Thunder Lizards

By Lance Meier

Science is something that can change every day - or at least the way we view it. Sometimes, we look at the things all wrong. But through exploration, we can always learn more. And to do that, eight people will venture into a world unknown. After a brilliant scientist goes missing, a group of scientists, mercenaries, and explorers take it upon themselves to venture into a hidden jungle in the Yucatan Peninsula. But what they find is a world of adventure, a lost world where God has restored the ancient world to how he once envisioned it. As they slowly unravel a mystery or two, they may need to fight for their lives to not only complete their rescue, but to make it back home alive.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 10, 2019
• ISBN: 9781644245521

Book preview

Chapter One

Dr. Nicholas Green examined the skeleton in the ground. It was the fossilized remains of a Diplodocus carnegii, one of the longest dinosaurs to ever stride the earth. The team had almost managed to excavate its first few neck vertebrae. One day, the entire skeleton would be unearthed, and then everyone could see it.

This skeleton has to be at least 150 million years old, Nick thought. I can’t believe how well-preserved it is. The fossil sure looked like someone had been taking good care of it. There were no broken pieces, the bones were still close to one another, and the whole thing was protected by stone. The Diplodocus must have died pretty close to a swamp. The mud would have kept it protected from being deteriorated by outside forces.

When this beautiful creature was alive, it weighed about thirteen tons, was ninety-five feet long, if not longer, and held its head twenty-eight feet off the ground. It roamed the vast, open fields it inhabited, browsing for vegetation along the ground. If it felt lucky, it could rear up on its hind legs to reach the leaves on trees, too. It traveled in herds and spent most of the day eating, because something this big needed to eat a lot in order to keep its high metabolism going.

Nick gazed up at the sun and wiped the sweat off his forehead. It was pretty scorching out in the badlands of Colorado. The entire land was a blend of brown, beige, and white, and there were numerous rock formations as far as the eye could see. Sometimes, formations were smooth and looked like large hills, but others were a little more jagged and looked like giant rocks jutting out of the earth. There were many small bushes and tufts of grass decorating the ground.

A place like this might come off as a wasteland to most, but to Nick, it was the perfect place to discover an ancient world lost by time. He looked at the landscape, and all he could see was an open world of ferns on the ground, trees that could give Californian redwoods a run for their money towering above the sky, and of course, a plethora of exotic animals: dinosaurs.

Ever since he was a child, Nick had been fascinated with the ancient reptiles. He loved that despite how different each one was, they were still a part of one family. Some were long-necked and as tall as fifty feet, some were as small as a chicken and lived to scavenge, some had massive sharp horns and neck frills decorating their heads, and some were essentially armored tanks on four legs. Nick knew who he wanted to be from the start. He wanted to be a paleontologist. He wanted to know these creatures better than ever before.

Nick walked toward a tent and opened up a cooler to fish out a bottle of water. The cooler was brimming with ice cubes, but it had only two water bottles left.

Nick pulled out one of the bottles when he heard someone say, What about me? You’re not the only one who’s sweating like a ham over here.

Nick looked up and saw his old friend, Connor. Connor had a brown mustache on his upper lip and kept his brown hair hidden under a cowboy hat. He was wearing a black vest on top of a white T-shirt, a pair of blue jeans, and a pair of brown boots.

Nick himself was wearing a red scarf around his neck, something that one would rarely see him without. His hair was black, and his eyes were a light blue. He was wearing a yellow T-shirt, boots similar to Connor’s, and a shorter pair of jeans that only went to his knees.

Nick handed Connor the other water bottle and said, Why are you wearing that cowboy hat? We’re not in a Western movie right now.

It’s hot, okay? said Connor as Nick rose up from the ground. It’d be hard not to wear a cowboy hat out here.

I don’t think hats have ever looked good on you, Nick said as they both walked back toward the excavation site.

Why are you so moody today? Connor asked. Oh, you’re still mad that Collins was chosen to lead this expedition instead of you, aren’t you?

I don’t understand why he got to lead us on this excavation, said Nick. I know way more about proper paleontology than he does.

C’mon, Nick, said Connor, you’ve been butting heads with him ever since you two were college roomies. He’s as good a paleontologist as you.

Well, Nick said, at least I’m not as careless as him. I wish he’d be more careful with our specimens. Just last month, he knocked over an entire shelf of ammonite shell fossils just to, in his own words, ‘get a closer look.’

I agree, said Connor, that Stanley Collins is a bit of a screwup sometimes, but you don’t have to belittle him every chance you get. There’s no need to be jealous of him.

Nick looked at Connor bitterly and said, I am not jealous.

At that moment, the two stood just above the Diplodocus skeleton, on top of a slanted cliff. There was a steep drop toward the skeleton right in front of them. Nick just hoped that Stanley could bring the bones back in the same shape as they were then.

So, Connor started, when we get back home to Washington, DC, the guys and I were going to a party. Marcus and Judy Ross are celebrating their fifth anniversary. Did you want to come?

I’d love to, said Nick, but I can’t. I’m gonna be researching these bones all week long.

Man, all you ever want to do is focus on your research, Connor complained. There’s more to life than science. Don’t you ever want to do anything else?

Paleontology is my life, said Nick. I really don’t have time for other things.

But don’t you ever want to settle down? You know, if you come to that party, you could meet a nice girl there, Connor said in a teasing voice.

Nick smiled and politely said, Thanks, but I’m not really looking for a woman right now. Besides, I’m not really big on girlfriends. They get in the way of work.

So what? said Connor. Your plan is to just keep your head in a book all your life and never find some friends? Or a woman?

"I’ve got all the friends I need right here. I got you, I got my fellow scientists, and I got my friend Mr. Diplodocus right here."

Connor chuckled and said, Some things about you I will never understand.

Suddenly, they heard an engine roaring from behind them. Nick and Connor turned around to see a small green-and-black vehicle coming up from behind them. In the driver seat, Nick saw, was the one man he had come to loathe all his life.

Stanley Collins.

Stanley was a tall man with a gray beard hanging from his face. At the moment, he was wearing a pair of glasses and a red flannel shirt along with a pair of blue jeans. He jumped out of the vehicle and walked toward them.

I didn’t know there was a gathering here, he said.

Nick ignored him and said, So you finally decided to wake up. Lucky for you, you didn’t have to do any work today. Or any other day.

I’ve been working, Stan retorted. I’ve been supervising this dig and making sure you guys didn’t mess anything up.

All you’ve been doing is bossing everybody around and sitting in a tent, reading a book, all this time, said Nick. Though maybe that’s for the best, considering that you’d probably just break this skeleton just like you broke the ammonite fossils.

A, let it go already. B, I’m in charge of this dig, so what I say goes. You guys would be lost without me. Now, how about getting down there and helping? said Stan.

Give us a break, said Connor. You’ve been working us all day. Don’t you think we deserve a water break?

Stan smirked and said, You guys want to remind me who Ms. Watson put in charge of this dig?

Nick grumbled under his breath and said, You.

Exactly, Stan said smugly. So maybe you should listen to the big guy here.

Nick was about to say something back when his gaze met the front left tire of Stan’s vehicle. For some reason, he parked it right inside of a small pit.

What’s the vehicle sitting inside that pit for? asked Nick.

Oh, the parking brakes aren’t working, so I figured the pit should keep it stationary, Stan answered.

What? Nick yelled. Do you know how unsafe that is? It could roll right out of that pit, right over this ledge, right on top of the skeleton!

Don’t get you pants in a knot, Green, said Stanley as he walked back to the vehicle. I think I know what I’m doing. He gave the vehicle a small whack just to show that it wasn’t going anywhere.

That was a mistake.

The vehicle rolled out of the hole and straight for the ledge. It fell right over the ridge and fell straight for the skeleton. The people working on it quickly took notice of the falling vehicle and ran for it. The vehicle landed on the ground with a big crunch.

Nick raced down to see the damage. When he made it to the site of the crash, he let out a sigh of relief. No one was hurt, and the vehicle had just barely missed landing on top of the neck vertebrae.

However, that relief was quickly replaced by anger as he marched straight up to Collins. ‘I think I know what I’m doing,’ huh? You don’t have a clue!

Stan, however, seemed unfazed by the situation. Calm down, Green. Accidents will happen.

‘Accidents will happen?!’ Nick shouted. Man, this guy was too arrogant to be careful or even admit a mistake. This was a pretty big, monumental accident! We’ve spent weeks out here, working on one of the greatest specimens we’ve seen, and you almost wrecked it! You could’ve gotten someone hurt! You could’ve gotten someone killed!

Collins suddenly looked at the ground, looking a little saddened. All right, he admitted, I messed up. But I’m sure I can straighten this mess out with Ms. Watson. I’m sure she won’t be mad at me.

Connor suddenly grabbed Nick by the arm and pulled him away.

Nick, I think you need to calm down, he whispered.

Nick pulled his arm out of Connor’s grip and whispered back, No way, I’ve had enough! Collins has no idea what he’s doing now, and he didn’t know what he was doing on any other expedition he was in charge of! As soon as we get back to DC, I’m going to have a talk with Ms. Watson!

Chapter Two

Three weeks later…

Real meat or horsemeat is the question of the day around here, as customers at the Fast Grill have complained and sent out reports of how the taste of the meat at this establishment has changed.

Katrina Letterman stood right in front of a large fast-food restaurant that had walls made of muddy-colored brick, a red roof on top, and the words The Fast Grill spelled out over the door. The doors were made of glass and were right in between two windows that wrapped around the building all the way to the back.

Kate held her small microphone to her mouth and stared intensely into the black lens of the camera, trying to look as serious as possible. She was wearing a short-sleeved white shirt, black cotton pants, and a pair of black high heels. She had long black hair that curled slightly and went all the way down to her shoulders.

Her cameraman, Norman, was balancing the camera on one of his shoulders. He was a dark-brown-haired man sporting a small amount of stubble around his chin and mouth. He was wearing a lime-green jacket over a black-and-white-striped shirt underneath and a pair of blue jeans with a dull black belt holding them.

After having been accused of replacing the regular cow meat with horsemeat in order to save money, an interview with the management has told us that the people here at Fast Grill will not confirm or deny the presence of horsemeat in their meals. They have, however, assured us that no matter what is in their food, they strive to provide us with only the best, tastiest, and even the healthiest meals they can come up with. Will the complaints continue? Will the customers manage to rest their case? Or will they see they have it all wrong? It’s too soon to say, but as soon as we know, you’ll know. This is Kate Letterman, WCN News, reporting live.

Kate and Norman walked through the hallway of the WCN News network building, trying to squeeze past the various people holding stacks of paper in their hands running from door to door. They were on their way to see the head of the network, Jack Reynolds. Kate would be lying if she said that she wasn’t nervous, because usually, when someone was called into Mr. Reynolds’s office, it wasn’t a good thing.

What do you think Mr. Reynolds wants to see us for, anyway? Kate asked Norman, breaking the long-term silence that had been between them ever since they entered the building.

Well, Norman started, sounding a little apprehensive about what he was preparing to say, if I’m being completely honest, it might be about our news story today.

And what was so bad about it? Kate demanded.

Let’s face it, Norman continued. Mr. Reynolds doesn’t have a lot of patience when it comes to stories that don’t excite him.

Kate knew Mr. Reynolds well enough by now to know that Norman had a pretty good point. She just hoped that Reynolds wouldn’t bring it up.

I don’t think he cares that much, Norman, Kate said. He doesn’t just care about ratings and exciting stories. He cares that sometimes little stories like this are what keeps society together. As she said this, however, she didn’t believe the tone of her own voice.

Finally, the two of them reached the end of the hallway and saw a light-brown wooden door with the name Jack Reynolds engraved into a golden rectangular plaque across the top. Though hesitant, Kate walked up and knocked on the door.

Come in, a deep voice said from inside.

Kate opened the door, and she and Norman walked inside. The office was big enough to live in, for sure, with various file cabinets on each wall of the room. In the center was a metallic black desk with a pale-blue wooden top. Sitting behind it was a man with graying hair, large ears, a white shirt inside of a brown jacket, and a red-and-black-striped tie. This man was Jack Reynolds.

Next to him, pouring coffee into Reynolds’s mug, was a thin woman with blond hair worn on her head like a helmet. This was Mr. Reynolds’s assistant, Angela, who basically lived to serve him and tell him that he was right about everything.

Reynolds easily came off as a harsh man. He did try to look for the good in every situation, but he lost his patience whenever he couldn’t get what he believed he really needed. He had organized the network into something he hoped could run smoothly and hoped it could enlighten people all over Washington, DC, but he wasn’t afraid to make drastic changes.

Mr. Reynolds looked up from the paperwork on his desk and took notice of the two people who had just entered the room.

You wanted to talk to us, Mr. Reynolds? Kate asked, hiding her nervousness as best as she could.

As a matter of fact, Mr. Reynolds started, rising up from his chair, I have a very important question to ask you, Ms. Letterman. Can you explain to me why, as soon as your report today started, half the viewers suddenly switched over to the ‘Ultimate Cartoon-a-Thon’?

Kate felt her entire body tense up and her face heat up. However, she chose not to respond.

No? Reynolds said, not standing within two feet of Kate. Well, let’s think back for a second, shall we? Three weeks ago, you did a story on rising prices in a mattress store. Two weeks ago, it was a cake auction. Last week, it was about rush hour traffic. And this week, you did a piece on horsemeat sandwiches. Do you see a pattern developing here?

Kate felt anxiety wrapping around her heart but still kept her mouth shut.

Here’s a hint, said Reynolds. "Each of the stories you’ve come up with in the past month are pathetic!"

Kate almost reeled back at the sudden outburst, but Norman suddenly stepped forward and said, With all due respect, sir, she’s doing the best she can! You can’t just expect an exciting story to just pop up every minute!

Is that it? Reynolds said. Because literally every other reporter at this network has been covering all kinds of juicy stories! Maybe you just aren’t looking hard enough!

I warned you that hiring her was a mistake, Angela suddenly spoke up. She’s hardly a reporter, if you ask me. Admit it, Kate, you were only hired because you’re beautiful.

The fear wrapped around Kate’s heart was suddenly burned out by a rising anger. If there was one thing in the world that Kate hated more than anything, it was someone telling her she was just a pretty face. All her life, she had tried to get people to see that she was a smart, resourceful, and effective woman, but for some reason, people would only focus on her looks.

She was about to shout something back when Reynolds suddenly turned back to Angela and silently glared at her to tell her to mind her own business. Angela quickly got the message and returned to fixing the papers on the desk.

Now, listen, Kate, said Reynolds, in a calmer tone. I really don’t mind having you around. But unfortunately, if you can’t meet the standards of everyone else here, it might be time to let you go.

The flames of rage were suddenly extinguished by true fear as Kate gasped at what she had just heard. Please! Kate pleaded. You can’t fire me, Mr. Reynolds! This job means everything to me! I can make up for this, I promise! Just give me one more chance!

Mr. Reynolds certainly had not been expecting an outburst like that, as he looked genuinely surprised. He looked slightly downward as he pondered what Kate had just said for a moment, as Kate, Norman, and Angela watched anxiously.

Finally, Reynolds looked up and said, Okay, here’s what I’m thinking. I’ll send you out to go find any news story you want. And if it excites both me and the viewers, then you can keep your job.

Kate felt more relieved, but then she asked, Where do I start? Do I get any help?

Nobody else ever needs any help with their stories, Ms. Letterman. I know you’re perfectly capable of hunting down a juicy story on your own, okay? Now get out there and find one.

After Kate and Norman had left the building, Kate suddenly spoke up.

Thanks for defending me in there, Norman. You’re a good friend.

You’re welcome, Kate, Norman responded. I have to say, it wouldn’t be as much fun without you around.

Kate softly smiled for the first time that day and said, Thanks. So do you think the two of us can really find a cool news story for Mr. Reynolds?

Norman’s face suddenly fell as he turned to Kate and said, I’m sorry, Kate, I forgot to tell you. My wife’s asking me to come with her to visit her parents in Los Angeles. Her mother’s sick, and she wants me to be there with her until her mother gets better.

Kate looked shocked. What? she said. When do you leave?

First thing tomorrow morning. I don’t know when I’m coming back, Norman said sadly. I’m sorry, Kate. If it were up to me…

No. Kate shook her head. I understand. If your wife needs you there for her and her mom, I won’t get in your way. I’ll be all right.

Are you sure? Norman asked, concerned.

Positive, said Kate, though she knew that it wasn’t really true. As they continued to walk, Kate thought back to what Angela had said.

Is it true? she thought. Did Mr. Reynolds really only hire me because I’m pretty? After some pondering, she thought, Well, if that’s the case, I’ll just have to prove him wrong.

Chapter Three

I understand your concern, Nick, but there is a reason I chose to let Stan lead, said Elizabeth Watson.

Both she and Nick stood before each other in front of a large dinosaur skeleton. The fossilized Tyrannosaurus rex was painted a muddy brown after being hidden in the earth for millions of years, and it had to be supported by black rods to hold up the massive weight. Over millions of years, after this animal had fallen into a wet place, like a lake or a watering hole, water soon covered it up, flowing through the holes in the animal’s bones, placing dirt and gravel inside in the process. Slowly the bone turned to rock and was thus preserved for future generations to discover.

Nick and the others had just gotten back from the expedition and arrived back at the museum that sent them. While everyone else was busy carefully handing over the excavated pieces of the Diplodocus to the museum’s preparator staff so they could be safely stored away for research, Nick had gone straight to Ms. Watson and demanded that she allow him to take the lead the next time there was an excavation.

And just what was that reason, Ms. Watson? Nick demanded, though his tone was calm and collected.

It’s because if it weren’t for Dr. Collins, this museum could never have gotten as far in scientific research as it has, Ms. Watson responded. "Over the years, he’s found too many exciting discoveries to count. He’s the one who pointed that Diplodocus skeleton out to us in the first place. And not a moment too soon, either. I