Chapter 14: The Thieves

"Please... I don't want to die..."

The silhouette ignored his pleas. The massive foot remained planted on his chest, pinning him down until he could barely draw breath.

Suddenly, a cylindrical object, flickering with a rhythmic light, flew through the gap in the gate and landed right in front of Carlo.

Carlo tilted his head slightly, peering at the device with a touch of curiosity.

BANG!

A blinding flash erupted. For a moment, Carlo’s world turned into a void of pure white. He let out a sharp, pained howl, the first sound he’d made since revealing himself.

In the chaos of his sensory overload, Carlo felt a sudden blast of pressurized air shove him aside. Unable to maintain his balance on one leg, he toppled over, landing heavily on his side.

His vision hadn't returned, but his nose told him more people had arrived. Unsure if these newcomers possessed the means to kill him, he chose the better part of valor. Within seconds, he had vanished back into the blackness of the jungle.

"ACU! Hands behind your heads!"

Seven team members stormed through the gate. One of them held a compressed air cannon, the tool used to knock Carlo back, leveled at the man on the ground. The others fanned out, weapons raised, scanning the treeline to ensure the predator didn't circle back for a second strike.

"I... cough, cough..."

The man tried to gasp for air but collapsed into a fit of violent coughing. The ACU lead saw the man’s condition and immediately spoke into his radio.

"We need medics at the Sector 5 service entrance! Dinosaur attack! Bring a stretcher!"

"Make it two, Lead," another teammate called out. He had discovered a second body lying nearby and looked up after checking for a pulse. "We’ve got another one over here."

The lead glanced toward the second man and keyed his mic again. "Correct that, two stretchers."

…

"Dear God... look at his leg..."

A younger paramedic looked at the unconscious Kirov’s mangled limb and sucked in a breath through his teeth.

"We’ll have to amputate right here," a veteran medic said, his voice steady from years of trauma calls. "There’s nothing left but skin and scrap. The leg’s a liability now; he'll bleed out before we move him if we don't stabilize the stump."

"Get him on the board and move him outside to stabilize. It’s not safe in here," the ACU lead ordered.

As he spoke, his gaze drifted toward the dark jungle. His eyes locked onto a pair of faint, flickering yellow pupils reflecting the ambient red light.

The hair on his arms stood on end. Cold sweat slicked his back. Even for a man who had faced carnivores dozens of times, that predatory stare carried a primal weight that was impossible to shake.

"Let’s move," he barked.

Once the medics had cleared out with the wounded, he took one last look at the spot where the eyes had been.

There was nothing there now.

He knew logically that the creature couldn't cross that distance in an instant, but he didn't want to spend another second in that paddock.

…

"There were three intruders. One is unharmed, one has minor chest fractures but should recover, and the last one... well, he’ll be using a wheelchair for the rest of his life," a staff member reported to Claire Dearing.

"At least they're alive. Why did they break in?" Claire’s expression was grim. This wasn't the first security breach in Jurassic World's history; they had protocols in place that, fortunately, wouldn't require Simon’s direct intervention yet.

"The one who can talk insists they just wanted to harvest some skin samples for souvenirs..." The staffer paused, relaying the investigators' actual theory. "But we suspect they’re corporate spies sent by a competitor. You know how much they want…"

He trailed off. Claire sighed. More tedious corporate espionage.

"Treat their injuries, pay them a 'discretionary settlement' for their silence, and hand them over to the feds."

Claire made the call quickly. The hush money was essential. They couldn't afford any leaks about dinosaurs injuring people. Even if the world "knew" dinosaurs were dangerous, the public's delicate sensibilities wouldn't tolerate a documented attack.

Years ago, before Jurassic World opened, public pressure had forced the park to euthanize ten Velociraptors suspected of harming people during the original Jurassic Park incident. As for the veteran T. rex, "Rexy," her past "transgressions" were conveniently blamed on the raptors scheduled for execution.

If news got out, the stock loss would be astronomical. Compared to that, a few settlement checks were a bargain.

Claire looked out the window, feeling a wave of relief. Thank goodness the dinosaur didn't kill them. If there were bodies to hide, the fallout would be unmanageable. If a competitor noticed their people had gone missing, they would scream "dinosaur attack" from every news outlet on the planet.

…

Carlo emerged from the trees and returned to his parents' side. He checked their status panels one more time: their [Torpidity] bars were down to the final third. He finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Post-game analysis: Start!

In reality, Carlo hadn't been asleep at all. He had just been resting his eyes.

(Note: The classic ARK mechanic—dinos are on a 24-hour work cycle.)

The moment he’d heard the faint sounds in the air, he had nudged Debby and Caroline. When they didn't stir, he’d panicked and opened their panels, only to see a new status effect: [Unconscious].

Carlo had immediately activated his "Stealth Mode," creeping off to the side just in time to see a "bush-man" drop from a tree, take skin samples, and bolt.

After a moment's thought, Carlo decided to wait at the exit. The man had a gun, and since Carlo didn't know what kind of ammunition it used, he chose to be cautious.

At the gate, he dropped his camouflage and started making noise, systematically dismantling the intruder's psychological defenses. The alarm had been an unexpected bonus, but Carlo’s plan had worked.

Once he confirmed the tranquilizer rifle was a bolt-action single-shot, he timed his move, slipping behind the man while he was fumbling to reload.

Heh. Caught you. You’re in for a world of hurt now.

Carlo had decided to give these trespassers a "minor" lesson, like stepping on them until they were half-dead.

What? You think that’s too harsh? Nonsense! Carlo was just "playing" with them! He even offered to stand on them! That’s a privilege usually reserved for his parents!

However, Carlo hadn't expected the flashbang to flicker before detonating. The memories in his head hadn't warned him about that. Was that thing designed specifically to bait curious babies like me?!

Click.

He gently picked up a discarded tranquilizer dart from the dirt with his teeth. He set it down, pinned it with a claw, and applied pressure.

Pop!

The glass vial on the side of the dart shattered under the weight. The solution pooled onto the ground in a small puddle. Carlo leaned down and sniffed, committing the chemical scent to memory before turning to leave.