This is set between the time of Out Of The Blue and True Spirit.  And as usual I don’t own any of the characters only my VERY twisted ideas. 

AFTERSHOCK

       Challenger and Marguerite had gone to bed early, as they needed to be up and ready to go before sunup.  Challenger had requested Marguerite join him on his sulfur hunting expedition to get her away from the treehouse and away from Roxton.  They had been quarreling for some days now and he felt a separation would do them both good. 

        Marguerite seemed sullen and withdrawn as they took the elevator down and entered the jungle.  Challenger thought about how he could begin a conversation with her to cheer her up.

       “Marguerite, on the way back there is a small cave I discovered when I was up in the air on that parachute coming down from the zeppelin.  It’s in an area littered with crystals I would like you to look at it.”  When she didn’t respond he prodded her with his rifle.

       “What, George, I didn’t hear you,” she muttered.

       “So I see, Marguerite.  You need to take your mind off what is behind you and pay attention to what is in front of you,” Challenger said as he grabbed her and kept her from falling over a fallen tree.

       “I’m sorry, George.  Maybe I wasn’t the best person to bring along.”

       “Nonsense, Marguerite.  I think getting away from the treehouse for a few days will be good for you.  I think we all need a break after being cooped up for so long.  And it looks like we might get some more monsoon rains in another day or so, so I think we had better be on our way.”

       “Sure, George, whatever you say,” she replied absentmindedly.

       Meanwhile back at the treehouse, Roxton was making more bullets and swearing under his breath.  Veronica just looked up from reading one of Malone’s journals and smiled.  All the residents of the treehouse knew how Roxton and Marguerite felt about each other and how they tried just as hard to keep it secret.  The argument they had put the entire treehouse through last night had been one of their more volatile ones.  It had left them both devastated as though their hearts had been thrown out like yesterday’s newspaper.  This was the third time Roxton had filled this particular shell with gunpowder.  His mind was elsewhere and he kept overfilling the shell.  Disgusted, he tossed the tools aside and pushed himself to his feet.  He went to the balcony and stared out.

       “Don’t worry, Roxton they’ll be back day after tomorrow and you can apologize to her then,” Veronica said with a smile.

       “And what makes you think I even want to apologize to her?  She is the one who started this whole mess in the first place,” Roxton retorted.

       “Because you can’t keep your mind on your work and you are a kind person.  Being a kind person you will apologize whether or not you feel it’s your fault.”

       “He’s the most insufferable…” Marguerite mumbled under her breath.

       “What’s that, Marguerite?” Challenger asked.

       “Nothing, George, let’s just go find the damned sulfur and get back to the treehouse.”

       “Would you like to talk about it?” Challenger knew he was entering dangerous territory.

       “There’s nothing to talk about!” Marguerite huffed.  “He will always be insufferable and that’s all there is to it!”

       “If that was all there is to it you wouldn’t be so bothered by it.”

       “Who died and made you Siggy Freud?  Just because I’m a little quiet doesn’t mean I’m bothered by someone like Roxton,” Marguerite snapped as she turned and stalked away.

       “Yelling at me won’t make you any less disappointed with Roxton.  Indeed it will only make your discussions heated and the real issue between the two of you will never be breached.  You both need to sit down and talk this out like rational adults.”

       “I would love to do just that, George.  But Roxton…well…he’s just so damned…”

       “Insufferable?” Challenger finished for her with a smile.

       “How much farther to that sulfur you saw?” Marguerite changed the subject.

       “We should reach it by nightfall.  It might not be the best place, but I thought we could make camp there and get what we need in the morning and head back to the treehouse tomorrow.”

       “I’m not entirely sure that was what we had in mind, Challenger.  Can’t we find a better place, one that doesn’t smell?” Marguerite asked.

       “Yes we could but I do think this would offer some added protection, not many creatures would want to come close enough to get at us,” he replied.

       “Good, by then I should still be mad at Roxton, and I can give him a piece of my mind.”

       They walked on in silence, Marguerite mumbling about Roxton and Challenger trying to figure out how to bring his two friends back together.  Neither of them noticed the ground beneath them when it shook slightly.  They continued on for another hour before the ground shook again.  This time Challenger took notice.  He stopped and looked around, carefully studying the surrounding jungle.  He was sure he had felt the ground move, but nothing in the last minute or two so he trudged onward, shaking his head.

       They continued in silence, Marguerite now totally ignoring any attempts Challenger made at conversation.  A few minutes later she stopped and looked around then looked back at Challenger.  Yes, he had felt it too.  She reached out a hand to steady herself when the ground shook again.  Challenger ran up to her and together they ran down the trail looking for someplace safe to wait it out. 

       “Veronica, what could be causing that?” Roxton asked as he looked over to the next valley with the binoculars.  He handed them to her and moved over.

       Veronica looked out over the jungle and saw trees swaying back and forth as if being blown by a strong wind but there wasn’t even a gentle breeze.

       “I’ve only seen that kind of movement one time before.”

       “When was that?”  Roxton asked.

       “The last time there was a big earthquake.” Veronica replied.  Roxton snatched the glasses from her and looked the area over carefully.

       “Roxton you don’t think Challenger and Marguerite are in that?  I thought Challenger said they were going west.”

       “I’d just like to make sure, Veronica.  When George Challenger is involved it always pays to be sure.”

       “Maybe we should head out and try to find them,” Veronica suggested.

       “Not unless we have to.  I don’t want to have Marguerite upset with both of us,” he chuckled but nonetheless he kept the binoculars trained on the spot he had seen the irregular movement.

       They went about their chores and leisure activities but neither of them could quite get the absent explorers out of their minds.  Roxton kept glancing over the balcony, checking for any further suspicious movement in the jungle, and Veronica had finished her chores and had settled down in a chair with one of Malone’s journals.  She kept watching Roxton bouncing around the treehouse and was grateful night was falling so he would have to stop watching the jungle.

       “Roxton, will you please stop that pacing?  Challenger and Marguerite are both adults and they can take care of themselves.”

       “I know that but what if something happens to them before…” He left the sentence unfinished.

       “Before you can apologize?  Don’t worry, Roxton.  They’ll be fine.  Challenger and Marguerite can take care of themselves and it’s not like they are out there alone.”

       “I would just feel better if they were back here at the treehouse.  Those rains look like they will be here sooner than George had predicted.”  Roxton looked at the massive, black rain clouds.

       “They’ll be fine Roxton.  Challenger knows enough to find a safe place for them wait the storm out if they need do.”

       Challenger scanned the trail up ahead looking for any possible shelter in case the earth shook again.  He spotted a small cave and pointed to it.  Just as they set out for it the ground shook violently and threw them to the ground.  Marguerite scrambled to get on her feet again.  Challenger used his rifle to steady himself and both breathed a sigh of relief when the ground stopped pitching.

       “Challenger, maybe we should just turn back,” Marguerite said. She sounded frightened.

       “It’s far too late for that, Marguerite.  The treehouse is over a day that way and the sulfur is only an hour or so that way.  No, we must press on.  Without that sulfur I can’t make the gunpowder we are running out of.”

       “I know that, George, but why can’t it wait for another week or so?  By then this shifting plates or whatever should be over with.”

       “I understand your hesitations, Marguerite, but we are a lot closer to the sulfur and going back now seems a bit pointless.  Once the ground stops we can hurry and make our way, get what we need and take a different path back.”

       “Anything will be fine with me as long as we don’t have to come back this way,” Marguerite looked at Challenger.

       “Oh no you don’t, George.  I see that look in your eye and the answer is NO BLOODY WAY!  If you think I’m coming back here just so you can play geologist you’re out of your mind.  We are going to get your precious sulfur and head straight back to the treehouse.  Then you can come back here and baby sit that fault line all you want.”

       “All right then, we do need that gunpowder as soon as possible.  I can make up a batch and be back here within a week.  That should be plenty of time.”

       They returned to the trail and began heading to the sulfur patch in the hot springs, both lost in thought.  Challenger failed to notice the animals nearly stampeding past them off to the left.  He kept walking, thinking happily about the experiments he could conduct and the things he might learn about the plateau.  Marguerite was engrossed in her thoughts about the conversation she would have with Roxton when they got back.  She thought about the various ways she could apologize to him, what she would say.  She really hated it when Challenger was right!  She would have a nice long talk with Roxton when they got back AFTER she had had a nice long, hot, bath.  She was lost in thought when they rounded a bend in the path.

       The ground trembled and shook and a large crack appeared.  Marguerite jumped out of the way as the ground opened up looking for something to swallow.  A large tree was uprooted and the ground shifted under their feet again.  Boulders moved, the ground rearranged itself and trees splintered.  It seemed to go on forever.  Challenger saw a small cave and he pulled Marguerite toward the opening.

       “I’m not going in there, Challenger!” she yelled.

       “No, Marguerite you don’t want to go into the cave just to the mouth of it.  We can stand there and be somewhat protected.”

       “Is that safe?”

       “It will be safer than standing here out in the open waiting for something to fall on us!” Challenger shouted to be heard over the noise.

       “All right, Challenger, if you say so.”  Marguerite headed for the cave.

       There was a loud crack as a huge tree was uprooted and shattered.  The explosion rocked the ground and sent Marguerite tumbling.  Challenger tried to catch her when the outcropping above the cave gave way, shattering into dozens of rocks and boulders.  The shattered tree came crashing down on them as the rocks and boulders joined in a chorus of chaos.  The dust and dirt blew into the air creating a plume that could be seen all the way to the treehouse.  As the dust settled, the rockslide became a trickle of gravel.  Then all became silent.  Out of the rubble a bloodied hand emerged as if looking for freedom, then dropped to the rock.

       “Did you hear that?” Roxton said as he entered the common room.   “I’m sure I heard something in the jungle,” he grabbed the binoculars and headed over to the balcony.

       “Roxton, just leave it alone.  Even if something did happen over there that is not the way Challenger said they were going.”

       “I suppose you’re right.  I just have the feeling something is wrong, that’s all.”

       “Well, we won’t know that for two days anyway so just find something to take your mind off it and try to forget it.  Why don’t you go back to working on that cupboard you were making for Marguerite?”  Roxton spun around with a surprised look on his face.

       “How did you know about that?” he asked.

       “You can hardly be carving, pounding and sanding around here without someone hearing you.”  She smiled.

       The dust settled upon the devastation like a blanket of new fallen snow.  Uprooted trees, plants and unlucky dead animals were strewn everywhere.  Rocks had pushed up the earth, creating new mounds, hills and a small mountain.  A landslide blocked the path further up.  Off into the distance the roar of an angry T-rex could be heard.

       The hand peeking out from the pile of rubble began to move, searching.  Soon the arm was freed up to the elbow.  Then a little more and then a little more.  Finally free, she took in their surroundings and her expression saddened at all the devastation.  Eyes searching, she looked for Challenger.  She saw the muzzle of his rifle and began digging, ignoring the blood dripping from a cut on her forehead.  She jumped back as a small snake slithered across the rocks.

       Marguerite blinked and it was gone.  What was that? Where did it go?  I must be seeing things. She returned to her digging and soon she discovered that she could not get him out by herself.  Her arm was hurting and she couldn’t see straight.  She needed help but the treehouse was a long ways off. 

       “George?  Can you hear me?” she yelled into the pile of rubble.

       “Yes, I just can’t move very well,” came the muffled reply.

       “That’s because you’re buried under a ton of rocks and trees!”

       “I was sure the mouth of that cave was a good place to be…”

       “George, don’t worry about that now.  Can you move at all?”

       “Not very well; it hurts to breathe.  I believe I am not too badly injured.”

       “Well, we have a problem then. I can’t move this tree by myself and I can’t leave you here either.”

       “Marguerite, you must leave me here.  I think I am bleeding some but there is no choice.  You MUST go and find help.”

       “But what if…” she left the sentence unfinished.

       “If you can’t get me out as you say then there is NO choice.  You must go get help.  Are you all right? Is there something you’re not telling me?”

       “No, I think I’m all right I just have a cut on my forehead,” she left out her other injuries, no sense in worrying him.

       “You’re…sure…?” His responses were coming slower and his words becoming slurred.

       “Challenger, I can’t leave you here alone.  You don’t sound like you are all right.”

       “I will surely die if you don’t find someone to help you get this pile off me so GO woman!”

       “Veronica, did you hear that?” Roxton said as looked up from cleaning his gun.

       The treehouse vibrated and shook, swinging like a hammock.  Books fell off the shelves, ceramic pots shattered as they hit the floor.  They tried to gain their footing but Roxton slipped and fell and slid, stopping only when his feet slammed into the elevator shaft, breaking the pulley.  Veronica grabbed the railing as she fell over the side of the treehouse.  The quake stopped almost as soon as it had started. 

       Roxton pulled himself out of the elevator shaft, thankful that it had been down.  He surveyed the damage and frowned.  With the damage he had caused they wouldn’t be able to go after Marguerite and Challenger until it was fixed.  He looked around and didn’t see Veronica.

       “Veronica?” he asked.

       “Over here,” she called, Roxton looked around not seeing her.

       “Where is over here?”

       “Over HERE!” she called as she waved her arm at him.

       “VERONICA!” Roxton shouted as he ran to the railing and peered over.  He grabbed her free hand and pulled her up and over and back into the treehouse. 

       “Are you all right?”

       “I am now.  That is not the way I want to get out of the treehouse.”

       “Well it just may be our only way down.  It seems I have broken the elevator and we need to get out of here and go see what damage was done.  Marguerite and Challenger might need our help.”

       “Then we’d better get this elevator fixed.  I’ll go see if there are enough tools in Challenger’s lab,” Veronica ran down the stairs.

       They spent the rest of the afternoon working on the elevator, Roxton’s temper growing with every passing minute.  Veronica kept him busy with the repairs so he wouldn’t notice the steadily diminishing daylight.  By the time they finished fixing the elevator the daylight was almost totally gone.  Veronica righted a lamp and lit it and began going around the room straightening things up.

       “What are you doing?  We need to get out there and find Marguerite and Challenger,” Roxton said as he grabbed her arm and pulled her around to look at him.

       “The jungle is bad enough when everything is normal out there.  But with this earthquake there are plenty of frightened animals out there and I for one do not want to stumble upon a frightened T-rex in the middle of the night.  We wait until morning then and only then can we leave.” She jerked her arm back.

       “Yes, you’re right.  I just wish we could go out now.”

       “Get some sleep, Roxton.  We’ll leave at first light.”

       “If you can get it free take my rifle. I’d feel better knowing you could defend yourself,” Challenger mumbled through the rocks and earth.

       “It’s all right, George, I can’t get it out anyway.  But I have my gun so I’ll be fine,” Marguerite lied to him.  She couldn’t tell which muzzle was the real one; there were three of them and she didn’t want him to become alarmed.

       “I’m going to go now, George.  I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

       “Godspeed, Marguerite, Godspeed,” he managed to whisper.

       Marguerite climbed down from the newly formed mountain and peered down the path.  It was getting dark and with her blurred and triple vision she wasn’t sure which way to go.  She chose a direction and set out.  She glanced back to the pile pinning Challenger and hoped she could get help back to him in time. 

       She wandered down the path for a time until her headache got the best of her and she sat on a rock to rest.  Oh, how her head hurt!  But she was determined not to let Challenger down.  She pushed herself back up and leaned against the rock as a wave of dizziness overcame her.  She looked both ways and set off in the direction she thought she saw a campfire.

       Under the pile of rubble Challenger lay still, trying to determine the extent of his injuries.  He tried to move to test his limbs but he was pinned under the heavy rocks and trees and couldn’t move at all.  He thought he could feel blood running down his leg but there didn’t seem to be a tremendous amount of pain.  Mostly in his head and some in his ribs but that was something that could be fixed quickly if he could just get out of here.

       Challenger tried to push up and move some of the rocks off his back.  The pile moved and shifted and began to close in on him.  He braced himself as the pile crushed him further into the newly formed mountain.  When the dust settled he coughed to clear his throat, and decided not to try that again until Marguerite returned with help.  He only hoped it would be soon.

       Marguerite stumbled down the path and stopped when she saw a man standing by the tree.  She walked up to him and began talking quickly.

       “You have to help me!  There’s been an earthquake and my friend is back there trapped!  You have to help me!”  She grabbed his arm and tried to pull him.  But the man remained.

       “What’s wrong with you? I said my friend needs help.  I’m sure he’s hurt badly, come on!”  She grabbed his arm and turned to head back.  

       The man hissed and Marguerite turned back around and stared into the eyes of an apeman.    He raised his club and swung it at her, grunting.  She screamed and ran away from the beast who only stared after her, almost as frightened as she was.  The apeman stared after the strange creature until it was out of sight then went to find its group.

       “Roxton, slow down!” Veronica yelled as she ran to catch up. “We don’t even know where they are; you can’t just go running off.  With this quake their trail will be hard enough to follow, we need to take our time and do this right.”

       “I know, but they may be hurt.”

       “And we won’t do them any good if we can’t find them because we destroyed their tracks.”

       “I know that!” Roxton shouted in frustration.

       “We’ll find them, don’t worry,” she replied softly.

       “I just hate feeling so bloody useless.”

       “When we find them if they were in that earthquake area trust me you won’t be useless.  I’ll let you do all the work!”  She pushed him playfully, trying to lighten the mood; Roxton smiled and rolled his eyes.

       Challenger carefully turned his head trying to listen for anyone who might be approaching.  All he could hear was the rushing of blood in his ears.  That’s a good thing, he thought, at least I know my blood is flowing.  He had long since lost feeling in his arms and legs but he was sure it was from being pinned and not from any major injuries. 

       “I wish Marguerite would hurry up and return,” he mumbled to himself, “pretty soon I’ll be talking to myself.”

       “There you go, George, thinking only of yourself again!”  The voice admonished.

       “Who’s there?  Who is that?” Challenger asked.

       “It’s me, George, William Maple White.”

       “That’s preposterous, you died years ago!  I refuse to believe you are there.”

       “Believe it or not, I am here.  You and your arrogance got you and your friend into trouble again, George.  When will you ever learn you can not be trusted to save yourself let alone your friends?”

       “Maple White, you are mistaken!  My friends trust me with their lives and I trust them with mine.  I led them here to find your bloody lost world and I intend to get them home again.  And I will!”  Challenger shook his head to clear the cobwebs from his mind and when he opened his eyes Maple White was gone.

       “Oh, Marguerite, you really do need to hurry, not only could that not have been my old friend Maple White but I KNOW he was not four inches tall.”  Having nothing better to do Challenger drifted off into a fitful sleep.

       Marguerite pushed herself along the path dragging her rifle behind her.  It was getting too dark to see so she stopped and sat down and leaned against a tree.  Challenger will forgive me if I take just a small…her head drooped to her chest and she was asleep before she could finish her thought.

       Her dreams were filled with things long forgotten:  Long nights in front of roaring fires sipping wine, carriage rides through the park, operas, ballets, and a T-rex? She bolted upright jarred from her slumber by the throaty growl from an angry T-rex.  She looked around her and finally saw him in the dim moonlight.  He was by the grove of trees.  Marguerite crept backward trying to get upwind of the beast.   He turned and looked in her direction.  She screamed and ran the T-Rex chasing after her.  She glanced back and it was gone.  The only thing she saw was a squirrel playfully following her.

       “Oh great, first I see too many of everything now I see things that aren’t even there.  Oh Challenger, I had better find help for you soon I think I’m losing my mind!”

       With the elevator fixed they filled their packs with what supplies they thought they might need and set out to find their friends.  They walked in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

       “Roxton, look at this…” Veronica pointed, “That mountain wasn’t there last time we were through here.”

       “Nor were those rocks.  That must have been some earthquake to cause all this damage.  We’d better hurry and find Challenger and Marguerite.”

       They walked on weaving and backtracking, the trek made harder by the fact that they had to create many new trails as the old ones had been destroyed by the quake.  They passed a grove of trees and looked in bewilderment at the devastation.  Roxton estimated they were getting closer to the epicenter of the quake and they picked up their pace.  After a few more hours they set up camp for the night much to his displeasure but he knew they couldn’t go any further without light in this dense jungle. 

       Marguerite plunged onward, ever mindful of Challenger lying buried under the rocks and trees.  She rounded a bend in the trail and up ahead she saw a group of people standing around talking.  They didn’t seem to notice her as she waved her arms and shouted to them.  Why ere all the people she met being so bloody rude?! She approached them slowly and cautiously and gently tapped one of them on the shoulder.

       “Excuse me, but can you help me?  My friend is buried under a ton of rocks among other things and I need help getting him out,” The lady just looked past her to the other people.

       “I said excuse me!” she nearly shouted.  All three heads turned towards her as if seeing her for the first time.

       “Finally, I have your undivided attention.  I said my friend is buried and I need help getting him out.  He could be badly hurt, I had to leave him back there…all alone.”

       They just stared at her as if she wasn’t speaking a language they could not understand.  Marguerite pulled at one of them and winced when it felt as though they had just bitten her.  She pulled back and stared at the fresh bloodstain forming on the sleeve of her jacket.  She looked up to glare at them and found herself face to face with three very hungry-looking raptors! 

       She swung her rifle like a club and hit them all in a round about swing.  She ran to the closest tree and climbed up as high as she could.  Where the bloody hell did they come from?  I must have hurt my head worse than I thought.  If I can’t trust anything I see or hear how can I help Challenger? She thought as she tried to avoid the raptors snapping jaws.  If I have to sleep in this bloody tree Roxton will have a lot more than just his attitude to be sorry for! 

       Marguerite waited until they had grown tired of trying to get to her then she climbed down and dusted herself off.  This was becoming harder than she had originally thought.  She knew she had to get help. Challenger had been without food or water for some time now and he had to be getting weak from that let alone any injuries he might have sustained.

       Challenger thought he heard footsteps and he called out but received no answer in reply.  He tried to turn his head but the rocks had settled during the night and he was wedged tightly among them.  My dear Marguerite I hope you hurry I have no feeling left at all in my body.  This can’t be a good sign.  The only place I feel anything at all is the cut on my head.   He heard something digging its way down to him and thought for a moment it must be Marguerite back with help.

       “Wrong again, George,” Summerlee spoke icily, “You really do need to get off that high horse of yours old boy.”

       “Arthur?” Challenger shook his head but the image remained.

       “Yes, George, someone has to set you straight again.”

       “What are you talking about, Arthur, surely I have no idea.”

       “George, you can be so simple-minded at times. No wonder your wife wanted to leave you time after time!”

       “I see no reason for you to insult me, Arthur.  You aren’t real anyway.  You fell over the cliff into Lord only knows where.  Why ARE you here anyway?” Challenger muttered angrily.

       “I came to warn you, George.  Things are not going so well for Marguerite and this may very well become your tomb.  You might want to get your thoughts in order and soon, old boy.”

       “Nonsense, Marguerite is a very capable woman, I trust her with my life.”

       “Not a wise thing to do, I’m afraid.  But it is your life to waste as you choose.”

       “Oh do shut up Arthur!  I need time to think!” Challenger squeezed his eyes shut and when he opened them Summerlee was gone.

       “Do you hear that?” Roxton asked.

       “It sounds like a T-rex and he doesn’t sound very happy.

       “If they’re near them, they won’t stand a chance.  We’ve got to hurry,” Roxton set out at a run, Veronica close behind him.

       When they came around the bend they stopped dead in their tracks.  Three raptors were tearing apart a wild boar.  They slowly crept around them trying to keep out of their line of sight and smell.  Roxton inched his way toward some trees just past the raptors.

       “Roxton, are you trying to get us killed?”

       “Look, over there hanging from that tree branch,” Roxton pointed at some cloth.

       They inched their way to the tree and Roxton yanked the blood soaked cloth away from the tree.  He sniffed it…human.  Veronica took it from him and examined it.

       “This is Marguerite’s,” she stated.

       “So that means they are safe then,” Roxton sighed.

       “It just means that Marguerite was here and that’s she’s bleeding.”

       “We’d best get moving then.”  And they left in the direction of the trail of blood.

       Marguerite wandered for some time trying to find someone to help her get Challenger out of the pile of debris and had just about given up when she saw a really tall man beside a tree.  She shook her head to clear it and winced at the pain.  She closed her eyes and opened them again and the man was still there.  Good, she thought, this one has got to be real.  She pulled her injured arm to her side and walked up to the man.

       “Excuse me, you look like a more intelligent person than any of your friends around here…can you help me?  My friend is stuck back there and I need to get help and fast.”  The man failed to respond and Marguerite reach out and grabbed him.

       “All right I’ve had about enough of this!  You people are about the rudest I have ever met!  All I want is someone to help me get George out of the pile of rocks and all I get are strange looks and people turning into apemen and raptors.  I want help and I want it NOW!!”  She yelled her face inches from the man.

       “Hasn’t anyone in your village heard about mouthwash?” Marguerite looked at him and suddenly her eyes widened.  “Can this day get any better?” she said as she turned to run.

       “Roxton, look!” Veronica shouted, ‘It’s Marguerite!”

       They watched in horror as Marguerite ran into the open field trying to elude the large beast who was rapidly bearing down on her.  Roxton shouted to her and Marguerite turned in his direction, a grateful look on her face.  She changed her direction and Veronica shouted a warning but she was too late.  Marguerite had turned into the path of the oncoming T-rex!  Veronica and Roxton could only stand transfixed, staring at the horrific scene as it played out before them.

       The savage T-rex was upon Marguerite in a flash.  He head butted her, sending her flying across the clearing.  He roared and charged her, his giant, razor sharp teeth catching her just above her belt.  He lifted her off the ground and swung her back and forth, blood spewing from her body and covering the ground like a shower.  Roxton fired his rifle at the animal trying to get its attention away from his precious Marguerite but the creature didn’t seem to notice.  He had one thing on his mind… his prey.

       Veronica began throwing stones and tree branches whatever she could find but to no avail.  The mammoth creature just kept on swinging the screaming Marguerite.  Finally, she stopped screaming and the T-rex dropped his morsel to the ground and sniffed at her.  Roxton ran up and began swinging his rifle like a club and beat the T-rex.  The monster snorted at him and slowly turned and left the clearing, satisfied he had accomplished his task.  Roxton scooped Marguerite into his arms as he knelt on the ground.  She had large gashes around her mid section and Roxton thought he could see clear through her body at one point.  He didn’t notice the tears flowing down his cheeks as he took her in his arms.

       “Marguerite, my love, nooo," he whispered as he held her,  “Please don’t leave me, I’m sorry for the craziness before, I’m sorry for everything.  Just don’t leave me.”

       “It’s all right, John.  I’ve done a lot of terrible things in my life and it just caught up with me,” Marguerite coughed spilling more of her precious blood.

       “Oh Marguerite,” he cried, “No one deserves this especially not you.”

       Roxton held her tight to his chest, feeling her heaving for every breath.  He knew she was dying, knowing he couldn’t stop it.  The tears flowed like a raging river down his cheeks but he didn’t care.  All he wanted to do was hold her and let her know that she was not alone.  That she was loved in a way she didn’t think she ever would be.  He pulled her away from his chest and looked into her eyes.  He could see the life draining from them with every passing second.

       Marguerite, too spent to speak just looked at him their eyes locking.  She knew she would never see him again, never get to tell him the many things she longed to tell him.  She fought to get words to come out but it was all she could do to breathe.  She felt her life force slowly ebb away.

       Roxton held her tightly, knowing this was the last time he ever would.  He could feel her body straining, trying to breathe.  He wished he could trade places with her, take her pain and agony away.  He knew it was hopeless so he hugged her even tighter.  He felt and heard her gasp, wheeze and then he felt her body relax as she exhaled for the last time.

       “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!” his anguished cries could be heard far away.  He began rocking Marguerite and stroking her long silken hair.

       Veronica, tears streaming down her face as well, put her arm around Roxton and hugged him tight.  She felt as though she had lost a sister but she also knew that somewhere out there they still had a friend still alive…she hoped.

       “Roxton, come on, we have to find out where Challenger is.”  No reply.

       “Roxton,” she shook him this time.  He didn’t answer just stood up gently lifting his precious cargo and carefully carrying her toward home. 

       He didn’t speak when Veronica suggested they make camp for the night.  He wrapped her body in a sheet and carefully and gently laid her down.  He sat staring into the fire, not uttering a sound.  He didn’t even take notice when Veronica tried to give him some food, just shook his head.  How could he possibly eat when his Marguerite lay next to him dead? Far into the night he sat by the fire staring into the glowing embers.

       The morning dawned bright and clear but to Roxton it could have been pouring down rain, he never would have noticed.  He picked up Marguerite’s body and began the trek to retrace her steps and see if they could find Challenger.  Even if they found him alive things would never be the same for him.

       They wandered past the tree where he had found HER bloodied coat sleeve.  Past the grove of trees she had to have passed on her way.  Why hadn’t she just stayed to the trees? Surely she had to have seen the raptors.  Why didn’t she just head back toward  the treehouse where she had to know they would be looking for her?  So many questions he would never get the answers to, so many things he would never get to say.

       “Roxton, look up there!” Veronica shouted as she pointed.  Roxton’s hollow eyes followed her arm.

       “What is it?” he asked absently.

       “Look, it’s Challenger’s rifle.” Veronica climbed the small mountain and began throwing rocks in every direction.

       “Roxton, you need to put Marguerite down and help me.”  No reply.

       “ROXTON, damn it you need to listen to me!” she shouted. “Marguerite is gone but Challenger might still be alive. There will be time to grieve for her once we save Challenger, now get up here and help me!” Her words seemed to shake him back to reality and he scrambled up to help her.

       Challenger thought he heard a scraping noise above him but he couldn’t be sure.  Suddenly, light poured in from everywhere and he had to squint his eyes as it blinded him.  He thought he felt hand grab him and he saw that he was moving, being drug up and out of his shale prison.  As he was pulled to safety and gently turned over he peered into the tear soaked faces of his friends.  A gentle rain began to fall, mixing with their tears.  They lowered Challenger to the stretcher they had brought and Veronica grabbed the lead and began to pull it toward the treehouse.

       “Wait,” Challenger whispered, “where’s Marguerite?  You did find her didn’t you?  She went looking for help yesterday or was it the day before?”  When Veronica only looked to the trail ahead and Roxton at the ground Challenger became alarmed.

       “What’s wrong?  Someone tell me what’s wrong.  Has something happened to Marguerite?  I know she was hurt when she left,” the anguished looks on their faces told him more than he wanted to know.

       “Dear God, no,” he whispered. “Please tell me what happened,” he pleaded.

       Roxton could only stare sorrowfully into the ground, tears once again streaming freely down his cheeks as he listened to Veronica recount the scene that he knew would play over and over again in his mind.  Challenger listened in horror at the tale his eye filling with tears. Veronica told him about Roxton holding Marguerite close while he felt her life expire.  Damn, Challenger thought, It should have been me not Marguerite that was dead.  I have lived a long life and she was so young.  No one, not even Marguerite deserved to die like that. He took the hand Veronica offered and squeezed it gently.

       “We need to get back to the tree house and give her a proper burial,” Challenger offered.

       “We should be there by noon tomorrow, Challenger,” Veronica said sadly.

       The rest of the trip to the tree house was uneventful.  When they had made camp for the night Veronica insisted on tending to Challenger’s wounds: the small gash on his forehead, his broken ribs and a cut on his right leg.  When he was settled by the fire, resting as comfortably as possible, Veronica approached Roxton, not quite sure what to say.

       “She knows how you felt, you know.”

       “Hmm?”

       “Marguerite knew how you felt about her.  We talked about it down by the river the other day.  She called you insufferable,” Veronica tried to coax a smile from the desolate hunter.

       “Humph, I never told her.  A thousand times I wanted to but she always stopped me,” he almost snapped.

       “She wasn’t big on showing her emotions, well not the ones that would leave her vulnerable anyway,” she chuckled Roxton did too in spite of his heartache.  They talked far into the night.

       The next morning they set out for the tree house, Roxton still distant though not quite as zombie-like as he was the day before.  Challenger tried to help until Veronica threatened him by telling him she could take him back where they found him.  The rest of the trip back was in silence.  Each explorer was lost in their thoughts of their fallen comrade.  They picked what they thought was a proper place to bury their friend and made preparations for the funeral.  Challenger was chosen to say a few words and he wiped his eye before he began.

       “Lord, we give you the body of our dear Marguerite, taken far too early from this place and her family.  She had just begun to find herself, to discover the lady inside who was yearning to get out to be free.  Why you chose to take her we may never know, we can only trust in your judgment, your divine plan for us all.  Someday we will know and understand why you chose to take her from us, but for now we grieve and mourn the loss of one so dear to our hearts.” They all wiped their eyes and Roxton and Veronica lowered Marguerite into the cold dark earth.

       She looked up through a haze, not quite comprehending what was happening.  She didn’t hurt anymore.  The agonizing pain from the T-rex’s teeth was gone.  She only felt a strange sense of foreboding and unease.  Something was dreadfully wrong and she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.  She remembered the T-rex vividly.  Remembered his razor sharp claws and teeth bearing down on her.  She remembered Roxton’s anguished features and his tears.  Had this all happened? Had she really died?  No, this was so unfair!  How could this have happened to her?  Hadn’t she changed?  Hadn’t she turned her life around and she thought of others first? 

       She slowly and cautiously walked out to the common room and peered around the corner.  Challenger glanced up and stood, hands on his pack, irritated expression on his face.

       “Aren’t you ready yet, Marguerite?” he stated, frowning.

       “George, I don’t think we should go.  Not today,” Marguerite replied shakily.  Challenger heard the tremor in her voice and turned to look at her.

       “Are you all right, Marguerite?  You look as though you’ve seen a ghost.”

       “Let’s just say I’ve seen what could be my future and I want no part of it.  No matter what you say, Challenger I am NOT going to that sulfur patch today.”

       “Whatever do you mean?” he asked intrigued now.

       “I had a dream and it was very real and it told me we will meet with disaster if we go to the sulfur patch today.  You can call me a coward or chicken or whatever you want but I am NOT going!”

       “Well, if it has you this worked up perhaps we should stay here.  We can get the sulfur after the monsoons.”  They sat down on the balcony and she began to tell him her dream.  Challenger put his arm around her to reassure her everything would be all right.

       Roxton and Veronica entered the room and saw the scene before them.  They called to Challenger and Marguerite to come to breakfast.  Marguerite snapped out of her haze and they all settled down to eat, making plans to stay indoors and find things to keep them busy as the first of the monsoon rains began to fall.

                                        The End