(The Land Before Time belongs to Don Bluth and Universal Studios. This is for show, not dough.)
Author's Note: Hm? What? Didn't you already write the first book of Metempsychosis, Marble? What's wrong with you, man!? Well, I decided I wanted to clean it up a bit and add and redo several parts of this fanfic. So, I'm keeping the original up just so it can be compared to this and to help me write it too (without having to scavenge in my several documents). So without further ado, here's...
Metempsychosis Remade:
Prologue: Game Over... Start again?
Okay. So... so what if I'm moving into my sophomore year at high school? What will it prove? You just have to suck it up, me! God... why are you always so complicated?
My thoughts usually were like this. A constant tribulation with myself. Usually a constant battle. The only side was me. And I would betray myself and go renegade. Or I would rebel. Or go rogue. My thoughts... are only like that in a since, the other parts are the hardest to explain. Even though I was now 15, I had always been observant and perceptive. Constantly contradicting myself and being hypocritical. As of now? Well, I'm fighting with myself over my impressions and GPA. What mattered more? Social life at school? Grades? School friends? Honor roll? I shoved my rough, wide yet stubby hands into my blue shorts, a huff escaping my chapped, swollen lips. My brown eyes simply sagged in continuous aggravation. A absentminded hand ruffled bronze colored short hair. The blue T-shirt on my torso was tweaked at the collar with the same hand. The left. I had always liked using my left hand over my right ever since I was around thirteen or so. Still had trouble using it, though, with things like writing or drawing. I was an aspiring ambidextrous at best, or at least I procrastinated to be. Procrastinated? What did I mean by that? Sometimes mindlessly I would train my left hand. As I strode down the neighborhood street, woods to my left, casual houses to my right. The old asphalt interacted with the click-clacks of my black flipflops. The air seemed thicker and more humid. Hm. Probably would rain soon. It was common from the parts I was from. Especially in the warmer seasons such as summer. It was late May as it was, June right around the corner. I had summer break ahead of me and I was already bickering mentally with myself about my next year in high school. Why would a teen like me be worrying so early about it? Well, even though this would sound cliche enough, I always thought out among my fellow generation of teens.
So, as I kept my casual march of solitude down my street, the air grew much thicker and a warm breeze brushed against my pale skin. I noticed the area around me gradually had gotten darker. Exhaling through my nostrils, I figured I might as well enjoy what was left of my walk. I headed towards the grotto in the woods at the end of my neighborhood, which led to several possibly man made trails for fourwheelers that some kids in my neighborhood sometimes used to go mud-riding. I had spent previous summers mapping out the trails of the woods, almost becoming a hobby to walk around there now and then. I would sometimes find the occasional miscellaneous nature-worn object such as a piece of car metal or some kind of odd piece of plastic formerly part of a sign. So as I approached the clearing, I dipped in. Left. Left. Right. Cut through the middle. Right. Right. I had gone through these trails many times. I knew almost every bend and turn. Though it managed to flood from a light shower, I still found ways to navigate it. I then came across some peculiar. A small clearing. Yes, I had been mapping out these trails for over three summers. But, maybe I overlooked this clearing, because it seemed like someone or something had cleared it out to such. I simply shrugged as I trekked into the small opening feeling as if the ground was uneven for some reason. Don't get me wrong, the earth usually was uneven, but this seemed really strange for some reason. I felt my heart jolt in my chest as a clap of thunder cracked through the air, along with a bolt of lighting splitting through the atmosphere. And then came a small drizzle, which turned into a shower, which turned into a downpour. Ugh. I should go ahead and head back home, I figured.
With that I became jogging which turned into a mild sprint just as I felt the world around me fall. My feet slipped down through the loose earth, entombing me within its soil and muddy embrace. I didn't even have much time to register what was really going on. I felt myself slide deeply within the pit, buried up to my neck in mud. Rain drenched my face and already soaked hair as I let out an inaudible scream of despair. Soon enough, I was engulfed by the pit and sucked under, my last glimpse of a fresh jagged line of pure electricity of the skies. My world turned dark, much darker and much more horrific than ever. Soil and earth piled into my mouth and nostrils, clogging up my lungs full of mud. I felt the faintest of tears rim my eyes as I shut them, having being covered by the earth. My entire body ached as my lungs lurched and diaphragm heaved. My entire respiratory system seared, my mind swam and boggled until everything began to become muffled like a faint echo in a cavern. Consciousness was fading. A final choke escaped my slightly parted lips as I began to go limp within the sinkhole.
And then nothing.
Though much misfortune plagues upon the youths and elders, sometimes, the greatest of miracles of elusive chances bring upon luck to those... who least expect it. Whatever it be, from plant to insect to animal or human, it rings upon forgotten words and thoughts, still lingering within the depths of consciousness for all sentient and individual minds.
Yet, among the certain epochs within a particular Earth, eons and eons ago... when the most mysterious of creatures rose and flourished. Among one of the richest of eras and ages, was ruled by the mightiest and most diverse forms of live. Long before the first primates and most other animal, plant, protist, fungal, bacterial, and insectoid lives, that lived underneath the same sun, drank and swam of the same waters, flew the same, yet foreign skies, and wandered the same grounds of the most recent times.
And many of those marvelous lifeforms were called the archosauriformes. Beasts mostly shrouded in mystery and wonder on how they sustained and thrived, many of those roamed land, others preferring the waters. Many kinds appeared, evolved, adapted, and grew. Some of the most terrific creatures were the crocidylians, mosasaurs, pliosaurs, plesiosaurs, ichthyosaurs, pterosaurs...
Yet, one kind stood out most of all... the age of these archosaurs reigned supreme throughout the global ecosystems.
The time of the dinosaurs.
Now, the dinosaurs were of several kinds, namely of two most recognizable being by their hipbones: The saurischians, or lizard-hipped (having similar to those of modern-day lizards), and the ornithischians, or bird-hipped (having similar to those of modern-day birds.)
Even further, the saurischians were divided into even further kinds: The sauropodomorphs and the theropods. More commonly called the prosauropods or sauropods, prosauropods were early sauropods that were mainly bipedal with much more refined clawed paws, smaller in size, and shorter tailed and necked. Small protofeathers or 'dinofuzz' lightly covered their scaly hides along to tops of their torsos, tails, necks, and scalps. These were mainly herbivorous, some even more basal kinds having a diet of carnivory or omnivory. And then came the later kinds, the sauropods. These were the most massive land animals to ever roam the Earth, renown for their elongated necks, tails, and columnar legs. Though not particularly retaining their feathers, some hatchlings were born with pinfeathers. Some sauropods even had strange structures on their tails and spines, such as spikes, horns, or clubs. Some's hindlimbs were shorter than their forelimbs. Some were very small. And some had necks longer than their bodies. The sauropods were all primary herbivores, though sometimes accidentally consuming insects, mammals, or reptiles or even small dinosaurs when browsing the canopies of trees.
And then the most diverse of the saurischians, were the theropods. Now, these were primarily biped hunters, though size, color, shape, and much more varied greatly. Many sported all kinds of feathers, quills, and other integument such as unique scales or strange patches of skin. Many had peculiar claws, talons, teeth, and stances. Some even adopting a more herbivorous diet, while some preferred mainly being piscivorous or insectovorous. Many, however, were the fierce, yet admired carnivores. Though some were scavengers or even cannibals when it called for desperate measures, these mainly predatory dinosaurs roamed and kept the ecosystems balanced, along with the detrivores, other consumers, producers, and decomposers. Yet, some abused their powers and roles, to which prey fretted ruin.
The ornithischians were divided into many, many subgroups. One of the most well-known were the ceratopsians, mainly quadrupedal herbivores with various frilled and ornamented skulls, varying in horns and spikes, in size, shape, and even location. Though some ancestors were hornless and with more primitive and smaller frills, these mainly bipeds still evolved into the successful ceratopsians of later times. These had spiky bristles lining their backsides and tails as well.
One of the most closely related ornithischians to the ceratopsians were the pachycephalosaurs, bipedal dinosaurs with thickened, domed skulls with various horn and spiked ornaments lining them. These also shared the bristly quills as their cousins, mainly covering their torsos. Many were obligate herbivores, though some adapted to a more omnivorous lifestyle.
Moving on to just as mysterious and wonderful were the stegosaurs, large, scaly, lumbering dinosaurs with various plates, spikes, and horns lining their spines, tails, and even sides of forelimbs. These were all herbivorous ornithischians, somewhat closely related to similar in spined creatures.
These were the scaly ankylosaurs, most ancestors, like the stegosaurs, were bipedal and adapted to eating plants. Later species of ankylosaurs were quadrepedal, wide, and had various backs lined with osteoderms, spikes, and horns as well, some even having clubbed tails.
More distantly related were the most varied group of all: The ornithopods. Ornithopods were mainly bipedal, though many were quadrupedal and sometimes lifting onto their hindlimbs for a more bipedal stature. This was seen in the hadrosaurs and iguanidontids. Hadrosaurs evolved from the iguanidontids, having several types of crest ornaments and beak shapes. Igaunodontids had specialized forepaws, three of the fingers forming into a hoof-like structure, one curling into an opposable thumbed claws, the other being a sharp, slashing claw. Hadrosaurs and igaunidontids were all herbivores. Yet, within this particular world of hadrosaurs, these evolved webbed paws and more streamline bodies, adapted to a semi-aquatic lifestyle, despite most worlds not having this. Other kinds of ornithopods were smaller and quicker, sporting quills and bristles as well fuzz.
And finally, the ancient heterodontosaurs, small bristled and quill-downed dinosaurs that had canine-like teeth and were omnivorous.
Yet, even with great life, that was when the flora of a vast range of lands that was the breeding and nesting grounds for many dinosaurs (along with many other animals) for generations upon generations, began to wither and die. The mighty beasts, who had appeared to rule the Earth, were ruled, in truth, by the leaf. Desperate for food, many herds and packs stuck out towards the west, searching for the fabled land of the Great Valley; a land still lush and green. Several unfortunate youths, weary elders, sick, frail, and injured didn't survive the journey. Many desperate predators leaped at the opportunity to stalk the weak or dying of large, even small herds and some omnivorous packs of ornithopods, or even the ornithomimosaurs and unfortunate packs of therinzinosaurs or dromaeosaurs. As many cycles of the moon came and gone, some herds and packs began to dwindle in numbers. Some became antsy and unnerved, either leaving, getting serparated via natural disasters, or being exiled from many of their groups. Even pterosaurs who had scavenged and hunted along the land suffered, catching onto what scraps or unnoticed carcasses of the dead they could pick off of. This also caused many of the carnivores and omnivores to turn on each other, cannibalizing sibling and parent alike.
Though much devastation haunted several dinosaurs and pterosaurs, some found hope in much more. Some saw it as a journey towards life. Yes, it was a march of many dangers, with disease, famine, thirst, cannibalization, predators, and scarcity stalking the masses, waiting to seize any who strayed. Most herds and packs stopped only to hatch their young, their legacies. Much peril plagued them still. Many parents lost mates, forced to watch with wary, careful eyes to their unborn or newborn chicks. Thieves lurked among the nesting sites of the brooding dinosaurs and pterosaurs, waiting for the right moment to strike and earn them a meal. Many lost their young to this. So, to counter, many parents strived to hardly leave their nests, yet ultimately ending in them to starve or dehydrate to death. One such mother, a lone Oviraptor, had only a single, last clutch, her last hope for the future. She had endured going several day and night cycles without much rest or food or water. The young mother, determined to protect her unborn to her deathbed, stood vigilant at her post of her makeshift nest, body shielding her treasures. Yet... as all brooding dinosaurs and pterosaurs would know, even hatching...could be dangerous.
Fluffing out her indigo feathered down, the young Oviraptor mother stared down at her clutch of twelve, which were nestled beneath her lighter underbelly and dark-tipped winged forelimbs. She had laid them several moons ago. It had left her bleeding from the backside, but it wasn't the first time she had birthed. She had laid another clutch several years ago. She briefly wondered how her children were doing, knowing some most likely resided in the Dying Lands. The mother actually hadn't had as much trouble laying this clutch, this brood in particular was much smaller in size and strangely in shape. They weren't completely oval or cylindar shaped, but rather tear-dropped. She faintly recalled her last encounter with her former mate. It had been one of the strangest courtships she had had. Yet, she chose him and the two soon settled and mated. This later had the Oviraptor pregnant, which would soon lead to her laying this clutch. Her unborn children were hybrids. No, not of another kind of oviraptorosaur, but... of a different maniraptoran.
A Troodon.
Indeed, it was unheard of, but still possible. The female theropod had been dazzled by the male theropods performance, she couldn't help but continue to court with him until they became mates. Though, that was when tragedy had struck. A horrible sandstorm had split up the two, leaving the Oviraptor stranded. She had traveled for days on end in the barren desert until having to resort to building a nest and settling down when she became too weary. Soon, she would lay her eggs and would brood them, leaving up until this moment. It was late noon as of now. The Oviraptor could sense the air becoming thicker and more humid. She squawked and clicked to herself in exasperation. She absolutely dreaded the rain. It made her feel sluggish and awkward, pinning her filamentous indigo feathers to her frame in a stringy, soppy mess. As the mother nipped at her pale indigo chest feathers to pick out any mites or bugs, a scent suddenly washed over her nares. Lifting her teal beak, she scanned the barren fields. A light drizzle began to come down, in which she didn't heed much concern to anymore. Eyes of amber, yellow, orange, and even red dotted the distance, slinking towards her. Her brooding was interrupted. She braced herself as she began to bristle her feathers, trying to appear menacing and larger.
Gallimimus.
The biege feathered theropods came nearer and nearer, slim tails swaying like branches in a slow breeze. Letting out a low hiss, the young, indigo mother flapped her wings up and down at the leering theropods. That only seemed to challenge the pack. The call seemed to entice them, since their gaits became much more persistent and erratic. By the sounds reaching the mother's ears, she could tell that she was surrounded. She squawked in agitation, her clutch heavy on her mind. Her heart began to race as the first few Gallimimus began to strike. The first strike caught her off guard, as the ornithomimosaur lunged from behind. A knot formed on the back of her head just under her violet crest, forcing her away from her nest. Whirling around in rage, the Oviraptor let out a call of hatred. This only egged the Gallimimus pack on. In a frenzy of claws and bites, the young mother fought to shake the Gallimimus. She became entangled with more Gallimimus as she frantically cast a vain glance over at her nest, where some Gallimimus were already ready to snag some eggs.
Desperate, the Oviraptor began thrashing wildly, letting out a series of hisses, clicks, warbles, and caws. Yet, she was outnumbered and outclassed by the larger predators. She watched in horror as the Gallimimus began using their beaked snouts to crack open the eggs. She screeched, bucking to try and fend off the ornithomimosaurs. The drizzle continued as the Gallimimus began to tear and devour the young, unborn fetuses of the eggs. A full out downpour erupted from the sky as this continued, the carnage nearly killing the mother's heart. With one last valiant move, she tensed and thrashed once more, but the Galimimus... had other plans.
A sickening snap came from behind the Oviraptor, as agony wracked her frame. A screech exploded from her teal beak, mingling with the surrounding sounds of the Gallimimus and rainstorm. Another crack and snap emitted once more, another round of anguish falling upon the young mother. Both of her legs had been snapped in half, rendering the indigo theropod immobile. With yet another jerk and snap, the fiendish ornithomimosaurs managed to break the base of her tail as well. Blood began seeping from the awkwardly bent limps, causing the young mother to become nauseous upon smelling the metallic fluid. Her body was littered in various gashes, bite marks, and scrapes. She was forced to watch as one by one, her clutch was destroyed by each hungry Gallimimus. Her eyelids began to droop as her ears began to ring. After the theropods had their fill, they scurried off into the dim distance. One lone Gallimimus, a rather skittish and scrawny one managed to nab a remaining, puny egg. The mother squawked as it tripped over her neck, forcing her to watch it run off with her remaining egg. It had been the smallest and coldest out of the twelve, forcing the mother to care for it especially. She let out a low crow of distraught as her last hope for prosperity was soon gone within the clawed grasp of the young Gallimimus. Her entire family, gone up in a flurry of blood, shards, and yolk.
The indigo Oviraptor's mind began to reel as her vision clouded at the edges. Her heart began to slow with each labored breath. Tears slowly creeped out of her emerald eyes. She hardly noticed the crimson figure soon standing over her tattered and mangled form. She noticed the dark scaled himdlimbs, her dying eyes trailing up a lanky form. Darker tips lined wings and tail plumage, brown eyes boring into her emerald in the dim light. The storm raged on, a low rumble of thunder sounding off in the distance. Her teal mandible parted as she stared up at the stranger.
She stifled a sob as blood trailed out of her mouth, "Ple... ease... put... me out... of my... misery... I... It's the last thing... I can hope for... since..." A cough wracked her. She sputtered and gasped, "... I just as well... killed... my own... ha... atchlings..."
Brown eyes narrowing, the elderly crimson Deinonychus scowled, "Death is everywhere, Oviraptor. You should've known better than to settle out in the middle of a desert."
The indigo Oviraptor sniveled, "I... I drew... too weary... with... my... body full... of e.. eggs... Had... no other... choice..."
The Deinonychus studied the young theropod, "Let me guess, you lost your mate as well."
The Oviraptor let out a drawled warble, "Yes... to... s... sandstorm... please... st.. op... pain... have... me... rcy..."
The crimson elder huffed, "Might as well..."
Perhaps she could even have herself a meal as well.
"What is your name?"
The Deinonychus tensed, "None of your concern. You ask this on your final breaths. But... if you insist... It's Blood Stone. But that will be irrelevant now."
The indigo mother gave a pained form of a smile, "One last egg... Took off.. with last... egg... Bring... me... to it... I... I'm... He.. cate.."
Blood Stone blinked, "You're delirious from blood loss. Stop being so foolish, Oviraptor." She glanced over to her ravaged nest. "What's left of your clutch is gone. It's highly unlikely one would simply be taken off by one of those thieves. If it did, it would've been eaten by now."
"Please... bring.. me to it... it... it's my last baby... Plea.. se..."
Blood Stone glared at her, "Shut up, stupid oviraptorosaur." The crimson elder began to departure when she stopped and stared at her once more. "Fine. Whatever floats your leaf. It'll be your last wish."
"Th-.. Thank... y.. ou... Bl... ood... st... one..."
"Humph," the crimson elderly dromaeosaur simply snorted.
The elder soon slid the broken indigo female over her back and began to head off into the distance of the Gallimimus' scents. This would possibly interesting for the Deinonychus, Blood Stone thought. As the dromaeosaur trailed after the pack of ornitomimosaurs, she noted the constant rate of the rainfall. It was still noon, but the evening was indeed drawing nearer. As she neared the pack, she made sure to curl her sickle claws back even further to help stifle the sound of her footfalls. She narrowed her brown orbs at a particular Gallimimus, a scrawny adolescent, sandy colored female. She seemed frantic to catch up with the rest of her pack, especially in the direction of two particular beige males, one a bit darker than the other. Turning slightly, the crimson Deinonychus's brown orbs bogged when she noticed the certain shape of the faces of the two Gallimimus, especially their orange and amber eyes. Those were to two males who had stolen two eggs from the Velociraptor couple, Pebble and Torrent. Those two bumbling Gallimimus were in a pack, huh?
Carefully clutching the dying indigo Oviraptor mother, the blood red elder let out a shriek as she launched herself towards the small adolescent, catching the young theropod off guard. The Gallimimus adolescent cawed in dismay as Blood Stone pinned her to the ground. Yet, what she didn't notice was that as she had caused the Gallimimus to jerk the egg out of her forepaws haphazardly. Digging her sickle claws into the stringy sandy down of the adolescent, she watched as the egg came into contact with a flowing gully, formed by the rain. Blood Stone sighed as she glanced at the writhing Gallimimus under it, it spitting in deep Mixedtooth dialect out of fear and agitation.
"Well, Hecate... you got your last wish: I brought you to your last egg."
"Ple... ase.. go... after... my baby... for me... then my... wish... will come... true..." Hecate drawled, her emerald gaze beginning glaze over like fogged ice.
Soon enough, the two familiar males came bristling and spitting at the crimson elder, eyes trained on her. Blood Stone hardly made eye contact with the two, mind heavy and scattered. A flash of lightning caused her feathers to stand on end. Not wanting to really start anything, she simply stepped off of the Gallimimus female, but not leaving without a mark. She nipped and sunk her curved teeth into the scaly ankle of the adolescent female, twisting then releasing her grip. This earned her a screech from the ornithomimosaur. The two gray-brown backed males let out collective caws of anger as they lunged at the elderly Deinonychus, in which she simply leaped sideways, skewering the two across their faces with the tip of her sharp sickle claw. She landed a bit awkwardly because of the extra weight from Hecate, but she managed. Blood Stone lifted her bloodied claw up to her, swiping a narrow tongue at it and licking the blood off of it. As the two Gallimimus were distracted, Blood Stone took this chance to bolt away. Her eyes caught onto the teardrop shaped egg bobbing on its journey down the gully after a bit of running.
Her brown eyes locked onto it as she soon came into contact with shrubbery and a small oasis accompanied by a mild copse of ginkgo trees and cycads. Halting, she soon peered through the cycads to see the egg wash upon the bank by a nearby sauropod. She blinked, raindrops falling from her eyelids. The sauropod was quite small for a sauropod, but still large. It was quite into adulthood, though she could tell by the scales and its posture that it was still young. Deep violet scales lined its hide, a lighter shade lining its jawline, throat, chest, underbelly, and underneath tail. Its indigo eyes were trained on the medium-sized ginkgo it was feasting on. Suddenly she felt the weight on her back become heavier. Snapping her gaze around to her passenger, she wasn't surprised when she saw the indigo Oviraptor was limp, eyes half-lidded and glazed completely. Blood still drained out of her wound and trailed down Blood Stone's already blood red soaked down. Sighing through her nares, she slid the theropod off of her, crouching down beside the cold dinosaur. The saurischian watched the other saurischian with watchful eyes.
The deep violet Amargasaurus mother turned to glance lovingly at her small mound of eggs, five in total, her mauve sail lining her scalp, neck, and spine that split at her neck and scalp, then fused at her spine, swaying from the movement. Her indigo eyes widened as she saw a lone, runty and teardrop shaped egg lull at the bank of the oasis from a gully. She craned her long neck down to it, sniffing it slightly. Though a bit hesitant at first, she smiled as she carefully grabbed hold of the egg at its tip with her peg like teeth very softly, bringing it over to her own clutch. setting it down in the cycad, twig, grass, and weed filled mound, she nestled it between one of the large, spherical eggs and the long, oval-shaped egg she had found merely a moon ago.
"Hm... Must've washed in from that gully..." she mused to herself. Opal smiled as she nuzzled her clutch, "There, there, you be careful now, my Little One. Mama Opal will look over you now." She gave a brief lap with the tip of her tongue at the blood-stained egg. She then turned her gaze back to her tree, stopping momentarily in the direction of the nearby cycad shrbbery. Next to her, her mauve colored sister and clutch mate, who had gone over to the oasis to get a drink stopped next to Opal.
"What's wrong, Opal?" the lavender-sailed Amargasaurus female questioned, staring in the direction in which her sister was staring in, navy eyes concerned.
Opal shook her head, "Nothing... Amethyst... Just... probably a Heterodontosaurus or Hypsilophodon..." She glanced at her nest mound briefly before tearing into another leaf and swallowing it nearly whole.
Amethyst eyed her sister slightly as she leaned over and swallowed a stone; a gastrolith for her gizzard to help grind up her food as she joined Opal in eating some ginkgo leaves.
"Won't be soon til they hatch, huh?" the mauve Amargasaurus inquired.
"Shouldn't be... even found a new addition to our family," Opal said aloud, busily munching away at her lunch.
Amethyst nearly spat out her food, "What!? Another?!"
Opal chuckled, "Now, now... the more the merrier. I couldn't have just left it to freeze or destroyed or eaten."
Amethyst shook her head, amused at her species-accepting maniac of a sister, "If you say so... Opal."
Blood Stone watched in curiosity, having dug into the corpse of Hecate, not letting her body go to waste. She had noticed the new Amargasaurus and watched as the two females mumbled and grunted to each other. She had witnessed the deep violet female look over into her direction before digressing her. Though Blood Stone could understand some of Flattooth, her mindset of fluent Sharptooth still blocked it out most of the time. A friend, daughter-like figure had taught her that. How was she doing, Blood Stone thought. She had seen how the deep violet sauropod picked up Hecate's egg and put it into her own nest. She also noted the fifth egg, not round like a sauropod's. She narrowed her eyes as she thoughtfully chewed her meal until not much was left but gristle, feathers, cartilage, and bones. Standing she sighed at the now skeleton of Hecate.
"Your child will live on... for now, Hecate. Good bye."
The crimson elder soon took off into the distance, the rain still pouring down on the horizon.
Blood Stone, Pebble, and Torrent belongs to Kittybubbles1998! Check her profile out on here!