Free Novel Read

Camp Chaos!




  © 2022 The LEGO Group and Universal City Studios LLC and Amblin Entertainment, Inc. Series © 2022 DreamWorks Animation LLC. All Rights Reserved.

  LEGO, the LEGO logo, the Brick and Knob configurations and the Minifigure are trademarks and/or copyrights of the LEGO Group. All rights reserved.

  Manufactured under license granted to AMEET Sp. z o.o. by the LEGO Group.

  AMEET Sp. z o.o.

  Nowe Sady 6, 94-102 Łódź—Poland

  ameet@ameet.eu

  www.ameet.eu

  www.LEGO.com

  Published in the United States by Random House Children’s Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, 1745 Broadway, New York, NY 10019, and in Canada by Penguin Random House Canada Limited, Toronto. Random House and the colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC.

  rhcbooks.com

  Educators and librarians, for a variety of teaching tools, visit us at RHTeachersLibrarians.com

  ISBN 978-0-593-56881-1 (trade) — Ebook ISBN 9780593568835

  a_prh_6.0_140832093_c0_r0

  CONTENTS

  Chapter 1: High Stakes

  Chapter 2: Stars and Yipes

  Chapter 3: Bad Vibes

  Chapter 4: Up, Ugh, and Away

  Chapter 5: Out of the Frying Pan…

  Chapter 6: ​…and into the Fire

  Chapter 7: That Sinking Feeling

  Chapter 8: Dial D for Dinosaur!

  Chapter 9: This Is the Pits

  Chapter 10: Seeing Red

  CHARACTER PROFILES:

  Owen Grady

  Owen Grady is an animal behaviorist who is fascinated by dinosaurs. He is Jurassic World’s Velociraptor trainer and a survival expert.

  Red

  Red is Owen’s dog. A very loyal four-legged friend, Red usually stays by Owen’s side. He always wants to help and takes very good care of Owen.

  Darius Bowman

  An excellent gamer and a dinosaur expert, Darius won his spot at Camp Cretaceous by completing a Jurassic World video game.

  Brooklynn

  Brooklynn is a teenage social media superstar who’s never parted from her smartphone. Being an extremely popular influencer and vlogger, she was brought into the park to post about her adventures and attract new campers.

  Kenji Kon

  A laid-back, quite lazy, and rather selfish son of a wealthy Jurassic World park investor. Kenji’s full of himself, regularly trying to impress those around him, which often leads to trouble.

  Yasmina “Yaz” Fadoula

  Yaz is a top track athlete sponsored by Jurassic World park. Not a very social person, Yaz prefers to sit alone and draw when she’s not training.

  Ben Pincus

  Ben is the timid, bookish son of a Jurassic World park employee. He has a lot of phobias, and his mom thought getting Ben a free pass to the camp would help him conquer these fears.

  Sammy Gutierrez

  She is an outgoing, friendly camper whose family owns the ranch that provides the dinosaurs with beef. Sammy is very enthusiastic about being at Camp Cretaceous, perhaps a little too enthusiastic.

  Claire Dearing

  As Assistant Park Operations Manager, Claire loves making sure the park functions properly and guests are satisfied with their visit.

  The ACU

  The Asset Containment Unit guards make sure that the dinosaurs stay where they are supposed to be and the Jurassic World visitors are safe.

  Vic Hoskins

  He is the Security Director at Jurassic World. Vic heads up the Asset Containment Unit. He thinks there’s no problem that can’t be solved with blunt force or a tranquilizer dart.

  ROOOAAARRR!

  The cry echoed across Isla Nublar and scared a flock of toucans. The birds were used to hearing roars. They lived on the same island as the dinosaurs of Jurassic World, after all. But on the jungle floor, a fabric trap held a different wild animal. It roared, lashed, and crashed—until the fabric was unzipped from the inside. Owen Grady stormed out and gasped for fresh air.

  “How can it be this hard to build a tent?!” he yelled.

  Normally, Owen considered himself calm under pressure. Then again, there was nothing “normal” about Jurassic World. Owen had learned that lesson once he started working at the theme park. But, as he looked at the thick booklet of instructions that came with the tent, his blood boiled. A diagram on the cover showed a pair of happy workers assembling the tent together—not one furious worker at his wit’s end.

  Of course, Owen thought. This is a two-person job. If only I had some help…

  He turned and found a few toucans staring at him—plus six teens named Darius, Brooklynn, Kenji, Yasmina, Ben, and Sammy. These kids came from different parts of the world, but they all had two things in common. One, they were the first members of Jurassic World’s Camp Cretaceous program for young dino-fans. And two, every single one of them looked bored out of their mind. In the most cheerful voice he could manage, Owen said, “Okay, campers! Who wants to pitch in by pitching these tents with me?”

  The kids’ regular counselors, Dave and Roxie, were at a training retreat on the next island over, Isla Sorna. That was why Claire Dearing, one of Jurassic World’s top managers, had volunteered Owen to act as a substitute camp counselor.

  “There’s nobody better to teach these campers how to, y’know, actually camp!” Claire had told Owen earlier. “All they’ve seen so far is the inside of the cushy Camp Cretaceous tree house. A few days roughing it with you is just what they need. Besides, you train raptors all day long. How hard can it be to wrangle a few teens?”

  Maybe Claire’s right, Owen thought. I’ve trained Blue, Charlie, Delta, and Echo to follow my commands. Teaching these teenagers a thing or two about the great outdoors should be a piece of cake!

  Owen strolled up to Darius, the one camper who probably knew as much about dinosaurs as Owen. The boy was kneeling by some Compsognathus tracks that he had just found in the mud. The discovery had made Darius go from bored to giddy in a matter of seconds.

  “Whatcha got there, Darius?” said Owen. “Compy tracks?”

  “You know it!” Darius replied, excited. “And the only thing more awesome than finding these tracks is discussing ’em with a fellow Compsognathus fan!”

  “I wouldn’t say I’m a fan necessarily,” Owen said. “Compys are fine, but—”

  “Fun fact!” Darius blurted. “Compys are some of the fastest non-avian dinosaurs on record!”

  “That’s great,” Owen said, with far less enthusiasm than Darius. “And it would also be great if you could help me build those tents just as fast—”

  “Fun fact: An adult Compsognathus can grow to the size of a turkey!” Darius said, cutting off Owen again. “Isn’t that wild?!”

  “Uh, yeah…wild,” Owen said, slowly backing away from Darius. “You know what? I think I’ll find someone a little less, um…animated.”

  Owen moved on to Brooklynn, who was holding her cell phone camera at arm’s length. She flipped her pink hair and said, “What up, Brooklanders! Are you ready for my fiercest vlog yet?”

  Owen ducked as Brooklynn swung her arm around and recorded a video of his dog, Red. The friendly mutt bit at a fly buzzing by but missed it.

  “Adorbs!” Brooklynn squealed into her cell. “For more of Red’s silly pet tricks, stay glued to my vlog! And don’t forget to subscribe and comment below!”

  Owen had a few choice comments of his own but kept them to himself. He then found Kenji, who was sprawled on a
log like a lazy teenager on his couch.

  “Wassup, Kenji Kon!” Owen said. He held out his hand for a high five…but it never came.

  “How about you lend me a hand with those tents?” Owen said. “Then we can chillax and—”

  “Yeah, I’m not really into the whole ‘building’ thing,” Kenji interrupted. “Not since my dad forced me to work summers at his condo construction company. Glamping’s more my thing. That’s where you pay someone to make your yurt, Otis.”

  “It’s Owen,” Owen said between gritted teeth. “Not Otis.”

  Kenji lowered his sunglasses over his eyes and went back to napping.

  Owen forced a smile and approached Yasmina. She ran in place, dropped to the ground, did a push-up, and repeated the routine over again.

  “Yasmina, would you please—” Owen began.

  “Can’t. Training. Sorry,” Yasmina grunted between up-downs.

  Owen’s shoulders slumped. He saw Ben standing off on his own. But before Owen could ask anything, Ben said, “I’m really sorry, Mr. Grady, but my mom says I’m allergic to the synthetic fabric in those tents. It gives me a rash.”

  Owen stomped away from Ben and reached his last hope, Sammy.

  “How’s it goin’, Owen?” Sammy said, beaming. “Ha ha, I love to rhyme! And I’d love to help with those rascally tents! Back on my family farm, we use pup tents, but those always make me think of those pastry thingies you put in your toaster, and then they pop up and they taste all warm and gooey and—”

  “Okay, okay, you’re hired!” Owen said, interrupting her. “Just keep the chitchat to a minimum. I’ve already got a headache from tango-ing with those tents in this heat….”

  Sammy mimed zipping her lips and followed Owen back toward the bundle of fabric and poles he’d just barely escaped. And, with Sammy no longer talking a mile a minute, Owen’s headache started to fade. He wanted to keep the quiet going, so Owen pointed to a hammer and drew an imaginary line from the head of the hammer to the top of the tent stake in his hand. His meaning was clear—drive the stake into the ground by whacking it with the hammer. Sammy nodded in understanding and swung down with the hammer.

  But, instead of striking the stake, the hammer accidentally hit Owen’s hand, causing him to cry out in pain. The stake went flying across the grass and landed beside one of the watching toucans. The bird grabbed it and flew away with her new toy as Owen let out one final frustrated roar.

  Across Isla Nublar, Jurassic World ran like clockwork. Thousands of tourists entered the famous theme park. They oohed and aahed at the futuristic buildings, thrilling rides, and main attractions—real live dinosaurs!

  It was Claire Dearing’s job to make sure the park’s guests were happy. She walked the main pavilion with a customer satisfaction checklist on her clipboard.

  Children smiling? Check.

  Fast-moving lines at all rides and attractions? Check.

  Dino-themed snacks, swag, and toys on sale at every shop, stand, and corner? Check, check, and check!

  Suddenly, the roaring sound of an engine came from behind her, and a shadow fell over Claire. A massive truck carrying a crate with a large dinosaur had screeched to a stop.

  Asset Containment Unit, thought Claire. Oh, great. If Jurassic World’s security team is here, then so is—

  Vic Hoskins jumped out of the truck. Well, he tried to. His foot caught on the door, and he landed flat on his face.

  “I meant to do that!” Vic said from the ground.

  Another vehicle arrived and stopped next to the truck. The door slid open and a dozen ACU guards in heavy armor also jumped out—right on top of Vic.

  “Meant to do that, too,” Vic’s muffled voice said from under his team.

  The guards helped Vic to his feet. Claire saw that the ACU had drawn the attention of many of the park guests. And not in a good way. They were looking nervously at the hungry Carnotaurus inside the crate.

  “Uh, Vic, the whole point of theme park security is to make our guests feel more secure, not less,” Claire said.

  “Exactly!” said Vic. “That’s why we’ve decided to hold today’s practice drill in the middle of the park—so our valued customers can see just how safe they are!”

  He was about to unlock the crate when Claire pushed away his hand. “Absolutely not!” she said. “Why would you even think about endangering our guests like that?”

  “I heard that one of those Camp Cretaceous kiddos has a vlog,” Vic said. “I figured that, if she shared a video of me being in charge, Vic could go viral. And I’d finally fulfill my dream of being…a star!”

  Another shadow caught Claire’s eye. Only this one was much smaller. It was a toucan flying overhead. The same toucan who had grabbed Owen’s tent stake back at the campsite.

  “That’s weird,” Claire said. “Toucans never come this close to the park. Not unless they’ve been—”

  She watched the bird drop a tent stake, which whistled through the air as it fell. The stake landed point-first on Vic’s foot, then bounced off to the side.

  “Startled,” Claire finished.

  Vic grabbed his foot with both hands and screamed. He hopped around on his uninjured foot—only to step on the same stake with it. Vic bumped into the crate’s keypad, activating the unlock button.

  The barred door flung wide open, and out charged the Carnotaurus. Some park guests pulled out their cameras, while others ran for shelter.

  “Quick! Get that Carnotaurus back in his crate!” Claire ordered.

  Vic’s agents held out their shock sticks. Electricity sparked from the tips. The Carnotaurus shied away from the bright lights and bellowed a deafening roar. He swung his tail, tripping the ACU agents. The remaining people in the crowd stopped filming and started looking for places to hide.

  The Carnotaurus then noticed Claire. He narrowed his eyes and began to chase her around the pavilion. She threw her clipboard at him. But the Carnotaurus swallowed it in one gulp and just kept on coming.

  Claire gulped and thought, Looks like I need a plan B. B as in…

  She saw a family that had been picnicking on the pavilion’s grassy yard, until the Carnotaurus went berserk. They were fleeing, sandwiches in their hands, but had left behind their bright red—

  “Blanket!” exclaimed Claire.

  With the Carnotaurus closing in, Claire grabbed the picnic blanket and ran. The red fabric billowed behind her like a superhero’s cape and caught the runaway dinosaur’s attention. He snorted and hurtled toward her, just as Claire had hoped he would. She changed course, heading back to the ACU truck, and the Carnotaurus followed, his teeth about to snag the blanket. At the last second, Claire released it and jumped out of the way. The blanket landed on the Carnotaurus’s face. Temporarily blinded, the dinosaur didn’t see the open crate in front of him and crashed inside of it with a loud BANG!

  Relieved, Claire went back to Vic, who was still massaging his feet. Behind him, a jumpy ACU guard crept up to the Carnotaurus crate. Her tranquilizer launcher shook in her hands. She was about to lock the crate when it rattled. The guard panicked and fired off a dart by accident. It whizzed off course and struck Vic right in the bottom.

  The third and final scream Vic made was his loudest one yet. Claire and the ACU guards covered their ears. All of the dinosaurs within earshot groaned at Vic’s yowl—especially the Pteranodons in the park’s aviary. They flapped their wings and snapped their beaks in a frenzy, shattering the Aviary’s glass walls.

  The Pteranodons flew the coop, soaring past the Carnotaurus crate—which was now empty again—and Vic, who fell to the ground in a deep sleep once the tranquilizer took effect.

  Claire put her head in her hands and thought, That’s one missing Carnotaurus, a flock of escaped Pteranodons, and an unconscious security officer. Just another day at Jurassic World!

  Back at the campsite, Owen
finished pitching the last tent after several false starts. The tents were large, and there were three in total—one for the girls, one for the boys, and one for Owen and Red. The dog sniffed their tent and raised his leg.

  “Red!” Owen said. “Don’t. You. Dare.”

  Owen pulled his clicker out of his vest pocket and pressed it three times. Click-click-click! Red quickly lowered his leg and trotted away. Then a young voice behind Owen said, “Hey, what’s that?”

  Owen turned and found Darius, followed by the other Cretaceous campers. They pointed at his clicker, and Owen said, “Oh, this? I normally use it to keep my raptors in line, not Red.”

  “D-d-did you say raptors?!” Ben stuttered.

  “As in Velociraptors? What I’d give to race one of those!” Yaz added.

  “Dude, you train raptors?” said Kenji. “That’s sick!”

  Owen felt flattered, then proud. He cocked an eyebrow and said, “I guess I do have a bit of a reputation as a raptor wrangler, now that you mention it. Blue, Charlie, Delta, and Echo can be deadly predators, but they all respect me.”

  The kids’ jaws all dropped in wonder, and Owen started to think that this whole camping trip might turn out okay after all. But then Darius asked, “Can we see you control the raptors with that clicker?”

  “Well, the thing is, I sort of left them back in their paddock,” said Owen. “Which you guys might’ve noticed—if you’d been paying attention for the last few hours.”

  The kids’ smiles turned into frowns. Owen felt their interest fade and quickly added, “I wanted to bring them! But Claire said no—she thought it’d be safer if we didn’t mix campers and carnivorous dinos.”