"Ow.." I muttered, waking up. My leg hurt more than before, so I looked at it, surprised to see Darius on top of it. He slowly woke up and looked around before looking down. Then, he shot up with wide eyes.
"Sorry, sorry!" he exclaimed, quickly giving me his hand. We looked at the others; Kenji was stuck underneath the front seat, groaning as he tried to get out.; Yasmina had a small bruise on the side of her head from the steering wheel; Sammy, Brooklynn, Ben, and Bumpy seemed alright.
"Is everyone ok?" Darius asked, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously.
Yasmina began to laugh sarcastically. "Is everyone...?" she repeated, shaking her head with narrowed eyes. Then, she pushed open the side and silently jumped out of the van.
"Yaz, wait!" Sammy exclaimed, opening the van's back doors and rushing towards her. I helped Ben and Bumpy out of the truck, cursing under my breath.
Camp Cretaceous was meant to be fun. Sure, I've seen Jurassic World like a kajillion times, but this was meant to be unique; I was told I'd enjoy this! Yet, I come here, and a horrifying killer dino runs loose, our camp gets destroyed, and then there's Sammy — she lied to everyone. I don't even know what to make of that. I'm sure she must have a reason, but we could have used Brooklynn's phone to call for help!
I looked back at the van. The crash had bashed it up pretty badly. Kenji and Darius then stepped out of the truck through the back, Kenji with his hand over Darius's shoulder. Brooklynn followed.
Yasmina continued to charge away. "We're not ok! We're in the middle of a jungle with a monster dinosaur and you! You...." She turned to Sammy with an expression filled with outrage.
Brooklynn walked towards me and stopped, glaring at Sammy with her hand on her hips. "Destroyed our only way to get help and lied about it!" She glanced at us. "I told you guys!"
Sammy looked like she was about to cry. I felt terrible, but I shouldn't have. She, just like Brooklynn said, destroyed her only way to get help and lied about doing so. If only she had told us why.
Everyone else was staring at Sammy, clearly shocked and confused at what was happening. Darius came forward.
"So, you did take Brooklynn's phone? Why? What were you doing?" he asked her, frowning disappointedly. Brooklynn pointed at Sammy dramatically.
"Probably trying to erase my video of her taking those samples from the sinoceratops!" she exclaimed, callous. A silent tear rolled down Sammy's cheek, and I couldn't let this go on. We had to at least let her explain herself!
"Brooklynn, stop it! You're going to make Sammy feel even worse; let her explain. She must have had a reason to take your phone!" I said, flinging my arms out. Brooklynn blinked, staring at me with narrowed eyes before she stepped closer and glared down at me.
"So I'm the bad guy? Is that what you're getting at?" she asked, her voice barely audible.
I shook my head. "No! But look at Sammy; she's near tears! We have to her say something!" I pleaded.
Brooklyn rolled her eyes and glared at Sammy. "This is all your fault. You even got Kiara to help you — you manipulating... UGH! You just had to steal my phone and act all suspicious, didn't you?!" she exclaimed, crossing her arms.
Brooklyn then froze, and her eyes narrowed. "Act all suspicious?..." she repeated, her voice dangerously quiet.
She walked over to Sammy, pushing me out of her way. I bumped into the van, my wound coming into contact with the side. I winced, dropping to the floor as I held my leg gingerly. Ben helped me up, and I smiled gratefully. Then we watched Brooklynn and Sammy.
"You knew about the Indominus Rex, didn't you... " Brooklynn asked her, her voice getting louder. "Because you were snooping around Dr Wu's office when I ran into you — I knew it!"
"I didn't mean to destroy the phone! I fell on it when the zip line came down and—"
"But you did steal it? You had it the whole time, and you didn't tell us?" Ben interrupted, crouching down to hug Bumpy, who had bounded towards us.
Darius looked at Brooklynn curiously and suspiciously. "What were you doing in Dru. Wu's office Brooklynn?"
"Is that why you guys were booted from the lab?" I asked Ben in surprise. He nodded.
Brooklynn frowned at Darius and shook her head. "It doesn't matter! I didn't break out the only way to call for help and then lie about it!" she yelled.
Sammy covered her ears and closed her eyes.
"This is not my fault! This is her fault!"
"I'm here to spy!" Sammy suddenly burst out. I covered my mouth, and an echo of gasps rang out.
"I work for a company called Mantah Corp," she went on.
"Mantah corp?" Ben asked. Darius looked back at Kenji, Ben, and me. "They're a bioengineering company, big rivals with Masrani! They tried to make dinosaurs, too, but Wu beat them to it."
Where did I know that name from? Mantah Corp. It sounds so familiar.
Ben glared at Sammy. "You doomed us all for some lousy company!?" he yelled. I covered Bumpy's ears so she couldn't hear him shouting.
"Our ranch was in trouble, so my folks had to borrow a lot of money from some shady people. We didn't know they were fronting for Mantah Corp. They said we'd lose everything unless I spied for them and used the behind-the-scenes access I'd get at camp to gather info from Wu's lab, DNA from dinos, and whatever else they needed!" Sammy explained. She stared miserably at Yasmina.
"But then Brooklynn caught on, and I got scared, and everything went wrong... This is the last thing I wanted to happen!"
Yasmina scoffed and pushed Sammy away from her. "To be next to a broken van on Killer Dino Island? Hey, me too! What are the odds?" she said coldly.
"Yaz, I—" Sammy started.
"Was it all a lie, wanting to be friends? Pretending you cared about..." Yasmina said, glancing away.
Sammy began to cry, tears rolling down her cheek.
"You just needed someone to hide what you were doing! Tell me I'm wrong..." Yasmina stared at Sammy for a moment, then turned to walk away. "I'm such an idiot," she muttered.
"You are wrong!" Sammy exclaimed, running after her. "I just didn't know how to explain it to you!"
Sammy tried to rest her hand on Yasmina's shoulder, but it was shrugged off. "Don't touch me!" she hissed.
"Yaz..." I said softly.
"No. Don't. Just don't, Kiara," she interrupted. Then, turning to Sammy, Yasmina narrowed her eyes. "Go away, Sammy."
Sammy stepped back in disbelief before turning and running into the jungle.
"That was really harsh," I muttered, Yasmina glancing at me. She walked back to the rest of us with a frown, and Bumpy moved towards her, grunting and jumping onto her leg.
"Not now, Bumpy..." Yasmina muttered, staring at the ground.
"Look, I know the situation we're in is suboptimal—"
"It's trash. Just say it's trash, Ben," Brooklynn interjected with an eye-roll.
"Yes, but despite the obvious trashitude, we need to... Bumpy? What are you?" Ben broke off as Bumpy began to whimper and pat at our legs anxiously. I felt the ground beneath me rumble, and we all glanced back.
Out of nowhere, the Indominus crashed through the jungle and growled. We screamed and ran to hide behind the broken van, Sammy running towards us from out of the jungle, looking terrified.
"It's trash! It's trash!" Ben screeched.
As we hid behind the van, I noticed something odd. The Indominus charged past us, almost as if she was running away from something. The only issue was nothing on this island worse than the Indominus.
"What the heck?" Darius exclaimed before we heard a whirring sound. A white helicopter with blue tail lights burst out of the trees, chasing and firing at the Indominus. The tail lights flashed twice, and I grinned.
"Kenji! It's Masrani!" I exclaimed, shaking his arm. "Look at the call sign on the tail; it's his!"
"And he's shooting at the Indominus!" Kenji cheered.
Darius got up and began running after the helicopter. The aircraft was headed towards the aviary, the Indominus out of view. Then, suddenly, the glass shattered. I froze.
"What was that?" Brooklynn asked nervously.
Kenji punched the air. "Yeah! Kick its butt, Masrani! Whooo!" he yelled.
"Kenji... he never actually got his license," I whispered, feeling my stomach drop.
"Yeah, but he's shooting! We're saved! We're saved!" Kenji said, cheering in delight.
As he cheered, dark creatures began flying up into the sky — they were the pteranodons and dimorphodons... They flew towards the helicopter and began to attack it viciously. The helicopter swirled around before plummeting to the aviary, crashing through the glass roof. My breath hitched as I watched a silence ascending. Suddenly, the ground shook, and we heard an explosion.
He's dead. Mr Masrani is dead. No, no, no! How can he b dead!? This isn't happening! Masrani, he was always there for Kenji and me when we visited. He was always sweet and caring, made jokes and invited us to new exhibits. But now... Now he's dead!
"What do we do!?" I cried as Kenji pulled me into a much-needed hug. Then, sobbing and hiccoughing, I hugged him back. "He's gone!"
Darius looked around uncomfortably, but as the pteranodons screeched, he stared at us. "With those pteranodons lose, we're sitting ducks! We gotta take cover!" he said.
Kenji pulled out of the hug, instead holding my hand. He walked over to Brooklynn and snatched the tablet out of her hands. "The Kayak River! The entrance is near here: it goes underground, beneath the ridge. If we follow it, it'll take us to the main park!"
"Then we need to go!" Brooklynn exclaimed.
We ran as fast as we could to the Kayak River, Kenji pulling me along as I wiped my tear-stained cheeks. I glanced back and noticed Ben struggling to push Bumpy forward. The pteranodons flew high above, circling them. A few dived, trying to claw the rest of us, when Ben and Bumpy ducked.
"Come on!" Kenji yelled, gesturing for us to turn.
We cut through the jungle and back into a clearing only a few feet from the kayak river cave. Ben was still struggling, so I pulled my hand out of Kenji's, running to help him.
"Hurry up!" Yasmina shouted at us, taking the lead.
Ben and I were at the back of the group, holding Bumpy from either side. Ben suddenly slipped, causing us to hit the ground in the dust.
"Bumpy! Come on, we need to go in!" Ben exclaimed.
"Let us move you!" I pleaded.
A large pteranodon screeched and glided down, landing heavily right where we stood as we picked up Bumpy and began to run again. More pteranodons flew into the cave, following us. As soon as we reached the others, Yasmina shut the metal door, blocking more dinosaurs.
From a hidden speaker, a female voice said, "Welcome to Jurassic World River Adventures. Prepare yourselves for the wonders of the underground river."
We crossed the wooden bridge beneath us, taking hold of the bright yellow lifejackets and putting them on.
"Two adventurers per kayak," the automated voice said. "Life vests must be worn at all times. Adults, please fasten your own life vests before helping little adventurers. Remain seated at all times. Your journey begins now."
Kenji paused by one kayak and smirked. "Brooklynn, Kiara, and I call the CKK!" he said proudly. Kenji smirked,
"CKK?" Brooklynn repeated, her eyebrow raised. I stared at my brother confusedly.
"Cool kids kayak," he replied, swinging on his aviators and jumping to sit in the kayak. I silently sat beside him, watching Brooklynn as she glanced at the others. Then, finally, she sighed and sat opposite Kenji and me, casting me a sharp look. To that, Kenji glared at her, and she frowned in reply.
"Ben and Bumpy can ride there, and I'll go on this kayak," Darius said. Yasmina elbowed Sammy out of her way and hopped into the kayak reserved for Ben and Bumpy.
"Yaz?"
"I'll go with them," Yasmina said. She pulled Ben and Bumpy into the kayak. "Let's go, dude!"
"Ah, okay," Ben stammered, watching Yasmina with a puzzled expression. Darius turned to Sammy, who looked like she would cry again.
"Come on, Sammy, let's get out of here," he murmured.
Once they got into their kayaks, we left, drifting through the water. Yasmina, Ben and Bumpy were at the front; Kenji, Brooklyn and I paddled behind; Darius and Sammy were at the far back. Kenji winked at me and paddled faster, causing us to hit the side of Yaz's kayak and go in front of them.
"Watch it!" Yasmina angrily exclaimed.
"CKK has the right of way. Sorry, but I don't make the rules!" Kenji replied smugly. Brooklyn looked around the cave and started.
"Hey, the cave's getting bigger... and brighter?"