//------------------------------// // 1 - Life At The Edge of Chaos // Story: The Lost Ponies: Jurassic Park // by CompactDisc //------------------------------// “And so, we are able to glean from this that extinction is simply the result of two strategies at the edge of chaos: too much change, or in opposition to this, not enough change. Both will lead to drastic consequences as dictated by chaos theory.” The small seminar hall at the Santa Fe Institute was packed, the audience murmuring in agreement and hastily taking notes. The hall itself could only hold fifty occupants but that had not stopped the extra fifteen or so that stood along the back wall from attending. Many of those in the room had travelled far to attend the lecture, not simply due to its material but due to its speaker: it was being given by Doctor Ian Malcolm, the well-revered but controversial figure globally renowned as a leading authority in the field of chaos theory. The man was in residence at the Institute and had been since 1994, quickly becoming a regular sight around its grounds. As a scholar and researcher, he worked hard. He studied chaos theory and its applications tirelessly and at great depth, often conducting research well into the night. Needless to say, those also in residence soon noticed Malcolm’s erratic work schedule: he would regularly seem to vanish for extended periods of time before one day showing up in the library, or found sat at a small table enjoying a coffee. Word spread through the Institute that Malcolm was working on something that few others had touched upon, and in late 1996 he announced in a grand fashion his next big spring lecture: Life at the Edge of Chaos. In his announcement, he briefly outlined the content and subjects and it was quickly apparent that there would be a theoretical focus on extinction events and prehistoric life. Word spread of his talk far beyond the confines of the Institute, attracting the attention of many academics in America and beyond. Indeed, the close relationship between prehistory, extinction and chaos theory was something that had been touched upon but never examined under close, intense scrutiny and certainly not by someone as globally respected as Malcolm himself. There were, of course, critics to his cause. Some at the Institute deemed his research a wasted effort and a ‘gimmicky’ way of revitalising his academic career, following a year-long absence from the public sphere in 1993. Nobody knew why he disappeared for so long, or what happened, but when he arrived at the Institute in mid 1994 walking awkwardly with a cane and looking a lot older than his forty five years would suggest, rumours quickly began to surface. They ranged wildly from illness all the way up to secret government projects and such. Some had gone so far to suggest that he had been attached to a biogenetics company which suffered a fatal accident some years ago... Malcolm himself took no notice of the rumours and accusations, and his tireless work and research continued right up until the date of the lecture. Despite the antagonistic feelings harboured by many of his peers, to his delight the hall was packed as he spoke and those in attendance were clearly engaging with his thoughts. He delivered the lecture dramatically but thoroughly, typically stopping for an almost theatrical effect following many of his points and he leaned heavily against the orator’s podium, striking a commanding pose as he spoke. Despite his odd oration style, he communicated his theories and ideas clearly and the equally well-read audience drank him in. The Institute specialised in theoretical constructs and research; the core idea of chaos theory was familiar to everyone present at his talk in one way or another. That included Twilight Sparkle, herself taking notes. She sat three rows back, her gaze flicking between her notepad and the man stood before her. Of the sixty or so attendees crowded into the seminar hall, Twilight was the only pony although she didn’t feel uncomfortable or out of place. It was true that ponies on Earth were still a reasonably rare sight, but in the few years since contact was established more and more of their number crossed over to visit the human realm. One of the first to make the journey, Twilight and her friends had been tasked by Princess Celestia to visit Earth for extended periods, acting as official ambassadors of Equestria and to conduct research and relation-building exercises. After visiting a library in New York on her first trip, she had naturally opted to focus her efforts into understanding the world of human academia. Humankind possessed a wide knowledge, much of their ideas and technology completely alien to ponykind – and as Twilight saw it, the libraries of Earth would be the places to begin on her quest to understand humanity. She had learned much during her research missions. It hadn’t taken her long to establish herself as an excellent scholar during her first extended stay, and through various means Twilight now found herself studying chaos theory. It was an interesting opportunity and avenue of research; chaos theory was a school of thought still in its infancy but it piqued the interest of many, Twilight included. Its applications and ideas were relatively fresh to many and completely new to her, and the prospect of exciting new knowledge was more than enough to draw her in. Now, some two years since first visiting Earth and countless research missions conducted, Twilight was sat amongst the most erudite of humankind as a resident of the Institute and a respected academic. Truly, she was in her element. Malcolm continued as he shifted his weight to his cane. “It is here that I digress somewhat – we must remember that a gap exists between theory and fact. The ‘edge of chaos’ is of course nothing more than a theoretical construct, an idea. Extinction is fact. We know it has occurred, many times over. And whilst the ‘edge of chaos’ makes logical sense to us here today, we have absolutely no way of proving this theory correct, at all. Fossil records reveal when but not why an animal became extinct. Computer simulations are of little value. And of course, there is no way we can experiment with the living organisms themselves. Even – even if we could, there are countless ethical implications, and I stop to think whether we should...” He faltered, taking on a glassy look for the briefest moment. Almost effortlessly he continued on, before anyone had chance to notice his odd behaviour. “As such, owing to its untestable nature, extinction might not be a scientific subject whatsoever and this would certainly explain the philosophical debate surrounding it – What is it?” All heads turned to the back of the hall, following Malcolm’s now venomous gaze. One of the figures stood at the back – a man in his early thirties – had raised his hand and began to impatiently wave it about. “You have a question?” Malcolm huffed. This man, much to his chagrin, had derailed his lecture: questions and debate, though strongly encouraged at the Institute, were to be held until the end of a seminar. “Actually,” the man said standing forward, oblivious to Malcolm’s irritation, “more of an observation.” Twilight took this new figure in as he spoke. He was dark and thin, dressed in a khaki shirt and shorts, precise in his movements and manner. Though she hadn’t seen this man before in person she knew who he was and the murmurs in the audience confirmed this: Richard Levine. His reputation preceded him wherever he went and here was no different – Twilight was aware of his position as an incredible palaeobiologist with a vast personal wealth, but she had also heard that most people at the Institute found him abrasive, ignorant, and irritating. “Fossil records are not useful in the discussion surrounding extinction, of that I agree – especially in this context, as fossils don’t reveal much about behaviour. Where I disagree is at the point where you claim your thesis is untestable. To be honest I believe quite the opposite and am quite surprised you yourself hadn’t thought of this.” The atmosphere in the lecture hall became immediately and noticeably tense – Levine had dared to cross Malcolm in his own field. Twilight sat attentively, notepad at the ready. She was going to enjoy this exchange and judging by the others in attendance, so was everyone else. Malcolm simply raised an eyebrow in an attempt to hide a rising frustration. He was not used to being told in quite so straightforward terms that his ideas had not been given enough thought. “And your point is?” Levine cleared his throat. “At their peak, Dinosauria inhabited almost every corner of the planet. Fossils have been discovered on every continent and in every climactic zone. Dinosaurs were everywhere. Now, if we follow your thesis and assume that their extinction was indeed the result of a behavioural change, and not a catastrophe as popularly assumed, then I would be hard-pushed to believe that all dinosaurs simply ‘changed their behaviour’ everywhere and at the same time. That seems unlikely to me. This lends itself to the idea that there may well be some prehistoric animals that have survived and continue to live to this day. What’d be stopping you from going to find them?” There was a pause before Malcolm answered. “I suppose you could go looking for them, if you had nothing better to do with your time.” He ended with a sarcastic grin. “No,” Levine pressed with conviction. “I’m not joking around here. What if, somewhere on Earth, there’s some isolated spot where dinosaurs still exist?” "Yes, the concept of the Lost World," Malcolm responded and heads in the room nodded knowingly including Twilight’s own. During her time in residence she’d become familiar with the terms for referring to theoretical evolutionary situations. There was the Field of Bullets, the Game of Life and the Lost World amongst countless others. These were well-defined but the fact remained that they were purely theoretical— "No," Levine retorted briskly, taking Twilight by surprise. "I am speaking literally." There was a strange atmosphere in the seminar hall as all eyes were trained on Levine, much as if he was challenging Malcolm rather than debating with him. Briefly, Malcolm remained silent at the podium before his features narrowed. “Then you’re badly deluded.” He dismissed Levine with a wave of his hand and concluded the strange confrontation, turning back to the blackboard. “Now, considering implications of the edge of chaos...” At the back of the room Levine stared for a moment, amazed at Malcolm’s refusal to engage him. Finally he accepted the debate was over and returned to his spot against the back wall. As Malcolm continued with the lecture Twilight turned to face the front once more. She watched Malcolm move, and she heard him speak, but it didn’t register with her: she was absorbed in what Richard Levine had just suggested. Though she was hardly surprised that he was brushed off so quickly – academics needed evidence in light of claims like that – she was nonetheless intrigued. Nobody in the Institute that she’d spoken to would have even thought to suggest it; living prehistoric animals were far too improbable to even warrant intellectual discussion. But Levine, or so she’d heard, was completely atypical to many professional academics. “Improbable does not mean impossible,” she recalled reading in one of his books. She would have to find both men after the lecture and quiz them on the events of today. Certainly, Malcolm’s lecture was interesting but Levine’s mention of the Lost World posed an interesting avenue of discussion... After all, if nothing else their conversation would no doubt raise interesting points and give her something to report to Princess Celestia with. * * * * The lecture had finished some thirty minutes ago and Twilight hadn’t been able to catch either of the two men. Malcolm had immediately been swamped with questions at the end and Levine must have left quietly and inconspicuously. Determined to find them later, Twilight had headed to a quiet area of the Institute where she could consolidate her notes. She was sat at a small table near some vending machines and a large bay window, the natural light of the warm New Mexico sun filtering in as she worked. The quietness was peaceful and she was quickly able to get into a groove, making short work of her disorganised notes, ploughing through them and putting together a much more readable document. From the corner of her eye she noticed a figure in her peripheral vision and only then clued into him – she could hear him quietly mumbling in annoyance to himself. Twilight looked up and sure enough, there he was: Ian Malcolm, standing by one of the vending machines in the process of ordering a coffee. She took him in and as she’d anticipated he carried his air of confidence with him everywhere – he was an imposing, dark figure with a commanding quality be it in the seminar halls or impatiently frowning at a coffee machine. “Thank God,” he muttered to himself as the machine finally produced his drink. Twilight watched him lean down stiffly and grab the cup before glancing around, at which point his eyes met Twilight’s own. Malcolm furrowed his brow. “Can I, uh, help you?” He continued to stare back. For the briefest moment Twilight didn’t really know what to say or do. She’d seen him around the Institute before plenty of times, but now, finally confronted by the man... “Oh, err – My apologies for disturbing you, Doctor Malcolm—” “Ah!” He raised a finger with a chuckle. “I know who you are. You’re Twilight Sparkle, right?” “Yes, that’s me. Nice to finally meet you!” “And you, and you. I was glad to see you in my lecture earlier,” he said with a slight smile. “I rather figured that a seminar pertaining to mathematical theories and constructs would be the last place to find an Equestrian.” “Well, I’ve been conducting study in numerous fields since first visiting Earth—” “Please forgive me for interrupting, but I am aware of your mission.” He held up a hand to cut Twilight off. “The exploits of you and your fellow... oh, what is it, Elements of Harmony?” “That’s right.” “Yes, well, the goings-on of the Equestrian Elements is fairly well-documented, as I’m sure you can imagine. May – may I join you here?” “Oh, please do! I actually wanted to ask you a few questions about your lecture earlier.” “In that case,” he began, lowering himself steadily into a chair, “fire away.” Twilight glanced over at her notes, debating for the shortest time whether to discuss the finer points of chaos theory – though she knew exactly what she wanted to ask him. “Earlier, when you were interrupted... Doctor Levine seemed, well – firm in his beliefs. Nopony else would give such thoughts the time of day, but he certainly seemed adamant!” “Certainly so, yes.” Malcolm nodded his head slowly. “Adamant. Adamant, and delusional.” “So you don’t think it at all possible that a Lost World could exist?” “Absolutely not,” he began immediately and with conviction. “As I expressed in the lecture, prehistoric life as a whole had its shot at existing and in the case of the dinosaurs, they enjoyed the best part of some one hundred thirty million years as the dominant species. However, they became extinct.” He took a pause. “Miss Sparkle, a living organism such as you or I is a very complex system. We are made up of billions of cells and various internal systems. We also live in a world where there are complex systems. The food chain, for example, is a complex system in the simplest right. These - these systems require stability in order to exist; on the contrary they also need to be able to adapt and evolve. Life at the Edge of Chaos,” he said with a smirk. “So with this in mind, it seems the dinosaurs became extinct because of changes to the outside world, changes that would affect the ‘edge of chaos’. In short, radical and sudden outside changes to the world in which the complex systems exists would force them beyond the edge of chaos and swing them either way: either the organism adapts too much and dies out, or it does not adapt enough and dies out.” Twilight nodded as she hummed in understanding. “I think I’m following you, Doctor Malcolm – so if the dinosaur’s habitat suddenly changed, for instance, their balance at the edge of chaos as you put it would be tipped, and as a result they’d become extinct?” “More or less,” Malcolm replied. “That’s a little colloquial, but yes, I – I suppose the point is made.” He took a sip from his coffee. “In this sense I don’t believe a Lost World does or could ever exist. All dinosaurs were pushed from the edge of chaos and ceased to exist, be it from a meteorite, a colossal volcanic explosion... That’s for another branch of science to work out. The point here – in terms of chaos theory – is that life cannot exist beyond the edge of chaos. And – and even if dinosaurs did exist today, for whatever ridiculous and sci-fi reasons people may come up with, the world is now far too different to be able to support dinosaurs.” Twilight shook her head slowly. “Wow,” she said after a pause. “This is captivating! I’m struggling a little to keep up and make sense of all this, though – this sort of academic thinking hasn’t really been touched on in Equestria all too much...” “Perhaps it’s best kept that way,” Malcolm began as a grin crept across his face. “That way you won’t have mad quacks calling you out.” He laughed aloud. “But – yes. In answer to your question, chaos theory, in a roundabout way, dictates that prehistoric animals surviving from antiquity simply cannot happen. Nature cannot and did not allow it to happen—” “But what about the rumours from Costa Rica?” Both Malcolm and Twilight looked up with a start to receive this new, third speaker who had invited himself into their conversation. “Ah, I was wondering when you’d show up...” “I’m serious, Ian. What about the rumours? You must have heard of them.” Richard Levine kept the pressure on Malcolm as he joined them at the table, sitting down. His gaze was unwavering. With a sigh, Malcolm began. “By ‘rumours’ I assume you mean these animals from the jungles...” He pointed at Levine. “Let me tell you that in the case of Costa Rica—” “And in the Congo. You must be aware of the claimed sightings of a large sauropod—” “Fantasy,” Malcolm interrupted harshly, with more than a hint of annoyance. “It’s all fantasy. There is no hard evidence.” He held up his hands. “I cannot believe in unsupported hearsay and I find it difficult to see how a man of your stature can.” Levine was quick to retort. “It’s not unsupported. I think there is ‘hard evidence’ as you put it. I have contacts in Costa Rica who’ve seen remains and I have heard they are instantly recognisable as dinosaurs. That is evidence in itself, is it not? I believe that there is indeed an area in which dinosaurs still inhabit.” “I – I’m sorry? Did I hear you correctly? Richard, you’re an academic, not a twelve year-old boy! Rumours passed to you of dinosaur corpses cannot constitute ‘evidence in itself’, that simply isn’t enough. You’d need to see them, document them... Run tests on them.” Malcolm shrugged apathetically, a yawn escaping. “Although anything’s possible I suppose,” he muttered lazily, a poor effort to get Levine to leave him alone. Twilight had remained quiet during the exchange. Levine didn’t seem to have really registered her presence but she didn’t mind – as far as she was concerned, this avenue of discussion with these two figures was exactly what she’d wanted to see. Levine had arrived to finish what began in the seminar hall and she was a passenger, an observer. She continued to make notes. “And I believe this is possible,” Levine said simply. Then he allowed a brief pause, his tone dropping. “What were you doing in Costa Rica three years ago?” “I was hospitalised—” “Rumour goes that you were looking for dinosaurs.” “I wasn’t.” “I’ve heard that some years back, a biogenetics company – InGen – had genetically engineered animals and were keeping them on an island, off the coast of Costa Rica. That’s right, the very same place my contacts told me of these aberrant remains. But I digress. Anyway. I’ve heard that you, Alan Grant, and many others were there, to inspect these animals. These biogenetic dinosaurs.” Twilight immediately froze, abandoning her notes. She looked up at the two men in shock. Biogenetic dinosaurs? No longer was she to remain an observer in this exchange. Twilight spoke up. “Is that true, Doctor Malcolm—” Malcolm scoffed, completely ignoring Twilight. “You believe that?” “Doctor Malcolm, I asked—” “I’ve heard it a lot,” Levine retorted, also brushing Twilight aside. “Initially I didn’t believe it, but I keep hearing it.” “And – and what do others think? What does, say, Doctor Grant make of it?” “He said it was absurd when I met him.” Malcolm shrugged, an eyebrow raised. “Probably because he’s sound of mind.” “But what about you, what do you say?” An accusatory finger was raised, focussed on Malcolm. “All a myth,” he replied simply. “Like the myths of old; Medusa and the minotaur. Like the modern-day ‘technomyths’. An alien spaceship hangar at Area 51. Kids in Russia that can kill you with only their thoughts—” “Okay, I get your point,” Levine interrupted. “So you don’t believe the rumours.” “No. Not at all.” As neither found anything to say, Twilight sat there quietly, taken aback by what she’d just heard. She was struggling to make sense of it all. True, Malcolm had literally just explained to her how living dinosaurs were impossible according to chaos theory, but Levine’s claims changed the playing field. Granted, they were currently no more than rumours, and her astute academic side was rightfully cautious. But her adventurous, open-minded side almost wanted to believe it. What if Malcolm was wrong? “Well, true or not,” Levine began, “I still believe we can locate our Lost World. Suppose more animals show up in Costa Rica?” “They won’t.” “Just suppose they do. Would you help me in finding them? Finding where they’ve come from?” “What?” Malcolm blurted, staring in disbelief. As he did so, Twilight’s ears pricked up. “I believe in a Lost World,” Levine stated. “And if any more animals do appear, I will be taking an expedition to go and find them. The discovery will be absolutely historic. It will create an entirely new era of palaeontology. It’ll re-shape scientific and academic thinking – for example, it would disprove your theory that nature selected them to die, and by extension re-shake the schools of thought surrounding chaos theory on the whole. I have already made preparations; we’ve started modifying some vehicles and I’ve been working on locating them—” “Woah, okay. Now – now hold on a second here,” Malcolm said with a bark. “You’re – you’re mounting an entire expedition, based on what? One other strange corpse? Really? Is this for real? I mean, let alone the absurdity of the ideas of ‘reanimated dinosaurs’, or whatever you want to call it, there is a wealth of issues to overcome. Do you know where your expedition is going? How much will it all cost? Have you even slightly considered anything past ‘finding dinosaurs’? The safety precautions, the legal situation, anything?” “I don’t care how much it costs. I can and will fund it all. Similarly, I don’t care what barriers must be overcome – I will overcome them.” Levine paused, his words ringing out. “So, would you be on board for joining the expedition?” “Yes, fine,” Malcolm replied briskly. “If that’s what it takes to make you go away now.” “Absolutely!” Twilight suddenly burst out, both men turning towards her as she held a hoof in front of her muzzle, eyes wide. “Oh! Er, sorry about that... What I meant to say is this: Doctor Levine, I too would be more than interested in joining your expedition!” “Great!” he smiled, looking between Twilight and Malcolm. “That’s all I needed to hear from you, really. And now, an Equestrian to join us as well! Twilight Sparkle, isn’t it?” “That’s right. Nice to meet you, Doctor Levine—” “Please, just Richard. But, yes, Twilight – I certainly look forward to the expedition now more than ever! No doubt your kind’s knowledge and abilities will be of use.” He stood, beaming at the pair. “I’ll be in touch,” and with that he walked away. Twilight completely missed the melodramatic sigh from Malcolm as she swung towards him, her enthusiasm in full swing. “Imagine it, Doctor Malcolm! A real-life, actual Lost World with live dinosaurs. This could be groundbreaking—” “Twilight, you – you can’t truly believe in what he was saying, can you?” His intense look threw her off slightly as he spoke. “Granted, the idea is exciting but live dinosaurs, genetically created or not, can and has been ruled out according to chaos theory. Not to mention that Levine won’t find his next dino carcass - because they don’t exist.” Twilight’s smile fell. “I – I don’t follow you...?” “Look. These ‘animals’ showing up in Costa Rica... They’re clearly just myths, or an inflation of reality. An overzealous field-worker finds a carcass of a large lizard – a monitor lizard, perhaps. Word spreads, word is misshapen, and soon people are talking about dinosaur carcasses in Costa Rica. It could be that simple. There could be more to it, but the fact remains: these are not dinosaur remains. Anyway, irrespective of all this the likelihood of any more ‘animals’ showing up in Costa Rica is slim. It won’t happen.” “But – you agreed to join his expedition?...” Malcolm smiled. “That I did. And look! Now he’s gone.” He chuckled as he stood slowly, grabbing his things. “Twilight, it was good to talk to you today. I’m glad you’re finding all this so fascinating. Perhaps we can meet again for further discussions. But I really need to head back to my residence, I’ve got plenty of work to do,” and without further ado he carried himself away. That was that. Twilight now found herself alone at the table, reeling in the wake of what she’d just heard. Chaos theory dictates... Engineered dinosaurs... A Lost World... She was both thrilled and doubtful, excited and confused. If Levine was right and the rumours were true, humankind and Earth were in for a discovery unlike no other and Twilight, as a representative of Equestria, would be a part of it. Equestrian prehistory was not nearly as well-documented as that of Earth – indeed, it was hardly documented at all – so if it was all true, Twilight would be treading new ground for both humans and ponies alike. And that was something that filled her with hope. Malcolm had said it was all ridiculous. He’d insisted it was against everything that nature would allow, as chaos theory outlined. He was quick to denounce Levine’s claims, confident in his own scientific backing. Quite simply put, he said living dinosaurs wouldn’t and couldn’t happen. As she sat at the table staring off into space, Twilight wasn’t so sure about that.