"Aunnng?"
A soft lowing sound echoed. Carlo, currently in the middle of a leisurely afternoon nap, slowly rose. Once awareness returned to his body, he glanced around.
It was the Parasaurolophus mother.
She didn't care for sunbathing, preferring to sit in the shade of the trees beside Carlo to keep cool. Today, however, she wasn't napping with him; instead, she was staring into the distance, toward the far end of the Great Lake.
What was she looking at?
The Parasaurolophus hatchlings were jolted awake by the movement of Carlo getting up. These energetic little things required no transition time, immediately jumping and frolicking about.
Carlo ignored the rambunctious youngsters and followed the mother's gaze toward... Stego bro?
No, those weren't Stego bro.
It was a small group of Stegosauruses.
Three of them had approached the lakeshore in a line to drink, but their aggressive posturing seemed to unsettle the residents. Stray dinosaurs near them quickly gave way, clearing a space for the three bullies.
Why were they here?
Carlo was puzzled. Didn't the Stegosaurus herds have their own territory? Why had several robust individuals come to the lake? They didn't look like outcasts.
Carlo's intuition was fairly accurate; these Stegosauruses were indeed here for something specific. However, it wasn't him, so he didn't sense any direct malice directed his way.
"Aunnng!"
Just then, a loud cry erupted from Carlo's other side. He turned to look and saw the same Stego bro who had previously ignored him.
Wait, has Stego bro been living here all along?
During this period of independence, Carlo had been focusing on building rapport with his Parasaurolophus neighbors, completely failing to notice that Stego bro had been drinking water in an inconspicuous corner the entire time.
This was the first time Carlo had a clear view of the other's back. When they first met, his height hadn't allowed for such a detailed observation.
The texture of the patterns on the irregular osteoderms was noticeably rough, likely the result of healing after an injury. On the back beneath the plates, there were numerous faint, hard-to-see scars, looking as if something sharp had raked across them, a chilling sight.
Though Carlo hadn't hunted many Stegosauruses, he was certain these were battle scars from fighting his own kind.
"Aunnng!" x3
The invasive Stegosauruses called out incessantly, sounding as if they had discovered some unforgivable sinner.
In contrast, Stego bro remained exceptionally quiet. He simply moved forward along the lakeshore, one step at a time, nearing the intruders.
His eyes reflected the calm lake water, mirroring his current mood.
Crunch.
As Stego bro drew closer, the clamor of the intruders grew weaker and weaker, eventually falling silent altogether.
The only sounds left by the lake were Stego bro's unhurried footsteps and the retreating shuffles of the invaders.
Buzzzzz.
As Carlo watched the imminent clash, he suddenly heard a strange noise. He turned around to find that the Parasaurolophus hatchlings had somehow grown transparent mosquito wings.
"Aunnng—"
The little things buzzed toward Carlo's head, scaring the life out of him. The apex predator's silhouette launched upward from the spot, retreating in a frantic scramble...
THUD.
Dust swirled. Carlo opened his eyes to find a blue sky and a pitch-black...
Oh. He was lying on his side.
Standing up with a bit of embarrassment, he shook his body to shed the clinging sand and surveyed his surroundings.
Giga Dad and the three youngsters were gone.
Carlo froze for a moment, then lifted his head to sample the scents in the air. Before he could confirm their locations, an incredibly thick smell of blood invaded his nostrils.
He turned toward the basin below the plateau. The Dreadnoughtus hunted by the three youngsters had moved slightly from its position last night and was now completely sprawled on the ground.
Its abdomen had been torn open; internal organs mixed with blood had stained the yellow sand. The three youngsters and Giga Dad were all there, looking like they had beaten him to breakfast.
Relieved, Carlo stepped down from the high ground and walked toward his family.
"Roar…"
Boss, you're awake.
Kafka, lying nearby, was the first to notice Carlo's arrival. She hadn't joined the others in feeding. In the daylight, she had reverted to her usual lethargic state.
"Roar…"
Morning.
Carlo huffed a response, but he couldn't help wondering: hadn't Kafka slept last night? Why was she still acting so drained? Well... this one's biological clock was probably beyond repair.
Karl and Katyusha, still feasting on the fruits of their labor, noticed Carlo and instinctively moved to give him space. However, Carlo didn't take their spots; instead, he strolled leisurely toward the back of the overturned Dreadnoughtus.
Even after all these years, he was still that same youth who loved tenderloin.
Katyusha watched him, tilted her head in confusion, and went back to eating. Karl, however, was curious as to why the Boss went for the back first. Could eating the meat from there make one stronger?
…
"Wait... let me get this straight."
Ronnie held her forehead with one hand, her brows knitted in a deep frown. She looked like she had a massive headache.
"You're saying... the target we've been tracking for over a month just suddenly showed up."
"Mhm." The voice on the other end of the line responded cooperatively.
"He walked himself right into the sanctuary we were planning to contain him in?"
"Mhm."
"And he didn't even break the fence? He found a gate, waited for us to open it, and just walked in?"
"Yep."
"And then this monster, who is significantly larger than any normal dinosaur, just integrated into the local ecology without any human intervention?"
"That's the long and short of it."
"You aren't messing with me, are you?"
"Not at all. I even have video of him interacting 'intimately' with a Dreadnoughtus. You want to see?"
"I'm not really a fan of gore—"
"Where is your head at? Does every 'intimate interaction' in your mind involve blood? That's terrifying... anyway, your mission with Darius is complete. No need for regrets; what you two did on the road is enough for the federal government to give you a Peace Prize... a human-dinosaur one."
"Fine, fine. I get it. Does this come with a year-end bonus?"
"No, but it does come with a week of paid leave... starting now! Cherish the time~ if you're a second late reporting back, it counts as a late arrival."
Click.
Inside a Jeep parked by the roadside, Ronnie stared at the "Call Ended" screen, wishing she could reach through the phone and slap the person on the other end.
"Sigh..."
With a heavy exhale, she turned to Darius beside her and said somewhat helplessly:
"You have a vacation of less than a week. Currently, you have about 6 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes, and 13 seconds left."
"Huh?"
Darius, who was eating a simple breakfast, blinked in surprise before letting out a few chuckles.
"Looks like I'll have to do a bit of 'overtime' to drop this guy off at the sanctuary first."
He pointed toward the cargo bed of the truck behind them. There was something covered by a tarp, but the bony spikes protruding from its tail gave its identity away.
"I'll call a transport heli for you—"
Ronnie was about to dial when Darius's phone rang. He made an apologetic gesture and hopped out of the car to answer.
"Hey, B, it's me."
———————
(Note: 'B' is Darius's nickname for Brooklynn.)
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over here ——— pa-tre-on.c-om/AlexandrusTL [remove the hyphen for normal access]