Trapped: Cretaceous Dawn

Prologue

The golden rays of the sun just peeked through the windows of a large office building, casting long shadows over the tropical landscape around it. As construction workers labored on outside, three well dressed men sat around a large conference table inside of an unfinished office that overlooked the operation taking place. There was a large tank that was half full with water, a couple of logs and rocks on the opposite wall to window. The tank stretched to both sides of the wall and seemed to go into the ceiling. A large crane positioned a sign near the entrance of the dock a mile away that read 'Section 34A: KNEG Use only.' The short-haired man with a goatee chuckled behind his dark sunglasses as he looked out of the window.

"We're on an island, you know," he stated half to himself before taking a sip of coffee. "We don't need a sign if the only people who are going to see it are the staff."

A second, slightly older gentleman got up and walked over to the window. His face was aged with the look of war, but his hair and clothes were neat like the younger man. "Don't forget about the investors," he said. "Also the president likes to see where he's putting some of his money and resources into. And also don't forget about the incident that happened a few years back."

The first guy scoffed. "It was just a bunch of random teenagers who snuck in, trying to get them killed. Obviously it worked, considering one didn't make it back."

"Show some respect, Jason!" A third, outraged voice arose from the room. The third man looked to be in his early thirties with dark brown hair. His prescription glasses sat firmly in front of two enraged blue eyes. "These weren't ordinary lawbreaking teenagers we're talking about. They're some of the most extraordinary people the world's ever seen." The room soon became quiet except for the constant construction that seemed to be happening all around. The man got up from his seat and turned towards his two co-workers. He kept on speaking, his voice carried through the half-finished conference room. "Jason, you need to listen to me when I say that these teens by far are the most capable of any person we've hired to help us with our research. Without them, this 'project' of ours could take decades or even centuries."

Jason took a long pause, gazing out of the large window. He turned back to them with a very uncomfortable look sketched on his face. "So you're saying," he started off as he slowly paced back and forth. "You're saying say that we go back to the same people who broke in, who are probably scarred for life, and you want them to come work for us." He turned to the brown-haired man in confusion. "Jesus, Tom, have you honestly thought it through? If we get sued by them, you have to understand that they have enough money to run us into the ground and we are a multi-million dollar corporation."

The second man finally cleared his throat after Jason was done talking. "I'm sorry, Thomas," he croaked "but he does have a point."

"Not you too, Marcus" Tom shook his head as Marcus shifted uneasily. "I know it's risky, but we have to do something and we need to get them on board. We need them." A chime sounded in the conference room and a woman's voice sounded over the intercom.

"Dr. Clifton, you are needed at Lab A," the tender voice of a young woman said. "Dr. Johnson and Sgt. Rivera would like to see you right away. They've found something that would interest you." There was something odd and synthetic about the voice.

"Thank you, Ava," Tom smiled as he headed for the door. He seemed to know what he was about to walk into. Before exiting the room, he turned back to the two other gentlemen who looked rather lost and confused. "Call them in," he said "make them an offer they can't refuse. We need them." Without giving Marcus or Jason time to argue again, Tom started down the hallway and headed for the elevator. His mind was racing as he ran scenarios about what could happen in the next forty-eight hours. Will they join the team? Are they going to sue KNEG and shut them down? Did his team find what he was searching for? He entered the elevator and pressed number eleven. The elevator wasted no time, sending the scientist plummeting and then stopped as the doors open to the floor. Tom walked swiftly down the hall with a modest grin on his face. He opened a door on his right side and was greeted by a large circular object in the center of the room. In the middle of it was a whirl of blue and grey. Tom couldn't see through it, no matter how hard he tried. The machine emitted a soft hum, along with a beep every so often. Stepping through it, Tom found himself in another lab. This one was busier that the other one. Some scientists were deep in conversations while others checked and moved around boxes and crates.

"Professor," a voice rose up over the loud chatter in the room. Tom looked around and saw a young soldier sitting on top of a crate. He was lean and muscular with spiky black hair. His military dog tags hung from his neck like a trophy. Tom made his way over to the crate, only to be greeted by another young man. He wore a matching lab coat and glasses while the soldier wore a beige t-shirt, camouflaged pants and boots. He also caressed an assault rifle with one arm.

"What did I say about weapons in the labs?" Tom asked as he shook his head at the soldier. "Come on, Victor. I can't even tell you how much of a safety hazard it is." There was some amusement in his voice, as if he knew it would happen anyway.

Victor grinned, tapping the safety switch on his gun. "Nothing to worry about, sir," he said. "The safety's on."

"Sir," the younger scientist interrupted, looking impatient and nervous. "We've found something you will want to see." He handed Tom an electronic tablet. There was an image on it of a boot print in the mud. The mud was hardened, meaning the print was weeks to a month old.

Tom looked less interested than before, after all it was just a footprint. He frowned a little, "how do we know it's not one of our own?" His tone seemed slightly irritated, though he did not mean for it to be. "It's just a regular old boot print."

"That's what we thought at first," Victor chimed in, "but we let Ava analyze it for us. None of our people in any of our facilities have that kind of issue because it was given to certain special ops soldiers. I would know because I have a pair like that back at home."

Tom paused, the evidence sparked new interest in his blue eyes. A smile slowly danced across his face, spreading from cheek to cheek. It was the final piece he needed to help get those teenagers to join their project. "Boys," he started off, putting his hands on their shoulders. "Thank you. This is exactly the kind of thing I was looking for to start Project 'Cretaceous Dawn'."