He slowly found his way back to consciousness, blinking dazedly and looking around for Abby. He felt a surge of terror at seeing her facing down the raptor. After a bit of confusion, he hit it unconscious with a large branch, and then Abby helped him limp towards the anomaly.
They found it still open, and Connor told Abby he had to sit down, his head was spinning and his whole body hurt and ached. She wanted to stay with him, but he convinced her to go after Danny and Helen. She left him the bag. He promised he'd be right in the same spot when she got back.
Only, the anomaly closed before she and Danny could return, and Connor stared at the spot where the anomaly had been, fear surging through him like the pain.
He was alone and injured in the cretaceous. His mind kicked into gear, a hundred different thoughts running through his mind, plans and worries and questions. He sat there for a few moments, trying to collect the errant thoughts and organize a solid plan.
Connor swallowed down his fear and pushed the pain away, working on adrenaline left over from his fight with the raptor, grabbed the branch he'd used as a crutch, and staggered to his feet. He slipped the backpack onto his shoulder, and set off to find somewhere to stay for the night. A tree would be best, near a stream if possible, even though he did have at least one canteen full of water in the bag. How he would manage to climb a tree with a bum ankle, he didn't know, but he would have to do so. the only other option was not really an option, as it would result in him being eaten in his sleep on the ground.
x_x_X
He paused at the base of a tree to take a drink of water, and opened one of the dry rations, which happened to be granola bars, to munch on. He'd have to find water in the morning, because what was in the canteen wasn't going to last. in this heat, he'd be hard pressed to ration it.
He finally found a suitable tree, with branches that started low enough that he might be able to manage the climb. A search in his bag revealed that yes, he did have a length of rope inside. It took several nerve-wracking minutes at the base of the tree before he figured out a way to use the rope to his advantage.
x_x_X
He took a deep, steadying breath and slid his injured foot into the loop in the rope, gritting his teeth as he pushed off the ground and grabbed at the branch above him. He got a grip on it, and planted his good foot in the space between two branches,tugging on the rope to help. Adrenaline blocked most of the pain, allowing him to bear it and do what needed to be done.
Soon enough he was settled on the branch, panting with exertion. There were tears in his eyes from the pain, but he blinked them away. He had to get a little higher in the tree - raptors could jump, and the other carnivores were all big enough to spot him in the crook of the branch and gobble him up. Which would be bad.
Connor pulled the rope from the branch, and tossed one end up and over once more, catching it as it fell and trying again. Three tries later and it had caught on another thick branch above him, and he duplicated his actions from before, scrambling up to the higher branch and collapsing against the trunk of the tree with a gasping sigh of relief. He was exhausted, and now the adrenaline began to wear off. Connor sipped at the water and finished the granola bar, and then settled down to sleep. It didn't come easily, but eventually he nodded off, dreaming of Abby.
TBC...