Jurassic Pony

by mistercokehold8

Power Failure

Back inside the control center Lightning Dust was typing away at her computer. It was almost time for her to begin her plan. If all went well, nopony would be able to figure out the code she had programmed. In the lower corner a red ‘execute’ button appeared, just waiting to be clicked.

---

The thunder crashed loudly over the heads of the ponies still outside with the Triceratops. Flash Sentry was the only one who appeared to have jumped.

“Ladies if I may…..I insist that we get moving.” He said as the dark clouds rolled in. Fluttershy was stroking the foot of the ancient beast.

“Um….if it’s alright with everypony, I’d like to stay and help finish up with the Triceratops, if that’s alright with you?” She asked the medical pony.

“I don’t have a problem. You’ve been a lot of help.” Fluttershy blushed at the comment. “I have to make the boat anyway so I can drop her off at the Visitor Center when we’re done.” He told the pegasi’s friends.

"I guess that'd be alright." said Applejack. "We're headin back there anyway. What pony'd wanna be out in this weather."

“Actually I think it would be better if I stayed with you Fluttershy.” Twilight said, trotting forward. “Is that alright with everypony?”

“You’re the princess; do whatever.” Rainbow said, trotting off in the direction of the jeeps.

“Come along you three.” Rarity began ushering the CMC up the path. “Nopony wants to be caught out in this weather.

“See you later!” Pinkie said to Fluttershy and Twilight as she bounced back up the path. The two mares turned back to the Triceratops as lightning cracked across the sky.

---

“There’s nothing more I can do! If the captain says we gotta go, we gotta go!” A pony said to Lightning over the phone line. The pegasus checked the time.

“No no I need a little more time. You gotta get me fifteen minutes…..twenty at the most but I need at least fifteen minutes.”

“No promises.” The pony on the other end hung the phone. Lightning knew for the plan to work it was now, or never. She turned in her chair, looking over at Scorch, Crimson and Whooves. The owner of the park was busy looking into the ember on his cane, deep in thought.

“So much for our first tour.” He said glumly. “Three no shows, and one sick Triceratops.” He was wishing the first tour had been much more exciting.

“It could’ve been worst Scorch. Much worst.” Whooves said, drinking from a coffee.

“The vehicles should be on their way back now.”

“Anypony want a cold drink?” The three stallions turned to the mare, looking at her with looks of annoyance. “I’m thirsty so I’m gonna go to the machine for a drink.” She turned to leave for realizing she forgot something. “Oh yeah I debugged the head lights like you wanted, but a few systems might go on and off for a while, it’s nothing to worry about.”

“Go on.” Scorch sighed, turning back to the monitors. Lightning put the can of shaving cream inside her lab coat pocket, before clicking the red execute button.

---

The tour jeeps rocked and bounced on their way back to the Visitor Center. The CMC remained in the first jeep along with Flash, while Rarity and Applejack joined Pinkie and Rainbow Dash in the second jeep. As they waited eagerly to get back to the Center, the southern earth pony lounged in the driver’s seat.

"Lan sakes, look at all this rain."

"This tour stinks. Except for the triceratops, we saw jack and squat." Rainbow grumbled.

"Quite." Said Rarity. "To think this whole day on this island we've only seen two dinosaurs, one of which was under the weather. Hopefully it’ll be better tomorrow.”

"Let's hope it stops raining by then.”

“Who’s Jack?” Pinkie asked about Rainbow’s earlier statement.

---

Lightning made her way up the steps embryo storage room, which had in big red letters "Restricted Area: Keep Out!" The door was also alarmed and had a security camera watching it, meaning if Anypony entered the room, and they weren’t supposed to, they would find themselves a one way ticket off the island. The pegasus hid behind the door watching the camera, waiting for something to happen.

“Five…….four………three……..two………one……” When Lightning reached one, the camera and door locks deactivated. She could now enter the room, and nopony would notice. Back in the Control Room Whooves was taking another drink when his computer started beeping.

“That’s odd.”

“What?” Scorch asked, trotting over.

“Park security system is shutting down.”

“Lightning did say a few systems would go off for a while. Nothing to worry about. Crimson said from across the room.

“You’re probably right.” Whooves went back to his drink. Inside the storage room Lightning lifted the racks from their liquid nitrogen storage. Then she screwed the bottom off the shaving cream can. One by one she began taking a tube of embryos.

“Tyrannosaurus……..Triceratops…..Velociraptor…..” She counted off. Then she moved to the second rack. “Brachiosaurus…..Diplodicus…..Allosaurus…….Stegosaurus……Gallimimus…..and Parasaurolophus.” The mare quietly slid the racks back into the freezers, before screwing the bottom back onto the can.

---

Back inside the tour vehicles while the ponies talked among themselves, Applejack couldn’t shake off what Twilight was going on about earlier.

"You know I can't help thinkin about Twilight."

"What about her?" Rarity asked while combing her lashes.

"You know, her skepticism. She don't seem all that confident in this place."

"What do you expect." Rainbow Dash waved what Twilight said off. "She's skeptical about a lot of stuff."

"Yeah." Pinkie jumped in. "Remember my Pinkie sense?"

"I know," Applejack continued. "But she's got sound judgement on a lot of things too, like Princess Cadence bein a changeling. Maybe she's onto something about the park systems failin'."

"I don't think we have to worry about that." The fashion mare said. "This park seems okay."

“What’s the worst that could happen?”

“Eh, yer probably right.” The earth pony tipped her hat over her eyes, before putting her back hooves on the steering wheel, intending to get some shut eye before they got back to the Center. What none of the ponies were expecting was the vehicles came to a lurching halt. “Ok what the hay did I touch?” Rainbow Dash went over the dash board.

“You didn’t touch anything, we stopped.”

---

In the Control room several monitors, including the big one on the wall, began beeping wildly. Crimson and Whooves couldn’t comprehend what was happening.

“What’s going on?” Scorch asked.

“Fences all over the park are failing.” Whooves said, now extremely worried.

“Find Lightning! Check the vending machines!” Crimson hurried out of the room while the earth pony was trying to grasp the situation.

“Scorch, all the fences are failing.”

“Lightning’s gone.” Crimson said, returning to the room. Scorch couldn’t believe what he just heard.

“What do you mean she’s gone?!”

“As in, she is not here!”

---

Lightning Dust was indeed long gone. After she filled the can, she grabbed a rain slicker, and drove off in one of the gas jeeps. She slid through the mud right outside the giant wooden gates. The pegasus hurried out into the pouring rain, and was able to throw the override switch. Getting back into the jeep, she drove right through the now open gate.

---

Whooves and Scorch trotted over to Lightning’s computer to see if they could find the cause of all the failures. The earth pony looked at the table in disgust.

“Just look at this work station!” Whooves then slid the trash and junk onto the floor. “What a complete slob!”

“The raptor fences aren’t out are they?” Crimson asked, fearing the worst. Whooves typed in a command.

“No no, they’re still on.”

“Why would she turn off all the other ones then?” Scorch asked confused.

---

With the power out all over the park, it made it too simple to open the fences without the risk of being shocked. Lightning Dust was taking full advantage of this. Passing through another gate, the jeep thundered down the road.
‘Hope I’m not too late.’ The mare thought to herself. This would be a mistake, for when she looked at the road again, she slammed on the brakes, sliding all the way into the sign pointing in the direction of the dock. Grumbling, Lightning climbed out of the jeep and held the sign up.

“It pointed this way.” She turned the arrow left. “Or was it that way?” She turned it to the right. Annoyed, she simple spun it, seeing where it would stop.

---

“Access main security grid.” Whooves typed into the computer

*Access Denied.*

“Access main programming.”

*Access Denied.* Whooves was getting angry now.

“Access Main feature grid.”

*Access Denied* Then the computer began beeping *You didn’t say the magic word*

“Uh uh uh…..You didn’t say the magic word.” A computer Lightning Dust taunted.

“PLEASE!” Whooves shouted. “I hate this hacker bull!” Crimson levitated a phone over.

“Call her people in Cloudsdale.” The earth pony held the phone, but didn’t hear anything.

“The phones are down too.” Scorch was beginning to realize this spelled disaster.

“Crimson……where did the vehicles stop?”