Ding!
Masrani stepped out of the elevator and returned to the Control Room. He immediately noticed a new figure present.
A heavy-set man whose midsection strained against the buttons of his shirt.
Before Masrani could even ask, the man held up a business card and introduced himself:
"Hoskins."
Masrani hadn't fully recovered from his confrontation with Dr. Wu. He tried his best to maintain an air of being "perfectly in control." This man clearly wasn't here to help; he was likely here to ask for something. In that case, maintaining a position of strength was the only way to gain leverage in the coming negotiation.
"I know who you are."
"Then you should know why I'm here."
Hoskins didn't give him a moment to breathe. He had arrived in the Control Room earlier than Masrani and possessed more up-to-date information. He had to seize the moment while the CEO was still in the dark to push his agenda.
"I've spent the last two years developing a Raptor application." He pointed at the empty air as if an Indominus rex were standing right there. "They can hunt that thing down."
Masrani's mind raced, recalling the specifics of the project and organizing his counter-arguments. "But your project was focused on research into their intelligence."
Hoskins sensed the subtle rejection in Masrani's tone, but since it wasn't a definitive "no," he immediately launched into his prepared pitch.
"Exactly. It was. And we studied it. In the process, we made a discovery." He took two steps forward, closing the distance between himself and Masrani. "They can follow commands."
Masrani didn't respond. He had visited Owen's training program and knew exactly to what extent the Velociraptors followed orders.
"Look, the solution to your crisis is right in front of you."
Suspecting that Hoskins merely wanted an excuse to let the Raptors loose on the island for some field experiment, Masrani refused flatly. "Listen to me. I am not letting those Raptors run loose outside of an enclosure. Maybe you can go talk to the other dinosaurs; maybe they'd be willing to help you."
Hoskins put his hands on his hips and rolled his eyes.
"Oh, for God's sake..." He pointed an index finger at Masrani, a dry smile on his face. "You... you've got to be joking."
He turned and pointed at the big screen, showing the Indominus's last known locations and the crowds of over twenty thousand tourists gathered at the Innovation Center. "What about those people? There are twenty thousand people out there. How are you going to solve that?"
He began to play his trump card; Masrani still didn't know the full gravity of the situation.
"Tell him, Dino-Nerd. Tell him what that thing is doing right now."
Lowery bristled at the nickname, but the situation was too dire for petty squabbles. "Its kill-track is moving south, heading straight for the park."
Masrani had assumed the Indominus would stay in the Primeval Ecological Zone for a while longer. He hadn't expected her to gun for the park so soon. His composure shattered. "How is that possible?"
Lowery paused for a heartbeat, offering his theory. "She can sense thermal radiation."
"And our emergency protocols have huddled the tourists together, creating the massive heat signature on the island," Vivian added from her station.
"See? They have nowhere to go. That thing is a killing machine," Hoskins continued, squeezing Masrani's conscience. He stepped up, locking eyes with him. "And it won't stop."
Masrani put his hands on his hips, looked down, and took a deep, shaky breath. He hesitated for a long moment.
"Fine..."
"I will review your proposal and decide on its feasibility, provided it does not violate this company's ethical boundaries."
Masrani gave Hoskins the opening he wanted, waiting for a reply.
"No problem, Chief." Hoskins didn't look particularly thrilled, likely anticipating that Masrani would still micromanage the plan, but he remained outwardly cooperative.
"Your next—"
"Parasaurolophus, Triceratops, Apatosaurus... Oh my God! Nearly 40% of the herbivores are migrating en masse! They're less than three kilometers from the Innovation Center!"
Suddenly, a staff member monitoring the perimeter shouted out. The news finally broke Masrani's spirit. One catastrophe after another was enough to make anyone crumble.
"What?! What the fuck is going on now?!"
…
"Aunnng—!"
A roar echoed from the distant horizon, causing the Indominus rex to halt her pursuit of the Jeep.
This time, she didn't roar back. She simply stared in the direction of the sound for a few moments before decisively choosing to flee in the opposite direction.
She had noticed the army of herbivores in the distance, but they weren't her concern. What she feared was the dangerous aura trailing behind that army, a presence that sent a cold shiver down her spine.
Is he hunting me?
Not exactly.
Carlo had initially been struggling with how to get the Parasaurolophus herd to stop fearing him long enough to accept the hatchling. Then, he had caught a whiff of the Indominus's lingering scent and locked onto her position.
He had intended to hunt her down immediately, but he had once again been hindered by the ACU teams.
It infuriated him. The humans seemed determined to keep him and the Indominus apart.
Fortunately, Carlo was "kind-hearted" and preferred to repay "evil" with "good." Thus, he had gathered the dinosaur army to help the humans evacuate the tourists.
Since they're just sitting ducks on the Main Street anyway, I'll let the herbivores help you clear the area. No harm in that, right?
Humans were strange creatures, though. They would rather cluster the tourists on the main strip than open the emergency shelters. It was as if they believed opening the shelters meant admitting defeat.
…
On the other side of the park, Claire, having just escaped the Indominus's pursuit, contacted the Control Room.
"Lowery, do you copy? We found the Indominus. She's between the old park and the Aviary, south of Gyrosphere Valley."
In the Control Room, Lowery was caught off guard. "Claire? You're okay? Wait, are you tracking the dinosaur?!"
"Yes. Send the ACU. Use lethal rounds and kill that thing."
"No, no, no. The ACU is overwhelmed. A massive herd of herbivores is closing in on the park; we've been forced to open the shelters."
"Wait, what did you say?!"
"Look out!"
From the back seat, Zach pointed at an Apatosaurus that had suddenly burst from the trees.
Owen slammed on the brakes, the Jeep sliding in a drift that ended mere inches from the Apatosaurus's descending foot.
"Aunnng—!"
The Apatosaurus let out a deafening cry, ignoring the tiny Jeep as it continued its march. The four occupants of the car sat in stunned silence, gasping for air.
"Phew... that was close," Claire panted.
"Aunnng—!"
Another roar shook the air, sending the group back into a state of high alert.
"It's the Giganotosaurus," Gray said, identifying the owner of the voice.
"They've opened the shelters. We can take a service road directly into the employee restricted area," Claire suggested to Owen.
"Lead the way," Owen replied, making an immediate decision.
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