own, but were actively being protected by the best efforts of the Rebel Forces.

This led to a discussion regarding the reasons that the royalty were hunting the dinosaurs.

"You seem to be very interested in this hunting thing," said Crock. "Do you have a theory related to it?"

"I do think that the motivations of the King are an important factor to consider. It may be that the circus may have used force or some method of persuasion to take over."

"I hear from the Rebels that the circus is now run by Martin Magick," said Persimmon.

"Does that name mean something to you?" asked James.

"Well, I remember reading a young adult novel about a young wizard boy who betrays his master in order to save the world."

"Who is the villain in this story?" asked Milangelo.

"The mysterious Dakjaw. A member of the Society of Wrong Thinkers," said Persimmon.

"Oh, I've heard about this book. It's pure propaganda. Meant to paint the Gentleman's Club as evil," said Crock.

"Wait a minute, does that mean his mentor was Jack Door?" asked Patricia. "Because that means this guy's the real deal. Illusions, hypnosis, curses, the whole magical lot."

"Wait a minute, magic is real?" asked Milangelo.

"I thought we dealt with this already," said Brandon. Milangelo said that Brandon was right, but that he was still skeptical.

"Oh, it's real alright," said Joneas. "I've learned a few tricks myself." As he said this, he conjured up a ball of energy and tossed it around in his hands until he made it disappear.

"There are four magical disciplines," began Crock. Milangelo nearly passed out from the revelation that everyone seemed to know something he did not.

"The first is Curse Magic. It can make very powerful changes to the world around you, but it always comes at some cost.

"The second is Illusion Magic. It can change the way you perceive reality, making things appear and disappear.

"The third is Dimension Magic. It allows for travel to other planes of existence; many places surrounded in mystery.

"The fourth is Power Magic. It uses the fundamental energy that all magic draws from in order to grant power."

James asked if they could get back to the dinosaurs, and so they moved on to seeing the hadrosaur, Parasaurolophus (Parasaurolophus walkeri). They noted that though it was a fairly peaceful animal, like most herbivorous dinosaurs, it would not hesitate to defend itself from a potential threat.

The next dinosaur in the tour was a stegosaur, Kentrosaurus (Kentrosaurus aethiopicus), and its behaviour was very similar to that of the Europelta. In the wild, they would graze on jungle plants and take their chances with their stomach's ability to digest those plants. Occasionally, both species would discover plants they could not eat, and as a result, become very sick.

Another dinosaur was the Styracosaurus (Styracosaurus albertensis), which came from the same family as Triceratops, but had a different facial structure and different behaviour. Rather than fight for supremacy, they simply chose the male with the most decorated frill to lead them. He would choose mates for the females by pushing over the undesirable herd members. Patricia rolled her eyes and James noted that the customs of primitive animals could be strange at times.

Those were all of the herbivores, though Joneas explained that there were three carnivorous dinosaurs still alive on the island: the Spinosaurus, Saurophaganax, and Oviraptor.

"Trust me, you wouldn't want to meet any of those dinosaurs," said Brandon. "But what became of the tyrannosaurs?"

"The species you have seen today and the carnivores I mentioned are the only remaining species of dinosaurs left. All other species have been hunted to extinction by the royals."

There was silence as everyone came to terms with this new and unsettling information. James thanked Joneas for showing them the dinosaurs and asked that he thank the handlers for their assistance. He then informed his crew that they were going back to their tent.

Some hours after the point that the Warbird brothers had reconciled, Walter and William awoke to realise they had fallen asleep on the couch, and William noted that at least they were not huddled together when they awoke.

"Alright, it's time for all of us to start working together to achieve our common goal," said Damian.

"What happened while we were asleep?" asked Walter.

"Actually, I think we were drunk. But perhaps we may have reconciled at least some of our differences," said William.

"Yes, and you two tend to be at the centre of all the familial turmoil, so when we saw you getting along..." began Warren.

"Well, we thought it was high time we all started to support each other and look to creating a world where dinosaurs and humans can co-exist," said Damian.

"You know, when you say it out loud, it actually sounds rather nice," said Warren. "It's too bad that it's taken us all this long to get to this point where we don't hate each other."

They continued to talk about their new outlooks, in-between Damian and Warren proposing that they make a plan to take on the Second Chance Circus. It was agreed that action would need to be taken soon, as it would be uncertain if they would have a chance to do this again.

In the castle hall, Martin was talking to Garrett via mirror.

"So the Rebels are going to make their move, are they? Well then, let them come. There is not much they can do now."

"Sir, may I ask what you plan to do?"

"I'm going to put on a show. One that is powered by the long-buried secret of this island, and one that will crown me the uncontested ruler of it."

Martin used magic to make the android appear in front of him. He smiled as he began to think about his future plans.

All the major parties were about to spring into action. The Detective Pirates were even talking about their next move inside one of their tents. The only party not accounted for were Phileas Fogg and Jack Door.

"Come on, really, Jack? Just how did we get lost?"

"I think the more important issue is... how do we get out of this quicksand?"