deathandash
Lexi leaned forward, intrigued. "And what? We'd build an army of primal, mindless predators?"
Luke smirked. "Not mindless. Just... reprogrammed. Imagine a world where behavior is coded like software. Disease as design."
The fire pit cracked. Some students muttered how creepy it was. Lexi only smiled wider. "Sure. Or we could just bring back dinosaurs."
That got laughs. A few clinked bottles.
"I mean, honestly?" she went on, light but sharp. "I'd rather be chased by a raptor than a dead guy foaming at the mouth. At least the raptor's not... rotting."
Luke's gaze had settled on her-curious, amused, impressed.
"Our whole generation grew up dreaming of that," she said, lifting her chin. "Jurassic World. How to Train Your Dragon. Eragon. Reign of Fire-we rooted for the monsters."
Luke's grin turned thoughtful. "Then maybe we should bring them back."
--- SIX YEARS LATER ---
Luke Stewart is no longer just a brilliant geneticist-he's the man who hatched the world's first living velociraptor. What started as a late-night obsession became a scientific miracle. But he didn't stop at resurrection. He spliced ancient DNA with modern innovation and created something new. Creatures that resemble dragons more than dinosaurs.
When BioGen-Med Inc. learned of Luke's work, his private project became a high-security black op. Officially, the remote island lab was to be a prototype theme park. Unofficially, it was breeding grounds for bioweapons-living assets designed to kill.
Now the island has gone dark.
General Elijah Halvorsen knows the truth. To fix what's broken, he sends Lexi Russo-a 23-year-old soldier with medical brilliance and razor instincts. She's not just his best-she's like a daughter. And she's the only one who knows what's really waiting out there.
Because the park was never meant to open.
And some monsters were never meant to live.