"Arbie!" "Not again!" "Don't even think about it!" "Not cool!" "Those are for Jack." "I know where you nest and you're so grounded when we get home." "Careful, Arbie." "You know how cranky my dad gets about his protozoa samples!" "Surrender the goods or it's into the volcano with ya!" "You know, Arbie, it'd be great if you could be like Selkie and actually help once in a while." "Fred!" "That's no place for a cold-blooded guy like you." "Mr Rusoe, your table is ready." "Oh, well, I hope there's no dress code." "I've come straight from the office." " Traffic?" " Brutal." "Please tell me you have the macadamia nut" " and mealworm sandwich on special today?" " But of course." "So, I think Arbie's been stashing all the shiny things he keeps swiping at the Cormorant Cliffs." "I know just where he'd nest." " If you'd just..." " Uh-uh." "There's no way." "You're not scaling those cliffs by yourself." "If you fell to your death, who would make my lunch?" "Come with me." "I saw some brilliant lizards there." "I don't think Felix would let me play hooky." "Hey, Felix!" "Take a break." "Nim brought lunch." "Oh, I'm uh..." "I'm good." "I got some dehydrated beef stroganoff back at the lab." "But who can think about lunch in the midst of Jack M. Rusoe's ground-breaking quest to find new classes of protozoa?" " You've got a, uh..." " Food?" " Nim!" " Did I get it?" " Don't move." " What?" "Why?" "You have a Chimera sea slug on your face." "Chimera?" "I'm not familiar with it." " Don't they release a deadly poison?" " You're going to be fine." "Whatever you do, don't freak out!" "Call poison control!" "And if I don't make it, tell Susan H, the one from my chemistry symposium, that I've always..." "We wouldn't prank you, if we didn't love you, buddy." "Nice." "Come, sit." "I made a mealworm-free sandwich just for you." "Jack, it's Grant, your favourite and only father-in-law." "Look, I wish I had better news, but those scoundrels at the Buccaneer Resort Company will stop at nothing to get their hands on your island." "They've even hired this hotshot lawyer from Melbourne, who argued that, legally, you're nothing more than a well-respected squatter." "Which means the government's going to allow the Buccaneers to build one of their ghastly resorts right on top of you." "Those swindlers are sending surveyors out at the end of the week." "So if you have any tricks left, son, now is the time." "The end of the week?" "You said they'd never get permission." "It's not over yet." "It's time I brought the fight to them." "I want those bureaucrats to look me in the eye and tell me they'd rather have the money from some resort than finding protozoa, which could cure disease." "They've heard all this before." "What if they still don't listen?" "What if they let them buy the island?" "What if we have to leave?" "I'm not going to lie." "It's a long shot, but sometimes those are the ones worth taking." "Watch it, bro!" "You never do the dishes any more!" "I bought those dishes." "You don't appreciate me." "What's going to happen to all our nice things?" "Find a new job!" "I can't." "No one's hiring Gummies." "The bank wouldn't give me another loan!" "What's Edmund supposed to think of a father who doesn't even try?" "You want us out on the streets, then?" "Your family?" " I don't want any of this!" " And I do?" "That's what you're saying?" " I can't keep having this argument." " Well, too bad!" "We had it yesterday, we're having it now, we're going to have it tomorrow." "Not if I take Edmund and move to my mum's." "Here's the rest of my deposit." "Can I book you for tomorrow?" ""Slip 12." "We push off by 8:00."" "Here goes." " So that's it?" "You're just giving up?" " Why not?" "You have." "What kind of an example is this setting?" "What do you want me to do?" "Something!" "Anything!" "Things can't go on like this." "You're useless." " So that's it?" "You're just giving up?" " Why not?" "You have." "What kind of an example is this setting?" "What do you want me to do?" "Something!" "Anything!" "Things can't go on like this." "You're useless." ""Habitat destruction is the biggest threat to rare and endangered species" ""by constantly developing or destroying entire ecosystems in the name of progress."" "I don't think tacky pirate resorts can be called progress, Selk." ""Some scientists believe we lose" ""one endangered species an hour to extinction," ""which could be why biodiversity is on the decline on every continent."" "I've been up all night looking for something bigger than protozoa." "Right." "We need something more Selkie-sized to save our home." "This could be it!" "Current endangered species list." "Bilby Bandicoots, Southern Cassowaries, Bulmer's Fruit Bats," "Fijian Crested Iguanas, Mahogany Gliders." "There's so many." "It used to be impossible to protect our island, but the law changed two years ago." "So all we have to do is prove there are three or more endangered species on the island and no one can build anything on it." "It becomes a protected habitat." "Look, it's a great idea." "I just don't think we can afford pushing this trip off." "You should come with me." "They heard about my research from you." "A 14-year-old?" "A voice from the generation that's going to have to deal with what we've done to the ocean." "We need a backup plan." " This is our island we're talking about." " We don't have time." "We don't have time to find one endangered animal, let alone three." "I can rhyme off a half dozen I've already seen around the island and I know all of the best places to look." "You have to let me try." "Okay." "You have to promise to be careful." " And you have to watch out for Felix." " I won't have time." "I'll be too busy looking for Southern Cassowary," "Bilby Bandicoots, Rock Rats." "I swear I've seen Bulmer's Fruit Bats in the caves near Fire Mountain." "This is the last of it, sir." "Can I just say that if anyone can single-handedly mount a brilliant campaign to preserve this treasure trove of biological samples and data points..." "Your crush on my dad is so embarrassing." "Do me a favour, Felix." "Get out of the lab." "Do some field work." "It's just that there are so many variables in the field." "That's the point." "Look, you are fantastic at cataloguing and scheduling." "But science is the study of life and life is chaotic." "Embrace the chaos." "Have a little fun." "Get outside." "Get your feet wet." "Yes, sir." "I won't let you down." ""Embrace the chaos."" "And while you're at it, prank Nim back." "The fact you haven't done it yet is embarrassing." "Hey, Jack!" "Are you the Edmund who chartered our boat?" "I thought you said you were 18." "Yeah, I'm cursed with a baby face." "I'm cursed with an ugly brother, right, Frankie?" "ID'd everywhere I go." "Mum says I'll really appreciate it when I'm older." "I'm sorry, kid." "I can't have someone's mother accusing me of kidnapping her little prince." "You're Dad's little princess, Frankie." " But you already have my deposit." " Yeah." "But it's not enough for me to risk getting into trouble." "How much would be enough?" " You can put that away." " Dad, I've got this." "I'm Booker." "Where is it you're trying to take my boat?" "That's in the middle of nowhere." "There's supposed to be this amazing gold back triggerfish." "It lives on this gorgeous coral, right around there." "I can take you to plenty of spots to find triggerfish." "No, no, it has to be this spot." "Okay, this fish." "You know how rare gold backs are?" "Alive, they're worth at least $1,000." "Frankie, help Ben with the gear." "We've got a guppy to ferry." "Frankie, get the rest of the gear." "Ben!" "Ben, you're mucking up my clean decks!" "I can't get a signal." "Moira's expecting my kiss good night text." "We're only a couple gajillion miles away from the nearest cell tower, numbskull." "What'd you call me?" "Hey?" "What'd you call me?" "Pull it through two cat paws and voila!" "Ain't no one untying that little sucker without a manual and a couple of hours." " Hey, Ben, deck looks great." " Thanks, Dad." " How long till we reach the spot?" " Not long." "Doubt we'll find your gold back trigger, son." "They'll be there." "Almost everywhere has been picked clean these days." "Of everything." "I still think there's plenty out there." "Uncharted worlds waiting to be discovered." "Flying lizards, talking sea lions, mermaids." "No, I've got a sixth sense about these things." "There's nothing out there not charted." "Adventures have all been had." "Landed on the island just before sunrise." "Getting the lay of the land." "Meeting all sorts of interesting locals." "Still, no sign of the gold backtriggerfish." "Hi, little guy." "Oh, wow, look at that." "Is that a lab?" "There she is!" "If you want something, ask me to get it." "You know I worked very hard to find places for everything." ""Empty 500-milliliter plastic jar." ""Purpose TBD."" "You have some serious issues." "Serious labelling issues." "You might thrive on chaos, but that's not how the rest of the world works." "Society thrives on order, control." "Maybe moving to the mainland might be the best thing for you." "Go to a proper school, work on your people skills, improve your manners." "Learn to respect your elders." "I don't need people skills." "It's just me and Jack and that's the way we like it." "And you're not my elder." "You're not that much older than me." "I've been in school longer than you've been alive." "So?" "I've learned why the barometric pressure drops before a storm, what starfish eat for breakfast, all without setting foot in some stuffy classroom." "Don't you want to be around kids your own age?" "You know, have friends?" "How can you imply I don't have friends in front of Selkie?" "And you say I'm the one who needs to improve my manners." "If you'll excuse me, I've got three endangered species to find before the Buccaneers show up." "Come on, Fred." "Let's get some pictures of our favourite Central Rock Rats." "I know you want me to go out into the field, but I'll go out later." "The field can wait." "I told you I'd go do it, and I will." "Just as soon as I finish with this." "The lab is not a petting zoo." "I refuse to be guilt-tripped by a sea lion." "Fascinating!" "The nitrogen seems to have frozen my pants." "Solid!" "Please keep this between us, Selkie." "Fred, I really thought we had Central Rock Rats on the island." "This just looks like your average black rat, doesn't it?" "You hear that?" "Sounded big." "Maybe it's our Southern Cassowary." "If we startle it, don't be afraid, Fred." "They sometimes make these terrible rattling, booming calls." "Who are you, and what do you think you're doing here?" "The name's Edmund." " Where are the others?" " Others?" "The last time our island was invaded there was a whole ship full of pasty tourists." " But I took care of them." " I know." "I was there, remember?" "I talked to you and everything, which is a miracle because back then I was absolutely terrible at talking to girls." "You've gotten, uh, taller." " That was you?" " Yeah." "My mother says I've really grown into my ears." "Are you taking pictures?" "Are you a spy for the Buccaneers?" "No way." "That's just my video camera." "See, I like to film." "I guess you could say it's my hobby." "I've heard of these." "You've never seen a video camera before?" "Is that you?" "The high-pitched screaming?" "That's all you." "That camera's a few years old, but that model's perfect for being out in the wild." "Cool." "How do I delete everything?" " What?" " I can't have you bringing proof of how amazing our island is to the rest of the world." "We're already about to be overrun by invaders." "But I've been trying to get back here for ages." "Start deleting, or I start testing how shark-proof that thing is." "Hey, no one's looking for me." "Okay, no one even knows where I am." "I won't take more footage." "Save your breath." "It's a long row back to civilisation." "I've saved for three years walking dogs," "looking after the twins in the apartment below and they were just pure evil." "But dinghies, tents, camping stoves, they're not cheap." "This isn't a camp ground." "This is our home." "And I've got more important things to do than to argue with an invader." "Get in." "What could you possibly be worried about?" "This place is amazing." "It's perfect." "And I'd like to keep it that way." "Are any ships gonna come by soon that could give me a ride?" "Ships hardly ever come by." "One of the advantages of living on a remote, deserted island." "How do you expect me to paddle all the way back to the mainland?" "Oh, no." "No, my boat!" "Look!" "It's ripped." "Now I'll have to stay." "Look, once I explain to the Minister of the Environment, face to face, how important the island is there's no way she'll let those Buccaneers buy it." "Yeah, I'm walking in now." "Are you wearing shoes?" "Of course I have shoes on." "Flip-flops do not qualify as shoes." "I'll have your meeting with the Minister rescheduled for tomorrow." " What?" " We'll need to buy you a suit." "No, that's ridiculous." "I'm sure I have something that works." "Nim's calling." " Nim, is everything..." " There's a boy on the island, but I tried to get him to leave and his boat sank." " If you ask me..." " Nim, slow down." " What if we're stuck with him forever?" " Slow down." "A boy?" "He says his name's Edmund, but I don't trust a word he says." "Good instincts." "Put him on the phone." "Here." " Hello?" " Careful with that!" " Careful." " Is this a bad time?" "Yes." "How old are you?" "What are you doing on the island?" "How'd you get there?" "Are you alone?" "I'm 14 and I took a charter fishing boat." "But I ditched them last night, in my dinghy." "Which sank." "Unexpectedly." "That's my lunch." "Don't smush my lunch." "Oh, dear." "I won't touch your lunch, I swear." "I just came here for a bit of an adventure." "With my daughter?" "Well, sure." "But I don't think she likes me very..." "There will be no adventures with my daughter." "Nim is not like other girls." "She can outrun, out-climb and definitely outwit you." " So no funny stuff." " Yes." ""Yes"?" "That's all you have to say is "yes"?" "I mean, yes, sir." "I'm going to assume that your parents don't know where you are." "Yeah." "I mean, no." "Whichever one means they know I'm here and they're totally cool with it." "What's your home number, Edmund." "Now!" "049-157-0158." "They're never going to let me set foot outside the apartment again, are they?" "I wouldn't." "Put Nim back on the phone." "So what should I do?" "Anchor him out in the bay on one of the emergency rafts?" "That's funny." "Just keep an eye on him." "Whatever you do, Nim, do not trust teenage boys." "I should know, I used to be one." "Mmm." "Gross." "Good luck, Jack." " This is awful." " Yeah, agreed." "Come on, to the shops with you." "And you just have to get used to boys taking your daughter on adventures." "I had to." "So, wanna see what's on TV?" " That was meant to be a joke." " I don't have time for jokes." "Sorry!" "Didn't realise this was such a busy time for you." "You don't know anything about me." "This whole island is depending on me to keep it pristine and untouched and you're touching it." "Well, you don't know anything about me either, okay?" "And unless I learn to fly, I can't help touching your stupid island." " If it's so stupid, Why'd you come?" " I don't know!" "Hey, you reckon that dumb kid's nearby?" "Maybe he's found his goldfish." "This is where he was headed the whole time, idiot." "We'll catch up to him tomorrow." "Island like this isn't safe for a guppy like him." "Do you think there's a super-rare creature that lives out here, Dad?" "Like a woman ugly enough to go out with you?" " Ugly like Moira?" " Moira's gorgeous!" " If you like big feet." " They're not that large!" "Frankie, stop messing about." "Go and unload the rest of the gear." "Frankie do this, Frankie do that." "Why can't you be more like your idiot brother, hmm?" "Maybe because I've got more than two brain cells to rub together." "What do you think, Dad?" "Sixth sense telling you anything?" "Ooh..." "I'm having a vision right now." "This time tomorrow all of them cages'll be filled with rare and valuable animals." "Yeah." "Whoo!" "Classic Felix." "He sleeps while the island's being besieged by an invader." "One inflatable dinghy's hardly a siege." "I'm more like a spy." "I'm not an invader, exactly." "Really I'm an innovator." "Wh..." "This is your room?" "It's, uh..." "It's cool." "Alex Rover!" "Is okay, you know." "If you like the whole brilliant sense of humour meets death-defying action thing." "You'll be out here until Jack gets back." "This is great!" "I guess I'll be all right sleeping in the tree house." "With its own zip line!" "That should foil your escape plan." "Hey, what about going to the..." "Going to the bathroom?" "Never mind." "Hey, mate." "Hey, you want a Gummy?" "Here." " Green's the best." " Stop." "Fred's on a diet." "Fruit and wingless insects only." "If you want to feed him, try this." "Sorry, buddy." "You sure you don't want a delicious piece of mango instead?" "Hmm?" "Mmm!" "Knew it!" "Those lizards at the Cormorant Cliffs have to be Fijian Crested Iguanas." "They love heights, and they're gorgeous." "That's so weird." "What?" "Sorry." "Where can I, uh..." "Whoa." "Where can I spit?" "Thanks." "I didn't want Gummy between my teeth all night." "Excuse me, Fred." "Hey, that's so weird you have all the Alex Rover books." "I know people who've read one or two, but you have the whole collection." "I mean, I've got to have a lot of respect..." "I've got to have a lot of respect for a man who doesn't even break a sweat when he's dangling from an icy cliff by the quickly unravelling thread of one of his gloves?" "I thought you weren't into the whole "Alex Rover" thing." "Come on, who wouldn't be into Alex Rover?" "He's a great character." "So's the author, Alexandra Rover." "Wait, what?" "She uses a pen name, which you would know if you were a real fan." "She's actually in Bora-Bora right now, researching her next book." "Whoa..." "I've always imagined some grizzled, bearded man banging on a typewriter in a hut somewhere." "But that's brilliant." "Explains the sensitive side." "Have you read the latest one, Alex Rover Never Surrenders?" "I'm almost at the end." "It's torturing me that I don't have time to finish it right now." "I think it's genius when Alex gets the queen bee, and drops it in the enemy camp and the swarm comes." "And you haven't got to that chapter yet, have you?" "Nope." "Uh..." "Spoiler alert." "While the natives are still suspicious of my presence here the island remains absolutely gorgeous." "It's as if the creatures here, they're trying to tell me," ""Hey, buddy, she'll warm up to you."" ""Your parents can't legally ground you for life."" "Or can they?" "There." "That should do it." "I have everything I need." "I'm ready for the field." "Ready to conquer the field." "I have the situation completely under control." "Here goes." "As soon as I have double checked that I am truly prepared." "Some dehydrated stroganoff in case I get a bit peckish." "In which case I'll need some purified water and the camping stove." "That means the burns kit." "In fact, I should bring the entire first aid kit." "And some insect repellent." "Scratching bites is not conducive to work in the field." "Where the potential to get lost increases exponentially." "I need to bring some extra maps and a compass." "Unacceptable." "Ooh, disaster averted." "Some guard you are, Selk!" "Who knows where he's run off to." "Had to use the little boys' room." "So about these animals that you need to find all over the island..." "How do you know about that?" "I peeked at your list." "And the map." "But I put two and two together and I think I can help." "Help how?" "I don't know exactly, but I'm sure I can do something." "What do you want to do with the animals once you find them?" "Take their photo?" "Is that what you're using this old Polaroid for?" "I love my camera." "It's not old." "It's a cool camera, yeah." "Old school, but..." "Look, I can capture these animals in action, okay?" "We can make our own nature video right on your computer." "There's no "we" here." "And tracking animals is serious business." "If yesterday proves anything, it's that you have no idea how to move through the jungle." "You'd be like, "I'm here, I'm here!" ""Hurry up and hide from my fancy camera!"" "See?" "You think my camera's fancy." " You want me to come with you." " Absolutely not." "Are you sure you want to leave me alone with her?" "She looks like someone who's fond of taking naps." "And WWARD." "Wward?" "What Would Alex Rover Do?" "Keep his enemies close." "Fine, invader." "Come on." "If Susan H could see me now." "I wonder where she is." "At school, probably enjoying the state-of-the-art equipment, the air conditioning." "What was I thinking taking this internship?" "I don't want to let Jack down, but what if I can't..." "Oh..." "I really liked having depth perception." "Oh." "Oh!" "We've been here for ages." "Is this Bilby creature ever going to show up?" "Not if you keep talking." "Maybe some of the other endangered animals on your list are less camera shy?" "You and Fred are obsessed with..." "Worms!" "Yuck!" "Yuck!" "Oh!" "That's the most disgusting thing I've ever done." "You said you wanted to help." "Are you filming this?" "Oh, gross!" "Gross, gross!" "Oh!" " After all that, you had to scare her off." " Not on purpose." "It was the worm's fault." "It left a slime trail on my arm." "I didn't mean to scare it." "We don't have worms that slimy in Brisbane." "Nim?" ""Embrace the chaos."" "Ooh!" "Life is chaos." ""Embrace the..."" "That's a Dendrocnide excelsa." "The Stinging Tree." "It's not deadly, just painful." "You're going to live." "Live!" "Survive!" "You will survive!" ""Embrace the chaos"!" " Can we slow down?" " No!" "We wasted the whole morning scaring off a Bilby and I need evidence of three endangered species yesterday." "So, no, I will not slow down." "Hopefully the family of Mahogany Gliders still lives near Keyhole Cove." "Great." "I'm right behind you." "I just..." "I just need a second." "She's really fit." "Nim!" "Nim!" "Edmund!" "Fred okay?" " Why is the cave glowing like that?" " They're glow worms." "These are worms I can get behind." "Nim, bats." "Bats." "Our first endangered species." "Edmund, you're brilliant!" "I'll try to trip more often." "See, I knew I saw bats on your list." "I'm good for more than just my camera." "My memory is practically photographic." "I had no idea that colony of Bulmer's Fruit Bats had moved." "I had no idea Bulmer's Fruit Bats existed." "You need to get out more." "Invade more islands." "So now you're glad I invaded?" " I didn't say that, but..." " I get it." "You're just using me for my camera." " Why can't you like me for me, Nim?" " You're such a weirdo." " I'm a useful weirdo." " Absolutely." "Without you, I would have searched the caves by Fire Mountain for hours." "So you're not still mad at me for scaring the Bilby off?" "Of course I'm still mad." "He was right there." "Here we are." " Where are the gliders?" " Up this tree." "Oh." "Are you..." "Horribly afraid of heights?" "It's natural when you think about it." "See, heights mean long falls, meaning brutal landings." "Hand me the camera." "Come on out, guys." "Where are you?" "No sign of them." "Maybe Jack was right." "This could take ages." "Hey, Dad!" "A very nice lorikeet." "Look at the pretty colours." " Not another one of them things." " Oh, no." "They're all over the mainland." "Practically pests." "Just turn it loose." "Yeah, yeah, we didn't come here for stupid lorikeets." "Arbie." " We came here for..." "For..." " Don't hurt yourself, Ben." "Ben is right." "We're onto something big here, I can feel it." "Yeah, but we've already got cages full of bearded dragons, gliders, birds, blue-tongued skinks and enough eggs to make an enormous omelette." "Check the traps every hour." "We're missing something." "You know, we should find that Edmund kid and thank him for bringing us here." "With our haul, I'm going to be able to spoil Moira rotten." "Nim, wait!" "I'm not with them." " I didn't mean to..." " Bring poachers to my island?" "No, I thought they were fishermen." "I even made up this great lie where you were a gold back triggerfish." "You told them about me?" "No, it was a metaphor." "I was starting to trust you, but this whole time you were working with them." " I haven't." "I just..." " Liar!" "That's why you were so interested in helping me find a Bilby and the Gliders!" "I just wanted to help." "I want you off my island now." "And take your friends with you." "Nim." "I said, go." "Minister O'Hare," "I know you have pressing environmental issues here in Brisbane, but I need your help." "It's easy to think of our island as remote, disconnected, inconsequential even." "Um..." "But, uh..." "Um..." "It's funny, my daughter, she likes to make fun of me." "She thinks I'm only interested in protozoa, it's this single-cell organism." "But protozoa's the key to understanding more complex species, entire ecosystems." "It's easy to spot change more quickly in a single cell." "It gives you time to react, time to make changes before it's too late." "And our island, it's like a single cell." "It's a litmus test." "Whatever hits our island, is coming to the mainland next." "And if you put a, uh..." "If you put a pirate resort in the middle of the island, who's going to notice?" "Dr Rusoe, I admire your passion." "But it's going to take a lot more than a speech to keep the Buccaneers off your island." "But let's see what we can do." "How long can you stay?" "Pick up." "Pick up." "Please leave a message at the tone." "Jack, you have to come home." "I can't find Felix." "And there are poachers, and Edmund..." "You were right." "I couldn't trust him." "Just come home, please." "Daddy, I need you." "Without the invader's camera," "I'll have to start over on the endangered species search." "We need three, or we could lose the island." "Every animal is worth saving, but those poachers said they had cages full of animals." "We have to free them first." "The Buccaneers have sent surveyors out early." "I'd better find Nim before she unleashes her army of deranged animal allies on them." "Huh?" "Oh!" "Speaking of, if that colourful bird is you, Arbie, I will not forget this." "Yeah!" "All right!" "All right!" "You men there!" "Thank goodness you're here." "I don't know if this net belongs to you or it belongs to the Buccaneer Resort Company but either way I need to be extricated immediately." "I wonder how much he'd go for on the black market." "Why would they want a chubby nerd?" "Nerd?" "I am an academic." "It was a joke, Ben." "Your face is a joke!" "Let me down, or I'll call your manager." " It means..." " Don't hurt yourself, Ben." " Your face!" " You think you're funny, but you're not." "Dear Buccaneer complaint department," ""I am writing you to inform you of an altercation" ""with two of your employees who left me stranded."" "I know it's tough being stuck in a small space, but it's only for a few more minutes." "If Alex did her research, your drones are already mounting a search and rescue party." "They'll have their queen back soon." "Wait for me here and if anything happens, we rendezvous back at base camp." "Arbie, no!" "Some of those animals are ugly." "Might have found you a girlfriend, finally, Frankie." "You would know." "You have experience dating an ugly animal." "Moira's not ugly." "Yeah, yeah, of course." "Of course." "Compared to a warthog, she's downright lovely." "She pitched a fit when you bought her daisies." "That's my fault!" "I know she likes roses better." "The girl of my dreams deserves roses." "I'm not trying to." "Get out of my face!" "Think you're funny, but you're not funny." " Watch me." "I'm funnier than you." " You can't even tell a joke!" "Way to go, Arbie." "Get out of here!" "Into the water!" "The water!" "Please!" "Please, go away!" "Please, I don't like stings!" "Bees can't swim!" "Into the water!" "Ben!" "Ben!" "What'd I ever do to you?" "Pack your bags and tie your shoes, guys." "Oh, get off!" "This is a jailbreak." "Not the face!" "Not the face!" "That's your favourite son?" "That was so brave of Ben leading all them bees away from us." "What?" "Wow." "Okay." "Plan B." "Come on." "Come on!" "Stupid dull knife." "Poachers need to take better care of their things." "Well, hello, my pretty girl." "How do you know it's a girl?" "Maybe it's her long eyelashes and that pink bow in her hair." "Do you know how much the Russian Circus would pay for a trained seal with both its flippers?" " Dad, I think that's a sea lion." " Shut up, Frankie." " Come on, Ben." "Have a guess." "How much?" " 50 bucks." "Exactly!" "$50,000." "You can't stay out there forever!" "Yeah, good one, Ben." "That's the perfect size for a sea lion." "Right size for you, runt!" "I know, I'm trying." "I'll be back, guys, I promise." "With my machete." "Selkie, we'll have to come back." "The cages were..." "Selk?" "Selkie's fine." "She has to be fine." "What?" "I know I'm late, but that's no reason to yell at me." "She was trying to warn you." "Just so you know, when my dad gets home he's going to kick your..." "That's him!" "Jack!" "Sorry to disappoint you, but that's just my boys looting the place." "The fridge is full of worms!" "Ugh." "We saw the mooring for a boat on our way in, but no boat." "My dad's here." "He's just on the other side of the island." "Oh, right." "You sure you want to keep lying?" "I've gutted fish bigger than you." "Where's your other accomplice?" "Where's Edmund?" "The boy?" "No, he's not one of us." "No, he's just some runaway." "Ever notice how people think their problems won't follow them wherever they go?" "That's why I always like to make sure I tie up loose ends." "Hey." "They don't even have a TV." "Oh, you poor girl!" "How do you pass the time?" "I read!" "Do you really want to come between me and my pay day?" "You really want to call my best friend a pay day?" "Oh!" "Go, Selk!" "Get out of here!" "Oh, you're brave, I'll give you that." "Do you know what happens to brave little girls?" "No, neither do I." "They don't live long enough to tell their tales." "Now, you gonna let me take your seal here?" "Sea lion." "You can't save her." "Better to give in than watch me hurt her, hey?" "Come on, don't feel so bad." "You're unarmed, outnumbered." "Not a lot of choice, really." "I'm not giving up." "I'll figure something out." "Go, Selkie, go!" "Thanks for training her so well." "Circus pays extra for that." "Pack it up, boys." "We're casting off!" " What?" " We're leaving, idiot." " What?" " I said..." "Always had a feeling we'd find something worthwhile here." "Something big." "Just remember, you try to follow me, you pull any of your other little tricks and I take it out on your pet." "A dead seal's better than no seal." "We just don't have any legal recourse to reverse the sale." "But if there was something else unique about the island besides the protozoa." "What if there were several habitats for endangered species?" "I don't have any documentation for it yet, but I know my daughter has seen..." "We can't get an extension based on the word of a child." "I'm starving." "What about a break?" "Fourth floor, there's a vending machine with a very tasty selection." "Jack, you have to come home." "I can't find Felix." "And there are poachers..." "Nim's in trouble." "I've gotta go." "You go." "I'll do what I can here." "And ask my granddaughter to come and visit me one day, will you?" "She looks more and more like Emily." "My daughter would have been very proud of you today, you know." "I know." "It's a long shot, but Emily would have tried." ""Get out of the lab, Felix"!" ""Do some field work"!" "Is this what you meant by "embrace the chaos," Jack?" "When you come across my bones picked clean by all manner of claw and fang" "I hope you feel terrible for luring me to this island to participate in ground-breaking scientific research when you knew, you knew I'd be scraped, stung, rained upon." "Tormented by lawless children and laughed at by psychopathic pirate-theme resort developers!" "Have at me, bird!" "Do your worst!" "Well, what do you know!" "Now I don't suppose you could recommend a good optometrist?" "Wait a minute." "Rope's not the only thing that's gonna burn around here." "Nim, you okay?" "What happened?" "They took Selkie." "He had a knife and I couldn't..." "Oh, no." "Selkie's my best friend." "More than that." "She's been there for me every day since my mom died." "She's family." " What if we can..." " We can't call for help." "We can't go after them." "All the boats are gone." "There's nothing we can..." "That little kleptomaniac." "Hey, these are Booker's boat keys." " Which means..." " There's still time to save Selkie." "We need to be prepared." "Let's check the lab." "Maybe we'll find something labelled," ""Take Out Maniacal Poachers Kit"!" "Who are you and what have you done with Felix?" "Felix went into the field, Nim." "I'm what the field spat back out." "Great, because we could really use your help." "We're under attack." "You think?" "I'm all over it." "Okay." "A, love the initiative." "Don't lose that." "But B, Jack would never sign off on us shooting them with poison darts and leaving their bodies to be picked apart by rabid warthogs." "I find, in moments like these, it's best to ask..." ""What would Alex Rover do?"" "Come on!" "We ready?" "ls Mission No Circus for Selkie a go?" "Give us a speech, fearless leader." "Oh." "I'm not." "I mean, I don't know what to say." "Except that Selkie makes a much better friend than sideshow act." "And those guys won't stop until they've put everything that crawls, flies and swims in a cage." "I don't know how things work on the mainland, but we don't stand for that kind of thing here." "I say we put them in a cage." "Yeah!" "Cage them!" "Now I know why you're so grumpy, Frankie." "Being ugly hurts." "Oh, now, look at that." "See, Frankie?" "Even the dumb seal knows it's important to keep fit." "Hey, Frankie." "Bad enough you lost my keys, but how long does it take to hotwire a boat?" "Any longer we'll be peddling a seal carcass to the Russkies." "They're not going to fall for that trick again." "Why would a bird want keys?" "See, those are Dad's keys." "I made that keychain myself." "Ripped the tooth out of the shark that got your mom." "That's what happens to animals who mess with Booker and son." "Sons." "Shut up, Frankie, you'll scare him." "I thought we didn't want any lorikeets?" "Don't overthink it, Ben." "Just chase the pretty bird." "Dad, these trees keep hitting me!" "You keep running into them, dummy." "Open your eyes." "They are open!" "Stupid bees." "Quiet, Frankie!" "What'd I say about spooking the bird?" "Yeah, we're losing the element of surprise." "Phase One complete." "Oh!" "Why couldn't we have kept that bird in the cage when we had the chance?" "Shut up, Frankie!" "Why'd the stupid lorikeet have to fly down the path with the pooping birds and the angry leaves?" "Yeah." "Why don't you two guys go on ahead?" "Selk, you in here?" "She has to be close by." "Wait." "I can't leave them here." "Not again." "This might work better." "What?" "I play a lot of video games." "That's right, bring them to Papa Bear." "Papa's got claws now." "Come on!" "Why are you so smug?" "You're supposed to lead them into the quicksand." "Felix was right!" "Liquid nitrogen is so useful!" "So is my old-school machete." "Where'd the bird go?" "Forget the bird." "We've got these." "Hey, Frankie, look." "It's the nerd from the net." "You're gonna have a very different name for me when I get through with you." "Like Felix the Ferocious." "Feral Felix." "No!" "The Frightful Felix." " Quicksand!" " What?" "Quicksand!" "Move your foot!" "Get ready to have sand in all the wrong places, boys." "Guess that's the last time you'll mess with a marine biologist with a focus in psychology." "Thanks for the backup, but I totally had the situation covered." " Selkie!" " Selkie!" "Selkie!" "Selk!" "Selkie." "Nim!" "Nim!" "Nim, I've found her." "She's overheated." "We have to get her to the water." "How?" "I know I'm stronger than I look, but even I can't carry her." "Can you drive that?" "But Arbie has the keys." "No, Arbie has the keychain." "Go, go, go!" "Keep going!" "Almost there." "Straighten out, Edmund!" "Into the bay!" "Two more hours of daylight." "Ready to get out there with your camera?" " Can we nap first?" " No time." "Operation No Circus for Selkie was an unmitigated success, but the Buccaneers will be here tomorrow." "First we'll head back to the grasslands for the Bilby." "Nim." "Push play." "Never make direct eye contact with the Bilby." "A ferocious creature, they're known for shocking people to death with adorableness." "You sneak!" "That means we only need one more." "I know just where to look, but Jack won't like it." "Nim!" "Nim!" "Nim?" "You up there?" "Where are you?" "Sorry, Jack, but it's the only way." "What'd you say?" " Felix?" " You're back?" "And, sir, gotta say the new look is..." "Felix, where's Nim?" "Felix, where is she?" "See, I was supposed to watch these poachers here while..." " Poachers?" " Cormorant Cliffs." "If you want me to resign my post I will, but I've come to learn how to embrace the chaos of life!" "Use your arms and your legs!" "You're doing great!" "The sharp rocks below are more scared of you than you are of them!" "Why would you bring up sharp rocks at a time like this?" "Come on, Edmund." "Where's your sense of humour?" "I'm too crippled by fear to laugh." "Okay, watch out for loose rocks through here." "Just think, the climb down is going to be much easier." "The sun will be setting, the bats will be out." "It'll be beautiful!" "Oh!" " You're heavier than you look." " Thanks." "I've been trying to fill out so I can play football next year." "Sorry." "Seems like I'm always messing up your big plans." "No, this wouldn't be half as much fun without you." "This is fun?" "Are you sure there aren't any endangered species who live in nice, safe, low to ground places?" "Okay." "Let's, uh..." "Let's lure this iguana out for its close-up." "I mean, a week ago baiting iguanas with candy would have seemed crazy to me." "What was so different a week ago?" "Well, I was planning my adventure on your island, not living it." "There are lots of places you could have run away to for an adventure." "Yeah, I know, but this island has everything." "Friendly natives, angry poachers, terrifying cliffs." "Why run away at all?" "I had to get away from my parents." "Why would you want to do that?" "Uh..." "Well, they fight." "All the time." "Dad lost his business and Mum's afraid of what's going to happen to us." "I was tired of feeling totally useless." "Sol left." "Which I know is stupid, because they're probably beyond worried about me, but..." "Edmund," "I don't think you're useless or stupid." "I think you're..." "I'm..." "Nim Rusoe, you've just found your first Fijian Crested Iguana." "That's three species." "The island's safe." " How did it?" " it's a defence mechanism." "We must have scared it." "Sorry, little guy." "Hey!" "Stop it!" "There's an endangered species down here!" "Funny, I see three endangered species." "Wait, wait, wait, wait!" "There's nowhere to hide out there." "Come on." "Come on." "It just keeps getting smaller and smaller." "Are you okay?" "You know how you feel about heights?" "That's how I feel about tight, cramped spaces." "Really?" "This is roomy compared to my place in Brisbane." "Stop trying to be funny!" "We're trapped." "Which is exactly what Alex Rover always thinks right before he makes his miraculous escape." "Without ropes, we'll never get out of here before the fire comes." "Nim, Nim, look at me." "Hey, we're gonna get out of here." "We're going to save the island." "We can do this." "Here." "Hurry, it's getting crispy in here." "That's it!" "You go." "You're a better climber." "Go." "Nim!" "I guess we finally find out what happens to brave little girls." "Huh?" "Their fathers ground them for the rest of their lives." "Nim, I just want you to know we did everything we could to save the island," " but it looks like we're going to have to..." " Show him, Edmund." "Show me?" "Show me what?" " Is that..." " A Fijian Crested Iguana?" "And that's our third species, too." "We've got them all in there." "The Bilby is particularly well documented." "Nim, this changes everything." "You are amazing." "And, Edmund, you're starting to grow on me." "Yeah, he does that." "I'm her best human friend." "Third overall after Selkie and Fred." "At least I trump Arbie." "I wonder if they'll let Moira visit me in prison." "Oh, she's going to get one look at you and your ugly mug and dump you." "And I'm telling the authorities that you two put me up to everything." "Oh, shove it, Frankie!" "The Coast Guard arrested all of us because we're a family." "Booker and sons stick together." "Sons?" "What, so now we're a family?" "Come on, don't keep a girl hanging." "You're so gonna miss us." "Are you kidding?" "I'm going to miss everything." "The island, sunshine, my freedom." "I'm so grounded when I get home." "Hey, um, so before I leave" "I just wanted to, uh, uh, tell you that..." "Mmm-hmm?" "Um..." "Well, see, I..." "Felix!" "Wake up!" "Oh, you're truly evil." "And you can expect a whole lot more where that came from." "I just told my professor I'm staying for another semester." "Just enough time to get plenty of revenge." "Hmm." "Stellar performance, buddy." "You don't know how much I'm going to miss you." "Okay, so..." "Sol made you this." "It's papaya in the shape of a Gummy." "See?" "I hope you like it." "What's my email?" "So as I was trying to say before, this was just, like, the best week of my life, and..." " We almost died, like, 12 times." " I know." "But, um..." " Uh, you..." " Whatever it is, spit it out." "Hmm..." "Weirdo." "Edmund!" "Gotta get going." "Don't want to miss the tide or you'll be stuck here another day." "Shut up, you." "He's just a friend." ""Hello there, my favourite invader." ""I bet you're already missing my island desperately." ""Well, before you get any ideas about storming Turtle Beach again" ""I thought I'd give you a heads-up." ""You should start watching the horizon," ""because I might invade your island next.""