Dark shadows blurred the audience's vision beneath the harsh white spotlights; yellow pupils flickered in and out of view, casting an eerie, predatory glow.
As the cage slowly slid forward, the... creature inside grew restless. Unlike the dinosaurs before it, it didn't ram or lash out at the bars. Instead, it sat perfectly still, scrutinizing every person in the room. Any buyer who dared to et its gaze felt the hair on their arms stand on end.
Zzzt... Snap!
A security guard approached the cage with an electric prod, intending to provoke the animal. By stinging the beast, he hoped to demonstrate its aggression and vitality to the potential buyers.
Then, sothing happened that stunned everyone: the creature moved as if it had pre-empted the strike. With a subtle shift of its body, it dodged the prod by a fraction of an inch.
"Ao-roar—"
A strange, low growl rippled through the hall, a sound so grating it felt like a blade scraping against the listeners' nerves.
The Indoraptor narrowed its eyes at the guard who had tried to strike it, locking onto him like a hunter onto its prey. The guard shuddered involuntarily.
Owen had just reached a decorative lancet window overlooking the auction floor from the maintenance catwalks. Seeing this, he couldn't help but mutter a very "civilized" curse under his breath.
"The perfect weapon for modern warfare," Eversoll announced from the podium, his voice gaining fervor. "Designed purely for combat, possessing tactical reflexes far superior to those of a human soldier."
With every word of Eversoll's pitch, the knot in Owen's stomach tightened.
"Designed under the leadership of Dr. Henry Wu, it possesses an intelligence rivaling that of a Velociraptor. Biologically, its olfactory sensitivity has been heightened. Through training, it can coordinate with pulse-coded laser targeting systems to track and eliminate prey even in the most complex environnts. Observe..."
Eversoll's explanation was getting a bit technical, but the demonstration was ready to bridge the gap.
A security guard raised a rifle. The red laser sight beneath the barrel projected a dot onto a "lucky" buyer in the crowd.
"First... select your target."
The mont the laser appeared, the Indoraptor's head snapped around like a wild Ark Giganotosaurus spotting a fresh spawn. It locked its gaze onto the target.
"Once the lock is established, an acoustic signal triggers the attack."
The guard pressed a specialized button. The infrared sight emitted a high-frequency pulse. While nearly silent to human ears, to the Indoraptor, it was a piercing, agonizing shriek.
"ROAR—"
In an instant, the calculating creature transford into a mindless beast. It slamd into the iron bars, its long, clawed arms lashing out through the gaps, swiping at the air.
Not only the targeted buyer but the entire surrounding row of people scrambled backward in terror. Chaos erupted in the seating area.
"Hehe, the creature is naturally combative," Eversoll chuckled, seemingly finding the panic quite entertaining.
"Now, while the refinent process is still ongoing—"
"Twenty million dollars!"
A buyer's shout cut Eversoll off mid-sentence, leaving him stunned. He exchanged a quick glance with Eli Mills before attempting to regain control.
"No, this is only a prototype. It's not for sa—"
"Twenty-one million!" another voice barked.
"Uh... it's still just a—"
"Twenty-two million!"
"But—"
"Twenty-three million!"
Eversoll looked at Mills again. Seeing the businessman give a subtle, greedy nod, he turned back to the floor with a flourish.
"Do I hear twenty-four million?"
Once again, human avarice had handed a demon the key to its cage.
Behind the window, Owen turned and sprinted back toward the basent. He had made his decision.
Dr. Wu rose from his seat in the audience and strode toward Mills, his voice a sharp hiss of interrogation.
"What are you doing?! This animal cannot be sold!"
"We have to give the buyers a taste," Mills replied, his eyes fixed on the rapidly climbing numbers reflected in his glasses. "It ensures they'll co back for more."
"It's a prototype!"
"That 'prototype' you're talking about just hit twenty-eight million... Relax, Henry. We can always make more."
"So can they," Wu replied.
Wu's expression went cold. Seeing the sa insatiable greed in Mills' eyes that had consud his previous employers, he made a sudden decision. He hurried back toward his lab, moving with the purpose of a man who had long prepared a contingency plan.
"Twenty-nine..."
One buyer started to raise his hand again, only to be yanked down by the woman beside him.
"Are you insane? You're buying a money pit!"
"What are you talking about? That dinosaur is the coolest thing I've ever seen!"
The woman facepald, looking utterly exhausted. "Fine, let's walk through this. You use a laser sight to aim at an enemy, then you press a button to make the dinosaur eat them. Is that the plan?"
"Yeah." He nodded, completely missing the point.
"Then why don't you just shoot them?! You're already aiming the gun at them!"
At her words, not just the man, but several buyers sitting nearby froze in a mont of existential realization.
Oh, right. Why wouldn't we just pull the trigger?
(Note: Tactical considerations aside, the Indoraptor's targeting system is indeed a bit redundant if you already have a clear line of sight.)
…
"Claire!"
Owen sprinted back into the basent. Many of the dinosaurs had begun to shake off the effects of the tranquilizers, filling the air with restless, booming roars.
"Listen, Claire. Take Maisie and get out of here. I'm going to find the Raptors and I'll catch up with you."
He turned to leave before he even finished speaking, but Claire grabbed him.
"Hey! We aren't leaving you in this hellhole."
She looked determined, but this ti, Owen was firr.
"They've created another monster. Sothing worse. You have to get out of here."
"And what about you?"
"I can't let that thing leave this estate."
Dr. Wu might have created one Indoraptor, but that didn't an others could replicate his work easily. However, if the creature was sold, modern science ensured that the next ti they saw an Indoraptor, there would be a whole pack of them.
BANG!
Suddenly, a heavy thud echoed from the distance. The Stygimoloch, clearly still struggling with its eyesight, had slamd into another tal pillar, drawing Owen's attention.
…
In the dim laboratory, three Velociraptors circled the dying Charlie. They nudged her gently while emitting low, threatening hisses at any human who approached the cage.
Researchers in white coats bustled about, frantically packing experintal data and essential equipnt. They were in a rush, completely ignoring the agitated Raptors.
Were they running? Not quite.
Dr. Wu sat at a terminal, fingers flying across the keyboard. He yanked a drive from the laptop and slid it into his briefcase.
He paused for a mont, his hand brushing against a specialized signal flare tucked away in the case. After a brief hesitation, he took it out and gripped it firmly.
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