Greed's Expedition

I would like to introduce a story I wrote some time ago but am not yet complete with. I feel that this story is the best to start off with because it is one of my favorites of my own work. Please enjoy, its a long one. 
 

Greed’s Expedition

Alex Ford

            Have you ever had one of those really good ideas that deep down you knew was impossible to accomplish without some sort of divine intervention by God? Well this was one of those ideas. Unfortunately for me and my team the idea came from my boss, a man named Tom Langley a billionaire with an oil empire big enough to fund its own country. With this guy that divine intervention from God was unnecessary because he had enough money to fund any idiotic idea he had. I really wish he would have had an idea like genetically engineered puppies that pooped rainbows, but this guy was all about making even more money than he already had and rainbow pooping puppies were not in high demand right now. No, this man’s idea was something far more insane. Tom hired a group of scientists to do the impossible and construct a machine that would make a rift in time. If you ask me this guy has been watching too much Back to the Future or Doctor Who, but nonetheless the scientists had succeeded in creating this machine, and no it was not a delorean. Tom’s plan is to arrange a team of highly skilled professionals to accompany him back to the Stone Age and create special reservoirs in which oil will naturally be made over the millennia. This was actually the easy part of the expedition, simply fill some giant holes underground with dead and decaying plants and animals and let the natural process of things occur. He will then travel far enough into the future to purchase all of these properties before they are bought out for other reasons and then return home where he will have billions of dollars more than he already has. The only part of this whole insane thing that I don’t understand is why do I have to go with them? Oh yeah I guess with all this explaining of my boss’s crazy asinine plan I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Brett Morrison and I am the assistant to Tom Langley for his corporation Global Oil Inc. which apparently makes me qualified to be one of the few that gets to travel in time.

            I’m not even going to pretend that I understand anything about the time machine that was created for this expedition or time travel in general. I’m just the guy who gets the morning coffee and does all the grunt work hoping that one day it will all pay off and I’ll be in charge of my own branch of the company. This being said I had been tasked with the job by Mr. Langley to assemble a team to accompany Tom and I back in time along with the scientists. I had been asked to find a Paleontologist, a Paleozoologist, an Archaeologist, and a crack team of armed guards just in case things take a turn for the worst. Fortunately I’m good at what I do and I found some of the best of the best in these fields. Paleontologist Dr. Richard Hadberg, Paleozoologist Doctor Lisa Green, Archaeologist Doctor Samantha Gutierrez, and a team of guards from an independent military company that consisted of men by the names of Ben Frost, Harry Kent, and Patrick O’ Connelly. All of these people were extremely qualified to go on this mission and face the unknown but why am I among them? The only conclusion I can come to at this time is that Tom will need me to bring him some coffee or a sandwich as we are being chased down by a hundred foot tall tyrannosaurus rex. I’m just hoping by doing this Tom will trust me enough to finally put me in charge somewhere, maybe in one of the hundreds of new branches he will have after this missions success. For now I just need to prepare for tomorrow where we will make history, and the rich will get richer.

            6:26 am only 4 minutes until the time jump. The team assembled by Brett to travel back in time on this crazy mission thought up by oil mogul Tom Langley was eagerly waiting in the laboratory. Tensions were high; nobody was saying anything to one another as they awaited the arrival of the man who had brought them all together. A single bead of sweat ran down Brett’s face which only could have been caused by nerves seeing as how the lab was kept at a constant temperature of 74 degrees with no humidity. The lab was very pristine housing the finest modern technology that money could buy. There were so many lights and buttons flashing on computers and other machines that one may think that they were inside a UFO from a cheesy sci-fi movie. It was also so clean in there that it was probably safer to eat off of any surface in that laboratory than a plate fresh out of a dishwasher. The silence was finally broken when one of the guards said something. It was Patrick O’ Connelly a big buff Irish man sporting camo pants and a black tank top. If his red hair and beard didn’t give away his Irish heritage then his accent surely would.

            “Well, what the hell is takin’ him so long?”

            “Yeah, I was hoping to meet the man in charge before we made it to the Jurassic era.” said Lisa. Lisa was the Paleozoologist recruited by Brett to help identify any dinosaurs that they may stumble across to make sure they aren’t a threat. She was a little older probably late 40s early 50s with brown hair that was only about shoulder length. However she was in shape for her age, Brett made sure they wouldn’t have anyone with them that may slow them down in the off chance that they would have to outrun something. The other dinosaur expert brought on was Paleontologist Richard Hadberg who was well seasoned in his area of expertise hosting his own television program on dinosaurs and their different habits. He was slim with hair that was always camera ready along with the rest of him. Archaeologist Samantha Gutierrez was the third and final scientist signed on to this quest with the exception of Tom’s private team of scientists. She was a young Latino woman with long black hair wearing an outfit that can only be described as what a child would think an archaeologist wears while at a dig site. The suspenders were a nice touch to really help finish off the look.

            Brett was becoming more nervous by the second, afraid these men might just get up and walk out on him before his boss had a chance to make his appearance. He knew he had to say something to calm everyone down.

            “Just calm down everyone I’m sure Mr. Langley will be here any second.”

            “And who are you telling us to calm down?” sneered Patrick in his thick Irish accent.

            “I’m Brett Morrison, Mr. Langley’s assistant, and I can assure you that he will be along shortly.”

            “Well boy-o, I sure hope you’re right because come 6:30 I’m either gonna be walking into a machine that can travel in time or through the nearest exit and heading home.”

            At that moment as though awaiting the perfect moment to make his entrance Tom Langley walked through the door with his small team of scientists. He was looking very much like a billionaire business man wearing the finest suit.

            “Hello, ladies and gentleman,” Tom began to speak drawing all the attention to him. “I apologize for my tardiness, but I was making some last minute preparations for today’s journey. I am hoping you all read the briefings that I had sent to each of you explaining what we are about to do. Today we will be making history and a few billion dollars in the process. Now if all of you will please accompany me this way? I would like to show you the machine that will be making all of this possible for us today.”

            The small crowd of people followed Tom through the laboratory. They entered a room that seemed to be completely empty.

            “Welcome to the finest advancement in technology that money could buy,” declared Tom.

            “Is this some sort of joke? This just looks like an empty room, a waste of space,” responded Richard.

            “Ah yes Dr. Hadberg this is an empty room. It is what is beneath this room that I am talking about” Tom pulled out a remote from his pocket and clicked the single button on the remote. The floor at the other end of the room began to shift and a staircase appeared. “Now please follow me down these stairs so we can finally begin our journey.”

            The group descended the stairs into a small metal room. The technology inside of it was even more amazing than the laboratory. The controls were projected out of the screens around the machine. Everybody was amazed at this sight. This was something that none of these people expected to see in their lifetime.

            “Wow, boss. This is beyond amazing,” exclaimed Brett.

            “Indeed it is, Mr. Morrison, and I am so happy you could be here with me today for this. You have always been loyal to me and you’re the best worker I have, and that is why I chose you for this. If everything goes to plan today I will be promoting you to be in charge of operations at these new plants that I will be building.”

            “Mr. Langley, I can’t believe it! I can’t thank you enough!”

            “No thanks necessary, Mr. Morrison; there is nobody I would rather have be in charge with me.” Tom turned away from Brett and faced the others. “You all know why you are here. We will be traveling back in time to establish reservoirs for oil to form where it is not currently nor ever was. I assure you I have taken the precautions for this to go smoothly; however, I do hope you are all up for any challenges we may experience. Now without any further hesitation I would like for you all to strap in to a seat and we shall set off.”

            “Before we go, Mr. Langley, may I ask how you know for sure this will work? Not just the whole scheme you have of creating your own oil reservoirs but what about this time machine? Many have said time travel could not be done, and you expect us to believe you that this will work and not just blow us up or something like that?” asked Samantha.

            “Be assured, Doctor Gutierrez, that my plans are full proof. The oil will be the easy part we simply have to give Mother Nature a push towards doing what it does. As for the time travel, well that was the hard part. Luckily for you all that is already done, and you are standing in the product of billions of dollars of research and scientific genius. We have already tested this numerous times and worked out every single kink that we ran into along the way. Trust me when I say that I am a hundred percent sure that this will work.” Tom turned away and made a notion towards the scientists to start the time machine. “Now that I have calmed your nerves, if you would all please take your seats we can make history.

            Everyone strapped in not knowing what to expect next. The machine began whirring and wheezing beeping and bopping, the experience was surreal. What came next can only be explained as a window to heaven, a bright light leading down a tunnel that the machine seemed to be speeding down so fast that it felt like the skin was about to rip from their bodies as easily as an orange is peeled. All of a sudden everything had stopped. A calming wave seemed to pass over everybody in the time machine because in that moment they knew that they had succeeded; they had managed to travel back to a time that not even their story books could capture very well. They were now in a land that had existed millions of years before they were even born.

            Tom stood up from his seat and addressed the others, “Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to congratulate you all on being the first humans to travel back in time. I would also like to welcome you all to the Mesozoic era, the era of dinosaurs.”

            “Amazing!” exclaimed Richard. “Think of the filming I could do. No more of that computer animated crap that we have now. I can get live footage of real living dinosaurs. My ratings will be off the chart!”

            “Indeed, Doctor Hadberg,” responded Tom. “But remember our first priority here is to locate the reservoir sites and complete your objective. However, what you guys do in your down time is up to you. Now if all of you would grab survival pack in the back of the time machine, we can be on our way. Everything you need you will find in that pack so don’t lose it.”

            “Before we head out I have one question that nobody has yet answered, Mr. Langley; what if our actions here drastically change the course of the future? What if we kill a bug or snap a twig and it somehow completely wipes out the human race?” asked Samantha.

            “It’s all part of our journey. However, I highly doubt something like that will happen, but I guess we shall see,” replied Tom.

            Tom’s group of scientists that had built the time machine stayed behind to make sure nothing happened to it while the rest of the group exited the time machine stepping out into this very familiar yet very alien world. The clean air was new to them. There was absolutely no pollution of any kind making the air much more oxygen rich. All of the plants gave off the scent of paradise.

            “This is absolutely amazing,” said Lisa.

            “Yes it is,” Tom agreed. “Before we head out though I would like to set up a perimeter so Patrick, Ben, Harry, go and make sure there’s nothing lurking around and walkie in when you’re done. The first site is about an hour hike from here so rest up and enjoy some of that down time I promised you.”

            As Patrick, Ben, and Harry set out into the dense forest that surrounded them, the rest of the group enjoyed their immediate surroundings. Richard pulled out a camera and began filming short clips of the plants and insects the he could find. Lisa admired her surroundings finding foot prints and trying to identify what put them there. Tom went back into the time machine to instruct his scientists on what they will be doing to prepare for the trip back leaving Brett and Samantha to wander through the surrounding forest.

            “No offense but why are you here? I mean from what I understand you are just Tom’s assistant,” questioned Samantha.

            “Yes, that is correct, but I have been promised a partnership pending the success of this mission. My best guess it that Tom just wanted somebody that he trusted inside the company that knew what happened here today, but hey I’m not complaining. If all this goes smoothly we will all be very rich people,” replied Brett.

            “So you’re not questioning any of the moral problems with this? I mean we are changing history; we are making something that was never supposed to exist. We are playing God”

            “I wouldn’t go as far as to say we’re playing God, more that we are pushing science to its limits. Were we playing God when we sent a man to the moon a place where no man should naturally be? No we were simply advancing our scientific knowledge. As far as any other moral dilemmas you may think of, the locations we have selected are all areas that will remain uninhabited by people at least in our time. We won’t be changing anyone’s lives by doing this except our own.”

            “I hardly think the moon landing compares to this, but I’m glad to hear that your company has done its research”.

            Samantha and Brett continued walking through the forest admiring the sights. The plant life was like nothing else, completely untouched by any destructive force. Their amazement was brought to an immediate halt when they heard something close to them. They quickly ducked into some nearby bushes fearing something may be hunting them. The footsteps got closer and heavier. A paralyzing fear came over them, and they were unable to talk or move. One of the bushes next to them began to shake followed by a loud crunching sound. Brett with a rush of adrenaline screamed out for help, “Dr. Hadberg, Dr. Green, come here quickly,” he shouted. In a matter of seconds, they heard the gasps of their rescuers followed by awes of amazement.

            “You guys are safe; you can come out,” proclaimed Richard.

            Brett and Samantha emerged from the bushes to the sight of something incredible. In front of them stood a pair of giant reptilian monsters. They walked on all fours munching on all of the nearby bushes. They were a brilliant mixture of greens and yellows with horns protruding down their bodies and a thick armor plated back that could be somewhat compared to a turtle’s shell.

            “What is that?” asked Brett with a tone of amazement but still with fear in his eyes.

            “Those would be ankylosaurus, the great armored lizard. You have nothing to fear because they are herbivorous. Just try not to spook them because that club tail could knock you back to the time we came from,” answered Lisa.

            “Fantastic! This is what I’ve been waiting for! Quick somebody hold this camera I want to get some footage while there’s still good lighting.” commanded Richard.

            Samantha took the camera from Richard and held it steadily on him as he began talking about these creatures. His knowledge was no joke; it was like he had google in his head giving him a plethora of information on this particular dinosaur. His enthusiasm was oozing out of him. He was like a young boy again discovering dinosaurs for the very first time. His words although not directed towards anything other than the camera brought comfort to Brett who knew next to nothing about these creatures.

            “So if these are herbivores that must mean we are safe here from any real threats, like a dino looking for lunch that would be more than happy to stumble upon a nice little human buffet,” assumed Brett.

            “Well as much as I hate to bust your safety bubble that is not true. The ankylosaurus really has no predators due to that massive armor that it has developed over it. Even a T-Rex would think twice before taking a bite out of one of these big guys, so they pretty much feel safe to wander wherever there’s good food, predators in the area or not,” answered Lisa.

            Suddenly a voice came over their walkies, “Perimeter is clear, no hostiles identified. Heading back to base.”

            The next voice to come over the walkie was that of Tom’s, “Alright ladies and gentlemen, let’s meets back at the time machine and get ready for our hike.”

            The group gathered back at the time machine which became the home base now that a safe perimeter had been set up. Tom stepped out of the time machine dressed more appropriately for a hike which was probably a good idea because hiking in an expensive suit probably would not be the best idea in this hot forest setting. His stride was that of a confident man knowing that he was about to change his fate for the better. He stood before the group of people ready to lead them on the journey of their lifetime.

            “As I said before it will take us about an hour to reach the first site. I will take the lead accompanied by Mr. O’ Connelly with the rest of you following closely. Mr. Frost and Mr. Kent I would like it if you would follow closely behind making sure that nothing is following us. I do not think lightly of this situation. I know there could be dangers around every corner, but I trust that you gentlemen will be able to protect us.” Tom reached into his bag and pulled out a small electronic device. “This GPS that you will find in the bag I have supplied you with will guide you back to home base if for any reason you become separated from us. It is locked on to a signal being given off by the time machine, so as long as you keep this safe you should be able to find your way back. If for any reason you become disabled or trapped somehow, there is this button on the side which if activated will send an emergency signal to the time machine, and the signal will be reversed so we can find you. I hope it does not come to this, but as I’ve said before we have taken many safety precautions to avoid any casualties. On a similar note you will find many more useful items in your bag including food and water. Now that that is all said and done we can now go to the first site.”

            Tom and Patrick began heading off into the forest with the others following. The hike in a normal forest would be nothing more than that, a hike. But this forest was a new experience to them all. The plants, the animals, the sights and sounds, it was all extremely exhilarating. It did not take long for the heat to get to them. The sun was much more intense here as if its youth made it give off more heat. The sweat really began to flow from each of their pores, as if a dam had been broken and the river began flowing down a mountainside. Because of this it did not take long for the group to build up a thirst, so only twenty minutes in Tom made the decision to stop for a break.

“Alright guys, this heat has surely gotten to us all by now, so let’s stop here and take five.”

The gang practically dropped to the ground to rest their already weary legs, each of them rapidly ripping into their bag looking for water. After gulping down nearly a liter of water, Richard decided to question the situation.

            “How’s come I can hike for hours through an African savannah or the Amazon rainforest before feeling this tired? Are we even on earth anymore?” asked Richard.

            “Yes, I am positive this is still earth, Dr. Hadberg. My scientists had warned me that there may have been a chance of a difference in the gravitational pull of the earth before the meteor had hit it knocking a good chunk of it away and moving it further away from the sun. The combination of the suns distance and greater gravity will indeed make this a more difficult journey. Just look at it as one hell of a workout,” answered Tom. “Alright guys you have 3 more minutes until we get back on the road; I would dearly like to complete our objective before nightfall.”

            They continued on for the next hour heading towards their destination stopping only for brief water rests. Even with the excruciating hike, they had found themselves lucky to not run into any predators along the way. The hour long estimation was not exactly spot on, but they managed to make it to the first site fairly quick without any major setbacks. The site was much like most of the other land around them, lush with life an untouched by any destructive force, however that was about to change.

            “This is it guys, the first of our three sites and the first step to making our fortune. If you would now all please remove the trench shovels from your packs we can begin digging,” ordered Tom.

            “Hold on one second; you expect the eight of us to dig a giant hole for you to turn into a reservoir using nothing but shovels? I was at least expecting some sort of mining equipment,” snapped Lisa.

            “Well, Doctor Green, I do expect a little bit of effort from everyone here, but you are correct in assuming that I surely do not expect you to dig the entire reservoir. This, my dear, will accomplish the majority of the work.” Tom pulled a small briefcase from his bag and opened it. Inside were three metallic cubes one of which Tom removed from the case. It looked like nothing more than a shiny piece of metal about the size of a softball. “This, my friends, is possibly a greater scientific feat than the time machine that brought us all here. Once activated, this metal cube will break down into millions of nanites which are microscopic robots that have been programmed to eat away the earth downward and outward for three square miles which will create a huge reservoir which they will then fill with dead and decaying material. All we have to do is simply dig down deep enough to make sure that nothing will dig down into our newfound money pit.”

            “Nanites?” questioned Richard. “Couldn’t something horrible happen like the programming is off, and they get out of the ground and destroy all matter on the earth bringing an end to the world a bit sooner than it’s supposed to be? At least that’s what happens in all the movies I’ve watched.”

            “Do not fret; my scientists have taken extreme precautions to make sure nothing of the sort will happen. You see, even if they were to breach the earth’s surface and make it out on land, they only have around forty minutes of life before they die. There is no way that this will turn out like one of your movies, Doctor Hadberg. Now let’s get digging”.

            They all retrieved a shovel from their packs and began digging. They were instructed that they needed a hole at least six feet deep and four feet in diameter. It sounded like a daunting task especially in this sweltering heat, but it only took about twenty minutes digging in shifts keeping everyone as fresh an energized as they could be. After completing the hole, Tom took the cube and buried it deep beneath the earth. He then removed a remote from the briefcase to present it to everyone.

            “By using this remote, I will now activate the first nanite cube. Once activated, we may feel a slight tremor, but that is just the nanites going to work and building our fortune.”

            Tom pressed the button activating the nanites. For a while there was nothing and then out of nowhere the tremor struck. But the tremor was anything but slight; it was so powerful that it managed to knock everyone off of their feet. As they got up and dusted themselves off, there was a horrifying noise off in the distance. What they heard may have been the most horrific sound to ever pierce their ears. It was indeed the loud roar of the king of the lizards, a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Everyone’s suspicions were confirmed by expert Doctor Lisa Green.

            “Tom, I think we should head back to the time machine now. We have gained the attention of a much undesired creature, and I really don’t want to be anywhere near here when it comes to investigate.”

            “What are you talking about?! A t-rex would be TV gold! I would be committing a crime to humanity if I pass up an opportunity to film a live T-rex!” preached Richard.

            “I’m afraid I’m going to have to side with Doctor Green on this one; I would like to avoid being dino chow, so let’s head back to home base and lay low for the night, and tomorrow we will hopefully be able to hit the second and third sites,” said Tom.

            Driven by fear and adrenaline, the group managed to make it back to home base without stopping. Once back they set up camp and settled down preparing for nightfall. It had been hours since they had heard the T-Rex, and without any other signs of it everyone managed to calm down enough to settle in. By morning they were all well rested and ready for the day ahead of them. Stepping out of the time machine, Brett took a deep breath of fresh air filling his lungs and stretching as if welcoming himself to the new day. After taking a few extra steps out he noticed Patrick off in the distance and began walking towards him. Once closer to Patrick, Brett noticed that he was inspecting something very thoroughly on the ground next to him. It was a bloody mess with chunks of flesh strewn across the ground.

            “I see you got breakfast,” joked Brett.

            “Nah boy-o, this was not my doing. I think we were followed yesterday and whatever it was got tired of waiting for us and found a nice meal in this little yoke. I must say I’m not too surprised; we made one hell of a holy show of ourselves yesterday. Let us hope that whatever did this is content and scrambled off back home”.

            “Yes let’s hope that. We should probably head back soon because I think we’re about to head out. Tom was almost done with his morning coffee which means he’s going to be ready to go.”

            Patrick and Brett headed back to the time machine very alert of their surroundings. This was definitely not the first thing they expected to see this morning and will likely stick with them for the remainder of their stay in this time. Everyone was up and ready each completing their morning routines. Lisa seemed to prepare for the day with a calming yoga routine while Richard stumbled about half asleep until he found the coffee. Samantha already full of youthful energy had her backpack ready and was just waiting to go to the second site. Tom stepped out of the time machine prepared to rally his troops.

            “If any of you are worried about what took place yesterday, my scientists have come up with a feasible explanation. More than likely as the nanites dispersed throughout the ground they had hit an air pocket which caused a quicker breach of the earth than what had been calculated. I hope you find this explanation satisfactory as I would like to hit both the second and third sites so we can go home. With that being said, let us gather our things so we can go to the second site.”

            Brett leaned over to Patrick and whispered to him, “Do you think we should inform the others of the leftovers you found this morning?”

            “I have full intentions of informing both my team and Mr. Langley of it. However I think the rest of the team should remain blissfully ignorant of the situation. I wouldn’t want everyone to be shook today when we have much to do.”

            The journey to the second site was a grueling one, although not as bad as the one the day before now that everyone knew what to expect. On the way Patrick told Tom about what he discovered that morning and even though Tom chalked it up to a completely natural hunt by a dinosaur that no way involved them, he agreed that Patrick should only tell the other guards so the others would not be scared that such an event took place so close to their base of operations. Even if they were being hunted the day before, they came across nothing dangerous on their way to the second site aside from some brachiosaurus and othnielosaurus which Richard was ecstatic to come across. To him the more dinosaurs he got to film the more famous he would become.

            The reaction of the nanites being activated at the second site went much more smoothly. Although a small tremor was felt, it was nowhere near that of the first which gave the team enough confidence to set off to the third site without fear of any repercussions of their actions. The third site was farther away than that of both the first and second, but the crew was ready for this mission to come to an end so they can spend the rest of the day enjoying themselves. The journey to the third site took them well past midday bringing the temperature to an extreme high that melted the enthusiasm out of everyone faster than a popsicle in a furnace. Nonetheless they arrived at the third site unharmed.

            “This is it, the third and final site and the last stop on our journey. I would like to thank you all for your efforts and your bravery,” praised Tom.

            “I’m just happy we didn’t come across anything that wanted to eat us,” said Lisa.

            “The day is still young ya scanger so you best not be jinxing us now,” advised Patrick

            “I was simply saying that fortune has favored us this far, and hopefully no harm will come for the rest of our stay here, so I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t be so cross with me Mr. O’ Connelly.”

            “Ah hump off.”

            Tom interjected to calm the rising tensions, “Now calm down you two. It has been a long day for all of us, but there is no need to go arguing with each other now when we are so close to completing our mission. Now grab your shovels and start digging.”

            Grabbing their shovels everyone got right to work wearily puncturing the earth with every stabbing blow of their shovels. It took time but like the other sites they had finally managed to dig deep enough to plant the nanites. Tom patted the soil overtop the nanite cube and then gripped the remote firmly in his hand knowing he was just seconds away from making himself the wealthiest man on the planet. With much pride he pressed down on the button to activate the third cube. The click of the remote sent a wave of anticipation through everyone making them await some sort of shifting in the earth beneath their feet. They all braced themselves and waited but nothing came.

            “So was that is?” asked Richard “I was expecting at least a little shake but you know I’m not complaining.”

            “No no no! Something is wrong with the cube. I haven’t come all this way to fail here! I will not allow this!”

            Tom slammed the remote to the ground in his fit of rage breaking it upon impact. Within moments there was a loud explosion beneath them shaking the earth creating a crack along the surface sending everyone scattering in different directions. The tremor lasted for nearly 15 seconds which was just enough time to spread the fissure a good distance along the forest floor in several different directions resulting in the group separating into three different segments. Brett, Samantha, and Tom managed to make it to one side while Patrick and Lisa made it to the other. The two remaining guards Harry and Ben along with Richard were nowhere to be found.

            “Is everyone alright?” shouted Tom.

            Brett was the first to reply, “I’m okay but it looks like Samantha has been knocked unconscious.”

            From across the fissure Patrick chimed in, “I’m alright too sir and I have Dr. Green with me as well. She looks a little scraped up but she’ll be alright. Any sign of the rest of my squad?”

            “No, I don’t see them or Dr. Hadberg. Try to walkie them,” responded Tom.

            “Come in Harry, Ben. Do either of you read me? Come on you wankers answers me.”

            The walkie remained silent. Patrick waited for a response checking different frequencies until finally he heard something.

            “Patri…. come in Pat. This… Ben. Harry and doc…berg are with m…”

            The signal must have been very weak and barely anything they were saying was making through. Patrick was only able to make out certain words and piece together the sentences like a puzzle.

            “Ben where are you? We have zero visual confirmation of your location.”

            “Fell… somewhere underground… dark.”

            “Tell them to look in their packs. I have supplied everyone with flares. Also have one of them activate the tracking device on their GPS. It will make looking for them immensely easier.”

            The faction that was trapped underground followed these orders and activated the tracking device. They had fallen only twenty feet down into a small cave system dug out as a borough which once housed a very large creature. Underground Richard assessed the situation.

            “This all must have been dug out by a family of Oryctodromeus, a fairly recently discovered species that would borough down into the earth. Luckily for us they are herbivorous, so we don’t have to worry too much about them eating us. If we follow these tunnels, we will surely find our way out.”

            “Alright let me walkie it in to Patrick and tell him we will meet them back at home base,” replied Ben.

            The walkie static had grown so strong that Patrick could make out less of what Ben was saying. “Doc says… safe…find …out…meet ba… base.”

            “It sounds like the boy-os are fine and are going to meet us back at home base, so let’s find a way across or around this hole in the earth and head back.”

            Patrick was met with a response of wide eyed stares from Brett and Tom as if they had just seen a monster. In fact that may be because they were looking directly at a monster. Standing behind Patrick and Lisa stood a great beast gazing upon its next meal.

            “Patrick, Lisa, you need to get out of here right now,” said Brett at a low volume trying not to draw any more attention to them.”

            Lisa noticed that they were looking at something behind her so she turned to see what was terrifying them so badly. She was instantly struck with the same fear realizing that right behind her was a fifteen foot tall nightmare.

“Oh, my God, a carnotaurus, this is simply amazing.”

Patrick quickly turned around as soon as he realized what was going on. It had a brilliant coloration to it, nearly completely red with black striped running horizontally down its back. Two nubby horns perched atop its head only added to its monster like qualities.

“Far from amazing doctor; it looks fairly cheesed off. I don’t think it liked our man made earth quake. We need to scatter and fast before we end up chew toys up in that things trap. Start running and I’ll put some lead into it if it decides to follow us.”

Patrick and Lisa sprinted off into the forest like gazelle running from a lioness in hot pursuit immediately drawing the carnotaurus’s attention to them. Patrick began firing shots that seemed like nothing more than a bee sting on the thick hide of the dinosaur. It was fast, much faster than them and with every step it closed the gap between them. Escape seemed futile as nothing could stop the monster. Then in the blink of an eye the trees behind them burst open revealing something that at the moment was mistaken as a savior. With one powerful snap of its jaws a tyrannosaurus rex grabbed the carnotaurus and began crushing the life out of it. This caused Patrick and Lisa to stop dead in their tracks and assess the situation. They gazed upon this massive reptile with a slightly less massive one squirming in its mouth. It leaned its head back and let the dino slide down its throat like someone sucking on a spaghetti noodle. It then looked back down and made eye contact with Lisa. One could assume the thoughts going through its head right now were similar to saying, “Oh look dessert”. It then belched out a powerful roar that shook the trees around them sending everything scattering including Patrick and Lisa. There was absolutely no way they could outrun it, so their only option was to get to the other side of the crack in the ground where hopefully the t-rex couldn’t follow. With all their might they leapt across to the other side flying over nearly a ten foot gap. Unfortunately neither of them was at any point in their lives a long jumper both falling short by only inches. In the final seconds before falling to their deaths, Patrick managed to reach out and grab the ledge with one hand and Lisa with the other. Dangling there over a bottomless pit, Lisa was wondering if this was a better way to die than in the jaws of a dinosaur.

Patrick’s grip on the ledge was slipping. He was prepared to let go and end it all, all the worry and all the fear that they had experienced over the last few minutes. Maybe death was the only escape. Just as he was about to let go, he felt a pressure on his arm. He looked up and saw Brett holding on to him and slowly pulling them up. Once back on solid ground Patrick let his fears roll off of him.

“Well, Mr. Morrison, you aren’t quite the sap I thought you were. I thought I was the one being paid to protect you but here you are saving me and puss face over here.”

“Don’t thank me yet. I don’t think your friend over there has given up on his meal.”

Across the gap the t-rex stood there staring at them excited to see a third course had been added to his meal. Tom and a recently awoken Samantha were not far behind Brett now arriving at the scene.

“We need to get back to the time machine now!” commanded Tom.

They all sprinted off in the direction of the time machine hoping that the t-rex would lose interest and wander off to find another meal.

Trapped in an underground tunnel dug out by a family of Oryctodromeus after an explosion caused by the failed detonation of the nanite cube, Richard, Harry, and Ben were getting their bearings. Vision was minimal with the only light being given off from a few emergency flares. Even with the poor lighting it was clear that the men were injured from the fall. Harry managed to get a pretty deep gash in his leg by falling on his knife and Richard was clutching his ankle most likely due to a mild sprain. Ben got off pretty lucky with only a few small cuts and bruises however he seemed to have lost his pack during the fall. After making contact with Patrick through a week walkie signal, Ben addressed the wounds of Harry and Richard.

            “Harry, toss me your pack I remember seeing that Tom had supplied us with first aid kits.”

            Harry managed to throw his bag over to Ben with a blind toss with it thudding to the ground at Ben’s feet. Ben rifled through the bag past the food, ammunition, and other miscellaneous items until he found a white plastic lunch box style kit with a big red cross on the top. Inside there were some different kinds of bandages to satisfy any emergency. There was also some nylon sutures and anti-bacterial spray which Ben took and sprayed onto the large cut on Harry’s leg.

            “You might want to bite down on something Harry because this is going to hurt… a lot.” instructed Ben.

            Using a needle Ben pierced into the skin of Harry’s leg weaving in and out to close the cut. The blood streaming down the pant leg of Harry and onto the hands of Ben was slowing as the cut was closing inch by inch. After stitching Harry up Ben found some athletic tape and began to wrap Richard’s ankle.

            “I think it’s broken.” whimpered Richard.

            “Nah it aint broken but you’re gonna have some trouble walking on it for a while. As a matter of fact both of you are gonna have some trouble walking but you’ll have to do your best until we get back to home base.”

            Ben hauled Richard up to his feet and handed him one of the flares. The pain was visible on Richards face as he grimaced and limped over to a wall to help support himself. Harry’s military background may have helped him cover up his pain but he was walking with a severe limp and still leaking blood like a slow dripping faucet. Ben knew neither of these men were going to make it very far without better medical treatment. Richard reached into his pack and pulled out a flashlight pressing in the button to turn it on. The light turned on for a brief second and then flickered and shut off.

            “Ugh just my luck” exclaimed Richard. “It must have broken during the fall. I thought I heard something crunch after I landed on the bag.”

            “Here take the one from Harry’s pack we have lights on our guns anyway.”

            Ben handed Richard the flashlight and activated the light on his gun. The cave was now better illuminated and a path was visible to them. The three men started down the path at a slow pace set by the injured Richard and Harry.

            “What do you know about boroughs like this Richard?” asked Ben.

“Not too much really. There isn’t a whole lot known about the creators of this borough the Oryctodromeus aside from some partial skeletons that have been recently discovered. They are herbivorous, bipedal, and very fast. No boroughs discovered were ever this deep but my assumption is that maybe this one was formed by a family or maybe made in a preexisting cave system. I think our best bet to get out of here might be to find footprints or something to show their main path in and out.”

“Well it looks like this is the only way we can go so let’s keep heading this way and hope we can find something.” responded Ben.

The men continued down the tunnel until they entered a room with several different tunnels to choose from to head down. Looking around Harry shined his light on a small fleshy lump curled up on the ground. The light caught the eye of this creature making it jump to its feet and flee down one of the tunnels.

“Well guys I’m guessing our best bet is to follow that dino.” said Ben.

“Why would you say that?” questioned Richard.

“Well its home has been infiltrated so clearly it is not as safe as it may have thought so it’s gonna leave and probably come back when it thinks it might be safe.”

The men headed down the tunnel following the dinosaur but it was already far ahead of them. Nonetheless Ben’s assumption was correct and after some time there was a light visible to them, the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, the finish line at the end of a treacherous journey. Step by step they inched their way closer and closer, the light growing brighter and brighter. The light now shining on the men made them realize the full extent of their physical situation. Richard’s ankle had swollen to three times the size of a normal ankle and Harry had become very pale due to losing a massive amount of blood.

“Looks like you were right Ben. Now we just need to find our way back to home base.” expressed Richard.

Harry’s focus was wavering as he began to lose his balance. It was clear to both Ben and Richard that he would not live much longer without medical attention. Harry fell to the ground too weak to continue on under his own power. Ben picked him up and supported Harry helping him walk the rest of the way out of the tunnel. Finally they had reached the outside world again and Richard activated the tracking device.

“Guys it looks like we just surfed a wave of luck because this tunnel had brought us within about twenty meters of the time machine. Even at our pace it shouldn’t take us too long to get back there.”

As Richard spoke the injured men had gained the attention of something flying overhead. The flying reptile descended and landed five feet from them looking them over as if trying to assess if they would be an easy meal.

“Richard what the hell is that thing?” asked Ben.

“That would be a Pteranodon. A Pterosaur like the Pterodactyl however as you can clearly see it is larger.”

“Is it carnivorous?”

“Yes, although it normally eats fish, however I’d think an injured human would look like a pretty easy meal to it.”

The Pteranodon clawed its way towards them perched on the bony hands at the end of its wings. The massive beak opened slightly breathing in the tension being given off by the men. Suddenly it let out a loud shrill and took to the air. Up above their heads the Pteranodon made a quick u-turn and dove at the man letting up at the last second grabbing Richard by his backpack. It took back to the air with Richard squirming in the air only supported by the straps of his backpack. Ben took his gun and fired a few shots clipping the wing of the flying lizard. The Pteranodon dropped Richard sending him on a freefall back down to earth. He would have died if it weren’t for a fortunately placed tree that broke his fall. Richard pinballed down the tree, bouncing from branch to branch until he finally hit the ground with a loud thud. Ben ran over to him finding him still conscious but very beat up. Richard new injuries included a few broken ribs and some cuts and bruises from the tree.

“You know for the first time in my life I think I’ve had my fill of dinosaurs for the day.” gasped Richard in a joking tone.

The men managed to make it back to the time machine to discover the door was left open. Unsure why they scientists would do this the men approached cautiously. The screams of the scientists suddenly filled the air. A burst of adrenaline rushed through the men giving Harry the strength to raise his weapon. The men realized that they were in the middle of an ambush, putting them right back into another life threatening situation. As soon as Ben picked up the walkie to contact Patrick he noticed something in the bushes. Firing his gun he had inadvertently forced the hand of his attackers to engage on them. This enemy would be different than any he had faced before.

“Well boys, it looks like our day isn’t over yet.” said Ben.  

 As Patrick, Lisa, Samantha, Brett, and Tom neared the time machine, they noticed a familiar sound, the sound of gunfire.

Suddenly a voice came in over the walkies, “Pat, come in, Pat! We made it back to home base to find a bloody mess!” All of Ben’s words were drowned out by the sound of gunfire coming through the walkie. “Raptors, it’s raptors! They killed the scientists! We have engaged the hostiles!”

“Damn it, I knew that we were followed yesterday,” muttered Patrick. “We need to get back there now and help them.”

“What could we do? Velociraptors are cunning, fast, and strong. There is no way we can fight them,” said Lisa.

“No, but we sure as hell can shoot those bastards before they start munchin on my crew”

They could gauge their distance from the time machine based on how loud the gun shots were. From afar one might think there was a full blown war going on. The gunshots were now mixed with the sounds of hissing and velociraptor calls. They were now in sight. Harry and Ben were unloading all their ammo into a group of raptors running at them, sawing them down before they could make it to them. Patrick spotted a group of raptors flanking to the back of Harry and Ben hoping to catch them by surprise. Patrick jumped at them guns blazing screaming out at them causing them to scatter. Unfortunately this also distracted Harry long enough for a raptor to jump up on him and bite down on his head sending blood gushing everywhere including all over Ben making him freeze long enough for the rest of the raptors to drive forward into him ripping him apart. His screams were deafening as he endured the pain of dozens of sharp teeth digging into him and ripping him apart. Patrick shot at the raptors causing them to run but it was too late for Harry and Ben who were now shredded into pieces scattered across the ground.

“Quick, everyone, into the time machine!” Tom yelled as they all ran for the doors.

Inside they found Richard cowering in a corner practically swimming in a pool of blood left behind by Tom’s group of scientists who were slaughtered by the velociraptors. All of the coloration had flushed from his face by the trauma of seeing these people ripped apart in front of him. The only red on him was not his own.

“They’re dead, all dead. Ripped apart by these savage beasts,” shuddered Richard.

“They will be missed but for now we need to focus on getting out of here. My scientists had installed an emergency jump switch in the case that we need to quickly get back to our time.”

“Will it work?” asked Brett.

“It has to. No formal tests were ever done, but if it doesn’t work we’re pretty much stuck here. I have faith that my scientists got this right.”

As Tom looked for the switch the ground began to shake. The camera revealed an old friend of theirs coming back for a visit as the t-rex approached them. With a mighty head-butt, it blasted the time machine onto its side sending Tom crashing into the door with enough force to knock it open and fall through it. He laid on the ground staring up at the t-rex towering over him. He didn’t even have enough time to let out a good scream before the jaws of the beast came down on him swallowing him nearly whole.

“No, Tom!” cried Brett.

“I found the switch. Let’s get out of here,” exclaimed Samantha while flipping the switch.

Red lights began to flash inside the time machine with buzzing and whirring sounds. An automated voice came over the speakers.

“Emergency time jump initiated. Time jump in three… two… one…”

 There was a loud crack followed by a bright light. They were gone, managing to escape the jaws of death at the last moment. But where they went, well, that remains a mystery.