Jurassic Park : From on High

Chapter 1: Jurassic Park

Hannah Diaz locked the door to her beach front apartment. The Sun was just beginning to rise over the great slab that was the ocean. It was Eight in the morning and on any other day she would just be opening her eyes. Hannah was a VIP Liaison for the world famous Jurassic Park. Whenever a person of importance arrived at the park she would basically give them a behind the scenes look at everything. For some reason, the group she was entertaining today preferred to be quite early and customer satisfaction was always the first priority of Jurassic Park.

She came down the stairs from the second level to the first and was immediately blanketed in fog. She proceeded down the hallway, rubbing her eyes and yawning. She reached into her pocket and felt for her keys, she found them and pressed the unlock button. A yellow flash of light to her left indicated where she had parked the night before. She looked across the way at the gas station before climbing into her car, trying to remember if she had cigarettes. She did.

Hannah cranked up her car and headed inland. The new Jurassic Park was built on Isla Profeta, an island not too far from La Cinca Muertes. It was large with an intricate river system, lush jungles in the middle, sunny beaches to the south and large mountains to the north. Hannah was lucky enough to live in The Burroughs South on the beach. The Burroughs North was built on the mountain and the employees who lived there had to travel to and from work by cable tram. There were only four trams.

Hannah presented her employee I.D to the guard by the concrete wall. He gave her a faint smile and pressed the button to open the huge metal gate as she made her way over the speed bump and began to see the electrified fence on either side she began to perk up a little. A mile or two down the road she could see the Parasaurolophus she had nicknamed Peggy. She passed her grazing every morning on the way to work and as though the dinosaur recognized her car it would give a loud trumpeting honk, and Hannah would blow her horn back. Although she wasn't sure if she was supposed to.

A few more miles and she reached the other gate. This one had guards to swipe employees in and guards at towers on either end of the concrete fence. When she passed through this gate she was on the overpass bridge. The Park, for added security, had a large moat running around it where all the rivers met. In the moat they had placed a few Saurosuchus, which were like prehistoric crocodiles but in Hannah's opinion much more alarming. They planned on having a feeding show but none of the handlers wanted to get near the aggressive creatures, then they tried to build an underground viewing area but one of the Sauros destroyed the plexiglass and flooded the exhibit a week before it opened. In the distance she could see the long necks of the Brachiosaurs and the dome of the Aviary.

When she crossed through the gate on the other side she found herself in the employee parking lot behind the Visitor Center a three story structure with one large pointed dome and a viewing tower on each end where visitors could look around the park with binoculars. Because Hannah was so early she got a close parking space. When she had locked the car she made her way up the sidewalk, passing a few custodians. She swiped her card at the double doors and they slid open. She walked down the long corridor to the 'Rotunda' sign and walked out into the spacious grandeur that was the Visitor Center.

It was half Museum and half Shopping Mall with the gift shop and food court on the first floor, the clothing, novelty, and gaming stores on the second and Paleontological exhibits on the third. She walked past the large replica of the Island that was the centerpiece of the rotunda and made her way to the Cretacious Cafe.

The scent of coffee and fresh baked goods filled her nostrils as she sat down at the bar area. Her friend Cal worked as a barista there and without Hannah even prompting him he made her the usual Banana Au Lait.

"You're up early." Cal said giving her a wry grin.

"Rich people have no sense of time." Hannah replied taking a scalding sip.

"But I thought time was money." Said Cal narrowing his eyes," And rich people live for money." Hannah just shook her head and grinned. When she looked up she noticed the empty fish tank behind the machines.

"What happened to the Ammonites?" She asked bewildered.

"They just put cleaning solution in the water. The Ammonites should be back tomorrow." There was a long minute of silence as Hannah gradually began to actually wake up. Cal spoke, "So what are you doing tonight?"

"I'll probably sit on my couch, ya know, only get up to go to the bathroom." Hannah replied.

"That sounds like fun. . . do you think maybe I could bring a pizza and we could watch some quality dinosaur programming together?" Cal said as quickly as he could. Hannah blushed and opened her mouth to reply but suddenly there was a static crack and the loudspeakers came on.

"Hannah Diaz, please report to the VIP Lounge, repeat Hannah Diaz to the VIP Lounge." Crackling, then silence.

Hannah looked at her watch, "That's weird, those people weren't supposed to be here until another twenty minutes. Hmm, oh well."
She gave a smile to Cal, "I'll text you later when I get home."

"Don't forget your coffee." Cal said coming around and handing her the cup.

"Thanks." She said. "Wish me luck, these people are those hardcore right wing types. Super rich and super conservative."

Cal laughed a little too loud, another customer in the corner glared at him. He stopped laughing and just smiled. Hannah made her way up the stairs around the rotunda to the second floor then around to the offices. She smiled at a few of the early birds in their cubicles. She turned the corner right before her cubicle and was in the VIP Lounge. The back wall was a window facing the main strip of the park and the great mountains beyond. The other walls were murals of the original Jurassic Park and what it was meant to be. The sun was high now and Hannah could see the helicopters flying in and the cable cars moving down the mountain side. But where were the VIPs?

"Miss Diaz?" A gravelly voice from behind said. Hannah spun around quickly and faced a tall man in cowboy garb with a white beard and short white hair. "I'm Hyram Smith." Said the man with a thick southern accent. After a moment Hannah Replied.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Smith, welcome to Jurassic Park."

Chapter 2:VIPs

Hyram Smith, the super rich CEO of Faith Image, stood in the VIP Lounge of Jurassic Park. "Miss Diaz let me introduce you to my wife, Clara." He indicated a thin, aging woman with short straightened blonde hair. She had large, sunken blue eyes that Hannah simply couldn't keep contact with. Clara held out her bony hand and Hannah shook it wearing her theme park employee smile.

"So tell me Mr. Smith what exactly is Faith Image?" Hannah already knew the answer, but it was all part of her job.

"Well, uh," He squinted down to her name tag," Hannah, Faith Image is responsible for the construction of Mega Churches and church facilities all across the world. Our motto is Divine by Design for a reason." He beamed reminding Hannah of her grandfather. This made Hannah give a quick sincere smile back. "Ever since I heard about these monsters I've wanted to look at one face to face."

Hannah laughed, "Well, uh, there may be glass or electrified fence between you, but you'll get pretty close to the animals. I promise." They all shared a chuckle.

"Clara here was a bit hesitant about coming after she heard about all the incidents before, especially the one in San Diego." He looked first at his wife then back at Hannah waiting for some kind of explanation.

"Oh, well, I assure you ma'am in the Park's five years we have not had a single incident resulting in death. We haven't even had a breakout." She confessed. Although, it was not uncommon to slam on the brakes to avoid squishing a Compy on the way too and from work. "After some time these animals become the norm for us like any major zoo. The fact that they're prehistoric just kind of goes away along with the fear of unpredictability. I promise you-"

"And that's where things start going to Crap all over again." said a new voice. From around the corner walked a tall man dressed in a black suit. Black sunglasses and salt and pepper hair were staples of the notorious Ian Malcolm who now approached the VIP tour group.

"D-Doctor Malcolm." Hannah felt a mix of embarrassment and relief to see the famous mathematician before her. Not only did he act as an independent consultant but he also toured the park often to give feedback on what Ingen could be doing to ensure the utmost safety. His appearance, however, was unexpected this time. "Uh, Dr. Harding isn't here sir, she's on a paid research leave." Hannah said trying to distract from Dr. Malcolm's exclamation.
"She's my wife, Hannah, you don't have to tell me where she is. No, I'm here because now that I'm retired," He gave a large smile and a chuckle "I can come grill people here whenever I want." Hannah and the Smiths laughed. Malcolm in turn gave Hannah a strange look and made a face at the Smiths that indicated they were to be scrutinized in some capacity. Hannah frowned.

"So we have another half hour or so before everything in the park is actually open and ready for guests." Hannah continued her theme park spiel,"just to let you know, we have a complimentary bar as well as fresh paleo bean coffee. On the table there you'll find some interesting literature, and a sheet of Frequently Asked Questions for you to hold on to as we take the tour."

Clara went and sat on one of the chic modern couches while Hyram took care of business on his phone. Malcolm was the only person who decided to use the coffee machine . . . and the bar. He filled half a coffee cup with coffee and the other half with Evan Williams. Hannah scowled at the thought, and in her liaison voice said, "Dr. Malcolm could I speak with you alone for a moment?"

Malcolm silently made his way over to Diaz. She spoke. "So would you like some coffee with your Jack? Or does retirement entitle you to just barge in whensoever you like?"

"My God, you sound like one of my kids. And I suppose in a professional sense you really can't speak to me that way." He took a sip from his coffee cup and winced a little. "Also, it's Evan Williams."

"You still haven't told me why you're here Dr.Malcolm. You can come along by all means but you've been acting like you're ready for some kind of fight since you showed up." She said earnestly.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He paused for a moment and shifted like he was about to go back into the lounge, but he stopped and looked back at Hannah. "How often do you watch the news?"

"Not often," she gave a puzzled look, "why?"

"Do you keep up with news on the web?" he asked.

A pause, "No."

Dr. Malcolm gave his devilish smile. "Okay."

Hannah wasn't sure what was going on, it was very perplexing. She shrugged it off and walked into the lounge. Clara stared at her for a second with her sunken eyes, Hannah tried to think of a distraction. "Oh, Miss Smith look out across the moat, you can see a herd of Brachiosaurs, uh, grazing on our authentic Mesozoic flora." That seemed to do the trick as it got Clara to stand up and walk by the window. Hannah could see both of the Smiths' faces reflected in he window. The usual expression when one first sees a dinosaur is one of pure awe. The Smiths faces were blank like stone. Hannah looked at Malcolm who just smirked and took another gulp.

Hyram turned around and faced Hannah with a smile, "Would it be okay if my wife and I prayed before the tour?" An odd request, but then again he was literally a church man.

"Of course, uh, go right ahead. And when you're done we can go ahead and start."

"Thank you." Hyram said turning to his wife. They locked hands and began mumbling things. It wasn't necessarily unusual, Hannah had seen people pray to themselves before they entered the Tyrannosaur Paddock. It was the way in which these people were carrying themselves. Maybe if they just left Clara behind Hannah wouldn't feel so awkward.

Hannah felt her phone vibrate and found that it was a text from the tour driver. When the prayer was over, she led the way to the garage at the edge of the moat. Waiting there was a dark grey Ford Escape with Jurassic Park written in maroon on the side. While the vehicle had a full top sunroof, all of it was armored, the tires were made for all terrain, spared no expense.

As the SUV began to pull away, Malcolm mumbled to himself, "Which iteration will this be?." He smirked.
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Chapter 3: Terrible Lizards

There was an awkward air in the modified tour vehicle. The back seats were arranged like a limousine, with three seats facing backwards attached to the front driver's and passenger's side. Another row of seats were placed farther back towards the back hatch facing forward. Hannah and Malcolm sat in the first row facing the Smiths in the second row. Hannah maintained a smile and Malcolm kept his smirk staring directly at Hyram for the first minute or two of the car ride. Clara's gaze was directed outside to the moat they were now passing over, and she finally broke the silence.

"And I thought the gators at your golf course were big, honey. Look at these here." She pointed down at a Saurosuchus laying on a rock. Hyram leaned over her just as they passed through the tree line. He didn't seem disappointed to have missed it.

"If you've downloaded the Jurassic App," Hannah spoke up now,"you can watch a live feed of pretty much any animal in our park. You know, just in case you missed it." Malcolm looked like he was about to say something when the swelling music began to play over the car speakers and the voice of James Earl Jones greeted them with "Welcome to Jurassic Park." They passed under the now iconic wooden gate.

As they passed under the gate, everyone's phone began to vibrate. There was a moment of bewilderment as it took everyone out of the moment.

"Sorry," Hannah said, "since you've downloaded the app, it's going to send you a notification welcoming you to the park and giving discounts when you pass under the gate. I keep forgetting to turn the notifications off!" she finished with a chuckle. To her surprise the Smiths chuckled in return. Maybe now they were warming up. The driver stopped so the guards could let him through the large militaristic gate a mile down the road. They passed through.

"Alright folks!" said the driver cheerfully, "Our first experience of the day is Baryonyx, his name's Barry."

"How cute." Malcolm mumbled as the car rolled to a stop.

"Barry is a fish eater from the early Cretaceous." said Hannah pointing out towards the silvery animal who had its snout resting in the narrow river stream.

"Is it asleep?" Asked Hyram.

"No sir," replied Hannah, "he's using his hunting strategies, and you can even see this in modern animals. He's keeping his snout perfectly still until an unlucky fish- oh there it is!"she said excitedly as the creature snapped it's long head out of the water with a still flopping fish in it's jagged teeth.

"Oh it's so ugly." said Clara shaking her head.

Hannah chuckled a little, but she was really confused. "Well, uh, Baryonyx was going to be on the tour way back on Isla Nublar, but they had to send her back to Site B because of a sickness we now know was caused by Blowfish. They gave their Baryonyx a chopped up fish blend you see. I know, that sounds so terrible right? Well, now we've found ways of actually genetically modifying fish from the early Cretacious so that Barry here can dine on a more natural level."

The Smiths said nothing and Clara just shook her head. Little did Hannah know that this would be their reaction to almost everything on the first half of the tour, and honestly it was exasperating. VIP guests were always so awestruck when they saw any dinosaur, it tapped into their childhood. And the worst part about those people, if she could even say it was a bad thing, was how excited they were by everything. The Smiths were actually beginning to make her mad, it didn't seem like Hyram was as excited about anything as he said he was before. Malcolm noticed and his smirk turned into a full smile. As they finally made their way out of the Iguanodon viewing area, Malcolm texted her, "We'll talk at lunch."

When the Escape exited the Iguanodon area, the road split in two, to the left was a tunnel built into the mountain, to the right was a narrow road overlooking the park. The tour was basically a big U shape around the center of the island. The car drove left, into the tunnel which was covered in advertisements for places and events in the park, as they exited a sign above read, "Lunch is served!"

VIP guests were treated to lunch in the park at The Horner, named after the famed Paleontologist. The food there was pretty good to Hannah, but a little fancy for her taste. The restaurant itself was built atop a waterfall overlooking the vast western jungle. A park, hot air balloon floated wistfully above, tiny flashes of light from inside the passenger chamber told her there were a lot of pictures being taken. But from her point of view she could see nothing but the trees moving.

They went inside the restaurant which had a chic jungle motif, it wasn't particularly large, just a big dining room with a window at the mouth of the artificial waterfall. They recieved their menus, Hannah put hers down immediately, she always got the Five Star Mac n' Cheese. Since she was curating the tour, her meal was free. After everyone had placed their orders, Hannah realized that that had been the first time anyone had talked for at least fifteen minutes. Hannah was waiting for Malcolm to pull her aside now that they were at lunch, but in that instant he cleared his throat and began speaking.

"So Mr. Smith, what church do you attend?"

Hyram Smith looked a little thrown off that a man like Malcolm would even care, but he replied, "We go to Word of Faith Baptist in-"

"Word of Faith?" Malcolm interjected, "Didn't your company build that one?"

"Why yes they did." Hyram replied a little hesitantly.

"You must be a very wealthy man then. You know, since your company gets paid to build mega churches, I mean." Malcolm said pointedly.

Hyram surprisingly wasn't bothered by this, and Hannah pretended not to notice. He said, "Well, Dr. Malcolm it's really none of your business, but yes I make a lot."

"And as a good Christian," Malcolm said almost as soon as the man finished,"you give your money to those in need. Correct?"

"Correct." Hyram said, "I give to homeless shelters, food pantries, you know good will related stuff."

"Good will related stuff." he gave a condescending chuckle, "All church related?"

Hyram's tone stayed alarmingly calm, "What are you trying to say Dr. Malcolm?"

"Nothing, just, well I've been doing a lot of research and a lot of calculating and well. You know that extremist group, Heartland Baptist Church? You know the ones who picket funerals and bash people?" Malcolm asked. Hannah had no idea why he was doing this, or what it had to do with the Smiths.

"Yes Dr. Malcolm, I watch the news." Hyram replied calmly. At this Malcolm gave Hannah an amused look.

"Well, if what I have found is true, I believe you, Mr. Smith, have been funding a lot of that. In fact, I think a lot of that "good will related stuff" is all run by Heartland Baptist Church. But a quick google search will tell you that they don't have any of that. So it stands to reason that you basically pay for them to do whatever they want."

"You're good." Said Clara finally looking up from the table.

"Hannah, call security and tell them to start personally profiling guests. Tell them it's the HBC, and their demonstrations get violent." Malcolm said seriously.

"Is that why you're here Dr. Malcolm?" Asked Hannah incredulously.

"I have a few more suspicions we'll discuss later, now go call security." he replied quickly.

"How do you know me and the missus aren't here for our anniversary? I think it's a bit discriminatory-"but Malcolm interjected.

"Oh don't give me that. Your little army has hated this park since it opened. I read somewhere that you people believe that all of those deaths in the 90s were 'atonement'?" Malcolm said heatedly.

Hyram remained calm, "If you try to play like you're God, he'll be angry. We all deserve his punishment. But you folks around here think that you can just. . . spit in his face, bring back these terrible lizards he tried to get rid of a long time ago. Now how does that make any sense?"

"Trust me, I know it shouldn't really be here. But they've been doing far better than I expected. And a lot of the people who died before were friends of mine in one way or another. If your people start a riot, it will be nobody's fault but your own. That's why you two and all your friends are getting the hell out of here as soon as we get back from the tour." Malcolm had to sit back after this and take a sip of his whiskey sour. Despite what people may have thought, he didn't enjoy getting that passionate.

"Dr. Malcolm," Hyram said with a chuckle, "if I didn't know any better, I'd," he started laughing now. Malcolm just watched silently as Hyram laughed to himself. Clara looked over at her husband with a grin.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were scared."

Chapter 4: Wages of Creation

Hannah sat in the front passenger seat next to Tony the driver. Since the Smiths were only there to cause trouble, Tony just sped along the tour road not stopping for any of the animals. She didn't realize the car could be more silent than it was before. The Smiths sat directly behind her and Malcolm sat in the far back glaring at them.

Hannah finally spoke up in her best tour guide voice, "Well, I hate that you two are having to leave under these circumstances. Did you at least enjoy your lunch?" After this there was silence again.

Hyram cleared his throat, "Hannah, are you a believer?"

Malcolm furrowed his brow and said as calmly as he could muster, "Don't talk anymore Hyram."

Hyram continued, "Do you like it here?"

Hannah entertained him, "Yeah, I love it here. Well, you know, a job's a job, but I think what they've managed to do here is magnificent."

Hyram made a small curious noise, "So then, you think that it's okay to bring back extinct things."

Hannah replied, "With all due respect Mr. Smith, they aren't 'things', they're living breathing animals. And of course there are the plants in the botanical gardens, but what I'm saying is, we've learned from our mistakes in the past if that's what bothers you. This park is as safe, if not more so, than any major zoo."

Malcolm made the same face he always did when anyone discussed the safety of the park, but Hannah couldn't see Hyram's reaction since he was facing away. Both Hyram and Clara were shaking their heads. Hyram said, "I ain't scared of being ate, I know where I'm going when I die." Malcolm rolled his eyes and so did Tony. "It bothers me that yall have continued to do what only God should be able to do. I think he killed those things for a reason, but now yall think you've completely cracked the code to God's creation. Well I'm just gonna tell yall, yall have been playing a dangerous game since the 90s, and God has tried to show you just how dangerous it is. How many people have to die for your sins until you stop being so selfish? When will you finally say 'enough is enough' and wipe out all these creatures and the technology you use to create them? Creation on this scale is unGodly, it's irresponsible, and I can tell yall right now, everything yall have worked for will soon crumble away like sand in the wind."

For a moment there was silence, and finally Malcolm retorted, "You know, I really want to like you. You and I, we're not too terribly different. I think the power of creation requires a level or responsibility very few people possess. I think that thrusting animals from millions of years ago into a modern setting is complicated, and risky, and just a bad idea. It's especially bad when you think you can control them somehow, but in life there's no such thing as control." He threw Hannah for a loop when he uttered a small chuckle, "In life there's only chaos."

Malcolm caught Hannah's eye in the rear view mirror and lightened up a bit. "A prime example of that chaos," he continued, "is that somehow after two separate incidents with these animals, one incident in my wife's case, we're still here. We come back for more, because honestly you just can't stop once you feel like you're tied to something. I feel like I have to be here to make sure I can help if there happens to be another catastrophic collapse. That's why I'm kicking you two off this island, because I know what you want to do and I know that I don't want to be involved in a third incident if I can help it." He paused thoughtfully, "I just want you to know, I understand your convictions." And with this, Dr. Malcolm switched his gaze to outside the car.

Hannah had never seen that side of Malcolm, he had always been more of a cynical boss than anything else. Not that he was ever really unpleasant, just that he never liked putting himself out there like that. The tour vehicle slowed to a stop in front of the armored exit gates and the guard let them through. Hannah was just glad they were nipping this issue in the bud, Cal had texted her that he had seen some visitors being escorted away by the security team.

From what she knew of the Heartland Baptist Church, they not only publicized harsh homophobic, racist, and anti-evolutionist beliefs, but they had been developing in recent years a kind of faith militant to protect their commune. The church itself was a large compound with armed guards outside protecting the community inside. It all sounded very Jonestown in Hannah's opinion and she wanted no part of it. Not that she wasn't religious her grandmother took her to church when she was a kid, she believed there was something out there that regulated everything. But she of course understood the far more fascinating and somewhat harsh realities of science.

Their phones buzzed in unison again as they made their way out of a gate similar to the one at the entrance, but this time they ignored them. As they approached the garage they could see that some armed guards were waiting ahead. As they all exited the vehicle the guards cuffed the Smiths who looked almost triumphant as they were led back to the helipad by the Visitor Center.

One guard said in a slight drawl, "We'll make sure they get back where they're going."

As Hannah and Malcolm watched them go, Hannah made one last tour guide inspired statement, "Sorry!" but the Smiths ignored her.

"Why are you sorry?" Malcolm asked.

"Because they didn't enjoy anything here." Hannah replied in earnest.

"True, but that's their own fault, not yours." Malcolm said chuckling.

Hannah thought for a moment. "Thank you, Dr. Ma-"

"Just call me Ian." he interrupted, "You've given me so many tours by now I might as well be your boss."

"Well then," She said, "thank you Ian."

They began to walk back towards the Visitor Center, a sense of relief was palpable. And by now the park was buzzing, people everywhere, oohs and ahs. Hannah took a deep breath in and let out a nice sigh. Then Malcolm stopped.

"Did you know those two guards just now?" he asked intensely.

"Actually no, I didn't. I know all the guards faces around here. Maybe they're new." Hannah replied.

"No," Malcolm said, "Sarah just sent me a text about some employee email about two missing guards." That's when he saw the helicopter rise above the trees surrounding the helipad. He spoke to himself now, "Oh God, there's a pattern emerging."

"Ian, what's happening?" Hannah asked worriedly.

"Call security tell them to put the island on lock down now!" Malcolm said and he began running through the crowd screaming for people to get out of the street. Hannah dialed security but as they picked up she saw the chopper falter a little getting higher above the Visitor Center. That wasn't the correct flight pattern. Hannah told them what to do and hung up. As the calm voice of the lock down announcer came over the loudspeakers, Hannah watched as the helicopter began to drop, speeding down towards the Visitor Center. People began pouring out of the four huge doors. People in the streets were running to the bunkers placed at the edge of the moat by the garage. And at that moment, Hannah felt her stomach lurch. The chopper smashed through the pyramidal dome of the Visitor Center.