"To the zipline! Go, go, go!"
Darius pointed toward the machinery, shouting instructions to the group.
THUD!
The Indominus rex slammed her body against the structure, attempting to bring it down, but the heavy supports held firm. Pivoting her strategy, she hooked her claws onto the horizontal railings connecting the four load-bearing pillars and began to climb.
CRACK!
Just as she anticipated, the crossbars couldn't support her massive weight. They sheared off completely, falling to the ground. The zipline tower began to tilt precariously. Brooklynn grabbed Ben, who was frozen in terror, and shoved him toward the zipline harness.
"I can't clip it! I can't clip it!" In the heat of the moment, Ben's nerves failed him.
"I've got it." Kenji, losing his patience, stepped in to buckle the harness for him. He slammed his hand against Ben's back and shoved him off the platform. "Go!"
THUD!
Another crossbeam gave way. The entire zipline tower was now leaning at an angle that would make the Leaning Tower of Pisa look vertical. Fortunately, the others moved with more fluid coordination; Sammy, Kenji, and Brooklynn all successfully hooked onto the lines.
However, they had overlooked a critical safety feature: the zipline was designed for staggered departures. When multiple units were detected on the line simultaneously, the emergency brakes triggered.
"Why did we stop?! Ben! What did you do?!" Kenji hissed, his head jerking forward from the sudden deceleration.
Ben was even more frantic; his fear of heights kept him from even looking down. "Nothing! I didn't do anything! It just stopped!"
THUD!
The tower lost another support beam. The cable whipped up and down, leaving the campers dizzy and disoriented.
"It's the emergency brake!" Darius realized the problem immediately. He and Yasmina were still on the platform, watching their friends dangling mid-air. To prevent getting stuck themselves, they had to push the others forward.
Darius made a split-second decision, unbuckling his own safety harness and stepping back.
"Darius?" Yasmina turned, confused by his actions at such a critical moment.
"You're an athlete. You're strong, right?"
"What are you doing?!" She looked back at the others trapped in the air, then back at Darius. A cold dread washed over her.
"Hold on to me!"
Darius took a running start and jumped, colliding with Yasmina's harness as they slid forward together. The impact knocked the wind out of Yasmina, but her reflexes took over, and she grabbed Darius tight.
BAM!
They slammed into the line of campers, providing enough momentum to push everyone forward.
"It worked! We're making—"
Before Darius could finish, the tower behind them finally collapsed. The cable snapped, and the sliding mechanisms disintegrated, sending the group plummeting into the canopy of the forest below.
The Indominus rex stood by the ruins of the tower, focusing her senses on the wreckage. There were no thermal signatures left.
Escaped?
She scanned the sky, but there were no humans in sight. Of course, she thought, these little things can't fly. She wasn't particularly angry; if they were gone, so be it. A much more dangerous foe was approaching.
She looked down at the fallen tower, deep in thought. A moment later, she vanished into the jungle, leaving behind a trail of conspicuous tracks.
…
Carlo navigated through the towering groves of Giant Redwoods. These trees were the original inhabitants of Isla Nublar, ancient giants that were wider than he was.
At the base of one massive redwood were several orange canopy tarps. Inside appeared to be an elevator shaft leading to a massive treehouse complex high above. In front of the tree stood a pool of water, its original purpose unclear.
Carlo approached the pool and found faint, swirling traces of blood.
She washed her scent away here.
Carlo couldn't fathom how a biological creature could neutralize its scent so thoroughly for so long. Even a daily dousing in disinfectant shouldn't be this effective. His sense of smell felt as if it had been severed; it was useless in this hunt.
Suddenly, Carlo noticed prominent claw marks on a smaller redwood nearby. The gashes ran from the roots upward, as if something had tried to climb. Carlo approached slowly, feigning a focused investigation while keeping his senses locked on his flanks.
This smelled like a trap.
"Great, the camp is still standing."
Darius's group emerged from the undergrowth, letting out a collective sigh of relief.
"Darius?!" Sammy called out, pointing toward the clearing.
"Holy sh—"
Carlo's attention was drawn to the teenagers. He turned to look at them. While he knew he shouldn't be distracted, these humans looked fundamentally different from any he had seen before, as if they belonged to a different world, or at least a different art style. They were incredibly conspicuous.
"AUNNG-ROAR—!"
In the next heartbeat, the Indominus rex lunged from his blind spot. She clamped her jaws onto his neck, but she didn't exert her full crushing force. Instead, she drove him forward with her momentum, mirroring the way Carlo had ambushed her earlier.
Seeking revenge?
But Carlo didn't have two Carnotaurus hanging off him this time. He quickly adjusted his footing, matching her speed.
RIP—!
His foot caught on the heavy yellow canopy tarp. Though the material was thick, it couldn't support his massive weight and shredded instantly. Realizing his positioning was poor, Carlo widened his stance and dug his claws into the earth, trying to anchor himself against the Indominus's power.
Suddenly, the Indominus released her grip and leaped backward. The sudden disappearance of resistance caused Carlo's counter-force to hit thin air, sending him stumbling forward.
Before he could recover his balance, she circled to his flank and rammed him into the massive redwood.
CRASH! SHATTER—!
The glass and concrete of the elevator shaft disintegrated on impact. Shards of glass spun through the air, glinting as they caught the light.
"Go! Move!" Darius was pulled back into the brush by his companions as they scrambled to evacuate the camp.
Glass and concrete debris rained down on Carlo's hide. They raked across his skin but failed to leave a single wound. The Indominus rex took note; his defensive capabilities were staggering.
But it didn't matter. She backed away two steps.
Carlo shook his head, clearing the glass from his eyes. He straightened his body, squaring up to the Indominus once more.
Clack.
The sound of falling timber caught his eye.
No.
He realized the gravity of the situation far too late. She hadn't refrained from crushing his neck because she couldn't—she had chosen the most effortless way to kill him.
Carlo lunged at her, but a massive carnivore cannot hit top speed instantly; like a combustion engine, there is a "warm-up" period before the torque kicks in.
Clack-clack-clack.
Wooden planks rained down in a continuous torrent, battering Carlo. Finally, the entire treehouse structure gave way, burying him under tons of wreckage and sending a massive plume of dust into the air.
"AUNNG-ROAR—!"
The Indominus rex let out a triumphant shriek. She turned and began her march back toward the Primeval Ecological Zone. She didn't believe any creature could survive being crushed under such weight.
…
"Target detected at the Primeval Ecological Zone Southwest Gate!"
"Copy that. All units, converge on coordinates."
———————
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