Chapter 80— The Encounter with the Spinosaurus
After walking for some time, the group finally arrived near an enormous wooden fence that stretched out before them.
Seeing the structure, Dante thought to himself:
Yes, this is just like the original wooden fence they encountered with Erik and Alan Grant in the original story. In other words, we're close to finding them.
His thoughts were interrupted by Billy, who asked,
"Are we close?"
Dante thought for a few moments before answering.
"Well, there's a facility farther ahead. We can go there and check whether anyone is inside. Even if he's not there, we can look for recent tracks, which would prove that someone has been there. That could serve as a clue that your son might have passed through this place."
Amanda looked at Dante, showing signs of hope.
"So, are you saying we might find a clue about where our son is at that place?"
Dante shook his head slightly.
"It's not guaranteed, but it's a possibility. Anyway, let's get moving. Even if we can't find your son, that place will serve as a good shelter for us. That way, we won't have to stay out in the open, attracting dinosaurs with our presence. So, let's go!"
The group began walking again, heading toward the abandoned facility.
However, before they could get very far, they heard a shout coming from the other side of the fence.
"DAD! MOM! I'M OVER HERE!"
Everyone immediately looked toward the sound. On the other side of the wooden fence, they saw Erik and Alan Grant running down toward them.
Recognizing her son, Amanda couldn't contain her emotions. She ran toward him, accompanied by Paul, and hugged the boy through an opening in the fence.
Billy watched the scene and smiled with relief.
"It's good to see you're okay."
Alan looked at him and replied with a tired smile,
"I could say the same about you."
Then, the paleontologist turned his attention to Dante and Bella.
"And them? Who are they?"
Hearing the question, Dante smiled and introduced himself.
"My name is Dante. Like you, I came to this island for personal reasons. I happened to run into your group by chance. And if you're curious about why I'm here, I'm sorry, but I can't tell you. It's something very personal. All I can say is that, apart from the fact that we've trespassed on the island, there's nothing illegal involved. And you're safe."
Alan Grant observed Dante for a few seconds before replying,
"I hope that's really the case."
Paul, however, interrupted the conversation.
"Doctor, it was thanks to this young man that we managed to find you. So, he's trustworthy."
Before they could continue talking, an unexpected sound caught everyone's attention.
It was the ringing of a telephone.
Paul's eyes widened as he recognized the sound.
"That sounds like the satellite phone I brought! But it was with the pilot who—"
He stopped mid-sentence and slowly raised his head.
On the other side of the clearing, an enormous Spinosaurus was watching the group intently.
The creature remained motionless for a brief moment, but its presence was enough to put everyone on alert.
Alan Grant immediately grabbed Erik's hand and shouted,
"EVERYONE, RUN!"
The group began running desperately.
Dante, however, looked back and watched the Spinosaurus charging toward them.
"It's incredibly ferocious! Just look at how fast it runs!"
Billy, who was running beside them, replied breathlessly,
"I like dinosaurs too, but now isn't the time to admire them! Otherwise, we're going to become the endangered species!"
Dante smiled as he continued running.
"Well, that's true!"
Bella, who was keeping pace with her brother, looked at him and asked,
"Brother, why don't you shoot it?"
Dante answered calmly despite the situation.
"That's simple, Bella. It's fast, and it takes several shots to kill it. By the time I managed to kill it, it would already have reached us and killed several of us before finally dying. In other words, it's not impossible to kill it, but the price we'd have to pay would be far too high. Understand?"
He continued explaining as he ran.
"Sometimes, the right moment to attack matters more than the attack itself. If we wanted to kill it without any problems, we'd need to be at a higher vantage point or hidden somewhere it couldn't see us. From there, we could shoot it."
Before Bella could respond, everyone heard another shout.
Looking ahead, they saw Amanda pulling Erik through the opening in the fence while Paul helped her.
Dante immediately approached and grabbed Alan Grant's hand, pulling him outside as well.
As soon as the paleontologist managed to get through to the other side of the fence, Dante looked at him and joked,
"Doctor, I bet studying these animals was much easier when they weren't trying to devour you, right?"
Alan Grant gave him an exhausted smile.
"You have no idea how much easier it was."
The two looked at the Spinosaurus, which had stopped in front of the fence. The creature raised its head and roared furiously, causing the sound to echo throughout the forest.
For a few moments, it seemed as though the dinosaur was assessing the obstacle separating it from its prey.
Then, the creature began to move away.
Dante watched the scene and immediately realized that they weren't out of danger yet.
"Everyone, get up! We have to run to that place!"
As he spoke, he pointed toward the abandoned InGen facility.
Paul looked at him in confusion.
"Why? The danger has passed!"
Dante grabbed Bella's hand and started running toward the building.
"It hasn't given up on devouring us! It's just building up momentum to break through the fence!"
He pointed behind them.
The Spinosaurus was running directly toward the fence at full speed.
Alan Grant's eyes widened as he realized what was about to happen.
"EVERYONE, COME ON! RUN!"
Everyone rushed inside the abandoned facility and shut the doors, securing the locks at the exact moment the Spinosaurus slammed into the fence and destroyed it with its colossal strength.
The crash echoed throughout the area.
Finally, protected by the building's walls, everyone could catch their breath.
Dante leaned against the wall with Bella. He wrapped an arm around her, gently pulling her closer, and rested his chin on her shoulder.
Then, he asked quietly,
"So, how are you feeling? Even with all that strength inside you, I noticed that you were still a little afraid of the dinosaur."
Bella squeezed his hand and answered in a quiet voice,
"I know I'm strong. I know I can take it down. It's just that my mind still can't understand everything very well. You must think I'm weak. I'm a dragon, and yet I'm still such a coward..."
Dante kissed her cheek and replied affectionately,
"You silly little girl, do you really think I expect you, who has always been an ordinary girl, to become a super fighter just because you've gained powerful abilities? Of course I know that's impossible. I've never thought that. And that's why we're here to train. You have all the time in the world to improve, even if it's just a little at a time. Understand?"
Bella lowered her head slightly and answered softly,
"Yes, I understand."
After talking with Bella, Dante turned his attention back to the rest of the group.
"Everyone, what are your plans now? You've already found the people you came here looking for. So, do you have any plans?"
Alan sighed before answering,
"Our plan now is to find a way to get off this island. I saw a boat we can use to leave. And you two don't seem worried."
Dante smiled.
"That's because the plane coming to pick us up will arrive in about two days. So, we've never actually been stranded here. We were just doing our job, and afterward, we'll be able to return home. But I think that even knowing this, you'll still want to go after the boat, right? After all, you want to leave this place as quickly as possible."
Amanda hugged her son, relieved to have finally found him.
"That's true. I don't want to spend any more time in this dangerous place. The longer we stay here, the greater the danger becomes."
Billy agreed with her.
"Then why don't we go check the boat? If it's working, we can use it and get off this island as quickly as possible. If it isn't, we can wait with them until their plane arrives to pick them up."
Paul nodded, agreeing with the suggestion.
"Yes, that's an excellent plan. We should do that. What do you think, Doctor?"
Alan thought for a few moments before answering,
"Then let's do that."
Dante opened his backpack, took out several cans of food, and tossed them to the group.
"Eat this. Once you've regained your energy, you can start putting your plan into action."
While everyone ate, Dante remained beside Bella, gently stroking her hair as he watched the jungle through an opening in the abandoned structure.
Well, everything is normal so far. I think that since this is an isolated island, it probably hasn't been affected by the fusion.
Dante continued stroking Bella's hair while keeping his eyes on the forest, reflecting on what might still happen on the island.