Blackwood Flats Safari: Part 2

Dylan crawled out of the narrow hole that was the opening to the underground cave system. Having dropped the solvent into the stream and being satisfied with the results, he returned to the surface where Karua waited for him.

“Everything’s going as planned,” Dylan told his saurian partner while dusting himself off. “Now we’ll go back and bring Tamith in the morning to see our work. Can you believe we’re on schedule?”

Karua snorted as if saying he couldn’t believe they had managed to pull that one off. Dylan laughed at his friend’s comment.

“We better head back,” he stated. “We have a long walk to camp and wouldn’t want Tamith to worry; you know how she can get.” Karua nodded his agreements and kneeled down for Dylan to climb onto his back. “Well Featherlight,” he said taking the little dimorphodon out of her basket, “Looks like you can go ahead and report-”

Karua turned his head around so sharply that he almost knocked Dylan off his perch. The Corythosaurus rose to his full height, every muscle of his body tense. Dylan furrowed his brow in confusion.

“What is it?” he asked him, but it didn’t take long for him to find out. Somewhere near, he could here the melodious cries for help a hadrosaur. Its words were muffled by the wind, but he could still pick up the message it was screaming.

“Carnivores? Here?” Dylan exclaimed in panic. “So far from the Basin...” Karua had already started running in the general direction of the cries and it wasn’t long before a young Parasaurolophus came into view dashing ahead madly of a blur of gold and black.

“Get behind us!” Dylan cried out as Karua moved to intercept it. The little hadro saw her salvation in her fully-grown cousin and wasted no time complying. Karua bellowed a threat at the golden creature that, surprised at the sudden appearance of larger, far more intimidating dinosaur, froze in its tracks. It bore its fangs at the trio; every single hair on it’s back standing.

“What in the world is that....” Dylan mused making no effort to hide his surprise. The animal looked like a saber cat, but its coat was deep orange with black stripes running the length of its body. Besides this, the other difference was that it lacked the two overgrown fangs that were such a distinctive characteristic on the ancient feline. Karua bellowed another challenge, making the animal take a reluctant step back.

“Easy, Karua. I’ve never seen anything like this before,” Dylan said trying to soothe his partner from his obvious rage and indignation.

“Namir!”

The human voice startled Dylan. Looking up he saw two men running in their direction. One was shouting in words that seemed vaguely familiar. Both froze in their tracks, meters away from where they stood. The big cat retreated slowly, its yellow eyes still on them. Dylan turned his attention back to the humans and felt something cold and hard settle in his stomach. Their clothing was foreign, as was their language, but the only thing he cared about at the moment was the staff the older of the two was pointing at them. Something about it, something his great grandfather had described in his childhood, made him freeze with dread. Staffs that breathed fire and thunder. Machines that killed with the snapping of a trigger...

Weapons... he thought. These are dolphinbacks and they brought weapons with them...

~~~~~

Rico stared in amazement at the huge creatures before him. The one was as tall as some of the buildings back in the city! Still, they looked like already plucked chickens; maybe they'd taste as good.

"Lucas, we could send Namir after the smaller one. Bet they taste good."

Lucas inspected the two creatures thoughtfully. What in the world were they? He had traveled since infancy and never had he come across similar things. Still, Rico had a point. If this was the big game of the island, so be it. He'd eaten weirder things before.

"That big one doesn't look very happy," he commented. "Get behind me and prepare to run if things get out of hand. I'll get his attention."

With that, he dropped to a crouch and made his way, minding to keep himself hidden under the tall grass. The giant was too busy with Namir to notice him, so he took that chance to aim. Lucky for them, he was downwind from the creature. He noticed the thick hide and knew that these bullets wouldn't do much harm. He'd had to shoot repeatedly if he wanted to bring it down, but that wasn't his purpose. If he could just panic it enough to give Namir... Aiming for the upper left thigh, he fired.

Karua bellowed in surprise and spun around quickly, throwing Dylan off his back. The tiger saw his chance and once again leapt at the Parasaurolophus. This time, the tiger landed on her back and dug deeply into the tough skin.

Ava dropped and tried rolling on the tiger, but the large cat was faster and leapt off. Ava felt the weight off her back and tried her hardest to get up again, but the tiger was on her side in a flash. The one thing saving her was the predators' complete lack of knowledge about her species...

Dylan didn't even have time to cry out a warning. Everything moved in slow motion after the deafening noise of the shot. Having been thrown off his partner's back, he landed hard on the ground, loosing his breath for a few eternal seconds. He crawled up to his knees and desperately heaved in precious oxygen. His head twirled and his vision blurred for a moment but he held on to consciousness with all his might. Looking up, he saw the striped creature pouncing on the defenseless hadrosaur.

"No…" he muttered gathering what was left of his strength and leaping towards the great cat that stood a few feet away.

Half stunned, but not willing to let the saurian die while he could still fight, Dylan leaped at the attacking feline. The cat was bigger than as he was, but that didn't deter the human. He punched the cat hard in the head and wrestled it off the injured saurian. Still, the feline’s tremendous strength won out. Namir roared his rage at the puny humans attempt to stop him and simply rolled over the already stunned human, trying to get him off his back. The stunt worked, and Dylan was left completely unconscious and well hidden in the tall grass.

Again, Namir turned to his prey; roaring and claws out, he moved in for the kill. But, the saurian would not feed the cat this day. Karua, though slightly stunned, moved in and swiped the cat away with his forearms. Turning to the side, he struck a defensive position and again advanced on the tiger, bellowing far louder than anything the massive feline could produce.

Too confused by the many attacks and the strange creature advancing on him, Namir turned around and ran back to Lucas. He would find easier prey later.

Lucas had been too busy trying to distract the larger saurian to notice the human from its back, or see the human attack his cat.

The head trapper patted his exhausted tiger. "That’s okay, Boy," he told him. "You’ll get him next time." Perhaps Namir had injured the creature enough for him to simply shoot it and put it out of any pain it had to be in.

"Lucas! There's a human there! I saw him! He fell from el más grande de los animales back!"

The older man frowned. "Are you sure? I didn't see anything."

"Sí! When you shot the things leg, he fell off! Then he tried to fight Namir!"

"Rico, if you're playing one of your jokes…"

"I'm not! He's there!"

Lucas reloaded the rifle. "Stay here. One of those animals could try to trample you if you got too close. I'm going to see if we can't eat that smaller one." Amazingly, the human was able to walk right up to the injured animal, without any protest from either it or the larger creatures.

Not paying any attention to the order, Rico ran out from under the trees and started looking around the area where he knew he saw the human fall. He made sure to keep a fair distance from both of the creatures, but when he noticed the big one nosing something on the ground, he went over to investigate. There, he found what he had known was there.

"Mira! I found him! See? He's right here!"

Lucas hurried over to look. Sure enough, Rico had been telling the truth. Stupid kid; he could hardly believe him because of his pranks.

Lucas knelt by the unconscious boy. It was indeed a human, not any older than Rico. Putting the rifle down, Lucas lightly nudged the boy, but received no response.

"Rico, you listen to me this time. Get something to lead that smaller animal with. I don't think it'll try to hurt us, but be careful. Something that size could do a lot of damage just by stepping in the wrong place. Maybe if we take the smaller one, the bigger one will follow."

When Rico reached the smaller creature, he was surprised when it actually took a couple steps closer to him, limping slightly. Namir had left many wounds on the beast’s side and back, but the creature still lived. Lucas lowered the rifle and gently stroked the animal’s neck where it wasn't injured. In the end, both took off their belts and used them as a leash.

"Mira eso!" Rico exclaimed. "Tame as a caballo!” He gently tugged on the makeshift leash and the animal followed. So, it seemed they had caught something worth far more to the zoo than a simple elephant!

Lucas picked up the strange youth and carried him. "Let's head back to camp. Hopefully Lt. Tates will know something about medicine."

Rico nodded, but remained silent. He kept a firm hold on the creature’s leash and made note that the larger beast was indeed following just behind them. Maybe they were related somehow? The smaller could be the female of the species… Or maybe it was the largers child…

In the long grass, Rico thought he saw a figure flitting from cover to cover.

"Namir!" Lucas called, the great cat bounding over to him quickly. "Track whatever’s following us, but don’t hurt—"

He never had the chance to finish the sentence, for the 'thing' that had been following them emerged less than three yards away from him.

A man, tall and wrapped in a cloak and hood appeared as if from nowhere, right next to the group of men. A large staff of ironbound wood extended towards them. From under the cowl, a voice spoke.

"I would advise you Master Lucas, to leave that cat to its own devices, and talk awhile with me."

Lucas smiled slightly at the impertinence.. "And you are?" he asked, wishing he could reach his rifle in case this man proved dangerous, but his arms were burdened with the unconscious boy.

"Just what you are: a shipwrecked sailor on this island. Don’t even bother with the rifle; it will do you no good here." He strode confidently towards where the astonished sailors stood.

Lucas narrowed his eyes, taking a few seconds to study the stranger. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rico was doing the same thing. There was something about the stranger he didn't like, but he decided to simply take it as his usual lack of trust people appearing out of the blue. Still, he was stranded here, much like them.

"My apologies,” Lucas said, “It’s simply a reaction. No harm intended. As you can see, sir," he continued, "This young man may need medical attention."

Lucas motioned at the limp form of the brown-haired youth he was carrying. “It would seem unwise to me to simply deny my responsibilities to my shipmates who are expecting our return and to him; so, please, come with us and join us at camp. We can offer you some dinner and shelter from these winds. There, if you wish, we can talk.”

“Señor?” Rico said with doubt all over his voice.

“Come,” Lucas told him, “Lead on the beast, and let’s head back to camp.”

He turned around, motioning for the stranger to follow, setting his mind on not speaking another word to him until they reached camp.

“Vamos, Namir,” Rico called at the tiger. Namir took one last look at the strange man and trudged over to his master’s side.

Gareth walked along with the trappers, staring the one called Lucas, in the face. "I hope you gentlemen don't mind me interfering with your hunting party, but it would be best for all of us if you let those two go," he gestured with his hooded head towards the two dinosaurs. “I'm sure they didn't appreciate the thrashing you and your pet cat gave them."

Lucas frowned. "Who are you, the warden of this place or something? And how do you know our names?"

Gareth just laughed. "I am no more the warden of this place than I am the queen of England; but, this place and these people are under my protection, yes. As for me knowing your names, you and your friends ought to have been more observant since you got here. I've been shadowing you ever since."

"What do you mean, 'these people'," asked Rico, puzzled. "There's no one here but us!"

"And you think that the two you are pulling along are dumb animals, eh?"

"Que?” Rico asked, still slightly confused. Nobody else was around! He glanced around, half hoping to find other humans.

Gareth smiled inwardly, amused by these obviously dumb dolphinbacks.

Though not mandatory for hatchery workers residing in other regions of the Island, Mathaira had noted that each of Dinotopia's hatcheries were represented by at least one individual, even the distant Romano Hatchery. Thus, she was pleased to encounter her Ovinutrix friend, Ruby, with whom she had worked during her previous service at the Romano Hatchery, the hatchery of her birth and younger years prior to her transfer to Bonabba's Hatchery. The two friends attended a series of lectures pertinent to hatchery work, including:

'Comparative Differences and Similarities in Nesting Materials Preferred by Coastal Residing Saurians, Representing Each of Dinotopia's Quadrants'

' Herbal Teas: Infusions and Decoctions Useful for Facilitating the Expelling of Eggs in Expectant Female Saurians, A Continuing Study'

'Possible Techniques for Improving the Survival Rate Among Hatchlings Who Pre-Emerge from Their Eggshells, Including Extended Supplemental After-Care'

The last was expounded upon by Rojo, an aged and learned Ovinutrix, his wisdom, skill, and experience highly regarded among hatchery workers. Though quite unaware at the time, Mathaira would find the knowledge imparted by Rojo in the last lecture to prove invaluable.

After the closing of the Conference the two friends had embraced fondly as they bid one another farewell.

"Breathe deep, seek peace, travel safe," cautioned Ruby.

Mathaira replied in a like manner, "Breathe deep, seek peace, journey well."

~~~~~

The sudden storm which struck the southeastern region of the Island as Mathaira trekked the shoreline along Chadara's bay had taken Mathaira unaware, but not unprepared. As a native Dinotopian, having grown up along the northwestern coastal region, Mathaira knew to seek shelter in one of the many small caves created by rock formations common along the shores of the Island. Emerging from the security of her rocky retreat, Mathaira surveyed the desolate surroundings, noticing that the few sparse trees in the area seemed to have weathered the storm, excepting a large palm tree which had been uprooted from the sandy soil bordering the beach. Anxious to continue her journey down the coastline Mathaira almost passed by, but years of viewing her environment through the eyes of a hatchery worker compelled her to pause.

Amidst the palm fronds which had once swayed gently with the ocean breezes, but were now scattered upon the sand, lay the remains of a nest. Edging cautiously closer so as not to disturb the contents, Mathaira was dismayed to find a crushed egg within the nest, the fragile remains of a too-early-for-life Rhamphorynchus visible among the shell fragments. Unnerved by the tiny life which would not have a chance to flourish, Mathaira glanced away, her gaze encountering a scene which brought further sadness to her heart.

At the base of a nearby rocky outcropping lay the battered remains of a pair of Rhamphorynchus, no doubt the parents of the deceased nestling. Out of reverence for the winged family, Mathaira gently scooped up in a large palm frond the remains of the pre-hatched Rhamphorynchus, laying it gently alongside its parents so that the trio could bid farewell together to their earthly life upon the Island.

Not covering the bodies but leaving them for the Island to reclaim its own, Mathaira removed a small pouch from her pack, remnants from the previous Festival of the Departed, and scattered upon the family the dried crushed petals of a white lily, the flower of the departed. She bid them well as they journeyed into their next life, "Sing every day," intoned Mathaira.

At that moment, a barely perceptible gust of wind from the ocean blew the delicate wing membrane of the female Rhamphorhynchus, revealing what appeared to be an intact egg clutched in her foot claws. With the practiced eye of an experienced hatchery worker, Mathaira detected a fine crack in the otherwise perfect egg. She cautiously picked it up for closer inspection.

"It seems to be viable," Mathaira reflected hopefully.

Recalling Rojo's lecture at the Conference, Mathaira loosely wrapped the egg in a palm frond, packing moist sand around it before wrapping the egg in a palm frond again, this time tightly. Enclosing the entire egg parcel in one of her spare tunics, Mathaira placed it carefully into the pack slung over her shoulder before resuming her trek, addressing the unhatched egg as she did so, "One raindrop raises the sea," mentally naming the hatchling to be and murmuring, "Storm Rider."

Journeying further down the shoreline in search of other nestlings who might have survived the storm, Mathaira edged into the shadows of a ginkgo tree as she caught a glimpse of unfamiliar figures a bit further inland.

The human patted her on the neck and murmured something to her in some foreign language. Apparently, he didn’t realize the only thing keeping her on all fours was her injured leg. All it would take on her part to get away from him would be to stand up properly!

She followed willingly when the two humans started walking towards the beach. Hopefully, they had medicine and would care for her wounds. The Sabertooth she would not go near, or even the human who seemed to actually be the felines’ partner. Still, that human carried the unconscious Dinotopian boy. Perhaps they were helping him too.

“Are you all right?” The Corythosaur asked her.

“No!” She honked. “I can’t stand up straight because my leg hurts too much.”

The much larger saurian moved in next to her. “Lean on me,” he said.

Gratefully, Ava accepted the extra support.

“I’m Karua,” he introduced.

“Ava. Do you know what that thing attacking me was?”

“No, I’m sorry. Though it reminds me of a Sabertooth.”

Ava nodded. “That’s what I thought.” She studied the Dinotopian boy for a short time before realizing why his cloths looked familiar. “You’re Freshwater Habitat partners?”

“Yes. That’s Dylan. We came here to drop some ulieka in the river. Apparently, there was a cave in at the source and lime was leaching into the water. We came with some friends, habitat partners of the forest. I hope he’s okay.” The saurian half of the Freshwater team was greatly concerned for his friend and partner. That fall hadn’t been an easy one, and being rolled over certainly hadn’t helped matters any.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure he’ll be fine,” Ava reassured.

By this time, they had reached the beach. There was a strange human there, apparently waiting for them. He seemed slightly hostile, and the Parasaurolophus was unsure what to make of him. Still, the humans accompanying the hadrosaurs seemed to understand his strange words and invited him along to wherever they were going.

Ava meekly followed, leaning on Karua for support and awaiting medical attention.

Turning a full 180 degrees the lieutenant threw a joking grin, his handsome features throwing the jest in the direction of Captain McGreggor, who raised a brow skeptically. "What exactly are you doing?"

Tates snapped another salute, trying to look more serious this time and failing completely. "Scouting for the missing food reconnaissance party, SIR".

McGreggor groaned and shook his head. "Can't you do something useful like unpack our supplies?"

"Oh sorry, sir, those got washed back out to sea. A giant sea monster came and ate 'em," with that he swung his cocked rifle toward the sea, letting loose with two rounds of fire and being reprimanded immediately by the shrill squeals of the dolphins playing in the foam.

"That's not funny-" The Captain began before he froze in mid-sentence. Tates turned with a crooked grin. "Well I know it was a pretty bad joke but... What are you looking at?" At the sound of a low bellow like that of a baleen whale, the pair turned with the trappers to gaze at what raised its neck 30 feet clean out of the water, a plesiosaur emerging from the depths of the ocean, unsettled by the shot and confirming the 'sea monster' theory.

Tates' eyes widened. "The sea is indeed a fickle mistress." With that, he raised his gun again, aiming straight at the small head that towered above them.

She observed the group who seemed to have set up some sort of makeshift camp under a grove of palm trees just off of the beach area. There were a couple of tents, which surprised her as most dolphinbacks arrived onshore with only the clothes on their backs and if they were fortunate perhaps a few possessions. Glancing around, she then spotted at the shoreline two floating devices that the outside world referred to as ‘lifeboats,’ battered and beaten from their battle to cross the reefs which surrounded the entire Island. "So that's how they got the tents ashore," she reasoned.

She observed the group a few moments longer, contemplating whether she should approach the unknown group of men by herself. It was obvious that they weren't in dire need of immediate assistance, their camp-like approach attesting to that fact. But certain tenants of the Code deeply rooted in her mind and within heart told her otherwise, "Survival of all or none. One raindrop raises the sea...Others first, self last..." The battle raged within her. In spite of years of ingrained Dinotopian hospitality to dolphinbacks which was a way of life for her, she recalled her unpleasant run-in with Lee Crabb a few seasons ago, he having also arrived on the Island as a dolphinback. That time her companion ShadowStriker had been there to back her up but now she was alone...

Before she had made her decision about whether to encounter these dolphinbacks alone or to trek back towards Chandara in search of assistance, she noticed that two of the group had separated from the others, leaving their camp and heading toward the beach. One was an older man with an air of authority about him, a no-nonsense expression on his obviously sea-weathered face. The other was younger, very tall and muscular; his carefree countenance a definite contrast to his more serious companion. Mathaira observed the pair as they conversed briefly on the sandy beach, squinting in an effort to determine what the strange object was which the younger man carried and watching as he pointed it toward the sea, wondering what he was doing.

BOOM! BOOM! Mathaira jumped at the deafening sounds which had come from the strange object, now realizing that the object was what the outside world referred to as a ‘gun,’ unfamiliar with the nuances which categorized such as ‘rifle’ or ‘pistol’ but knowing that it contained the power to kill or injure. The shrill squeals of the dolphins cavorting in the foam as the waves crested and made their way to shore chastised the handsome young man who had fired the deadly weapon and drew Mathaira's attention to the ocean where the dolphinback again pointed his gun.

A long neck had emerged from the depths of the sea, grey-green flecked with amber, water droplets shimmering on the small, elegant head whose ringed pattern of emerald green scales from which the plesiosaur derived her given name. "Tyara!" Mathaira emerged from the shadows of the ginkgo tree and shouted at the creature as loudly as she could.

At the same moment, acutely aware of the fragile egg still cocooned inside of her pack, Mathaira knew she must act quickly. Her decision about whether to reveal herself to the dolphinbacks was immediately made for her. Holding the pack close to her body she removed the water pouch which was slung over her shoulder, heavy with fullness as she had replenished it at the last freshwater spring which she had passed. As her warning carried to the plesiosaur, she threw the water pouch toward the weapon held by the young man, his muscular forearm steadying the gun. Her aim was true, hitting her mark fast and hard. Taken by surprise at the sight and sound of the shouting young woman along with the heavy object striking the end of his rifle, the shot fired by the man missed its target as the gun swiveled sideways.

Too experienced to have let the gun out of his grasp, the weapon was still firmly in his muscular hands as the diminutive young woman approached...

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